Lots Of New Video Uploads, Including Details On Mike Haggith's New Album!!

(Updated on Saturday at 11:01 AM) Believe it or not, this is our 60th straight daily post at the SMS, and frankly, I am very surprised that I've had new content on the site this regularly during the pandemic! Here's hoping we can stretch this out further in the timeframe ahead. As for today's post, it's video-centric once again, so here's what you should know!

We'll start with a teaser video for TONIGHT'S Mike Haggith live-streamed CD release concert (a.k.a. #LockdownLive VII), which is expected to begin on his Facebook page at 7:30 PM, so tune in then to watch the whole live event as it happens! Mike is expected to play "If Ever Comes The Day" in full tonight, which he also did during #LockdownLive II, but this will be a distinct set with surprises ahead. The big advance reveal is that Mike is not streaming this set from his apartment, rather "a top secret location", though even if he revealed where, it may only be of direct relevance for Thompsonites, assuming the filming spot was in his current homebase. And yes, "If Ever Comes The Day" is now publically on sale on his Bandcamp page for $10 (or $5 for a digital streaming copy), so visit the above links to pick up your copy and/or stream the whole thing! Bandcamp also has lots of liner notes on the album concept, which could be very handy for context if you don't know what happened.

Mike shared a rehearsal teaser video on Wednesday of him playing "2145", and while he did warn viewers that "the human element is on full display", remember that the whole album was based around very personal events. It's not fair to critique the rehearsal clip when we're so near to the main event, but give it a watch below, and follow above for full album details!

Next up, this post originally featured one of two new archive Inner City Surfers videos shared on drummer Mikey Hawdon's YouTube channel earlier this week, but both were quietly made private for unknown reasons overnight (for what it's worth, the channel is now named "Mikey & His Uke" after his ongoing quarantune ukelele cover video series, so he may have felt those didn't fit anymore). One was them playing an original song live at The Canadian Nightclub in 2009, and the other was them covering The Muppet Show's theme song & Van Halen's "Panama" at Foggy Notions in 2007 or 2008. It's a shame that they're no longer public, as they were fun performances from the Surfers' heyday, and hopefully they pop up publically again down the road on this or another channel!

Also today, here's a new video from local indie punk quintet Northwest's Facebook page! Much like their "Sorry Sunday" video from last month, this features frontman Wayne Watkins and guitarist Mike Yakasovich remotely performing an acoustic rendition of one of their originals, specifically "True North". Mike's oddly cut off in frame here, but this is a fine unplugged take on this fan favourite original song, and it sounds like how I'd expect given the circumstances, so give it a watch below!



Finally, here's a new solo vocal cover from former local concert promoter and metal guitarist Rich Moreland, as posted onto the Dismembertainment YouTube channel over the weekend. This karaoke-style cover of Five Finger Death Punch's rendition of The Animals' "House of the Rising Sun" is well done and matches the 5FDP cover, though Rich's vocals can come out a little quiet through this camera's audio recording. Give this video a watch!



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

Tym Morrison's Third Live-Streamed Concert, Plus Covers From Relocated Local Musicians!!

Lately, most of the news and updates to hit our news desk have been in the form of solo performance videos, which is definitely a by-product of social distancing, but there's enough of that to keep regular posts going, and that continues today! We'll start with the third "Live Guitar & Singing Of All Mightyness 7th Show" from local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison, as live-streamed on his Twitch page on Thursday! For this first non-Tuesday installment, Tym reverted to including the entire set in one 2+ hour video, and the wait for the actual stream was only 13 minutes this time. In performance order, Tym covers Alice Cooper's "Only Women Bleed", The Beatles' "Here Comes The Sun", Pink Floyd's "Another Brick In The Wall", Bryan Adams' "Summer of 69", Paul McCartney's "Maybe I'm Amazed", the second movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata", Journey's "Open Arms", The Bangles' "Eternal Flame", ...

