YouTube Channel Profile Series: Danabelle39 & kilko8011's Channels

Let's get this month's YouTube Channel Profile on the site as our last monthly feature post of the summer! This series looks at 1-3 YouTube channels each month, each being randomly selected from our YouTube subscriptions of channels whose content is at least half devoted to local metal, hard rock, or punk artists/concerts. Again, this month's installment is on two channels, as the first selected channel only had three videos sourced from two concerts, so a channel with videos from just one show was added to fill things out with. Here's what you should know on both!

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Danabelle39's Channel (http://youtube.com/danabelle39)

Owner: YouTube user and Sault Ontario resident Dana Bellerose

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 16th, 2010; Videos uploaded in January and February 2012

Channel Summary: Dana's only uploads are of videos of defunct local classic/hard rock cover band Havadder playing two concerts at the former Nicolet Tavern (later Rednecks Saloon), early in the run of this particular five-piece lineup, which notably featured the complete final lineup of fellow local hard rock cover band Turner Up.

Why You Should Watch: This channel will be of primary interest to fans of early Havadder and late Turner Up lineups, which merged to create a strong unit while they lasted! I should have called them "Havadder Up" in this era, with the power of hindsight. Note that Dana has not visibly used her channel since these videos were uploaded, and you can see more Havadder videos (largely with other lineups) elsewhere.

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

Tweeter & the Monkey Man covered by Havadder: Dana's first video comes from Havadder's gig at the Nicolet on January 8th, 2012, where they covered The Travelling Wilburys' "Tweeter & The Monkey Man". Their then-new lineup featured existing singer/guitarist Jason Roy and guitarist Jason "Nez" Nisbet joined by Turner Up's Robert Brown, Travis Sharpe, and Scott McLurg on guitar, bass, and drums (Jason Roy had joined Turner Up himself the previous year). The grainy video quality and uneven lighting don't help the scratchy audio, but what we can make out of this performance is fine, and the triple guitar attack doesn't come across as overkill! Click here to see them covering Seven Mary Three's "Cumbersome" that night via Turner Up's short-lived official channel.

HAVADDER--Running Down A Dream (cover) February 4, 2012: The other two videos here come from Havadder Up's Nicolet show on February 4th of that year, where they covered The Foo Fighters' "These Days" and, in Dana's most popular upload, Tom Petty's "Runnin' Down A Dream". Much improved lighting and softer audio help make these February videos a better watch than January, and while Havadder would splinter off into The Thrill Junkies and Jason Roy's overhauled new Havadder the following year, this super lineup was still neat to have in 2012! If you're curious as to the hockey game playing on the TV monitor in the upper right corner, Edmonton beat Detroit 5-4 after a shootout.

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kilko8011's Channel (http://youtube.com/@kilko8011)

Owner: YouTube user kilko8011, exact identity unclear, but I doubt they're locally based

Channel Timeline: Launched on March 30th, 2011; Videos posted in April 2011 and September 2013

Channel Summary: Alongside a "beer jousting" video, kilko8011's only videos comprise of four songs played by inactive local/Toronto indie/punk quartet Treble Charger at the third annual KOI Music Festival in Kitchener in September 2013, early in their reunion. The videos feature Greig Nori, Bill Priddle, and touring musicians Darcy Yates & Jason Pierce playing outside of Crabby Joe's Bar & Grill as that day's headliners, where they were filmed playing "Cheat Away", "Business", "Brand New Low", and in the most popular video on offer, "Hundred Million". While "Cheat Away" was filmed and uploaded horizontally, kilko8011 changed his camera orientation mid-video multiple times on the rest, and opted to upload them vertically, so be advised of that. While there is some mild audio distortion, Treble Charger sound good on these punk-era cuts, and the crowd was very responsive!

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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! We're doubling up again next month, as our first randomly selected channel for September only has two videos period, both from different projects, so a channel with a single video was chosen also to round things out with. As such, we'll be looking at the YouTube channels of Curtis McKenzie (featuring two videos from old hard rock projects of his) and Dick Jerkins (featuring a free EP from local metal solo project Awokest). Look for these on or around September 26th, and for lots of overdue news and notes to come on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

YouTube Channel Profile Series: syrfer72, Ryan Gratton, and turnerup100's Channels

It's now time for this month's YouTube Channel Profiles, as we once again take a look at 1-3 randomly selected YouTube channels with a 50% (or more) ratio of local metal, hard rock, and punk videos, so you guys can read up on them, watch their content, and hopefully subscribe! For a third straight month, we're looking at multiple channels due to the first channel selected having minimal content, but like last month, the second channel had a similar situation, so we have a full maximum of three today! There's still some interesting and varied stuff to check out from the last decade, so check out this month's profiles below!
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syrfer72's channel (http://www.youtube.com/syrfer72)

Owner: YouTube user syrfer72 (full identity unclear)

Channel Timeline: Launched on December 31st, 2006; Only video posted on August 11th, 2010

Channel Summary: This channel's only video is of hard rock legends Kiss playing one of their signature songs "Detroit Rock City" during their memorable headlining concert at The Essar Centre the day before the video's upload. Filmed from roughly the centre of the floor, you get a good (but far) angle of Kiss and the loud pyrotechnics, and the audio quality's respectable, but the video quality is fairly blurry. This was a great concert from Gene, Paul, and company, and this video (among others from this show) capture it well! Note however that syrfer72 has not updated their channel since 2011.


