It's the 10th of the month, so here's our newest Defunct Local Band Profile, as we're again spotlighting a band from the past and their run & accomplishments today, once again randomly selected from our band links! This month, we have a very familiar band to recent Sault Ontario punk fans in the late 2010s, so here's what you should know on them!
Audio/Video:Stegadeth never released an album of any kind, but they did play scattered originals in concert like "Kingdom of Ashes" and "Tragedy", while also carrying over their predecessors T-Rex Manning's only original song "She Banged The Mayor" into their sets. Multiple videos of their concerts can be seen at Christopher Paci's YouTube channel and our Facebook page, while Stegadeth's own Facebook page does host a couple of rehearsal clips and one live concert video, plus other shared uploads. Here's Stegdeth playing their own song "The Wire" in October 2017!
Info/Analysis:
After previously playing together in T-Rex Manning and the short-lived Pools of Booze in the mid-2010s, the original lineup of Stegadeth publically launched in November 2016, picking up where Tiffany, Bill, and Daniel left off, albeit in a punk-centric, J.D.-less form. Debuting at Live705's initial concert at The Oddfellows Hall that month, Stegadeth would become a popular sight at punk and mixed-genre concerts over the next three years, including opening slots for bands like The Ripcordz, K-Man & The 45s, and The Costanzas, while also taking part in Guy Thiffault & Joni Radford memorial concerts, and a 2018 tour in Southern Ontario. Aside from Tiffany's then-Jack Spades bandmate Johnny Belanger replacing Daniel for health reasons in November 2017, their lineup remained stable during their run, and even splintered off into the HIM tribute band Poison Girl in 2018.
Tiffany moved to Sudbury by the fall of 2019, with Stegadeth last playing live at the final(?) Oh!No concert festival in Leeburn, and while Facebook updates continued into mid-2020, her move and the pandemic seemed to end the band outright. While Tiff's vocals were never especially strong for a punk band, Stegadeth's straightforward brand of genre intensity definitely left a mark with some fun covers you didn't often hear other local bands tackle, and she, Bill, and Dan/Johnny's pre-existing chemistry helped a ton! They had a solid run with a lot of highlights, so definitely give their live videos a watch, and hopefully Stegadeth resurface is things line up!
I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! This series will return on or around July 10th when we conclude another 2-1-3-1-2-1 cycle between the Twin Saults by heading south to Dafter, Michigan for a randomly selected look at local hard rock musician Kenneth "SweetKenny" Sutton's inactive solo project! Look for that then, and a new news post full of new show announcements tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
Today's post is split into two camps: SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS
for this weekend from a recently prominent cover band, and a pair of
bands moved to our inactive band links following a year+ of online
silence and no concerts. Here's what you should know!
Local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek will return to The Rockstar Bar for a concert TOMORROW NIGHT, followed by a special set at the Fundraiser For Injured Riders outside of United Floors on SATURDAY! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced TOMORROW'S show via their Facebook page
on Labour Day, but SATURDAY'S event was quietly announced there on
August 20th, so apologies in letting that slip through the cracks until
now, especially given it's scope and charitable intent. This weekend's
shows will be Fort Creek's first since rocking The Rockstar Bar last
month, and since an unspecified health issue forced them out of their
Reggie's West gigs two weeks ago, so I'd assume the band member is
rested ready to go once again! TOMORROW'S Rockstar Bar show is a normal
one for them (complete with a requisite merchandise giveaway), but what
should you know about SATURDAY'S set?
The
Fundraiser For Injured Riders has been set up to help three area
residents who were seriously injured in motorcycle accidents, with
proceeds going to help them with long term expenses. Wonderful cause,
and hopefully Eric, Savi, and Pierre get lots of help at this time of
need! Taking place outside of United Floors at the corner of Second Line
West and People's Road (same building as Surplus Furniture), Fort Creek
are the musical entertainment playing in the parking lot, while
attendees can also expect a car show/shine, prizes, a 50/50 draw, and
refreshments. Sounds like a fun time, so keep all of these aspects of
the fundraiser in mind for SATURDAY! The Rockstar Bar show TOMORROW is
the usual 10:00 PM and 19+ affair with no cover charge, while the
Fundraiser For Injured Riders is an all ages, family friendly event
starting at 2:00 PM (I don't know when Fort Creek's sets are, but the
event runs until 9:00 PM, so they may be at the later end of the
schedule).
There is no advertised cover charge on SATURDAY unless you're entering the car show. Of course, it goes with out saying to please
be mindful of social distancing regulations at The Rockstar Bar and
mask up where required, and while an outdoor charity fundraiser will
presumably have less red tape re: the pandemic, use common sense to
ensure everyone has a safe time, especially as this is a family event.
Visit the above links for more on Fort Creek's busy weekend, and here
they are live at Reggie's West!
