Showing posts with label nova. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nova. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Spun), AlgomA/Shit Liver Split Details, And New Videos!!

Before we begin this post, we have a concert cancellation to acknowledge, as tonight's Nova Rex show at The Rockstar Bar is no longer taking place. The Florida hair metal headliners have reportedly dropped out of the show due to a band member falling ill, as per The Rockstar Bar's Hayley Warnock on the Facebook event page yesterday. Very disappointing, but hopefully Nova Rex play up here at some point in the future, this was shaping up to be a big event! Now, today's post features some new videos, and big album updates, but to lead off, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month!

Marquette cover hard rock quartet Spun will return to The Satisfied Frog in Sault Michigan for one night only on Friday, September 22nd! Two months removed from their last stops in our neck of the woods, the Nudge successors will be back in full force for another night of hard rocking classics for their E.U.P. fans, so circle September 22nd on your calendars to help ring in the fall season! This show is definitely advertised as being on Friday the 22nd only, no word on why they're not playing at The Frog on Saturday the 23rd, or if it's omission is accidental. Similarly to Spun's past Frog gigs, expect a 9:30 PM start time in three weeks, you must be 21 years old or greater to attend, and there is no announced cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page and the above links for current details on this concert!

Next up, here's the latest updates on the upcoming split album from local metal trios AlgomA & Shit Liver, so what's new to say about "Trading Faces"? As per Shit Liver's Facebook page on Monday, the digital release of the split will take place on September 5th (THIS COMING TUESDAY) via both bands' respective Bandcamp pages, and while Shit Liver will also post their half on YouTube, they couldn't guarantee the same for AlgomA's half. The release date for the physical cassette tapes still appears to be two weeks later on September 17th, and they will be on sale during their Ontario/Montreal tour run next month (which ends at The New A on October 2nd) and online via AlgomA's label Deadbeat Media, though we await specifics on the release otherwise. As for the content, throw all assumptions about potential originals you had hoped to hear out the window, as this is a covers-only album! AlgomA are only doing songs by Dead Mouth and Kittens (they've played the latter live before), but expect these to be slow and sludgy!

Shit Liver will tackle songs by Leftover Crack, Macabre, Deicide, Antischism, and Dystopia, but one big twist here is that the two bands will also cover each other, with AlgomA covering "Fabricated Nonsense" and Shit Liver either including or re-recording their sped up grindcore version of "Fell Down A Well" from 2015. I didn't expect this to be a covers release, but it'll be very interesting to hear how this one turns out, so check the above links for full details and song names, and stay tuned for updates on the split's price and availability when it comes in, hopefully starting on Tuesday!

Closing today with new videos, here's a new live streamed clip from local hard rock quintet Skeyes of Seven's Facebook page from two weeks back! This video was intended as a promotional clip for their return set at the now cancelled Eye of Horus concert this past weekend, but the video is still relevant to share, as it's a performance of a new Skeyes of Seven original song, which I believe is entitled "Differences". The band's first video with their full current lineup (as recorded in their recent jam session locale), you'll hear a solid new original that fits with their existing original repertoire, and I'm sure it would have played well live, but hopefully we'll get a chance soon at another event! If only this wasn't filmed on a vertical camera angle, but it's still great to see a full five-piece Skeyes of Seven for the first time in 3 years, so give their new live video a look below, and stay tuned for more from their camp!



Finally for today, here's a new videos of Project 906 guitarist Joe Jenkins, as shared by Sault Michigan music store Crooked Music's Facebook page on Monday! Remember, Joe is their current guitar instructor. Originally posted to Joe's personal Facebook page, this features a test run of the Ashmun Street music store's most expensive guitar pedal while playing a Reverend Sensai 290 guitar, as recorded the day prior when the store was closed. This is a bit of an instructional or demonstrative clip with Joe talking to the camera about the gear, but he has some nice bluesy riffs to show off, so give it a look below, and don't miss Project 906 in Brimley this Saturday!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Friday, August 18, 2017

Rudyard Musicians Festival Preview, A New Solo Video, And Much More!!

As promised, our extended preview of a major returning music festival is leading off today's post, but we also have a recent video upload and a few recent news and notes, so here's what you should know!

