LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Mourning Wood), Plus Lots Of New Videos!!

Let's get some more news and updates on the site on this Friday afternoon, largely revolving around a local metal video showcase, but we're kicking things off with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT and linked apology for a missed show, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock quartet Mourning Wood will apparently be rocking Reggie's Place TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, we only heard about this show last night via new drummer Glen Thomas' personal Facebook page, which also confirmed that they played at Reggie's yesterday too. I know that the guys often play a Thursday nighter when they head to Reggie's, but when the band only announces certain shows through their Facebook page, and not usually with a lot of advance notice, things can slip through the cracks, and I do apologize for missing yesterday's show on here! And no, the guys aren't playing there tomorrow night, personal posts suggest they have a private gig instead. This is Mourning Wood's second concert weekend with new members Paul Belair and Glen Thomas in the fold, so if you missed their Rednecks debut last weekend, keep their return in mind! There's no announced cover charge, you must be 19 to attend, and 10:00 PM start times is in effect.

Check the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's our first look at the new Mourning Wood lineup, courtesy of Glen's YouTube channel! He has more videos from last weekend on his personal Facebook page, no word yet on if they'll also make it to YouTube. This is a cover of the Canadian classic rock band Doucette's song "Mama Let Him Play" with Terry Eaton on lead vocals, and it's a lively performance that gives Paul and Glen a good first showcase! Also, for sake of reference, Glen and guitarist Steven Flint used to play together in Wishbone, so there's another connection for the new lineup. Give the video a look below, and don't miss the guys at Reggie's!



Next up, here's a video from last week's first annual Northern Vibe Festival in Ophir, courtesy of cover rock quartet Changing Lanes! (Not to be confused with defunct hardcore band Changing Waves.) If you're not familiar with them, they feature Garden of Bedlam's Erik "Buzz" Boissineau on vocals, Wild Iris/ex-Sense of Truth guitarist Steve Myers on guitar, talented local saxophonist Josh Norling (Blues Harvest, etc.) on bass, and ex-Leaves Off Trees drummer Roy Kreutzberger, and they generally play a more varied, softer brand of rock. Changing Lanes shared two videos from their set on their Facebook page in the last couple of days, one being a cover of U2's "When The Streets Have No Name", but the other fits what we cover nicely, as it's a rendition of Led Zeppelin's "Rock n' Roll"! Buzz handles this difficult song flawlessly, and it's a solid cover all around, so if you've missed Garden of Bedlam lately, Changing Lanes would definitely be worth checking out if you're OK with a less heavy sound! Give their Zeppelin cover a look below, and more above!

Also, here's the latest from newer local black metal duo Dullahan, so what have they been up to lately? After a family emergency postponed band activity, Wyrn & Sevriz announced that they already plan to record a full length album of some kind in the future, complete with posting 10 planned track names onto their Facebook page last month, but are right now working on EPs. Alongside a piano-only cover (presumably by Sevriz) of Burzum's "Der Weinende Hadnur", Dullahan have posted their first full EP "The Wood Cutter" on their YouTube channel and Bandcamp page, though it's strictly available as a free download on the latter, no word on if paid or physical copies are in the cards. A new original song named "Walking Through A Dying Forest" went up with the EP as well, and for reference, originals there are not planned for the intended full length release. Current plans now call for a second EP of some type to be recorded.

The new track has an early Woods of Ypres vibe to it, if needing extra instrumentation and higher production, but it's good to see Dullahan keeping at it!, and hopefully we hear a lot more from them in the future! The Soo could use a successful, long-lasting black metal band again. Give Dullahan's free EP a listen below and at the above links!

Finally, have you been wondering where local hard rock quartet Skeyes of Seven have been in the last couple of months? In the studio, that's where! The guys have been recording something (be it another single track or an actual album) at Deluca Sound Productions, the local recording studio owned by Mannapool guitarist Korey Deluca, which has also seen bands like Aldous, Wishbone, and (of course) Mannapool recording there this year. Looks and sounds like a professional setup, and we've added the studio's Facebook page to our "Other Local Metal Links" section! The studio has shared this video of Skeyes of Seven bassist Alain Fletcher "shaking the foundation" during a recent tracking session, and while we don't get a perfect (or long) glimpse at how this song's coming along, it's a nice preview, so give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Skeyes of Seven!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (River Witch), New Videos, And Our Next CD Review!!