Next
up, we have two notable bands to reluctantly move to our inactive band
links due to a year's inactivity, starting with local punk/metal quintet
Jack Spades. The band has not updated their Facebook page
since a condolence post in July 2020, and while you can easily blame
the pandemic for their silence in the past year+, frontman J.D. Pearce
has since moved out of town for work reasons, which would understandably
impair the band's activity level. Jack Spades made their live debut in
May 2013 and would become a live favourite in shows through the fall of
2019, often at concerts J.D. promoted. You may recall seeing Jack Spades
open for notable bands like Anvil, Random Killing, and The Ripcordz,
while also touring as a support band a few times in Ontario, and playing
multiple Spiderfests in Meyersburg, not to mention their 2014 EP "The
First" & their involvement in 2015's "Fed Up!" split CD.
A
break was slated to end in May 2020 at the long-since-cancelled
Anti-Queens concert, complete with teased lineup changes (Tiffany &
Daniel had both already moved out of town), but the pandemic obviously
ground short term plans to a halt. As we did see Frightlight back in
Ophir last month, a Jack Spades reunion could theoretically happen at
any point if J.D.'s in the Soo with a full lineup ready, but it is sad
to see such a prominent band fade out, especially given their energy
blast of hardcore punk and metal intensity at every gig! Best of luck to
J.D., Tiffany, Daniel, Rob, Johnny, whoever joined their 2020 lineup,
and their prior bandmates in the future!
Finally, the other big band moved to our inactive band links is local punk trio Stegadeth,
coincidentally also featuring Jack Spades guitarist Tiffany Stocco and
drummer Johnny Belanger. Like Jack Spades, Stegadeth have not posted on their Facebook page
since July 2020, and had not played live since 2019 (in their case, at
that year's Oh!No Festival), and while the pandemic is an obvious
factor, Tiffany moved out of town beforehand in the fall of 2019.
Punk-centric successors to early-2010s metal quartet T-Rex Manning (even
carrying over that band's lone original "She Banged The Mayor"),
Stegadeth debuted on stage in November 2016, and would become a fan
favourite sight at various concerts over the next three years, including
sets opening for the likes of The Ripcordz, K-Man & The 45s, and
Speaker, and appearances at both Joni Radford's benefit & memorial
concerts.
While they had no albums to show for it, and Tiffany
didn't have the more forceful vocals for the genre, Stegadeth delivered
the punk goods for fans here and in Southern Ontario in the late 2010s,
and hopefully we'll see them back in some form when Tiffany comes back
home and the pandemic eases up! Best of luck to Tiffany, Bill, Johnny,
and Daniel in the future, and that's all for today, but stay tuned for
more news on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
Before we begin our extended Oh!No preview, just a heads up/apology, as Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnisheddid play a morning matinee at Biggby Coffee today, as per their Facebook page shortly after showtime. In other words, "every Thursday" continued for at least one more week, though why not plug it as part of their advertising for this week's other concerts? In any event, I apologize for missing it, and hopefully it was a great show! Note that Tarnished have no advertised shows publically past Saturday in Ohio, so I'm not going to immediately jump the gun on more Biggby gigs until the band or venue confirms them. Stay tuned in any event!
Now, today's second weekend concert preview post is otherwise devoted to our extended preview of this weekend's third annual Oh!No concert festival, which returns to Robbie Adamson's old church in nearby Leeburn, Ontario for an expanded two night format TOMORROW & SATURDAY! As well advertised via diverse fundraisers in recent months (everything from dance parties & garage sales to car washes and punk rock ramen), organizers Six, Two, Oh. are going all out for year #3, and as usual, camping is encouraged for attendees taking the hour-long drive, and all of the usual fan-friendly experiences are presumably back this weekend, including vendors and hopefully another bonfire (any more pianos or organs they can use?) Check the official Facebook page for full non-musical details and even the precise location of the venue and camping areas, but let's dive into this stacked roster of local and touring entertainment, as 25 acts will hit the church stage in Leeburn this weekend, so who can you look for to start things off tomorrow night?
Only one touring band is playing tomorrow's shortened first half of Oh!No III, and they are Sudbury "party violence" quintet The Therapists in their third local concert appearance and second straight Oh!No set, and with their high energy, intense, and theatrical stage show, they should leave a huge impression on Leeburn once again! They're up at 12:20 AM, while the all-local opening roster will be toplined by rapper (and festival newcomer) Kodex at 11:40 PM. Punk/metal quintet Jack Spades will become the first band to play all three Oh!No festivals at 11:00 PM, while hip-hop duo Planet Rock will return from last year at 10:20 PM. Jack Spades' sister punk trio Stegadeth will make their own Oh!No debut at 9:40 PM, and tomorrow's lineup will be opened by local alt-folk solo artist Brenton "Slumshine" Ellis at 9:00 PM, who previously played here in 2017. I don't know if the spacing of the heavier/punk bands alternating with the hip-hop/solo acts is intentional, but the lineup is very impressive overall!
For what it's worth, Planet Rock were originally slated to play on Saturday afternoon, but quietly traded timeslots with Hannah Lindsay for unannounced reasons. Doors open at 8:00 PM for tomorrow's concert action, this is an ALL AGES event, and a B.Y.O.B. policy is in effect. There are no single day passes, so if you want to come down, buy a $40 ticket at the door or at Case's Music, The Rad Zone, and at Dryer Fire on Bruce Street (for maximum value, camp out and stick around on Saturday!) There's a lot to take in tomorrow, so see above for more details, and here's The Therapists live!