The second annual Rudyard Musicians Festival goes down TOMORROW, where 13 regional music acts will rock out at Rudyard Township Park (18725 South Mackinac Trail) all day long, and despite the earlier indication of "NO METAL", there will be some hard rock acts to help close out this sophomore installment! Harbouring a largely similar lineup to last year (only Stoned Ape Evolution, Second Offense, and The Gaskins aren't back), this year's Musicians Fest will be headlined by Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Project 906 at 11:00 PM, fresh off of their recent Moloney's Alley gigs, while classic rockers and festival organizers Steelhead (with guest performer Jimmy Bishop) will co-headline at 10:00 PM. Online page-less experimental hard rockers and festival newcomers The Karstens will return to the stage at 9:00 PM, while classic rock band The Whole Shabang will also debut here at 8:00 PM. Remaining acts are largely country or bluegrass-centric unless otherwise stated, and they include The North Country Band at 7:00 PM...

...The Wednesday Night Headliners at 6:00 PM, Robert & Bob Malaski at 5:00 PM, Jimmy Williams at 4:00 PM, pop singer Hayley Malaska at 3:30 PM, the solo festival debut of Kevin Blakeney at 3:00 PM, Crossroads alum Denny Verrett at 2:00 PM, Traverse City experimental outfit The Neighbourhood Dogs at 1:00 PM, and The (New?) Jazz Trio opening the day's musical entertainment at 12:00 PM. In a related musical note, TONIGHT will see an open mic "free for all" at Rudyard Township Park, as organizers feel that they might as well use musical equipment that's already set up, so keep that in mind if you love open mic nights and jam sessions! As was the case last year, the Rudyard Musicians Festival is a charitable event with all proceeds going to Rudyard Area Schools' music and band programs, which is a great gesture on their part! An ALL AGES event, admission is $5 tomorrow save for kids 10 years old and under, who will get in FREE.

Concessions will be available all day, including a $5 pig roast (again, kids eat free here), while camping on site will be available free to festival patrons today through Sunday, so keep all of these details in mind! This is shaping up to be another entertaining installment of this E.U.P. festival, and it could serve as a fine sequel to the musically similar Sugar Island Festival last week, so visit the official Facebook event page and the above links for more details, stay tuned for potential fallout, and here's Project 906 live at last year's Rudyard Musicians Festival!



Next up, here's a new video of Sault Ontario hard rock/experimental guitarist and Audiofumes podcast host Mike Cliffe, courtesy of his YouTube channel on Tuesday, and it's of a work in progress guitar track named "Afro Shuffle". With a name inspired by the backing African drum tracks, this song is less heavy and honestly has a bit of a progressive/world music vibe that even has some country-ish tinges. Hard to explain, but well performed and melodic, so give it a look below, and check out more above!



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

  • Apologies for the delay in this making a proper news post ("Where Are The New Albums?" aside), but the title and cover artwork for AlgomA & Shit Liver's upcoming split cassette tape were each revealed via both bands' Facebook pages on August 1st! Entitled "Trading Faces", the artwork (by frequent AlgomA collaborator) puts a sludgy spin on the movie "Face/Off", I'll say that much! No word yet on the release, other than a tease that it will be posted on Bandcamp before tapes themselves are put out, but stay tuned for updates on this anticipated split in any event!
  • Nova Rex bassist Kenny Wilkerson was interviewed by Brian Kelly for a Sault Star article yesterday, where Kenny discussed the Florida hair metal band's first Canadian tour in 2 decades (including their Rockstar Bar show on August 30th), their new album, past tour memories, and more. Nice interview overall, especially to prime fans who may not be familiar with Nova Rex, so give it a look above or in yesterday's paper! Unfortunately, it also appears that local classic rock openers Nikkfitt have disbanded, as per the deletion of their Facebook page, and the above article indicates that the opening act is now "to be announced".
  • The Oh!NO 2017 Music Festival at "Robbie's Church" in nearby Leeburn on September 9th has one more confirmed act, as DJ Seith will now close the night with a set of his turntable mixes. Solid choice, and some added variety, so look for him to wrap things up in three weeks! Also, despite earlier advertising in the affirmative, plans to have a shuttle bus to get fans to and from the event have been cancelled, with co-promoter Jamie Vincent citing the bus' cost for the change in plans, though he encouraged ride-sharing or Union Cab as alternatives. Good to know in advance, and see above for more festival updates as we approach the 9th!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next week! Thanks everyone!