Hey there everyone, I have some more local metal news and updates to share on this Tuesday afternoon, including the latest from The Barking Eye, a cool new fan video for a song from a local metal band, the 100% confirmed identity of TOMORROW'S CD review, and kicking things off, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!! So here's what you need to know!

Sault Michigan modern/classic rockers River Witch have announced two more dates in town for this month! We haven't heard much publically from them since last month, but they finally posted a band update onto their Facebook page detailing their next local shows, which will take place on October 29th and 30th at The Bird! Note that the post mentioning these shows says that the shows are on the 20th & 30th, but the 20th is a Wednesday and wouldn't make sense, so I'm under the assumption that they made a simple typo. They also announced two shows for this coming weekend at Kewadin Casino in St. Ignace, which is outside of our "local" range for SMS coverage, but make note if you're in the St. Ignace area! Apparently, River Witch were at The Bird for a couple of weekends prior as well (band members' Facebook pages confirmed this), but the band never announced them on their page. Still, my apologies for missing them! Looks like the River Witch shows on the 29th and 30th have a 21+ age limit and a 10:00 PM start time, with no announced cover. For more details, click here!

Remember, River Witch are the band made up of most of the former members of Blind Baby, with Aaron Fasel & Chris Gurnoe in place of Tadd Gravelle & Bill Ogston. I'm told that Blind Baby play covers and possibly originals, but I have yet to hear audio of them in this current form. Check out Blind Baby's old material at this location for a possible glimpse at what to expect, and I'll keep you posted as I hear more from River Witch!

Next up, here's a cool discovery I found on YouTube earlier today! I'm sure some of you will be aware of fan-made music videos for songs, where they make up their own visual accompaniment for a song they like, be it band clips, effects, stock footage, or what have you. Well, I found one from YouTube user TheUnlovedEntity that may pique your interest in a local fashion! Under their "company name", Sanctuary Studios Production, they posted their own fan music video for Woods of Ypres' doom ballad "Allure of the Earth" from 2004's "Pursuit of the Sun/Allure of the Earth", and I have to say, it's not bad! TheUnlovedEntity puts their own spin onto the song by adding a lot of video clips that feature or refer to space, astronauts, moon landings, rocket blasts, and so on. I don't know if I'd agree that it's a good lyrical fit, but musically, it flows mostly pretty well! The videos used are pretty cool and can be affecting, with all having filters and effects placed on them, making everything seem like it's shot through thermal heat sensitive cameras. Possible reference to the sun? It is a major topic in "Allure of the Earth", after all.

This video is well edited and put together, and it's nice to see a local band get a video like this, instead of a photo slideshow or something simple. Good song too, it shows Woods of Ypres' musical versatility well! Check it out below, and click here for more Sanctuary Studios videos from other bands!



Thirdly, here's a long overdue look at the latest SMS-relevant article on The Barking Eye, which is Flat Stanley drummer Glen Thomas' great music blog! After a two plus week break from updates, Glen posted a new article on October 1st which was referred to as "The Barking Eye Flashback Attack!" In this first post of this new series, Glen posted three solo demos from local musicians of the scene's past, including the song "Things You're Missing" by '80s rock band Total Stranger (featuring local singer/guitarist Steve McPhail) and "Candy" by The Frank Rodi Project, a pop rock-sounding band that Glen once drummed for locally. However, this makes the SMS cause the last song he posted is definitely of the metal persuasion! It's from former Driver/Hostage frontman Paul Pozzebon, and it's a solo metal track called "In The City"! Not bad, has sort of a Judas Priest vibe, with great riffing and pretty good singing! Glen had said that Paul seemed to drop out of the music scene completely, I wonder what happened? Good song, check it out below, and more from Glen at The Barking Eye at this location, including the newest demos from his old band Wishbone!



And finally, I just wanted to make two SMS notes for tomorrow. First, our next CD review WILL be of Kiss' "The Hottest Show On Earth: Live In Sault Ste. Marie", as I had previously suggested! No other new local metal albums are out as of today, so I will get to reviewing our live album from August's Kiss concert later this evening! Stay tuned for that tomorrow at some point, possibly as soon as midnight! The other note is that a special SMS banner to hype you guys up for next week's Sevendust show at Kewadin Casino will be posted tomorrow as well, and will remain up for the week leading up to the concert. Should be a great one, hopefully you guys have tickets! Stay tuned for those TOMORROW! That's all for now though, but I should have more news Thursday or Friday, along with weekend concert previews! Thanks everyone!