LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Out Of The Ruins), Recent Event Coverage, And New Videos!!

Before we get into this post, I wanted to apologize for some missed concerts this past weekend, as two local classic/hard rock bands played shows that went unannounced on band pages: Lucky 13 on Friday and yesterday at The Rednecks Saloon, and Mourning Wood at Reggie's Place yesterday following their set at Friday's Reggie's 25th anniversary street party. Both only received personal Facebook page plugs late last night, too late for us to cover them in a SMS post. Apologies again for missing these, we would have plugged them had either band mentioned them in advance!

Now, today's post features new video postings, recent concert coverage in news media, and leading off, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as a new metal concert will be hitting The Rednecks Saloon on Saturday, July 11th, which will be headlined by Toronto metalcore quintet Out Of The Ruins! A multi-gender band featuring intense yet melodic originals, Out Of The Ruins' extreme metal attack should find a quality audience next month, and it's great to see them get a local booking during their Move It Or Lose It tour! A co-headlining band at 11:30 PM is to be announced (no word yet on if they'll be local or another touring band), but local death metal veterans The Bear Hunters and alternative hard rock quartet Haggith will open the event, and they'll add their own spin to the proceedings as the night kicks off! This show will uniquely be a co-presentation from both Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie and Haggith's label PaperClip Productions, though no word on if they'll collaborate on promoting other shows together.

This 19+ concert will begin at 9:30 PM, and admission will be $5 via advance ticket sales (details forthcoming) or $7 at the door. For more details on this intriguing concert next month, visit the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for updates as they roll in!

Next up, here's some fallout from a pair of weekend concert events! We'll start with the Reggie's Place 25th anniversary street party (which featured Mourning Wood, apologies again for missing their Saturday gig there), which was covered in both this SooToday article and this Sault Online article yesterday. The former is mostly reflective of Reggie's contributions and impact in the past 25 years, while the latter is photo and video heavy, though neither touched on Mourning Wood's set. Reggie's Place largely doesn't cross into our coverage range, but Reggie has sure done a great job with it, and you know it's a big deal when Mayor Christian Provenzano came out! I just hope there's more outdoor street parties like this to come. The other coverage comes from SooToday's Donna Hopper's article on the Lopstock II "bohemian conclave" at LopLops Lounge from yesterday, so what should you know from that event?

The article features remarks from promoter/Gnaeus drummer Brendan Garlick (who promoted last year's as well), where he explained the genesis of the event and his hopes for it. Donna could only stay for the first three bands, so her photos (all in colour) include 6 of Id Iota's set and 8 each from Caroline Divine and indie rockers Aldous. It's disappointing that more bands weren't captured, but three new and rising bands got a nice glimpse via Donna's excellent photos, so check everything out on these events above!

We'll close today with new videos, including two from local alternative hard rock trio The Pixo Control's YouTube Channel! Both uploaded on Thursday, these both come from their show last week at The New American Pub when they opened for Edmonton's The Archaics. One video is of 15 minutes of their set from an excellent quality camera, and though the editing is sometimes very obvious, the guys sound good, and this has to be the best visual looks I've ever seen from inside The New A on video. Whoever filmed this was well travelled, be they far away or behind the band! Embedded below though is the band's second "vlog", which details assorted goings on before, during, and after the show, alongside clips of their own set. Now featuring on-screen text to credit artists, what can you see in The Pixo Control's second vlog?

The video features remarks and setup from the band, plus cameos by members of The Danger Cats, Gnaeus, and Bad Back, closed captioning for some on-stage banter, and some post-show harmonizing, but the vlog oddly ends with over 20 seconds of no audio or video. It'd be nice to have seen some performance footage of other bands that night, but this is another fun vlog from The Pixo Control, and it's nice to see the production values and post-effects getting better! Check it out below, and more above!



Finally, here's a short new jam session video from local goregrind solo project Crucify The Whore! Uploaded to label Blood Shed Productions' Facebook page yesterday, this is of singer/guitarist Tyler Gibson jamming an original, as filmed on a cell phone camera, though the tight and vertical angle is a little too close. Solid aggressive sound though, so give this new C.T.W. video a look below, and keep an eye out for a cameo by Rotopsy's Dylan Taylor!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for much more as the week rolls along! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Shit Liver & Wilt), The New Bare Episode, And More!!

For this Saturday, here's a new post featuring assorted recent updates, a new performance video, and first, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for this fall and TONIGHT, so here's what you need to know!

A long teased Heavy North Entertainment house party concert will indeed go down TONIGHT, as a venue has been found! Apologies for the obviously short notice, the show was announced via it's Facebook event page on Monday but we held it for this weekend's previews & for a venue announcement. TONIGHT'S show will be headlined at 12:30 AM by local/St. Catharine's death metal/crust punk trio Shit Liver in their first local concert of the year (and first of their brief return home on their current Canadian tour), so if you can't make it to The Rednecks Saloon on Tuesday, keep TONIGHT's show in mind for their grimy death metal intensity! The listed band order will also see local death metal standouts The Bear Hunters take the stage at 11:30 PM for the first time since their VM Radio Battle run, while Blood Shed Productions acts will fill out the lineup, including solo goregrind project Crucify The Whore at 10:30 PM, death metal duo Brutally Fatal at 9:30 PM, and rappers Phat Boii & Mikey Thomas splitting the opening 9:00 PM set.

Note however that the lineup is "subject to small change", and we'll let you guys know if something is announced! To be held at 124 Anna Street in the east end, this definitely publically-advertised show is ALL AGES, and admission is by donation, though Shit Liver will have merchandise on sale too. For more details, visit the above links! If you've enjoyed other recent H.N.E./Blood Shed house parties, this will be right up your alley, especially with the local return of Shit Liver, so don't miss out TONIGHT AT 9:00 PM, and here's Shit Liver live last year!

Also in new concert announcements, here's the last of the currently announced Gonqshow events in J.D. Pearce's summer concert series at The Algonquin Pub, as Winnipeg black metal quintet Wilt (I believe) are scheduled to make their local concert debut there on Saturday, September 26th! If we have the right band named Wilt, then look for a night of intense atmospheric and drawn out extreme metal from this talented band that fans of Wolven Ancestry should take to! Openers are to be announced, but we are five months out from showtime, so we have lots of time for word on that front. Like most other Gonqshow events this year, this will be a 19+ event with a $5 cover charge and a 10:00 PM start time, but again, there could be announcements to the contrary over the summer. For more details, visit the above links, and stay tuned for more Gonqshow updates in a bit!

