Resignators/Side FX Preview, Concert Updates, And Much More!!

Before we dive into videos and updates from last night's Shinedown concert, here's some more recent news and notes to touch on, including major updates for a show originally scheduled for this weekend, another impending farewell for a talented local musician, and much more, but first, here's a preview for a concert tomorrow featuring a debuting local band (and check out our Bushplane Musical Madness II review in the post below this one!)

In a special Tuesday night concert at The Roosevelt Hotel, a new local hard rock band is among the openers for Australian ska punk septet The Resignators TOMORROW NIGHT (and yes, I mean that Australia!) Ska-punk fans should really enjoy The Resignators from what I've heard, as they have an energetic and fun blend of classic punk, Jamaican rhythms, and horn instruments, so you won't be lacking for a ska experience tomorrow! The local openers include the live debut of The Side FX, the new local hard rock band featuring Garden of Bedlam drummer Derek Turner, his ex-Papa Fogals Chair/Sulfur bandmate Mike Bird on bass, SooToday's Rob Speers on vocals, and Alex Walls on guitar, and be there tomorrow to check out their diverse hard rock covers set! It also helps if you've missed Papa Fogals Chair since their last reunion gigs, as you'll get a partial reunion tomorrow, which should be cool! The other opening band is local punk trio The Northern Tragedy in their second show in four days, and their fast-improving live show and solid originals should attract a good response themselves!

Admission is $10 for this 19+ concert, though if you bring your already-purchased ticket for August 19th's Airbourne concert (which is also a J.D. Pearce-booked concert headlined by an Australian band), your entry fee will be halved to just $5, so keep that offer in mind! A 9:00 PM start time is advertised, and for more details, visit the official Facebook event page! If you love ska & punk, you can't miss this show, and the debut of The Side FX should be really notable as well, so keep it in mind, and while I don't have a "metal" video from the bands, hopefully something will come out from the show this week!

Next up, here's the latest changes to Frightlight's next concert, their benefit for bassist Mike "Eddie Fright" Gingras' upcoming short film "The Kid Who Made The Face"! First, the show has found a new location, following it's quiet removal from The Algonquin Pub earlier this month for still unannounced reasons. It will now take place at The Roosevelt Hotel (which is also where the Bunchofuckingoofs concert was moved), which should work out as a familiar venue, but the date has also changed for this event. Originally scheduled to be held this Saturday, it has been postponed to Thursday, August 1st (possibly due to a scheduling conflict), making this Johnny Pints' 8th promoted Thursday concert on the old Rosie metal nights' usual day! The show also had one more change, as out-of-town headliners Sanitarium are no longer listed for the show, likely due to the date change, as they are on tour. It's not every day that a Brazilian metal band has a chance to come to the area, but maybe they'll come back up here at some point!

All of the above changes were confirmed on Thursday on the Facebook event page, but everything else about the show is the same. Featuring Frightlight's first set with Eddie Fright in 9 months, local punk trio Redundant, and The Bear Hunters' first show after Josh Stephney's move to Brampton, this 19+ event has $5 admission, which will get you a guaranteed credit in the finished movie! Keep this show in mind for August 1st to support Eddie/Mike's filmmaking and local metal & punk music!

Also in the news, you know the Oddzfest 2013 Metal Mash-Up at The Oddfellows Hall on Friday that will mark local death metal singer/guitarist Josh Stephney's last show in the Soo? Well, it'll be a farewell for one of his bandmates as well, as Bring The Fallen/Giwakwa bassist Nolan Rainville is also moving after this show. My source is his personal Facebook page yesterday, but I wanted to get word of it on here in case something more public didn't come out by Friday. Nolan didn't go into details about his future plans, but he has worked out of town in the summers in recent years (which coincided with breaks for his bands), so this could be a permanent extension of that. Nolan's a very skilled bassist, as we've seen in his 2008-2011 Bring The Fallen tenure and his shows this year with Giwakwa, and he'll definitely be missed in the area! I wonder what will happen with Giwakwa though, as half of their lineup is moving after Friday's concert, but hopefully Chris & Chris keep the band alive, as they have a good thing going!

