Lots of Assorted News, And A New SMS Feature!!!

It's random news time! Nothing major to report today, but there's a lot of items to mention, so here we go!

During one of my Internet browsing sessions, I came across another defunct local metal band! They were The Jesters, a band which featured Jesse Frigault and Sam DeDominicis from Stillbroke, and (if I'm not mistaken), Lorax and ex-As It Stands bassist Nathan Bouliane! There's not a lot left on their official Facebook group, but there's 19 different photos, and a video clip (which sadly lacks audio) from a performance outside of the former Jesse's Music at Market Mall! Though there's no audio on the page, I bet they were very good, as Stillbroke are today! To find out more about The Jesters, visit this location! And they're now in the Local Metal Band Links on the left hand side of the page!

Next up, there's two more bands looking to play in Sault Ontario, that need YOUR HELP! One is Sudbury death metal band Catharcyst, who've amazingly never played here before! Frontman Paul Cipriani contacted me on Facebook for help, and hopefully one of you guys out there can lend them a hand! As well, I heard from Mike Alexander of Winnipeg death metal band Putrescence, who are also looking to play here around September 11th. They're really good, as are Catharcyst, and it'd be awesome to see them in the area. But can you help? If you think you can help them get a booking, click on their names to give them a shout!

Now, I have an update on the now-defunct local hardcore band, As It Stands! Even past their demise, their MySpace page has been updated! Now, it says "Thanks everyone for the support" beside their picture, while former singer Justin Pregent has been re-added to the band's credits (After all, this is how we remember the band.) They also posted a studio quality original there, named "Three Rounds With Brock Lesnar", which was called "Head Ache" when featured on Big Voiced Records' MySpace page. I've updated the Free CD Giveaway info and liner notes to reflect the actual name of it! Check it all out at this link!

Alright, now I've got an update on the new album from local "blue Chinese metal crash punk" band Sykotyk Rampage! They've announced the title of their upcoming twenty-second album, appropriately entitled, 22! The album cover has also been posted online, as you can see! Recording for the album is ongoing, once I hear more updates, you'll see them here! Remember, to check out their dozens of original songs, visit their official Soundclick page, and prepare yourself for some very original hard rock! Thanks to guitarist Dirk Becker for posting the info on Facebook!

And finally, I have an announcement to make: Starting this month, I will begin regularly reviewing CDs and EPs of local metal bands on The Sault Metal Scene! I'd been contemplating going back and doing reviews of older albums for a while, and I figure now's as good a time as ever! I'll try and keep to a "one album a month" schedule, so I don't run out of material to cover.

I'll promise to own a physical copy of the CD wherever possible, but if I can't find it to purchase, I'll only download the album with the complete intent that I would pay for it if I had access to the real CD! This month, I'll review the debut self-titled EP from Gates of Winter, released in 2005! More will follow, including releases from Sault Michigan bands! So keep on the lookout for more official SMS album reviews!

That's all for today, stay tuned for more local metal news as I hear it!

It's Official: KISS ARE COMING!!!!! Plus, A Gates of Winter Update, And More!!

WE GOT THEM! Kiss frontman Gene Simmons has confirmed that, as one of the top three finishers in the fan routed tour voting, Sault Ontario WILL get a Kiss concert! He confirmed this in an interview with Darryl Steridan of The Ottawa Sun in preparation for their upcoming performance at The Ottawa Bluesfest. The article says, and I quote:

After the polls closed June 30, it was revealed the Top 3 cities on the list were all Canadian: Oshawa (14,569), Winnipeg (12,913) and Sault Ste. Marie (11,315).

“Clearly, these cities are out of their minds,” Simmons said. All three are “guaranteed” slots on the band’s itinerary — though not necessarily in that order.

Our home and native land’s love for KISS goes both ways, he added.

“More and more, I (think), ‘Gee, I wish I was Canadian,’ ” he said. “There’s just a purity of heart up there. I don’t know how else to put it.”

Fuckin' A! We did it! Thanks to everyone out there who voted, be it through the SMS or not! Say what you will about Gene Simmons, he sticks to his word, and he likes Canada! So there you go, Kiss (with Buckcherry as openers) ARE DEFINITELY coming to The Essar Centre! Now, the big question is: When are Kiss playing here? Once I find out more, I'll keep you posted! To read the original Ottawa Sun article, click here! And to read David Helwig's article on SooToday about the same topic, visit this location!