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Ryan Gratton (http://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3k0cqMC7zqWscCNfubvaGw)

Owner: Chronic Demonic bassist Ryan Gratton, also known from past work with bands like Faithless Sin

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 19th, 2012; Videos posted in September & October 2013

Channel Summary: Though Ryan still actively uses his channel, he's only uploaded two videos there, and none in over a year. One is an audio recording of him and a friend playing an acoustic song named "A Camel Named Bill", but his only SMS-fitting video is of his defunct thrash metal band Faithless Sin covering Slayer's "Die By The Sword" and "Black Magic" back in 2006. Featuring their original lineup (including Ryan, Fitswitch alum Jason Bourcier on vocals, guitarists Joe Falco and Frank La Tassa, and drummer Mark Parent), Ryan apologized for the audio quality on these covers, which were recorded on a video camera and converted to audio, but they're not that bad, just lacking some clarity. The guys had a strong sound here, and the video is definitely worth a listen, though the band was arguably beat in prominence by their late 2000s successors Time of Ruin.


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turnerup100's channel (http://www.youtube.com/turnerup100)

Owner: A member of the second 2011-2013 version of defunct classic/hard rock band Turner Up, though their specific identity is unclear

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 15th, 2012; Only video posted that same day

Channel Summary: Though ostensibly created as an official Turner Up YouTube channel, the only video uploaded there was of their then-sister band Havadder, who shared four members with Turner Up for the duration of their second run. Featuring Turner Up's Jason Roy on vocals & guitar, Robert Brown on guitar, Travis Sharpe on bass, and Scott McLurg on drums alongside Havadder-only guitarist Jason Nisbet, this video comes from a gig at The Nicolet Tavern (now The Rednecks Saloon) on January 6th, 2012 where they covered Seven Mary Three's "Cumbersome", and it's a well done rendition of this 1990s rock hit! The lighting is inconsistent, and the audio's slightly muddled, but it's one of the better videos of this Havadder lineup, though all but Jason Roy have since left the band and formed the similar new cover band The Thrill Junkies last year. Note as well that this channel hasn't been visibly updated since Turner Up's dissolution.


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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! Next month in this series, we'll be looking at multiple channels for a fourth straight month, as the first that we randomly selected only had two videos total, so we added one more small one to fill it out. With that said, we'll close the year for this series with profiles of YouTube user schloppster's channel (featuring two Clownsack music videos, in our first Sault Michigan profile in this series since May) and the channel of YouTube user mckersie1984, who uploaded two copies of a Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide song! Look for those on or around December 22nd, and stay tuned for more soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (White Cowbell Oklahoma & Exiled) And New Video Finds!!

I know some of you are awaiting fallout from this past weekend's Hardcore Homecoming/Random Killing concert, but with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, I didn't want it all to be de-emphasized, so that will very likely lead off tomorrow's post, so don't worry! Also today, we have an archive video find, a recent metal concert video, and another new show for later in the fall, so here's what you need to know!

I'm getting very contradictory reports about bands playing TONIGHT at The Savoy Bar & Nightclub in Sault Michigan, so here's what we currently know. Last night, Rudyard hard rock quintet Exiled (pictured) revealed on short notice that they'll be playing at The Savoy for the first time tonight at 10:00 PM, preceding their motorcycle club party gig tomorrow, but that's not what The Savoy's own Facebook page is advertising. Instead, they're promoting a show to be headlined by Saginaw rap/rock band Redburn with support from Munising metal quartet Infathom, which Redburn's pages are plugging, but not Infathom's (they haven't posted on Facebook in over a month.) Given that Redburn advertised this show on their Facebook page today, I'm inclined to believe that they're playing, and while not confirmed officially, it looks like Exiled have replaced Infathom on the bill, though we'll correct this if need be.

For what it's worth, Redburn aren't a "heavy" band per say, but you don't see this type of sound in the area too often, and it looks like they'll be playing at The Savoy again in December if you're into a full rap show! Regardless of what goes down tonight, keep The Savoy in mind for some live rock!

Moving to a show that we can 100% confirm, Toronto southern hard rock notables White Cowbell Oklahoma will roll through Sault Ontario on Sunday, November 30th during their 15th anniversary tour, as they'll be headlining at The Rockstar Bar! Notorious for their entertaining jam-heavy live concerts (complete with power tools), their country-infused rock originals should be a fun sight back in the Soo for the first time since their well received concert at The Grand Theater four years ago, so don't bypass this one either, and click here for Donna Hopper's entertaining review of that show from SooToday to see what you're in for! The announced openers are The Paceshifters, a hard rock band from The Netherlands who have a grungy yet modern sound that should go over well too, so don't miss them either! For reference, W.C.O.'s own pages advertise Vancouver psychobilly band Big John Bates & the Voodoo Dollz as opening too during their tour (as they did at their 2010 local show), but the local Facebook event page doesn't mention them.

This 19+ concert will begin at 9:00 PM on November 30th, and there will be NO COVER CHARGE, so there's all the more reason to come out! Check the above links for more details, and if you know White Cowbell Oklahoma's reputation and over the top live concert experience, you won't want to miss this one at the end of November! Stay tuned for updates when & if they come in!

Closing today with some new video finds, here's two new clip of Sudbury blackened death metal band Catharcyst from their co-headlining set opening for IDNS at The Oddfellows Hall two weeks ago! Uploaded to the band's YouTube channel today, they're of Catharcyst playing their songs "A Spell Has Been Cast" and (as embedded below) "Terra", both of which being filmed from the band's merchandise table at the far end of the hall. The video quality of these is not good, with dark and grainy lighting and an angle too far to make out much of anything regarding the band or fans, but the audio quality is solid enough! Check out Catharcyst's new videos above & below!



We'll close today with another archive video of local classic/hard rock veterans Havadder, courtesy of the same Nicolet Tavern concert from February 2012 that gave us their Foo Fighters cover that was on the site earlier this week! Same filmer too (YouTube user Danabelle39), but for whatever reason, her videos from this show were split across two channels. The video on her own channel is of Havadder's 2012 lineup covering Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' "Runnin' Down A Dream" with frontman Jason Roy on lead vocals, and it's a good cover for fans of the original song, but the vocals can be muffled. Check out the full video below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for Random Killing concert fallout and more in our next post! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Danger Cats), Apocalypse Afterparty Updates, And Much More!!