With both Josh & Nolan saying farewell to Sault Ste. Marie THIS FRIDAY, you have all the more reason not to miss this show! Featuring their last shows with Bring The Fallen, The Bear Hunters, and Giwakwa (plus Shit Liver, Haggith, James Watterworth, and the return of Crimson Crusade), admission is FREE for this ALL AGES show if you wear local band merchandise, and click here for more details! Stay tuned later this week for our preview of this show, and come out to see Josh & Nolan live one last time!

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

• Ex-Caveman Morrison bassist Dutch Vanderploeg rejoined his old band on Saturday night at The Roosevelt Hotel to fill in (presumably) for James White, as per his personal Facebook page yesterday. He apparently also handled lead vocals on some songs late in the night to help out frontman Tym Morrison, who was ill that night (and on his birthday too, which is bad timing.) Hopefully the show went well though, and hopefully Dutch will turn up in a new band at some point!
• Late & Loud successors The Hydra's Teeth posted a new Facebook-exclusive jam session video onto their Facebook page on Saturday! Entitled "Cinderella Red-Dress", it has the classic metal vibe that fans should like, but it features neither vocals or new guitarist Anthony Orazietti. Check it out above, and note that they've already hyped that they have 8 originals, "almost half-way to our first album." Keep that in mind!
• Along with recent studio updates, local thrashers Pillory posted a new video of frontman Robert Sartini recording vocals for their song "Cringe At The Cross" on Saturday, and he puts in a much more aggressive snarl than I remember him having at their live debut last fall! Good sign, but hopefully we'll get some new shows soon to help get their momentum back, and check out the new video above!

That's all for now, but stay tuned tomorrow for some Shinedown fallout and (if all goes well) this month's YouTube Channel Profile on the late David Gold's channel! Thanks everyone!

Upcoming Concert & Mike Haggith Updates, Plus New Videos!!

In our first of two posts today, we have a bunch of recent news items to get to, albeit without a newly announced concert that you Frightlight fans may have been looking for, as promoters are securing a new venue after being briefly being advertised for The Algonquin Pub. That'll be up on the site when a new venue is confirmed, but for today, we have new videos from some local metal/hard rock acts, and the latest updates on an upcoming album, but first, here's some big updates for some upcoming concerts, so here's what you need to know!

We'll start with updates to a bunch of local concert promoter J.D. Pearce's upcoming metal/punk concerts, including a new out of town band addition for both the Bunchofuckingoofs & Dayglo Abortions concerts on August 12th & September 9th, that being Victoria, British Columbia garage punk trio The Last of the V8 Interceptors! This was confirmed on each show's Facebook event page (linked above), as they're opening for each band on their respective tours. Featuring a unique Mad Max/Road Warrior theme and inspiration, the only song I've found of them so far has an edgy and reliable punk sound that should fit each gig well, so don't miss them! As well, a poster for the BFGs show by Destroilet drummer Matt Waples can be seen on your right, and it's awesome as usual, but it was uploaded before the band addition and the venue change, as both it and the Sanitarium/Frightlight short film benefit show on July 27th have been moved out of The Algonquin Pub for unannounced reasons, as per their respective Facebook event pages yesterday.

A new venue for the Sanitarium show isn't public yet (so I've temporarily pulled it from our concert listings), but the BFGs show will now take place at The Roosevelt Hotel (similarly to the Dayglo Abortions concert.) I'm not sure why The Algonquin's no longer hosting these shows, but hopefully nothing bad has happened to cause the exits, and I know the music will be awesome no matter what, so click the above links for more details on all of the above shows, and stay tuned for updates as they roll in!

Next up, here's the latest from Haggith drummer Mike Haggith's prolific solo project, starting with more information on his upcoming 46th solo album "Where It Ends"! On Monday, he uploaded this image onto his solo Facebook page featuring a planned setlist for the album overtop of it's artwork, and if things hold up, it'll feature 11 tracks. These include the previously unveiled "Grace", the first high quality version of his 2008 song "The Curse (of 13)", a cover of "The Trip" by his Windsor band S.C.A.R., and at least three songs dropped from his 2012 album "Neighbourhood Watch" ("Wicked Midnight Ride" "Fading", and a cover of The Black Hole Suns' "The Man In Green"). Mike also reiterated plans for a fall release, while indicating that vocals would be recorded locally at Paperclip Productions, but check the above links for more details! This is shaping up well from early indications, and I have an inkling that it'll be heavier than his most recent album "The Present Din", but time will tell as more media leaks out.