...Stevie Wonder's "Sir Duke", Billy Joel's "She's Always A Woman", Tommy Tutone's "867-5309/Jenny", Abba's "The Winner Takes It All", Toto's "Africa", a Spanish guitar instrumental, Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time", brief snippets of his new originals "Angels of Light" & "Number of the Beast", Peter Cetera's "Glory of Love", Aerosmith's "Dream On", Kim Mitchell's "Patio Lanterns", Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean", The Who's "Behind Blue Eyes", Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues", The Scorpions' "Rock You Like A Hurricane", Britney Spears' "Baby One More Time", and Cheap Trick's "I Want You To Want Me". Tym noted early that he was using a different lyric book for this live-stream than the previous two, so only "Here Comes The Sun" & the instrumental repeat from the prior shows. As usual, Tym's strong guitar work and nicely ranged vocal fit these covers nicely, including a slightly heavier array this time, so give his newest live-stream a watch below!

Next up, let's move over to YouTube for some new solo performance videos, starting with two vocal covers from former Time of Ruin frontman & local concert promoter Rich Moreland! As you may remember, Rich and his promotion agency Dismembertainment moved to Edmonton in 2012, where he has since found success as a concert photographer. These covers were posted on the Dismembertainment YouTube channel earlier this week, where he covered Billy Joel's "Piano Man" and, as embedded below, The Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris". Compared to Rich's death metal band work locally in the 2000s, this is a massive departure, but he does have a nice melodic voice that fits these covers pretty well, and it's nice to see him staying busy out west, so give these a look above and below! Rich hasn't been as active in promoting concerts in recent years, but do check out his concert photography at this link, as he's seen some huge shows (metal or otherwise) in the past two years, and he routinely gets some excellent pictures there!



Finally for today, here's a new cover from local/Elliot Lake alt-punk solo project Ashoka at the Show, planned to be the first installment of a series of "songs to quarantine to". This is the first video uploaded to project leader Darren MacDonald's 184Films YouTube channel in 3 years, now that he has regained access to it, and it features him covering Fall Out Boy's "Sugar We're Going Down" on vocals & acoustic guitar. I'm not a Fall Out Boy fan, but Darren's cover has a nice melodic base and it flows together nicely, so give this one a watch below as well, and stay tuned for more!



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

Local Metal Video Showcase!!

It's time for some more new local metal videos as we approach the midpoint of the month! We have enough to make up a post completely devoted to videos, and today, we have some newly posted footage from Late & Loud & Woods of Ypres, some Sault-relevant videos surrounding a recent out of town headlining band, and first, some cool studio updates from a band's recent studio sessions, so let's get all of this going! (Oh, and our weekly classic video will likely be up tomorrow, FYI.)

As you may remember, local hardcore quintet As It Stands hit the studio at the beginning of the month for some quick sessions at Metalworks Studios in Mississauga towards their forthcoming EP (as confirmed at the end.) Well, now we can see some of the happenings from the sessions, as the band have posted a studio vlog onto their YouTube channel, and you can watch it below! Clocking in at almost 10 minutes long, the video features assorted clips and footage from the sessions, including lots of in-studio clips that show the tracking and instrumental tracks already recorded. Only Justin Pregent is shown on camera actually recording his parts, which did include their "Stay Together For The Kids" cover! Outside the studio, we get everything from John Mignacca's acrobatics to a skateboarding & dancing chicken, so this is worth checking out even more so! The video clips are mostly focused on Justin & John, with the other members not getting extended time on camera. Also, the dimensions of the video are small & odd, flipping from narrow to wide views constantly, leading me to think a smartphone camera filmed everything. Solid stuff though, nice clear audio quality, and I really like what I'm hearing! Check out the vlog below, and stay tuned for updates on this EP!



