Handsome Sandwich, Soundcheck, And Vanity First Updates!!

Before we begin today's post, I wanted to apologize for missing a concert in this past weekend's previews, as local funk/hard rock cover sextet The Wyld Stallyns headed north for a gig at Searchmont Resort at their in-house venue The Kiln on Saturday night. The band did not promote this show on their Facebook page, and Searchmont's Facebook page only first mentioned it on Friday, later hyping up the campfire jam aesthetic and requests angle for it. Searchmont only host bands sporadically at The Kiln, so it's not a regular spot for me to look for concerts at, but I do apologize, I'd have plugged it on here had The Stallyns said something in advance! Now, here's what you should know from three active local bands!

After two months of public silence, local alternative hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich posted on their Facebook page on Saturday to reveal that recording sessions for their debut album "Deconstructed" are complete! Now, they did say the same thing in November when attached to this picture, so clearly they fixed something up since then. The tracks will now be sent off to be mixed, and while they didn't specify details on Saturday, they confirmed in November that Jordan Zadorozny was going to mix the album at Skylark Park in Pembroke. The plan is still to release the album on Saturday, May 6th, which has been the plan since at least October when singer Taylor Emlaw announced it during The Soo's Got Talent (I believe I misheard her say "May 5th" at the time, my apologies). Regardless, publically setting such a specific album release date seven months out is kinda odd.

May 6th must hold some sort of special in-band meaning, but if they've announced it publically, it must have been in concerts only. A release show for the album is planned, which does imply that there will be physical copies to sell at one, but we'll keep you posted when more comes out on it! As a teaser, the band shared this video with the new Facebook post featuring a 12 second clip of one of their original songs, as set to footage of guitarist Jesse Cook laying on his back performing bicycle kicks to his bandmates' (and now our) amusement. Give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Handsome Sandwich soon!

Next up, here's some big news from local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck, as they have added Obsession bassist Jim Michaud to their lineup, replacing Paul Belair. The band announced the news on their Facebook page yesterday, and while they did not publically explain his departure, they did note that he "will be missed huge". Drummer Glen Thomas did elaborate on his personal Facebook page on the amicable reasons Paul left, and as it turns out, he actually left the band in November, something that the band never announced on Facebook. Paul had been Soundcheck's bassist since replacing Robin Lee in 2017, but he increasingly missed gigs for personal reasons, leading to guests (usually RPM's Rob Gilmar) filling in, including Jim at their Esquire Club dates on the 20th & 21st. With the similarly ranged Obsession ending their eighteen year run at the same venue next month, Jim coming on board does make a lot of sense!

It's worth noting that Jim & Glen played together in Lyrx, albeit in 1982 & 1983! No word yet on when the new Soundcheck lineup will debut, but they did jokingly ask on Facebook if Rob could fill-in again this weekend, so if that's legit, we'll be on the lookout for a short notice announcement (let alone if Jim carries over Obsession's planned March-December dates to Soundcheck, the idea is not unheard of). Stay tuned for more from as it rolls in, and best of luck to Paul in whatever he has planned next!

Finally, here's some new videos from local punk trio Vanity First's Facebook page in the past week! One is actually a re-post of their 2021 cover of Pennywise's "Bro Hymn" that was first seen on their YouTube channel, notable as it features former bassist Nick McClelland (singer Andrew Beggs has pulled double duty since Nick left). Cool to see again, they tackle this punk staple well! Another video is a re-post from their TikTok page, under the pretense that Andrew's "father" demands to know what he's doing behind closed doors. Of course, it's not what it looks like, and "it" is Andrew listening to punk music, specifically their 2022 standalone single "Get Out". Cute promotion for what it is! The other new Facebook uploads on offer actually have Vanity First covering Rage Against The Machine, including a vertically shot video of them covering "Bombtrack" at Go Skateboarding Day at Queen Elizabeth Park in May of last year.

Notably, Andrew didn't play bass while rapping on this one, so it was up to guitarist Mikhal Muto & drummer Keeghan McAllister to fill in all of the gaps, The 24 second clip comes off well with good angles of the ramp-top stage, though I'm surprised it took this long to come to Facebook! While seemingly formatted for TikTok, that video is not posted on their TikTok page, with the only post-EP release video there that isn't on Facebook being this clip of Keeghan having a "drummer moment" during what appear to be rehearsals at the Sault Community Theatre Centre. Light and amusing, but I feel you have to be in on the joke to an extent. Embedded below is a new 33 second clip of them covering "Killing In The Name" when they opened for Gutter Creek at Soo Blaster in September, and this video is extra notable given what did and didn't happen during the runtime.