While we wait for more details on "Where It Ends", Mike also uploaded the first "album" from his live acid jam band Mike Haggith & The Din onto his YouTube channel yesterday, and it's a collection of live recordings from their set in Goulais Mission on June 29th during Haggith's private Canada Day weekend bash! Titled "Despite the Insects...", it features 5 songs from that set, including Mike and The Din playing the songs "Analog Palace", "The Ballad of K2/K3", "Lay My Body Down To Rest", "The Plumber & The Electrician", and "Limb Coast", so click each link to see them in their own YouTube videos (they were uploaded as a playlist as well) Note that I don't know if the title was changed from the previously announced "Perpetual Musings", or if that's being given to a studio-only release. I have no clue if Mike plans to put "Despite The Insects..." up for sale, but the songs do sound nice in terms of recording quality (if a bit uneven in individual instrument loudness), and the extended jam nature of these songs is unique and adds something different to the material!

I've embedded "Analog Palace" below to stream, but stay tuned for more news and notes relating to Mike's various projects as it comes in, especially concerning new albums and shows! Enjoy the Din!



Finally for today, do you remember the short lived 2011 comedy metal band T.E.N. that actually broke up days before we first mentioned them on here? Well, guitarist Tyler Gibson posted what I can only assume is an old track from their brief run onto his YouTube channel on May 29th that I've only just now managed to get to work! Entitled "It's Your Mother, But Better", it's an instrumental number with only Tyler featured, and while the comedy aspects of their old work aren't visible, there's some promise here as the introduction of a metal track! It just needs to be finished with some instruments before I can really comment. I don't know if this is part of a planned resurrection of T.E.N. or not, but give this new-ish song a look below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on Sneaky Pete later tonight! Thanks everyone!

Concert Updates, The End Of Crimson Crusade, And Two Other Likely Inactive Bands!!

Today's all-Sault Ontario post is mostly of the disappointing level, as we've recently moved three bands to our inactive band links (one for an explicit breakup, two for just likely not being active right now), but we're starting with big updates for an upcoming metal benefit concert, including quite the unlikely headliners, so here's what you need to know!

We'll start with some big news from the previously announced benefit concert for Frightlight bassist Mike "Eddie Fright" Gingras' upcoming short film "The Kid Who Made The Face" at The Algonquin Pub on July 27th, which was previously only advertised via this YouTube commercial. On the new Facebook event page, it has been confirmed that there will be an out of town headlining band, as Brazilian symphonic metal septet Sanitarium are now scheduled for this concert! How's that for a surprise headliner? Featuring an intriguing hybrid of classical instruments and modern heavy metal aggression, this is the first time I can recall a South American metal band playing in the Soo, and they have a lot of talent that should not go unrecognized, so definitely check them out above! They'll join the previously announced Frightlight, The Bear Hunters, and Redundant at this show, which will likely be the first time that Frightlight have played live with Eddie on bass in 9 months, and it'll be great to see him back with the guys! However, I do not know if departing Bear Hunters guitarist Josh Stephney (whose farewell show is the night before) will still be around for this gig, or if the band will play with(out) a replacement.

Admission is still $5 (with a guaranteed credit in the finished movie), it's still a 19+ event, and doors still open at 9:00 PM. Check the above links for more details! I have to say, Johnny Pints has done it again with his concert bookings, as now he's got three out-of-continent bands coming to the Soo this summer (joining Australian punk band The Resignators that same week, and of course, Airbourne), and he has even more big shows coming, so stay tuned to the SMS when word comes out on his next metal/hard rock featured events, as he's doing awesome work!

