LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Banned), New Video Finds, And More Updates!!

With the holidays now behind us, let's get back to work with a new news post on this cold Monday, including some assorted recent notes, some new video finds from each side of the border, and first, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for across the river, so here's what you should know!

Kinross, Michigan classic/hard rock cover trio Banned have announced their first concerts of 2016, and they do include a number of regional concert dates! Much like Banned alum Alex Schrovenwever's current band Steelhead have done in the past, the reveal was made via Banned's Facebook cover photo, and the new dates include dates at 4 of the 5 Kewadin Casino branches' bars, with all but Hessel on their early 2016 itinerary (though note that Kewadin's entertainment page has yet to confirm the dates.) We'll next see Banned in Sault Michigan on Friday, January 15th & Saturday, January 16th at The Rapids Lounge at the Soo's Kewadin Casino (with further shows coming there on March 11th & 12th), while they will still be rocking Hessel (at The Runway Bar) for a one-nighter on Friday, February 12th. Finally, their first shows of the year at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino will be on February 19th & 20th, so keep those in mind as well!

The shows also join dates outside of our area in Engadine later this month, and for a weekend a month through March at the Kewadin Casino branches in Manistique and Christmas (nice to see Banned playing the Christmas Kewadin at last too!) All of Banned's regional dates have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no announced cover charges. Check the above links for more details, and stay tuned for more from this prolific trio as it rolls in!

Next up, here's a new video from local classical metal project Theatre of Night's YouTube channel, as uploaded yesterday, and it's of keyboardist Craig Harrison performing an instrumental piece in studio. Sounds pretty and suitably dramatic, and it should mesh well with the full song when complete, so give it a look below!



We'll close today back in Sault Ontario, including a new video find from one of the late Mike Case's Junior All-Star bands! Entitled The Mike Case Rockers, this incarnation of his student youth bands were active from 2012-2014, and memorably played at Rotaryfest's main stage in 2013, the Ray Brown benefit concert that fall, as well as at charity & community events. Mostly known for covering pop music from the likes of Katy Perry & Bruno Mars, a pair of videos on their Facebook page skew more to what we cover, and they include renditions of Joan Jett's "I Hate Myself For Loving You" & (as embedded below) Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train", both from a kids Halloween party of some type at The Canadian Nightclub in October 2012 shortly after their debut. Featuring three 13-15 year old students (including singer Alandra Brooks) backed up by the prolific T.J. Case on drums, and with guest appearances from Mike, these are well done for their age, and you can definitely sense promise!

The guitarist is really solid, and Alandra has a good melodic voice, so hopefully everyone stays active in music! Though mostly playing pop covers, they were developing well, and while Mike Case's junior bands are obviously no more following his tragic passing last year, it's nice to find a formal online page and media for one of them, so check out more from The Mike Case Rockers above & below!



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

• Local doom metal trio AlgomA's first announced concert of the year will see them rock Toronto once again at Coalition T.O. on Sunday, March 20th! They'll actually be headlining this concert alongside 3 out of town bands, including recent New A headliners IRN and Sudbury's Horse Lung. Sounds like a fun concert for doom & sludge fans, so click here for details in case you want to take a road trip for all of the action come March!
• In their first music-related Facebook page post since 2014, local progressive death metal veterans Gates of Winter announced earlier today that their upcoming third album "Perihelion" will finally be released this year, and they "have a lot more exciting news on the way". The post also came in the wake of the 8th anniversary of the release of their second CD "Lux Aeterna", which is also now available on iTunes and Spotify. Hopefully we hear much more soon, Gates have been missed!
• Local grunge/alternative trio The Pixo Control will play their first announced concert of the year on Friday, January 22nd when they headline at The Townhouse Tavern in Sudbury! This will be their first out-of-town show with new bassist Dustin Goodall, and there will be support acts to be announced. This should be a great concert too, so keep it in mind if you're out east, and click here for more details! (Also, they revealed there that the name of their CD "Probably Not" came from that being a frequent reply when they asked optimistic questions, which fit how Michael felt when writing their songs.)

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes in due course! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Zombie Walk Afterparty), Gates Of Winter Updates, And Much More!!

On this nice Saturday in the Twin Saults, we have some big news to cover, so what's on tap? Along with an archive video discovery and more recent items, we have some long awaited new audio samples from a prominent local metal band, and leading off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month, so read on below for what you need to know!

