Banned Concert & Swearnet Movie Previews, Plus More New Videos!!

Before we kick off this post, I have a note on a concert cancellation (maybe a mistake?), as Traverse City metal trio Scarkazm are apparently NOT playing at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino this weekend. While Kewadin pages still list the local dates, Scarkazm's own pages list this weekend's gigs as taking place in Cadillac instead, with their next St. Ignace shows coming in October. Not sure whether these were tentatively local once or erroneously announced, but best of luck to the guys this weekend, and fans can see Scarkazm back in the U.P. in the fall!

As a result of the Scarkazm switch, we'll instead look at The Chippewa County Fair, as the annual Kinross family festival is putting smiles on faces once again this year, and while the Rock Till You Drop battle of the bands is not advertised to return in 2014, Kinross hard rock trio Banned are still playing their own solo set TOMORROW! As announced on their Facebook page on August 19th, they'll be playing at the pavilion near the Lion's Club building at 4:00 PM tomorrow, so battle or no battle, Banned will be rocking their hometown tomorrow around supper time! Note that the fair's own website lists the 4:00 Pavilion timeslot as "to be announced", which is likely due to it not being updated since Banned's confirmation. Fans of ALL AGES can check out Alex & Don Traynor with new bassist Wayne Lawrence at the fair tomorrow among other events like stock car racing, animal shows, a tractor pull, and more, so click here for all details relating to tickets & admission fees!

As of right now, this is Banned's last scheduled gig of the summer, so keep it in mind if you're at the fair or in the Kinross area for some hard rocking entertainment! For a preview, here's Banned's recent video slideshow of their current lineup covering Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Pride & Joy"!



Next up, here's a preview of a different sort, as a movie filmed here with a metal connection opens TODAY, that being Swearnet, the new film from the stars of the Showcase (now Netflix) mockumentary comedy series Trailer Park Boys! As you may remember, Swearnet (which is about T.P.B. stars Robb Wells, Jean-Paul Tremblay, and Mike Smith forming their own uncensored online TV network) was filmed locally in Sault Ste. Marie in late 2012, and scenery from the Soo is readily seen in trailers! This fits on the SMS however due to ex-Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach's cameo role in Swearnet (following his own Trailer Park Boys guest part), which some of you guys may remember from some Sebastian sightings during filming, including a karaoke night appearance at The Canadian! A little birdie also told me that some familiar band paraphernalia will also be seen from time to time. Yes, Swearnet is showing at Galaxy Cinema at The Station Mall, and it will open there TODAY at 2:10, 4:45, 7:25, and 10:10 PM, with similar screenings times in the following days, though like with any other movie, it's longevity at the theatre will depend on it's overall box office performance.

It's not often where a major movie makes it way to Galaxy Cinema with a ties to both the Soo and metal, and knowing how much many readers like the Trailer Park Boys, I'm sure many of you won't want to miss Swearnet on that basis either! Early reviews are good, and I do hope to check out Swearnet soon myself! I will advise though that Swearnet (which is 112 minutes long) is rated 18A for it's content, so fans under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. For a preview of Swearnet, here's the official green band trailer!

Also, here's a bit of a surprise, as local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements recently made the 8 hour trip north to Moonbeam for this year's 16th annual Hempfest! As you may remember, the annual marijuana culture/concert festival made the full time move to owner Robert Neron's hometown this year due to rising costs and shrinking attendance in Ophir, contributing to the local summer concert festival dropoff this year. Though advertised as "The Hip-Hop Year", The Elements (who haven't played a public local gig since the Jack Spades EP release show in May) played sets yesterday and will again on Saturday, making them the first heavier local band to play Hempfest since 2011. Nice to see a local connection this year, and a slight variance from the rap theme, so hopefully their sets went over well! It's not much of a glimpse of their set, but Hempfest's official Facebook page features this 28 second cell phone video of The Elements' set from yesterday of the guys covering The Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Soul To Squeeze", so what can we see within?

Not a lot due to the length, but there's solid event lighting (the venue in Moonbeam is indoors) and I like the inflatable aliens! The lack of a crowd is concerning, but it may be due to when they played, as they opened the Thursday music lineup at 4:00 PM. In terms of critiquing The Elements' performance, there's not much as I can say due to the length and slow pace, but everything sounds fine compared to the original song. Check out The Elements live at Hempfest (albeit 8 hours away) below, and see more 2014 Hempfest videos at the above links!



Finally for today, here's a short new video from new local rap/metal duo The Apocalypse Afterparty, as uploaded to their Facebook page on Monday! It's of members X & Z "partying before their set on Saturday" (referencing their between-band involvement at Soo Band Roulette at The Rockstar Bar), though it mainly features X answering a question about if they're ready, and Z dancing to a live rapper's track. Interesting watch, but of course, you'll see the real Apocalypse Afterparty experience on Saturday night, so don't miss Soo Band Roulette, and give their new video a look below!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news this weekend, plus this month's CD review shortly as well! Thanks everyone!

