Last Month's Poll Results & This Month's Poll!!

It's now time to shut down last month's poll and launch our newest one, as it is the 18th of the month! Last June 18th, we posed this question on the site: What is the best case scenario for getting a new reliable concert venue for metal shows? Only 12 voters, which isn't a high total, but it did give us a clear result, so thanks to everyone who did vote! And now, here are the results!

Just improve attendance to the shows we do get (7 votes, 58%)
Renovate or remodel a venue to attract more events (3 votes, 25%)
Open a new bar/concert venue (or re-open one) (2 votes, 17%)
Get an existing venue to host more shows (0 votes)
Get more live bands going to increase demand (0 votes)
We have enough concert venues as it is (0 votes)

What is the best case scenario for getting a new reliable concert venue for metal shows? - See more at: http://poll.pollcode.com/84351643_result?v#sthash.tnj4mLYP.dpuf

What do you guys think? Well, if you simplify things, it's pretty evenly split between the winning choice "Just improve attendance to the shows we do get" and options that relate to opening or remodeling a concert venue that's already active in town, so even if this is a very small sample size, you can see where opinions fall. I'm glad no one voted to say that we have enough venues (it's clear that we don't), and I can see why no one voted for the other choices, as you can't force people to form bands or let metal bands play at a certain location. It'd be a great to see someone open or remodel a bar or venue, but it's costly, and perhaps not reliable, so the simpler option won out. I can agree that it's simple to just encourage people to attend shows and to actually go to them, not just attend ones that your friends are playing at, or are conveniently close, or are cheap. If you don't attend what we do have, do you think promoters will reward us with better shows?

Thanks to everyone for voting! As for this month's poll, we're continuing a yearly tradition at the SMS, as we're posing this question to you guys: What was your favourite local metal/hard rock/punk concert in the first half of 2014? Though we're now factoring punk bands into our tallies, the criteria is the same as in past instances of our half year polls, as we've included 20 concerts from between January 1st and June 30th of 2014 for you guys to vote on (plus "Other"), and like before, shows must have a 50% ratio of metal, hard rock, and now punk bands on it's lineup to make the poll. This eliminates events like Lopstock, Musicfest, and certain nights of the Bon Soo Marquee, among others, but we include "Other" for a reason! Private events like stag & does aren't included either, hence the Papa Fogals Chair reunion's absence. And like normal, this poll does NOT feature shows from last year (we covered them already), or in July of this year (wait for those when we poll you guys on 2014's second half next year.) There were some big shows this year so far, so here are your choices in this month's poll!

Bands: The Merves
Venue: The Rockstar Bar
Date: January 17th
Info: Continuing their recent trend of playing a Sault Ste. Marie date each January, local punk veteran Mikey Hawdon's Toronto-based Ramones tribute band came back to The Rockstar Bar to help kick off 2014, with new singer Amy Zuchetto on hand with their new half-Joan Jett cover theme, and fans definitely are it up! Was The Merves' first 2014 date your favourite concert of the year so far?

Bands: Pillory, Rotopsy, The Strange Coyotes, Crucify the Whore, The Bear Hunters, Project 421, Chase Wigmore, the original Brutaly Fatal, and Mike Haggith & The Din
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: January 24th
Info: Inclement weather forced planned headliners TheKillingField & Buried Out Back to drop out on short notice, so there was a lot of late lineup shuffling and additions for this show, Heavy North Entertainment's first since launching as a company. Notably featuring the reunion of Mike Haggith & The Din, Project 421's first show with singer Curtis McKenzie, and the last appearance by The Strange Coyotes, did you brave the storm to take in this all ages action?

Bands: Punch, The Bear Hunters, and The Elements
Venue: The Roosevelt Hotel (now Reggie's West)
Date: February 6th
Info: The first installment of the short lived Heavy Thursday series at the former Roosevelt Hotel saw Rosie favourites The Bear Hunters, debuting funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, and the most recent show to date from Haggith/Beaumont Avenue hybrid Punch, who all delivered solid sets! J.D. Pearce had a great idea in resurrecting a Thursday series at The Rosie, but was this the best show of early 2014?