As the band noted in the video description, Andrew has epilepsy, and if you know someone with that disorder, you'll know that they're often recommended to not look at strobe lighting or other rapidly flashing light patterns, as that could cause them to have a seizure. During the song's bridge, strobe lighting went off at the venue, and thankfully, nothing serious medically happened to Andrew, who kept his composure and played the song off perfectly normally! If you didn't know he was epileptic, you still wouldn't have if the band never said. I find "Killing In The Name" to be severely overplayed, but credit to Andrew for powering through here, so give it a watch below, and stay tuned for more from Vanity First!

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

YouTube Channel Profile Series: Paul Stanghetta & NassieT

After a slight delay, it's now time for this month's YouTube Channel Profiles, continuing our monthly spotlight on YouTube channels whose public and current content is at least half devoted to local metal, hard rock, and/or punk artists and/or concerts! As usual, channels are randomly selected, but with our first selection having just one SMS-relevant video, I randomly picked another channel that only has one type of local video (albeit via twelve similar uploads) to fill things out with. Here's what you should know!

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Paul Stanghetta (http://youtube.com/channel/UCkKU0BdcAwyXVLfWHQsolkg)

Owner: Apocalypse Afterparty singer/bassist Paul Stanghetta, also previously seen with bands like Smeltzer, The Fury, and The Noochin' Lanterns

Channel Timeline: Launched on October 21st, 2012; Videos uploaded in November 2021 and January 2022

Channel Summary: Paul's personal use channel features just two current uploads, including a birthday greetings video for his daughter, but the only SMS-relevant one is the official music video for his current rap/metal duo The Apocalypse Afterparty's cover of Saul Williams' "List of Demands (Reparations)". Well publicized & promoted upon its premiere last fall, this was filmed by ex-Shit Liver frontman Josh Penno's Spacebag Productions, and features Paul and his wife Amanda (on drums) playing the song in cramped quarters before smoke bombs start going off. Well shot and performed on visual & auditory fronts, witb the Stanghettas getting a lively & rocking sound out of their minimalist setup, and Josh has some solid angles despite the locale! However, other YouTube channels have more plentiful A.A. content, like Amanda's own channel.

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NassieT (http://youtube.com/nassiehysteria)

 Owner: YouTube user NassieT (a.k.a. Nassie Hysteria), real name unclear, but I don't believe she is locally based

Channel Timeline: Launched on October 11th, 2010; Videos uploaded from the following month until September 2018

Channel Summary: Aside from an introductory "Welcome to my cringefest" video in 2018, Nassie's channel is devoted to seventeen lyric videos of songs she liked from late 2010 and early 2011. With the exception of four songs by Marvelous 3 and one by their frontman Butch Walker, the lyric videos are of a dozen songs from local/Toronto indie/punk quartet Treble Charger's last three albums, including three songs from 2000's "Wide Awake Bored".

Why You Should Watch: These uploads will interest Treble Charger fans who like access to the lyrics as they appear in the song, albeit not in direct time a'la karaoke., but the simple presentation has it's plusses! As a source of Treble Charger music though, there are far more substantive and complete channels on YouTube (not to mention official ones), as it does look like Nassie stuck to her favourite songs from these albums, including a larger emphasis on songs featuring Bill Priddle on lead vocals.

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

 

Treble Charger - Takes Me Down: No Treble Charger album got more love here than 1997's "Maybe It's Me", which bridged their indie rock beginnings with their impending shift to pop punk to great acclaim. Nassie's five picks include "Forever Knowing", "Mercury Smile", "Scatterbrain", "Left Feeling Odd", and as featured here, "Takes Me Down". Three of the five songs are sung by Bill, for the record, with "Takes Me Down" capturing some of their most punk stylings yet for a Bill song! It'd suit Greig better (proof's in the backing vocals), but it is a solid track with relatable lyrics!

Treble Charge - Don't Believe It All: By far the channel's most popular upload (with over 18,000 views) is the lyric video for "Don't Believe It All", which was the second single from Treble Charger's fifth and final album (so far), 2002's "Detox". Despite some sleepy verses, the extremely catchy chorus saves this Greig-sung hit, which is well performed by Greig, Bill, Rosie, and Trevor, so punk-era fans should be on board with this one! The other three "Detox" songs on Nassie's channel are "Over My Head", "Tired Of It Anyway", and "The Downward Dance", with Bill singing lead on the latter plus on the bridge in "Over My Head".

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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! This series will return on or around October 26th for another randomly selected channel profile, specifically Obsession guitarist Gabe Tessaro's YouTube channel, featuring four videos from his old classic/hard rock cover band That's Chester, so look for all of that then, and for more news and notes on the site in the days ahead! Thanks everyone!

Mike Haggith's Third Live-Streamed Concert, A New Cover Video, And Much More!!

Day #36 of our daily streak of posts on the SMS brings us a recent news article about the impact of the ongoing pandemic on the local music scene, and some new videos, including a cover performance and lots of details on a recent live-streamed set. Here's what you should know!

