Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Brad Example & The Role Models And Second Guess

It's now time for this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles, as we continue our monthly looks back at local metal, hard rock, and punk acts of the past! This month's randomly selected double header are due to the first band not having enough surviving info, but I just wanted to clarify that I decided to keep that band despite our removal of their MySpace page from our links, as nothing's changed with it beyond our knowledge (in hindsight) that MySpace lost their songs. However, un-profiled bands deleted from our band links will not be considered for future installments unless posthumous pages are launched/found. Now, here's what you should know!
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Brad Example & The Role Models

Genre: Punk

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Members: (Members not in their last full lineup in italics. This lineup information may be incomplete. Let me know if you can fill in any blanks!)

Brad "Example" Lacell (The Inner City Surfers, Room 206), vocals/bass
Dave Bahun (The Inner City Surfers, The Boot Hill Crooners), guitar
Marco Pedalino (The Cover-Up, Lion Ride, Bondar), guitar
Marc Muto (Lion Ride, Bondar, The Hangdowns), drums
Phil Greco (Tall Boy & The Smokes, Tripod the Dog), drums

Audio/Video: With MySpace's loss of millions of songs on their servers last year, The Role Models' four demo originals hosted there from 2006 are no longer streamable. No other media is known to exist publically online, but Brad's own solo recordings may harbour some similarities to The Role Models, if in a more stripped down format, and you can check out recordings of him at this link and at scattered other locations. Of course, Brad & Dave's past work with The Inner City Surfers also shared some obvious thematic links.

Info/Analysis: One of many Surfers side projects, Brad Example & The Role Models only played live sporadically, including sets opening for The Revue in December 2006, The Saigon Hookers (twice) in 2011, and Public Animal in June 2014, while also playing at 2011's Tailfeathers Music Festival in Bruce Mines. Brad has focused on solo music since 2015, but The Role Models' chemistry-laden & fan-friendly punk attack was always a solid presence, complete with some surprise metal covers, and Brad's gritty but soulful singing fit their live shows nicely! Hopefully some media turns up and/or they reunite down the road, they deserved a busier run!
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Second Guess 

Genre: Alternative/Hard Rock

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Members: (Members not in their last full lineup in italics. This lineup information is incomplete, particularly concerning Dylan's role in the band. Let me know if you can fill in any blanks!)

Cody McMillan (John Hewitt & The New Americans, Blackwater), vocals/guitar
Garrett Masters (As It Stands, Break The Violence), guitar
Angelo Huckson (As It Stands, Break The Violence), bass
John Mignacca (As It Stands, Break The Violence), drums
Dylan Cook, ????

Info/Analysis: Formed by best friends & high school students in 2004, Second Guess reportedly played a gig at The Downstairs Bar in January 2005, and had teased shows that same year opening for Kiros and The Crossed, though it's unclear if those sets took place. Second Guess were reportedly working on an original CD, and listed 7 songs on their setlist on their Tripod page, though aside from a brief reference to covering Nirvana material, no direct hints towards their sound were made. Garrett, Angelo, and John moved on to the short lived ska punk band Break The Violence in 2005 before forming their best known band As It Stands later that year, while Cody would find greater renown locally as a folk musician, currently performing in Edmonton under the alias John Hewitt. I have no way of knowing how Second Guess would have sounded, but their lineup definitely had talent that blossomed very well in the ensuing decade+, and hopefully some media surfaces!
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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles! Next month in this series, we have a Sault Michigan band next in our rotation, but because the randomly selected band that I drew for next month doesn't have enough surviving information, I randomly added a Sault Ontario band to fill things out. As such, we'll be looking at inactive Sault Michigan hard rock band Bucksaw (a.k.a. Dirtbag In A Dress) and a Sault Ontario band we just added to our links last month, that being defunct alt-punk trio Nowhere Fast! Look for these on or around May 10th, and for weekend concert previews and more on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Teethmarks Concert Preview, Pixo Control Coverage, And Much More!!