Next, here's the long awaited episode of Local2's stripped-down music performance series Bare, featuring local indie/punk band Northwest! Uploaded to Bare's YouTube channel yesterday, this has Northwest frontman Wayne Watkins and guitarist Greg Callaghan playing their song "Young & Wild", notably still with electric guitars. In a sense, it sounds like extracted master tracks in this form, and it's solidly done, but I do wonder how this would sound if unplugged? Nice work, so give Northwest's Bare episode a look below, and check out their new SooToday article on their CBC Searchlight run at this link (VOTE TODAY!!)



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter updates from the last while, including to two of the upcoming Gonqshow events! As usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or venue name:

• This recently came to our attention following a recent push to name a local concert stage in honour of late Case's Music founder, musician, and teacher Mike Case, as it turns out that the bandshell at Bellevue Park (which infrequently hosts heavier shows) was already named the Harry R. Pearse Memorial Bandshell in 1971 after the conductor of The Band of the 227th Regiment in the early 1900s. However, the outdoor country stage at the Chippewa Trading Post is being named after Mike, which is a great gesture! Click here for more on recent tributes.
• The planned Of Tall Tales-headlined concert at The Algonquin Pub that was scheduled for Saturday, July 18th will apparently be moved to a different date, as per a recent update to the Gonqshow's event page that now lists it's date as "to be announced". A reason hasn't been announced, but hopefully it does take place, as Of Tall Tales are a solid band! Stay tuned for updates!
• Two Sudbury metal bands have been added to the Vesperia-headlined Algonquin Pub show on Thursday, July 23rd, those being new "sci-grind" quartet Ruptured Birth (featuring members of Before The Black Gates) and death metal trio Fractal Generator (featuring members of Wolven Ancestry). Great additions, it's nice to see more Sudbury bands coming out west! Also, this show now has a listed $8 cover charge.

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Vesperia, Of Tall Tales, AxMinister, And The River Jacks!!)

Before we begin, I wanted to apologize for yet another missed Mourning Wood concert, as the classic/hard rock trio played a short notice matinee concert at The New American Pub on Saturday night, as per their Facebook page that day. The alert came too late for us to slide it into a timely post, but it was their first New A set in two months. Had this show have had more advance notice, we'd have definitely plugged it here, but our apologies either way! Now, today's post is entirely devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, all from a newly announced concert series taking place over mid-2015, so here's what you need to know!

Local concert promoter J.D. Pearce has announced a summer concert series called The Gonqshow that will see at least 10 different concerts hit The Algonquin Pub over a four month span between May and September! The first time that he's announced such an ambitious long-term run at a venue since the short-lived Heavy Thursdays at The Rosie, most of these concerts will have $5 cover charges, and all will likely have local opening bands. You can get more details at the official Facebook event page, but the first Gonqshow date (barring any interim announcements) will see Calgary punk sextet The River Jacks make their local debut on Wednesday, May 20th! Taking place early in their cross-Canada tour, their up-tempo punk sound with a folk tinge and message should find an audience here next month, so keep this show in mind as the Gonqshow begins! For reference, The River Jacks have touring bands joining them across Canada, just not in the Soo.

Local openers are being sought for this and most other shows that J.D. has planned for The Gonqshow this year, so message him at this link or above if you want to open for The River Jacks next month! Unless later stated otherwise, this is a 19+ event with a $5 cover and a likely 10:00 PM start time. For more details, visit the above links! This should be a great way to kick off this series, so don't miss The River Jacks' folk/punk attack!

Two Saturday night events (on May 30th and June 27th) await a public announcement of who's playing them, but next among announced Algonquin Pub events in this series is a wildly diverse concert on Saturday, July 4th that will be headlined by masked Toronto thrash trio AxMinister in their local debut! Possibly familiar as well for sharing the stage with locals AlgomA at a Sudbury event in June, their gritty pounding thrash originals should also make lots of fans on the Fourth of July (the SMS' eighth birthday too!), so keep them in mind! When I said this was wildly diverse, I meant it, as Alberta pop punk quintet Calling All Captains will open in their own local debut, and while a far cry from AxMinister, their energetic alternative sound will be familiar for fans of bands like A Fall From Innocence, so they'll find a good response as well! Capping off the wide sound array will be local rapper Mikey Thomas, and fans of his Blood Shed sets will know his skill for that genre!

There's arguably a little something for everyone at this show, which will again likely be a 19+ affair with a 10:00 PM start time and a $5 cover charge, so check the above links for more details, and whether you love thrash, punk, rap, all, or some of the above, keep this show in mind for July!

Next on the Gonqshow slate is an Algonquin Pub concert on Saturday, July 18th that will see Sudbury hardcore punk quartet Of Tall Tales make their own local concert debut! Some readers may recognize them from sharing the stage with local bands at the last two Rock 'N Roar Battles of the Bands in Spanish (they and locals Beaumont Avenue both placed last year, earning opening slots at last August's Rock 'N Roar Festival), but this will be our first chance to see O.T.T. on a local stage. Their originals (which give me a Howard Jones-era Killswitch Engage vibe at times) should impress many local fans in July, so definitely check them out, especially for their Backstreet Boys cover! Local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades will be one of at least two local opening bands for this show, and message J.D. A.S.A.P. via the above links if you want to open for this show too!

Again, this show will have a $5 cover charge, 19+ age limit, and 10:00 PM start time unless stated otherwise, and we'll let you know if something is! It's great to see Of Tall Tales finally make their local debut, and they should leave a huge impression, so keep tabs on this show as more updates roll in! 

Lastly for today, we'll head to The Algonquin Pub on Thursday, July 23rd, where Toronto folk/death metal quartet Vesperia will make their local concert debut amidst the Gonqshow! Formerly known as Bolero and featuring Hallows Die drummer Dylan Gowan in their lineup, Vesperia's melodic extreme metal sound will definitely pique the interest of many metalheads, especially given their experienced and talented lineup, so do not bypass this one in July! For reference, Shit Liver are playing with both Vesperia & Hallows Die in Sudbury this Friday, click here for more details. Local openers are completely undetermined as of this writing, but again, if you want to open, message J.D. via the above links! Like the above shows, this one will likely have a $5 cover charge, a 19+ age limit, and a 10:00 PM start time unless stated otherwise. For more details, visit the above links, and definitely remember this show for some summertime metal brutality! Stay tuned for updates!