Bands: Jack Spades, Project 421, and The Suicide Kings (now Beaumont Avenue)
Venue: The Roosevelt Hotel (now Reggie's West)
Date: February 13th
Info: The second Heavy Thursday at The Rosie saw the local openers of the next month's Anvil concert take to the stage, with Jack Spades, Project 421, and the former Suicide Kings delivering exciting sets of heavy originals and covers! Though all three have played bigger shows since, did you enjoy this late-era Roosevelt Hotel show the most in the past 6 months?

Bands: Late & Loud, The Danger Cats, and Redundant
Venue: The Rockstar Bar
Date: February 21st
Info: Classic metal favourites Late & Loud held a one-off reunion set on February 21st at The Rockstar Bar, reminding all of the Loudmouths how exciting and talented they were in their heyday! Also featuring all-female rockers The Danger Cats and punk trio Redundant's first proper attended concert in 6 months (The Marquee notwithstanding), this was a great way to welcome back (and send off?) Late & Loud, but would you agree?

Bands: T-Rex Manning, Redundant, and Fist Fighting Stephen Hawking
Venue: The Roosevelt Hotel (now Reggie's West)
Date: February 27th
Info: Little did we know it at the time, but the third Heavy Thursday would be one of the last hard rock shows at The Roosevelt Hotel, which closed the next month prior to renovations and a re-opening as the country bar Reggie's West. Also featuring the last live appearances to date from both T-Rex Manning and Fist Fighting Stephen Hawking, was the 64th and final Thursday night metal/punk show at The Rosie your top show of this half of the year?

Bands: Anvil, Caym, Jack Spades, The Suicide Kings (now Beaumont Avenue), and Project 421
Venue: The Canadian Nightclub
Date: March 15th
Info: After two years away, Toronto metal legends Anvil brought the metal on metal back to The Canadian this spring for another well attended and very heavy night of hits! Also featuring the return of extreme metallers Caym and a trio of known and rising local hard rock bands, all of the metal pounders in attendance ate up the action before them, but was Anvil's grand return tops to you in early 2014?

Bands: Skynet, Chronobot, AlgomA, and The Northern Tragedy
Venue: 180 Projects
Date: March 16th
Info: If you weren't feeling the effects from Anvil, a rare metal concert hit 180 Projects the very next night, with Skynet and Chronobot coming in from out of town for a devastating night of their own metal styles, with AlgomA and The Northern Tragedy playing their own sludge and punk to set the tone! Again featuring lots of projector screen action (and even 3D glasses!), this was a unique show to say the least, but was it your favourite so far?

Bands: The Elements, Redundant, Project 421, Obviously D'uh, Cory Murchison & friends, and The Craig West Experience
Venue: The Grand Theatre
Date: March 22nd
Info: New funk rockers The Elements hosted Medi-Fest on March 22nd, a medical marijuana benefit & support fundraiser that attracted a good attendance and awareness to the cause, and a nice diverse lineup of artists! Notably featuring some stand up comedy, the long awaited return of Cory Murchison to the stage, and the debut of Mashagama predecessors Obviously D'uh, were you at Medi-Fest, and did it live up to the hype?

Bands: Who Made Who
Venue: The Rockstar Bar
Date: March 28th
Info: AC/DC tribute favourites Who Made Who made their anticipated return to the Soo on March 28th, albeit at The Rockstar Bar rather than their past Canadian Nightclub destination. Still, a great crowd turned out for this night of high voltage rock n' roll, and with a tribute band of this skill and experience, you can't go wrong! Was Who Made Who's return your favourite early 2014 local hard rock concert?

Bands: The Merves
Venue: The Rockstar Bar
Date: April 4th-5th
Info: Breaking from their usual January only trend, Toronto-based Ramones/Joan Jett tribute quartet The Merves came back to frontman Mikey Hawdon's hometown in early April, rocking The Rockstar Bar once again with punk and hard rock classics! The January show arguably got more promotion, but if you know The Merves, you'll know they delivered a fun set either way, but did you prefer their April stop(s) over other 2014 punk and metal shows?