Next up, Gates of Winter bassist Steve Furgiuele has released an official statement to their MySpace page concerning their apparent demise. He also personally sent me a copy on Facebook, which was nice of him! In it, he thanks everyone for supporting and befriending the band over the years, and says that "2003 – 2009 is merely.. an end of an era." According to the statement, the Gates of Winter guys need time to focus on their personal lives and education, and down the road, when the time is right, they'll return!

But honestly, I couldn't sum up everything Steve said in a few sentences, you really should read it. It's well written, it sums up the questions we've had about Gates' status, and it really comes from the heart in his appreciation for their fans and supporters. Personally, I hope things go well for the entire band, and when they come back, the fans will follow, including myself! Check out the entire post at this location! And until then, we still have Woods of Ypres, iT, and Lee's solo project to help us pass the time!

And finally, I have found another band that wants to play in Sault Ontario, but has yet to book a venue. Calculating Collapse, a death metal band from Grand Prairie, Alberta, have a potential concert listed for here on October 18th, but has nowhere to play yet. Can you help? If you think you can, contact Calculating Collapse through their official MySpace page! They're really good, it'd be awesome to have them play here! Remember, Jucifer are still looking for a booking here on August 2nd too, contact them on MySpace if you can help them too!

That's all for now, as I find more news, you'll hear it here, including concert previews for this weekend, hopefully Northern Rocks Magazine's new issue, and Garden of Bedlam's rescheduled all ages show! Stay tuned!

EDIT (5:18 PM): I don't know if this is because of our second anniversary, the new Facebook page, both, or none of the above, but on July 4th, we had a new record of 129 HITS!!!!!!! And yesterday, we had 104! Thank you guys so much!!!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Ultraviolence), Kiss in The Sault Star, And Assorted Concert News!

It's news time at The Sault Metal Scene, and what better way to start than with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT?! I've also got a bunch of concert updates lined up, and a new addition to the SMS, so let's get this going!

On September 3rd, Toronto-based hard rock quartet Ultraviolence will be hitting Coch's Corner on their upcoming tour! According to their official MySpace page, this show will take place at 8:00 PM! I don't know much else about this show, but if you're into some classic hard rock to have a drink to, these guys seem like a good band to check out! Definite AC/DC influence with these guys too, if you're a fan of them! Give Ultraviolence a listen on MySpace! And if I hear more on this concert, you'll hear it here!

Speaking of shows at Coch's Corner, I now must apologize for missing one. Remember last month when I mentioned that Toronto hard rock band Diemonds were looking to play here this past Tuesday? Well, they got the date, at Coch's Corner, and I completely missed it. I would have went too had I known, they were a good band! My complete apologies to you guys for bypassing this show, I don't know how I forgot! Well, hopefully they roll through again one of these days!

(Just reminding you guys, I ain't perfect, if you guys know of something I'm missing, forgetting, or have reported wrong, PLEASE let me know!!)

Let's try and redeem that mistake now, cause there's another female fronted metal band looking to play here! Jucifer, a sludge metal duo from Athens, Georgia, are looking to play in Sault Ontario on August 2nd, but have no venue booked. Can you help? If so, contact them through their official website, or through their MySpace! They're signed to Relapse Records and tour constantly, and have a good profile down in the USA. It'd be nice to have them here, hopefully they can get the booking! Check them out on MySpace too!

Next up, as you may have noticed, Kiss made the front page of Friday's issue of The Sault Star! Reporter Michael Purvis wrote an article on the campaign to get Kiss here through their fan routed tour competition! Lots of optimism throughout the article, and it's justified, as I really believe we have a good shot of landing Kiss! The article also confirms that the tour dates will be unveiled in August, and there will be 40 concerts in total. Brace yourself, guys, we may have Kiss before you know it! I'll keep you all posted as I hear more. If you don't have Friday's paper, check the article out online at this location!

Meanwhile, two more small items of note: Michigan hard rock band Peril have cancelled two upcoming dates in Sault Michigan in December, which they've moved to Kewadin Casino in St. Ignace. The concert listing has been updated to reflect this! Meanwhile, Sault Ontario rock band Sykotyk Rampage apparently recorded a new album yesterday! If you know Sykotyk Rampage by now, you'll know that all of their concerts and recording sessions are completely improvised, so no two shows are the same, and albums can be recorded in the span of one jam session! Thanks to guitarist Dirk Becker for mentioning this on Facebook, I'll be sure to look out for the new album, and review it too!

And finally, I've made a brand new addition to the SMS last night! I had originally planned this for the second anniversary, but it fell behind when I was doing other things. So, as you may notice above the Sault Ontario and Michigan band links, there's now contact info for local concert venues! I figure this might be of use if anyone out there wants to know where a concert spot is, who to contact for bookings, or for any purpose you may have! So any active concert venue that I know of that's hosted a metal show in the last year will be featured there, and I'll update it accordingly. Hopefully it works out!

