In the sequel to last week's post of Christopher Paci's videos from the Demon King/Celestial Scourge concert, we're picking things back up tonight with videos from the other major hard rock concert that he saw last month, with the last video from the Demon King concert at the end to round things out! As you may recall, Los Angeles hard rock/metal band Mammoth made their local debut on March 28th at The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, and Chris shot fourteen videos of all three bands for his YouTube channel, including eight from the former MammothWVH's headlining set. Chris filmed Wolfgang and crew playing their originals "The End", "Don't Back Down", "Take A Bow", "Distance", "Epiphany", "The Spell", "Another Celebration At The End Of The World", and as embedded below, their set-opener "One Of A Kind".
Chris was in the fourth or fifth row on this night, and he had a good vantage point of the stage, with Wolf's melodic singing & guitar skills and the band's cohesive sound coming through well across the board! Mammoth have built up a strong array of original radio hits in their three albums so far, so give these videos a watch for yourselves above & below!
Next up, Knoxville, Tennessee alt-metal quintet 10 Years co-headlined in their third appearance at the Soo Kewadin, where Chris filmed them playing their songs "Novacaine", "Fix Me", "Russian Roulette", and as embedded below, their signature song "Wasteland". Don't be alarmed by the yellow still image on the video, that was just a momentary flash in the lighting. 10 Years sound good across these videos, with tight performances and well held-up vocals, and they deserved more than being borderline one-hit-wonders on US rock radio! Give Chris' videos from their set a watch above & below!
Lastly from the Mammoth concert, Chris filmed two videos of Welsh alternative/punk quartet James & The Cold Gun's opening set, namely of their songs "Chewing Glass" and, as embedded below, their set-opener "Seven". Spunky and pointed performances here from this rising UK outfit, and hopefully they made lots of new fans in the Soo last month, so check out their videos above and below as well!
Interestingly, the amount of songs per band is halving as we go, and we're ending here with a single video of Sault Ontario death/thrash metal trio Pillory, who opened the aforementioned Demon King concert at Soo Blaster four days prior, and Chris filmed them playing their song "Curse Of Eternal Sickness" that night. Nice technical performance filmed from a close spot on the floor (if with a few closer attendees in between), and I do want to compliment frontman Robert Sartini's vocals in particular, as his death growling is really clear and well enunciated in this recording! That can be a challenge to come through in live videos. Give it a watch below!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the SMS this week! Thanks everyone!
Before we get into another round of weekend concert previews, here's a new news post on this Wednesday night, which includes a newly announced band breakup, new concert videos, a revived solo project, and leading off, a big LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for the spring, so here's what you should know!
Los Angeles-based hard rock band Mammoth (formerly MammothWVH) will make their local concert debut on Saturday, March 28th when they headline at The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino! A quickly increasing presence on rock radio thanks to hit songs like "Distance", "Don't Back Down", and "The End", Mammoth are led by former Van Halen/Tremonti bassist (and Eddie Van Halen's son) Wolfgang Van Halen, who has emerged as a multi-talented virtuoso musician on his own in the 2020s, even performing every note of every instrument on Mammoth's three albums. It will be cool to see Wolfgang and his live touring band rock out here this spring, so don't bypass this show, especially as its on a Saturday night! Knoxville, Tennessee alt-metal veterans 10 Years (of "Wasteland" and "Novacaine" fame) will return to Kewadin Casino as openers, last seen there opening for Seether in August 2018.
10 Years had previously opened for Sevendust at The Dreammakers Theater in 2010, and I'm noticing an unintentional pattern. Good to see them back again after eight years, but should we not hold our breath for a fourth local date before 2034? A second opening band is to be announced. Presented by Allstar Promotions and sponsored by Rock 101, tickets go on sale tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM at this link, 1-800-KEWADIN, or at the in-person box office, with prices starting at $39.50. It will be interesting to see how this show goes, but Mammoth have a huge upside and a bunch of hits already, so don't miss out on their first Sault Ste. Marie gig in four months!