In this second news post of the day, we're mostly covering assorted recent news and notes, but we'll kick things off with two items relevant to The Pixo Control: new videos from one of their recent shows, and a preview for their next concert TOMORROW NIGHT! Read on below for what you should know, and check out this month's YouTube Channel Profile in the post below it!

A rare Wednesday night concert goes down TOMORROW featuring Toronto hardcore punk crossover quartet Teethmarks making their local concert debut at The Rednecks Saloon! A heavy and to-the-point hybrid of styles, Teethmarks' grimy originals should leave their own mark tomorrow night, so be sure to check them out at the former Nicolet Tavern tomorrow night! Local support wll come via local grunge/hard rock trio The Pixo Control (in what I think will be their Rednecks debut), while local acid/alternative rock trio Mike Haggith & The Din were added as a late second opening band on Thursday, as per the Facebook event page. Neither band are close genre matches to Teethmarks, but they're both talented and well liked bands, and they should get things rolling well tomorrow night! Just as a reminder, this is not the Teethmarks show teased in AlgomA's interview with Metalhead.it, which was mentioned as being on July 4th (they're now in Sudbury that day, no word on if this show is a rescheduling or not.)

Co-promoted by Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie and Destroilet co-frontman Brenton Ellis, TOMORROW'S concert is FREE to attend, and likely has a 10:00 PM start time, but it is a 19+ event. Should be a solid concert whether you want aggressive hardcore punk or local alternative rock, so keep it in mind for tomorrow, and remember, NO COVER! Check the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Teethmarks live in Quebec!

Next up, here's some new videos from the aforementioned Pixo Control's recent "Pixo Plays For Food" fundraiser at The Rankin Arena! Sault Online named them their "Band of the Week" last week, posting this article there last Sunday, with correspondent Mike Caruso filming & interviewing them for the article and his YouTube channel in the process. One video is of the guys playing their song "Sixty Extra Chances Called Minutes" (on multiple cameras and with post-effects), while the other is an interview with integrated live footage. In the interview, Mike asks all three band members about their formation, how they got their name, what the fundraiser was designed to accomplish, their album and tour plans, and their music training background, among other topics, and it's a solid and loose interview that even cracked Mike up at points! For new info, the band revealed that their album will likely be done recordings next month, with the tour pencilled in for a July start in Southern Ontario.

In terms of the video quality, everything looks good, if a little washed out for colour, and The Rankin Arena reminds me of The Oddfellows Hall a tiny bit. Nice to see Mike and Sault Online covering more local bands, so check out The Pixo Control's interview below and more above, and stay tuned for more!



Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• We'll likely be moving local punk band Brad Example & The Role Models to our inactive band links later this week due to a year's inactivity. The band featuring Inner City Surfers & Lion Ride alumni last had public activity when they opened last summer's troubled Public Animal concert, which followed sporadic activity dating back to 2006, though note that the band don't have an online page that received recent maintenance. Hopefully The Role Models turn up again though, and best of luck to Brad, Dave, Marco, and Marc!
• Bear Hunters guitarist & local concert promoter Mitch Sirie is looking to join a local band that plays weekend bar gigs, possibly in response to Beaumont Avenue's impending demise. He's can do fill-ins or permanent positions on either guitar or bass, he is open to all genres, and can improvise if needed. Mitch has the skill, so if anyone's interested, message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Saturday!
• In another Musicians Wanted group search from Mitch Sirie on Friday, he's looking for bands for a yet-announced concert at The Rednecks Saloon that he's promoting on Friday, July 10th. No word on if it'll be all local or have an out-of-town headliner, but Mitch indicated that slots will be filled on a first come first serve basis. Mike Haggith & The Din have expressed interest, but if your band wants in, message Mitch at the above links!
• Local classic metal quartet Project 421 have replaced Haggith on the bill for the Out Of The Ruins-headlined concert at The Rednecks Saloon on Saturday, July 11th, as per the official Facebook event page on Sunday. A reason for Haggith's withdrawal wasn't announced, but as band members are co-promoting the show, it's likely due to a scheduling conflict with one of them. Project 421 (and their new drummer) should fit in well, so don't miss out next month! Note also that Beaumont Avenue weren't replaced on the bill, which now only has 2 bands.
• A band lineup has yet to be announced, but this year's Ride For Sight motorcycle rally for blindness charities and awareness will again be based at Searchmont Resort on Saturday, July 11th. 4 bands are planned to perform, and we'll let you know if any hard rock bands are on the lineup, but visit this SooToday article for current information in the interim! 
• Local "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet Sykotyk Rampage have quietly released two new free "albums" onto their Reverbnation page, under the names "Mistress of Lightning" and "Mary's Pony Porn Emporium" (they titled it, don't shoot the messenger!) Fans of the crash will like the dozens of improvised new songs within, so give them a listen at the above links, and hopefully at upcoming concerts too!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news, previews, and features as we begin closing out this month! Thanks everyone!

