Here's a neat find, a new interview with Treble Charger guitarist/vocalist Bill Priddle that was posted on YouTube in August! This was conducted by Joel Martin of The Joel Martin Mastery Podcast, which you can hear for free on most major podcast platforms, with video versions also uploaded to the podcast's YouTube channel. The series' primary intent is to conduct two hour+ remote interviews with (typically) Canadian musicians in order to tell their stories and learn about what made them what they are today, and Joel himself is a singer/guitarist from Southern Ontario, so he can relate in many respects for these deep dives. It's rare when the SMS' coverage heads into podcasting, but the video from the show's YouTube channel is embedded at post's end, and note that Joel extracts parts of his interviews as separate uploads, but we're looking at the whole shebang here.
The interview with Bill was episode #71 of The J.M.M.P. (episode #78 dropped on Monday), but don't bypass his other episodes, as he's gotten some big names! The 2 hours & 14 minutes long interview starts with Joel
(pronounced Joe-ell) asking Bill about his recent songwriting and the
struggles therein for now vs. back in the day, before going back to the
beginnings of Bill's love & interest in music, his early influences
as a kid, how he got into learning guitar and singing, his early local band work in the late 1970s and 1980s, his day jobs before focusing on music, and his mixed feelings about how the Soo influenced and impacted his music (I do agree with Bill on our lack of a Canadian rock or college radio station). How Bill met Greig Nori early and decided to form a band together was also brought up, including their move to Toronto, their first band there (named Warehouse) and their initial unreleased (and allegedly poor) album.
After outlining his views on band development under labels and the perceived "death of music" in the early 1980s, Joel asks Bill about when he realized he could make a career out of his music, family reactions to his musical aspirations, the MacLean's magazine cover article that featured Treble Charger (from March 27th, 1995), and some of his later nicknames. Treble Charger proper are focused on next, including how they came up with their original name nc-17 & why they had to change it, their debut album of the same name from 1994, their own indie label Smokin' Worm Records, early opportunities and concerts from this album's timeframe, and knowing The Tragically Hip from their early days (to some surprising levels). They next discuss Treble Charger's self-titled album from 1995, the feeling he got hearing their songs on the radio, that album's succession of re-releases, Bill's ear for harmonies, ...
...the pros and cons of being in a band with two singers (and how studio politics relating to who should be the lead singer helped stop the band initially), his memories of their first Juno Awards nomination and trip to the ceremony. Next they focus on 1997's "Maybe It's Me" (Bill's favourite of their five studio albums), with Bill discussing his feelings about getting proper rock radio hits and a gold certification for it, working with producer Lou Giordano and how that influenced him in that later role, choosing to re-record and re-release "Red" as a single, information on the gear and recording processes that he has used, and his ideal pick for a song to be included in a Guitar Hero game if they were asked. We dive into the pop punk era of Treble Charger next via 2000's "Wide Awake Bored", with Bill discussing why he thought it and "American Psycho" was their biggest album and song each, ...
...recording the album at Sound City in Los Angeles, his favourite tour stops & memories from this tour cycle (including playing with bands like The Foo Fighters), and how his songs come together. The final Treble Charger album (so far) comes up next, namely 2002's "Detox", which Bill is candid about his mixed feelings for in terms of recording it and the band's continued shift to pop punk, conflicting with his burgeoning work with Broken Social Scene and learning a lesson about playing music for money or not. Next, Bill answers a fan question about their 2012 reunion, his strained relationship with Greig by the end of their first run, how they repaired things, and why the reunion involved just him & Greig with session/touring musicians. Bill did note that he doesn't consider Treble Charger to be dead, and that they are slowly working on new music and hope to play live again (possibly next summer).
It does sound like a deliberate, stress-free approach, with them playing/working together when the cards line up the right way, and while some true public activity hasn't come in the pandemic era, hopefully we haven't heard the absolute last from Treble Charger! If you're only interested in Treble Charger talk, that stops about 90 minutes in, with Bill then going into detail about his work with Broken Social Scene, Don Vail, and The Priddle Concern (where some songs declined for later Treble Charger albums were eventually found), as well as some insights on his later work as a producer. An hour and 53 minutes in, we steer back to local discussion when Joel asks Bill about his recent local band Pointless, and he even brings up his help with local punk trio A Dire Setback's debut album! Joel gives his thoughts on three original song demos that Bill sent him as well, but there was no discussion of All The Tired Horses.