There are four more shows in August and September among the Gonqshow roster, which we'll touch on in an upcoming post to spread them out, but the above links will give you info on them before then! J.D.'s outdoing himself once again, so kudos for what should be a stacked summer concert season, and I'm sure he's not done yet! Stay tuned for more here and on Facebook to come, and for more news and notes as they roll in! Thanks everyone!

Swampstravaganza & Mike Haggith Updates, And Much More!!

Before we recap the results of last night's VM Radio Battle's opening night, here's a new news post to clear out some recent items, including a sudden new EP release, a unique video, and more, but first, here's some honestly overdue news on a big upcoming concert event!

We'll start today with some big updates for the fifth annual Swampstravaganza, now at The Canadian Nightclub on Saturday, May 9th, including that the annual multi-band all ages concert now has an official website! Created through Wix, the page includes photos and band lists for the past 4 installments at The Oddfellows Hall, an official logo, a $10 admission fee, and confirmation that this year's Swampfest will begin at 5:00 PM with the first band starting at 6:00 PM, with timeslots alotted for just 8 bands. This would make this year's event the smallest yet in the Swampfest series, but it would allow for a more manageable schedule! Also, the former "Sewer Swampstravaganza" branding is now only designated for the first year's concert in 2011, with "Quagmire", "Marshland", and "Bog" replacing "Sewer" to label later installments (no word on what this year's swamp-esque name would be.) As for confirmed bands, there's such high demand for this year that promoters have opted to roll out official band registration forms to apply to play, so what should you know on them?

We won't get into the legal jargon, but full details on what bands should bring and expect can be read at this link, where you can also sign up to potentially play this year, and what you need to provide in your application. I know many local artists want to play at this year's Swampstravaganza, so if you want in, act A.S.A.P. via the above links, stay tuned for updates, and the show's website is now in our "Other Local Metal Links"!

Next up, here's the latest from a solo performer from last year's Swampstravaganza, that being Haggith drummer Mike Haggith, so what's he currently up to? yesterday, Mike put a new digital EP named "Of Cars & Criminals" on sale via his Bandcamp page, which compiles three songs from his upcoming full length studio album "The Warinside". The EP (which is available on a "name your price" model) features the title track, "The Snake", and his newest song "We Met As Surrogates", which was just unveiled on his YouTube channel yesterday as well. Featuring Haggith/Din bandmate Curtis McKenzie on guest guitar and/or backing vocals on all 3 tracks, this EP is a nice teaser for fans awaiting "The Warinside" in full, but we'll hold on a review of this EP until the full album's expected release, as it'd be redundant to review both. Check out "We Met As Surrogates" below and the whole "Of Cars & Criminals" EP above, and don't miss Mike Haggith & The Din at The Speak Easy Battle of the Bands TOMORROW!



Also today, here's a unique look into local guitarist/Audiofumes podcast host Mike Cliffe's work behind the scenes, as this video (uploaded last week to his YouTube channel) is of him running a soundcheck for a live podcast, using The Bear Hunters' "Collapse The Sun" as background audio! It's an interesting look at the technical side of things (and not odd when you look at other similar videos on Mike's channel), and fans of The Bear Hunters who don't have "Eternal Hibernation" yet may like the audio sample! Give the video a look below, and definitely consider checking out Audiofumes, it's a quality podcast with notable, local, and underground artists galore!



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

• Local all-female hard rock/punk quartet The Danger Cats have unveiled their first ever studio-produced original song via their new Reverbnation page! It's of their song "Wanted Man", which was produced by AlgomA's Jamie Vincent and mixed by Cross Dog's Mark Rand, according to their Facebook page. It's nice to hear a great quality version of one of their originals, and fans should love it, so check it out at the above link, and don't miss the girls at the VM Radio Battle of the Bands next week!
• The Hiroshima Mutant Mindframe, the local/London solo metal project from Our Place Or Yours guitarist Matt Parr, now has a few new songs uploaded to their Soundcloud page in the past month! They include two acoustic songs (named "Huh" & "A Very Special Acoustic Song", the latter being longer and better composed) and the 49 second unfinished "Heavytrack" (no space) that has a lot of djent-heavy potential! Give them a listen above!
• Local musician Tammy Hill is looking for a singer, guitarist, and drummer to start a punk rock band that would play both originals and covers, as per her post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on February 19th. If you're interested in trying out, message Tammy above or at this link!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our recap of last night's VM Radio Battle of the Bands opening round later today, with weekend concert previews and our Speak Easy Battle review to follow! Thanks everyone!

Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile: The Labour Of...

Before we dive into Halloween concert previews and hype, let's get our final monthly feature post on the site today, and apologies for this being a day late! As usual, this is our monthly Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile, which is our monthly look at a metal, hard rock, or punk band that isn't from the Sault Ste. Marie area, but does feature (or used to have) one or more regional natives in any of their past or present lineups. This month's selected band is another in our recent absorption of punk bands into our coverage, and they were a well known Toronto-area band in their heyday, so read on below for what you should know! (Updated on November 27th)
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The Labour Of... (Toronto, Ontario)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED; ex-members in italics)

Julian "Jules" Swift Phillips (vocals/guitar)
Curtis Faux (guitar)
Brenton Ellis (bass)
Tosh Imai (drums)
Noah Earle (guitar)
Christian Wilde (bass)

Official CBC Music page: http://music.cbc.ca/#!/artists/the-labour-of
Official Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/groups/7741842034
Official Soundclick page: http://www.soundclick.com/thelabourof
Official Reverbnation page: http://reverbnation.com/myspacethelabourof
Official PureVolume page: http://www.purevolume.com/thelabourof
Official Supernova page: http://www.purevolume.com/thelabourof

Local Info: The Labour Of...'s last known full lineup featured two Sault Ontario natives, those being guitarist Curtis Faux and bassist Brenton Ellis (a.k.a. Diamond Brent Panther), both of whom have been very prominent here and in the Toronto area! Collaboratively, both guys manned the more comedic Toronto project The Sexual Vigilantes in the late 2000s, and simultaneously joined Brent's then-Lion Ride bandmates Mikey Hawdon & Mark Rand in the hardcore punk band Detroit, with whom Brent sang lead. Brent & Curt reprised their Detroit roles with the Toronto cult favourites Maximum RNR in the early 2010s, while Brent will also be notable locally from work fronting the late 1990s punk band The Bombed Squad & currently co-singing with Destroilet, and Curtis currently plays with the thrash metal band Chainbreaker, and alongside Labour Of... bandmate Jules Swift in their band The Cola Heads. If you like pop punk though, The Labour Of... will be more your style!