New Concert Videos, A Band Page Discovery, And More!!

Hey guys, I know many of you are awaiting our review and videos from Soo Band Roulette on Saturday night, and under normal circumstances, they'd be up already, but I'm out of town on a bad internet connection. I had uploaded photos from the show on our Facebook page first due to time constraints, with the videos intended to go up last night, but each attempt is stalling, so things are on hold for a bit. I'm hoping the connection will improve tomorrow (something's going on with Bell internet in this area), so thanks for your patience, and the review & videos will be up this week! Now, here's a new news post to clear out some recent items, including new concert videos, a band link find, and more, so here's what you need to know!

While fans may have missed out on seeing Danger Cats members at Soo Band Roulette (it's all in the luck of the draw), a new video of the full band at The Rockstar Bar for Late & Loud's farewell concert can now be seen at For The Music Inside's YouTube channel! Uploaded on Saturday, this video (of the girls playing their original "Wanted Man") is the latest delayed media from F.T.M.I.'s coverage of the concert, coming almost a month after the show. Better late than never, as it's a nicely recorded video of one of the girls' better originals! The lighting can be a little warm, but fans will have nothing to complain about otherwise, so give F.T.M.I.'s new Danger Cats video a look!



Next up, remember local punk supergroup Brad Example & The Role Models, who recently reunited for the (regrettably abbreviated) Public Animal show in July? Well, we finally have found an online page for them, courtesy of this old MySpace page from 2006! Originally, we had rolled them into our full coverage after our punk expansion last month without a working link (a'la Northwest), but due to the lack of the full band name on the page (a 25 character limit stopped "Models" at "Mode" in the URL, for example), the page slipped us by originally. Given MySpace's massive layout overhauls, there's not much to say on the page itself, but Brad did upload some photos (including this close up photo of his bass, now on The Rockstar Bar's ceiling), and 4 songs from their early run ("365", "Revolution", "Flaming Castle", and "LemonLips") can now be streamed there, so how do these sound?

It is nice to hear some good quality studio tracks of The Role Models, which should appeal to Inner City Surfers fans, and Brad's gritty singing fits whether singing on a bluesier song or a faster hardcore punk-influenced song! It'd be nice to see The Role Models play more than they tend to, but give their old MySpace page a look, and they're now finally in our band links!