As for Saturday's lineup, the other 19 acts are being crammed into a full day's worth of music, including all of the non-Therapists touring acts, so who all can you see then? The 1:00 AM headliners are (surprisingly) St. Catharine's crossover thrash quintet Pisser, but a prominent act for many will precede them at 12:00 AM, namely Peterborough hardcore punk trio Cross Dog (featuring Sault Ste. Marie native Mark Rand and his wife Tracy), and it will be great to see them back on a local stage after melting many faces at Oh!No II! The festival-ending block of out of town bands will also feature Sudbury punk quartet Lightmares (in their third straight Oh!No set) at 11:00 PM, as well as Thunder Bay hardcore band Femur at 10:00 PM, and Montreal classic rockers Wrecker (who just played at Dryer Fire yesterday) at 9:00 PM. Drone/noise trio Pointless will be the highest placed local band at 8:10 PM in their third Oh!No set, while Peterborough doom rapper Garbageface will precede them in his second festival appearance, and he'll be no stranger to local fans from Soo gigs either!
Thunder Bay hardcore group Lord Hidetora will make their local concert debut at 6:50 PM, as preceded by fellow Thunder Bay desert rockers The Franquilizers at 6:10, in their third Oh!No set. Toronto indie rock quartet Forest City Aurora will return from last year with a 5:30 PM set, but with two exceptions, every preceding band is local. Instrumental surf rockers The Dynowaves will return from Oh!No II with a set at 5:00 PM, while revived acoustic punk solo project Telephone & Address are advertised to end their almost two years-long concert hiatus with a set at 4:30 PM (though I have not seen Chris plug their return publically on the band's Facebook page, for what it's worth.) Funk/hard rock quartet The Elements will also join the three-timers club with a set at 4:00 PM, and rapper Conika will take the stage for a 3:30 PM set. New Barrie "witchy punk" trio The Angry Spells (featuring Beaver Slap frontwoman Midge Beaver) will perform themselves 3:00 PM.
Fresh off of the timeslot trade with Planet Rock, local folk/pop solo artist Hannah Lindsay (replacing Dusty Hazelwood) will perform on Saturday at 2:30 PM, while Barrie punk quartet The Speed Humps will play at 2:00 PM as the earliest touring band that day. The opening acts are indie/folk musician Shae Tull at 1:30 PM and cybergrind solo project Malignant Neoplasm at 1:00 PM, though might that set morph into a C.T.W. set? Time will tell, but all of the pre-Elements bands are making their Oh!No debuts that afternoon. Doors open at 12:00 PM, and the same $40 ticket info applies as above, so be sure to visit the above links for full details on Oh!No III! The size, scope, and ambition of this festival continues to impress, but how will things go in Leeburn this time, and beyond adding a third day, how big can this get if it returns in 2020? Get down to Leeburn if you can for all of the action this weekend, and here's Pisser live!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!
We haven't had a post on here that wasn't focused around weekend concert previews, a single band, or a single concert on here since March 3rd, so let's remedy that with a new news post today! Along with some assorted news posts and a video from a big recent concert, let's begin with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this month, plus new videos from it's headliners!
Local power rock quintet Re:Born will play their fourth live show and first of 2019 when they headline a special Soo Blaster concert on Friday, March 29th! Essentially a warm-up gig for the Killer Dwarfs concert at the same venue on April 27th (which Re:Born are opening), this will be the Project 421 successors' first public concert in over five months, and will notably mark their live debut with new frontwoman Elly McWatters, prior guest spots excepted. This should be a solid opportunity to let Elly get warmed up before they open for The Killer Dwarfs next month, so come out at month's end to see how she does! As far as I know, guitarist Frank McGillivray will not be present at this concert due to his ongoing work commitments out of town. The opening act on the 29th will be local acoustic hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison, in his Soo Blaster debut, and marking a rare support appearance from him at a non-charity/festival gig.
Tym's unplugged and prolific covers should prove to be a fitting support on this night, so if you can't make it to Gliss that evening, you have a second chance! This 19+ concert has a $5 cover charge, and while a start time wasn't announced when Re:Born first plugged the show on their Facebook page yesterday, remember that Tym's Friday matinee concerts tend to end by 10:00 PM. While Soo Blaster isn't a common venue for us yet, Re:Born and Tym Morrison should provide a solid compliment at the Queen Street East sports bar in a few weeks, so definitely visit the above links for more details! While we're on the subject, Re:Born posted two new jam session videos to their Facebook page on Saturday, including their rendition of Black Sabbath's "Children of the Sea" and, as embedded below, their new-ish original "Die Another Day", so how does the new lineup (minus Frank) sound so far?
Laid out more like a concert stage this time out, the songs are strongly performed, and Elly's voice has a nice melody to it that suits the material, but her stage presence is still a little stiff. I'm curious to hear more, but will more videos turn up before March 29th? Stay tuned just in case, but give Re:Born's new video performances a look above & below!
