Spades GT - "Sewer City Radio" Album Review!!

It's now time for our 171st monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and continuing our extensive backlog of new local album releases, we're taking a look at local/Barrie crossover thrash band Spades GT's new album "Sewer City Radio" today! Released to major streaming services via Books Of The Dead Press on June 2nd, this is technically the third album from Spades GT, who (as Jack Spades) released their debut EP "The First" in 2014, before featuring on the "Fed Up!" split with The Ripcordz and Destroilet the following year. Since then, everyone but singer J.D. "Johnny Pints" Pearce has left the band, with J.D. relaunching the group in his new hometown of Barrie in late 2021 with the updated name. Joining him on this album is late-era Jack Spades guitarist Daniel Horton, plus a GTA-based rhythm section, including bassist James Roy Daley (Stand Against Fear) and drummer Tyler Reiner (ex-Caym).

Tyler's old Caym bandmate Jay Sarrazin (Sierra Pilot/Hellrager) is considered to be a full member of Spades GT, but he only appears on two songs, presumably due to his busy schedule with other bands, and he doesn't play many of their live concerts either. Guest appearances on the album come via Daniel's Fast Life bandmate Andrew Moorhouse on vocals on "XS" and from Anvil frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow on guitar on the title track (remember, his bandmate Robb Reiner is Tyler's dad, so they had an in to get Lips on board!). Recorded in Toronto in January with producer Kyle Marchant, you can check out "Sewer City Radio" on major streaming services like Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music, and Amazon Music, and it is available to download from both iTunes and Amazon Music in the $7-$8 range if you would prefer actually having mp3 copies, or really want to support the band. Song names below are linked to their YouTube copies.

Teasers have came out in regard to physical pressings of this album on CD (note this image), but the band hasn't firmly announced them going on sale thusly, and their website is currently down. With eight tracks running for about 27 minutes, let's begin this review with the opening (and longest) song, "Hands"! A drum intro leads into a blistering thrash/punk attack that will definitely appeal to fans of J.D.'s local catalog, and they get a lot of mileage out of the lyrics about what hands can do! J.D.'s vocals have deepened since we last heard him in new studio material eight years ago, but the melodic yet heavy instrumentation is familiar yet fresh, and Daniel shows off well on guitar! James Roy get a brief bass solo to show off with too, so this was a good choice to let everyone get some time in the sun. The chorus can get a little repetitive late, but it's an intense return!

Track #2 is "Cenobites", inspired by the Hellraiser series, and it has more of a groove to its guitar and bass work here, which is interesting but feels kinda out of place compared with J.D.'s shouted verses. Can't fault the talent on offer here, and Roy's bass playing is top notch, it all just only really comes together for me as a full song on the choruses. The song ends well with an extended instrumental section, but I'd have had more varied drumming during the bridge. Good song with good energy, but it's all over the place tonally. Next up is "Final Girl", which got the album's (belated) first music video, and is the first of two songs featuring Jay on lead guitar. Inspired by horror movies often having the last living protagonists be a young woman, it starts with a siren before laying into their usual punk/metal attack, which melds together the best of their talents and sensibilities, and Jay's guitar solo is effective, if a little slower.

Where this song lags a bit for me is the choruses, which are repetitive lyrically and too driven by the drum beat over the guitar riff, but I do see how they would attract a sing-along response from a crowd familiar with the track. An improvement on "Cenobites" for me, and while not what I'd have picked as a lead single, it will speak to long-time fans! Next is "Red", which is the other song on offer featuring Jay, and it opens with steady drumming from Tyler before everyone else kicks in. This song chugs along nicely and never relents from its initial track until the chorus, which is ready-made for fans to shout along with, and I do think that Jay's solo is better (and longer) here than on "Final Girl"! More than anything on the album so far, this feels like an established song from J.D.'s entirely local band work, which is a positive statement, and while the verses never vary much, this will be a fan favourite!

The second half of the album begins with its title track "Sewer City Radio", and if you weren't sure, "Sewer" does seem to reference Sault Ste. Marie, with lyrics reflecting on the Soo in a Woods of Ypres-ish way, if that makes sense, but not quite as grim. This is the song featuring Lips from Anvil on lead guitar, and his solid shredding does add some much needed life given the subject matter! J.D.'s vocals drive the song during the verses and choruses, including some rapid spoken word before the solo, and while the lyrics are sure evocative, the music largely just rolls on and keeps the crossover thrash going, so there is more of a contrast here. Strongly done song with lyrics that will hit close to home for many! Track #6 is the shortest song on offer, "Succubus", which is arguably the most punk-centric song on the album as pure music, but J.D. does sing about the title demon in an exaggerated, Michale Graves-esque tone throughout.

Misfits fans will definitely appreciate this song, especially given J.D.'s affinity for that band over the years, but it still has that rawer, thrashy tone to the music that existing Spades fans will appreciate, and Daniel's solo is effective! A low-key highlight on the album so far! Seventh is "XS", which opens with a (likely) beer can being opened, and is basically about living to excess (hence the name) while in a band. This song more than any feels like something you'd crank on a summer road trip, and it has a nice melodic, full band sensibility and carefree attitude with strong vocals! Fast Life singer Andrew Moorhouse actually sings lead on the bridge here, and he fits right into the song's existing vibes, no doubt helped by Daniel being on the track. Definitely one of my favourite songs on the album, abrupt ending aside!

"Sewer City Radio" closes with "Black On Black", and despite this song's lyric video focusing on military exercises, the song is largely about alcohol abuse and trying to characterize it as the only remedy against suicidal thoughts. J.D.'s vocals are way too exaggerated here, to a point where the chorus shouts of the title don't even sound like he's saying "Black On Black"! Musically, this has one of the most thrash-based sounds on the album, with a quality bass line from James throughout, but the vocals do kinda detract from the song based on how they're done here (perhaps they're sung like that on purpose to represent the addiction?)

So, what are my final thoughts on the first new (Jack) Spades release in eight years? While I won't compare wholesale to their mid-2010s output (especially as only J.D. is left from then), this is a fun slice of crossover thrash that more or less picks up where Jack Spades left off as they headed south and, in many ways, upgraded what they were doing! The recording quality, guest appearances, and slate of high profile GTA concerts points to a band on a mission, and while these aren't entirely my favourite studio songs from their two dozen-or-so originals to date, many stand right up there with their best songs! While deeper vocally than we last heard him, J.D. is in his usual form here, Daniel shines on riffs and solos as you'd expect, and them snagging James Roy and Tyler was a savvy move to get some very experienced names from their new home area, and they more than hold up their end of the bargain!