The third installment of local/Thompson, Manitoba solo musician Mike Haggith's live-streamed "#LockdownLive" home concerts took place on his Facebook page on Saturday night, and for the occasion, the video is devoted to his old local alt-hard rock band The Din! More specifically, this relates to their 2015-2017 run, not their prior life as an acid-jam collective. With two exceptions, this live-stream features Mike playing songs from The Din's two studio albums (originals & carry-overs from Mike's prior projects alike) and telling stories about them and the band in between, so what songs will you be able to hear? Mike starts off by performing acoustic renditions of "75", "Weekend Delivery", "Missing", and "The Rose", before taking a call from drummer Brandan Glew, who sticks around for 45 minutes or so to reminisce on The Din and the songs. "Alleyways & Apartments" is next, followed by a peculiar viewer poll about which of two diseases you'd rather have (seriously.)

The set proper continues with "Remember" & "Up In The Air" (both of which Brandan has writing credits on), and while he hangs up before the next song, Brandan does pop up in the comments before & afterwards. Mike next performs "In The Moonlight" and "Out Of My League", before tackling "I Love You Anyways", which Mike wrote when he was six years old, and had previously appeared on two of Mike's solo albums from not long after he moved to the Soo ("Laps In A Lake Of Fire" & "Suspended Animation"). The Din never recorded that song in studio, but they did play it live at concerts in 2015. That's followed by Mike's song "The Snake" from his last solo studio album (for now) "The Warinside", which also wasn't a Din album track, but their 2015 lineup did cover it at that CD's release concert. The live-stream set ends with the song The Din renamed as "Potato (Should've Known Better)", plus more reminiscing on the band and where he, Tammy, and Brandan have went since then, and teasing that there will be a fourth #LockdownLive set soon.

Solidly informative and entertaining live-stream once again, especially with all of the local context from The Din's highs and lows in the mid-2010s, and it's nice to see Mike acknowledge his pre-Din music work, which doesn't get a lot of contemporary attention locally. It would have been nice to hear from Tammy, but maybe she'll pop up in the comments in a future live-stream. Fingers crossed that "#Lockdown Live" returns this Saturday or next, but for now, give the third installment a watch below!

 
Next up, here's a new cover from local/Elliot Lake alt-punk solo project Ashoka At The Show, courtesy of the 184Films YouTube channel yesterday, and it's an acoustic cover of Streetlight Manifesto's "Somewhere In The Between". Solid rendition of this ska punk classic, which is one of Darren's personal favourite songs, so fans will want to give it a watch below!



I wanted to end today's post with a SooToday article by contributor/musician Chris Belsito from this weekend, featuring interview remarks by Dorian Gray guitarist Paul Leclair, who is the secretary-treasurer of Sault Ontario's musicians union, The American Federation of Musicians, Local 276. The article is very much focused on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the shut-down order on local musicians, with Paul noting that "it is hurting every musician I can think of", and while music isn't a full-time career for many artists locally, "part of their livelihood is gone", and full-time musicians won't qualify for Employment Insurance unless they're claiming income from gigs in their taxes.  Conversely, he expressed concern about venues, recording studios, and small businesses that are unable to stay open and earn profits , and that the current trend of online concerts from local musicians isn't usually a money-making option.

Paul also notes that "we are looking at the possibility of no concerts at all this year" and said that local musicians should talk to their Member of Parliament to ask for extra support at this time. I won't get into the typically divisive comment section on SooToday, but this is a tough time for local musicians of any age or genre, and I'm hearing from friends and contacts daily about their response, feelings, and wishes. Paul raises a lot of real points that should not be discounted, but everyone is in a different personal boat here, and I hope everyone's finding the right way to adjust until some sense of normalcy returns. Give this article a loo at the above links!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for part 5 of our WLS0 9O.1 FM retrospective series on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tym Morrison), The Tea Party Concert Preview, And New Videos!!

As promised, here's those mid-week concert previews on this Monday morning, but to go along with them, I have some videos to share from a recent metal concert. Now, here's what you should know, starting with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!

Local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to Mark's Breakfast Plus at the Market Mall for the first time this year with special matinee concerts TODAY, TOMORROW, and WEDNESDAY! Apologies for the short notice, these shows were only announced via their Facebook event page on Friday. A frequent venue for Tym Morrison's acoustic solo gigs since Mark's opened in 2017, Tym is known for typically playing at this west end diner on early weekday bookings, but these will actually be his first public shows there since last June. I'm surprised he didn't play there more often when Gliss was relocating, but it's great to see Tym back at a familiar locale TODAY, TOMORROW, and WEDNESDAY, even on late notice! As usual for his Mark' Breakfast Plus gigs, expect these to have early 4:00 PM start times with no announced cover charges or age limits, but mind the locale. See above for more details, and here's Tym live a few years back!