Secondly today, here's one more Woods of Ypres video from their Saint Paul, Minnesota show on May 14th! Yesterday's post went up before this final video was uploaded by frontman David Gold onto his YouTube channel, but it's especially worth a look on it's own anyway! It's of their set-capping song "A Meeting Place & Time", and the quality and sound is as good as yesterday's videos! The only real difference is if you like the song more or less than the others, and regardless, it's a great song! Plus, there's a little surprise for an "encore", but what's the surprise? Watch and find out, as here's Woods of Ypres playing "A Meeting Place & Time" last month in Minnesota!



Thirdly, here's some newly discovered footage of local metal quartet Late & Loud! As their hiatus stretches into it's second month, band updates continue to slowly roll in nonetheless, and some of that is thanks to their YouTube channel! Now most videos there are from assorted "episodes" of random band happenings that were posted in October. Though having some musical moments, they don't have much in terms of full band performances in them, but they're worth a look! My main reason for bringing them up today is that they posted some live concert videos from a show at Foggy Notions onto their YouTube channel in March! One is of their original "Never Again", which was previously put on their Facebook page around February. Solid hard rocker, and good quality, though they really need a full time singer. I'm embedding their cover of Witchcraft's "Chylde of Fire" here because it didn't make it to Facebook before, so we haven't seen it beforehand! They have the song down well though, and Jonathan Tiberi's vocals, though limited, are used well! Awesome guitar work from Jon & Brendan Christie too, check out their "Chylde of Fire" cover below (and more at the above links!)



And finally, remember the Unleash The Archers-headlined concert at The Roosevelt Hotel on June 4th? Well, I don't have videos from it, but here's the next best thing! Two connected videos are now online from the time surrounding this show, including an official video from the band itself chronicling their tour through "The Astrowaste"! Uploaded onto Unleash The Archers' own YouTube channel on Wednesday, only about 20 seconds of this 3 minute tour vlog of sorts has a local relevance, but it's interesting nonetheless, as it features bassist Zahk Hedstrom smashing a guitar over Dismembertainment owner Rich Moreland's back! Why? I don't know, but they look like they're having fun! Check out the footage at the video embedded below or at the above links, and the local guitar carnage takes place 1:17 into the video. A second angle from a phone camera was uploaded that same day into a 10 second clip on the new Dismembertainment YouTube channel, so click here to see! Give both a look, especially the full tour video below, as it features three plus minutes of entertaining happenings from their tour, accompanied by a very solid song of theirs! Check it out!



That's all for now, but I have more news and notes to get to very soon, including this week's classic video, the return of monthly polls, and yes, our "Soo Stories" review, so keep an eye out! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (For All That Is Lost, State Of Misery, And Fuck The Facts), And The Debut Of Dismembertainment!!

Anyone want to hear about some new concerts for this Sunday? I have three to tell you guys about, and lineup updates for two of them, but first, I have to tell you guys about the debut of a new local metal concert booking agency that is responsible for most of the concerts we're talking about today, so here's what you need to know, and check out all three posts from yesterday for our "Woods I" review, the latest March Mayhem updates, and lots of news!

You're likely well aware of the many metal concerts that local guitarist Rich Moreland has booked over the past 6 years, including The Roosevelt Hotel's metal nights and various other concerts at Foggy Notions and other venues. Well now, Rich has started an official booking agency to book concerts through, rather than just simply under his own name! The name is Dismembertainment, which will be the new umbrella name for all of Rich's upcoming metal concert bookings, starting with this Thursday's metal night at The Rosie featuring As It Stands, Shit Liver, and Skull After Betrayal! Basically, this is a more official basis for Rich to book concerts in town, and it looks like he has everything well thought out, including an official website (with domain name), a Facebook page, and a contact e-mail! The new pages have some concert photos and information about Rich's booking background and goals for 2011, which all sound promising! The website's a bit bare at the moment, but the logo looks nice, and it has good information where needed! Here's hoping this succeeds as far as Rich can take it, I know he'll do well with Dismembertainment, so look out for some big shows through there this year!