More news to come, and thanks to everyone who came here from being alerted on Facebook through our new Facebook page! I appreciate the hits! Stay tuned for more metal news and updates!

Garden of Bedlam CD Release Show Review!

Well, I've had some time to get second anniversary shit up and ready (Check the post immediately below for details), and to untangle my hair from all the headbanging I did last night, so now it's time to review last night's Garden of Bedlam CD release show for you guys! First off, I have to thank Buzz for letting me get in free, that was damn nice of him! Plus, there was merchandise for sale, including band t-shirts and Garden of Bedlam's EP, which I do recommend you pick up, it's well worth it!

Sense of Truth were the openers, and remember how I mentioned that they might look a bit different? Well, they've added Ron Baxter (formerly from Driving Dave Home) on guitar, turning the band into a five-piece, and allowing frontman Cory Murchison to focus solely on singing! Looks like that's paid off so far, cause Cory's vocals impressed me more than ever last night! The rest of the bands did great, as I expected, even throwing in some Tool and A Perfect Circle covers!

It may just be me, but I think Sense of Truth are getting heavier every time I see them! My only real complaint is missing some of my favourite originals, like "Anything At All" and "Closing Doors", but maybe next time! Plus, the crowd should have got on to the floor to rock out, people didn't hit the floor en masse til Garden of Bedlam took the stage! Even still, Sense of Truth put in a great performance, and I hope to see them again real soon!

After a break that wasn't too long at all, Garden of Bedlam hit the stage, and fucking tore the house down! The mosh pits started, everyone was headbanging (I have the tangled hair to prove it), and more importantly, Garden of Bedlam were AWESOME! Along with all the songs on their EP, Garden of Bedlam debuted some brand new, never before played originals, as well as some covers of bands like Tool, The Deftones, Helmet, and System of a Down! Every single song sounded great, and the whole band stood out!

Buzz's vocals were as strong as ever, Josh Belleau had some excellent riffs and solos, while Even Belleau and Derek Turner did awesome as well! Also, you gotta love the return of Buzz's megaphone to the show! The crowd was really into them as well, people were jumping on stage, moshing, rocking out, everyone was having a great time! You couldn't ask for much more out of a Garden of Bedlam performance! From a fan's standpoint, I can't complain at all, I just hope that they have another show real soon!

Overall, it was one hell of a concert, and I hope to be there for Garden of Bedlam's all ages show, when it's rescheduled! If you're 19 and weren't there, you really fucking missed out! And as you can tell, I took lots of pictures! But, I'm gonna cease using the Photobucket account. Why? Facebook, that's why! I've uploaded the best pics I took to our new official Facebook page, so check them out at this location!! I'm happy with them, and got some good shots, but what do you think?

And finally for this post, Donna Hopper has posted a short review featuring 16 photos from the concert on SooToday at this location! At least check this out for the pictures, which are a million times better than anything I take will be! I really liked the one comment she made in the review, and I quote:

"The evening was tight, intense and loud. In other words, a perfect metal show. Both bands are shining examples of a genre that unfortunately flies under the Sault Ste. Marie entertainment radar far too often. And it's not necessary to be a metal fan to appreciate skill, musicianship and extreme energy that Garden of Bedlam is more than happy to dish out."

Donna hit the nail right on the head with that statement, don't you think? I personally couldn't agree more. I'll leave it at that for today, stay tuned for more metal news and updates as they happen, and BECOME A FAN OF THE SMS ON FACEBOOK!!!

HAPPY SECOND ANNIVERSARY!!!!!!!!!!

And so it is, The Sault Metal Scene is officially two years old! As promised, I've got lots of stuff lined up for it! First, as you can tell, our new logo has been unveiled! It took a lot of work, but I'm pleased with the final result, and hopefully you guys like it! Now we have a clear personal identity that doesn't blatantly steal from anything! Expect to see lots of themed variants of this logo where appropriate, like for major concerts, local album releases, and certain holidays! Also, any feedback from you guys?

Secondly, The Sault Metal Scene's Free CD Giveaway kicked off at midnight, as promised, and I gave away 10 CDs featuring some of the best past and present local metal bands to interested fans! First night was a success, here's hoping it keeps up! 40 more free CDs to go, remember to ask me at the next metal show I attend if you want a copy! For full details on the Free CD Giveaway, visit this location!