Band Bio: Active from at least 2004-2009, The Labour Of... became a prominent sight among Southern Ontario punk bands in the mid-2000s with their "M4K heartcore" style of emo-influenced pop punk, with members all coming from diverse musical backgrounds. Surviving information on their run is minimal (especially concerning their early years), but frontman Jules Swift was the band's visible leader, and also used the band's name for his own independent recording studio. After Curtis and Brent replaced Noah Earle & Christian Wilde circa 2007, The Labour Of... played at the former Foggy Notions in the Soo that November, recorded a demo named "Moving Ahead", and announced plans to record a full length CD, but it's not explicitly stated on extant pages if it came out. Searchable news on The Labour Of... is minimal after 2008, and they likely quietly dissolved the following year, though you can frequently see Jules & Curtis with The Cola Heads in Southern Ontario.

While far removed from the hardcore punk sound that you might be more used to from Curtis & Brenton's other collaborative band work, their poppier and more emo-influenced sound had a good energy that was definitely had a timely sound for it's era, and Jules has a very good voice with a great range to suit the material! Their last full lineup definitely had the more polished sound too, and while there isn't a ton of surviving songs of theirs on their pages, you do get a good sense of The Labour Of...'s chemistry and sound! I'll concede that this isn't my favourite punk subgenre, but The Labout Of... made it work for them, and fans of bands like Nebraska Arms or Northwest should like them! You can check out studio original songs from The Labour Of... at the above links, and there are a scattered selection of YouTube videos from their later run too, including this artistic clip of the guys playing their demo's title track "Moving Ahead" in Toronto in February 2008!


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I hope you guys liked this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile! As has been the case in recent years, we'll take a brief break from our normal profiles in this series next month so we can update past installments as part of an extended special post on or around November 26th. Basically, this will be our chance to update posts in this series, restore or replace dead photos and certain links, address band breakups, reunions, and lineup changes, and address what these bands are up to now, if anything. Watch out for that late next month, and stay tuned for more news and Halloween concert previews this week! Thanks everyone!

Meet The (Inactive) Local Punk Bands!! Part 5

(Updated at 11:42 PM) We're finally back with another introductory post to defunct and inactive local punk bands, in order to formally roll them into our band links on The Sault Metal Scene! Today, we're mainly dipping into PureVolume for bands, but we're starting our MySpace searching by including a punk band on there from somewhere you may not expect. Now, here's what you need to know on these four new old punk bands, and huge thanks to prolific local musician Mark Rand for helping fill in many of the gaps below!

We'll start with a defunct local punk band named The Bottom Half who have extremely minimal surviving information via their PureVolume page, but still have some material to check out! A pop punk quintet, the members were only credited by first names on PureVolume, but I can confirm that their complete lineup featured singer Lucas Castellani, guitarists Mark Rand (now of Peterborough's Cross Dog) and local MMA fighter Mitch Fryia, current Northwest bassist Mike Smykacz, and drummer James Moss (now of the Toronto folk band Young Running). Mark told me that The Bottom Half were a cover band that later morphed to a pop punk sound to follow what was in at the time, but they didn't last too long (only visibly from 2004-2005). Two songs of theirs are listed on the audio player on their PureVolume page, which were apparently planned for an album named "Beginnings Change", and while "Open Up" doesn't work, "Mistakes" does, so how does it sound? It's a little simplistic, but it's got a catchy modern pop punk sound that would please fans of Blink-182, and Luc's vocals fit the song perfectly! Give The Bottom Line a listen above!

Next up, here's arguably the biggest of today's featured bands, that being defunct local indie/punk trio Fuller! Constantly featuring Jamie Vincent (Bad Back, AlgomA) on vocals & guitar, their most identifiable lineup also featured Jamie's current Bad Back bandmate Nathan Sauve on drums, and the aforementioned Mark Rand on bass, while their original lineups featured future Burn The Past bassist Dan Fagan (who founded Fuller with Jamie as an acoustic duo) & drummers Jamie Kersley (a recent stand-up comedian) and Marc Santos (later of A Fall From Innocence). Also active from roughly 2004-2005, Fuller played concerts everywhere from The Oddfellows Hall to one of the last major metal/punk shows at the Club Princess in January 2005 (and even some out of town shows), opening for the likes of Moneen & Choke along the way. Fuller disbanded by 2006, with Mark joining Bondar later that year, and later joining Nathan in Lion Ride's original lineup. You can best hear Fuller today via some live concert videos on Nathan's original YouTube channel, so how do they sound?

The audio could be clearer on these videos, but there's a good poppy enthusiasm and some mature lyrics to go around, and Jamie's clean singing is a solid fit for this style! Bad Back & Lion Ride fans should be warned that Fuller are not overly similar to either, rather taking on an indie punk sound with jazz influences. Very good chemistry though, but it'd be nice to get more of a bead on the crowd reception. I imagine Fuller had a solid local following, but give them a look & listen below and via the above links to see for yourself, and here they are playing their song "Love Is Always"1

We'll take a detour for both source website and nationality for this next band, as here's an honest rarity: A recent punk band from the Sault Michigan area! We don't hear of too many straight punk bands across the river (apart from some formed through the Guitar Studio rock camps), but The Pick-Me-Ups are one of the few, so I thought we'd touch on them first from bands whose main surviving band page is on MySpace! Active from roughly 2008-2010, their lineup featured singer/guitarist Matt LaPointe (who also has some solo work), bassist Trevor Yake, and ex-Elements of Madness drummer Landon Mattson. Many of The Pick-Me-Ups' concerts related to or were held at Malcolm High School, including the school's Musicfest in May 2009 at The Big Bear Arena, while a 10 song demo was distributed at their gigs around that time, though the band is believed to have quietly disbanded the following year. Six original songs can be streamed on their MySpace page, and therein, you'll get a fun ska-punk sound that fans of the reggae-influenced subgenre will definitely take to!

On songs like "Eureka Street" and"Grape Kool-Aid", you get a solid sense of Matt's guitar ability, and Landon's drumming fit in very well also! It'd be awesome to see more punk bands in the E.U.P., but you can get more of a glimpse at The Pick-Me-Ups via their YouTube channel, which has a pile of videos from the aforementioned Malcolm High Musicfest as well as assorted other jam and recording footage. Mixed quality, but a good punk spirit and underrated talents are still present, so give The Pick-Me-Ups a look above, and here they are playing their song "What It's Like"!