One of the elements of Dismembertainment's website that's worth mentioning is the upcoming shows section, which lists three brand new concerts, and as such, it's time for some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS! In chronological order, we'll start with the Roosevelt Hotel metal night on April 14th (the next one after this Thursday's), which does have one confirmed band! Desbarats death metal quintet For All That Is Lost will make their second Rosie metal night appearance as the opening band on April 14th! Nice to see them back in the area, hopefully I can hit The Rosie for their return! Now Dismembertainment's show listings do list Bring The Fallen as the headlining band, but I can confirm that they are NOT playing. I thought that was suspect anyway given that they dropped off of the April 9th all ages concert five days earlier to "take a break" and write new material, so I asked Rich about it, and they're definitely not playing on April 14th. Hopefully this break isn't too long, we've missed Bring The Fallen over the past few months, and hopefully those old breakup rumours don't amount to much either! So when word on the other two bands comes out, I will let you guys know! As always, this is a 19+ concert with no cover, and it starts at 9:30 PM. Check the above links for more details, and I'll keep you posted!

The next metal night after that, on April 28th, will feature State of Misery as headliners! This will be their first headlining concert following their expansion to a quintet following bassist Devon Overman's addition to the band, and they should be all geared up for a devastating hardcore set on the 28th! Of course, they have at least one show in the interim, on April 9th at The Oddfellows Hall (more on that later), but they'll have more time and the headliner position to entertain the audience at this Rosie metal night! Two more bands are expected, but have not been announced at present. As always, this will have a 19+ age limit, 9:30 PM start time, and no cover, just like the preceding metal nights. For more details, check all of the above links! Just State of Misery's involvement alone is promising, but there's much more to come, so stay tuned for updates as I hear them! Note as well that a metal night at The Rosie is already listed for May 12th, but no bands are confirmed. Click here for all current details on these shows!

Finally, a notable grindcore band will make their return to Sault Ontario after over 2 ½ years to headline a special Monday night concert at The Roosevelt Hotel on May 9th! The band is Ottawa grindcore quintet Fuck The Facts, who were last seen on a local stage on November 2nd, 2008 at The Grand Theater! That show was great, I remember enjoying Fuck The Facts and frontwoman Mel Mongeon's growling abilities, so hopefully a big crowd turns out on May 9th! Openers have not been announced, but for reference sake, their last local concert was opened by Gates of Winter (in their last local concert appearance to date) and As It Stands, but who knows who we'll get this time around? I'll of course let you guys know as word comes in! Details on this concert aren't given beyond Fuck The Facts' headlining status, but I wouldn't be surprised if this had a nominal cover charge. A 19+ time limit and 9:30 PM-ish start time are both likely as well. I'll of course have updates on this concert as they come in, but for now, stay tuned to all of the above links for the latest on all of Dismembertainment's upcoming concerts!

Finally today, here's some half Dismembertainment-concert related news, as we have some lineup switches on two upcoming concerts! Firstly, the final opening band has been added to THIS SATURDAY'S Great Sabatini concert at Foggy Notions, as melodic death metal quintet The Bear Hunters have been added as the other local opening band! They'll play direct support to The Great Sabatini, with Shit Liver opening the whole concert. Sounds good to me, they'll fit well as openers, and I've heard rumours about new material being unveiled as well, so head down to Foggy's on Saturday to check them out! Click here for full details! Speaking of shows involving Shit Liver, I regret to announce that they've pulled out of April 9th's Sewer Swampstravaganja concert at The Oddfellows Hall. Why, I don't know, but they were quietly removed from the lineup on the Facebook, and promoter Typhoid Meaghan did confirm they dropped out when I inquired about their absence. That's a shame, but hey, what can you do? Replacing them on the lineup is Skull After Betrayal, in just their second live concert appearance following this Thursday's Rosie metal night! They should do well, they're a good fit on this concert!

