A New Local Metal Band, Plus New Videos From The Bear Hunters & Blood Shed Productions!!

As we creep ever closer to the Halloween weekend, the news definitely isn't slowing, so what's in store for this Monday morning update? Mostly new videos, including new live clips from an upstart grind label, and a full set from The Big Loonie Bus Show, but first, here's a new band that you guys should be quite familiar with!

We have a new local band to add to our Sault Ontario band links, and they are a new melodic death/groove metal quartet named Saints & Serpents! Note however that they are primarily based out of London, Ontario, but they list the Soo and London equally as their hometown, and given that, plus their membership & local ties, they definitely count. You may recognize 3/4ths of their lineup as members of the early 2010s local deathcore band The Valentine's Day Massacre, and personal Facebook pages have alluded to Saints & Serpents as a resurrection of sorts, but as best as I can tell, this is generally considered a brand new band. Their lineup is mostly the same as their predecessors, with D3athcharg3r bandmates Steve "Syk Ace" Rhodes & Andrew Angelic on vocals & guitar respectively, along with Adam Veale on bass, though London-area drummer Ian Timmermans takes over for Kyle Umgeher (who moved back to the Sault this summer) in the new band. Saints and Serpents describe their sound on their new Facebook page as "a healthy matrimony of death and groove, thrash and melody, old but new", but song samples have yet to be posted online.

A live debut is forthcoming, but I'll note that after moving to London last fall, The V.D.M. only played one local date before falling inactive this spring, so hopefully we'll see Saints & Serpents here more often! I'll admit that the sound description does sound like an improvement, as the earlier deathcore stuff wasn't entirely my thing compared to heavier death metal subgenres (plus, the name was cumbersome compared to both View To A Kill and Saints & Serpents), so I'm very curious to see where this new project leads! Stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's a new live video from local death metal quartet The Bear Hunters, courtesy of last weekend's Big Loonie Bus Show at La Cucina in Echo Bay! Also uploaded to 62nd Chamber Productions' YouTube channel and posted online on Saturday, this follows in the same side-stage angle from the earlier videos from this concert, but luckily, the camera was lowered to catch more of the band than in the Crimson Crusade video. Their whole 45 minute set was filmed (perhaps excluding the "Teddy Bears Picnic" introduction?), and in order, the songs played include "Dominate", "Deception", "Bloodthirst", "I Fear No God" (which is a new track), "Servitude", "Transcend Judgement" (another new one), "Collapse the Sun", their cover of Amon Amarth's "Guardians of Asgaard", "Render This Void", and finally, a fan favourite cover of guitarist Mitch Sirie's solo track "Squirrel Buddy", so click each link to hear each song! I did miss a few songs like "Succumb to Eternity" and "Karma", but you've gotta make room for the new tracks, and what we did get was brutal!

Very solid all around in terms of video quality and performance, and the new songs sound very promising, but like their other recent gigs, the lack of a rhythm guitarist following Josh Stephney's move is noticeable a lot. Check out the full video below, and stay tuned in case anything of AlgomA or Destroilet's Echo Bay sets pop up!



We'll close today with some new videos from Blood Shed Productions grindcore artists, all as uploaded to the label's YouTube channel on Saturday! Two are from their newest heavier act Rotopsy (formerly Spitneck), which include an upload of a song named "Shitneck" from their recent three-way split demo, and it's a minute-long blend of good metal riffs and odd vocal noises that somewhat sound like Ringsnaps Gibson & Dylan Taylor are mimicing farm animals. Check it out if you want above, but embedded below is their first actual live video, of them playing an untitled original composition featuring backing drum recordings and only Dylan on vocals. His growling, if undistinguishable, sounds more like choking than the usual pig squeals in Ringsnaps' bands, but whether that's better or worse is up to you to decide. I will say it's slightly more accessible, but why not try to have some clearer words in there?) Not bad for what it is, so check out Rotopsy's first full live video below, and hear more above!



Lastly for this post, the aforementioned Ringsnaps Gibson's primary music project Crucify The Whore were the subject of another video uploaded on Saturday, this time a solo performance cover of Mortician's "Hacked Up For Barbecue". Only 49 seconds long, Ringsnaps shows solid guitar skills and control as a pig squealer, but the full song isn't featured for one reason or another, and I still think he'd gain a stronger local foothold if he had a full band around his C.T.W. work. Still, he's making good progress with no apologies, so check out Crucify The Whore's new cover video below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profiles TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!