Finally, here's a defunct screamo & alternative quartet Stripped Of His Wings (later known as Camorra), who were also around locally circa 2004-2005. Well known from assorted Oddfellows Hall gigs during their run, Stripped Of His Wings' lineups featured no less than 5 different drummers, but Mark told me that S.O.H.W.'s main lineup featured singer Matt Parent, guitarists Patrick Lethbridge & Wayne Haskell, and Bottom Half alums Mike Smykacz & James Moss on bass & drums, while Matt left the band prior to their name change to Camorra, with Pat taking over lead vocals. Surviving material on the band under either name isn't in high supply, but their Soundclick page describes them as "melodiously strident", and mentions Boys Night Out and Poison The Well among their influences. As Camorra, the band had planned to reform after members relocated to Waterloo in the mid-2000s (presumably for college), and Mark told me that they toned down the screamo influences, but it's not clear how much they accomplished there, if anything, before falling inactive.

Soundclick features four songs that the band played under both names, so how do they sound? Largely live concert recordings, I'll concede now that we probably should have had Stripped Of His Wings on the site before our punk merger due to their sound basically being an upbeat hardcore style that fans of As It Stands would have definitely taken to! I wonder how they slipped under the radar for this long? Sounds energetic and moshable, but the recording quality isn't great, with their songs being too muffled to really gauge everything. However, this black & white Oddfellows show video from The 705 Video Magazine has a better glimpse of their hardcore & screamo sounds, and they mostly have a good lively stage presence here! Give Stripped Of His Wings/Camorra a look below!



I hope you guys liked this newest defunct punk band introductory post, and thanks again to Mark for the added information! Our last features to roll in older punk bands to our links will (barring a missed band on other social media sites) be based around bands whose primary surviving online page is on MySpace, which will be a challenge due to their massive layout overhauls, much of which stripped "local" references on them. Look out for Part 6 soon, and stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on Sunday! Thanks everyone!

End Of Existence's End, New Videos, And More Updates!!

Just when I think we're out of backlogged news, they pull me back in, so we have another post on this Tuesday evening! Today, we have some more recent updates to one of our monthly feature series, a new song from a local solo project, and some new solo performance video discoveries, but first, here's news on a prominent local band's apparent end, so here's what you need to know!

It looks like Sault Michigan/Grand Rapids metal band End of Existence have dissolved. A status on the E.O.E. Facebook page on April 10th says "End of Existence is now Theatre of Night", which seems to indicate either a "merger" with their (more recently active) orchestral metal band, or just a shift in focus. Also, the End of Existence website has either been closed or had it's domain name expire, which could also be telling for their status. Partial successors to the mid-late 2000s local metal band Integrated System of Machines, End of Existence had been active since 2009, and they slowly worked on numerous original songs and videos over the next 3 years, leading to the February 2012 release of their self-titled debut CD. Activity slowed down after the departure of singer Bob Helsten (now of Powerslug & Toast) earlier that year, and End of Existence (who I don't believe ever played a live concert) had unsuccessfully searched for a new singer in recent months, last posting non-Theatre of Night updates in January. It's disappointing to see End of Existence reach their own "end of existence", but they leave us with a lot of very solid epic death metal material from their run!

In all fairness, I do think it would be somewhat redundant to operate two similar bands sharing almost the same lineup, so this might be a good streamlining move if Theatre of Night continue with their original metal material plans. Hopefully their E.O.E. work isn't forgotten, and best of luck to Gaby, the Giles brothers, and Craig with Theatre of Night, so stay tuned to the SMS for updates (and of course, best of luck to bassist Bryan Kindel in the future too, he's a solid bassist that would be an asset in a Michigan band going forward!)

Next up, here's a new video discovery from the YouTube channel of Sault Michigan singer Melissa Strand, of Toast, Swayze Train, and Electric Motor Fish fame! Last year, Melissa posted four solo covers there, including solid renditions of Alanis Morissette & Adele songs, but embedded below, we have her solo acoustic rendition of Alter Bridge's "Open Your Eyes"! Apparently her second take of this song, it's well performed & recorded, and it definitely sounds different (in a good way) in this video! Softer, but nice, so check out Melissa's solo Alter Bridge cover below, and stay tuned for more metal/hard rock performance clips from her and/or Toast as they roll in!



Also in new videos, a new original song from Sault Ontario grind solo project Crucify The Whore was uploaded to their label Blood Shed Productions' YouTube channel earlier today, though I won't say the title here to avoid the potential for offending some readers (it's sexual in nature.) Uniquely for C.T.W. songs, it's an instrumental, so readers who don't take to guttural pig squeal vocals might appeal to that! There's something here musically, with good guitar riffing and some blast beats, but the repetitious structure, short length, and muffled recording quality don't help. As the third image on the video features some potentially offensive imagery, I'll just embed the song below, but give it a listen if you want, and stay tuned to the Facebook pages of Blood Shed Productions' grindcore projects for updates on their next demos, including an upcoming Crucify The Whore/Brutaly Fatal split release!

Finally for today, here's some more assorted updates to our Defunct Local Band Profile Series to make posts in it more accurate and current! In our Garage Inc. profile, I added a reference to former singer Jacob Rendell's newer local band The Pesto Shirts, while I restored a photo to the Bring The Fallen profile and added emphasis to the similar later band Giwakwa, who share 2 B.T.F. members. Also on our Paraside profile, I restored a photo and made edits to the reflect the likely end of Changing Waves (the more successful later band that also featured the Hagerman brothers.) Finally for today, I made updates to our joint profile on Lorax & Hands of Betrayal to replace some bands that Lorax members were in to note more prominent or recent bands (such as Constructed Apocalypse, The Suicide Kings, and Stillbroke), while for Hands of Betrayal, I noted guitarist Mike Libertoski's current role in the aforementioned Toast, and de-emphasized his Galactic Alignment solo project (which has essentially blended with his usual solo work.) Check the above links for the updates, and stay tuned for more!

That's all for today, but stay tuned soon for weekend concert previews, this month's newest Defunct Local Band Profiles, and more news! I can't promise a new post tomorrow, but if this is the end of our 71 day posting streak, thanks to everyone for following along over the last 10 weeks, and stay tuned for more SMS updates as soon as I can fill a new post!