As we clear out more recent news on the site, we have another news post for you guys today, including some assorted recent news items, a video find, the latest from a creative new band, and first, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for one week from today, so here's what you need to know, and check out more recent news and notes in the post below this one!

Local all female hard rock quartet The Danger Cats will return to The Rockstar Bar one week from today when they open for Ottawa rock trio The Red Rails! In case you're not familiar, The Red Rails are the current band featuring drummer and Sault native Steve Brogno (formerly of bands like Driving Dave Home & Turner Up), and these power rockers were last seen locally in September at the same venue. Very modern sound with some bluesy touches, so keep The Red Rails in mind for next weekend, and help welcome Steve back to the Soo! The Danger Cats are a solid choice as openers, and are riding off the success of their Late & Loud farewell gig appearance, so they should be in top form for an entertaining opening set of originals and covers! There will be a higher cover charge of $7 next week's local stop on their "A Living Fiction Tour", you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM-ish start time is likely. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Should be a good concert, and it's nice to see Steve having such success since moving, so remember this show for next week!

Next up, here's the latest from the new local punk/rap duo The Apocalypse Afterparty! While we wait for their public concert debut, X & Z are looking for around 6 local women who can wear costumes and bring and fire off water guns, marshmallows, flyers, confetti, bubbles, and pillows at their gigs (and at Steve Mozarowski's upcoming Soo Band Roulette on August 30th), and they would be called "The Smoking Heroines". This may seem like an off the wall idea, but remember how the guys looked and dressed at Das Bunkerfest (they are definitely not business as usual.) If fleshed out, this could be very fun, so any female readers who want to join the insanity should message above! Two new Facebook videos are now online also, including this 19 second clip of a member jokingly talking about freestyling in a British accent (complete with mask & ski goggles) and the video embedded below, of "songwriter" Paul Stanghetta and recent AA video filmer Amanda Brown rehearsing a rough version of a new original song, so how does it sound?

Played only on drums and piano with rapped vocals, it has a fun lively sound, though obviously not complete from what we'd see live, but fans of The Fury will enjoy it either way! I'm curious to see where things lead with The Apocalypse Afterparty, who have already shown a ton of originality, so keep posted for updates, and here's their newest rehearsal clip!



Also today, I wanted to get up to speed on local classic hard rock cover band Havadder now that they're in our full coverage on the site, so I hope to share some more of Havadder's concert videos on the site when we come across older examples of them! This one comes from their Facebook page, specifically a March 2012 gig at The Nicolet Tavern (now The Rednecks Saloon), where they covered Temple of the Dog's "Hunger Strike", as featuring their then-lineup of singer/guitarist Jason Roy, guitarists Jason Nisbet & Robert Brown, bassist Travis Sharpe, and drummer Scott McLurg. Strong lineup, and almost identical to their then-sister band Turner Up (for a comparison, it was reminiscent of Gates of Winter & Woods of Ypres' 2008 lineups, which were also near-identical.) As for the video, it's dark and pixellated, but the audio is good, with the guys handling this song well, Travis' backing vocals adding a lot to the proceedings, and they managed the triple-guitar attack nicely on this ballad too! Give this 2012 Havadder video a look below!



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.

• In a comment reply on the band's Facebook group in June, Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison clarified his local metal cover trio's status, saying that he's "not sure what's happening with the band", as there's "not a lot of places for us to play, but you never know what the future holds." Last seen at the old Rosie on New Year's Eve, Caveman Morrison haven't played a regular bar gig outside of there or The Water Tower Pub since 2012, though Tym has been playing solo gigs at The Harp each weekend since December. At least the door's not closed on the band, but we'll keep you posted if we hear more!
• For The Music Inside's photos of Late & Loud's headlining (and possibly last ever) set at The Rockstar Bar on August 1st are finally online, and you can check them out at this link! No major surprises, but things look lively and with a purpose, and they're all well shot like with the openers, so check them out, and best of luck to Brendan & Marisa in Great Britain!
• A young local drummer named Trey Piraino is looking to jam with similar musicians, specifically identifying himself as a "prog-metal" drummer that has practiced with bands like Dream Theater and The Liquid Tension Experiment since he was a kid. High quality stuff to take after, which is promising! If you're interested in jamming with Trey, message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post on Friday!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new punk band feature soon, more news, and our new poll tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Suicide Kings), Glitch Concert Preview, And More!!

For today's post, we're concluding this weekend's known heavier concert previews, elaborating on some recent local metal album updates, and sharing a new video previewing some new material, but first, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for next month!