Also today, a new video of local/Toronto punk standouts Treble Charger is now online, this time from a recent outdoor festival gig of them playing their classic song "Red"! Uploaded on August 21st, the band sounds good on this clip, but Treble Charger are admittedly the second story of this video, as the title and content focuses on a soccer player's reactions during the performance, and the band aren't zoomed in to or directly filmed. Note as well that the host channel is heavily themed around Polish language videos and soccer clips, but I can't 100% confirm right away whether this was performance was overseas or not. Fans should give it a look for a recent Treble Charger live clip though, so here it is!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• According to their most recent Facebook page posting, local grunge/alternative quartet Haggith's next local concert will be as part of the festivities for this year's Soo Zombie Walk on Saturday, October 25th, but they didn't indicate a host venue, or clarify if it'd be part of the expanded afternoon entertainment like last year, or during the afterparty. Stay tuned for updates!
• I've regrettably deleted new local metal project Shadowthrone and guitarist Sabrina Strange's solo project (most recently under the Isla Encanto name) from our band links to the recent deletion of their Reverbnation (and only online) pages, with Sabrina's YouTube channel also closing around the same time. No public reason has been made for the deletions, but this is disappointing, especially coming so soon after Shadowthrone's debut at Das Bunkerfest. Hopefully things are alright, as Sabrina and Robert have talent, and fingers crossed we hear more music from them in some form!
• Local punk/grunge solo project Telephone & Address have revealed that their new CD will be titled "Need Not Apply", and the cover art for it (which looks similar in style and texture to "The Rotten EP") can also be seen at their Facebook page and at this link. Like Chris' last disc, "Need Not Apply" is being sent for registration with SOCAN, and it will cost $15, but will there be copies for sale at the IDNS show on Saturday? Check above for more album info!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Soo Band Roulette review as soon as I can after videos finally get online, and for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post hopefully tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Meet The Local Punk Bands!! Part 3

This morning marks our third and final post to "introduce" active local (non-hardcore) punk bands to our expanded coverage, and check out our feature on Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide, Gnaeus, Northwest, and the now-defunct Fist Fighting Stephen Hawking in the post below this one! Also, for clarity, I have not included the yet-to-debut Habitat Shuffle and the secretive ska-punk duo Them in these posts due to a lack of information and public appearances, but if either rectify that, they'll be on here! Now, for our last of the active punk bands, we have one that recently came back, one with out of town ties, and two with Inner City Surfers & Lion Ride alumni, so here's what you should know!

We'll start this feature with a band that, much like Northwest, don't have a known online page, and they are local punk quartet Brad Example & The Role Models! Active off and on since opening for The Revue at the former Foggy Notions in December 2006 (and possibly before), you may best remember this band from a string of 2011 appearances where they opened twice for The Saigon Hookers at The Rockstar Bar and played at the Tailfeathers Music Festival that fall, before falling dormant until last month's Public Animal concert, but I won't rehash that show's unfortunate ending. Similarly to Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide, The Role Models merge two members of The Inner City Surfers with known local artists, in this case featuring singer/bassist Brad "Example" Lacell and guitarist Dave Bahun alongside former Lion Ride bandmates Marco Pedalino (most recently of Glitch) and Marc Muto on guitar and drums, while the prolific Phil Greco was their former drummer, and I may be missing other ex-members.

I don't recall a public video existing from one of Brad and The Role Models' concerts, but Brad did recently tell me that they've been working on original material, so I don't believe last month's show was a one-off. Hopefully we see more of the guys soon, as I remember this band having a solid punk sound with occasional metal covers, effective vocals for the style, and clear on-stage chemistry! If you miss the Surfers, follow both The Role Models and The Rising Tide for their members' current collaborative work, and hopefully some online pages and media from the former turn up soon!

Next up is a band that entertained at many shows at the turn of the 2010s, and are coming back, them being The Fury! Led & fronted by former Smeltzer bassist Paul Stanghetta (last seen with the never-launched Keep It Lit), you may remember The Fury best as the band with two bassists and no guitarists, and though they hated being classified into a genre, punk was an obvious match to their early sound, at least back then. Two time battle of the bands runners-up in 2009 and 2010, The Fury's old incarnation featured RedD Monkey's Joe Bumbacco on drums, while their second bassist was originally Josh McNally (ex-The Crossed) and later Tony Briglio (now of Sykotyk Rampage.) Writing original material and opening for the likes of Upheaval of an Exorcist, Blind Witness, and Broadcast Zero during their first run, The Fury originally disbanded in mid-2011, but after a three year breakup, Paul's working on a comeback, and was looking for a new drummer to join the new Fury (now with a DJ too) as of June 4th, so click here for more information!