Next up, here's a preview of a huge concert with lots of advance notice, as Juno nominated Windsor hard/world rock trio The Tea Party will return to Sault Ste. Marie THIS WEDNESDAY NIGHT at The Machine Shop! Following their successful free concert at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion last July, the band behind such hits as "Psychopomp" & "The Messenger" are back for another show full of hard rocking songs from their long career, including their new single "Black River", and hopefully there's a strong turnout for Jeff, Stuart, and Jeff's return to the Soo on Wednesday! Joining The Tea Party as openers (though only quietly acknowledged in local advertising) are Winnipeg southern rock quintet The Proud Sons, whose country-inflected original sound will prove an interesting contrast on Wednesday, but they have the talent and musicianship to go around nicely! Presented by Cabin Media, this is unfortunately not a free and all ages concert like last year, with tickets running for $40, but they are still available!

You can buy tickets at this link and presumably in-person/at the door, attendees must be 19 or older, and a 7:30 PM start time is advertised. After a 19 year wait for The Tea Party to rock Sault Ste. Marie ended last summer, it's great to see them back so soon, and hopefully they deliver another skilled and fan-friendly set on Wednesday! Stay tuned for updates and hopefully some local news coverage, and here's The Tea Party in the Soo last year!



We'll close today with some new concert videos shot by the ever-generous Christopher Paci (who also filmed the above Tea Party video), as he was in attendance for Saturday night's OZbourne concert at The Canadian Nightclub, filming 11 videos that night for his YouTube channel. Kudos to Chris as usual, he goes above and beyond when he's at a show regarding filming the bands! Regarding the headliners, Chris filmed the Winnipeg-based Ozzy Osbourne tribute band covering Black Sabbath's "War Pigs", "Paranoid", "N.I.B.", and (part of) the song "Black Sabbath", plus five of Ozzy's own solo songs, namely "Bark At The Moon", "Flying High Again", "Crazy Train", "I Don't Know", and as embedded below, "No More Tears." Generally, OZbourne deliver the goods on these videos for Ozzy fans in music and presentation, and Chris got a nice close view of the band too, so fans should enjoy these clips! Give them a look above & below!



Lastly, Chris also filmed two videos of opening blues rock cover trio The Paul DellaVedova Band on Saturday, and it's clear that Paul & company are fans of Paul Rodgers & Simon Kirke, as their filmed covers are of Bad Company's "Rock & Roll Fantasy" and, as embedded below, Free's "All Right Now." Nice to see the guys break out some hard rock classics for the occasion, and while Chris wasn't as close to the stage as he would get with OZbourne, you get some good angles on these solid covers! No, I don't know if the stage setup with the speakers behind metal barriers on the floor is permanent or just for this concert. Give Paul's videos a look as well!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (415E), Fringe North Festival Videos, And Much More!!

Before we begin today's post, I wanted to apologize for a missed concert, as local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements played a solo headlining gig at The Rockstar Bar last night. This was a hybrid of their own live show plus the venue's recent Christmas Cheer karaoke events on Fridays, with that taking place between the band's sets. I profusely apologize for this show slipping us by after it's short notice announcement earlier this week, but hopefully it went well yesterday, and don't miss Rob & Jesse with The Wyld Stallyns TONIGHT at The Harp! Now, here's some assorted updates, new video discoveries, and leading off, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for next year!

In our first Sault Michigan hard rock concert announcements of 2019, local hard rock cover quartet 415E will reunite to kick off the year at The Rapids Lounge at the Soo's Kewadin Casino branch on January 5th & 6th! This surprise announcement ends an 18 month-long hiatus dating back to their last public concerts at the St. Ignace Kewadin in June 2017, which were termed as their last gigs there "for a while", with guitarist Chris Hubbard commencing work on his own solo project in the interim. I'm not sure what happened to 415E, but it's great to have them back after far too long, and they are back in our active band links! In their Facebook page post announcing the gigs, 415E noted that they'll have "a lot of new songs" as well as a "new rhythm section", which seems to imply that bassist Mitch Goetz and drummer Tony Hubbard (Chris' dad) aren't in the revived band. If accurate, reasons for their departures weren't announced, and we await confirmation of their replacements, but hopefully nothing bad happened!

For what it's worth, Kewadin Casino's entertainment page does not yet list 2019 gigs at their lounges, we will let you know when hard rock shows for early next year are announced there. As usual for Kewadin lounge concert weekends, these shows have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no cover charges. Hopefully Chris and Dave(?) can shake off the rust and pick up where 415E left off last summer, so visit the above links for continuing information on their return in four weeks!

Next up, we have some very belated videos from the live musical entertainment at this year's Fringe North Festival (and/or Art In The Park) in Sault Ontario to share on here! Over two dozen clips were uploaded to the Arts Council of Algoma's Facebook page in August from the live musicians who played at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion during the festival, and I do apologize for these being so late to make the site, The Arts Council page hadn't previously been a haven for live concert videos. A wide array of talented local musicians can be seen in these clips, such as Great Chamberlain, Circular Vibrations, Guy Smith, ex-Griphook frontman Jim O'Leary, The Algo Rhythms, The Barn Board Trio, Sasa Jurko, Mustang Sally, and Colin Gasparelli, among others, so click the above links for the non metal/hard rock performances that were filmed! As far as I can tell, just two of these videos feature a hard rock performer or cover, and one is of local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns, so what should you know there?