This Weekend's Sault Ontario Metal/Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

In our second post of the day, we're previewing this weekend's slate of metal & hard rock concerts! All are in Sault Ontario (at least, for ones that I can confirm at present), but if any across the river (or any short notice ones in general) turn up, we'll have them here tomorrow or Saturday! There's a pair of big multi-band concerts with very different aims and sounds in store, but we'll start with a new acoustic solo gig, so read on below for the previews, and check out this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles in the post below this one! (Updated on Friday at 12:18 AM)

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will return to The Roadhouse Bar & Grill ("Roadhouse" is officially one word now) TOMORROW NIGHT! Despite earlier word confirming tomorrow's date, this show was publically advertised on it's Facebook event page as taking place tonight, but it's since been confirmed there that this is a Friday night show as usual, so apologies for any confusion! Tym's acoustic hard rock and metal covers are always a welcome sight at a local venue, and if you can't make the Ray Brown benefit tomorrow night (more on that in a second), you can still see Tym somewhere in the next few days! TOMORROW's show has a 19+ age limit, and there isn't an announced cover charge, but for more details, checl the above links! Keep the return of Tym's solo act in mind for tomorrow night if you're up for some acoustic rock action in the East End, and for a preview, here's Tym covering Heart's "Alone" at Mill Square!

Also this weekend, a variety of local musicians will gather for a bittersweet benefit/tribute show TOMORROW NIGHT at The Verdi Hall to honour local drummer Ray Brown (formerly of The Chosen and some past heavier local bands), who is currently battling cancer in the lungs & liver, and was given only a few months to live last month. As a result, his friends and fellow local musicians have banded together to help raise money to cover his final expenses, and to help him and his family out and honour him as a person and musician. A pasta dinner will be provided for attendees at 7:00 PM tomorrow, while there will be raffles, a door prize, and games to help the cause, so visit the Facebook event page for full details on the non-musical entertainment. Confirmed bands for tomorrow night include local rock cover band Boxcar Junction (formerly Cleveland Steamer), newer local hard rock quintet The Thrill Junkies, alternative hard rockers Lucky 13, fellow hard rock quartet Griphook, Obsession singer Valerie Powley and some unidentified friends, and the aforementioned Tym Morrison (who will also be playing in between breaks.)

Local punk trio Redundant were also confirmed initially for the event, but have dropped out due to drummer Rick White's ongoing recovery from last month's hospitalization. His brother & bandmate James had suggested that his other band Caveman Morrison could fill in, but this hasn't been confirmed by event organizers. Also note that this event was moved from The Canadian Nightclub last month following the major flooding that took place there, and it was bumped from Saturday to Friday due to The Verdi Hall not booking events on the actual Thanksgiving weekend. Advance ticket sales closed yesterday, but you can still get one at the door for $25 IF you inform an administrator of the Facebook event page linked above so they can hold your ticket (also, there's no announced age limits.) Check the above links for more details! I don't know Ray personally, but I know he's a very talented musician and a good guy who's been hit hard by cancer, and it's just sad that news like this is what draws everyone together.

I just hope it's a huge success to help his family through a very trying time, and I know Ray will enjoy and be grateful for everyone's help as a result! On the musical side of things, this event really reminds me of Toystock from last year given it's base of veteran cover bands, so there should be a solid assortment of proven talent to entertain everyone and give Ray his due! Check the above links for more details on this very special event, and for a preview, here's Lucky 13 covering The Stone Temple Pilots last year!




Finally for the known hard rock concerts this weekend, a rare concert on the outskirts of Sault Ontario goes down THIS SATURDAY when new local concert promotion agency Oh! Right Arm! Promotions host The Big Loonie Bus Show, a metal concert at La Cucina (the bar underneath Bucci's Place) in nearby Echo Bay, right near the big loonie! As recently hyped with video interviews with half of the announced bands, the bands playing on Saturday include local sludge/stoner metal trio AlgomA (in just their fourth show & third public concert), popular local death metal quartets The Bear Hunters & Crimson Crusade, and local hardcore punk quintet Destroilet (in a rare show for them with no out of town headliners), while the Facebook event page still hypes a "special secret attraction" to perform as well. Note that most of the bands have new material to debut, so there's more reason to attend! Besides the unique location in Echo Bay (40 minutes east of the Soo), another unique angle is that promoters will be renting a bus to trek fans to and from La Cucina for free on Saturday night!