Next up, here's the fifth and final video that Christopher Paci shot at the Joni Radford memorial concert (a.k.a. the Punk Rock Princess Fest) on March 2nd, namely of Algonquin Pub openers Stegadeth covering SNFU's "Painful Reminder"! Filmed on the vertical camera angle, Chris still got a good vantage point, roughly the same as on his Jack Spades video from later that night. Tiffany's hard to hear vocally, but the cover is well done, so give it a look below, and see more from this event via Chris' YouTube channel!
Finally, here's some assorted shorter news
items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order
by artist or promoter name:
I have moved local black metal/ambient solo project Abhorrent Forest to our inactive band links, as they have not posted a public update to their Facebook page (cover photo update aside) since releasing their "To See Eternity" EP one year ago yesterday. Featuring one half of Dullahan, Abhorrent Forest were primarily known for their three Bandcamp EP releases in 2017 & 2018, never venturing out of the studio or even adding a vocalist. Wyrn had promising material in the locally limited black metal scene, and here's hoping he brings Abhorrent Forest back down the line!
A local guitarist
named Jasper Collins is looking for other musicians (ideally bassists,
drummers, and other guitarists) to jam with, though he's not looking for
gigs at present, and having room to play is an asset. Other than Jasper
citing "rock & metal" as what he likes to play, I don't know anything
about his musical background, but if you'd like more
details, message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from February 23rd!
On February 26th, local concert promoters Live705 shared the logo for the acclaimed American independent label Metal Blade Records onto their Facebook page,
while noting that "2019 is going to be a good year for metal. More
details coming soon." This at least heavily implies that Live705 has
booked a concert featuring a current Metal Blade artist for later this
year, but if true, who, where, and when? Stay tuned if updates come in!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates in the coming days! Thanks everyone!
Hey guys, it's time at last for our review of last night's Joni Radford memorial concerts, a.k.a. Punk Rock Princess Fest! Due to the unique split-venue nature of the event, I'm going to review the bands playing upstairs at The Rockstar Bar in our next post, with this one focusing on the downstairs action and general concert info. Of course, this event was completely devoted to Joni's memory, with pretty much every TV and screen showing a slideshow of pictures of her and inspirational quotes, which was a great touch to allow everyone to remember her life and good times! T-shirts and sweatshirts were on sale, not unlike the ones from the David Gold memorial shows in 2012, and Joni's own Bad Religion canvas poster was raffled off before The Cover-Up's set upstairs. Event co-promoter and Case's Music owner Carrie Suriano spoke before Destroilet's set to thank everyone for making this event possible and give a toast to Joni, though if other teased presentations and speeches occurred, I was on the wrong floor.
Attendance was excellent, especially for the final two bands upstairs, but from about 9:00-11:00 PM, when bands were actively playing on both floors, the attendance was understandably thinned out as people chose their preferred bar and/or band. It may have been a more impressive group for the long-term if everyone was on one floor, but this felt more like a special event the way it was structured. Thank goodness for the wristbands so I could freely hop between floors! As the Algonquin Pub bands straddled with the first two bands upstairs, I didn't see any of their full sets, so if I missed any special performances or Joni tributes, I completely apologize.
A minor band swap resulted in The Algonquin Pub/Spin Nightclub's first band being local punk trio Stegadeth (the only returning band from Joni's benefit show last year), who got a solid crowd early, possibly helped by mostly playing unopposed. Fans gathered saw a solid set of originals like "Kingdom of Ashes" & "The Wire" alongside covers from the likes of GG Allin, The Dead Kennedys, SNFU, and yes, Bad Religion, among others. Musically, Stegadeth were on form, with Tiffany Stocco nailing some solid riffs, and her and bassist Bill Bennett were a nice compliment, but the vocals were often very muffled. My big takeaway is that Tiffany and Bill should work on their stage presences and between-song banter, as things were a bit stiff (especially compared to Johnny Belanger's energy on drums.) Solid blast of punk overall though for Stegadeth!
Post-lineup switch, the second downstairs band was now Stegadeth's side project Coral Fang, a tribute to Los Angeles punk legends The Distillers. Things didn't change dramatically in tone, as Tiffany and Johnny remained on stage, now joined by A Dire Setback's Chris Nielsen and Destroilet's Adam Larcoque. This was Coral Fang's third public show, but the first time I've seen them live, and fans were treated to renditions of such Distillers songs as "Drain The Blood", "Dismantle Me", "City of Angels", and (of course) "Coral Fang". I am not a Distillers scholar, but from what I know of their songs, I can tell that everyone performed well and tackled these songs with energy and enthusiasm! Adam did seem to be standing a little far from everyone else, and Tiffany should project her voice more to match Brody's intensity on the original songs, but overall, this was a natural extension, and here's hoping we hear more from Coral Fang!