Assuming that Jay is 100% still a band member and is just more limited for availability, it would have been nice to have heard him on more than two songs, but this solos (especially on "Red") were nicely implemented! I liked "Hands", "Red", and "XS" the most of the songs on this album, and Jack Spades fans will have nothing to worry about musically, but there are a few things I'd address. Some of the singing is just a little too exaggerated outside of what works best for J.D.'s studio material, I don't think "Cenobites" had a firm singular theme in mind, and some of the choruses could be a little repetitive for my liking, but given all of the changes that (Jack) Spades and the world have had since 2015, this album coming out as well as it did was certainly no accident. Definitely buy or stream it for yourself at the above links, and I hope you guys liked this month's CD review! What are reviewing on the site next?

Given our lengthy backlog, it's looking likely that our next review will be of local progressive metal duo Convergence's debut EP "One", which also came out in June 2023, so look for that at some point next month, and for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

Details On Brand New Albums From Spades GT & Jonesy Land!!

Today's post is devoted to two brand new album releases from this week, both from punk-adjacent acts led by very familiar faces, so here's what you should know about each one before you give them a whirl!

Online page-less local folk/punk solo project Jonesy Land's debut album "Zoom - Out" was released as planned on Wednesday, so what should you know here? Recorded at Mission Control Studios and released through Tidal Records, the album was mixed by Kyle Whittaker at Strange Pumpkin Studios in St. Catharines. This is the first completed album from veteran local musician Dustin Jones since his non-local punk supergroup The Conspirators' self-titled 2020 album, though three standalone Jonesy Land songs were put out in 2021 & 2022 which are not on "Zoom - Out". SooToday's Chris Belsito spotlighted Jonesy Land and the album in this article from Wednesday, where Dustin noted his songwriting process as he gets older, the recording process, inspirations for the songs & themes therein, how the album name was conceived, and much more, and it's a good read to see how everything came together over the last few months!

Notably, Dustin co-produced the album with Lake Effect frontman Frank Deresti, who appears throughout. The final album cover can be seen above, following lots of promotional images that turned out to be just that and not the final product. The Indiana Jones font is timed well to both match Dustin's last name and the release of Dial of Destiny later this month! Eight songs made the cut for "Zoom - Out", which is described as "a singer-songwriter record" focusing primarily on more mature, folk-leaning styles with less of a punk or drinking song influence compared to his prior local band work ("Moral Blackout" and Jonesy Land's mid-2021 live dates acknowledged). Frank aside, guest appearances on the album include singer Shannon Moan on "Keep Trying" (not "Old Man", as it turns out), and Dustin's Bookclub bandmates Al Watson (drums) on "Ode To The Boys" and Erin Antonello (trumpet) on "Superior Sons".

Surprisingly, Dustin's old Surfers and Tide bandmates do not appear, at least not publically. You can now stream "Zoom - Out" in full on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music, and Amazon, among other sites. Yes, you can buy the album through Amazon and Apple on mp3, with Amazon copies running for $9.49. Be advised that this image shows a lot of website/application logos, implying that the album is available on hosts like TikTok, Snapchat, and Twitch, so take that with a grain of salt. Personal Facebook postings suggest that bigger plans are afoot for the release beyond just dropping online, but I'll wait for public word on that front. With new albums from No Funeral and Handsome Sandwich beating it to market, I have "Zoom - Out" pencilled in for an August review on the SMS, but buy or stream it at the above links, and check out the new lyric video for "Old Man" courtesy of Tidal Records' YouTube channel below! Uploaded on Tuesday, the video was made by Loathing Hearts Productions.

Without reviewing the song (I'll hold comment until August), the video features slowly rotating images and scenes of musicians and beachfront scenery, with some of the latter being familiar from social media teasers for the album. Well made and nicely layered, so give the video a watch below, and stay tuned for more from Jonesy Land soon, especially if they finally launch a social media page beyond Dustin's personal Instagram page. Alas, Bookclub and The Cover-Up don't have one (yet) either, but neither of them have a brand new album to hype up!

Finally for today's post, another new punk-related local album was released as promised earlier today, namely local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT's studio album "Sewer City Radio"! While the local press hasn't as big for this one yet (moving to Barrie arguably didn't help in that respect), you can now stream the eight included songs on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music, and Amazon Music, possibly among other services. Oddly, there's no visible sale point through Amazon, but the album is on sale through iTunes for $7.92, which is the same price as "Zoom - Out" there. Released through bassist James Roy Daley's imprint Books Of The Dead Press, this is Spades' first album since the former Jack Spades took part in 2015's "Fed Up!" split, and their first album with every band member aside from frontman J.D. Pearce. No word yet on the music video for "Final Girl", but you can hear the studio copy below while you wait!

Guest appearances come from guitarist Daniel Horton's Fast Life bandmate Andrew Moorehouse on "XS" and Anvil frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow on a yet-specified song (though you can easily pick it out once you hear it). No word yet on the teased physical release of the album, but if ready, your first chance to buy it in the Soo will likely be at the Josey Scott's Saliva concert in three weeks. I'll hold comment on the album for now pending our planned review of "Sewer City Radio" in September, but buy or stream the whole thing above and below, and stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Local Metal Video Showcase!!

In our likely last post of the month (as I always take my birthday off),  we're looking at some videos from our recent backlog, and let's start with updates from local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT starting with an advance review of their upcoming album "Sewer City Radio"! Surprisingly, this comes by way of Japanese music website Upp-Tone Music, and don't worry, it is in English, if slightly broken. The advance review looks at "Hands", "XS", and the not-yet-released "Red", and while I don't want to skew my opinion of those songs given that I do plan to review the album myself, the review is positive, calling Spades GT "a ray of hope for the future of rock and metal". Good to see them getting notices way out east, so read it for yourself above! The album is still on track for a release on Friday, but one more advance single was posted last week, namely "Succubus", so click there to give it a spin!