A surprising cover of Elle King's "Ex's & Oh's", this rendition puts Christina Speers' vocals to nice use, and look for Rob & Jesse's Elements bandmate Jonas Gasperas on guest hand drums too! The biggest issue with the video is it's vertical camera angle, as while everyone's in frame, the camera placement isn't optimal for the resolution, as almost half of the video is of the stage & floor rather than who's performing on it. Give The Stallyns' Fringe North video a look below, and apologies again for missing The Elements' Rockstar Bar show last night, I hope it won't happen again!



The other hard rock cover comes from local blues trio The Paul DellaVedova Band's Fringe North Festival set in August, as they covered Bad Company's "Rock 'n Roll Fantasy"! Though best known for their blues originals and renditions, Paul and company can go heavy when need be, and they put in a strong performance of this 1970s hard rock favourite here! Again, the vertical camera angle doesn't help for similar reasons, but poor Rick is not in a good spot given the lighting placement and camera angle. Still, fans of Paul's prolific blues rock should appreciate this rendition, so give it a look!



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

• Former Boxcar Junction drummer Mike Blair has launched a new live event sound company named 705Live! They are not to be confused with A Dire Setback's promotion company Live705, who also provide sound at concerts, but it'll be interesting to see if the similarly named companies can coexist! 705Live were recently seen manning the controls for Toystock VII, among other concerts hinted on their Facebook page, and they also provide lighting for events. Mike has a professional setup with lots of experience, so definitely consider 705Live at the above links, and they're now linked on the SMS!
• I have removed Sault Michigan classic/hard rock cover quartet (and Highway 63 side project) Cousin Eddie from our active band links due to the quiet deletion of their Facebook page earlier this year. Oddly, this news comes following learning of two scheduled concert weekends at regional Kewadin Casino branches this month, but with their page deleted and no obvious social media hints that they are still alive, I am hesitant to list these shows here. If they are still on, we'll let you know, but best of luck to Chris, Greg, Nathan, and Ron in the future either way, they were a promising band!
• The Soo's Got Talent will return in 2019! As per photos on their Facebook page (and a URL name edit), the Sault Ontario talent contest will be back for a second go-around, presumably next fall at The Tech if nothing changes, and they are looking for a wide variety of performers once again, which does include musicians. Remember that Tym Morrison and ex-Re:Born frontman Robert Nevitt were among the dozens of competitors in year #1, which was won by singer Daniella Brewer. See above for more details!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Bear Hunters), Plus New Videos!!

We're back with a new news post for your Monday morning, and it includes some new videos from local artists, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for a big upcoming all ages show!

Prolific local metal/punk drummer Johnny Belanger is throwing a birthday bash on Saturday, May 21st in honour of his upcoming 27th birthday, in the form of an ALL AGES concert at The Oddfellows Hall! Entitled "Johnny B's #Litfam Birthday Sheezy", at least 7 bands will take the stage in under two weeks' time for what should be a great time, but who all is playing? Timeslots aren't 100% official, but he official hand-drawn poster credits three of Johnny's active bands as playing on the 21st, including his death metal band The Bear Hunters (in their first public concert appearance of 2016) and his punk/metal quintet Jack Spades, alongside reunited extreme metal quartet Winkstinger, and three local bands making their Oddfellows Hall debuts on the 21st, they being modern hard rockers Eclipse, Johnny's hard/pop rock quartet Heavy Head, and new death metal quintet Kaepora Gaebora (who aren't on the poster, but Johnny confirmed them on the Facebook event page last week.)

The event page also indicates interest in doom metal trio AlgomA joining the bill too, but they are by no means confirmed at this point. As well, Johnny announced last week that "a band" will be making "a special guest appearance" that "you do not want to miss" that night. I honestly don't have any clue who Johnny is referencing, but what band is it? A reunited band that we haven't seen in recent years? A debuting or one-off supergroup? A surprise out of town headliner? Something completely different? Unless there's an early spoiler, be at The Oddfellows Hall on May 21st to find out! Promoted by Johnny in association with Eclipse guitarist Daniel Horton, his Litfam Birthday Sheezy is planned to also feature a barbecue if all goes according to plan, so keep that in mind as well. Also, don't be scared away by the private Facebook event page, Johnny confirmed that is a public show too, and to that end, there will be a $5 admission fee, and as of right now, a 6:00 PM start time.

This is shaping up to be a very fun concert, and quite a bash for Johnny's birthday! He's definitely stacking the deck with familiar faces, Oddfellows newcomers, a triple run of sets from his active bands (sans Caveman Morrison and his acoustic work), and not to mention the teased guest band, but there's more to come out on this show in the next couple of weeks! Stay tuned for updates as they roll in!