Bands: Devon Coyote & The Fever Tops
Venue: Cafe Natura
Date: April 15th
Info: Local punk/alternative duo The Fever Tops (who begat The Pixo Control) held a one-off reunion at this Cafe Natura concert in mid-April, where they opened for British Columbia blues rock trio Devon Coyote for a second time! On the surface, not a show many metalheads might have attended, but Devon Coyote have a catchy sound, and it was nice to see The Fever Tops have a proper send-off! Was this your favourite 2014 show?

Bands: Rotopsy, Project 421, Buried Out Back, AlgomA, Crucify the Whore, Bad Back, Like Animals, The Pixo Control, Chase Wigmore, The Danger Cats, and The North Shore
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: April 19th
Info: Though originally planned to have 14 acts, Heavy North Entertainment's Dank Fest all ages marathon still had 11 artists rocking out at The Oddfellows Hall all day, including out of town brutalizers Buried Out Back and Like Animals, the first Oddfellows appearances by AlgomA, The Pixo Control, and The Danger Cats, and plenty of metal to go around, oddly with only one band exceeding 3 members that night! Can you vouch for Dank Fest in this poll?

Bands: Crued
Venue: The Rockstar Bar
Date: May 3rd
Info: Just over a month after Who Made Who rocked The Rockstar Bar, Motley Crue and hair metal fans got their tribute fix when Crued came back to Sault Ste. Marie for a night of Crue classics! In absence of the real thing, Crued have always delivered a faithful and sleazy take on the source material, and I'm sure this show was as successful as their past stops, but would you agree with that?

Bands: Fuck the Facts, Empyrean Plague, Shit Liver, The Bear Hunters, Crucify the Whore, and This Is Your Band on Drugs
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: May 4th
Info: A lower than expected attendance couldn't stop the metal intensity on this night, with Fuck The Facts and Empyrean Plague making the trip west for long awaited returns to the Soo stage! Also featuring Shit Liver's grimy homecoming and CD release, and one of the first local appearances by This Is Your Band On Drugs, fans at The Oddfellows Hall had a definite blast, but was it your #1 metal show of early 2014?

Bands: The Bear Hunters, Sykotyk Rampage, Haggith, Rotopsy, Aggressive Acoustic, Pete Mozarowski, Rihkee Strap, the second Brutaly Fatal (now The Revolution), This Is Your Band On Drugs, DJ Seith, Mike Haggith, and open mic performers
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: May 10th
Info: The fourth annual Sewer Swampstravaganza returned to the spring months on May 10th with it's longest lineup yet, including four time Swampfest veterans The Bear Hunters, Sudbury hard rock from Aggressive Acoustic, Sykotyk Rampage & Haggith's first concerts of the year, a rare Mike Haggith solo set, and an entertaining block of open mic artists to kick off the day! Did this year's Swampstravaganza top the year so far to you?

Bands: Jack Spades, The Elements, Project 421, and Johnny Belanger & Jesse Cook
Venue: The Rockstar Bar
Date: May 16th
Info: Punk/metal quintet Jack Spades launched their debut EP "The First" in style on May 16th at The Rockstar Bar with an explosive set of originals and covers, with members Johnny Belanger and Jesse Cook reprising Johnny's acoustic open mic set at the Swampstravaganza to open this show! Also featuring The Elements and Project 421 (with guest singer Travis McKenzie), a lively crowd reaction and great reviews followed, but would you agree?

Bands: The Great Sabatini, AlgomA, and The Danger Cats
Venue: The Moose Lodge
Date: June 10th
Info: The first Moose Lodge hard rock show of 2014 saw the return of Montreal grind/metal quartet The Great Sabatini to the Soo for a night of explosive all ages metal in their own right! Also featuring Oh! Right Arm! flagship trio AlgomA and The Danger Cats to provide local opening action, were you in attendance for this diverse concert, and did it beat the rest in this poll?

Bands: Heart & Jason Bonham
Venue: The Essar Centre
Date: June 20th
Info: In scope, this was definitely the biggest hard rock concert of 2014 in Sault Ontario, as Seattle/Vancouver hard rock legends Heart hit The Essar Center last month with Jason Bonham on hand to guest on drums and join forces with Heart for a set of memorable Led Zeppelin covers! Lots of great reviews and media attention followed, but were you in attendance, and was it the best early 2014 local concert?