Interesting to note that 1/3rd of the original lineup of this concert (The Fury, SBD, Bring The Fallen, and Shit Liver) have since dropped out of this concert, and only RedD Monkey have never been shifted in the lineup for this concert. While we're on the subject, the lineup for the concert was once again altered, with three bands getting new times. Skull After Betrayal won't be in Shit Liver's old 6:45 PM slot, they'll instead be opening the concert at 3:45 PM. Replacing them at 6:45 PM will be Late & Loud, who'll return to that spot in the lineup after being pushed back to 6:00 PM following Bring The Fallen's exit. As a result, indie rockers The Tenagens got a nice promotion from opening at 3:45 PM to playing at 6:00 PM. The rest of the most recently announced times are unchanged. For full details, and to see the official poster for this show, click here!

That's all for today, but I'll have more news very soon, so keep an eye out1 Thanks everyone!

A Newly Discovered Local Band, Our Next CD Review, And More!!

Hey guys, I know I probably should have had a post of some kind yesterday, but things have been a bit busy lately for me, but I'm back with lots of big news! Today, we have a new local concert video, the identity of our next CD review, and a newly discovered local band, but kicking things off is a new concert addition! Why is that first and not the new band? The stories share a link, you'll see! (EDITED: 4:11 AM)

New local hardcore band Changing Waves are the newest confirmed band for February 19th's all ages concert at The Oddfellows Hall! Presented by Bonology Lights & Sounds (who are now in our Other Local Links section on the left), Changing Waves join fellow local metalcore rockers As It Stands as openers at this show for Right From The Start and Calling Ocala, two high energy pop rock bands from London, Ontario. Nice to see Changing Waves back out there for this concert, although it would still be nice to learn more about them, especially given the lack of an internet page that I've seen. However, I do know a few details about their lineup, though not a whole lot. I can confirm from Jeremy Hannah and Mitch Sirie that Alex Hagerman, drummer from defunct local group Paraside, is in the band, and a wall posting from Nathan Bouliane (this show's promoter) confirmed that Benjamin Kallonen is Changing Waves' frontman, which is good to know! If anyone out there has more details on Changing Waves' lineup, background, or any possible pages, let me know! But for now, remember to hit the show on February 19th for a good dose of local hardcore and exciting pop punk! Click here for more details on this concert, and I will keep you posted!

Going back to Changing Waves for a second, when I heard that Benjamin Kallonen was their frontman, I did some searching online to see if he's been in any other local bands. Well, as it turns out, he was, though not on vocals! Ben was the guitar player in a short lived metal project from early last year called Face First, who were active on their MySpace page for just a single week in February 2010. Only one other member existed in the project, drummer Devan Lauzon, though I can't verify if he has any other connections to Changing Waves. The lack of a mention of Sault Ste. Marie on the page is probably why I never found out about Face First until this year, but the band did have high hopes for the future! Ben and Devan were looking for new members to join them and were hoping to "take over the world". The music on their page has promise, especially "Enjoying The Chaos" and "Closed In Fate", which have nice riffing and a metalcore feel to them, but the first two songs drag at parts. There was a lot of refining to do though, and it'd be nice to hear vocals, but both guys show skill, even Ben on guitar! Check the above links for more on Face First, and they're now in our band links on your left!

Next up, Mike Haggith's new album "Suspended Animation" is now on sale on his online store! All nine tracks are now available to preview and then download, but if you want to preview full songs beforehand, his Reverbnation page does have some free full length tracks. The album is available for just $4.50, which is a good deal! Individual tracks go for 99¢ each, but you will save almost double the total cost if you just buy the full album package by itself. Unlike many of his other albums on his store, ringtone versions aren't available. If you would like to buy a copy of "Suspended Animation" via mp3 download, click here! With that said, I would like to officially announce that our first CD review of 2011 will be of Mike Haggith's new album, "Suspended Animation", and it will be posted online in the next week! I have already purchased the album, so I'm good to go, and I've already given it a few listens. My thoughts? You'll see when I post the review, but do give Mike a chance! He has so much material and enough talent that there's gotta be stuff you can all enjoy! Also note that this will be our fifth review of a new local metal/hard rock album in the past six months (December is the exception), so even though the new album season may be slower than expected, new stuff is crawling in! Stay tuned for my review in the next few days!