Rockstar Bar Battle winners The Suicide Kings will return to the site of their live concert debut on Friday, May 16th and Saturday, May 17th for solo headlining dates at The Rednecks Saloon! Fresh off of their second place finish at the Rock N' Roar Battle of the Bands in Spanish, these will mark this talented hard rock quartet's first shows at the former Nicolet Tavern since March of last year, and despite the name change and transition to a country theme last fall, I don't expect Mike, Steven, Mitch, and Ben to alter their established sound and setlist for these concerts, as the Rednecks Saloon still welcomes rock bands (like Griphook this weekend.) The Suicide Kings last played a double weekend set at the former Roosevelt Hotel in January, so the convenience of two nights will be a plus for fans of their modern rock originals and covers, so be at this popular Albert Street West venue next month! Admission is likely free both nights, you must be 19 to attend, and there are 10:00 PM start times in effect. Visit the official Facebook event page for more info, and stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's the last of our known heavier concert previews for this weekend, as newer Sault Ontario party/hard rock cover quartet Glitch will make their first ever appearance at an unfamiliar venue TOMORROW NIGHT, as they'll be rocking The OLG Casino at 30 Bay Street West! We've never covered the Sault Ontario casino on here for a concert, so I'm unfamiliar with it's setup, but I do know that they have both the Northern Gateway Restaurant and Bivouac Bar on site that could serve as logical host areas for a live band, so keep both in mind if you attend tomorrow. I'm unsure whether this is an early venture into more frequent band bookings, or a one-off agreement, but with a talented lineup featuring Sneaky Pete, Tripod the Dog, and Downfall alumni, the good tunes will be a constant, especially as they continue diversifying their live venue range! No idea on a potential cover charge, but you must be 19 to attend, and everything starts at 10:00 PM. Check the Facebook event page for more details, and here they are at The Rockstar Bar last year!



Moving to some well anticipated album news, local doom/sludge metal trio AlgomA have unveiled some new items relating to their forthcoming debut album "Reclaimed By The Forest", including the complete finished artwork by Adam Geyer! It had previously been leaked online, but it wasn't band-acknowledged, and that copy didn't feature the band's name & album title, so I waited until now. Very detailed in it's imagery, it calls to mind a more graphic interpretation of a song like Woods of Ypres' "Keeper of the Ledger" (look up the lyrics to see what I mean.) While a release date and formats for this album aren't out yet, AlgomA's brand new Bandcamp page features a download copy of their song "Fell Down The Well" from it, and you can buy it before the release for just $1! They even thought to include lyrics, but as is usual protocol for us, we'll hold full thoughts until the full album review. I'll confirm that the production is great though, so stream "Fell Down A Well" above, and stay tuned for news on the CD release!

Finally for today, Theatre of Night keyboardist Craig Harrison posted another preview video onto his YouTube channel on Wednesday to document new music for his Sault Michigan classical metal band! This time, it's of a studio piano piece (presumably for an original song to be completed), as included with assorted GoPro clips of him and bandmates Steve & Greg Giles playing in their jam room, though all fade in and out and use different camera angles, lighting, and post filters. The end of the video promises that new music is coming soon, and while this isn't a finished look, Craig's playing is as solid as ever, so check it out below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile on The Merves TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Lucky 13 & Griphook) And Most Of The Weekend's Concert Previews!!

For our second post of the day, we're covering most of the weekend's metal & hard rock concert previews, though due to the amount, we'll cover Glitch's first ever stop at the OLG Casino in Sault Ontario on Saturday night in tomorrow's post, so look out for it then! Today, we'll look at shows taking place either on Friday or over two nights, including a pair of SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so check everything out below, and also give our profile of last year's Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands a look in the post below this one!

Local alternative/hard rock cover quartet Lucky 13 will return to The Rockstar Bar for another concert TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this event was announced on Monday, so we held it until our concert previews to avoid a redundant re-post. Last seen there (or anywhere) just under a month ago, it should be nice to see this skilled veteran quartet's diverse and often heavy cover selection back at The Algonquin once again tomorrow, especially if you like the members' work in older bands like Aftersight, Wishbone, Turner Up, and The Gully Yodellers! Keep in mind, Lucky 13 are not playing a show on Saturday night due to the previously booked Cherry Crush show that day. Admission should be $5 for this 19+ show, and a 10:30 PM start time is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and for a preview of Lucky 13's show TOMORROW, here they are at The Canadian!



Next up, local hard rock cover quartet Griphook will return to a familiar (yet different) location for two shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT, as they will be playing the next two nights at The Rednecks Saloon! Apologies for the short notice, Griphook just announced these dates on Tuesday via their Facebook event page. As you may remember, this Albert Street West venue was previously known as The Nicolet Tavern, but they underwent a name and country theme change last fall, and only began re-introducing live bands in January. Unlike the rumoured changes at the former Roosevelt Hotel however, The Rednecks Saloon haven't shut out rock bands, welcoming the likes of Havadder and Obsession already in 2014, along with another hard rock return for next month that we await confirmation of. Griphook were actually the last local band of any genre to play at The Nicolet over the October 25th weekend, so it'll be nice to see them back at this location 6 months later for another entertaining weekend! No word on if they have to include country in their sets to fit the new theme though.

Like before, there's a 10:30 PM start time in effect, you must be 19 to attend, and there's no announced cover charge. Check the above links for more details, don't miss Griphook's return to/debut at The Rednecks Saloon for some solid varying hard rock covers this weekend, and for a preview, here's their original lineup covering Incubus at the pre-renovations Nicolet!



Moving to previously announced shows, Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison's weekly concert arrangement at The Harp Bar & Grill on Pine Street enters it's 21st straight week with solo shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! After a one week return to his original Friday-only schedule due to Jay Case's show last Saturday, Tym will kick off his third weekend of double bookings at the former Madison's Pub this weekend, which will see him play at and host an open mic night tomorrow, followed by a normal solo acoustic gig on Saturday, so pick a day for your favoured type of concert this weekend! Keep in mind relating to Tym's concert scheduling, we're taking them one month at a time due to the length of the bookings on his website's concert calendar, so I expect more to be confirmed outside of there. This weekend's shows take place at 10:00 PM each night, you must be 19 to attend, and there's no announced cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, don't miss Tym's talented unplugged shows this weekend, and for a preview, here he is covering Eric Clapton in 2010!