Headlining the bottom floor action was local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades, completing Tiffany and Johnny's triple-booking on this night (good thing they didn't have to lug all their gear upstairs!) Their set followed a pseudo-Handsome Sandwich jam by Johnny, Jesse Cook, and Jack Spades bassist Rob Speers, but we soon learned that Jesse was filling in for an absent Daniel Horton on guitar for the set proper. No word on why Dan wasn't there, but it was nice to see Jesse back with his old band for at least one night! Returning to the stage for the first time in six months, Jack Spades picked up where they left off with an explosive set of originals like "Breakneck Speed", "Sewer City Radio" (improvised lyrics and all), and "Crossroads", plus some later fan favourite covers. This set gave us more of Jack Spades' intense and hard hitting sound, with J.D. Pearce at his aggressive top form, and Rob Speers' bass lines came through well! Great way to end things at the Algonquin Pub!
Overall, the musical lineup downstairs was entertaining and delivered in their own ways, and huge kudos to Tiffany and Johnny for pulling triple duty in three different bands, not to mention Rob, Jesse, and Adam playing in different bands on each floor! I hope the Algonquin Pub lineup didn't fly under the radar too much, but if you missed out, I did get photos and videos of all three bands, the latter now available on our Facebook page and at this link (both floors are in that album.) As for videos, here's Stegadeth covering The Rebel Spell's "All We Want", Coral Fang covering The Distillers' "Sick Of It All", and Jack Spades playing "Motorwolf"!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for our review of the Rockstar Bar half of Punk Rock Princess Fest in our next post! Thanks everyone!
Today's SMS post concludes this weekend's concert previews with a massively extended preview of a big memorial show tomorrow night with a very unique angle, but we also have some assorted shorter stories to close things with, with more to come. For now, here's what you should know!
The highly anticipated benefit/memorial punk concert for the late Joni Radford goes down at The Algonquin Hotel TOMORROW NIGHT! Over a month after her passing, and following her lengthy battle with breast cancer, her friends and fans in the local music scene will gather to honour her memory for "Punk Rock Princess - An Evening in the Memory of Joni Radford", with seven local bands joining forces for a celebration she'd surely appreciate. Alongside the music, a slideshow will be showing pictures of her throughout the night, limited sweaters and t-shirts will be on sale, and there will be some form of guest speakers & presentations as well. All concert proceeds (including the $10 tickets/entrance fee) will go to Sault Area Hospital and the St. John’s Ambulance Pet Therapy Program in her name, which are great and fitting causes! Be sure to visit the Facebook event page for all non-musical details. This event is 19+, and as far as I know, admission covers both floors.
Seven bands are scheduled for tomorrow, but in a surprise announcement that only broke publically this week (following scattered personal Facebook hints), the bands will be playing on both floors of The Algonquin Hotel, with 4 bands playing upstairs at The Rockstar Bar and 3 bands playing downstairs at The Algonquin Pub (a.k.a. Spin Nightclub), and the bands will more or less be playing concurrently! That's definitely a unique idea to have a specific multi-level event like this there, and it presents a challenge if you want to see every band, but I will try my best, and thanks to Destroilet's Christian Foisy for his help in the schedule confirmation and timeslots!
Starting our band previews upstairs, the memorial concert will be headlined by online page-less punk quartet The Cover-Up unopposed at 12:00 AM, and might we hear frontman Dustin Jones' "Punk Rock Princess" tribute song to Joni for the occasion? Hardcore punk veterans Destroilet will finally end their 2+ year concert hiatus when they co-headline at The Rockstar Bar half at 11:00 PM, and I'd fully expect their cover of The Rebel Spell's "Murderers" (which Joni guested on in studio) to turn up! Returning co-vocalist Brent Ellis will not be in the lineup. Indie/punk quintet Northwest will deliver their original attack upstairs at 9:00 PM, while the opening band on this floor will be funk/hard rock quartet The Elements. Very solid & punk-heavy lineup at The Rockstar Bar alone, so keep the upstairs entertainment in mind for tomorrow night! I still don't have a public Cover-Up video for a preview, so in lieu of that, here's Destroilet covering "Murderers" live!
Meanwhile, the three bands playing at The Algonquin Pub all have a common thread, namely guitarist Tiffany Stocco, so while she has a long night ahead, at least she can keep her gear on one floor! The closing band on this floor will be punk/metal quintet Jack Spades at 10:30 PM in their first show in 6 months, so they should provide a solid blast for the occasion, and if you're planning to stay downstairs, they'll end in time to see the last two bands upstairs! Local punk trio Stegadeth will co-headline on the bottom floor at 9:30 PM, while Distillers tribute band Coral Fang will play their third public concert set to lead off the night at 8:30 PM (and they're unopposed until The Elements begin at 9:00, so keep that in mind also.) The lineup at The Algonquin Pub is solid as well, so don't bypass either floor tomorrow, and I will see you guys there to help honour Joni the right way! See above for complete details on this huge memorial show, and here's Jack Spades live!
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:
Local death metal veterans The Bear Hunters quietly unveiled the cover art & final track order for their second studio album "The Dead Testament" on their Facebook page on February 17th! The artwork is surprisingly minimalistic, with the band logo and album name on a black textured background, but maybe simple is best? As of the 17th, the design is complete, and "printing shall commence", but when will see this long awaited CD? Keep tabs for updates!