The fifth annual Soo Zombie Walk returns to terrorize downtown Sault Ste. Marie next month, albeit now on the Halloween weekend (Saturday, October 26th) rather than the weekend before to better associate it with other seasonal events. Aside from the date change, the host venue has also changed from The Grand Theater to The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre, which is still downtown but in a bigger location with more parking, so this could work out well logistically! With that said, the fourth annual Soo Zombie Walk Afterparty will also be held at the Bushplane Museum this year after the walk wraps up, and while there hasn't been an official announcement from The Arts Council, Sykotyk Rampage & Haggith will apparently return from last year's afterparty to rock out with the zombies once again! For Sykotyk Rampage (who released an album named "Zombiez" last year), this will be their third straight year this event, while Haggith (who are working on a follow-up to their zombie-themed CD "Apocalypse") also played a fitting set at last year's afterparty, so both will be great fits with their alternative hard rock sounds this year!

My source for their participation is this Sykotyk Rampage-created Facebook event page, and no word yet on if  The Salty Mollies or a local DJ will be back from the last 2 years or if any other bands are scheduled. Admission details have yet to be confirmed, but last year, it started after 9:00 PM, with a $10 admission & a 19+ age limit, so it could be similar. Check the above links for more details, including on the zombie walk itself! Despite the more seasonal scheduling, it now conflicts with The Halloween Party at The Rosie, so I probably won't be in attendance for the afterparty this year, but hopefully it's a huge hit in it's new location, and stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's the latest preview video from local progressive death metal notables Gates of Winter, who are still slowly at work on their second EP & third CD "Perihelion"! Their first audio sample in 5 months was uploaded to their YouTube channel on Monday, and it's bookended with what could be previews of new artwork for the final product, but the meat of the video has fast-motion shots of the computer production along with samples from the EP. Commentary from a band member (likely bassist Steve Furgiuele) notes that while this has been a slow process, and he's returned to university this year, they're nearing the end, and are excited to work "beyond Perihelion", presumably referring to later studio work, ending with "The silence breaks soon." As I've said before, a lesser band than Gates of Winter likely would have thrown in the towel by now thanks to the incredibly slow recording process and almost 5 year break from concerts, but this 86 second preview clip (which is very technical & heavy) should whet fans appetites in the meantime!

Will we hear more before the end of the year, or will 2014 be the year of resurrection? Fans have been patient for this long, but we'll have to see what happens when things finally conclude, so stay tuned for updates when they come in, and here's Gates of Winter's newest sample video!



Also, here's one more archive video discovery from Nikkfitt guitarist Robert Ross' YouTube channel! This comes from a band of his in 2000 during a concert at the Harmony Beach Lakeview Resort in nearby Goulais River, and it's a cover of The Blue Oyster Cult's "Godzilla", complete with some fades and transition effects. It's a solid cover of these hard rock legends, and everyone has clear talent, but like with Robert's Hempfest video, I know next to nothing on this band. Let me know if you have any information, and give this 13 year old cover clip a look below! (Just in case you're curious, the woman in the shot below isn't a band member, she walked into the frame.)



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter stories from the last couple of days, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or venue name.

• Are As It Stands returning from their year+ break? In the first post on their Facebook page since January, a band member hyped that it's "gettin' to be about that time, kiddies", and the band is "coming to you this winter." We haven't seen these local hardcore favourites since the Dead & Divine show in August 2012 (their only show in the past 16 months), but we'll have to see what exactly comes of this as more details are announced. I'll be sure to keep you guys posted!
• Ex-State of Misery drummer Nick Kainula is now looking to join a new local band, as per the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday. He didn't cite any direct preferences beyond his past experience, but he is a skilled player, so message him at this link or above if you're interested in him trying out! Note that I still don't have 100% proof that his most recent band With Blood Build Character (formerly Unbound) are done, but they've been quiet since the spring.
• The Rockstar Bar's James Scott asked fans on their Facebook group this morning what fans would want or like to see at this downtown bar/concert venue. This could lead to anything, but if you wanna voice your opinion for more new metal/hard rock concerts, reply to James' thread there via the above links! (No word though on if this would apply to downstairs events at The Algonquin Pub.)

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news & notes tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Telephone & Address), Gates Of Winter's New Demo, And Sault Michigan Updates!!

41 days into our posting streak, today's updates are thankfully more positive than yesterday's mostly were, so what's on tap as we start another week? Today, we have our first major Sault Michigan updates since April Fools Day, courtesy of a new video and some recent shorter items, but first, we have a long awaited new song posting from one of the area's biggest metal bands, and first, a different sort of LOCAL CONCERT ALERT in a couple of weeks, so here's what you need to know!