Finally, here's the newest live video from local metal trio Sativa Rose! Once again filmed and uploaded by frontman Adam Veale's dad John, this also comes from the New Years Eve show at Foggy Notions. and like with their "Lucretia" video, they're joined by promoter Rich Moreland on guest vocals! This time though, they're covering Metallica's "No Remorse", and Rich supplies his own take on the vocals by death growling them, with beer bottles in hand! The band are great as always, they have a nice handle on this song with no major flubs, but the death growling is a bit off to me. Rich is a really good growler, almost going grindcore at parts, and I could see him singing for a death metal band, but I think this is the wrong song for this style. That's not a negative comment though, just not the best track for this type of vocals. At least I could hear him better than in the "Lucretia" video! Good stuff though, check out the "No Remorse" cover below, and stay tuned for more news from Sativa Rose!



That's all for today, but I have news from Woods of Ypres, End of Existence, Late & Loud, Half A Man, and Lion Ride to share in the next little while, along with our Mike Haggith CD review and our next Saultites In Out Of Town Bands profile next week, so don't go anywhere! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Tym Morrison) And Some New Local Metal Videos!!

Well guys, it's finally time for our first news post of 2011! We've had to shove a lot of things back lately due to my string of concert reviews and our New Years specific posts, but things are slowly returning to normal, starting with tonight's post mostly focusing on newly posted videos! But first, we have a concert preview/LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you should know!

You could probably surmise this from past posts, but Tym Morrison's weekly arrangement at Foggy Notions will continue into 2011, starting with an acoustic solo show TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this got lost amongst my concert reviews and such. This is the only officially confirmed solo date from Tym so far this year, but I imagine that the concert calendar on his official website will be updated sooner or later to reflect at least his next January shows. Until then, I won't officially confirm his next shows, but I would expect him to be back at Foggy's on January 9th, 16th, 23rd, and 30th, not counting his planned arrangement at The Big Cheese in Heyden, which begins on Friday. For now though, if you need something to do tomorrow night, then head out to see Tym in the first local hard rock concert of 2011! There is no cover charge tomorrow, you must be 19 to enter, and Tym hits the stage at 10:00 PM! Should be a good concert, as usual, with Tym's impressive solo repetoire sure to get people's attentions tomorrow night! For more information, check the above links and the official Facebook event page, and for a video preview, here's Tym covering Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" last month at Foggy's!



Now for some more videos from local bands from the last little while, and we'll start with one from last night's New Years Eve metal show at Foggy Notions! I'd have loved to have been there, but hey, I can't be the only person in town who was dragged into family functions instead. This is a live video from Sativa Rose's set, as filmed by bassist Adam Veale's dad John, and uploaded onto his YouTube channel. It's of their live cover of Megadeth's "Lucretia", and like some of their past videos, this one also features a guest singer! Rather than Jason Roy from Havadder or Tym Morrison, they were joined by this concert's promoter (and veteran local guitarist) Rich Moreland! Good quality as always, and I forgot to mention this before, but did anyone else notice that the wooden railing from the stage is gone at Foggy's? Sativa Rose do a great job on this cover, Andrew looks particularly dapper in his suit, but the vocals are very hard to make out. I don't know if they're low in the mix or whatever, but it is noticeable. Still, this is a great cover, check it out below!