It's hard to know how the new Fury will sound (Paul's hinted that they'll be "super heavy, fast, and fresh"), but in their original 2009-2011 run, they had an original yet familiar sound that fans of intense modern punk would have loved, even if they hated being classified as such! Paul's vocals were also a great fit when singing or even pseudo-rapping at times, and after a while, you forgot there wasn't a guitarist on stage with them! We'll let you know when their new lineup debuts or properly launches, but check out old material at their MySpace page, and here they are playing their song "Rebel Scum" at Foggy's in late 2010!

Also in new punk band additions are The Small Town Rivals, a partly local pop punk/alternative quartet that you may recognize as being either the predecessors to or the sister band of the all-local Northwest! Launched in 2010 as a studio project by frontman Wayne Watkins and Whistler, B.C. guitarist Jesse Nelson, The Small Town Rivals (who have also been billed from Toronto) released their debut (and only?) EP named "East Vs. West" in the fall of 2012, which you can buy at this link. Similarly to the partly local progressive rock band iT, The Small Town Rivals had separate lineups in two separate homebases, with Scott Phillips & Liam Murray playing bass and drums outside of the area, and Wayne's Northwest bandmates Mike Smykacz & Clint Wilson handling those roles in the Soo, while Wayne has played solo gigs under this band name as well. Opening for the likes of The Penske File & The Snips here and away, this band has not been visibly active since November 2013 plugs for a Hockey Night In Canada song contest, and Northwest may have replaced them since.

Fans of Wayne's local band projects should like The Small Town Rivals, who take on a lively pop punk sound with well composed original songs, nice vocal harmonies between Wayne & Jesse, and a fun melody, and if you like Northwest, you'll be at home with this band as well! Check out more from The Small Town Rivals on Facebook, Twitter, CBC Music, and Bandcamp, and here's a preview video for their song "Heartbreaks & Fairy Tales"!

Finally for our active punk band features is The Wing-Its, a somewhat newer punk quartet signed to Tidal Records! Though they don't have a proper online page that I've seen, their profile on Tidal Records' website says that they're a "straight forward power pop/punk band" with a "no holds barred... kind of rock 'n roll" that's full of energy and soaked in hooks. Their lineup is comprised of label co-owners Dustin Jones (also The Rising Tide's frontman) on vocals & guitar and Dan Nystedt (also a local filmmaker) on drums, alongside Role Models guitarist Marco Pedalino and former Spigots frontman Trevor Harding (another partner in Tidal Records) on bass. From what I've seen, The Wing-Its don't play live that often, but they debuted at The Rockstar Bar last February, and they were among the bands at Tidal Records' kick-off show at the same venue last November. Live concert footage isn't plentiful online, but Marco did upload three videos of a Wing-Its jam session to his YouTube channel in October, so how do the guys sound here?

Curiously uploaded upside down (with Dan completely out of frame), the songs are either all originals or I can't discern the songs well. The three songs don't strike me as having a lot of the hinted indie rock influences, but the talent is present on these well filmed videos, and there's a familiarity for fans of the members' older bands! Nice solid punk rock, so give the videos a look at the above links and below (though note that "tune 3" has a camera mishap late), and hopefully we hear more on The Wing-Its soon!



I hope you guys liked our recent look at active local punk bands! When we pick things up on local punk features, we'll be looking at defunct and inactive ones in the coming days, so stay tuned for them soon, and look out for much more on our current active punk bands, no matter the subgenre, in the coming months and beyond! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Public Animal), A Likely Inactive Band, And New Videos!!

