As our extremely busy stretch at the SMS continues, we have just our second non-preview/recap/feature post on the site since Monday, and it's got two functions. The latter half is to preview a major local band's Juno Award nomination this weekend, but first, we have previews of this weekend's known metal/hard rock shows, all in the Sault Michigan area, starting with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so here's what you need to know!!
Marquette/Ishpeming hard rock quartet Nudge will apparently return to The Satisfied Frog in Sault Michigan TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! I apologize for the short notice, but these were only just announced on Tuesday on Nudge's Facebook page (though oddly not through Facebook event pages), and these just couldn't fit into our posts since then due to how busy things have been on the site this week. The shows definitely are on Friday and Saturday, and they followed members' Danzo McCracken & Scott Kusmirek's usual acoustic gigs at The Frog on Wednesday and Thursday, which were their first acoustic dates here since last year, as their Soo dates last month didn't feature them. Look out for a packed weekend of metal and hard rock renditions from these local favourites tonight & tomorrow, and like usual, there's a 21+ age limit, no announced cover charge, and a 10:00 PM start time. For more details, check the above links! These should both be good shows, so don't miss Nudge at The Frog TONIGHT OR TOMORROW, and for a preview, here's Nudge covering Shinedown's "The Sound of Madness" in Negaunee last year!
Also in known heavier concerts this weekend, Kinross classic/hard rock quintet Banned will continue their highly frequent recent concert pace with a return to Todd's Tavern in nearby Moran, Michigan TOMORROW NIGHT! Easily one of Banned's favourite concert venues since debuting there last year, hopefully there's a sizeable crowd for the Traynors and company's return to Moran (an hour south of the Soo, 30 minutes northwest of St. Ignace), so don't miss their varied blend of covers and originals tomorrow (and if you can't make it, they'll be back there next weekend!) Admission should be free for tomorrow's 21+ concert, and I'd expect them to be on again at the earlier 8:00 PM start time. For more details, visit Banned's Facebook page! This should be a solid "job" as usual for Banned, so head on down to Moran to check them out tomorrow night, and for a preview, here's the guys (and girl) covering The Black Keys' "Lonely Boy" at the Sault Kewadin Casino last month!
Finally, we have a special sort of preview, as TOMORROW, we find out if defunct local blackened doom metal band Woods of Ypres will win a Juno Award for Best Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year! As covered in The Sault Star & SooToday, Woods of Ypres officially received a posthumous nomination in the Junos' (essentially Canada's Grammys) second-year metal category on February 19th, which is obviously for their fifth & final studio album "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light" (which came out too late into 2012 for consideration at last year's ceremony.) The Cancer Bats, Castle, The Devin Townsend Project, and Ex Deo are the other bands up this year, which should make for stiff competition like last year, when KEN Mode beat the likes of Anvil & Fuck The Facts for the inagural metal Juno Award. The ceremony itself (hosted by Michael Buble) will be held in Regina, Saskatchewan this Sunday live on CTV, but it's very unlikely that the metal award winner will be awarded live then (which isn't just a metal snub, as less than 10 of the 40+ awards will be given out on the televised ceremony.)
I'd expect the metal awards to be a part of the untelevised private gala dinner that's being held TOMORROW NIGHT at The Credit Union Eventplex in Regina, where the vast majority of awards will be given out, so we won't be able to see the presentation (unless there's a webcast I'm unaware of), but as soon as I hear anything or reports concerning the metal award, I'll let you guys know! Local news articles on the nomination confirmed that late frontman David Gold's family will be in attendance at tomorrow's gala, along with the band's final guitarist Joel Violette (the only surviving band member who played on "Woods V"), so there'll be some local, family, and band representation when and if Woods of Ypres win the Juno. This is obviously a huge weekend for local music, let alone metal, as it's not every day that a band or artist from here gets a Juno nomination! I believe this would be a perfect cap to David Gold's career and legacy in Canadian metal, and it's just a shame he's only getting recognition of this scale over a year after he died. As soon as I hear anything relating to the Best Metal/Hard Music Juno being announced, I'll let you guys know, and best of luck to Joel and the Gold family tomorrow! David would be proud!
That's likely all for today, but stay tuned TOMORROW for a huge post full of big new metal/punk show announcements, and our profile of last year's Sault Humane Society Battle of the Bands on it's one year anniversary! Thanks everyone!
Let's clear out most of our remaining news on this Sunday afternoon, so what's on tap today? Among some assorted shorter news stories, we have new solo performance videos, the latest Haggith updates, and information on a major news article relating to a recent big story in the scene, but first, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for this coming weekend!
Marquette/Ishpeming hard rock quartet Nudge will make their first Sault Michigan stops of 2013 this coming Friday and Saturday at The Satisfied Frog! As quietly announced a couple of days ago, these will be their first local gigs in 4 months, and they should have some solidly entertaining sets of covers and originals for their fans in the area once again! This will also be just their third local concert weekend with former Gin Blossoms drummer Scott Kusmirek in the fold, and I've heard great things about him with Nudge, so hopefully the good vibes continue this coming weekend! Both shows have 10:00 PM start times and 21+ age limits, while there's no announced cover charge. Note as well that no solo acoustic gigs have been announced for Wednesdsay or Thursday at The Frog, unlike their 2012 local dates, but keep an eye out just in case. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see Nudge back in the area, and hopefully their local contingent of fans go wild both nights for their entertaining hard rock performances! If any updates come in, I'll have them here!