In a definite change from what we tend to hear from shows not involving Tym Morrison, we have an SMS-fitting acoustic show to announce tonight, as the Chris Shoust-led grunge/lo-fi solo project Telephone & Address will headline an ALL AGES gig at The Royal Canadian Legion at 96 Great Northern Road on April 27th! This is the first time that we've hyped a concert at the Legion since the original Turner Up played there in May 2010, and it's the first time I can recall Chris playing a live concert under the Telephone & Address handle. Chris' acoustic work definitely fits for SMS coverage, as it's all influenced by grunge and alternative hard rock, despite the one-man nature of much of his recent musical output, and though there is an outsider feel to much of it, these all sound like the seeds of heavy full-band material! Telephone & Address will be supported by local solo musician Jake Rydall, who has his own softer material that you can check out at this location, and he has talent himself! Admission will be $5 for this show (the second to be promoted by AlgomA drummer Jamie Vincent through his new all ages promotion agency), and a 9:00 PM start time is advertised. Check the above links for more details!

We don't get a varied array of acoustic metal/hard rock shows here, and though I imagine Telephone & Address would be an acquired taste for some, I can appreciate Chris' solo work! He's very artistic and accomplished in various fields, and his music reminds me of Daniel Johnston crossed with Nirvana in some ways. Plus, I imagine this is rare to see him playing live, so keep this show in mind in two weeks, and stay tuned for any possible updates!

Next up, local progressive death metal standouts Gates of Winter posted a new demo original onto their YouTube channel yesterday! Their first sign of life in almost five months (and their first new media posting in over a year), this is of a newly unveiled original song named "Prometheus", which is expected to be a part of their long gestating second EP (and third total release) "Perihelion", though it's unclear if they're still planning to change the name like what was said last fall. Featuring the song's lyrics on the video, this shows more signs of their more technical and death-metal influenced current sound, along with minimal clean vocals, and some orchestral and ethnic flourishes, though I can't confirm yet if they're using programmed drums or have found a new drummer for the recordings. I still hope to review "Perihelion" when it's released (hopefully sooner rather than later), so I won't go in-depth on my thoughts yet, but fans shouldn't be disappointed!

The long wait for band news, updates, and (of course) a return to the stage for the first time since 2008 has been excruciating at times, but hopefully this helps, so check out "Prometheus" below, and stay tuned for more Gates of Winter news as it creeps in!

We'll transition to the Sault Michigan area for the rest of today's post, including our first video glimpse of newer local hard rock quintet Full Throttle! Lake Street Studio owner Taylor Brugman was in attendance for their concert at The Bird (a.k.a. Golanka's Bar) on March 16th, and posted this video of Full Throttle covering Velvet Revolver's "Slither" onto the studio's YouTube channel a week later, so what do we know from it? Well, it does confirm later lineup information on them that I had found, so their current lineup does indeed feature Absolute singer Donny Newell, guitarists Jason Lamoreaux and Steve Pevarnic (of Steve's Music Center fame), Powerslug guitarist Chris Gurnoe on bass, and (I assume) Mark Gillotte on drums, but let me know if I have anything wrong! The video's well lit, but Jason & Chris are often hid behind speakers or other band members at this angle.

As for the song, it's pretty well performed, but Donny does sing some chorus lyrics at the wrong points, and the guys do seem somewhat stiff on stage. Good first video though, and hopefully there's more to come, so check out Full Throttle's cover of "Slither" below!



Finally for today, here's three recent shorter news items from across the river, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or station name:

• Barring a new sign of life by Friday, we'll be moving Powerslug/Toast drummer Bob "Orb Hearthstone" Helsten's solo project to our inactive Sault Michigan band links then due to a year's inactivity. Reminiscent of his singing work with I.S.O.M & End of Existence, Orb's solo material has seen no new public updates since his solo version of "12-21-12" was featured in Werehold Records' Friday The 13th new music posting event, but hopefully Bob returns to singing locally in the future, as he's got a great voice!
• Cheboygan rock radio station Real Rock 105.1 FM (which picks up here on better radios) has changed it's name to Rock 105, complete with a major rebranding that saw it's main Traverse City signal switch from 95.5 FM to 105.1 FM as well. The playlist (leaning towards modern rock) will remain the same, so this isn't a major change from what we knew, but check the above links for the new look Rock 105!
• Local classical metal trio Theatre of Night have proved that they still play full on metal, posting a new instrumental named "A Wintery Mix" onto their Reverbnation page on Thursday, and it has a darker symphonic metal feel with some solid tempo changes and instrumentation, so give it a look at the above links, and stay tuned for news on their next album projects!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news in the next couple of days, including our preview of Wednesday's second night of the Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (View To A Kill), New Videos, And More!!