In what might be our last post of the month, we have some recent news to touch on today, including new videos from some familiar faces, a band that we're moving to our inactive links, and first, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month, so here's what you need to know!

Toronto hard rock quartet Public Animal will make their way north to our neck of the woods on Friday, June 27th for a headlining gig at The Rockstar Bar! Though unfamiliar on the surface, some fans may remember seeing frontman Ian Blurton at LopLops Lounge a couple years ago with C'mon, and a similar talent level can be found with Public Animal, a hard/garage rock quartet with a distinct old school feel and solid trade-off vocals with keyboardist Caitlin Dacey, so they should find an audience on June 27th! As best as I can tell, the openers will be a reunion of dormant local punk supergroup Brad Example & The Role Models, who you may remember from opening for The Saigon Hookers at this venue twice in 2011, among some prior gigs. Fronted by Inner City Surfers bassist Brad "Example" Lacell, this band had a rotating supporting cast, but their 2011 gigs both included Brad's longtime bandmate Dave Bahun and current Glitch giutarist Marco Pedalino, so might we see them back for this gig? Time will tell!

Apparently promoted by Brad (who's calling the show "Rock and Roll Mindwarp"), this 19+ show has a 10:00 PM start time, and there's a likely $5 cover charge in effect. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be an intriguing concert, especially for the classic heavy mix of Public Animal and the Role Models reunion, so keep it in mind for next month, and stay tuned for potential updates!

Next up, I've reluctantly decided to move a local metal band to our defunct Sault Ontario links, that being local extreme metal quartet Winkstinger. The band hasn't made a public statement since opening for Sleep When You're Dead at The Oddfellows Hall exactly one year & one day ago, which itself is their only concert in the past 22 months, so it's not looking great for their active status. Succeeding the similar Operation: Killdozer upon their early 2010 launch, Winkstinger (featuring Soldiers of Misfortune and Issues alumni) became a popular sight at local concerts throughout the early 2010s, including 6 appearances at Roosevelt Hotel metal nights, sets at the first two Sewer Swampstravaganzas, and winning the Battle for the Blood in June 2012 to open for 3 Inches of Blood, while recording songs for an unreleased EP during that time. I'm not sure what exactly happened to Winkstinger, but their chaotic extreme metal sound was always a fun and welcomed presence on the local stage, and despite their increasingly sporadic dates by 2012, I always enjoyed seeing them in concert!

I hope I'm wrong on them no longer being active (we'll let you guys know if they re-emerge), but in the meantime, you can see guitarist Jesse Cook with both Jack Spades & The Elements, and best of luck to Alan, Jesse, Jason, Jonas, and all of their other former members in the future!

We'll close today with new videos, including some new solo guitar clips from former Bring The Fallen guitarist Andrew Chiarello! While largely inactive from local bands since Bring The Fallen's 2011 breakup (last year's reunion show aside), Andrew has recently re-emerged with a new YouTube channel to post some solo videos, so what should you know on these? One from two weeks ago is of him playing an instrumental shred piece named "RockBro", while the other video from earlier this week (embedded below) is his cover of Metallica's "Master of Puppets". Both are shot at multiple camera angles with transitions that showcase his gear nicely, and his talent hasn't wavered since his band heyday! If anything, his guitar could be louder on the Metallica cover, but it's nice to see Andrew playing again, and hopefully there's more to come in some form, so check out his new videos above and below!



Finally for today, Skeyes of Seven bandmates Cory Murchison and Alain Fletcher have recorded another acoustic cover for Alain's YouTube channel, as posted on Tuesday! This time, it's a cover of Slipknot's ballad "Snuff", and like before, it's well performed, but Cory's singing seems a bit slow and shaky. It's a nice teaser while the wait continues for Skeyes of Seven's live return, so check it out below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news shortly! Thanks everyone!

Saigon Hookers Concert Review & Half A Man Updates!!