Dynowaves/ex-Bizotic trumpet player (Francine) Louise Lamothe is looking to join or launch another local band, but in this case, she indicated that she'd love to sing lead and help organize concerts eventually. A genre range wasn't given, but if you're interested in working with Louise, message her at this link or via her Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from yesterday!
This came to our attention on too short of notice to mention here, but the reunited This Is Your Band On Drugs and the debuting Full-Send (p.k.a. PCxFascist?) quietly dropped out of Tuesday night's Rotopsy-promoted grind/death metal concert at The New American Pub, as per updates on the Facebook event page. Reasons for the withdrawals were not announced, but hopefully nothing bad happened in either camp, and remember that Chase did still play as Awokest. Local rapper Mike "Reeder" Reed-Lecuyer was added to replace one/both acts, and hopefully he added a strong element!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next, and much more news soon! Thanks everyone!
Before we begin this all-LOCAL CONCERT ALERT post (including one on SHORT NOTICE), just a heads up that tomorrow's scheduled Chase Wigmore concert at The Rednecks Saloon has been cancelled, as per the quiet deletion of it's Facebook event page this morning. A reason for the cancellation wasn't announced, but public updates on the show never followed the event's postponement to February 2nd. Very disappointing, especially following the poll that got this show booked, but hopefully we see Chase back out there soon! Now, here's what you should know on all of these new concerts!
Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to The Water Tower Pub for one night only TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this concert was quietly announced on the Sault Music Newsletter's Facebook page on Tuesday (oddly sans a venue calendar for this month), but at least Soundcheck publically acknowledged the show afterward via their own Facebook event page. Preceding their Soolebrity Showcase Saturday gig at The Machine Shop tomorrow night, TONIGHT'S Water Tower Pub show will be Soundcheck's first advertised stop there in four months. If you've missed Terry, Travis, Paul, and Glen at this popular Great Northern Road venue this winter, why not check out their hard rocking covers TONIGHT? This 19+ show has a 9:30 PM start time and no announced cover charge. See the above links for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!
Next up, local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns will return to The Rockstar Bar for one night only on Saturday, February 9th (a.k.a. one week from tomorrow!) Booked through Maxx Entertainment's recent working relationship with the venue, this is advertised as being the band's "debut at The Rockstar Bar", but that's not exactly true. Rob & Jesse played there in February and March of last year (video proof of the former here) before they settled on their permanent name and added Christina Speers on lead vocals, so you could still say this is the first full Wyld Stallyns show there post-name & lineup finalization. In any event, this should be a prime opportunity for fans to check out their hard rocking and often varied selection of covers, with crowd participation presumably likely! Presumably a one nighter due to Friday karaoke, a 10:00 PM start time is in effect for this 19+ show, which has no announced cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details!
Finally, a special tribute concert for the late Joni Radford will take place at The Rockstar Bar on Saturday, March 2nd! Entitled "Punk Rock Princess - An Evening in Memory of Joni Radford", the event will honour Joni's life, courage, and friendship with a night full of local punk music, with all proceeds going to both Sault Area Hospital and the St. John’s Ambulance Pet Therapy Program in her name. Alongside the bands, there will be a picture slideshow on display, tribute t-shirts and sweaters will be on sale, and there will be some level of guest speakers and presentations as well. Visit the Facebook event page for full details on the non-musical elements next month! A performance order has not yet been finalized, but 7 mostly punk bands will take the stage in Joni's memory on March 2nd, all but one in their first publically announced concert of 2019, so who can you see then? In terms of direct Joni links, how does the first live appearance in over 2 years from hardcore punk sextet Destroilet sound?
We last saw Destroilet at the first Guy Thiffault tribute show in December 2016, even longer still with returning co-vocalist Brenton Ellis, and it's great to see them back "later rather than sooner" at last! I'd fully expect Destroilet to break out their cover of The Rebel Spell's "Murderers" next month, which Joni sang backing vocals on in studio. Fans will also see online page-less quartet The Cover-Up (not The Cover-Ups) next month, who may break out frontman Dustin Jones' tribute song "Punk Rock Princess" for good measure, so keep watch for that! Punk trio Stegadeth (the only returning band from Joni's benefit concert last year) will also hit the stage, as will two of Tiffany & Johnny's other bands, namely punk/metal quintet Jack Spades (in their first show in 6 months) and their new Distillers tribute quartet Coral Fang. The lineup will be rounded out by indie-punk quintet Northwest and funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, who have been known to cover ska-punk live.
Stellar lineup of some of the best in recent local punk music, so genre fans won't want to miss this lineup next month! Co-presented by Kat Foisy and Case's Music's Carrie Suriano, the Punk Rock Princess tribute show has a $10 entry fee (ticket details forthcoming), a 19+ age limit, and a firm 8:30 PM start time. Whether you knew her as an avid punk concertgoer, bartender, or close friend, before or after her cancer battle, this will be a must-attend event for anyone who knew Joni and was impacted by her loss. I know she'll be there in spirit, so visit the above links for current details on this memorial concert next month, and stay tuned for more news soon. Thanks everyone!