I wasn't preparing to have a new post today, but with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT to share for TONIGHT, I had to get something up, so today, we also have new videos from a pair of notable local bands and some more assorted news updates, so here's all that you need to know! (EDITED: 9:26 PM)

Remember on Thursday when I alluded to a likely cancelled concert at Feedback for TONIGHT featuring Espanola metal band Fifth Column and locals View To A Kill? Well, the show's still on, and the reason the old event page was deleted is likely because Fifth Column couldn't make it tonight (not sure why), but View To A Kill are still on for tonight for a set of brutal deathcore in their Feedback debut! That said, they'll now be joined by local death metal trio Shit Liver, replacing Fifth Column's original replacements Winkstinger on the lineup, as they had something come up. A lot of shuffling, but Shit Liver are a quality replacement, and kudos to them for stepping in! Apologies for the short notice, the show was only officially confirmed by promoters last night. No matter which second band is announced, this should be a solid lineup of metal, I just hope that a good crowd shows up, as the Helix show might steal some fans. However, there is NO COVER tonight at Feedback, but you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time looks likely. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

This should be another great metal concert at Feedback, and hopefully Rich has some more great Dismembertainment shows in the works for the bar! Shit Liver and View To A Kill should have lots of great metal in store, so hopefully you guys can make it out! For a preview, here's View To A Kill covering Throwdown's "Venom & Tears" at The Roosevelt Hotel last month!



Now to some new videos, and first, wanna hear a sample of a new Gates of Winter song? Frontman Lee Maines posted a 52 second video of him playing the guitar riff of a new song tentatively named "Wormhole Mechanics" onto his YouTube channel on Thursday, and I tell you what, it sounds very cool! Progressive and very technical, it sounds like it will be a great piece to one of the songs on next year's "Perihelion" CD! Not a whole lot else to say yet, but give Lee's new sample video a look below!



Also for new videos, another video of the new look Sativa Rose's set at The Roosevelt Hotel on Tuesday is now online! Also filmed by bassist Adam Veale's dad John, he uploaded this to his YouTube channel yesterday, and it's of Sativa Rose covering Van Halen's "Panama"! As someone who prefers DLR to Sammy (I await your letters), I approve of the song choice, but how did they sound? Music's good, and Marisa's voice fits for intensity, but she doesn't hit the higher notes too much. Good stuff all around though, especially with Andrew Angelic's guitar work, and you know they'll only get better from here! Check out the full video of Sativa Rose covering "Panama" below, and I'll let you guys know if any more Sativa Rose videos from Tuesday show up online!



And finally for today, here's three shorter stories from the last little while, and as always, these are in alphabetical order by band or venue name:

• Local hard rockers Borderline Divine (formerly Stillbroke) have added bassist Jake Hache to their lineup, replacing now-guitarist Mitch Sirie. Jake, who was quietly added to their Facebook page's lineup recently, is the band's fifth bassist (that I know of) since their launch in the spring of 2008. I'm not familiar with him musically, but the guys in Borderline Divine have a history of snagging talented musicians for their lineups, so hopefully he works out for the long term! Stay tuned for updates!
• Feedback (the former Foggy Notions) is now booking bands for January 2012, so click here or message Rich Moreland on Facebook for details! Jump on this if you're in a band, cause Feedback is definitely a bar that supports local music and talent of all walks, not just metal!
• On Thursday, Late & Loud guitarist Jonathan Tiberi posted on the SMS' Facebook page asking if any local bands were interested in playing a Christmas themed metal show in town, which would include playing Christmas songs (likely in a metal fashion.) Intriguing idea, but if you want it to go down, contact Jon at this location for details!
  

That's all for now, but in case I can't make it out tonight, best of luck to Helix, the bands at Feedback, Tym Morrison, and Powerslug for some great times and songs at their respective shows! I'll be back with more news over the next few days, so keep an eye out! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tym Morrison & Sativa Rose) And Huge News From Gates Of Winter!!

Well guys, here's some more news for this Tuesday evening, and we've got a lot of big stuff here! Tonight, we have some big news from a prominent local metal band, new videos from them, and some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for this month, so here's what you need to know!