Woods Of Ypres - "Independent Nature 2002-2007" Review!!

With this year's Juno Awards coming this weekend, and given this band's nomination for Best Metal/Hard Music Album, here's this month's CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and it's of defunct local black/doom metal band Woods of Ypres' 2009 compilation album "Independent Nature 2002-2007"! The band's only "best-of" collection, "Independent Nature" was released in April 2009 through the band's original independent label Krankenhaus Records. It was their first album release following the band's (and late frontman David Gold's) relocation to Sault Ste. Marie the previous year, their last non-single release through Krankenhaus, and their last CD with a primary black metal influence. The compilation features 4 songs each from Woods of Ypres' first three CDs ("Against the Seasons: Cold Winter Songs from the Dead Summer Heat", "Pursuit of the Sun & Allure of the Earth", and "Woods III: The Deepest Roots & Darkest Blues"), all of which were recorded independently between 2002 & 2007, hence the album's title. Though physically out of print, "Independent Nature 2002-2007" can be purchased on iTunes for $9.99 (or 99¢ a song), while these songs are obviously all available as part of Woods of Ypres' first three albums.

Given that we've reviewed these songs & Woods of Ypres' first three studio albums on here already, I won't re-review them in depth, but I'll link to each song and our prior reviews as we sum up each third of "Independent Nature", so you can hear the songs or read my in-depth thoughts if you want. The first 8 songs on this compilation were recorded in 2002 & 2004 at Spectre Sound Studios in Tecumseh, Ontario, while the last 4 songs were recorded from 2006-2007 at Obsidian Sound & Chemical Sound Studios in Toronto. Only David Gold features on each track, recording drums on all 12, vocals & guitars on the last 8, and bass on the "Woods II" songs, while keyboardist Jessica Rose plays on the final 8. The rest only perform on one album's material, including founding members Brian McManus & Aaron Palmer on the first 4 songs, uncredited performers Connor Sharpe & Steve Jones on the middle 4, and bassist/backing vocalist Dan Hulse on the last 4. Now, let's begin with the songs from Woods of Ypres' first album!

The first four songs on "Independent Nature" consist of an almost-complete reissue of Woods of Ypres' 2002 debut EP "Against the Seasons: Cold Winter Songs from the Dead Summer Heat" (a.k.a. "Woods I"), including the songs "Intro: The Shams of Optimism", "Crossing the 45th Parallel", "The Sea of Immeasurable Loss", and "A Meeting Place & Time", with only "Awaiting The Inevitable" not featured. Black metal purists often point to this as their favourite Woods of Ypres album, but while I do enjoy it, Woods of Ypres evolved and grew a ton in the 9 years that followed, and it has the least in common with their other 4 CDs. The natural and personal feelings of the EP came through really well, and though David wasn't singing yet, Brian McManus & Aaron Palmer handled harsh and clean vocals respectively well, and David's drumming was great! That said, Aaron's bass is sometimes buried, and there are repetitious stretches, especially on "Crossing The 45th Parallel". None of the 5 songs are bad, and they capture early Woods of Ypres well, but I'd personally have swapped "The Sea of Immesaurable Loss" for "Awaiting The Inevitable" on the compilation.

The 5th-8th songs on this CD come from Woods of Ypres' 2004 CD (and first full length album) "Pursuit of the Sun & Allure of the Earth" (a.k.a. "Woods II"), including the songs "The Will To Give", "The Sun Was In My Eyes (Part Doom)", "Allure of the Earth", and "Dragged Across A Forest Floor". I still find that the band sounded more mature, diverse, and better produced on this album (their first with David Gold fronting Woods) than they had on "Against The Seasons", with glimpses of future melodic material and a lot of intricate and heavy elements that added up to an improved sound, but there can be instrument muddling, the lack of guitar solos is still present, and I'd have liked to have heard more keyboard input from Jessica Rose than there is. As for the individual songs, I'd have liked to have seen the empty-sounding "Allure of the Earth" replaced on "Independent Nature" by the first "Sun Was In My Eyes" track (for completeness) or "Shedding The Deadwood" (a better ballad, I find), but these are a definite improvement overall from the "Against The Seasons" material, and fans of early Woods of Ypres should enjoy these four songs!

The last four songs on "Independent Nature" come from the band's last black metal album, 2008's "Woods III: The Deepest Roots & Darkest Blues", with the four selected songs being "The Northern Cold", "Your Ontario Town Is A Burial Ground", "Distractions of Living Alone", and "Thrill of the Struggle", which were (I think) the only songs from "Woods III" to be played at in future Woods of Ypres shows. As I stated when I reviewed the full CD, this is my favourite Woods of Ypres release, and it seems to bridge the gap between the best of their 2000s-era black metal work and their early 2010s doom metal sounds. The four songs on the compilation are all quality heavier choices from "W3", and David's lead vocals & guitar work really broke through here,  but there is some buried elements, and the lack of guitar solos is really noticeable. Songs like "Iron Grudge" or "Through Chaos & Solitude I Came..." would have been welcome selections for the compilation too, but with such a good album, some had to be left out. Ultimately, this transitory album was Woods of Ypres' peak to me, and it caps off a nice quality build on this best-of album!

Overall, "Independent Nature 2002-2007" probably won't be viewed with the same frequency as Woods of Ypres' very different 5 studio releases, but I find that as a compilation, it will continue to serve as a valuable first look into Woods of Ypres early-mid 2000s run as one of Southern Ontario's most promising black metal bands, long before the move north and the shift to doom metal influences. Though I'd have replaced a couple of tracks, there's a quality cross-section of songs from each of Woods of Ypres' first three CDs, and the evolution and maturity of their sound over the first half of their run really comes through as you hit the middle and latter sections of the disc. I almost wonder how it would have turned out if a late 2000s lineup of Woods of Ypres had re-recorded these tracks in a doom metal style (a'la 2008-2011 concerts), but for novices of Woods of Ypres or their black metal work, this is a great way to dip your toe in the water before buying full albums of theirs! Of course, this isn't the album that got Woods of Ypres' it's Juno nomination, but you can see the transition to the sounds and styles that got "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light" to the awards this weekend, and hopefully David & company's hard work & dedication will pay off with a posthumous award on Saturday!