Finally for today's previews, we head over to the Sault Michigan area for the only heavier shows that we've heard about this weekend, as Traverse City groove metal trio Scarkazm will head back to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Previously making their Upper Peninsula debut in January, this will be the second regional concert weekend from the metal band featuring Peril/Audio Circus frontman Jeff Hudson on drums, and this weekend's shows have to be a sign of success for Scarkazm's January shows if they're coming back already! Look for a high impact weekend of metal covers and originals in St. Ignace this weekend, as Scarkazm have the reputation and talent to back it up! Be at the St. Ignace Kewadin tomorrow or Saturday at around 9:00 PM, you must be 21 to attend, and there's no announced cover. Check the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's the aggressive MMA-set video for their song "Sicker Than You!"



That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow, including our preview of Glitch's OLG Casino gig on Saturday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Tym Morrison) This Weekend's Other Concert Previews, And More!!

Unless there's another short notice concert announcement, today's post covers the rest of this weekend's regional metal/hard rock concerts that I can verify! That leads off today's post (including a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT), but we also have news on a local concert venue's change in name & focus, and some more assorted updates, so read on below for what you need to know!

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will return to The Harp Pub & Grill for another solo acoustic concert TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only just announced the show on Wednesday. The third straight Friday night show that Tym has played at the former Madison's Pub, the Facebook event page for tonight's show says that he's live at The Harp "every Friday", which appears to indicate that Tym has another weekly concert arrangement set up with a local venue, which is nice to see! Tym hasn't had an ongoing regularly scheduled series like this since his early 2012 run at another central venue (Bossy's Pub N' Grub), and hopefully this finds similar success (or bigger) if it's of a similar consistent length! Note however that I don't know what this means for Tym's frequent recent appearances at The Roadhouse Bar & Grill, where he generally played his Friday shows at this year. TONIGHT'S show at The Harp has no announced cover charge, a 19+ age limit, and a 10:00 PM start time.

For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's nice to see Tym ramping up bookings at The Harp (his debut there on November 1st must have been a huge hit), and assuming this new series continues, keep an eye out for an announcement of a December 27th show there! For a preview, here's Tym live at Mill Square this summer!



Now to quite a unique concert preview for TOMORROW NIGHT for our second hard-rock featured Loplops Lounge concert spotlighted on the SMS in just over a week! The show is X-Mess, an all acoustic punk rock revue at this higher-end downtown lounge, but there will be some hard rock on hand, as all female rockers The Danger Cats will break out the unplugged instruments for their sixth live concert! It'll be interesting to hear how they adapt in this environment, so keep it in mind for tomorrow! Also, no word on if singer Summer Snow-Leopard will be back for this show, but a personal Facebook posting implied she's back in town, so we'll have to see! The advertised headliners are an acoustic punk act named The Debts, and though public information has yet to be revealed on them, I will say they're a trio and feature some established names in local music, so they should put in a great set! The other acts are credited solo performers, including North West guitarist Greg Callaghan (who has played a number of solo unplugged punk shows in recent months) and "Dr." Sal Velinus, of whom I know little regarding his musical background.

Promoted by J.D. Pearce, this concert goes down TOMORROW NIGHT at 10:00 PM, you must be 19 to attend, and there is a $5 cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be an interesting and unique seasonal concert (you're even encouraged to wear ugly Christmas sweaters), so don't bypass it tomorrow night, and for a preview, here's The Danger Cats covering Hole at their live concert debut!

Also today, a local concert venue has had a major change to it's name and theme in recent months, as The Nicolet Tavern at 304 Albert Street West is now a country themed bar named The Rednecks Saloon. A reason for the change hasn't been publically announced (at least online), but this poster jokes that The Nicolet was "gunned down by a redneck." Renovations took place as well for the new look in late October, with the bar re-opening on Friday, November 1st, and though their phone number & much of the menu are unchanged, I haven't heard a whole lot about bands playing there since. The Nic last featured a hard rock band (Griphook) on October 25th, a week prior to the re-opening, with bands in recent years there generally leaning towards veteran cover groups. I have no clue at present if the new Rednecks Saloon will have an all country focus for music (a'la Reggie's) or if it's just the general theme of the bar now, but hopefully they won't completely forgo some classic hard rock once in a while! Stay tuned for updates if they come in!

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

• A selection of professional photos from Saturday night's Bam Margera/Fuckface Unstoppable concert were taken by attendee Jeff McKersie and uploaded to his photography website earlier this week! Joining some earlier local musician shots, he got 5 great pictures each of F.F.U. and co-headliners Wilson (none of the local bands though), and they turned out great, so check them out at this link, and Jeff's now in our local concert/musician photography links!
• As a thank you to fans for their support during their run, defunct local grunge/alternative quartet Haggith have posted free streaming copies of their two "mainline" studio albums "Dragon Joy Ride" and "Deuce" on their BandCamp page! No word on if "Apocalypse", non-studio album releases, or any unreleased material will find it's way there eventually, but check out the free copies at the link above, and follow the members' current bands!
• Speaking of posthumous Haggith-related activity, the band revealed on the Facebook event page for their final show earlier this month that frontman Curtis McKenzie is "rumoured to be entering sessions" to complete his Sound X solo project's debut album "Three Year Relapse", though nothing further has been publically stated. Hopefully Curtis gets that project back up & running!

That's probably all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes as we get it, along with this month's YouTube Channel Profiles on Sunday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Griphook) And The First Of The Halloween Weekend Concert Previews!!