Again, I'll hold comment on the song pending our review of "Sewer City Radio", which is currently pencilled in for September, assuming that the release date holds. Embedded below is something a little more visual than a still album cover, namely a 15 second behind the scenes teaser for their "Final Girl" music video from their Facebook page that kinda has to drop soon if they want it to coincide with the album release! The clip features director Josh Penno filming the video's lead actress sitting on a swing, with an axe wielding maniac (played by bassist James Roy Daley) on the prowl. The full video should be interesting, so stay tuned for more on it & the album, and get more from Spades GT above & below!

Next up, let's take a look at some new live concert videos from from new local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations' Facebook group! The band is not playing public shows this weekend, but you can relive this past Saturday's Esquire Club gigs via two new videos, including one filmed for attendee Christopher Bardawill's personal Facebook page (and publically shared by drummer Tony Santoro) of them covering Dire Straits' "Money For Nothing" with guitarist Brandon Ruch on lead vocals. Alas, the video was shot vertically, but Christopher got an interesting side-stage angle focusing primarily on Brandon, so that much is fitting with him singing this one! It's a solid cover that Dire Straits fans should like!

Embedded below is a video shot by an uncredited attendee and posted directly by Tony, and while much shorter (45 seconds), I'm featuring it here for three reasons: It was filmed horizontally, it's an official band upload rather than a share, and the song in question (Pat Benatar's "Hit Me With Your Best Shot") at least leans towards hard rock moreso. Valerie Powley sings lead on this cover and does a fine job from what we hear, though the filmer's angle means that Tony is out of view for the duration. Give these a watch above and below, and stay tuned for more from Generations!

Also, here's a brand new video from St. Ignace, Michigan metalcore band Heavy Lies The Crown's YouTube channel yesterday, which was posted to showcase drummer Jaxon Massaway's new Mapex Mars drumkit and Zildjian cymbals! The 78 seconds-long, multi-camera video features Jaxon (a.k.a."the kid") testing the equipment out, alongside still shots of the drums without a user in the way, and some outdoor scenery to boot. If you like drum solos, then you'll get a good one here, and this is a good way to show off Jaxon's abilities even beyond the kit, so give it a watch below!

Finally, here's a new video from Sault Ontario hard rock guitarist Mike McCleary's YouTube channel! We haven't heard much from Mike since he released his instrumental album "Fallout From Midnight Tides" in April, but he posted a new lyric video for his song "Be The One" (from 2018's "Weight Of The Truth") earlier this month. You may recall that Mike had a much more animated lyric video featuring stock footage lined up with the lyrics, but both of his extant videos on YouTube have been de-listed, and this new lyric video is now all that's shown. It's just white lyrics on a black background, but its lyrics about his mental illness struggle and the grungy sound still work, so give it a watch below!

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

Spades GT & Handsome Sandwich Updates, Plus New Videos!!

Let's keep the news and content going on this Tuesday morning with another well stuffed post, including updates and new album details from two somewhat linked local bands, plus a new rehearsal video from a band taking the stage this weekend. Here's what you should know!

Let's start with more recent updates (the Saliva show aside) from local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT, so what else is new in their camp? To promote their late notice gig opening for Aunest at Sneaky Dee's in Toronto on Friday, they posted this brief video (not a "Reel" either) of the band, minus Jay, giving a last push to get fans to come out while standing outside. Hopefully the concert went well for all involved! After the Brains/K-Man & The 45s show in Barrie next Thursday, Spades GT's next concert will see them return to Toronto on Saturday, June 3rd for Beer Bash 6, an annual all-day music festival at CineCycle that features free beer for ticket-buyers. That'll be quite a pull for some fans alone! Band announcements are ongoing, with six groups so far confirmed on the Facebook event page, though the only one familiar to local fans from concerts here is the former Jack Spades.

After posting some new promotional images, Spades GT unveiled the first single from their new album "Sewer City Radio" on Friday, and they went with "Hands" as the initial single, as embedded below via their new auto-generated YouTube Music channel. I'll hold comment on the song for now pending our eventual review of the album, which is currently targeted for the fall due to our current album release backlog (there has been no shortage of new albums to review in the past year+!) Tim Henderson from Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles promoted the album in this article on Saturday, which confirms some big new details on "Sewer City Radio". It is now planned to release on Friday, June 2nd, which is delayed from prior May projections, if not by much (no word on if they're counting Beer Bash 6 as the release show or not). A low-res image of the album's back cover is also shown, plus the track listing!

Part of me had a hunch that the album would heavily feature Jack Spades re-recordings, but the eight included songs appear to all be completely newer cuts that were not on "The First" or "Fed Up", and another advance single will be posted online on Friday at 12:00 PM. Sounds like things are definitely on the right track, so do visit the above links for much more on Spades GT's big mid-2023 plans, and here is "Hands"!

Next up, with the review of Saturday's release concert going live on the site yesterday, let's take some time to talk about local alt-hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich's debut album "Deconstructed", which is now on sale and available to hear on (according to the band) "all streaming services"! In reality, it is definitely on Spotify, but I haven't seen 100% proven links for it on the services that hosted advance singles, those being Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, and YouTube. CD copies were on sale at The Loft on Saturday night for $15 apiece (the normal price for CDs will be $20), and while I don't know if The Rad Zone or somesuch physical store will carry them, definitely contact band members on Facebook or in person if you want one. The albums were made DIY in town, featuring artwork by bassist Rafael Medina, and the liner notes include lyrics to all eleven songs in different font sizes and colours!

The only guest musician credited is Wyld Stallyns saxophonist Josh Norling, and just in case you were wondering, he did not guest on "No Entry" at the release show (I believe someone said that his sax had a broken reed, but I may be wrong). That all said, when can you expect our review of "Deconstructed" on the SMS? I have it slotted in for July, as this month will be the "Pyrolytic Punishment" split, while next month will be No Funeral's debut EP, as I try to go in release date order. If Jonesy Land's "Zoom-Out" releases on time on May 31st with nothing SMS-suited beating it to market, that'd be in August, with Spades GT in September. Stay tuned for more from Handsome Sandwich when it rolls in!

To close, let's go from a band featuring two ex-(Jack) Spades band members to a band sharing the stage with Spades GT next month, namely local southern hard rock cover quintet Fort Creek! Two new videos have been posted to their Facebook page in the past week, and while I'll save one for this weekend's concert previews to avoid redundancy, the other is not of them in concert, so it's better suited for a standard post anyway. On Sunday, they noted that they ended the week with an acoustic band rehearsal, and they filmed this video of the band (minus Shane & Tony) covering Linkin Park's "Crawling" unplugged. The cover is heavily altered to suit the acoustic performance (no rapping, removing the first chorus, etc), but it comes through nicely! I can't say that I like the post-production though. The black & white colour scheme and film grain aren't too bad, but the jittery motion never lets up and feels really unnecessary.