Next up, the recent news of Woods of Ypres' Juno Award nomination have attracted some more local news coverage via this article from The Sault Star! Wrote by Michael Purvis and entitled "Juno-nominated album is son's legacy, says mother", it was posted online on Wednesday (and likely included in the Thursday issue of the paper.) It focuses on the defunct local metal band's album "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light" and it's nomination for a Best Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year Juno last week, and it features remarks from late frontman David Gold's mother Esther, final Woods guitarist Joel Violette, and myself on the album & nomination. I encourage you guys to read the article, but it offers some nice insights from those who Michael talked to, including Esther's response to Woods of Ypres' Juno nomination, the recording process for "W5", and the lyrical themes now that David has passed away, among others. The article also reveals that the Gold family have already booked hotel rooms in Regina to attend the Junos on April 20th-21st, and Joel also plans to be there.
It's a good article overall, with some interesting thoughts and statements on Woods of Ypres & David Gold's impact and musical legacy, so check it out at the above links, and stay tuned for further updates as we inch closer to the Junos in April!
Thirdly, here's the latest news from Sault Ontario grunge quartet Haggith! On Thursday, the band unveiled the final track listing for their projected third studio album "Deuce" via an image file, so what tracks are coming on it? Alongside the previously announced "Leon the Janitor", "75", and "Safe on the Outside", the album will also include recent live track "Loverbeam", an already implied untitled song, a cover of the Mike Haggith solo track "To Whom This May Concern", and new songs named "That Cold Winter Breeze", "Clifton Hill", and "To Stay Alive", though "Public Enemy" curiously did not made the cut, despite being plugged on their Facebook page on Thursday as well. To promote the planned album, Haggith have posted some new media files on Facebook, including acoustic variants of "75" & "Clifton Hill", and both work to the strengths of their main performers (without giving anything away), so check them out above! Plans are for "Deuce" to be released in the spring (possibly as soon as next month), so stay tuned to the above links for all current updates!
Also today, relocated local musician Ryan Harrison has uploaded some new solo performance videos onto his YouTube channel to check out! The RedStone Riot/ex-Elipzis bassist and former Riot! By Night frontman posted acoustic vocal/guitar covers of Paolo Nutini's "Last Request", Story of the Year's "Anthem of our Dying Day", and (as embedded below) Breaking Benjamin's "Breath" onto YouTube yesterday, and all are part of his "pajama sessions" that he started last fall from his current Muskegon home base. The new videos are similar in vein to his past solo covers (albeit at an oddly placed camera angle where his guitar playing isn't visible), but overall, his singing and guitar work are on form! Vocals are a bit scratchy at points, but overall, pretty good stuff! I'd be curious to see Ryan do some plugged in electric material like this, or at least some heavier covers in general, but give his latest "pajama sessions" covers a look above & below!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter stories from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band or artist name:
Former Fingerbone/Pisstanks bassist Charles Gibson is looking to re-enter a local music project, and if anyone's willing to jam, send him a message on Facebook at this location! Charles originally posted about his search on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday, and his talents would be nice to see active again locally!
I've moved Pickford hard rock quintet NoXcape to our inactive Sault Michigan band links due to a year's inactivity. The Absolute/Riot! By Night successors last updated their online pages a year ago yesterday, and they hadn't plugged any announced shows after September 2011, so they likely parted ways last year. NoXcape had promise from the members' past band work & chemistry, and hopefully the guys come together for another project down the road!
Two weeks ago, cellist and former Woods of Ypres guest studio performer Raphael Weinroth-Browne uploaded his cover of the "Woods V" song "Adora Vivos" onto YouTube at this location, so give it a listen! It's from the forthcoming "Heart of Gold" tribute album, and it's similar to the Australian cello cover of "Allure of the Earth" in some ways, so check it out, and stay tuned for album updates!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news this week, including this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile on The Line Drawn on Tuesday! Thanks everyone!
I'd expect the metal awards to be a part of the untelevised private gala dinner that's being held TOMORROW NIGHT at The Credit Union Eventplex in Regina, where the vast majority of awards will be given out, so we won't be able to see the presentation (unless there's a webcast I'm unaware of), but as soon as I hear anything or reports concerning the metal award, I'll let you guys know! Local news articles on the nomination confirmed that late frontman David Gold's family will be in attendance at tomorrow's gala, along with the band's final guitarist Joel Violette (the only surviving band member who played on "Woods V"), so there'll be some local, family, and band representation when and if Woods of Ypres win the Juno. This is obviously a huge weekend for local music, let alone metal, as it's not every day that a band or artist from here gets a Juno nomination! I believe this would be a perfect cap to David Gold's career and legacy in Canadian metal, and it's just a shame he's only getting recognition of this scale over a year after he died. As soon as I hear anything relating to the Best Metal/Hard Music Juno being announced, I'll let you guys know, and best of luck to Joel and the Gold family tomorrow! David would be proud!