Next up, we have a very surprising band breakup to announce, as local/North Shore death metal quartet Crimson Crusade announced that they "will no longer be continuing" on their Facebook page yesterday. The band cited "circumstances" for the breakup, but didn't elaborate any further than that publically. In the statement, the guys did thank fans for supporting them and coming to their shows, and pleaded for fans to never stop supporting the local scene. The news is extra surprising given their recent prominence & plans, coming just over a month after the release of their EP "Upon The Eve Of War", and with at least two Oddfellows Hall concerts scheduled in the next month, but I have no idea what happened behind the scenes. Active since 2010, Crimson Crusade had a slow start dotted with Algoma District concerts (including a fall 2011 date in Bellevue Park), but they only fully launched into the Sault Ontario scene in late 2012 with a handful of successful Canadian Nightclub gigs (including opening for Skeletonwitch last month) and their EP release, last playing live at The Oddfellows Hall with Bad Back on June 27th.

This is really shocking news, as it seemed like Crimson Crusade were finally integrated in the scene & rising in both prominence & live regularity, but I can't speak for the reasons behind their breakup, and I just hope things are amicable. They were a talented & very brutal band, and their Death-inspired sound really set them apart from other regional metal bands, but I hope Pillory and The Dirty Few will help fill the void for fans. I'll of course keep you guys updated if/when they're replaced at the upcoming Oddzfest 2013 Metal Mash-Up & Swampstravaganza 3 concerts, and best of luck to Devon, the Roberts, and Riley in the future!

Also, I've chosen to list a pair of other local metal bands in our inactive local metal band links due to their likely inactivity, starting with classic metal quartet Late & Loud. There hasn't been any official announcements to confirm a cessation of activity, but with no shows since their Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands Finals appearances in April, singer/guitarist Jonathan Tiberi's move out of town following it (and departure from his other local bands), and members Brendan Christie & Benn Garside's formation of a similar new local band (The Hydra's Teeth), it's unlikely that they're active at present. One of the more popular local metal bands of the early 2010s, Late & Loud played numerous local shows of an increasing scale during their run, which saw them open for bands like Skull Fist, The Saigon Hookers, and Laugh At The Fakes, along with releasing two pressings of their "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal" EP, and playing major shows like the first Sewer Swampstravaganza, the original Coch's Corner's last metal show, four Rosie metal nights, and of course, a first place performance at the Sault Humane Society Battle of the Bands last April!

Now, this doesn't mean they're 100% done, as Late & Loud have not closed the door on future reunions (Jon plays with his old Xanadu bandmates annually), but it's still disappointing to see Late & Loud fall dormant after all the successes they had. Aside from the lack of a full time singer, they had a total package and a lot of fun chemistry and musical talent, and I hope us Loudmouths will see them again down the road. For now, best of luck to Jon, Brendan, Benn, and Josh in the future!

Finally, I've reluctantly decided to list local deathcore quartet The Valentine's Day Massacre as inactive too. Nothing official has been said to confirm this, but there have been no public updates on their Facebook page since February, and it looks like most of the band is occupied in new projects. Singer Steve Rhodes & guitarist Andrew Angelic are now focused on their popular London death metal band D3athcharg3r, and drummer Kyle Umgeher has moved back home to the Soo (and is searching for a new band here), hence why I don't think they're actively functioning at present. Originally known as View To A Kill, The V.D.M. debuted in November 2011 at the second Skull Fist concert at The Canadian, and they were among the most frequent sights in the local metal scene through the summer of 2012, including appearances at the Ypres Metal Fest, the second Sewer Swampstravaganza, and at both of last year's local battles of the bands, before relocating to London in September for college. Since then, activity has drastically slowed down, aside from shows at The Algonquin Pub in December and their only London gig in March, with no public updates following.

I liked The Valentine's Day Massacre and their hardcore/death metal hybrid sound, and they were a nice successor of sorts to Sativa Rose & State of Misery, but the London move arguably hurt their momentum as a band. I like what Steve and Andrew are doing and accomplishing with D3athcharg3r though, and though I've heard nothing to hint at a 2013 return as of right now, I hope I'm wrong to assume they're inactive. Best of luck to Steve, Andrew, Adam, and Kyle in the future, and hopefully they'll pop up again down the road!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for an all-Sault Michigan video post shortly! Thanks everyone!