I also found that the opening title cards ran way too long (20 seconds?), but adding "For Chester" at the end was a nice touch. Despite my post-production reservations, fans seemed to take to this cover, which is well handled musically, so give it a watch below, and don't miss the full plugged-in Fort Creek on Friday & Saturday at Jay's Piston Broke Pub!

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

Spades GT & Fort Creek Updates, Plus More Recent News & Notes!!

In a post that really should have went up last night before time got away from me, we're clearing out more of the news backlog by looking at some recent updates from two prominent local hard rock-leaning acts, plus some assorted quicker topics as of late, so here's what you should know!

Here's the latest from local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT, so what's new from them in the past two weeks? First off, their streak of daily "Reels" on their Facebook page quietly ended on its 12th consecutive day on April 24th, with the last two "Reels" seeing the band (sans Jay and Tyler) playing on-stage behind a series of pop art-esque filters, and one of drummer Tyler Reiner in action during a concert, with no major post-production filters to speak of. I can't say that I miss the daily "Reels" for multiple technical reasons, but if you do, they did share one from Tyler's personal Facebook page on Sunday of him borrowing his brother's drumkit during a rehearsal. Painfully short, but it sounds good while it lasts! In terms of concerts, Spades GT successfully opened for The Anti-Queens in Barrie this past Thursday, and they will return to The Queens Nightclub there in two weeks when they open for both The Brains and K-Man & The 45s on May 18th!

Of course, local fans will remember seeing both groups on stage in the Soo in the 2010s, especially K-Man & The 45s, so this will be a familiar night for former and visiting Saultites on the 18th who like psychobilly and ska punk respectively! Before then however, they were added on late notice to a Toronto gig taking place tomorrow night at Sneaky Dee's headlined by Toronto progressive metal band Aunest. No familiar bands from past local gigs there other than the former Jack Spades, but hopefully this show is a hit! The big announcement from the Spades GT camp yesterday is the cover artwork for their new album "Sewer City Radio", courtesy of Germany-based artist Cliff Terrafolio, and it features an alleyway at nighttime with the album name and a spade on a manhole cover, and the band's new text logo in the upper left. Works well enough! The band has teased "dropping all sorts of stuff" from the record soon, so stay tuned for that.

A release party is expected, albeit likely in the GTA and not here, though remember that the band last said that it would come out this month. We have yet to hear studio material from the recording sessions, but the band hinted on Sunday that the internet radio station CGCM Rock Radio may have Spades GT in their rotation already, so visit there if you're curious! To close, here's a brief new video from April 24th that, shockingly, is not a "Reel", so we can embed it here! Still a short & vertical clip, it features the band (minus Jay) giving a final push for the Anti-Queens concert, with guitarist Daniel Horton holding the camera and speaking on behalf of the band. Check it out below, and see more from Spades GT above!

Next up, let's cover some recent content from local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek, starting with a new timeframe for their long-gestating debut EP, as in a comment reply on their Facebook page on Monday they indicated that it is "set to be released (in the) fall (of) this year".  Of course, they had planned to initially put this out last summer, so things are definitely behind old projections, but hopefully things are on track in 2023, and that we hear more beyond "Hammer Down" in the lead-up to the release date! In terms of videos, they have posted two on Facebook that we have yet to address, though neither features the full band. One video from April 17th just has 12 seconds of their stage setup when they opened for Kiss tribute band Destroyer at Soo Blaster last month, with no band members present. Not the first time that they've shared a video like that, for the record, but it sure looked professional!

Embedded below is a short clip from January 15th, vertical as it may be, of guitarist Bill Brouillard playing while standing on a rolling cart in front of the stage at Soo Blaster, with bassist Robin "Bones" Lee pushing it along for good measure. Amusing on one hand, and a good showcase of Bill's guitar talents on the other, so check it out for yourself below!

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

 

• Wyld Stallyns/ex-Garden of Bedlam drummer Derek Turner will reportedly fill in with Winnipeg/Denmark metal band Gutter Creek (featuring Saultite guitarist Matt Hanchuck) when they open for Tantric in Kalkaska, Michigan on May 20th! This was confirmed in personal Facebook posts only but seemed worth mentioning given the scope. Derek is a late fill-in due to Gutter Creek's normal drummer being unavailable, and Kalkaska is 2½ hours south of the Soo near Traverse City. Huge opportunity for sure, and hopefully Derek nails it in a couple of weeks! Note that Traverse City metal trio (and Kewadin Casino lounge regulars) Scarkazm are also playing at this concert.
• In a "Reel" on Tidal Records' Facebook page on April 21st, online page-less local punk/folk solo project Jonesy Land shared a new teaser clip from their upcoming debut album "Zoom-Out" (still planned to drop on May 31st), while also noting the album's inspirations from frontman Dustin Jones' life lessons and self-discovery. The album was mixed by Kyle Whittaker at Strange Pumpkin Studios in St. Catharines, and if song names shared on Dustin's personal Facebook page are any indication, the song we're hearing here is "Old Man", which will feature Shannon Moan on guest vocals. Stay tuned for more news on "Zoom-Out"!
• Dustin's Bookclub/ex-Inner City Surfers bandmate Mikey Hawdon was profiled in this new SooToday article by Chris Belsito on Tuesday, which outlines Mikey's move back to Sault Ste. Marie last year, the formation of the also-online-pageless Bookclub, and promotion for their set at the Festival of Beer this Saturday. Aside from some reveals of bands that Bookclub cover live, there's no real scoops here, but this is a solid article for fans of Mikey's recent band work in town, so give it a read at this link!
  

 

That's all for now, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

A Battle Of The Bands Cancellation, Banned & Brutally Fatal Updates, And Much More!!

Before we likely cap off the month with weekend concert previews and our next CD review, here's some news for this Wednesday afternoon! Along with a new video from a talented regional band, the latest from a rising young death metal project, and much more, we'll lead off with some disappointing news regarding an upcoming concert event, so here's what you should know!