After asking about Bill's musical longevity, Joel gives Bill a series of rapid fire questions (stuff like favourite venues, biggest shows, bands he loved that he opened for, etc.), plus some closing deeper questions about unfulfilled dreams, his proudest achievements, and his advice for his 10 year old self. Very informative interview for fans of Bill's lengthy music career, especially on the Treble Charger side of the coin, and Joel had lots of good questions to ask, with Bill coming across respectful, kind, and insightful for the duration! I wonder if Greig could be interviewed by Joel at some point? Give the entire 2+ hour interview a watch/listen below, and weekend concert previews are next! Thanks everyone!
(Updated at 4:07 PM) As promised, here's the second half of this weekend's hard rock concert previews, and again, these all had advance notice! To fill things out, I have added details on some new videos from a prominent local solo artist, but here's what you should know for the remainder of your concert plans over the Valentine's Day weekend!
We'll start in St. Ignace, Michigan, where Traverse City classic metal trio Peril will return for shows TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT at The Northern Pines Lounge at their Kewadin Casino branch! Playing just their third and fourth concerts of 2020 this weekend (following their Soo Kewadin stops last month), these will be Peril's first bookings at the St. Ignace Kewadin since November, and this veteran group should have another solid pair of hard rocking covers in store for Yooper fans tonight and tomorrow! No word on if they'll have any Valentine's Day song selections in their repertoire, but it would make sense for at least tonight. Both of these shows have no announced cover charges and 9:00 PM start times, and as usual, these have age limits of 21 or older. For more details on this weekend's Peril concerts, visit the above links, and for a preview, here they are live!
Next up, we'll head slightly north to The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino for that venue's first major touring hard rock concert of the 2020s, albeit in acoustic format, as Mr. Big frontman Eric Martin and Trixter bassist P.J. Farley will hit the stage TOMORROW NIGHT! Hair metal fans will know Eric from his vocals on Mr. Big hits like "To Be With You" & "Just Take My Heart", but this will be a stripped down unplugged concert with him also playing guitar, much like his recent solo shows have been elsewhere. On this night, P.J. Farley will accompany him on bass (might they tackle some Trixter classics?), while Eric's Facebook page reveals that Nashville freelance artist and percussionist Ben Hans will also guest with them on Saturday. This will be a big change of pace from Kewadin's usual hair metal concerts, but Eric, P.J., and Ben have the musical chops to make this a can't miss attraction for genre fans!
Also, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge this Facebook teaser video to hype this concert, courtesy of Fozzy frontman and AEW Heavyweight Champion Chris Jericho (yes, that Chris Jericho.) He missed the plural in the venue name, but never mind, it's Y2J! This 8:00 PM and all ages concert has tickets for just $12.50 ($15 for premium closer seats), and you can buy them at 1-800-KEWADIN, this link, and at the in-person box office. This will be a nice appetizer before The Hair Scare Live next weekend, so see above for more details, and here's Eric Martin in concert!
Lastly for this weekend, let's go back to Sault Ontario for a huge concert THIS SUNDAY NIGHT at The Sault Community Theatre Center, as British Columbia hard rock/post-grunge quartet Theory of a Deadman will make their long awaited Sault Ontario return on this night! While we haven't seen Theory on this side of the border since they opened for Seven Mary Three at the Princess way back in 2000 (thanks, Alex!), Sault Michiganders got the privilege thrice between 2012 & 2017 at The Dreammakers Theater, so if you couldn't see them across then, head to the former Kiwanis Theatre at White Pines Collegiate on Sunday! Touring in support of their new album "Say Nothing" (featuring the rock radio hit "History of Violence"), their new stuff continues down their more varied pop rock path compared to their earlier post-grunge/Nickelback lite material, but expect to hear older hits like "Bad Girlfriend", "Santa Monica", and "Lowlife" during the set as well! No opening acts are advertised. Presented by SL Concerts, this all ages event has a 7:30 PM start time.
As for tickets, I believe they are sold out online, but they were going for $52 presale, and you may want to visit the Sault Community Theatre's box office at the Station Mall or call (705) 945-7299 to inquire about any openings, or check the secondary market. I'm not a huge Theory of a Deadman fan, but I admire their diversity as of late and willingness to expand their sound, and I know they have a lot of fans in Sault Ontario who are highly anticipating this concert! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Theory of a Deadman live at Kewadin Casino!
We'll close today with new videos from prolific local folk punk/metal solo musician Chase Wigmore's Facebook page, which has shared four solo acoustic performance clips in the past few days. In these,he tackles existing originals of his, including "Rites of the Wendigo", "Scabies", "Live To Work/Wear & Tear", and as embedded below, "Psychic Driving." These all appear to have been filmed on the same day, and they all capture Chase's intense and irreverent vocal & guitar work very well, with lots of solid musicianship to go around! His fast, ultra-direct playing is especially fun to see. Give these a look above & below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
Before we dive into this weekend's concert previews, here's a new news post that is mostly devoted to a pair of big LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the winter at a major local concert venue, but there are some new videos to round things out. Here's what you should know!
Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night will embark on their third Christmas tour over the holidays, with at least one E.U.P. stop on the route once again, as they'll return to The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino on Saturday, December 14th! Apparently entitled the "Dreams of Christmas Tour" this year, fans both in the Soo area, downstate, and even in Illinois have enjoyed Craig, Steve, and company's metallized takes on Christmas carols since 2017, and as you heard in instrumental form on their "Christmas Night" CD, they should deliver more seasonal entertainment for hometown fans in a couple of months time! If you are curious, or live below the bridge, you can also see Theatre of Night in Jackson and Blanchard next month, plus in Holland on December 21st, so click here for information on those gigs. I expect further gigs to be added in due course, and for reference, Theatre of Night also played shows in Grand Rapids, Zeeland, and locally in Pickford last year, and in Midlothian, Illinois in 2017.
A 7:00 PM start time is expected for this ALL AGES concert, which will presumably be held in The Dreammakers Theater's table seating configuration once again, and note that food, drinks, and a cash bar were on hand here last year. Tickets are not on sale yet, but last year, they went for $15 (table seating) or $25 (theatre seating), with some proceeds going to the local Salvation Army. It's great to see Theatre of Night back for a third go-around of their Christmas tour, but will this be their only Chippewa County stop for 2019,and what other frills might pop up here and elsewhere? Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and before we move on with this post, they have a bunch of videos we have bypassed over the last few months as they've prepared for the tour, which I profusely apologize for missing out on! They are mostly short, and I'll definitely address them all in an upcoming post, but we'll start with a longer one shared from keyboardist Craig Harrison's personal Facebook page back in June.
This is of Craig playing his 2016 original composition "If I Could Just Tear Down These Walls", in a performance he labelled as "early morning piano work." If you missed his original deleted YouTube copy of this song, it's a dark and melancholy song without any Christmas hints, but you can feel the emotion in it, and the sepia filter in this video works to it's advantage! Give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night soon!
Next up, here's the first big hard rock/metal concert announcement for 2020 at the aforementioned Dreammakers Theater, as Mr. Big frontman Eric Martin and Trixter bassist P.J. Farley will join forces for a special acoustic concert there on Saturday, February 15th! Hair metal fans will no doubt recall Eric's work with Mr. Big in the early 1990s, including such hit songs as "To Be With You", "Just Take My Heart", and "Green-Tinted Sixties Mind", and it'll be very interesting to hear him tackle his material in an apparent unplugged setting in four months! P.J. Farley isn't the opening act, as he and Trixter bandmate Steve Brown have routinely backed up Eric in his solo gigs as of late, though venue advertising lists this as a duo performance. We'll let you know if anything changes! Tickets for this all ages show go on sale this Friday at 1-800-KEWADIN, this link, and the in-person box office, and an 8:00 PM start time is advertised. No word on a possible opening act.
Unplugged shows from major touring headliners aren't a foreign concept at the Sault Kewadin (remember when Godsmack played here?), but with a Hair Scare-approved twosome making their way here, it should be an interesting show in many respects, and affordable too! Check the above links for more details as they roll in,and get your tickets on Friday!
Finally for today, here's a new video on Sault Ontario/Manitoba alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith's YouTube channel, featuring the audio from his set at the annual Jamming For Jackets fundraiser concert in his current Thompson, Manitoba homebase this past Saturday! Mike only played an 18 minute set, but he was the event's headliner, and he performed his new originals "The Best You Never Had", "MorningStar", and "Communique" here, plus "The Nature Of The Times" from his delayed "Bridges" album. Nice to hear some new live copies of these songs, and the recording quality's solid overall, so give this a listen below, and keep watch for more from Mike!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!
Here's a neat find, a new interview with Treble Charger guitarist/vocalist Bill Priddle that was posted on YouTube in August! This was conducted by Joel Martin of The Joel Martin Mastery Podcast, which you can hear for free on most major podcast platforms, with video versions also uploaded to the podcast's YouTube channel. The series' primary intent is to conduct two hour+ remote interviews with (typically) Canadian musicians in order to tell their stories and learn about what made them what they are today, and Joel himself is a singer/guitarist from Southern Ontario, so he can relate in many respects for these deep dives. It's rare when the SMS' coverage heads into podcasting, but the video from the show's YouTube channel is embedded at post's end, and note that Joel extracts parts of his interviews as separate uploads, but we're looking at the whole shebang here. 