Drop-off and pick-up will take place outside of the Station Mall Wal-Mart and at the front entrance of the Wellington Square Mall (the earlier Wendy's/Tim Hortons spot on Great Northern is no longer planned), so if you can't/don't want to drive, or want to take a unique ride to and from this very heavy show, keep it in mind! Tickets for this 19+ show (complete with a chocolate loonie) are still available at The Rad Zone or through AlgomA members (with free delivery!) for $10, but the price jumps to $11.50 at the door, regardless of your method for getting to Echo Bay. For more details, and to get your tickets, check the above links! I know Oh! Right Arm! are really hoping that this show's a huge hit, and will encourage more concerts in Echo Bay, so take advantage of the unique location and the party bus to not miss out! Besides, with new material and that surprise band, why not go? I've got family coming up from London that night, so I can't confirm my attendance yet, but make this show a hit, the promoters deserve it and they've put in a lot of work to make this a brutal and unique concert! For a preview, here's AlgomA live at The Rosie in June!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and any late notice concert alerts shortly! Thanks everyone!

Big Loonie Bus Show Updates, A New Brutaly Fatal Song, And Much More!!

This has been our busiest September ever at the SMS (nice to see, given how things usually dip in this month), so let's send it off by clearing out most of our backlogged news items, including some feature profile updates, a new song posting, more assorted notes, and first, all the latest on a unique regional metal concert next month, so here's what you need to know!

Let's start with the latest on next month's Big Loonie Bus Show, the AlgomA-headlined concert at La Cucina (underneath Bucci's Place) in nearby Echo Bay, Ontario on Saturday, October 12th! The promotional push continues with a new poster for the event, hype for a huge merchandise table, and of course, a lot of effort to up the ticket sales. Tickets for the show (complete with a free chocolate loonie, given the location) are now on sale from AlgomA members and at The Rad Zone, and there has been concern at slow sales for the event, which has raised the possibility that promoters Oh! Right Arm! Promotions may not rent the bus designed to charter fans to and from Echo Bay for the concert if not enough people will take advantage. The bus is a great idea to help people get to the event and back without a drunk driving risk, or if you don't have a car, so message promoters or head to The Rad Zone A.S.A.P. to get yours! The band will even deliver tickets TO you, so why not get one? Finally, a new promotional video was posted onto AlgomA's YouTube channel earlier today to hype The Big Loonie Bus Show (also AlgomA's fourth ever, counting the private Tacofest), so what should you know on that?

It mostly features pictures of the performers (including fellow local metal acts The Bear Hunters, Crimson Crusade, and Destroilet) overtop of guitar feedback, along with again hyping a "special bonus attraction", with the end featuring scattered black & white movie footage and 10 seconds of AlgomA's set at The Rosie in June. Effective promotion, so check out the video below, and GET YOUR TICKETS A.S.A.P.! Let's make sure this unique and brutal concert goes off without a hitch, and helps bring more shows to Echo Bay!



Next up, here's the newest song from Blood Shed Productions solo death metal act Brutaly Fatal! Uploaded to the label's YouTube channel on Saturday, this song is named "Cold Pulse", as featured on the Austin McRae-led project's first demo "Acidic Sky's". Like Austin's past solo songs, I get the vibe that this is extremely unfinished, as while he is a good bassist and death growler, there's nothing else to compliment it. At least it's of a solid length, but give this new Brutaly Fatal posting a look below!



Also today, here's three assorted shorter stories from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by company or band name:

• Local2's Shaylan Spurway was in attendance for last week's Night Ranger/John Waite concert at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, and wrote this article about the show that was posted onto Local2 yesterday. Oddly focusing mostly on John Waite's set (complete with interview excerpts), 10 photos from the show are also included. Well done overall, despite the lack of Night Ranger talk, so read the full article above!
• Also in Local2 updates, it was announced this morning that the parent company of fellow local news website SooToday had purchased Local2, and while the two sites will continue to operate independently, Local2 will now focus on online local television production (similarly to it's original early-2000s format as LTVNews.) We can definitely use more locally-produced television, even if it's aired online, so we'll have to see what comes of this, including possible coverage of metal bands/shows! Click here for more information!
• Sault Michigan alternative hard rockers Plastic have parted ways with drummer Paul Burns, as announced on their Facebook page yesterday. Though a reason wasn't announced, Paul stated on his personal Facebook page that he is looking for a new project, and he may be moving out of state (which could be related to his exit.) At least everything sounds amicable, but this is really surprising given Plastic's extensive out of town schedule this fall. Best of luck to Paul in the future, and stay tuned for updates on Plastic's next plans!