The Twin City Sounds Battle of the Bands scheduled for February 20th at The Rednecks Saloon has officially been postponed. Co-promoter & judge Terry Eaton revealed on the Facebook event page on Monday that they're postponing the battle due to the event's proximity to the VM Radio Battle at The Canadian, which begins just under two weeks later on March 4th, saying that "two battles around the same time just doesn't work for anyone." Bands that registered to compete in next month's battle will be able to get their entry fees back by contacting Terry or Steven Flint on Facebook, so if you registered to play, message them A.S.A.P.! This is disappointing, especially as it's the second Sault Ontario battle in four months to be called off (following November's scrapped Rock For Dimes battle), but it's officially just postponed, so hopefully we see a rescheduled date for later in the year! Also, remember that while an official band lineup wasn't announced for next month, there are a few bands who had signed up to compete in both battles, so be sure to see them in March!

I'll note as well that VM Radio Battle promoter J.D. Pearce had suggested that the winning band of each battle should face off in a head to head finals after the fact, and that'd be cool to see brought up again when the first battle is rescheduled! Stay tuned for updates on both when we hear them!

Next up, here's a new video from Kinross, Michigan classic/hard rock standouts Banned, as per their YouTube channel on Monday! Their first uploaded video in four months, this is of the guys covering Fall Out Boy's "My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light 'Em Up)" earlier this month at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino. Filmed by Eric Cairns at Third Cinema Productions (who's filmed them in the past), this is a well filmed and performed cover, though Alex Traynor's vocal range doesn't hold up on the falsettos. I'm not a huge Fall Out Boy fan, but Banned's skill helps a lot on this performance! Also, for reference, the band is playing as a trio here with Wayne Lawrence on bass, so the recent photos of the band as a quartet in Engadine likely indicate that Jim Pentland was only back as a guest that night. Check out Banned's new video below, and stay tuned for more from them!



Also, here's the latest updates from Sault Ontario death metal duo Brutally Fatal, all from their Facebook page over the past month, and our apologies for the delay! Three weeks ago, the band revealed the cover for their first demo EP with their current lineup and name spelling, which will be called "The D.P.E.P.", though we won't share it here due to potentially offensive content. No word on what the title stands for, but an NSFW story about the concept can be read at this link. Austin & Tyler have been working in studio on "The D.P.E.P." this month, even revealing 25 potential song titles for new originals on Saturday, including such eclectic titles as "Ocean of Blood" & "Bulgarian Beetles". The first song for the EP was uploaded to their new Bandcamp page and the Blood Shed Productions YouTube channel last week, and it's entitled "Stomp Your Feet", so how does it sound?

Sonically similar to Tyler Gibson's other duo project Rotopsy's song "Cops 'N Moms", this song is a short death metal number with repetitive shouted lyrics (largely of the song's title), though there is some late growling vocals too. It's consistently heavy and engaging for Blood Shed loyalists, but we'll have to see how the rest of the songs evolve. We won't embed the full YouTube video here due to the cover art being included, but stream the full song at this link, and stay tuned for more from Brutally Fatal & the Blood Shed!

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

• According to their official Facebook page, Sault Michigan nightclub and occasional concert venue The Back Door (which was recently sold to new owners) re-opened for an "encore presentation" of their usual Friday night party last week, and will apparently be permanently re-opened soon under their new management. Great news for regulars, but will bands be a part of the new owners' plans? We'll let you guys know if we hear anything!
• Sault Ontario music store Music Depot's Facebook page revealed on Sunday that they are "temporarily closed" and hope to be back soon. This announcement follows rumours of the Gore Street store's closure in December, though there were later assurances that Music Depot was just sold to new owners. Hopefully the temporary closure is just that, as I know many musicians enjoy going there, and we'll let you know when/if it re-opens!
• The fifth annual Sewer Swampstravaganza all ages concert will indeed move from The Oddfellows Hall for this year, as it will apparently be held at The Canadian Nightclub for this year's installment on May 9th. A reason for the venue change wasn't announced, but The Canadian is a quality location, and hopefully there's a great turnout this year! Our source is promoter Steve Mozarowski on the Facebook event page yesterday, and stay tuned for more on the lineup!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews, this month's CD review, and more in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Ten Kings), Scarkazm Concert Previews, And The Return Of The Swampstravaganza!!

Our second post of the day is half devoted to Sault Michigan-area concerts (including LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the next few months and the last of this weekend's own concert previews), and half devoted to the return of an annual Sault Ontario concert event! Here's what you should know, and check out this weekend's Sault Ontario hard rock concert previews in the post below this one!

New Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Ten Kings will make their live concert debuts on Friday, February 27th & Saturday, February 28th at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, which they'll follow with their debuts at St. Ignace's Kewadin Casino at The Northern Pines Lounge on March 13th & 14th! Though not yet acknowledged on Kewadin's own entertainment page, the February gigs replace ones originally scheduled for local classic rockers Ricochet (who've since removed them from their Facebook page), and the March gigs originally belonged to local indie rockers The London Gentlemen, who haven't acknowledged them that I've seen. Remember, Ten Kings are the new band from Nixxon Dixxon alum Brandon Carr, Bottom Line bandmates Joe Jenkins & Will Storey, and Scofflaw alum Barney Gravelle, which is a very promising lineup!

There's no cover charges for these 21+ concerts, and all have likely 9:00 PM start times. For more details, visit the official Facebook event pages at the links here & here! It's great to see Ten Kings get some shows booked, and hopefully they can hit Nixxon Dixxon & Scofflaw-esque heights in the E.U.P.! Stay tuned for more from them as it comes in!

Next up, here's our last known hard rock concert previews for this weekend, as Traverse City metal trio Scarkazm will hit the Eastern Upper Peninsula for the first time in 2015 for shows TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT at the aforementioned Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino! Some of you may have seen members Adam Crawford & Jeff Hudson earlier this month with Peril, but these will be Scarkazm's first St. Ignace stops since April, so if you've missed their hard hitting originals and covers in the past so many months, don't miss out on their St. Ignace returns this weekend! As usual for Scarkazm shows in our neck of the woods, there are 9:00 PM start times in effect, 21+ age limits, and no announced cover charges. For more details, visit the above links, don't miss Scarkazm's 2015 E.U.P. debut TONIGHT & TOMORROW, and here's Scarkazm covering Alice In Chains!