And, of course, we're back on Facebook! I have officially launched the official Facebook page for The Sault Metal Scene! This should be way more effective than the old Facebook group was, as this can deliver news right to your homepages, and direct you to the blog much easier than before! BECOME A FAN OF THE SMS TODAY! I promise this won't get slowly ignored like the group was, as long as you guys remember: The blog is FIRST PRIORITY, Facebook is second!! And I've updates the Other Local Metal Links to reflect the new Facebook page!

Now, as you might have heard, I had planned something "secret" for the second anniversary. What I was planning was to upload two videos to YouTube, which would showcase samples of songs by local metal and hard rock bands, as a way to spread the word about them. I'd love to say I have them up for you guys to see, but my computer seems to like having the internet cut out every time I try, so they'll have to wait until I work out the problems, or when I can log onto another computer to upload them. Just letting you guys know, that's coming whenever my internet connection cooperates!!!

Finally, I just want to thank you guys so much for all the support, help, and interest over these past couple of years. I never could have imagined that the SMS would have succeeded two months, let alone two years, or grow to these heights. I've had the sincere pleasure during this time to help get Saultites on both sides of the border up to date on everything from upcoming concerts, to band updates, and anything in between! Since day one, I've kept the SMS independent with no sponsorship, employees, or financial support, all out of the love of heavy metal and the fans who support it every day. You guys are awesome, here's to two more years of The Sault Metal Scene, and many more after that! (Oh, and Happy Fourth of July to all you Americans!)

That's all for now, I promise news this afternoon or evening, including my review of the Garden of Bedlam CD release show (Preview: It was AWESOME!), and more! Stay tuned here and on Facebook for any updates! Thanks again, everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT/PREVIEW, And Lots Of Assorted News

In our final post before the second anniversary, I've came across a lot of news items to pass your way, some good, some disappointing, but all local and metal! And we'll kick things off with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (and preview!)

Remember two weeks ago, when I listed a whole bunch of upcoming dates for Sault Michigan hard rockers Free Refill? Well, that "pending" show at Trout Lake for the Fourth of July celebrations was confirmed! Only, it's now TONIGHT, not tomorrow. My bad for not catching that earlier! So yeah, if you don't wanna check out Garden of Bedlam or Absolute this weekend, you have another option! Free Refill are pretty good, especially for such a young band, so they should put on a good show tonight! For a preview, check out this video clip of the band covering the Black Sabbath classic "Paranoid"!



Next up, it appears that one of the highest profile metal bands in Sault Ontario history have broken up. On their official MySpace page, Gates of Winter have put "2003-2009" beside their picture. That seems to indicate that they've officially parted ways. Now that just sucks! I was always a huge fan of Gates, and was hoping for them to return! Well, at least we have their EP and Lux Aeterna, plus Woods of Ypres, IT, and Lee Maines' solo project to help fill the void! But still, they're gone? It's hard to believe!

Alright, to some happier news! I've got lots of updates concerning local hardcore band Lorax! First, they've added a second guitarist, Mitch Sirie, who you might remember from the now-defunct Eyes Set Fire with fellow Lorax guitarist Dave Biedermann! They've also listed two more shows on their concert listings, one on August 7th in Barrie (venue to be announced), ane one on August 6th with no city or venue listed yet. Once I hear more, I'll keep you guys posted! As well, Lorax has posted a short sample of an original song, called "Uninvited", on their official MySpace page. Check it out!

Now, to some out of town concerts featuring local metal bands! On July 14th, Sault natives Detroit will be playing at The Bovine Sex Club in Toronto, this time as the headliners! Support will come from a Toronto-area band named Creeper. Meanwhile, Sault Michigan's own Nixxon Dixxon will be playing two shows in Tower, Michigan on July 24th and 25th. The location? "A bar." No name or address is listed. If I find out more, I'll let you all know, and list the shows! And finally, fellow Sault Michigan band Shift have cancelled their scheduled dates that same weekend, which would have been at Rookies' in Negaunee. The Out Of Town Concert Listings have been updated to reflect these changes!

Alright, now, I have a question for those of you in bands with original material: Would your band be interested in helping a local online gaming company with their promotional services, with the potential for high amounts of royalty money in return? Then The Legacy Gaming Network would love to hear from you! I can't divulge any real details, a lot of this has to be finalized, but from what I heard, this could be a big chance to gain some real global exposure and money for your band. If you're at all interested, contact Jeff Cardoso at this location, his e-mail is there!