Finally for today, here's some updates to some of our monthly feature posts at the SMS! In our Defunct Local Band Profile on Sneaky Pete, I added references to members Mike Oakley & Sean Berlinguette's similar new band Glitch, who launched earlier this month. Moving to our Battle of the Bands Rewind Profiles, I updated our Skid Row Battle Profile to replace Kalle Mattson (who no longer feature battle alumni) with newer local rock quartet Nikkfitt (featuring Scary Uncles bassist Andrew MacDonald) in the section on later bands with battle performers, while I also added notes on Sikamikanico drummer Jesse Cook's later battle success as a metal guitarist with Operation: Killdozer & Winkstinger. On our profile of the 2008 Case's Music Battle, I replaced the now-inactive Moves with Stillbroke guitarist Sam DeDominicis' current London-based funk rock band Lucky Widmore in the section on performers' later bands, while I made a similar switch on our YMCA Battle profile to replace Glass Statues keyboardist Benn Garside's old band Lazer Queen with his current band The Hydra's Teeth. Stay tuned for more feature profile updates next month!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and concert previews this week, including this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post on Wednesday! Thanks everyone!

Late Creepshow Concert Notes, The Unveiling Of What Was Spitneck, And Much More!!

We're back with another news post on this Tuesday evening, so what's in store? Along with some assorted recent updates, we have a new solo performance video, the long-time-coming debut of a Blood Shed Productions grindcore band, and leading off, some fallout from a big concert last night, so read on below for what we currently know!

We should start with late notice changes that we missed from last night's Creepshow-headlined psychobilly/metal concert at The Roosevelt Hotel, starting with a surprise added band, as Nelson, B.C. "electro-folk/disco-thrash" quintet Tofu Stravinsky also played last night! This was confirmed on their own Facebook page last night after their set, and their sound is very original, with a mix of female vocals, indie rock, and techno into quite a different style, and hopefully their set went over well last night! The other late notice change to announce is that Bear Hunters/Suicide Kings member Mitch Sirie apparently played with local horror punk rockers Frightlight during their set last night, under the stage name "Stitch Grizzly"! Frontman Johnny Pints announced this on the concert's Facebook event page last night, but as I wasn't in attendance (and haven't seen photos yet), I can't confirm what role he played, if he's now a permanent member, or who left/moved instruments to accomodate Mitch. I will note that their Facebook page hasn't been updated yet to note any lineup changes, and all of the most recent local members (including guest bassist Slim Cadaver) were confirmed attendees on the event page. When we hear more, I'll let you guys know!

Next up, here's more recent updates on Blood Shed Productions! The Sault Ontario grindcore/rap label recently (and finally) unveiled the band Spitneck, who had been alluded to on posts on their Facebook page since January. However, shortly after their first song was uploaded to the label's YouTube channel, it was taken down due to a name change for the project, as the Spitneck name was already in use, so now the project is called Rotopsy. The project is a two man band (at least in it's current form), and it appears to feature singer/guitarist Ringsnaps Gibson (I recognize his pig squeals) along with a yet-unidentified collaborator (perhaps Austin McCrae?) Rotopsy have no online page yet, but their genre is described as "porngrind", so if any lyrics are discernible, they may offend some listeners. Their first song (entitled "Neurological Sperm Bucket") is now online, and while it's similar to Ringsnaps' other bands through Blood Shed, there's more of a variance in the vocals, and the drumming is a nice fit!

I have no idea why it took so many months for our first look at Spitneck/Rotopsy, but check out their first song below, stay tuned for when/if they launch an online page (or when we find out more on their lineup), and look for more from Rotopsy on their planned split demo with Malignant Neoplasm & Brutaly Fatal!