Next up, here's a video of a new local classic rock band that just played their debut concert last week, as they tackled Aerosmith's classic "Sweet Emotion"! The band in question is Red & The Muscle, featuring ex-Sativa Rose frontwoman Marisa Valois alongside Machines Dream guitarist Keith Conway, his former Blues Harvest bandmate Michael DiSanto, and veteran local rock drummer Cliff Alloy, which is a strong lineup to say the least! This video (from their Water Tower Pub debut last week) was uploaded to Keith's personal Facebook page but later shared by Marisa on her solo music page, and it's well filmed from a close angle, but the song isn't the best showcase of Marisa's strong vocal range, and the filmer was in a location where Keith's guitar overpowers the the other instruments. Nicely done though, so keep an eye out for more from Red & The Muscle if you like classic & blues rock (I hear they cover Led Zeppelin too), and here's their first video!



Finally today, here's a new solo guitar cover video from Sault Ste. Marienative and Lethbridge, Alberta-based metal guitarist Paul Melanson's YouTube channel! His first posting there in four months, this is a loose cover of the solo from Van Halen's "Hot For Teacher", and while Paul admitted that it's not note for note, it's a solid rendition, so give it a look below, and follow his current bands Damage Inc. & Bottoms Up as well!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next, and for more news soon! Thanks everyone!

Rotaryfest 2015 Review (Stage 1!!)

Hey guys, it's finally time for our reviews of Saturday's Rotaryfest stages, and as I effectively saw two concerts on the separate stages, we'll break our reviews into two separate posts today (but our Second Stage review is coming later today, I promise!) I started the day at Stage 1 at Clergue Park in it's usual location near the library, and while I have seen bands at the main covers-only stage in the past, this was the first time that I've ever attended and reviewed bands at this stage for the SMS. MCed by Q104's Jeff McNeice (who replaced James Warner-Smith in this role a few years back), he handled the job well and definitely has a good voice for the job, filling us in on tidbits on the bands, raffle draws, and Rotaryfest events in between bands, but the advertised guest appearance with Mourning Wood did not occur. During the early stretch of bands at Stage 1, attendance was medium at best, which could partly be due to the heat and humidity forecasts, but I toughed it out, and the weather slowly improved as the day grew long!

And before we touch on the Stage 1 bands that I caught, I will apologize to Thin Ice, Practically Petty, Fleetwood Nicks, Mustang Heart, The Big Waltz, and Domina for the lack of coverage, as I spent the rest of the day at Stage 2, but I know you all knocked it out of the park! I did hear a snippet of a slower cover from Mustang Heart as I left, and they sounded good, with a very good crowd to match!

Opening the First Stage on Saturday were local classic/hard rock cover trio Mourning Wood in their Rotaryfest debut, but compared to the first times I saw them, they definitely had their country hats on for this show, with local country singer Mark Tarantini singing lead vocals for the first half of their set, and acoustic guitarist/keyboardist Scott Infanti guesting for the whole thing. The first portion of the set saw Mark lead everyone through country covers, largely of Garth Brooks classics, with him even entering the crowd for three songs to sing along with attendees and meet the public, which was a nice touch! He has a natural frontman air about him, which did contrast with the second half, as Terry Eaton wasn't as vocal and chatty on Saturday. The second half was more of a typical Mourning Wood show, if abbreviated, with covers of the likes of Bryan Adams and AC/DC (with impromptu guest singer Rob Gilmar), plus a turn by bassist Steven Flint singing "Folsom Prison Blues".

I'm admittedly not a country music fan, but Mourning Wood have the chops to pull it off, and having Mark & Scott on board was a nice touch to further the theme (no word on why Jeff's guest spot didn't occur though.) That said, fans of their more rock sound may have wanted a little more, but Mourning Wood entertained to kick off the day, and look for them often in upcoming concert weekends!

Second on Saturday were local hard rock quartet Long Shot in their own Rotaryfest debut, and the first time that I've ever seen them live, so what'd they bring to the table? A varied set of covers that took them from bands like The Darkness, Queen, and Free to The Mamas & The Papas, Simon & Garfunkel, and Roy Orbison, so they definitely have their talents set across numerous genres! Talented group though, especially when you consider that these guys largely weren't well known from past major local bands! Nathan Muto's an excellent guitarist, Evan Dawe's melodic singing fit well on most songs, though occasionally couldn't handle parts out of his vocal range, and his brother Adam's bass work and Jeremy Ganuelas' drumming were solid compliments as well (and I liked Nathan and Adam's synchronized jumping!) The song selection works well to entertain a wide audience, but they definitely bring a modern edge to things and can get heavy if called for, and they're definitely on their way in the local scene!