Bands: Anciients, Havok, Wretched, Black Wizard, and The Revolution
Venue: The Canadian Nightclub
Date: June 24th
Info: Arguably the last major metal show of 2014's first half, J.D. Pearce brought in a huge bill of metal via two converging tours, with Vancouver progressive metal standouts Anciients, Colorado thrashers Havok, and North Carolina death metallers Wretched combining for one intense and well recieved show! Though attendance wasn't as high as hoped, fans in attendance didn't miss out on the brutality, but was it your favourite?

Other: Did we miss your favourite? For reference, metal, hard rock, and punk artists like Brad Example & The Role Models, Commencing Human Desperation, Glitch, Gnaeus, Griphook, James Watterworth, Late Shift, Lucky 13, Northwest, Public Animal, RPM, Stiffler's Mom, That's Chester, The Thrill Junkies, and Tym Morrison played live in early 2014 in the Soo, along with additional shows from bands in the above choices, and possibly some in private-only gigs. Maybe your favourite concert was one without a 50% majority of metal, punk, and/or hard rock, or one in Sault Michigan like LemmaFest, or maybe one that doesn't dip into our range? If your preferred choice isn't above, vote for "Other"!

VOTE TODAY!! You guys have until August 18th to cast your votes as we'll hopefully figure out the "winning" show of early 2014, so what was your favourite? Case your votes A.S.A.P., and stay tuned for more news and punk band features this week! Thanks everyone!

Last Month's Poll Results & This Month's Poll!!

Now on the site, we're shutting down last month's poll and launching our newest poll at the SMS! As you may remember, last month's poll from May 18th posed this question: Which of these recently closed local concert venues do you miss seeing metal/hard rock shows at the most? Only 16 votes, which is smaller than I'd have hoped, but the results are interesting and fairly straightforward, so thanks to the voters, and here are your final results!

The original Coch's Corner (5 votes, 31%)
The Eastgate Hotel (4 votes, 25%)
Foggy Notions (3 votes, 19%)
Other (2 votes, 13%)
The Outback (1 vote, 6%)
The Roosevelt Hotel (1 vote, 6%)
GLOW/The Other Place (0 votes)
Smack Daddy's/Bossy's (0 votes)
The Vibe Lounge (0 votes)

What do you guys think? In ascending order, while I'm not too surprised with the venues that received no votes (though somewhat aside from GLOW), The Roosevelt Hotel only receiving a single vote of the 16 cast was particularly shocking, especially given the venue's early-2010s prevalence of metal and punk shows! I know it had other issues, but again, it's all in who votes. The Outback's fifth place tie didn't surprise me too much, while "Other"'s two vote/fourth place finish is also fairly expected, albeit without real knowledge of the voters' intended concert spot that they miss. The Eastgate Hotel's second place run was nice to see, especially considering how fondly remembered it was for many metalheads in the pre-SMS days, but the third and first place finishers (Foggy Notions and, in first with 31% of the votes, the original Coch's Corner) are forever linked from their 2012 closure and merger. It's a small sample size, but both of these downtown bars and concert venues had noticeable success and memorable events during their runs, and when Coch's Corner moved into 708 Queen and went all-acoustic, we did lose two venues as we knew them.

Coch's Corner's old Bay Street location was inviting, hosted many hit concerts, and was in a great location, while Foggy Notions was successful in both homes and gave a cozy reliability to many shows in the 2000s! Both are missed, and if the poll is to be believed, the old Coch's Corner is especially, but be sure to support current venues and bars to keep them going! Thanks to everyone who voted! As for this month's poll, I'm revisiting similar subject matter from last month (relating to local concert venues), as while we still have a number of locations that can and do host metal & hard rock shows, we have lost many in recent years, as noted above. Sure, we recently added Dana's Bar & Grill to the local bar scene, and Reggie's West didn't slam the door on out of town bands, but both are still unproven commodities for some of the big shows we've been used to seeing in Sault Ontario. We have a number of great bars and halls here, but most have their own schedules, preferences, and challenges that can complicate show availability, which has been a concern for some bands and promoters in recent months.