Also today, Ashes To Dust guitarist Alex Hemy's latest solo guitar cover was uploaded to his YouTube channel on Sunday, and it's a cover of Three Doors Down's "Here Without You"! Like his last few videos, it's a solo rendition with him on vocals & guitar, and it continues his recent trend of softer & general rock covers (I wonder if this is a conscious decision to better match his singing voice?) It's a well done cover, especially if you like Three Doors Down's ballads, but his voice strikes me as too high for the mood of this song, and it wavers a bit on the choruses. Good work though, so give Alex's newest cover a look below!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news stories from the last little while, and as usual, these are i alphabetical order by artist or event name:

• The AlgomA-headlined Big Loonie Bus Show at La Cucina in Echo Bay on October 12th has seen a change to one of it's bus pick-up & drop-off points, as the planned Wendy's/Tim Hortons parking lot on Great Northern Road has been swapped for the Station Mall parking lot in front of Wal-Mart for unknown reasons. This was quietly confirmed by promoters on the Facebook event page in recent days, and the other bus stop location at the Wellington Square Mall is unchanged. Visit the above links for more details on this very heavy & unique upcoming concert!
• Dafter, Michigan solo artist Kenneth "SweetKenny" Sutton has uploaded new songs named "Can't Drive" and "Goose" to his official website, both of which are slated to be on next month's new solo album "Cracks In The Wall"! I'll hold formal thoughts in case this is reviewed in November, but both sound good on first listen, with the former having a particularly heavy groove, so check out each above! Note that I believe these are both instrumental takes.
• If you were curious for more info on the private Garden River concert "Anti-Capitalist TacoFest" from last month, a photo album from it was posted on participants AlgomA's Facebook page, where it confirms the announced lineup, along with the location (inside someone's house), and performers such as former Ye Olde Mold Pickers accordionist Rihkee Strapp, ex-Chronic Demonic singer Sabrina Strange on drums, and a newly short-haired Chris Page (Giwakwa) handling sound for at least part of the day. Looks like this was a fun event, and hopefully we see the performers again soon!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for last month's poll results & this month's newest poll tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Big Loonie Bus Show Updates, Grinded Live In Your Ears Fallout, And Much More!!

Keeping the news rolling on this Wednesday morning, we have a bunch of shorter recent updates to get to, and fallout from a recent concert, but first, here's some big updates for an upcoming regional metal concert, so here's what you need to know!

We'll start this news post with updates to the upcoming "Big Loonie Bus Show" going down at La Cucina (under Bucci's Place) in nearby Echo Bay, Ontario on October 12th! One new note is that grunge duo Bad Back have quietly dropped out of the event in the past week or so. A reason wasn't announced, but given that frontman Jamie Vincent is still playing with his other band AlgomA, a scheduling conflict on drummer Nathan Sauve's part wouldn't surprise me. Replacing them (and maintaining the alphabetical name trend) are local death metal standouts The Bear Hunters, who should brutalize in their Echo Bay debut! The fifth band slot remains open, though promoter/AlgomA guitarist Boyd "Darby Wigwaus" Rendell is hyping "a possible special secret attraction", so we'll have to see if that leads somewhere. The event will be alcohol licensed (so I assume it's fully 19+), and tickets will be $10 in advance and $11.50 (odd number) at the door. While ticket purchasing details have yet to be announced, a purchase will guarantee you a round trip bus ride to and from the concert!

Yes, there will be at least one bus rented for Saultites to get to Echo Bay for the show (hence it's name), and there will be pick-up spots at both the Wendy's/Tim Hortons on Great Northern Road and at The Wellington Square Mall, so there's all the more reason to go! This concert (also featuring Crimson Crusade & Destroilet) is shaping up to be quite the unique event, so keep it in mind for the fall, stay tuned for updates, and get more information at the official Facebook event page!

Also in concert updates (albeit for one already taking place), here's some clarification and fallout from Saturday night's "Grinded Live In Your Ears" house-hosted concert in the P Patch following the Swampstravaganza! First, I can confirm that "Todd the Shitty Busker" was an alias used by local solo musician Chase James Wigmore, who we'll be covering more in depth on the site next month for our Defunct Local Band Profile on his old Smiling Giraffes project. He does have some creative talents, though the stage name usage still seems odd. A photo album from the event (which was indoors) was posted onto Facebook by attendee Katie Stevenson, featuring shots of Todd/Chase, Crucify The Whore, Crimson Crusade (pictured), and surprise late notice performers Warsenal. No pictures of Pillory or Social Suicide's sets are featured, but Pillory drummer Bret Shuttleworth told me their set featured just him and frontman Robert Sartini, so it wasn't a full return set.