I hope you guys liked this month's CD review, but what's coming up in May? Hopefully a new album review, and though nothing concrete has been announced for a release between now and next month, there are many possibilities that you can read about in our most recent "Where Are The New Albums?" post! The exception to that would be Mike Haggith's newly released solo album "The Present Din", as we're not past our 6 month buffer from our last review of his, but I have that tentatively pencilled in for June. In terms of archive reviews, we will not be looking at a SweetKenny album or one of Woods of Ypres' vinyl singles, as it's too soon from our last reviews of either, but both are possibilities in the fall. Archive review options for next month include albums from Candle Hour, Detroit, Facedown, Foothill Road, and Sykotyk Rampage, plus hypothetical albums that I may get access to/copies of by then, such as As It Stands' first EPs, Infrastrate's CD, and any old cassette albums (like Amethyst's debut or David Gold's old band Proposition 86), but those are all dependent on me getting access to copies. No matter what's coming next, stay tuned for our next local metal/hard rock CD review in late May, and stay tuned for more news this week! Thanks everyone!

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Devastation of the Heavens

It's now time for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! As always, this monthly feature series looks at one or two defunct/inactive metal bands from the Sault Ste. Marie region, including their local run, surviving material, and notable events and shows, and so on. This month's band was originally randomly selected in February for last month's two band profile, but after discovering more info than anticipated, I bumped them to this month for a solo profile (Sault Ontario was next in the rotation anyway), so read on below for this somewhat overdue defunct local band profile, and if anything's missing, please let me know! (Updated on August 28th, 2013)
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Devastation of the Heavens

Genre: Death Metal

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Members: (Members not in their last full lineup in italics. This band's lineup may be incomplete. E-mail me at robertfigures@outlook.com if you have any additions or corrections!)

Mike Ladouceur* (Skull After Betrayl, The Bear Hunters), vocals/guitar
Joe DelBasso (Quite Frankly), rhythm guitar
Jestin Ryan, rhythm guitar
Justin Lam (The Bear Hunters, Jack Spades), bass
Johnny Lowrie* (The Bear Hunters, Caveman Morrison), drums

Jayson Day, vocals/bass
Joe Bumbacco (RedD Monkey, The Fury), drums

(The * refers to band members whose last names have since changed. Mike's current last name is Vincent, while Johnny's last name is now Belanger.)

Audio/Video: Devastation of the Heavens (or D.O.T.H.) have a few examples of surviving media from their run, including one live video from July 2006. An instrumental jam session video featuring Mike, Jayson, and Joe Bumbacco loosely covering Slayer's "Raining Blood", it was filmed by former local concert promoter Aisha Day, but it's admittedly very rough (as the comments and rating for the video will tell you), so out of respect, I won't embed it here. D.O.T.H. drastically improved by their last show in April 2007, where their other two surviving media files (their proposed album's title track "Heaven's Final Apocalypse" & a cover of Metallica's "The Four Horsemen") came from, so hear their original below from their PureVolume page, and check out more at the above links, including both tracks on YouTube!



Info/Analysis: Devastation of the Heavens were a young Sault Ontario metal band that was active from roughly 2006-2007. Possibly evolving from the earlier Death Rise, D.O.T.H. notably opened for Gates of Winter at The Oddfellows Hall in 2006, before peaking early the next year with appearances at two battles of the bands, along with a few Bawating high school performances. D.O.T.H. quietly disbanded by the summer of 2007, with members moving on to newer projects, including local death metal quintet The Bear Hunters, who featured 3 D.O.T.H. members in their 2010-2011 lineup. D.O.T.H. showed some of the talents and success that many members had in later projects, but they work to do, especially if the comments for their 2006 video are any indication. There was clear improvement by their demise, with overall solid guitar & bass work, and increasing chemistry, but neither Mike nor Jayson had a great voice at the time, and there were some timing issues, especially in 2006. D.O.T.H. had the potential to make a larger impact if they'd kept at it, but at least most of their alumni have hit bigger heights in newer bands!
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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! Next month, we'll be looking at two bands for the second time in three months due to the first band we randomly selected having no media, but who's on tap for May? We have the defunct Sault Michigan metal project Cherubic Red lined up, along with the late 2000s Sault Ontario metal band Faithless Sin (featuring No Arrow, Gates of Winter, and Quite Frankly alumni), so watch out for all of this on or around May 10th, and stay tuned tomorrow for our recap of tonight's second night of this latest battle of the bands! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Greber), New Videos, And More Recent Updates!!

We have another news post for you guys this afternoon, but remember to read our memorial post to late J.A.B. guitarist Jean-Paul Fecteau below this post, as he suddenly passed away on Saturday. As of this writing, details of his arrangements have not been posted, but I'll let you guys know if I hear anything regarding them or any other tributes. In today's news post, we have new videos from acts on each side of the border, and some more recent news items, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month in Sault Ontario, so here's what you need to know!

A new death metal concert is hitting The Roosevelt Hotel next month, though on a Saturday night (May 18th) for a change, and it'll be headlined by a different (yet familiar) band from Cambridge, Ontario named Greber! A sort of death/experimental metal duo, they feature bassist Marc Bourgon from Juno nominated Ottawa/Gatineau grindcore favourites Fuck The Facts, and he and Greber drummer Steve Vargas have a drum & bass-only set of metal originals in store for what should be an interesting concert which might call to mind two-person metal bands like Mares of Thrace or Sue Inside at older local shows! They'll be joined by a familiar lineup of local death metal bands, including melodic death metal quintet The Bear Hunters & grindcore trio Shit Liver, who are both no strangers to The Rosie! While this will likely be The Bear Hunters first show following their Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands appearance(s?) later this month, it'll be Shit Liver's first public local concert in almost 3 months, following their headlining set at "Axed Theory Night" at The Rosie in February.

Shit Liver (who appear to be promoting this show) were also reportedly nearing completion of their debut EP last month, but could it possibly surface in some form on May 18th? This 19+ concert has a 9:00 PM start time, but admission prices have yet to be revealed. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be an interesting show, and it'll be good to see Marc back following the most recent Fuck The Facts dates, while the two local death metal bands are very well matched, and should provide ample & brutal support come next month! Stay tuned for show updates as they roll in!