Finally, here's some exciting news, as there will indeed be a 5th annual Sewer Swampstravaganza this year, but there are changes afoot too! As revealed on the Facebook event page, the annual Steve Mozarowski-promoted all ages concert (which traditionally has at least 9 different acts) will be held during the same timeframe as last year, placing it on Saturday, May 9th rather than moving to a different month like it had in the past. That's helpful for establishing it as an annual event, and hopefully people remember that date! As well, the event page suggests that the location is to be announced, which suggests that this year's Swampfest may not be at The Oddfellows Hall, which hosted the first 4 installments. This could be exciting if a different quality venue is booked, but it would be odd to see a Swampstravaganza held somewhere else. We'll keep you guys posted when more is announced! No bands have been officially confirmed yet either, but who might we see?

Event page posts by band members suggest that 2014 performers The Bear Hunters (the only band that played each of the first 4 Swampfests), Haggith, Mike Haggith solo, The Revolution, and DJ Seith are all interested in playing again, as is rapper Mikey Thomas (who would be playing for the first time if added), so fans of last year's show should like the early interest! For reference, last year's other local performers included Sykotyk Rampage, Rotopsy, ex-RedD Monkey cellist Pete Mozarowski, Rihkee Strap from Ye Olde Mold Pickers, This Is Your Band On Drugs, and an open mic performer block (no word on if that will return), while The Northern Tragedy, James Watterworth, Guy Smith, Conika, and The North Shore are active artists that played in 2012 or 2013. As well, this event is not opposed to out of town bands, as seen by 2013 headliners Warsenal and last year's set from Aggressive Acoustic, so I wouldn't be overly shocked if we see an out of town band once again come May 9th.

It's great to see Steve (alongside Sykotyk Rampage guitarist Dirk Becker once again) bring the Swampstravaganza back for a fifth year, and I'm very curious to see who all is signed on to play this year! If the last 4 years are any indication, there will be bands wall to wall from afternoon until well into the night, so stay tuned for updates on the lineup, admission charges, and more as everything comes in! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes this weekend! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Kiss'd), New Videos, And More!!

Before we head off to TONIGHT'S Jack Spades EP release show, we have a new news post for you guys today, so what's on tap? Some assorted recent notes (including a concert cancellation), a new cover video, recent coverage of a major all ages show, and first, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for across the river this summer, so here's what you need to know!

Continuing the recent influx of Charlevoix, Michigan metal musician Jeff Hudson's bands into Eastern Upper Peninsula concert dates, his Northern Michigan Kiss tribute band Kiss'd will hit The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on Friday, July 4th and Saturday, July 5th! Note that these shows are still to be announced on Kewadin's entertainment page, but I imagine it's just a little behind. Joining already-announced 2014 dates for Jeff's other bands Scarkazm, Audio Circus, and (of course) Peril at our regional Kewadin branches, these will actually be Kiss'd's first announced shows on their Facebook page since 2012, though I'm not sure if they've played a show unadvertised there in the interim. Featuring Jeff on vocals and bass as "Paul Stanley", Kiss'd have a faithful sound that fans of Kiss should take to if their older videos are any indication, though the vocals aren't always close ringers with the original songs. Be sure to check them out in July though! You must be 21 to attend, there's no announced cover charge, and there are nightly start times of 10:30 & 9:00 PM, so check the above links for more updates on how to get Kiss'd!

Next up, we have some recent local coverage of last weekend's fourth annual Sewer Swampstravaganza at The Oddfellows Hall to share on here! Posted to the YouTube channel of local event promotion and entertainment website Sault Online on Tuesday, this features video footage of Sudbury unplugged hard rockers Aggressive Acoustic covering Monster Magnet's "Space Lord" during soundcheck, which bookend a minute long interview clip with promoter Steve Mozarowski outside of the hall, so what is discussed there? Steve talks about how he started the annual event in 2011 as a RedD Monkey tour fundraiser, though it has since transitioned into a showcase for youth-centered local talent, while he'll also look into grants for next year's event and the possibility of free admission. Aside from the windy conditions impairing the interview, it's a solid promotional sample for the event, and the Aggressive Acoustic footage is well shot! I wonder what became of the Brutaly Fatal video footage that the same Sault Online correspondent filmed that evening?

Also to note: Steve described RedD Monkey as "broke up" in the video, though official Facebook statements only go so far as to say they're on a hiatus, so we'll go on that until/unless something else is stated. As well, the video description incorrectly lists both Ashes To Dust & Pillory as playing that night, misspells Aggressive Acoustic, and accidentally calls Haggith "Haggard", but hopefully that all gets fixed! Nice to see some new local media coverage of the Swampfest, so check out the full video below!



Also today, Pillory frontman and Crimson Crusade guitarist Robert Sartini posted a new cover video onto his YouTube channel on Wednesday! His first video there in 5 months (and first solo cover video since last August), this is a guitar rendition of Wisconsin death metal band Putrid Pile's "Blood Fetish" that he learned by ear. Though I'm not too familiar with Putrid Pile, this a solid rendition, but I think the original backing track is a bit high in the video. This should tide Pillory fans over while we wait for public news from their camp, so give Robert's new video a look below!



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

• Former(?) Social Suicide guitarist Anthony Boudreau is looking for a high school-age guitarist who can play anything from old school rock to progressive metal for his new local band project. If you're interested in trying out, message Anthony at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from May 7th!
• The Die Mannequin concert scheduled for June 14th at The Rockstar Bar has been cancelled, as per updates to the Facebook event page by promoter J.D. Pearce on Tuesday. A reason wasn't announced there beyond J.D. saying that it was "out of my hands", but while this is disappointing, does the survival of the event page lend hope for a possible rescheduling? We'll have to wait and see!
• A 14 year old local metal guitarist named Jordan Attoni is looking to jam in a local metal project. He has played guitar for 4 years, and is influenced by bands like AC/DC, Metallica, and Avenged Sevenfold, so if you're interested in trying out or getting more details, message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from last week!

That's all for today, but I'll see you guys at The Rockstar Bar TONIGHT for Jack Spades' EP release show! Thanks everyone!

Sewer Swampstravaganza IV Concert Review!!