Three New Local Metal Bands, Hempfest's Relocation, And More!!

We're back with a new news post on this Saturday afternoon, including some assorted recent notes, some disappointing news regarding another local summer concert festival, and in a brief detour from our punk band features, three new metal bands to add to our links, so here's what you need to know!

We have three new metal bands to add to our links today, though all are linked through common members, so what should you know? I came across these pages through recent searching on Reverbnation, and though the biggest of the three has been active since February, it took so long to make it to the SMS because their members currently aren't active on Facebook, and with no pages there, we didn't get to Reverbnation as fast. The lead project is Shadowthrone, whose members include ex-Chronic Demonic/Project Legion frontwoman Sabrina Strange (a.k.a. Ririe Lavoie & Isla Encanto) on guitar, alongside Pillory/Crimson Crusade guitarist Robert Sartini on drums. An instrumental project so far, Shadowthrone have 4 songs posted, and they have early promise with a heavy sound, though we'll have to see how the band progresses, possibly with a fuller lineup! To add to that, both Sabrina & Robert have active solo projects as well, Robert's being a technical death metal solo project named Gorrifier, and Sabrina's being an extension of past solo work that you may have seen on Facebook, as credited under her Isla Encanto moniker.

The Gorrifier original song postings are very reminiscent of Robert's entertaining recent solo guitar videos, and noticeably heavier than his recent band work, while Sabrina's new/old solo material continues to showcase her singing and guitar ability well, and it's nice to see her keeping at it! All three projects are now listed in our active band links, and here's some videos from two of the projects, first from Shadowthrone, as Sabrina posted live demo videos of their originals "Ancient Slaves", "Alien Power", and "Dark Motive" onto her YouTube channel last month! Given the setting, these could be polished a bit, and some of the camera angles aren't perfect, but I like where Shadowthrone are going! See more above, and here's "Alien Power"!



There's no Gorrifier videos on Sabrina's channel (check Robert's above for similar recent covers), but she does also have her short solo keyboard cover of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra's "Mephistopheles" uploaded there, which she plans to add guitar and other elements to. Well performed and dark, though the camera angle might be too close (I like the "fans" on the keyboard though!) Check out her solo performance below, and stay tuned for more from all 3 projects when we hear it!



Next up, we have some bad news for Hempfest fans, as the annual marijuana culture & concert festival is no longer being held in the Sault area. Owner Robert "Willy-Jack" Neron announced on the Hempfest Facebook page last month that the festival can no longer afford to be hosted in nearby Ophir due to higher initial costs there, so to keep the festival alive, Robert has moved Hempfest to his hometown of Moonbeam, which is 20 minutes east of Kapuskasing and 8+ hours north of the Soo. Robert had previously hosted the 2010 Hempfest there on short notice after getting the rights to the event, but had returned the event to Ophir for the past 3 years. This year's Hempfest will still take place from August 24th-31st (closer to it's timeframe in the 2000s), and similarly to last year's tribute band theme, will be based around rap & DJ performers this year, with many regional artists still playing despite the relocation. Given that we already knew the hip-hop theme, this won't be a new loss for the metal/punk calendar, but this is definitely disappointing for area Hempfest fans, especially if you don't find the 8 hour drive to Moonbeam to be feasible.

Regardless of anyone's views on the event, Hempfest was a successful and long running establishment in the area, and in a year where the Rotaryfest Second Stage also isn't occurring, it definitely is a blow to the local summer festival roster. That said, if moving it to Moonbeam can keep Hempfest alive and more financially sustainable, then we wish it the best, and hopefully Hempfest can come back to the Sault area in the future if possible! Check the above links for details on Hempfest in Moonbeam next month!


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:

• Haggith drummer Mike Haggith is working on a remastered version of his 2012 solo CD "Neighbourhood Watch",  which will see a more equalized balance of the instruments and feature some re-recorded vocal tracks, while an instrumental demo will be added to "The Day The Lights Went Out", and the aptly named "Far Too Long" will be slashed in length and re-arranged completely. Look for it's re-release in September, and click here for for full details on the remastering and what to expect from it!
• Local thrash metal band Pillory have reportedly added Devon Lucier to their lineup as their new bassist, replacing Tyler St. Amour and reuniting him with his Crimson Crusade bandmate Robert Sartini. Though not announced on Pillory pages yet, Robert's Shadowthrone bandmate Sabrina Strange confirmed his addition in personal conversations. Sounds like a quality addition, we'll have to see how Devon holds up on bass when Pillory return to the stage!
• Though unannounced on band pages that I've seen, local/Toronto alternative/punk standouts Treble Charger played a set at The Lachie Music Festival in London, Ontario on June 28th, sharing the stage with notable bands like Gob and The Glorious Sons. Hopefully that show went awesome, it looks like it was a great event, and not just because The Trailer Park Boys hosted!

 That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes soon, plus our first of our defunct punk band "introduction" posts! Thanks everyone!