YouTube Channel Profile Series: skam705's Channel

It's now time for our last monthly feature post of the first half of 2021, namely this month's YouTube Channel Profile! This recurring feature looks at 1-3 YouTube channels that are randomly selected from our subscriptions, in order to promote them and their content for fans and potential subscribers, and to be considered for the series, all must have at least half of their content devoted to local metal, hard rock, and/or punk artists and/or concerts. This month's selection is a doozy, but an extensive doozy for local punk music & extreme sports fans, so here's what you should know!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

skam705's channel (http://youtube.com/skam705)

Owner: 705 Video Magazine founder Fred Kember

Channel Timeline: Launched on August 31st, 2006; Videos posted from the beginning of 2007 until July 1st, 2011

Channel Summary: The official YouTube channel for local concert/extreme sports video diary series The 705 Video Magazine, it features a whopping 122 videos uploaded over a 4½ year period, mostly devoted to live punk & alternative concert footage filmed both locally and in Southern Ontario. Local bands like DDPBB, Downshift, Fuller, The Hangdowns, and Strictly Classified can be seen here, among many others. The majority of the other videos relate to outdoor sports, but local music can be found as backing music, and some other related content was uploaded here, like interviews and B-roll involving familiar acts.
 
Why You Should Watch: If you are at all interested in the local punk scene from the 2000s, the (VII/O/V) channel is absolutely a must watch, capturing dozens of videos from local concerts of the era, even including archival videos that weren't newly shot at the time, though it is daunting to go through all of these unless you were a diehard contemporary concertgoer. Fred deserves all the kudos in the world for the work he put in with his camera during the 705VM heyday, including via the sports videos, and while they haven't put out a new volume since #5 in 2011, visit their Facebook page for new content! Note that this channel does include videos from a number of Toronto-area events (look for videos mentioning 102.1 The Edge or SceneFest, for example), and be advised that no new standalone concert videos were uploaded after the spring of 2009, though clips and backing music from Soo talent were still used in conjunction with sports footage.

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

 

Guttermouth; Cram It Up Your Ass: Easily the most popular local concert (by views) on skam705's channel is when infamous California punk quartet Guttermouth headlined at the former Canadian Nightclub back in 2005, though the videos weren't uploaded there until 2007. Fred uploaded eleven videos from their set, plus a pre-show interview with Guttermouth, and a video of a fan sharing a beer with frontman Mark Atkins, but did not post any of openers Pulley or The Inner City Surfers. I'm not going to get into Guttermouth's divisive lyrics & viewpoints here, but fans are definitely into their lively skate punk sound in these clips, both via original songs & select covers, and while the camera quality hasn't aged well in 16 years, this is suitably raw for a classic punk show! All thirteen Guttermouth videos are easily viewable through the above links, though "Cram It Up Your Ass" is the channel's only video so far to have been viewed over 10,000 times.

 

Don't Talk: No local band was filmed more for the (VII/O/V) channel than 2000s punk cover supergroup Bin Hawdon & The Taliband, who star in 20 videos that Fred shot. With the exception of a Descendents cover at The Oddfellows Hall, these videos all come from their set at the former Foggy Notions (now Coch's Corner) in December 2006, and you can see Mikey, Lucas, Mark, and Aaron covering everyone from The Misfits and NOFX to Operation Ivy and fellow locals The Hangdowns, with their rendition of GG Allin's "Don't Talk To Me" featured here. The quality of these videos is similarly limited in hindsight, not helped by dark lighting, but Bin Hawdon & The Taliband's eclectic setlist, on-stage attire, and sensibilities are on full display across all of these videos, and if you want to see a largely complete set of theirs, skam705 had you covered!

 

 

(705)VM Volume 5 - Nebraska Arms: One of the more obviously local music-related videos from the lead-up to volume 5 of the 705 Video Magazine is this video featuring defunct local indie punk quartet Nebraska Arms playing their original song "I Was A Runner" at The Grand Theatre when they opened for SNFU & EndProgram here in May 2009, though the video proper didn't go up until July 2011, about a year after Nebraska Arms fell inactive. Filmed from a corner angle from The Grand Theatre's balcony, the video feed alternates between the band proper and footage of Josh Kunanec & Jake Trumble snowboarding and skiing. Fitting soundtrack, and Guy (R.I.P.), Wayne, Dave, and Adam sound strong and up-tempo on this familiar original performance! Just a shame that there weren't more fans on the floor. Numerous videos of both SNFU & EndProgram's sets can be seen on this channel as well, but Nepean punk band Snatchback and fellow local openers The Scary Uncles & Operation: Killdozer are nowhere to be found.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! Next month in this series, our random selection has given us the channel of YouTube user RezThrasher, featuring 8 videos from defunct local hard rock quartet Garden of Bedlam, so look for that on or around July 26th, and stay tuned for a new news post of some kind by Monday! Thanks everyone!

Local Metal Video Showcase!!