With that said, I'm posing this question to you guys this month: What is the best case scenario for getting a new reliable concert venue for metal shows? Basically, I'm curious to see what people think in terms of local concert venue availability, as to what would be the ideal situation where Sault Ontario would (or wouldn't?) get a new location to host more metal shows in the area. Without any further adieu, here are this month's choices!

Open a new bar/concert venue (or re-open one): Whether it's dreams of owning one's own concert venue, a personal desire to help the local scene, or just missing a venue like Club Princess, buying/leasing property to make a new concert venue is an attractive option, if costly in most cases. Would the solution to any concert availability woes be to open a brand new concert spot, or would the idea not be worth the risk?

Get an existing venue to host more shows: Many local bars and concert halls have hosted metal or hard rock shows in the past, be they original bands or weekend cover acts, but each has their own clientele, schedules, and theme nights that could theoretically pose problems for metal bookings. As we saw at The Rosie in the early 2010s, a working relationship with metal promoters is more than possible, but should a similar idea be done more often to get more reliable venues?

Get more live bands going to increase demand: Sault Ste. Marie is only so big, and there's only so many bands here, but it stands to reason that if there were more live acts, more venues would book more shows to accommodate them. Whether you see this option as an avenue towards the booking levels desired, or an immediate idea to increase show amounts now, should more live bands form to encourage extra bookings?

Renovate or remodel a venue to attract more events: Granted, it's rare where a local bar's theme and design changes in a way that actually helps metal bands (Foggy Notions' brief run as Feedback being a notable exception), but certain concert venues in town may be seen by some as not fitting metal shows, or just in need of a makeover. If an existing bar or concert venue had a new look, theme, or layout, would you see that as a spark for more shows?

Just improve attendance to the shows we do get: This is often cited from promoters and bands in town as an answer to questions relating to why the Soo doesn't get "better" bands. Promoting shows can be very expensive, and if fans don't support what does come through, how can promoters upgrade to bigger and better things? Therefore, is the simplest fix just to get more fans to actually buy tickets and see what does come, therefore increasing funds and demand for bigger things?

We have enough concert venues as it is: Basically, if you find that our current state of concert spots is just fine (or too big?), and you don't think we really need new venues to host shows for whatever reason (financial concerns, dislike of certain shows, etc.), vote for this choice! Given our readership, I imagine this won't do well in the poll, but if this speaks closest to your own preferences, vote here!

VOTE TODAY!! You guys have until July 18th to cast your votes, so let's see what people think on the matter of new or more frequent concert venues in the Sault for metal bands! That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Last Month's Poll Results & Our New Poll!!

As it's the 18th of the month, it's now time for this month's new poll to kick off, and also, time to end last month's poll! As you may remember, last month's poll posed this question to you guys: What was your favourite local metal/hard rock concert of 2013? We got a very solid 50 votes in the past month (2 higher than in the late 2013 poll), so thanks to everyone for voting, but who won our last "favourite _____ of 2013" polls? The results are below!

The Dayglo Abortions at The Rosie on September 9th (17 votes, 34%)
Haggith at The Algonquin Pub on December 7th (13 votes, 26%)
40 Sons at The Rockstar Bar on February 28th (9 votes, 18%)
The Bear Hunters at The Oddfellows Hall on October 30th (2 votes, 4%)
Biipiigwan at The Moose Lodge on November 24th (1 vote, 2%)
Airbourne at The Canadian Nightclub on August 19th (1 vote, 2%)
Bunchofuckingoofs at The Roosevelt Hotel on August 12th (1 vote, 2%)
Swampstravaganza III at Oddfellows Hall on August 10th (1 vote, 2%)
Frightlight at The Roosevelt Hotel on August 1st (1 vote, 2%)
The Golers at The Roosevelt Hotel on July 4th (1 vote, 2%)
The Golers at The Roosevelt Hotel on June 20th (1 vote, 2%)
Skeletonwitch at The Canadian Nightclub on June 3rd (1 vote, 2%)
Other (1 vote, 2%)
The Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands from April 3rd-24th (0 votes)
The Ripcordz at The Algonquin Pub on April 13th (0 votes)
The Crusade at The Canadian Nightclub on May 20th (0 votes)
Striker at The Roosevelt Hotel on June 25th (0 votes)
Oddzfest 2013 at The Oddfellows Hall on July 26th (0 votes)
The Ripcordz at The Roosevelt Hotel on October 26th (0 votes)
Bam Margera at The Canadian on December 14th (0 votes)