Before we begin, I wanted to apologize for a missed concert in last weekend's previews, as The Wyld Stallyns apparently played at The Canadian Motor Hotel on Saturday night. Given their acoustic nature, my guess is The Upper Deck Bar & Grill, but they weren't specific in their vague post on their Facebook page that same day, and there was no online promotion from band or venue that I found otherwise. I apologize again, and we'd have covered the show had it received more notice and information, but hopefully it was a hit! Now, here's some new videos, long overdue coverage of a local journalist's music articles, and a new addition to our band links!
We have a new band to add to our active band links on the site, and they are Poison Girl, another tribute band from this year's Halloween Party concerts at The Rockstar Bar! Essentially a spin-off of local punk trio Stegadeth,
that band's members (singer/guitarist Tiffany Stocco, bassist Bill
"Orthae" Bennett, and drummer Johnny Belanger) joined forces with
Machines Dream/ex-Gates of Winter keyboardist Brian Holmes to round out
this lineup, playing a tribute set to Finnish gothic rock notables
H.I.M. (the Poison Girl name comes from a H.I.M. song from their 2000 CD
"Razorblade Romance".) Unlike the Facebook page for Tiffany &
Johnny's other Halloween tribute band-turned-actual project (the
Distillers tribute Coral Fang),
there's not much written up or teased, but continued activity is
implied. After all, why would a one-off band launch a Facebook page,
especially when you could technically argue that they're just Stegadeth +
1?
I was never high on H.I.M. during their run (I
honestly prefer Daniel Lioneye), but at their peak, they were a big deal
among goth kids and Bam Margera fans around my age, and one wonders how
big Poison Girl would have been had they formed even a decade earlier.
Still, this is definitely a unique tribute band, locally speaking, and
I'd be curious to hear how they handle H.I.M.'s better known songs!
Hopefully some public media turns up, and stay tuned for more from
Poison Girl when it rolls in!
Next up, I wanted to take some time to talk about a prolific columnist for SaultOnline that we've mentioned here before, but not to the extent he deserves. If you follow that local news site regularly, you'll be familiar with writer Ernest Skinner, who has penned a series of columns there since last year like the editorial series Monet, Manet, and Mayonnaise & the Soo Greyhounds-centric Dog Treats. While Ernest had occasionally addressed music in the former (like when he covered last year's Dokken concert), he launched a full column in June devoted to rock music essays & interviews entitled Rock Talk, and he has posted 22 entries under this new title over the past 5 months. Among other artists, Ernest has interviewed the likes of ex-Queensryche singer Geoff Tate, Megadeth bassist David Ellefson, ex-Motley Crue singer John Corabi, Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner, metal queen Lee Aaron, and Helix frontman Brian Vollmer, so check these and more out above!
While primarily themed around interviews, Rock Talk has included general articles include his thoughts about Castle Farms in Charlevoix, bands Accept & The Dead Daisies, the movie This Is Spinal Tap, hard rock musicians' educational backgrounds, the Hear 'n Aid charity single, upcoming concerts in Ontario & Michigan, and lately, a lot of promotion and hype for the Steel Panther concert at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino this Saturday (our preview is coming later this week!) After reading a bunch of Ernest's articles & interviews, I can say that he writes in a very relatable fashion and does a good job of explaining the impact and appeal of various rock music topics, and his formatting and editing of his interviews has improved quickly! For a freelance columnist, he's definitely secured some familiar names, and in a few select cases, he got some audio and video soundbites from them, so don't scroll too fast, just in case you miss anything!
In fact, here's one of John Corabi from August, as uploaded to SaultOnline's YouTube channel back in August (and in conjunction with the interview linked above.) Running for just 19 seconds, it's just a brief plug for Ernest's interview and Sault Online/ONNtv, but it's nice to see a familiar face hyping up Sault Ste. Marie like this, and here's hoping he can bring The Dead Daisies or another project up north! Give it a look below, see much more from Ernest above, and I've linked his SaultOnline page in our "Other Local Metal Links" as Rock Talk with Ernest Skinner!
Finally, here's some videos from local/St. Catharine's grindcore trio Shit Liver's Facebook page that we haven't yet covered on the SMS! Apologies for the delay in the first two, but they are admittedly brief and sans music of theirs. Both shot while on their "Hitting the Fan" release tour in April, one video is just 10 seconds of road footage in British Columbia from their vehicle, while the other is a 5 second video of "Bigfoot" being sighted (though he looks suspiciously familiar when the camera zooms in!) Embedded below is their newest video from this past Saturday, when they were en route to Toronto for their last advertised concert of the year. Another short video (17 seconds), this is filmed by guitarist Josh Penno from the passenger seat, and it features drummer Matt Baic finishing a sandwich before the band encounters roadkill. Circle of life, I suppose, but it's nice to see a new official video posting of any kind on their page! Give these a look above & below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!