Hey guys, I'm back from last night's Saigon Hookers concert at The Rockstar Bar, so how'd it go! I will tell you in this review, followed by some new updates from Half A Man! I regrettably got to the show late, so I probably missed half of Brad Example & The Role Models' set, but I made a point to rush there when I finally left to see what I could! Fittingly, they were covering Black Sabbath's "The Wizard" when I arrived, which was cool! The band's lineup looked mostly the same as they did in March when I last saw them, although the drummer may have been different (don't quote me though.) Musically, what I saw was about as good as The Role Models' March show, with Brad Example making the most of his grittier punk singing, and Dave Bahun was as good as ever on lead guitar! Again, I wish Marco Pedalino had more lead time, but I'm only judging by what I saw. Decent sized crowd cheering them on, and they deserved it from what I caught! Nice straightforward punk with some metal flourishes here and there, hopefully they play some other shows at some point, cause hopefully I'll see the whole thing next time!

Then were the main attraction, The Saigon Hookers, returning from Kitchener for round 2 in Sault Ste. Marie! Their set was, musically, as good as it was in March, with tons of punk inspired hard rock for their fans, including originals like "Devil To Win", "Stray Dogs", "Ignition", and "Hopeless Case Of A Kid In Denial", and some Hellacopters, Rolling Stones, and Thin Lizzy covers to boot! Their sound is always an energetic blast of alcohol and hard rock, and they shown that again last night, from Tommy Smokes' attitude-infused singing to Ron Cybulskie's fast shredding! (Also, kudos on the retro Lion Ride shirt!) Lee Brook deserves lots of credit too for rocking out awesomely on bass despite a broken ankle, though it did restrict his on stage movements. While musically, everything was on par (save for some too-quiet singing early), the overall atmosphere of the show was lacking compared to the March show. Many fans seemed to leave when The Role Models wrapped up, very few people got on the floor until very late in the set (and only to dance), and there didn't seem to be a large amount of energetic response to the Hookers like the first time around. Many fans who stuck around enjoyed themselves, but I don't know, something seemed off.

I had fun though, and I know many in attendance did too! The Saigon Hookers rock and have lots of great tunes to go around, and Lion Ride fans will sure enjoy them! I also forgot to mention this in March, but The Saigon Hookers don't have a set break, they play all their songs straight through, so you get a non stop relentless attack and lots of time to drink post-show, which I find cool! Hopefully they come back sooner or later, though hopefully with some better advertising and more advance word, the environment will be livelier! I did get a bunch of photos, so click here to check them out, or visit our Facebook page! And yes, I did get a video, so here's The Saigon Hookers playing their original song "Ignition"!



And finally for today, here's some more news from Brimley hard rockers Half A Man, who are still hard at work on their first album! The band has uploaded two new videos from the sessions, likely at McNally Smith Studios in Minnesota, onto their YouTube channel over the past couple of days. One is a video showing various computer screenshots from Mikey Bishop's drum tracking, as overlayed with other song portions from various songs to be featured on the album. Not a lot to say on it, but the song clips sound promising, though obviously incomplete. The other video, which we have embedded below, is of Mikey doing live drum tracking, with him on camera busting out his parts for their song "Bad Way"! If you haven't heard the song before, it will basically just sound like a solo drum piece, but it's very well played and should sound even better with guitars and such wrapped around it! Nice video quality too, if a bit dark. Check out Mikey's drum tracking for "Bad Way" below, and stay tuned for more Half A Man studio updates! Check the above links for more studio stuff too!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for a new news post with a big announcement concerning how YOU can win something related to an upcoming concert! Thanks everyone!

Saigon Hookers Concert Review & Lion Ride Updates!!

Hey guys, it's time for my first concert review in way too long! Last night, I returned to The Rockstar Bar for The Saigon Hookers' first ever local concert, and that's the bulk of this post, though I have some assorted Lion Ride-related news at the end. So let's kick off the review!