What do you guys think? In ascending order, I'm very surprised by the amount of shows that got 0 votes, especially as all received at least one in the half year polls, including the early 2013-winning Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands, and both of last year's Ripcordz shows (which combined for 7 votes!) It's all in who votes, I guess. 8 shows (and "Other") were tied for fifth with a single vote, including a surprising 5 vote dropoff for Frightlight's short film benefit last August, but most finished in an appropriate location given their totals in their predecessor polls. Fourth place went to the Devil's Night show at The Oddfellows Hall last fall (which was only a slight drop from the half-year poll), while in the biggest surprise of all, the first 40 Sons show from last year surged from 1 to 9 votes! More fans must have been on the site in the past month than in the summer! Again though, the late 2013 poll's top 2 voted shows held their spots for the full year poll, with the Haggith farewell show holding steady in 2nd, and in 1st place with 17 votes (34% of the total) was The Dayglo Abortions' gig at The Rosie on September 9th!

I'm still impressed with how well the most recent Dayglo concert has done in these polls, especially given the rainstorm's severe impact on the turnout, but longtime fans of theirs will know exactly what a great show that they put on, and it was well worth the weather!  As one of the last major metal/punk shows at The Rosie, it's extra notable in hindsight too. Thanks to everyone for voting, and here's to a great 2014!

As for this month's poll, I thought I'd cover a topic I've debated doing for a while, but in the wake of some recent concert venue closures and changes in the area, this makes sense to see where people's hearts lie. With that said, here's this month's question: Which of these recently closed local concert venues do you miss seeing metal/hard rock shows at the most? I often hear complaints about there being few places for local metal bands to play at, and we have lost a few notable venues in the last 5 years, but which one has the most fan support nowadays? To be included in the poll, the venue must have closed in the given incarnation in the past 5 years (so no Club Princess), it can't be still open in the form we last knew (i.e. Runway Park), and it must have hosted multiple bands that are on the SMS (so no Bottoms' Up Lounge.) For sake of clarification, we haven't included venues that have the same general band roster despite a name and theme change, hence the absence of The Nicolet Tavern & Madison's Pub.

With that said, I've chosen 8 recently closed concert venues in Sault Ontario to focus on this month (plus two more general options for fans who don't agree with the 8 given), so read on below for your choices in this month's poll!

The original Coch's Corner: Though Coch's Corner lives on at the former Foggy Notions location, I know there are fans who miss it's prior location underneath the former Days Inn on Bay Street, which became a Holiday Inn Express shortly after Coch's moved in early 2012. Unlike it's current incarnation, the old Coch's Corner welcomed non-acoustic metal and punk bands, and hosted many of J.D. Pearce's late 2000s shows, but do you miss the old Coch's Corner's inviting downtown locale?

The Eastgate Hotel: This is a bit of a cheat given that The Eastgate was long closed by the time of it's demolition in 2010, but it was still an active bar as recently as 2006, and there were still some fans holding out hope that it'd return as an active bar/venue in the late 2000s. Now the site of Algoma Insurance parking, The Eastgate was once a go-to location for metal concerts back in the day, but do you miss it more than it's more recent counterparts?

Foggy Notions: The other venue that ended as we knew it due to Coch's Corner's move into it's building in 2012, Foggy Notions (last known as Feedback in late 2011) was a long-time mainstay for music fans at 708 Queen Street East, and before then at 624 Bay Street under a few different owners, hosting a number of notable local and out of town bands, including many metal bands! Small but inviting, do you miss Foggy's more than other recent closed venues?

GLOW/The Other Place: I've long heard discussion relating to buying this Gore Street venue and re-opening it, but nothing has came out since GLOW closed it's doors for the last time in late 2010. Also briefly known as the Nite-Life Dance Club, fans may remember a number of big metal shows there in 2007 & 2008 under it's Other Place moniker, and it had a successful run for dance fans too, but do you miss the venue at 119 Gore more than the rest?