Next up, we have some very surprising news that broke earlier today, as local hard rock cover sextet Exit 808 have announced that they are amicably disbanding. According to their Facebook page, personal life concerns (band members moving, health issues, other bands, and a band member having a baby on the way) mean that Exit 808 "just can't be a priority anymore", and "we want to step off the stage gracefully without falling on our faces". With hindsight, the fact that they have played just one date (in Brimley on November 1st) since the summer could be a sign that members' focus was drifting. Launching under the name Double Jack in the fall of 2023, they debuted with a third place finish at the inaugural Lake Superior State University Battle of the Bands, but drummer Jackie Moon aside, the band was nigh unrecognizable by the following summer as members came and went, let alone their name change.
Exit 808 would become a popular sight at local venues and far flung locales in the Central and Western U.P., and even in the Lower Peninsula a tiny bit, and were known for networking and befriending non-local musicians along the way, who often helped fill in with and guest with Exit 808 during their two year run. This, along with their very modular lineup including two lead singers and a wide age range made them stand out extra, and they were always a fun and talented group, as seen in their ample live videos. Best of luck to Amy, Dillion, Alex, Nathan, Blaze, Jackie, and other former members in the future, and hopefully we see them in new projects when able!
Let's head north to Sault Ontario for the back half of this post, starting with some more new concert videos from Christopher Paci's excellent YouTube channel that didn't fit in Monday's all-E.U.P. post, as he was in attendance for Oshawa-based Bon Jovi tribute band Bon Jovi Forever's return to the Soo at The Sault Community Theatre Centre in September! Like with his Night Ranger videos, these were only uploaded earlier this week, but better late than never! Chris filmed B.J.F. playing the Bon Jovi classics "Livin' On A Prayer", "Wanted Dead Or Alive", "It's My Life", "Bad Medicine", "Runaway", "Have A Nice Day", and as embedded below, "Bed Of Roses". I'm not a Bon Jovi fan, but this tribute does a solid job replicating multiple eras of the band, so hair metal fans should enjoy the performances on offer here, helped by Chris getting a good close angle of the stage from the center section. Check these out above and below, and stay tuned for more from Chris' channel!
Finally for today, here's the latest from local hard rock solo musician Mike McCleary, who has revived his solo project after a 20+ month hiatus! In his first proper post since January 2024, Mike revealed on Saturday that the instrumental album that he was working on in the early 2020s "has officially been put on hold", and while he did not explain why he made that decision, he didn't completely close the door on the album, and is planning to post some material from the album on Facebook to show how it has progressed. However, Mike has signed a deal with Swedish independent label Rexius Records, and is planning to write and record an 8 song album over the next year, which will have "several singles" and contain "some fun, catchy, and energetic rock music for everyone to enjoy". Mike also got spotlighted in this new article from aKtmusiC which promoted what they called "his first-ever release", namely his 2018 song "So Surreal".
This isn't his first release, but fans of Mike's will be aware that he was one to delist or take down old albums and songs based on where his life and music was going. To close, here's a 5 minutes-long instrumental from his unfinished album mentioned above, and while I won't comment on it pending the chance that he does finish and release it, it has more progressive dynamics, a lengthy guitar solo, and some of his heaviest musicianship yet, so you get the sense that he was spreading his wings when writing for this album. It's great to see Mike back at it, so check out more from him above & below!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!
In the sequel to last week's post of Christopher Paci's videos from the Demon King/Celestial Scourge concert, we're picking things back up tonight with videos from the other major hard rock concert that he saw last month, with the last video from the Demon King concert at the end to round things out! As you may recall, Los Angeles hard rock/metal band Mammoth made their local debut on March 28th at The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, and Chris shot fourteen videos of all three bands for his YouTube channel, including eight from the former MammothWVH's headlining set. Chris filmed Wolfgang and crew playing their originals "The End", "Don't Back Down", "Take A Bow", "Distance", "Epiphany", "The Spell", "Another Celebration At The End Of The World", and as embedded below, their set-opener "One Of A Kind".