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison has two more acoustic solo concerts lined up for you local fans, both of which take place this weekend! His first new show will be his debut at Feedback on Friday night in a rare non-Service Grill concert from him! Though his acoustic metal covers are new to Feeback as it currently exists, you may remember him from a number of Foggy Notions shows in the past, including a weekly concert arrangement there that started late last year and ended in February, so he's no stranger to this bar! That said, if you're used to his Service Grill shows, never fear, as he'll also be back at the Korah Road restaurant on Saturday night as well with lots of hard rocking hits to play for his fans! He's back there after another off weekend, suggesting a bi-weekly arrangement now for his shows there, but there hasn't been a finite weekly schedule for them since September. Neither show this weekend has an announced cover charge (bring cash just in case for Feedback though), he'll be on at 10:00 PM on Friday and 8:00 PM on Saturday, and though I know it will be a 19+ show on Friday night, I don't believe the age restriction will apply for the Service Grill. Click here and here for each show's respective event pages! It's great to see Tym playing some more solo shows this weekend, so check them out if you can! Stay tuned for more later in the week!

Also for new shows, it's the long awaited return of Sativa Rose to the local stage! The classic metal quintet will finally make their debut live appearance with new singer Marisa Valois at this show, after initially dropping out of Sunday's Skull Fist concert, when they rock The Roosevelt Hotel three weeks from today on November 29th! After a four month hiatus, how will they sound? Time will tell! At this concert, Sativa Rose will be among the local openers for Toronto pop punk trio The Unbelievers, who recently played with local standouts Frightlight when they opened for The Misfits last month in Toronto! Good to see them here, their stylish punk attack will be sure to turn heads at The Rosie! As well, the new local band T. Rex Manning (who were briefly advertised for the Coch's Corner Halloween Party before dropping out) are scheduled to open this concert as well. I still don't know much about them, but I can confirm they're Frightlight frontman (and this show's promoter) J.D. Pearce's new band, alongside guitarist Tiffany Stocco, bassist Bill Bennett, and drummer Daniel MacDonald. Punk covers and some metal, from what I understand, but hopefully we see and hear more from them soon! Thanks to Tiffany for filling me in!

Doors open at 10:00 PM for this concert, you must be 19 to attend, and there's a $3 cover charge, which is well worth it. Check the official Facebook event page for more details! Sounds like an interesting lineup of bands, and hopefully a good crowd turns out for the punk and metal within! If I hear any updates, you'll absolutely hear them here!

Next up, here's some huge news from Gates of Winter! If you've been wondering what they've been up to lately, bassist Steve Furgiuele will tell you in the video below courtesy of the band's official YouTube channel. Firstly, he announced that Gates of Winter's forthcoming second studio album will be entitled "Perihelion" (which means the point of a planet's orbit when it's nearest to the sun), and the planned release for it will be in December... of 2012. That's a ways off, but at least we have a tentative idea of when to expect the CD! He also announced in the video that Gates of Winter plan to re-record some material from their 2008 CD "Lux Aeterna" and release it in some form in the summer. I'm glad to see they're not abandoning it all like past pages had alluded to, and hopefully the new versions of whatever songs they re-record showcase their current talents well! Nothing about a potential live return was announced in the video, but my fingers are crossed! Also, he plugged that "Lux Aeterna" is on sale now on iTunes (click here to pick it up for $8.91 or 99¢ a song), and he referred to the band's website at http://www.gatesofwinter.com which now redirects to their Facebook page, replacing that error-filled fan page that had taken the domain name since 2009.

Nice to see some more detailed word from the band on their next steps, and the audio clips bookending Steve's portion sound brutal and very promising! If the December 2012 release date for "Perihelion" sticks, it will be almost 5 years since their last album came out, but knowing how they want to improve and emphasize newer material, you know they're making it worth every second of waiting! Check out the full video below, and get hyped up for "Perihelion" next year!



And finally in Gates of Winter news, the band has uploaded two new 2008 concert videos onto their YouTube channel! Though their live instrumental demo of "From Nothingness" and their "Gates TV" episode were disappointingly deleted from the channel, the band has replaced them with two live videos from what (I think) was their surprise return show at The Grand Theater in September 2008, and also their first of two local concerts with former drummer David Gold. The posted videos, which apparently have never been released to the public before, are of Gates of Winter playing their song "Winter Flight" and their unreleased song "Torment", which was axed from "Lux Aeterna" before it's release. Very nice quality footage from a high viewpoint, and I've always liked how much heavier the vocals were on the later version of "Winter Flight" especially! Always good to hear "Torment" too, though I wish the band would have released it on a CD. Check the above links to see this newly posted Gates of Winter footage, and here's the "Winter Flight" video! Awesome stuff!



That's all for today, but in case there's no news tomorrow, stay tuned for our next Defunct Local Band Profiles & weekend concert previews on Thursday! Thanks everyone!