LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Turner Up), Most Weekend Concert Previews, And More "Woods V" Reviews!!

Hey guys, it's time to preview most of this weekend's local metal & hard rock shows, but first, I've gotta apologize for one missed date last weekend. Apparently, Sault Michigan hard rockers Powerslug returned to Golanka's Bar (a.k.a. The Bird) across the river this past Saturday for what (I think) was their first stop there of 2012. Guitarist Chris Gurnoe confirmed the gig on his personal Facebook page that afternoon, but the short notice (and the band's lack of an internet page) prevented me from hearing about it until it was too late. I apologize to Powerslug and anyone who could have been affected, I'll try to stay more on top of their next gigs! Now, to the concert previews, and while we're saving the battle of the bands profile until later today due to it's size, we've got some big shows going down this weekend to cover (including a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT) and some "Woods V" reviews, so here's what you need to know!

The new show is courtesy of Sault Ontario classic hard rockers Turner Up, who will return to The Sportscentre Bar & Grill on Wellington Street West THIS SATURDAY! I apologize for the short notice, this show was announced on Tuesday but I could only slot it into a post today. Though they won't be at tomorrow's Sault Humane Society Battle of the Bands anymore, this talented quintet will bring their set full of entertaining hard rock covers back to this new-ish concert venue on Saturday, two months after playing their first gig at this West End bar. I'm still not familiar with the Sportscentre Bar & Grill as a concert venue, but I'm hearing good things from people who've played there, and it's slowly becoming a more prominent place for local bands, so keep it mind this Saturday! This is a one night only gig (possibly for the same reasons why they're not at tomorrow's battle), with Turner Up hitting the stage at 10:30 PM on Saturday. You must be 19 to attend, and there's no cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's always good to see Turner Up rocking the local stage, and hopefully they deliver some great classic hard rock tunes for their fans on Saturday! For a preview, here's the old Turner Up covering a Guns N' Roses classic at The Rockstar Bar last year!



Now to previously announced non-battle concerts this weekend, and we'll take a quick detour to Sault Michigan for the next concert by local hard rock trio Trail's End! The new-ish local band from 3 former Nixxon Dixxon & Splitshot bandmates are scheduled to return to The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino TOMORROW NIGHT for just their fifth advertised concert since forming late last year, though unlike their previous two concert weekends, this will only be a one night engagement. Despite earlier listings on Kewadin Casino's entertainment page, they will not be playing on Saturday night due to a showing of UFC 145 at The Rapids Lounge, so Trail's End's Kewadin weekend plans are halved, much like Swayze Train's were in February thanks to UFC 144. Should be a good card though, and Trail's End have big plans in 2012 beyond tomorrow, I'm sure! Admission should be free for tomorrow's concert, you must be 21 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is likely. For more details, check the above links! Though Trail's End haven't publically acknowledged this show, Kewadin entertainment page is as reliable a source as any, and hopefully the guys have a great set full of covers & originals tomorrow night! For a preview, here's their original song "Run"!



Finally for the previews, local metal trio Caveman Morrison are returning to the stage for their third concert weekend with their current lineup for shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT at The Nicolet Tavern! Their current lineup of Tym Morrison, James White, and Johnny Belanger appears to be settling in well, and you know that they'll deliver a great weekend of hard rock and metal covers for their fans at The Nic this weekend! Nothing seems to be too different from the usual Caveman Morrison concert weekend, but if you're up for some live music all weekend, you can't go too wrong with these shows! However, I will note that drummer Johnny Belanger is still scheduled to compete at tomorrow's Humane Society Battle of the Bands with The Bear Hunters, so fingers crossed that they're earlier in the night so he can play at both events without issue! Both tomorrow & Saturday's Caveman Morrison gigs should have no cover charge, you must be 19 to attend, and 9:30 PM start times are listed. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! These should both be solid concerts, so hopefully there's big crowsds both nights for Caveman Morrison's latest weekend at The Nic! For a preview, here they are covering a Foreigner classic at The Rosie in December, and message Tym A.S.A.P. if you can help return his stolen acoustic Yamaha guitar!