The Outback: The closure & demolition of Sault College's on-campus bar and concert venue in early 2012 may have been a long-term gain in order to facilitate their new Student Wellness Centre (which hosts The Outback's successor Odeno), but there are bound to be many Sault College alumni (like myself) who miss The Outback for it's occasional heavier concerts and memorial events! Do you miss The Outback the most?

The Roosevelt Hotel: Admittedly, the jury's still out on the future of this Korah Road venue as a metal host after recent news media hinted that the now renamed Reggie's West is open to booking out of town bands, but given the original Reggie's Place's full country theme, some fans still have reservations. Largely thanks to The Rosie's former metal & punk night series', it became a go-to spot for concerts in the early 2010s, but is it your most missed recent venue?

Smack Daddy's/Bossy's: This recently closed central bar & venue was most active in mid-2011 as Bossy's Pub N' Grub for metal bookings (including Tym Morrison, Hollow, and more), but longtime patrons probably know it best as Smack Daddy's Bar & Grill. Never as active for SMS-covered concerts as other choices in this poll, Smack Daddy's is being torn down this year to construct office buildings, but will you miss it more than other examples?

The Vibe Lounge: Active as a bar & venue in 2010 & 2011, The Vibe Lounge on Goulais Avenue served fans even deeper into the west end than The Rosie, and it hosted a fair amount of (largely cover) hard rock bands during it's short run. Still the home of the Polish-Canadian Hall (which has recently been a popular wrestling venue), The Vibe Lounge did have some loyal fans when open, but were you among them?

Other: Do you not particularly miss any of these concert venues the most? Is there another closed concert venue that you miss more than these 8? Were you thinking of an older venue like The Windsor Park Hotel or the Ramada Inn? Maybe one that's just been inactive recently, like the Bellevue Park Bandshell? If for any reason, you don't miss any of the above bars and venues, vote for "Other"!

VOTE TODAY!! You have until June 18th to cast your votes, so let's see what you guys think about this month's topic, and let's see what people's general thoughts are on closed concert spots! That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news later today! Thanks everyone!

This Month's SMS Poll, More Ace Frehley Updates, And Woods Of Ypres Tour Info!

Well, it's the 18th of the month once again, so it's time to recap the results of last month's poll, and introduce this month's! As you may remember, last month's poll was "What is your favourite metal concert venue in Sault Ontario?" The results were quite clear, and luckily, there were more votes cast than last time (23)! So here are the results of the poll, and stay tuned after the poll stuff for more updates from the Ace Frehley concert and Woods of Ypres!

Tied for last place were The Bottom's Up Lounge, Madison's Pub, The Outback, The Speakeasy, The Verdi Hall, and "other", none of which received any votes. Most don't surprise me, due mostly to metal inactivity, but I would have assumed The Speakeasy would have gotten at least one vote, they've put on some great concerts in the past year! 5th place went to The Essar Center, which got 13% of the votes. It is nicely set up and has lots of huge concerts (metal or not), but it doesn't have the same appeal that a bar or theater would have for band interaction and more personal stuff. The Oddfellows Hall came in 4th, with 17% of the total. It's got the underground quality to it, and just about anything can happen there in terms of shows, but it's not as nicely set up or as frequent for bookings as some of the top voted venues.

In a tie for second place, with about 22% of the votes each, are The Canadian Nightclub and Coch's Corner, two of the more popular local watering holes, both of which put on some great concerts! I'm honestly surprised The Canadian got the votes it did, as shows aren't as frequent there as at Coch's Corner, and the renovations put a standstill on activity there, but The Canadian is great for shows, I'm happy it got votes too! Coch's Corner, totally agree, I've been a fan of it since my first attended concert there! And in first place, with 26% of the vote, is the The Lock City Grand Theater! Though metal shows there lately haven't been too numerous, The Grand is a beautifully set up venue with alcohol licensing, great sound, and the capacity for some decent name bands! Well deserved #1 choice, here's hoping they'll get to booking more metal real soon!

So there's the results for last month, and now, it's time to discuss this month's poll! And with Three Days Grace returning there next month, as well as some show with some band named Kiss, I figure now is the perfect time to run a poll about The Essar Center, and more specifically, shows that have happened there. Since it's opening in 2006, The Essar Center has played host to numerous major concerts, including four that no doubt qualify as "metal" (and all of which I attended!) So I pose this question to you guys: What was your favourite major metal concert at The Essar Center so far? Here are your choices!