Friday, March 24, 2017

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (CKY & Nova Rex), Plus A New Din Video!!

On this Friday evening, we have a new video to share, but first, let's tackle two recent LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS featuring notable American headlining bands, including one in particular that's gotten tons of local buzz since it was announced yesterday! Here's what you need to know!

Pennsylvania alt-metal trio CKY will make their local concert debut at The Canadian Nightclub on Thursday, June 8th! Yes, the band best known for songs like "96 Quite Bitter Beings", "Flesh Into Gear", and "Familiar Realm" will rock the Soo in a few short months, and even without longtime frontman Deron Miller in their current lineup, their energetic punk-influenced originals are sure to get a huge reception in their local debut! After all, they're the namesake of and a huge part of the old CKY DVDs that begat the Jackass series, so keep that angle in mind too! A stacked local openers lineup will include the return of hardcore quintet As It Stands to the stage for the first time since 2012 on June 8th. Though A.I.S. only formally broke up in 2014, we've been waiting well over 4 years for a new show from the guys, and with John Mignacca back home, they're primed to reclaim their spot in the local scene! Also slated to open are punk/metal favourites Jack Spades, in the public debut of their new lineup!

No word yet on who's joining J.D. and Justin in their new lineup, but this will mark Jack Spades' first show since opening for SNFU in September, and this will be a great way to welcome them back after over 8 months away! The current opener lineup is rounded out by newer alt-punk quartet A Dire Setback, who should be in fine form following their own recent Canadian gigs, so don't be late for their set either! Notably, this is the first announced concert promoted by Jack Spades frontman J.D. Pearce since his annual Halloween party last year, but what a way to get back into the swing of things, and keep posted in case he has anything sooner to announce! This 19+ show currently lists an unusually early start time of 6:00 PM, and tickets are now on sale at this link for $20, though in-person local availability has not been publically noted as of press time. As a long-time fan of anything to do with the CKY name, this is a huge deal, and it will be awesome to have Chad, Matt, and Jess in the Soo come June 8th!

J.D. has noted that this show has seen the fastest online sales on the first day of any of his promoted concerts, so get your tickets A.S.A.P. just in case by clicking here, as who knows when and where they'll be available in person, especially with As It Stands and Jack Spades both returning that same night! Stay tuned for continued updates as they roll in, and As It Stands are back in our active band links, hopefully this isn't a one-off!

Next up, here's one more new show announcement for later this year, as Florida-based hair metal veterans Nova Rex will hit The Rockstar Bar for a headlining concert on Wednesday, August 30th! A familiar band to glam metal diehards, Nova Rex have been active since the mid-1980s, and while they never achieved the mainstream superstardom of other contemporary acts, they have a solid following that carried them to their own Netflix documentary in 2011, and they should light things up at The Rockstar Bar to help send out the summer! Returning local classic rock cover quartet Nikkfitt (featuring Browbeat and Redundant alumni) will open this show, and this will be a nice showcase for this talented local outfit who don't play live often enough, so keep them in mind as well! Admission for this 19+ event is $8, with advance tickets likely to be available at The Algonquin Hotel's front desk, and an oddly early start time of 8:00 PM is advertised. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for updates on this Hair Scare-worthy concert!

Finally, we were going to close with a new Facebook video from the aforementioned A Dire Setback, but that video was quietly deleted today for unannounced reasons, so we'll cover it if it's re-posted later. Instead, here's the latest clip from local alternative hard rock trio The Din, as uploaded to their Facebook page yesterday! Another in The Din's long line of comedic Facebook videos, this is a "public service announcement" on how not to headbang, a direct nod to Quiet Riot, who will no doubt play "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" on THURSDAY at The Machine Shop, with The Din opening the night's lineup! Needless to say, the headbanging demonstrations in the video aren't "traditional", and while the guys recuperate, drummer Brandan Glew hypes up the Quiet Riot show, especially as tickets are almost sold out. Click here for full ticket details while they last, and give The Din's new video a look below, as it is funny, and sound effects may be employed!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes over the weekend! Thanks everyone!