For today's post, we're focusing on previews of the Halloween weekend hard rock/metal concerts in the area! None are known in Sault Michigan of the heavier persuasion for this weekend (at least, within our coverage range), but as Sault Ontario is pretty stacked, I'll save our previews of J.D. Pearce's annual Halloween Party & the Soo Zombie Walk afterparty (both on Saturday) for TOMORROW'S post. I don't want them to get lost in the shuffle, so look out for them then! Today's previews include the expanded Zombie Walk lineup and another Roosevelt Hotel show, but first, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Local classic hard rock quartet Griphook will return to the stage TOMORROW NIGHT at The Nicolet Tavern! Apologies for the short notice, the band only launched the Facebook event page for it this morning. Their first show since the Ray Brown benefit, tomorrow's one-night-only gig follows their classic rock sister band The Seven Year Itch's Roosevelt Hotel gigs last weekend, and it's nice to see everyone back together to rock The Nic tomorrow night! No word on why they're not playing Saturday, but I'll note that Griphook's advertising for tomorrow's concert does NOT imply a direct Halloween connection, so keep that in mind before you bring a costume. There's no announced cover charge for this 10:00 PM concert, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit the above links! It's always good to see Griphook on the local stage, and hopefully this veteran quartet (featuring Flat Stanley, Bigsuit, Hollow, and Fusion alumni) have a great night tomorrow with their diverse and often heavy mix of covers! Check above for more details, and for a preview, here's Griphook covering Finger Eleven's "One Thing" at The Nic earlier this year!

Now to previously announced dates, starting with another cover hard rock band, as Turner Up successors The Thrill Junkies will return to The Roosevelt Hotel TOMORROW NIGHT themselves! Also fresh off of the Ray Brown benefit, this is a one night only gig due to the aforementioned Halloween Party on Saturday, though like with Griphook's show, there's no announced Halloween theme for tomorrow's Thrill Junkies' gig. This will also be the first hard rock concert at The Rosie following the shooting incident there on Sunday morning (our best wishes go out to the victim), and I sincerely hope no nonsense like this happens here this weekend! What should be going down tomorrow is a fun night of hard and classic rock covers from The Thrill Junkies, who have a lot of talent and chemistry from their past band work, so don't miss their Rosie return! There is no announced cover charge for this 19+_ concert, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and when video footage of The Thrill Junkies turns up, we'll have it here!

We'll close today with all the details for the musical entertainment around this year's fifth annual Soo Zombie Walk THIS SATURDAY! Moving from The Grand Theater to The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre this year for unannounced reasons (and moving up a week later to coincide with the Halloween weekend), the location & date aren't all that's different for this year's event. Before you guys rampage downtown for brains in your best zombie costume, there's a far-expanded slate of pre-walk activities, including the shift of the majority of live bands from the afterparty to the afternoon before the walk begins. There will still be a downscaled afterparty that we'll touch on tomorrow, but here's what to expect from the actual walk activities! The Zombie Walk itself begins at 6:00 PM from the Bushplane Museum with the closing ceremonies and prize announcements taking place at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, with orientation, photos, and setup for zombie resistance members in the 5:00 hour. The headlining band on Saturday (making their third straight Zombie Walk appearance) are local "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet Sykotyk Rampage, whose own zombie themed songs & creative improvised originals will fit well once again at the Bushplane Museum!

Prior to pre-walk announcements at 4:30 PM, local grunge alternative quartet Haggith will make their second straight Zombie Walk appearance at 4:00 PM, and with their planned "Apocalypse II" CD still in the works, some zombie songs from that could be in the planned setlist, so keep that in mind as well! The other performers are solo musicians (both with past experience as bassists in prominent local bands) taking the stage prior to some brain-eating contests at 3:15 PM. The opening artists are North West member Greg Callaghan (credited as "Greg Calhoun" on official posters) at 2:30 PM and Project Legion bassist James Watterworth kicking off the music at 2:00 PM. Doors will open at the Bushplane Museum at 1:00 PM, with zombie face painting, photos, games, contests, and vendors available throughout the afternoon. Admission is $2 plus a canned food donation, and supervised children can get in with a food donation too. For more details, visit the walk's official Facebook group! I'm very curious to see how successful the Zombie Walk is given the expanded pre-walk activities, decreased emphasis on the afterparty, and date/location shifts, but the event has seen solid growth in the past four years, and I have a good feeling about this year's format!

Also, note that all of the musical performers (aside from Greg Callaghan/Calhoun) performed at Bushplane Musical Madness II in July, so if you missed that event (and love zombies), here's your makeup date! I don't know if I can make the Zombie Walk this year (blame scheduling if I can't), but I still plan on hitting the Halloween Party at The Rosie that night, so you'll see me somewhere with camera in hand to take in some seasonal metal and hard rock! For a preview, here's Sykotyk Rampage playing "Sweet Young Thing" at The Bushplane Museum in July!



That's all for today, but stay tuned TOMORROW for our previews of the Zombie Walk Afterparty and the Ripcordz-headlined Halloween Party at The Rosie! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Glitch) & Most Of This Weekend's Sault Ontario Concert Previews!!

In our first of two weekend concert previews for this weekend, we're focusing on just heavier Sault Ontario concerts going down tomorrow, with the Thrill Junkies' Roosevelt Hotel debuts coming in our next post along with the Sault Michigan previews, so it's not a snub! There's some big debuts and returns coming tomorrow, so read on below for our first of the previews!

A new local band named Glitch will make their live concert debut TOMORROW NIGHT at The Rockstar Bar! Apologies for the short notice, I held off to see if I could verify anything on their sound. Though currently without an online page, their lineup includes Sneaky Pete alumni Mike Oakley (presumably on vocals and drums) & bassist Sean Berlinguette, alongside guitarists Marco Pedalino (ex-Lion Ride) and Mark Oliverio (ex-Foothill Road/Boogie Fever.) Nothing concrete has been stated about their sound, but I'd be surprised if they didn't share similarities with Sneaky Pete's older work, so if you've missed them, head to The Rockstar Bar TOMORROW for a likely blend of hard rock covers! A $5-ish cover is likely for tomorrow's show, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

It's great to see all four members playing in a local band again, and I have a feeling they'll have some great tunes and chemistry in store for their live debut, so keep it in mind for tomorrow night, and stay tuned in case any Glitch verification comes in!