Motley Crue on December 6, 2006: This was actually the very first major concert of any genre at the then-Steelback Center, and what a way to break in concerts at the new arena! I was in attendance, and I had a lot of fun! Motley Crue had a great stage show with pyro, fireworks, video screens, and even strippers dancing in cages (Oh come on, some of you wouldn't mind.) The band sounded as good as they've ever sounded, and the house was full or damn close to it! Would you say the new arena's first show was the best?

Heaven & Hell, Megadeth, and Down on March 20, 2007: It was a glorious spring day when what is essentially the "Mob Rules" lineup of Black Sabbath came to Sault Ontario for one hell of a concert! Ronnie James Dio sounded amazing for a 60-something man, and the rest of the band? Perfection. But that's just my opinion, you may not agree. Thrash legends Megadeth played support, and damn near stole the show themselves! Sludge metal supergroup Down also had a solid opening set, only hampered by Phil Anselmo's voice being shot from a recent illness. Definitely my favourite show there so far, but I ain't voting, you are. What did you guys think?

Three Days Grace, Seether, and Econoline Crush on January 24, 2008: You can debate the "metalness" of Three Days Grace if you choose, but I had fun at this show as well, even if I was a bit lost among a crowd full of teenage girls. Three Days Grace had a very solid set, as did Seether, a band I've only really started listening to since this show! Also gotta love the duets that members of the two bands did together, very nice stuff! Canada's own Econoline Crush opened with their brand of industrial hard rock, which wasn't bad either! I had fun at this show, though it admittedly isn't for everyone. But did you like it?

Jackyl, Slaughter, and The Inner City Surfers on May 24, 2008: This was one hell of a good time, if underattended and overpriced. The $60 tickets scared off a lot of people, but at least we got to move to the floor from the stands because of it! Jackyl were damn entertaining, especially when Jesse James Dupree broke out the chainsaw for "The Lumberjack" and chopped up a stool! Slaughter thoroughly surprised me, they're not just a generic hair metal band, and The Inner City Surfers returned home and played some great punk rock as well! Only some mic issues and a pitifully small crowd affected one of the most fun shows I saw in 2008. What do you think?

So there's your choices, let's see what your favourite show was at The Essar Center so far! The poll's on the left of the page, VOTE TODAY!!! Now, to more news and updates!

Five days after the concert, and things continue to leak in from the Ace Frehley concert at Kewadin Casino! Now, remember when I said that I didn't think there was an opener for Ace's show? How wrong I was, but don't blame me, no local promotion for the concert mentioned an opener. I actually found out about this from YouTube, where user scub115 uploaded 8 video clips from the concert, two of which feature a band called 16 Second Stare. Some added research, and I found out that indeed, 16 Second Stare were Ace Frehley's openers on this tour, but mention of them bypassed local news and radio, and myself too. On my first listen of these guys on MySpace, I'm impressed, hard hitting melodic heavy metal! I wish I would have known about them before now, I feel kinda dumb to miss them! Oh well, I'll show you guys one of scub115's clips of 16 Second Stare from Friday night! Check them out on MySpace too for good quality originals, don't judge your opinion on this video!



And finally for today, it appears as if Woods of Ypres are planning a new tour! According to a new topic on their official forum, Woods frontman David Gold is planning to run the band's first ever American tour in the summer of 2010, as well as returning to some favourite Canadian locations too (Hopefully Sault Ontario is among them!) Gold says that all confirmed dates will appear in that topic, where you can also find info on how to book Woods of Ypres for a concert! Here's hoping they'll be back to this burial ground very soon, Woods of Ypres always impress! And remember to pick up their new album online (with a bonus Necramyth CD) from Century Media Records, or from The End Records for about $15! Well worth the money! My review of it is now just 13 days away!

That is all for today, tomorrow will be a preview post of this weekend's concerts, including two shows each by Tym Morrison and Riot! By Night! And of course, any more news and updates I may have as well will come tomorrow too! Stay tuned for more, thanks everyone!