Next, a band from Sault Michigan appears to be moving out of the area. Angels of Suffering, who have now changed their name to The Angel of Suffering, are moving to Colorado. Frontman David Waite made the announcement on their official MySpace page. Despite the move, if you're at all interested in being part of the band, send him a message on MySpace! Hopefully the move will help The Angel of Suffering out, even though they're leaving the area!

And finally, remember to go see Garden of Bedlam and Sense of Truth tonight at The Canadian! Get your advance tickets while you still can for $5, or $8 at the door! Doors open at 9:00, show starts at 11! Or go see Absolute or Free Refill in Sault Michigan, it's your choice! Remember, I'll have free CDs from the SMS Free CD Giveaway after midnight, and once I return from the show, the SMS' 2nd Anniversary celebration shall begin, and yes, I'll have a review and photos too! Thanks everyone for all the support, and GO SEE GARDEN OF BEDLAM TONIGHT!!!!!!!!!

Weekend Concert Previews, And More Updates!!!

TWO DAYS until our second anniversary! But until then, it's time for some news, and of course, your local concert previews for this weekend! So let's get right to that! Let us begin in Sault Michigan, where Pickford hard rock band Absolute will be back in town for concerts tomorrow night and Saturday night at The Bird! This is the second of three straight weekends at The Bird for Absolute, which is awesome to see! As they did last week, they'll take the stage at 10:00 PM both nights! These should be two good shows, and if you can, why not go check them out? To hear some of their stuff, head to their official MySpace page! And for a video preview, watch this live video of Absolute covering the Stone Temple Pilots song "Crackerman", during an acoustic performance! As well, local hard rockers Nixxon Dixxon are playing at the graduation party for Joey Nolan on Sunday, but seeing as there's no listed venue for it, or much info, I take it that it's probably not open to the general public. We don't need people crashing it, so I won't cover this one. But keep in mind, Nixxon Dixxon will be playing at The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino next weekend for a pair of shows, so mark that down on your calendars! And now, for the big show of the weekend! Tomorrow night at 11:00 PM at The Canadian, Garden of Bedlam return to the stage for their first show of 2009! It is their official CD release show, in honor of the release of their debut self-titled EP, which was released in April! (Check out my review of it at this location!) As a result, you can buy the CD at the concert (it was $7.99 when I got my copy), as well as more band merchandise! Doors open at 9:00 PM, and tickets are $5 in advance, $8 at the door! You can still pick up advance tickets at CD Plus, The Rad Zone, and at Forsaken Tattoo Studio! For more details, head to the official Facebook event page, and SooToday's article on the show as well! This show is 19+ (remember, it is at a bar), so those of you who aren't 19 yet will be out of luck this weekend, especially with the cancellation of the all ages show on July 5th, but Garden of Bedlam promised to book an all ages show in the near future, so keep on the lookout for that! Now, for the bands! Opening this concert will be fellow locals Sense of Truth, in their first show since backing up On The Sidewalk Bleeding last month! Frontman Cory Murchison told me that they might sound and look a little different tomorrow, but we'll have to see! It will be nice to see these guys live again, they've always impressed me! As for Garden of Bedlam, I'm sure most of you know what to expect! They're an awesome band with a local profile growing faster and faster! Their new EP is excellent, they're nice guys, and their shows are always fun to check out! Hopefully tomorrow is no different! If you wanna preview some of their original songs, head on over to their official MySpace page! And for a video preview, here's a live video of Garden of Bedlam performing their song "Shallow" from last December's Sick Jams for Sick Kids benefit! And now, some assorted news updates to end today with!

• The new issue of Northern Rocks Magazine was NOT e-mailed to subscribers yesterday. I'm thinking it might have been cause yesterday was a holiday, but I dunno. When it does arrive, I'll tell you guys what's metal in it!
• The lineup for Rotaryfest's Second Stage was announced, and sadly, despite an expansion to two nights of performances, there's not one metal or hard rock band. Oh well, maybe we'll get some metal on next year! Regardless, if you want to check out the scheduled lineup, head to this link!
• If you remember from earlier this year, I mentioned that a photo exhibition at LopLops Lounge featuring concert pics (some metal included) taken by SooToday reporter/photographer Donna Hopper, entitled "Now Let's Shoot That Fucking Band!", would begin today. Well, the opening appears to have been postponed until August 26th. If I'm wrong, or I hear otherwise, my apologies!

That's all for now! Unless I have more news before then, I'll see you all at the Garden of Bedlam show on Friday! Remember, on Saturday, we'll be back on Facebook, CDs will be available, and our new logo will be unveiled, among other secret stuff! Stay tuned! TWO DAYS!!!