Now to the previously announced concerts this weekend, starting with a big package of old school rock n' roll and grunge downstairs at The Algonquin Pub TOMORROW NIGHT! Briefly scheduled for The Canadian Nightclub (but moved before the flooding took place), tomorrow's concert will mark two band debuts, including the long awaited first live appearance of power/classic metal quartet The Hydra's Teeth! Essentially the successors to Late & Loud, this new band (featuring singer/guitarist Brendan Christie & bassist Benn Garside alongside ex-Sativa Rose guitarist Anthony Orazietti and ex-Startlefish drummer Roy Kreutzberger) should have a bunch of hard hitting originals in store for their debut, which has been well hyped, so don't miss the launch of this new band tomorrow! Local grunge/alternative quartet Haggith will return to The Algonquin themselves tomorrow with an entertaining set of their own (they're also providing sound and lighting), so be there to help continue their local momentum during the middle set!

Opening tomorrow's show is new local rock band The Danger Cats, who will immediately grab unique attention based on their all-female lineup (including singer Summer Snow-Leopard, guitarist Paula Panther, bassist Jamie Jaguar, and drummer/Lazer Queen alum Kate Kougar), but how do they sound, and what will they play? Come on down to The Algonquin to find out tomorrow! Doors open at 9:30 PM, you must be 19 to attend, and there is a $6 cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! With heavier bands on both floors of The Algonquin Hotel, it'll be tough to pick who to see tomorrow, and while I'll primarily be downstairs, I'll see if I can swing upstairs at least once to see Glitch in action! Either way, I hope to see you guys there, and for a preview of tomorrow's show, here's The Hydra's Teeth jamming their original song "The Circle"!



Finally for this installment, local hard rock cover quintet Griphook will end their two month break with a show TOMORROW NIGHT at The Nicolet Tavern! Last seen at Rotaryfest (The 7 Year Itch aside), and with their last Nicolet appearance coming in May, fans must be itching to see Jim, Brian, Dan, and Tony back on the local stage, and hopefully tomorrow's one night only concert helps set the tides in motion once again for their diverse heavier-leaning cover selection! Knowing their collective talents, this should be an entertaining night of music, so if you're not up for a trip to The Algonquin or The Rosie (more on that tomorrow), The Nic will serve you well! Admission should be free for this 19+ concert, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. It's always good to see these guys back at it, so don't bypass tomorrow's show if you can help it, and for a preview, here's Griphook covering Seether's "Country Song" at The Rosie earlier this year!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Sault Michigan previews (including the upcoming Night Ranger concert), plus this weekend's Thrill Junkie shows in Sault Ontario tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Ray Brown Benefit & Griphook), Danger Cats Info, And More!!

Happy Friday the 13th, everyone! Today does mark a certain spree of new song postings from Sault Michigan-area label Werehold Records (along with recent tradition), but we'll have that on here tomorrow just in case the song uploads aren't done yet. Today, we have LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for next week and next month (including long awaited confirmation of bands for a major event), some details and information relating to another upcoming concert, and some new song postings, so read on below for what you need to know!

Sault Ontario hard rock cover quartet Griphook will return to the stage on Friday, September 20th (one week from today) at The Nicolet Tavern! This talented veteran outfit (featuring Flat Stanley, Bigsuit, Hollow, and Gsis Murphy alumni) had been taking a break of sorts since their Rotaryfest weekend gigs two months ago, but it's great to see the full band (rather than the one-off trio "The 7 Year Itch") back at it for another concert next week! For the record, this is their first Nicolet Tavern appearance in 4 months. There's no announced cover charge for next week's concert, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see Griphook back after their oddly long break, so don't miss their varied hard rock covers at The Nic next Friday, but if you can't make it, where else can you see them this fall?

We can see them as well at the Ray Brown benefit/tribute concert at The Verdi Hall on Friday, October 11th, as they're on the newly announced lineup for the event! As revealed by event co-organizer Donna DeSimon on the Facebook event page, Griphook will be among 7 bands (mostly cover acts) on the lineup, and in listed order, they include local punk trio Redundant, notable rock cover band Boxcar Junction (formerly Cleveland Steamer), new local hard rock quintet The Thrill Junkies (in just their fourth announced local show), alternative hard rockers Lucky 13 (in their first gig in 2 months), the aforementioned Griphook, Obsession singer Valerie Powley "and friends" (identities unclear), and Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison in a solo acoustic set, while he'll also have short performances during breaks. Nice diverse lineup, and with a solid selection of hard rock bands too! Of course, this event is in honour of veteran local drummer Ray Brown to help raise funds for his final expenses, as he was not given long to live by doctors due to his cancer battle, so come on out to pay support!

Remember, this event has been moved from The Canadian due to Monday night's flooding, and it's now on the Friday rather than Saturday due to the Thanksgiving holiday. Tickets are now on sale for $25 at The Rad Zone, along with Superior Hodge Podge & The Music Depot on Gore Street, or through event hosts credited at the event page, but get yours A.S.A.P., as only a few will be at the door. Check the above links for more details on the musical and other events (including dinner and prizes), and best of luck all around to Ray and his family!

Next up, here's the newest updates concerning the Hydra's Teeth-headlined concert at The Algonquin Pub one week from today! The Facebook event page now has an event poster that outlines entry details and the bands, while Haggith frontman Curtis McKenzie confirmed there that his band's label PaperClip Productions will provide the evening's lighting and sound. That should work out well, they have a good setup! As for the opening band that night, all-female rock band The Danger Cats, here's what we now know on them! They launched in April but only recently posted a Facebook page, and their lineup includes Summer Stevens on vocals, Paula D'Agostino on guitar, Jamie-Lynn VanSchooneveld on bass, and former Lazer Queen frontwoman Kate Drew on drums. However, all 4 members use alliterative stage names relating to big cat species (similarly to most of Lion Ride), so they're credited on Facebook as Summer Snow-Leopard, Paula Panther, Jamie Jaguar, and Kate Kougar.