There were also assorted musical guests (like ex-Undead Warriors guitarist Aaron Gasparetto), some of which can be seen in videos uploaded to Blood Shed Productions' YouTube channel yesterday! All from Crucify The Whore's set (essentially Ringnaps Gibson on vocals/guitar with backing tracks and/or guest drummers), one video has an original and a loose cover of Slayer's "Reign In Blood", while the others include a cover of Burning The Masses' "Nailgun Massacre",  his original "Bunk, Shake, and Headache", and the one embedded below merging two original tracks. In terms of drummers, Winkstinger's Jesse Cook sits in on the below video and the "Reign In Blood" cover, and Bring The Fallen alum Travis St. Amour drums on "Nailgun Massacre", while Ringsnaps uses a backing track for "Bunk, Shake, and Headache". The lighting on these videos isn't spectacular, but C.T.W. tracks do sound heavier and fuller in a live setting (even the pig squealing fits better), and I'd like to see Ringsnaps take his projects to a public stage again and see where it goes! Check out Crucify The Whore live below and see more at the above links!



Finally for today, here's six shorter recent news items, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or company name:

• I forgot to mention this in our Swampstravaganza review, but Bear Hunters frontman Nik Deubel announced during their set that their upcoming debut CD will be called "Eternal Hibernation" (presumably referring to the end result of a successful bear hunt.) Sounds fitting, and stay tuned for updates on it's release!
• Local musician Chris Raginskis is yet again exploring the idea of forming a dedicated cover band, this time to cover Volbeat material. Sounds intriguing (you know how much Garden of Bedlam and fans love them), but if you're interested, message Chris at this link or through his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post on August 4th!
• Also from the Musicians Wanted Facebook group, local bassist Jason Lang is looking to get back into live music, preferably in a classic/modern rock band, though he emphasized he'd just like the odd gig, not to become a rock star. Reply to his post on the group from Sunday or message him at this link to inquire further!
• AlgomA guitarist Boyd Rendell's new promotion agency Oh! Right Arm! Productions now has a Twitter page, so follow along there for updates on the Big Loonie Bus Show and other events, and they're now in our Other Sault Ontario Links section!
• I can finally confirm that Purple Core (who played at Haggith's private Canada Day bash) are a Stone Temple Pilots cover band featuring the members of Haggith (minus Caleb Cachagee), with the name coming from a combination of their first two albums. Essentially, they're like The Nirvanabees with a different source band. Thanks to Daniel Horton for the clarification!
• Dafter, Michigan hard rock solo artist Ken "SweetKenny" Sutton has announced plans to release his seventh studio album "Cracks In The Wall" on Halloween, though little beyond the album cover is out at present. As a result, I'll hold our next SweetKenny CD review until at least November so I can choose it or "Perception" next (likely the heavier of the two), but look out for updates!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews and more very soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!! (The Ripcordz, Frightlight, AlgomA, And Tym Morrison)

Taking a cue from yesterday's post (all about new concerts in St. Ignace), we're focusing on LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for new concerts from this coming Saturday through October in Sault Ontario, including some big out of town acts, so read on below for what you need to know!

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison didn't just play at The Road House Bar & Grill last Friday, as he'll be playing at this Trunk Road venue every Friday this month! Fresh off of his very busy (but all-short notice) concert weekend, including solo dates at The Road House on Friday night & The Nicolet Tavern on Saturday afternoon that we missed for full coverage (apologies all around!), Tym will follow up his August 2nd show at The Road House Bar with dates on Friday the 9th, 16th, 23rd, and 30th! My source is the Facebook event page for his show there this past Friday, and again, don't be confused with his older frequent venue The Zone Roadhouse in Goulais River. No word yet on if this is a formal resurrection of his old weekly concert arrangements at venues like The Service Grill and Foggy Notions, but Tym's unplugged solo acoustic metal covers should go over well for his regular run this month! All 4 upcoming shows should have no cover charge, 9:00 PM-ish start times, and 19+ age limits. Check the above links for more details, and stay tuned for more from Tym's prolific unplugged solo concerts!