The openers last night were essentially a local supergroup, even if they didn't have a lot of time to sink into the public conciousness beforehand. They are Brad Example & The Role Models, a punk rock quartet fronted (obviously) by Inner City Surfers & Room 206 bassist Brad "Example" Lacell! Brad was joined by fellow Surfers/Room 206 bandmate Dave Bahun and Lion Ride's own Marco Pedalino on guitar, and drummer Phil Greco, who's sure to be familiar from numerous local bands. Their set comprised mostly of punk covers, including a couple Surfers tunes (I think) and yes, even some heavier tracks! Nice surprise to hear some Motorhead and Spinal Tap in there, too bad my timing sucked to get either on video! Brad's singing was gritty and not very rangy, but it suited the style they were going for, so don't judge too harshly if you're more used to Dustin Jones' singing with the Surfers. Dave Bahun impressed me the most of the band last night, to be honest. He's always had a clear metal edge, and his solos were always welcome in his older bands, and they shined last night for sure!

I do think Marco could have had some lead time as well, he's a skilled lead guitarist himself! The band didn't seem to have a lot of preparation for this show, especially given the large stack of lyrics on stage, but Brad and company pulled it off well, and their punk sounds seemed to win over the fans in attendance!

Headlining were The Saigon Hookers, of course, in their first ever local concert! First off, thanks to frontman Tommy Smokes for being so gracious to me and for giving me a free CD. He's a nice guy! With The Saigon Hookers' closeness to Lion Ride members from past concerts and so forth, it's surprising that they haven't played in town before, but they seemed like they fit right in last night! If you're familiar with Lion Ride's brand of punk influenced metal, The Saigon Hookers should be up your alley, but they seem to take more influence from classic rock and alcohol than Lion Ride typically do. Amongst a set of mostly originals like "Let It Slide", "Stray Dogs", and "Tell It Like It Is", they rocked hard and long last night with lots of energy, and even threw in some Thin Lizzy and Rolling Stones covers for good measure! Tommy Smokes stood out in height and talent, with an effective punk influenced rock voice and some solid guitar playing backed up well by fellow axeman Ron Cybulskie and (surprisingly) Marco Pedalino on one track! Lee Brook proved to be more than up to the task of replacing Carmine Romano (now in Lion Ride) on bass, and Tommy Guns was good on drums all night! The Saigon Hookers delivered a good fun night of hard rocking music, and though the crowd shoulda got closer, there was a good environment!

Overall, this was a fun and entertaining concert, and hopefully The Saigon Hookers come back to town one of these days! If you missed it, you missed out! Check out my photos from last night at this location or at the SMS' Facebook page! And yes, I did get a video, and luckily, this one involves members of both bands from last night, in a bit of a makeup for missing a Brad Example video from one of their metal covers! So here's The Saigon Hookers playing their song "Stray Dogs" featuring Marco Pedalino on guest guitar!



We'll close this post with some Lion Ride updates, fittingly so, given the links they share with last night's bands! Firstly, they've launched a new page on RoadRunner Records' popular music discovery website SignMeTo, which has attracted some local band attention in the past. The page features a basic band biography, their latest two studio songs ("Stick It In" & "Snail Trail"), one of their more recent videos, and an interesting show note that I'll elaborate more on in the near future. Kinda sparse at present, but check the above links to check out this new band page! Also, if you've been wondering what's been up with their upcoming full length album lately, their Facebook page has a couple updates! At present, it looks like they're in writing mode for new material, and have wrote at least two new songs. One written mid-February was apparently so good, you'll "poop your pants" when you hear it, while later last month, they created another one that will apparently "impregnate you". Interesting choices of words, hopefully the songs deliver a knockout punch when we hear them! Stay tuned to the above links for more on Lion Ride, and I'll have more on them to come very soon!

That's all for now, but stay tuned probably later tonight for weekend concert previews and more! I'm contemplating going to Docks to see That's Chester tonight as well, so look out for me tonight in case I do! Thanks everyone!