Next up, here's the latest from new local death metal quartet State of Misery! Their Facebook group has been getting supplanted with new photos and information lately, including two new videos from recent jam sessions! The first video, which sounds like an original, was uploaded by Ashley Lacasse, and the second, a cover of Pantera's "Cowboys From Hell", was uploaded by Joey Bourgeois. Both were taken from what looks like the same jam. These are the best quality footage of State of Misery that we've seen so far, and are pretty impressive! The first song sounds pretty good, brutal and tight, while the Pantera cover is pretty good on it's own, but I don't know if Steve Rhodes' growling suits the song. Maybe it'll grow on me, but it's not horrible! I can't embed Facebook videos on here on their own, so click the above links for the latest video footage of State of Misery, as they're a very promising young band! Also, it was brought to my attention on their Facebook group earlier today that guitarist Ray Cowan's Ibanez guitar disappeared at some point since their show last night. Stolen or otherwise, if you have any information that could help get it back to Ray, message him on Facebook or call 206-3516. I'm fairly certain it's the guitar with the grey/black design that you saw him play at their live shows and in the above videos. Help if you can, and I'll have more from State of Misery as it comes in!

And finally, here's a new video from a local sports personality that features a sountrack from a local metal band! If you're a fan of mixed martial arts, you may be aware of Brent "The Professor" Fryia, a featherweight fighter from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. He's 4-2 so far in his career, and has fought for organizations like King Of The Cage and Deep since his professional debut in 2008. He's a very good fighter, but how is this SMS material? Well, this new highlight video on Brent features "Lock Me In" by Lion Ride as the backing music! Great choice, and it seems to fit his MMA career well, as in "locking in" submission holds! Check it out below!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for another double post day TOMORROW, including our next "Where Are The New Albums?" update post and more news! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Garden of Bedlam, As It Stands, And The Darwin Project), And More Concert Updates!!

After a day dedicated to the new metal shows at The Rapids Lounge, it's back to some older stories that are finally getting the press they deserve now that those 40 shows from yesterday are taken care of! That being said, this post is stacked in it's own right, including updates on a pair of upcoming metal concerts, an open call for bands for a couple new shows, and headlining today's post, THREE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!! Here's what you need to know!

On Saturday night, two awesome local metal bands will hit the stage for the first annual anniversary party of Foggy Notions' re-opening! Yes, Foggy's only re-opened to the public on December 18th, 2009, and to celebrate the occasion, Garden of Bedlam will headline a metal concert that very night, one year later! Sorry for the short notice, this show wasn't officially announced until yesterday. This will be their first local concert appearance since last month's show at The Rockstar Bar, and the band guarantees that this will be a "night to remember", so take note of that! Expect to hear lots of cuts from their forthcoming full length album as well! Joining them are local hardcore metal quintet WinkStinger, in their first set since last month's Breaking The Fourth Wall show! They're quickly rising in the local scene with their extreme sound, and will be sure to get some pits going on Saturday night! As this is a special event honouring Foggy Notions' anniversary of their re-opening, there will actually be a cover charge at this show, amounting to $5. The projected start time is 10:30 PM on Saturday, and you must be 19 to enter. For full details, visit the official Facebook event page!

This should be a great concert, and it's part of a very heavy weekend at Foggy's, including the Palms To The Sky show on Friday and Tym Morrison's acoustic set on Sunday! It would have been nice to see bands from last year's re-opening festivities come back, but Garden of Bedlam and WinkStinger are both fitting! Remember, both bands made their live concert debuts at Foggy Notions, so they're no strangers to this venue, and they'll deliver a great show this weekend! Stay tuned for any updates if I hear them!