The third act was local blues musician & ex-Southern Fried Band frontman Paul Dellavedova in his solo act's Stage 1 debut, so how'd he sound? Joined by his brother Rick (a.k.a. former Amethyst frontman Rick Widow) on drums, and Redundant/Elements bassist James White (nice to see him back on stage!), their set started with a trifecta of Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble covers before transitioning to assorted artists, including Eric Clapton and a lead vocal turn by Rick on their cover of "I Thank You". If you love the blues, Paul and company definitely had a firm handle on it, with his lead vocals and guitar ability more than up to the task, and he has a good chemistry with James and Rick to boot! Some songs weren't as familiar to be as others, and at times, some covers sounded like they needed a backing guitar to fill it out, but Paul has a lot of talent in the blues, and hopefully he keeps this up in the coming months and beyond!

The last band that I saw on Saturday was local hard rock quartet Beaumont Avenue in their announced last concert, albeit first with drummer Ben Boudreau in over 6 months, so did the guys end things with a bang? I'd say so! Though their last show was sadly covers-only, the former Suicide Kings rocked dependably on covers of the likes of Guns N' Roses, Collective Soul, and Blink-182 during the first half of their set, though if there were any surprises (or public acknowledgements of their impending breakup), they came after I left to catch the last half of Stereo North's Stage 2 set. I still don't know why Beaumont Avenue are calling it quits, but the guys looked happy to be back on stage, and their musical quality hadn't diminished given the finality, with Mike Gaetano's melodic vocals flowing nicely with their renditions, and Steven Flint's guitar work wasn't fatigued at all during his second set in the humidity! Beaumont Avenue left us with a solid set to go out on, and best of luck to Mike, Steven, Mitch, and Ben in the future!

Overall, the bands that I saw on Stage 1 were solid, talented, and a nice variance from the norm on the all-cover stage (of Saturday's first 6 bands, only Beaumont Avenue and Domina had played the festival before), so fans craving something different may have liked that! The heat was a little much, but the waterfront breeze and incorrect rain forecast helped a bit, and I do admit that I love winter way more than summer. If you're looking for extra coverage of the Stage 1 bands, including of Thursday, Friday, and late Saturday acts, many local news sites will have you covered, and we'll touch on them in the coming days as well, so stay tuned if you're not on SooToday, Sault Online, and so forth before then! Our photos from the main stage can be seen at this link or at our official Facebook page (note the smaller total, as I was spreading things out between stages), and I apologize for not getting closer, but I didn't want to be "that guy" in everyone's road.

As for our videos, here's Mourning Wood (with Mark Tarantini & Scott Infanti) covering Darius Rucker's "Wagon Wheel", Long Shot covering The Foo Fighters' "Everlong", Paul Dellavedova & friends covering Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)", and Beaumont Avenue covering Bon Jovi's "Wanted Dead Or Alive"!









That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Second Stage review later today! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Danger Cats), Haggith's New CD, And New Videos!!

Before we get into this post, I wanted to apologize for not getting official plugs of last night's two Mourning Wood concerts (a matinee at The New American Pub and a normally timed Rednecks Saloon show) on the site yesterday. Both only recieved short notice plugs on personal Facebook accounts a few hours before showtime at The New A, and as we couldn't rush a new news post in time to plug both, we covered them on our Facebook page. Had we recieved more advance word on both, we'd have definitely plugged them here, but our apologies either way! Now, today's post features new videos, a recent album release, and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you should know!

Local all-female hard rock/punk quartet The Danger Cats will rock The Rankin Arena at 17 Batchewana Street on Saturday, June 13th during... a roller derby event?! Yes, the girls' second announced show of the summer will come during Border Brawl, a Sault Roller Derby event that will see two games between Ontario and Michigan teams (with game 1 featuring Northern Ontario's own NORD Starz.) If you're not familiar with roller derby, it's a fun and physical game that the whole family can enjoy, so give it a look online to see if this is up your alley! Danger Cats frontwoman Kate Kougar confirmed in personal e-mails that they'll be playing during halftime of both games, so with each starting at 6:00 & 8:00 PM, their mini-sets will presumably be at around 7:00 & 9:00 PM. This may seem like an odd show for a local band to play, but some of the members are involved in local roller derby events, hence the connection. (Calico Katie even designed the poster!)

Admission is $10 at the door or via advance ticket sales through derby players,  while kids under 12 get in FREE! Also, note that there's an afterparty at The Rockstar Bar too, but if The Danger Cats (or any other band) are playing it, nothing has been publically stated yet. For more details on this unique concert event, check the above links, and don't bypass roller derby, give it a look and see if you'd want to check out Border Brawl!