And finally for today, here's some more reviews of local blackened doom metal band Woods of Ypres' last recorded album "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light"! In January, Lior Stein of the website Metal Temple gave this album an "almost perfect" rating of 9/10, calling it a "masterfully crafted release" and highly praising the late David Gold's vocal range and the album's peaceful mood it created. Nice review with some interesting thoughts on the themes of the CD, so click here to check it out! In a review on The Metal Crypt last month, writer Christopher Foley gave "W5" a 3.75/5, calling it "a quality selection of songs" and giving high marks for it's crossover appeal, while noting some lyrical deficiencies and that the album might turn off black metal purists. Brief and more straightforward review, but if you're looking for one with less sentimentality, this may do the trick, so see this review at this location! Finally for today, Ryan Grant from the metal website HereToDestroy.com gave "Woods V" a very positive review earlier this month, and while it's more personal with connections to how Woods of Ypres' music has been life changing for him, he still gives good thoughts on David's vocal intensity and the increased emphasis on melody, among other well termed thoughts. Another nice review, and you can tell how much it meant for him to write it, so check it out by clicking here! Stay tuned for more "Woods V" reviews hopefully soon!

That's all for now, but stay tuned later today for our extended preview of TOMORROW'S Sault Humane Society Battle Of The Bands! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Turner Up), New Videos, And More Assorted News!!

Hey guys, it's time for another news post at the SMS, and before we get into it, if you notice that the background is now static on the site, that's on purpose. I thought that'd be easier on the eyes for readers rather than a constantly scrolling background when reading posts, and it's easier for future customization, so don't be alarmed! In today's post, we have some new videos from some local acts, a bunch of assorted news items, and leading things off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you need to know!

Local classic hard rock quintet Turner Up will return to the local concert stage THIS SATURDAY, but not at a venue you'd expect. In just their third concert weekend since the new Turner Up's launch last year, they'll be rocking the Sportscentre Bar & Grill at 624 Wellington Street West on Saturday, in what I think is the first show from any version of Turner Up at this spot. For reference sake, the Sportcentre Bar & Grill is beside Wizards Cuts, it's a road over from Carmen's Way, and it's close to the Steelton area, in case you're curious of it's location. We haven't seen Turner Up in four weeks (though 4/5ths of them have played more often in Havadder in between), so if you've missed their brand of classic hard rock covers, then don't miss them at this West End concert on Saturday night! There is no announced cover charge, there's no Friday date this weekend, everything starts at 10:00 PM, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Though I'm not familiar with this venue at all, Turner Up should deliver another solid set of rocking covers, so definitely consider attending this concert if you can, and stay tuned for more on it later this week!

Next up, here's some new videos, starting with another new album teaser from Sault Michigan/Grand Rapids metal quintet End of Existence! Hot on the heels of their first teaser from Sunday, the band has posted a 79 second trailer featuring a preview of another song from their planned debut album that's coming out on February 29th. The visuals here use similar effects to the first video, though the featured photo is of guitarist Steven Giles. Are we getting one trailer video featuring each band member in the lead-up to the album's release? I dunno, but this is another promising preview, so check it out below, and I'll keep you guys posted as updates roll in!



Also in new videos are three new solo performance videos from ApocalyptiCDistroyeR frontman Jesse Middaugh, who has uploaded three new videos onto the band's YouTube channel over the past nine days. One is (oddly enough) a short rough guitar cover of Bruno Mars' "Grenade", which seems out of place, but his playing isn't bad. He also uploaded a new cover of Three Days Grace's "(I Hate) Everything About You", this time with a new electric guitar of his, and he sounds alright on it, especially with a plugged in version, though the transitions between verses and choruses are choppy sounding. Embedded below though is his new original demo, tentatively titled "The Special One", and he shows some nice softer acoustic playing here for this newest original, so give it a look below, and check the above links for more solo and band material from ApocalyptiCDistroyer's channel!



And finally for today, here's three assorted stories from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band, website, or channel name:

• If you're an active local music forum user or reader, you may have noticed that the 705 Video Magazine forums were down lately. This is due to a move to a new host and planned relaunch, and from what I'm hearing, the new site and it's content will be more impressive than ever before. Sit tight, things will be back up and running soon!
• Brimley metal quartet Half A Man have unveiled their first official new band photos since their late 2011 lineup changes, and you can check them out via postings on their Facebook page, which also finally has an updated band lineup on the information section as well. The pictures look good, and hopefully we'll hear some more exciting news from them shortly!
• I've updated our YouTube Channel Profile of myangels1266's YouTube channel to reflect the fact that channel owner Cami Hubbard's son Chris' band Splitshot is now defunct. Not a major change, but I thought you guys should know just in case!
  

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news this week, and just FYI, our very next post on the SMS website will be our 1,000th overall! Amazing how fast three years of blogging go when you enjoy what you do, huh? Thanks everyone!