Secondly, here's a newly announced concert from local hardcore quintet As It Stands, though there is still much information to be obtained for it. According to a new Facebook event page, As It Stands will be playing at The Speak Easy on December 27th! This will be their first show at the Algoma University bar/concert venue since their reformation, but other than that, we know little else. The band's Facebook page simply says that new shows have been added (including, surprisingly, a show next month in Windsor.) There is nothing stated there about a cover/ticket charge, possible additional bands, whether there's an age limit or not, or if there's a seasonal theme for the concert. A start time of 7:00 AM is listed, but that sounds like a typo, and The Speak Easy's internet pages haven't yielded any help either. If As It Stands are posting their own event page online for a concert, then there must be truth to it, so I am listing it on the SMS. However, there is absolutely more to be said, so if you have more details on As It Stands' concert at The Speak Easy on December 27th, e-mail me at robertfigures@hotmail.com! I'll keep you guys posted, and also note that As It Stands are looking for shows in Southern Ontario to bookend their Windsor show on January 28th, so if you can help, let them know at this location!

Our final new concert is another Sault Michigan area show, and no, it's not at Kewadin Casino. I think we're good for shows there for a while yet! Actually, this concert will be in nearby Rudyard, and will be headlined by Cheboygan hard rockers The Darwin Project! They'll be back at Joe's Bar in Rudyard on February 19th, for what will be their first area concert appearance in three months! Odd that there's no Friday date to go along with it, but we'll take what we can get! The show starts at 9:30 PM on February 19th, you must be 21 to enter, and there is no announced cover charge. For more details or to confirm your attendance, visit the official Facebook event page! It's always good to see The Darwin Project back around these parts, hopefully they deliver a great night of hard rock for their fans! Remember, Rudyard isn't far from Sault Michigan, so if you like The Darwin Project's brand of radio hard rock, then it will definitely be worth the drive. If I hear more, I'll let you guys know!

Fourthly, here's a call-out to local metal bands and musicians, as two upcoming unannounced concerts are in need of local bands! Local guitarist Rich Moreland, who promotes The Roosevelt Hotel's metal nights and assorted other local metal shows, has two concerts in the works for the Christmas season! One's on December 23rd at The Rosie, likely the third metal night there, while the other will be at Foggy Notions, with a date to be determined. Rich is looking for local metal bands to fill the lineups of both concerts, and if you're in a band, you're more than welcome to contact Rich to try to get on one or both shows! Metal is the preference, and I think he'd like to see a bit of a variety of talent, so the door's open for any metal bands and artists to get on either lineup! If you're at all interested in playing one or both of these concerts later this month, contact Rich at this location! Get on this if you can, cause Rich's shows are some of the heaviest concerts we get locally, and the more bands, the better! I'll also note that neither show will have a cover charge, but donations (canned goods or cash) towards The Soup Kitchen would be appreciated at both concerts. Stay tuned for updates when these shows are officially confirmed!

And finally, here's some noteworthy updates on two upcoming local metal concerts! Firstly, it was announced on Wednesday that local death metal quintet Bring The Fallen have been re-added to the Soo Music Mash-Up show on December 18th at The Oddfellows Hall! Though we still don't know why Bring The Fallen dropped out initially, it's awesome to see them back on the lineup! Now the show has EIGHT bands, and how often do we get concerts of that volume? It should be noted that Bring The Fallen have been demoted from third to fifth on the bill, now sandwiched between RedD Monkey and Changing Waves, but you know what? I'll take my Bring The Fallen early than never! For full concert details, click here! The other news is that the official poster for December 27th's Nightmare After Christmas show is now online! It was designed by former Fitswitch guitarist Kevin Powe, who's designed numerous high quality local concert posters and band logos over the past few years! As such, it's excellent looking, and suits the concert very well! A second poster that wasn't as good was also posted, which you can see at this location if you guys want to, but the one pictured here is definitely the best! Fitting that Kevin would do the art for this show, as three of his former Fitswitch bandmates (J.D. Pearce, Rick White, and Andrew McDonald) are playing with one of the bands on the lineup! There's no other new info from this show to report, but stay tuned if something is announced!

That's all for today, but I have more backlogged news to get to very soon, so expect a new post tomorrow at some point! Also, look out for last month's poll results, this month's new poll, and our Defunct Local Band Profile on Life's Eclipse on Saturday! Thanks everyone!