Next up, here's some overdue notes on a recent album release, as local hard rock/grunge quartet Haggith released their newest CD "Apocalypse II" on May 9th prior to their set at that night's Swampstravaganza V! Apologies for the delay in getting this on the site, it fell through the cracks way too much. Released a day earlier than anticipated, "Apocalypse II" is the band's fourth full length studio album and second in their "Apocalypse" concept series, as recorded over the past year+ at PaperClip Productions. The album features (in various lineup arrangements and instrument roles) the band's late 2014-early 2015 lineup, including singer/guitarist Curtis McKenzie, ex-guitarist Daniel Horton, bassist Jordan Leach, and drummer/vocalist Mike Haggith, though only Daniel is credited on all 10 songs, and his Project 421 bandmate Frank McGillivray is credited with playing guest guitar on the three "Home" tracks.

"Apocalypse II" was on sale for $5, and likely will be at the band's upcoming concerts as well. You can stream all 10 songs ("Apocalypse", "Hands of Death", "Immunity", "Spreading The Disease", parts 5, 6, and 7 of "Home", "Tribute to Mike Haggith", "We Are The Damned", and the title track) at Haggith's YouTube channel for free as well, but will we be reviewing the album on the site this month? No, because it only makes sense to go in chronological order for the "Apocalypse" series, so look for our review of 2012's "Apocalypse" (at last) by month's end! Check out both above!

We'll close today with new videos, including this clip of Bad Back drummer Nathan Sauve tracking drums for a guest spot he's doing for an upcoming Rotopsy track! As uploaded to his YouTube channel on Monday, the overhead video features him tracking his part in a speedo (as he pointed out), and it sounds good to add to a Rotopsy song! While a little monotonous, live drums top a drum machine and help give more of the full band feel to their goregrind intensity, and it'll be interesting to hear the final product! Give Nathan's new video a look below!



Finally, here's a new solo instrumental recording by prolific Sault native and Alberta metal guitarist Paul Melanson! The first upload to his YouTube channel in 5 months, the song is called "Split the Sphere", and it's a well recorded and performed original song with a nice solo and strong songwriting! His recent hard rock and cover work in Lethbridge is solid, but it would be interesting to see him tackle a full metal project like this again. Give his new video a look below, and see more above!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for last month's poll results and our new poll tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Local Solo Performance Video Showcase!!

In our last post before we begin previewing this week's two battles of the bands, here's a special local metal video showcase that features recent solo performance YouTube videos from four local musicians, all notable from out of town work as well! This is a combination of overdue features and new finds, but there's solid talent throughout, and on both sides of the border, so check everything out below, and see this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post below this one! We'll start in alphabetical order with former Sativa Rose/Valentine's Day Massacre bassist Adam Veale, who's featured in two new solo cover videos from his dad John's YouTube channel! Uploaded last week, they're the first videos featuring Adam playing live to be posted there in over a year, and are of acoustic guitar/vocal covers of Bob Seger's "Turn The Page" and Nazareth's "Love Hurts" (both complete with dedications to a loved one.)

Both are well performed and softer covers, and they showcase Adam's diverse talent that we don't see a whole lot of, but his singing voice can be a little off compared to the original songs. Hopefully we hear more from him sooner or later, but check out his "Love Hurts" cover below and more above!



Next up, here's a new solo drumming video from London Gentlemen/former Nixxon Dixxon drummer Jake Lalonde, who uploaded his first solo video in 2 years to his YouTube channel yesterday! A short 61 second video demonstrating linear grooves & fills, it's a nice showcase of Jake's talent, with solid rapid fire drumming on display, so fans of his Sault Michigan-area band work should be right at home! Also, it's nice to get a non-overhead angle for a change. Give Jake's new video a look below!



Heading back to Canada, here's a bunch of videos from Lethbridge, Alberta metal guitarist Paul Melanson, a Sault Ontario native who you may remember from past local bands like Frapperteterhead, Malediction, Gutwrench, and Under The Gun! Most recently seen in the Lethbridge cover band Bottoms Up and the Metallica tribute Damage Inc., Paul posted a steady amount of solo videos outside of his Alberta band work to his YouTube channel last year, so what can be seen there? Among the highlights, there's a bass cover of Metallica's "The Shortest Straw", guitar covers of the likes of Pantera & Ozzy Osbourne, and numerous solo guitar compositions, which partially are planned for a teased solo EP. Paul's a great guitarist, and it's nice to see him staying heavy with his recent solo work, which does showcase skill in both songwriting and cover knowledge! It'll be interesting to see what he has in store next, but see the above links for more, and here's his cover of the solos in Metallica's "Fade To Black"!



Finally, here's the newest solo acoustic vocal/guitar cover from former Elipzis/RedStone Riot bassist Ryan Harrison, as per his new YouTube channel (not his old "freakwoog" channel) last week! Despite the new channel, this cover of Counting Crows' "Goodnight Elisabeth" is similar to his past solo videos from his current Muskegon homebase, albeit in a sepia tone and sporting his impressive recent beard. I'm not a Counting Crows fan, but Ryan handles this cover well and with nice melodic vocals that fans of his old Riot! By Night work should appreciate, so give his newest solo cover a look below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our preview of Wednesday's night #1 of the VM Radio Battle of the Bands TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!