Finally, let's cap off our 5 posts in 5 days run over the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend (unless there's more tomorrow?!) Below, you'll find a lengthy new concert video, our preview of a big annual concert festival tomorrow, and first, a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for TONIGHT, so here's what you should know on this Saturday morning!
Local alt-folk/metal singer/guitarist Chase Wigmore will rock Room 21 TONIGHT as the opening act for new alternative rock quartet Man Feelings! Apologies for the short notice, we only heard about Chase's involvement via the official Facebook event page on Thursday. Potential open mic nights aside, this is the first time I've heard of Chase playing at the nightclub above Low & Slow, and this could be seen as a warm-up for his Soo Blaster gig on Friday. As far as I can tell, this is a solo set, but we know how intense and creative his solo shows can be, so don't miss out by being late TONIGHT! As for the headliners, Man Feelings are the new local band featuring Bizotic alum B.J. Swire among other artists, and this will be just their third public concert set, following the Carried Away concert in August and Soo Blaster's first Indie Music Showcase. From video footage I've seen, they have an accessible but eclectic modern indie rock sound, and they should be a good fit in their Room 21 debut!
TONIGHT'S concert has a 10:00 PM door-opening time, a 19+ age limit, and despite being a multi-act event, no cover charge. Fans of creative alternative rock might want to consider this show for your live concert plans TOMORROW, and you never know what you'll get from Chase, so don't bypass the action at Room 21! See above for more details, and here's Chase live!
Next up, here is our extended preview of the seventh annual Toystock charity concert, which goes down TOMORROW for a fourth straight year at The Grand Gardens North! Presented once again by (Choose) Maxx Entertainment, this annual event will once again see 10 bands playing live across 10 hours, with all proceeds going to Christmas Cheer to help less fortunate families, which is always a worthy cause at this time of year! As such, admission is still purely by donation of a new or slightly used toy, non-perishable food items, or cash, and this is absolutely ALL AGES. Good thing too, as Santa Claus AND Mr. Bon Soo will be on hand to meet the kids! Plus you can expect face painting, a photo booth, a kids play area, and the Stuff-A-Bus, plus hopefully prize draws and refreshments like in past years. Visit the official Facebook event page for complete non-musical details regarding Toystock VII! In a departure from past installments, Toystock's 2018 lineup is mostly comprised of returning bands, with only three newcomers on this year's bill.
In advertised performance order, fans can look forward to country rock veterans Bone Yard playing their record sixth Toystock set as the 9:00 PM headliners, while classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will co-headline in their second straight year at 8:00 PM (and look for drummer Glen Thomas to donate a drumkit to a lucky child tomorrow night too!) Classic rock quartet Obsession are on at 7:00 PM in their third Toystock set and first in five years, while two newcomers precede them, namely new local acoustic quartet Chunks of Manh at 6:00 PM and country singer/guitarist Brendan Hodgson
at 5:00 PM. Classic rock veterans The Algo Rhythms will play their third Toystock since the Grand Gardens move at 4:00 PM, following the third straight Toystock appearance by a Case's Music
student group at 3:00 PM. Acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns will make their Toystock debut at 2:00 PM, as preceded at 1:00 PM by country duo The Jeff & Jeff Show (not "Jeff & Friends") for their second straight Toystock go-around.
Finally, Bone Yard's acoustic duo side project The Bearded Lounge will open the day's events in their second straight Toystock appearance at 12:00 PM. Sounds like another great day's worth of famly friendly and varied live music from young and established faces alike, and all for a fantastic cause to boot, so consider a trip to 1324 Great Northern Road for all of the action tomorrow and help make Christmas a little better for those in need! Visit the above links for complete details on Toystock VII, and here's Soundcheck live!
Finally for today, here's a newly discovered video of the other hard rock band playing Toystock this year, namely the aforementioned Wyld Stallyns! Apologies for the delay in this making the site, it was quietly live streamed by Live705's Facebook page early last month during their headlining concert on October 5th at the aforementioned Room 21. By far our longest public video look at the Elements side project yet (running for over 34 minutes), this is from the same night as their advertised Tom Petty tribute set, but clearly not at this point of the night. In order, you'll see Christina, Rob, and Jesse covering the second half of Weezer's "(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To", then No Doubt's "Just A Girl", and B.B. King's "The Thrill Is Gone", before the Speers' make way for a couple of guest performers (including Jesse's grandfather) for covers of Merle Haggard's "That's The Way Love Goes" and Kris Kristofferson's "Help Me Make It Through The Night", so country fans may want to take extra note then.
The band proper is reunited for the last 10 minutes, including a love ballad that I can't 100% place ("I Don't Wanna Get Old Without You"?), Janis Joplin's "Mercedes Benz", and Wayne Cochran's "Last Kiss", though readers will better know the Pearl Jam cover. Between the vertical camera angle and audience chatter (especially late), these may not be the optimal looks at The Wyld Stallyns, but you do get a sense of the loose and carefree nature of their usual live shows, and if you haven't had a chance to see them live yet, this is a solid introduction to the full experience! Give it a look below, and don't miss them at Toystock tomorrow afternoon!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!