Next up, we have some new videos to share, starting with the latest video from Sault Michigan metal band The Highest of Fives! On Friday, a new 5 minute "short film" was posted onto member Devin Anderson's YouTube channel, which is similar in theme and composition to their initial preview video from December 2012, but what's in it? Well, I can confirm that drummer Mike Pascoe is back in the fold after a brief absence, with Devin (his old Free Refill bandmate) shifting back to guitar, a fact that's lampshaded in the video with some joking testimonials from members about why Mike left and related band tensions. The rest of the video includes numerous assorted clips of the members playing instruments (or pretending to play them), hype & promotion of their sound and their planned debut album "Bang!" (such as guitarist Marcel Grengs promoting album packages for amusingly high prices), a guest appearance from Marcel's former Analog Deficiency bandmate Cody Reed, and samples of two original songs (one improvised one named "Sweet Apple Pie", and one unknown studio track from the album.)

There are some genuinely amusing moments in this video (especially the interviews on Mike's departure and return), and this type of comedic video is something I'd like to see more local bands do! However, like their past previews, we see a lot without learning a lot in the process, and there's not a lot of samples of their original material there, but it sounds like they're slowly getting a lot done from what I can tell. I'm curious to see/hear more, so check out The Highest of Fives' newest short preview video below, and stay tuned for more Highest of Fives updates as they roll in!



Also in new videos, veteran Sault Ontario solo guitarist Mike Cliffe posted a new solo video for his original song "Dream of Insomnia" onto his YouTube channel yesterday, and it's a jazzy progressive hard rock instrumental that features inset videos of him playing the song overlayed with trippy visualizations, logos for his AudioFumes podcast, and even dancing stick men. It's well done and does sort of have a floating dream atmosphere at points, so give Mike's newest solo video a look/listen below!



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

• If you're wondering where Sault Ontario horror punk/metal quintet Frightlight have been since their Halloween 2012 shows, they've been taking a break at least partly due to bassist Mike "Eddie Fright" Gingras' move to Toronto late last year, where he's currently back in college. Frightlight are still together, and we should see them back later this year, so keep an eye out for any news on their return!
• Frightlight frontman/local concert promoter J.D. "Johnny Pints" Pearce is looking for bands to play a proposed all ages cancer fundraising concert later this year, with all proceeds going to the Canadian Cancer Society. There's already visible interest, but if you're want in, message J.D. at this link or reply to his post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group from Friday!
• Local solo guitarist Shane "The Shaner" Solomon posted three newer solo demos onto his Reverbnation page at some point late last year, including in-progress samples named "Toast Master", "Emo Hemophilia", and "Riftworn Take B", and while the former two are visibly unfinished and short, "Riftworn" has mid-tempo heavy promise and good riffing, so check out Shane's newest songs at the above links!

That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow morning for our preview of Wednesday's second night of the Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands Semifinals! Which of this week's newer local rock bands will join Late & Loud in the finals? The preview's on it's way tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Out Of The Mouth Of Babes

Hey guys, it's time to kick off year 2 of our Defunct Local Band Profile Series, and seeing as 4/5ths of this band are playing at The Roosevelt Hotel later today, the timing couldn't be better! The joys of random selection, huh? As always, this series explores a band from the Sault Ste. Marie area that is either defunct or visibly inactive for a year plus (with no biases for sound, longevity, talent, or membership), and we'll tell you a bit about them, what to expect, and what you can check out and read about for said band! Hopefully you guys like this month's Defunct Profile, so check it out below! (Updated: May 5th, 2012)
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Out Of The Mouth Of Babes

Genre: Hardcore/Metal

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Members: (Members not in their last lineup in italics.)

Matt Maccarone (A Fall From Innocence, Stay Seventeen), vocals
Garrett Masters (As It Stands), guitar
Albert Bourrier (As It Stands), guitar
Angelo Huckson (As It Stands), bass
John Mignacca (As It Stands), drums
Josh McNally (The Moves, Deter, The Fury), vocals

Audio/Video: Though members of Out Of The Mouth Of Babes produced a lot of material before and after their run in their other bands, OOTMOB specifically didn't have too much. Only one song was recorded & posted on their MySpace page, entitled "Take A Walk With Me", though two versions of it were recorded with both of their frontmen. Both were recorded at idioRECORDS with producer Dave Hunter. I uploaded the version with Matt Maccarone singing from 2010 on our YouTube channel (I don't have the original), so check it out at this location! For actual videos, there isn't much either, especially given their single live concert, but at least two exist! A 1:50 long video featuring assorted clips was posted on YouTube in March 2010 by drummer John Mignacca, but here's a full performance from the show, as Out Of The Mouth Of Babes covered (oddly enough) "Last Name" by Carrie Underwood! Check it out below!



Info/Analysis: Out Of The Mouth Of Babes formed in July 2009 out of the ashes of the then-defunct As It Stands, who broke up the previous month. The lineups of the two bands were almost identical, save for prolific local musician Josh McNally on vocals in lieu of Justin Pregent. Josh fronted the band for the next few months, though they never took the stage with this lineup, and he was quietly replaced by Matt Maccarone in late 2009. They finally made their live debut on February 20th, 2010, opening for Bring The Fallen at Nite-Life Dance Club (later GLOW) for their portion of the Algoma Hope4Haiti concert benefit event. It would be their only show, and updates stalled after April 2010, with a few announced shows never materializing. OOTMOB quietly ended that summer, and As It Stands (with Justin back) reunited that August to great fanfare. It's clear from As It Stands' quick resurgence that they made a wise choice reuniting, but Out Of The Mouth Of Babes deserve some love as well! Their style showed the progression that the new AIS songs have, while still being very heavy, moshable, & energetic, though with some added humour & similar flourishes. Matt Maccarone's singing suited their aims at the time, with better clean vocals & stage presence than Justin had showed then, but Matt's screaming was higher in tone. Josh McNally was good too, but his voice wasn't as heavy.

As It Stands' current form is much better & tighter than they ever were originally, especially with Justin's improvement, but OOTMOB deserve a lot of credit for helping the transition. From what little we heard, we knew there was a lot of good hardcore stuff there, and had As It Stands not returned, I'm sure their fans would have loyally followed Out Of The Mouth Of Babes!
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There we go, I hope you guys enjoyed this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! Next month's profile, which was also randomly selected, will be about defunct local death metal band State of Misery! How's that for a pick? They're probably our newest chosen band in terms of when they were last active, and if members of this band are playing a show around August 10th, the ironic timing of this series will surely continue! This should be an interesting feature post next month, so watch out for it around August 10th, and I'll see you guys THIS AFTERNOON at The Roosevelt Hotel for the Fatality/Immersed all ages show! Thanks everyone!