I know a bit more on them given that my mom works with Jamie (and Paula formerly too), so I can confirm that some members are still gaining experience on their instruments, but they do cover at least some heavier songs, so come on out next week to support them! Compared to Sault Michigan, Sault Ontario tends to lack for women in rock bands, so hopefully The Danger Cats have a successful debut next week to help change that up! Stay tuned for updates if they come in!

Finally for today, two new songs from local grindcore solo project Brutaly Fatal were uploaded to their label Blood Shed Productions' YouTube channel yesterday! Entitled "Shank Shock" and "Acidic Sky's" (which is the title track of their demo), the songs still show Austin McCrae's growling and bass skills fairly well, but the absence of a full band is still all too clear, and it'd be nice to see Austin enlist other band members to fill out these promising tracks. Check out "Acidic Sky's" below, and stay tuned soon for more updates on Blood Shed Productions' grind artists!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for our recap of today's Friday the 13th uploads from Werehold Records! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Caveman & Tym Morrison), Sault Ontario Weekend Concert Previews, And More!!

In our first of likely two weekend concert preview posts (Sault Michigan's coming tomorrow), we have SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for THIS WEEKEND, along with existing previews, another new show for later this month, and a handful of other assorted topics! With that said, read on below to get caught up!

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will return to The Road House Bar & Grill on Trunk Road for two more solo acoustic gigs TOMORROW NIGHT & on Friday, September 27th! Apologies for the short notice, tomorrow's show was announced on Monday, and I held it until now to avoid redundantly plugging it twice in a few days time (and my source for the show on the 27th is Tym in a Facebook e-mail, it hasn't had an event page posted yet.) Tym's prolific run of unplugged hard rock cover sets continues well into September, and if you're up for some softer and more intimate takes on some metal classics, head to the East End for Tym's well recieved solo live show tomorrow night! Admission for both of this month's new shows should be free, you must be 19 to attend, 10:00 PM start times are likely, and I don't know yet if he'll be playing any type of show at The Road House next week. For more details, click here! As usual, tomorrow's show should be an entertaining night, so keep it mind, and for a preview, here's Tym covering Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" at what's now Coch's Corner!



In related short notice concert news, Tym's local metal cover band Caveman Morrison will return to the stage THIS SATURDAY NIGHT at The Water Tower Inn on Great Northern Road! Again, apologies for the short notice, same reasoning as Tym's solo gig tomorrow. Knowing that they're playing live again, this means that their bassist situation is resolved, but who's now their bassist? James White still! Tym confirmed with me on Facebook that James (who had left in advance of plans to move from the area) is instead staying in town and with Caveman Morrison, which is great news, as he fits well with Tym and Johnny! However, I have no word on why a photo featuring ex-bassist Dutch Vanderploeg is on the Facebook event page. Saturday's concert (which was once lined up to be a Tym Morrison solo gig according to The Water Tower Inn's calendar) is their third at this venue, and the guys should be raring to go with a night full of metal & hard rock covers for their fans! There's no announced cover charge, you must be 19 to attend, and a 9:00 PM start time is advertised. Check the above links for more details!

Hopefully Caveman Morrison's show on Saturday is a big hit, and with James locked in after his brief departure, they should have some great tunes ready for fans at The Water Tower Inn, so don't miss it! For a preview, here's Caveman Morrison covering Judas Priest's "The Ripper" at The Rosie!



Now to the previously announced show this weekend, as new local hard rock band The Thrill Junkies will make their long awaited local debut TOMORROW NIGHT at The Nicolet Tavern! Following their Rock 'N Roar battle of the bands & festival appearances in Spanish, the quintet featuring singer Travis Sharpe, guitarists Robert Brown & Jason Nisbet, bassist Justin Langlois, and drummer Scott McLurg have a lot of hype and momentum on their side in advance of their September local dates, so be among the first to see this union of Turner Up, Havadder, and Redundant alumni tomorrow night for their range of covers! Admission should be free, you must be 19 to attend, and the show starts at 10:00 PM. For more information, visit the official Facebook event page! If you've missed the members' recent bands (or Travis singing in a permanent local project), you'd be well served to see The Thrill Junkies' local debut tomorrow night or next weekend at The Rosie, so don't miss out, and as soon as media comes out of their material, we'll have it here!

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

• Newer local power metal quartet The Hydra's Teeth have uploaded another original song demo to their Reverbnation page! Entitled "In the Dead of Night", I believe it just features Brendan Christie on vocals & guitar, but it does sound promising (and with stronger vocals!) Check it out above, and don't miss their live debut one week from Friday at The Algonquin Pub!
• Bear Hunters/Suicide Kings guitarist Mitch Sirie is looking for a rhythm guitarist & bassist for a new dark metal project that he's starting. He already has a drummer, they plan to play original material (with covers to start and 6-8 string guitars), and songs would vary from ballads to screaming material. If you're interested in trying out, message Mitch at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from last Friday! Note that I'm not sure if this means anything negative for his other bands' statuses, or if this is an expansion of one of his solo projects.
• Veteran local drummer Mike Severin has relocated to Sault Ste. Marie and brought his Toronto-launched recording studio Muzicare Productions North with him! Full information on their local operations aren't public yet, but he has an impressive client list and promises big recordings without a big price, so click here to inquire further in case you wanna record anything there!

That's probably all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for Sault Michigan weekend concert previews! Thanks everyone!