After a bit of a delay due to very slow video uploading times (plus our preview of TONIGHT's Oh! Right Arm!/Blood Shed show at The Moose Lodge in yesterday's post), we finally have our review of Saturday night's fourth annual Sewer Swampstravaganza at The Oddfellows Hall for you guys, so here's what you should know! This year, organizers employed a larger staff to run the show and related events, with merchandise for sale including limited edition event and RedD Monkey t-shirts, assorted art, poetry, and music items from Rihkee Strap and Ye Olde Mold Pickers, and even a Blood Shed Productions merchandise table (plus an album that we'll touch on later.) Indian tacos and frybread were indeed sold for patrons to eat, which is a great idea given the length of the show! Attendance was fairly good by the evening and for the headlining bands, but it was a slow go for the afternoon performers, which is par for the course for these all-day all ages shows. A reporter from Sault Online was also on hand at two points on Saturday to film Aggressive Acoustic (during afternoon sound check) and Brutaly Fatal, so might we see the footage online soon?

There were also some late lineup alterations for some of the earlier performers, but we'll approach them as we go. Now, here's our thoughts on all of the performers on Saturday night!

As expected, the Sewer Swampstravaganza kicked off with it's first ever open mic block at 1:00 PM, though for unannounced reasons, planned host Greg Callaghan was not able to attend, so promoter Steve Mozarowski hosted in his place. Given the slow early attendance, there wasn't a lot of performers, with just 5 distinct acts playing in the 90 minute timeslot, and only three playing for a substantial length. They were Bear Hunters drummer Johnny Belanger in a rare showcase of his singing & guitar ability, Steve Mozarowski playing songs that may have been in his later "faceityoureametalband" set, and local keyboardist/busker Damjan Binda (a.k.a. "Spider Fingerz"), who some of you may remember from an Oddfellows Hall show earlier this year. As well, Northern Tragedy singer/drummer Terrence Gomes and friend Katie Huckson (jokingly named Goofus & Gallant) played a pair of songs, while Keep It Lit/ex-The Fury frontman Paul Stanghetta played a few songs of his own later in the block.

In terms of what I thought of each performer: Johnny's performances were solid, and a nice throwback to seeing some of his musical diversity when we both attended Bawating in the mid-2000s! He always had a good singing voice, and the variance was solid on covers of everyone from The Foo Fighters to Harvey Danger. Steve's portion was a nice continuation from earlier Swampfest sets, if much more reserved, including covers of Oasis and New Order mixed with assorted originals. I prefer his more abrasive band work, but he had a nice casual command of the stage, and the originals were well composed! Damjan struck me as a very talented pianist (complete with accessories to simulate a baby grand), and while his vocals weren't heard much, he deftly played some entertaining originals and even belted out a rousing sea shanty! I'll have to keep an eye on his work. Terrence and Katie performed well together (though she was hard to hear), and it was nice seeing Paul back on stage, playing solid renditions of Rubberbandits and Kings of Leon, even breaking out some rap on his last song!

The first of the official band performers on Saturday was Haggith drummer Mike Haggith in a rare solo concert appearance, so how was this different from his more locally common Din work? Aside from a guest appearance on the opening song by bandmate Daniel Horton, Mike played each song solo with only him on vocals & guitar, with backing tracks that he recorded to cover bass and drums. Mike quietly released his 48th studio album "A Place Of Our Own" at the show, so his 6 song set included one song from that disc, plus older originals like "Room 822" and the brand new "Cindy Is A Hooker's Name". Aside from some technical errors regarding the backing tracks, Mike shown some solid talent in a more formal setting for music that he fronts, and he has a nice singing voice as usual on these hard rock originals, but by using backing tracks, his set sounded more artificial than I'm used to (but at least he played on them.) Solid work though, and hopefully Mike tries his hand at more solo sets down the road!

The next performer was slated to be the aforementioned Steve Mozarowski (replacing The Neon Stars & The Runaway Voices), but his formal set was tentative pending the addition of a different act for that timeslot, and he did find one, as local DJ Shane Erickson (a.k.a. DJ Seith) took over the 4:00 PM timeslot in his place. Given the surrounding acts, this was a bit of a surprise, so how'd he do? Creatively distributing tambourines for fans to make noise with during his set, DJ Seith basically played the music and turntable mixes that he would at an event that would seem more typical for his output, mashing up two vinyl records while scratching and mixing the songs within, and there were some very receptive fans late, especially when he threw some Jimi Hendrix and Black Sabbath in! He definitely has an ease about his work, and he definitely didn't alter his show due to the slow early attendance, but part of me assumed he'd manipulate certain songs more than they were. Nice diversion though, and if it's your thing, DJ Seith has the goods!

Next was slated to be local funk/metal band The Strange Coyotes, but like at the Fuck The Facts show, they were replaced by singer/guitarist Chase Wigmore's more recent project This Is Your Band On Drugs, likely for similar reasons (if we hear anything finite concerning The Strange Coyotes' status, we'll have it here!) Just like at their last local stop, they played a grind/experimental hybrid sound that had a lot of energy, intensity, and creativity that got a lot of people's attention, with Chase's guitar work and stage presence captivating many like usual! Nick Burns' vocals were still mostly hard to hear, and he could be a bit more animated on stage, but he fits in well musically, and they were joined by Rotopsy's Ringsnaps Gibson again for their closing song to add an extra vocal blast! I'd still be interested to see how T.I.Y.B.O.D. sound with drums and bass, but their unique mix of genres is definitely hard to ignore, and stay tuned for more on them and their original music this week!

Following them was the non-house party debut of the current version of Brutaly Fatal, so what'd this trio have in store? Though we did see the original version of the band (now Re-Born) last year in a solo grindcore theme, the new Brutaly Fatal have a hybrid of doom metal and punk in their current originals like "We Are The Gladiators" and "Monsters", almost striking me as a mix of AlgomA and The Northern Tragedy, if that makes sense. Austin dropped the growling entirely for clean singing, and he's solid at that, while he, bassist Rainey Vincent, and new drummer Brandan Glew had decent chemistry and clear talent throughout, though they could all work on their stage presences somewhat. The big issue I had with their set was their cover choices, as Collective Soul and Weezer songs seem like songs borrowed from Re-Born rather than material fitting of a doom band, and didn't mesh well with the originals. Solid debut though, I'm curious to see how they develop!