Next up in new Sault Ontario show confirmations is one we've been waiting almost a month to officially plug on here, as local horror punk/metal notables Frightlight will play their third show of the year on August 17th (one week from Saturday) as openers for Oshawa horror punk quartet Black Cat Attack and Welland punk/psychobilly trio Chainsaw Lobotomy! Featuring original Sum 41 guitarist Dave Baksh, The B.C.A.'s female-fronted mix of rockabilly and punk styles should attract a good audience, with enough familiarity and unique qualities to get a crowd going, while Chainsaw Lobotomy's genre blend and hard-to-define sound has a lot of entertaining punk intensity going for it as well, so keep both bands in mind come the 17th! As for Frightlight, this show will mark their second gig with fill-in bassist James "Slim Cadaver" White (presumably due to Eddie Fright's out of town commitments), but Slim filled in well the first time around, so all should be fine for their Misfits-inspired attack at this show! Note that the Facebook event page still advertises a band to be announced, but that isn't a guarantee that we'll see a new addition. We'll keep you posted!

Originally planned for The Algonquin Pub before being relocated (source here), it'll now take place at The Roosevelt Hotel, and there is a 10:00 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and $10 cover charge in effect. Also, like promoter Johnny Pints' earlier Striker concert at The Rosie, there will be a scary costume contest with the winner getting band merchandise, so bring your scariest getup, and check the above links for more details! Punk fans (horror-themed or not) should be right at home with this concert, and there's enough metal to get that angle as well, so don't bypass it in a couple of weeks, and stay tuned for potential updates!

In a detour we've never made for a metal concert, we'll move to Echo Bay (a half hour east of Sault Ontario) on October 12th for "The Big Loonie Bus Show" at La Cucina, the bar underneath the Bucci's Place restaurant at 3159 Highway 17B (right near the giant loonie, hence the name.) Promoted by AlgomA frontman Boyd "Darby Wigwaus" Rendell through his new promotion agency Oh! Right Arm! Promotions, this show will see no less than 5 local metal bands take the stage, including the aforementioned sludge trio AlgomA, their drummer Jamie Vincent's grunge project Bad Back, local/North Shore death metal quartet Crimson Crusade, and local hardcore punk veterans Destroilet (with one more band to be announced.) Interesting lineup to be sure, especially with the new venue! A full performance order is to be determined, and an earlier 8:00 PM start time has been announced, but nothing has been made clear yet on admission prices, age limits, or whether there actually will be a bus in play for any aspect of getting to and from Echo Bay. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

Compared to Sault Michigan, heavier shows in outskirt towns and communities are much rarer on the Ontario side of the border, but if Boyd's promotion takes off, maybe that can slowly change! "The Big Loonie Bus Show" has a solid array of local metal talent, with a unique setting and more going for it, so stay tuned for updates, and if you live out east, this could be right up your alley!

Finally for the announced shows, the aforementioned Johnny Pints announced on his own promotion agency's Facebook group on Friday that his eighth annual Halloween Party will go down on October 26th (the Saturday before Halloween, as usual), and it will be headlined by the return of Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz! Over 6 months after their well received return to the Soo in April, Paul Gott and company should be ready for another hard hitting blend of hardcore punk classics for their local fans in just under 3 months, and the Halloween backdrop should prove very fitting! The other bands are to be announced, but the aforementioned Frightlight are very likely (they played at Johnny's last 4 Halloween shows), and at least one more band is likely as well (recent examples include Redundant, Winkstinger, and Sykotyk Rampage), though note that last year's party featured 4 bands (3 local), none of which was the previously-regular cover band who changed their name and genre each year.

The Halloween Party will see it's third home this year (the old Coch's Corner in 2006-2011 & The Algonquin Pub in 2012), as the event will now shift to The Roosevelt Hotel, which should be a good home, but the exodus of Johnny's recent shows from The Algonquin is still sorta odd. Like past years, a $5 cover, 19+ age limit, 10:00 PM-ish start time, costume contest, and Halloween motif are all likely, so make sure you have your costumes ready come October 26th, and check the above links for more details! Johnny always pulls out all the stops for his Halloween Parties, so keep it in mind for October, and stay tuned as more updates roll in!

That's all for today, but as long as nothing late notice or major comes up in between, stay tuned for an all-video post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!