The 7:00 set was supposed to go to local/Grand Rapids folk/acoustic trio Ye Olde Mold Pickers in a reunion set, but members Nick Marsh & Kyle Church couldn't make the event (apparently due to being stranded in Michigan on the way up for the show), so singer/accordionist Rihkee Strap played an abbreviated solo set instead, mainly comprised of Y.O.M.P. covers. It was an interesting sight seeing almost everyone sit for her set, but like at her earlier local shows, there was a busking casual feel to her performance, though there was a bit of stage rust and nervousness given the long break. Her set was effective and a nice change of pace, and after a joint rendition of "Alleyways", she ceded the rest of the set to RedD Monkey cellist Pete Mozarowski, who played three original cello compositions. Nice to see him on stage again, and while the songs had an minimalistic quality without other performers, his musical talent was clear as day, and I'd be curious to hear more of his solo music!

Then we had Sudbury acoustic/hard rock band Aggressive Acoustic in their second live concert set in the Soo, though their lineup was indeed abbreviated, as bassist Darren McCullough again did not make the trip, and drummer Angie McBride (who was visibly pregnant at their local date last fall) is currently on maternity leave, though congratulations on the new arrival! Fronted by former Sykotyk Rampage bassist Brian Cattapan, he and mandolin player Sean Trottier played a mix of covers of bands like Linkin Park, Chevelle, and Down, plus a few originals like "Downtown Billy Brown", and if anything struck me about their set, it's that Brian has definitely improved his singing ability since the last time I saw him live in this role! The covers were mostly adapted well, and you could tell he was getting people's attention when certain fans ran back into the hall to hear certain unexpected songs. Sean's a solid mandolin player too, and he accompanied things well! It'd be nice to see the full lineup in town at some point, but I think Brian and Sean made some new fans!

The 9:00 band was local goregrind duo Rotopsy, who finally got a chance to play a full set after their shortened Dank Fest closer last month, and they didn't disappoint with a very energetic and high-tempo set of grind and death metal originals! Including songs like "Shovel Packin'", "Let Us Rot", and "The Funky Track", Dylan and Tyler got loyal fans moshing and headbanging throughout their set, which even recycled the Super Mario 64 theme cover from Crucify The Whore's set the previous weekend. Of what Rotopsy provides in concert, I still think they could benefit from having Dylan Taylor growl more actual words rather than the scattered grunts and yells, and the lack of a guitar does make it's presence felt a fair amount. The enthusiasm and brutality were wall to wall though, and hopefully tonight's show at The Moose Lodge goes well for them!

The headline acts of the Swampstravaganza kicked off at 10:00 PM with the well anticipated reunion set by local alternative/grunge quartet Haggith, making their first live concert appearance since December's farewell show, so how'd they perform in their return? Pretty well, it's like they never left! Aside from Curtis McKenzie's shorter hair, things looked about the same as they did at their peak last year, even to the point of Curtis playing guitar on most songs, after not doing so for much of late 2013. Songs like "Clifton Hill" & "Public Enemy" joined select covers of Jimi Hendrix classics, and the guys definitely shown the chemistry and talent that carried them so well in their initial run together, with Curt showing his more diverse vocal range on some songs, Mike Haggith drumming with a fun purpose, and Daniel Horton's lead guitar work on fire! It's great to have Haggith back, and this set was definitely a well recieved success, but was it a one-off show?

Take this with a grain of salt until the band confirms this online, but band members announced on stage that they plan to stay together and record a fourth studio album compiling songs of theirs that aren't on physical CDs yet (like "Metal Cage" & "Anthem"), but with an attached ultimatum: If said CD doesn't sell well, they'll break up again. The band has not officially said this online yet, but just in case, there's some cautiously optimistic news regarding Haggith's future!

Another band that we haven't seen since Haggith's farewell show came on next, as the original crash band, Sykotyk Rampage played their first live concert set of 2014 in the co-headlining slot! Their 13 song set mixed classics like "Drinking on the Weekend" and "Hey Zeus" with some new songs like "Soul" and their first live song with bassist Tony Briglio on lead vocals, the Jack Daniels ode "Old #7", and the fans gave them  good reception, even inciting rare mosh pits for a Sykotyk Rampage show! Visually and sonically, the guys were up to their old tricks, with Paul Becker's booming bluesy vocals and his brother Dirk and Shane Kokis handling things well for their improvised originals! Despite their involvement as staff for the event, the guys didn't play a reserved set, showing their energy and creativity throughout, with Dirk again dropping the guitar for an angry and intense version of "Lowest of the Low". Very fun crash set, here's hoping for more soon!

And finally, your headliners on Saturday were the only band to play at all four Swampstravaganzas, local death metal quartet The Bear Hunters, and they were in form once again with brutal originals and lots of devastating metal action! Now to be fair, I saw them at the Fuck The Facts show as well, and their sets were largely similar in both song choices and performances, so it's hard to comment too differently on Saturday night's set. Playing newer songs like "I Fear No God" and "The Omen" along with existing originals, the guys shown their talents well once again, with Nik Deubel's vocals as heavy as ever, Mitch Sirie playing to his standards on guitar, and Justin Lam's clear bass skill a constant presence! I did have to leave late in their set, but The Bear Hunters were a perfect closer to the evening, and hopefully we hear much more from them in the near future, including hopefully their long awaited album at some point!

Overall, the fourth annual Sewer Swampstravaganza was a success, but being the longest event yet in this annual series, it was also the most tiring at least for this reviewer (my feet were killing me by night's end.) It was all for a good cause though, as this was another very entertaining blend of local music! Is it weird to note that only four bands on Saturday featured a drummer, and only one of them (Brutaly Fatal) played before 10:00 PM?

I got plenty of photos of each band, so visit our Facebook page or this link to check them out, and as for videos, I got one of each formal performer and a compilation of the open mic block, so here's all 5 open mic acts together, followed by Mike Haggith playing "Sun Perfume", the first few minutes of DJ Seith's set, This Is Your Band On Drugs playing a (likely) untitled original, Brutaly Fatal's original "Mercury", Rihkee Strap covering Ye Olde Mold Pickers' "Redemption Song", Pete Mozarowski playing his composition "The Conquered", Aggressive Acoustic covering Tool's "Stinkfist", Rotopsy playing their short originals "Doomytrack" & "Mould Induced Hypersensitivity", Haggith playing "No Cure For Insanity", Sykotyk Rampage playing their new song "Soul", and The Bear Hunters playing their newer song "The Void"!








That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and weekend concert previews this week! Thanks everyone!