Today's post is devoted to recent video uploads from local hard rock acts on both sides of the border, so let's go alphabetical order by starting in Sault Ontario, as revived local "no genre" quartet Handsome Sandwich have unveiled their second original song via their YouTube channel! Entitled "Bitter", it too was recorded via a jam session performance, this time from a different locale and via two camera angles, one from a high corner angle. Again, this is planned for their debut album, though they have not said if recording sessions have begun. This video gives us a better look at the new lineup, including Johnny & Mitch's longer hair, Johnny's new(?) electric drumkit, and Jesse actually being in frame throughout, though the lighting does him no favours. "Bitter" is a slower rock song than "All Or Nothing" that isn't as easy to pin down to a subgenre, but Taylor's vocals remind me a bit of Sting here.

Taylor does seem more at ease here, which is good to see! It is great to watch Handsome Sandwich's trajectory move forward as it should post-revival, and hopefully there's more news to come in due course, but give "Bitter" a look/listen below, and stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's a new/old video of local power rock quartet Re:Born covering Black Sabbath's "Children of the Sea" when they opened for Anvil at Soo Blaster back in June 2019! Uploaded on June 10th (two years and a day after the show took place), this captures a predictably strong rendition of this Dio-era Sabbath classic that makes strong use of Elly's vocals, and Blair's guitar work is a fine match! Hopefully it won't be too much longer before we see Re:Born back on a proper concert stage, but give this a watch below!

Now let's head south to Sault Michigan, starting with a video of local hard rock trio Tarnished live at the Rock The Locks 5K marathon race on Saturday! Despite the atypical outdoor setting, this was not a two man acoustic set, the gear was plugged in & Nathan was present. Live-streamed by attendee Sierra Elliott & shared to the band's public Facebook page on Sunday, this features Tarnished covering Poison's "Talk Dirty To Me", and it looks like their set was actually mid-route during the 5K proper, as you can see runners passing through the frame throughout. In fact, they were playing outside of R&R Marine Supply on East Portage Avenue (I don't know if any band members have a connection there). The song itself is well performed and faithful to the original, and while I'm not a Poison fan, it's a good upbeat rocker for something like this! Kudos to Tarnished for donating their time, and give their video a watch below!

 

We'll close with a lighter note courtesy of local classical metal band Theatre of Night's YouTube channel yesterday, where the band posted a new instrumental named "Emerging Light"! Continuing their mid-pandemic work on non-Christmas material, this is a slow, almost new age track that wouldn't feel out of place on Echoes on 98.1 FM on Sunday mornings, complete with stock footage of nature, sunlight, the sky, and so forth. I can't say it's my thing compared to Theatre of Night's usual output, but if you want something soothing, relaxing, and positive, give "Emerging Light" a listen below!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post of some kind by Friday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tarnished), And A New Metal-Centric Borderline Radio Episode!!

I had originally planned for a new post to go live tomorrow, but as we have LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, one on very SHORT NOTICE, let's get it up here on this Saturday morning! Those new dates make up the first half of this episode, while we'll wrap up with a newly discovered radio show that heavily discusses local metal music, so here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan hard rock trio Tarnished have announced a slate of summer concerts through mid-July, so where can you see Alex, Nathan, and Josh next? How does TODAY sound?! Tarnished will be pre-race entertainment at the Rock The Locks 5K (not 4K) race in Sault Ste. Marie, with their set slated to begin at 5:55 PM at/near the race's starting line at Brady Park on East Water Street. Obvious apologies for the short notice, Tarnished only acknowledged this date on their Facebook page yesterday,  and I did not find a recent reference from the Rock The Locks organizers towards their involvement on social media. Given the setting, I wouldn't be surprised if this was an Alex/Josh acoustic set, but Tarnished weren't specific. The day of may be too late to try and newly register for the run, but click here for full details on how to attend in any fashion, and this is definitely an all ages event. Hopefully the show and run go well for all involved!

As for the other newly unveiled Tarnished dates, their next two announced shows will be outside of our coverage area, including a return to The Erickson Center For The Arts in Curtis (90 minutes west of the Soo) on June 30th, followed by a show in Mackinaw City in the Lower Peninsula on July 9th, venue unlisted. Their next truly local date will be a return to the Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast in Hulbert Township on Saturday, July 10th at 7:00 PM (cover charge and age limit not stated), though the band has not specified whether it will be indoors like their four-piece gigs from the spring, or if it will be on their outdoor stage once again. We'll let you know if the band or venue elaborates! The final new gigs will reportedly see Tarnished hit The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on Friday, July 16th & Saturday, July 17th, which seem to indicate that Kewadin is resuming concert bookings at their on-site lounges this summer!

For full disclosure, Kewadin Casino's website has not announced a live date schedule for the Rapids or Northern Pines Lounges at press time, but clearly Tarnished are confident about these bookings, or else why plug them? Assuming nothing goes awry, these would be 9:00 PM events with 21+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details, don't miss them TONIGHT at the Rock The Locks 5K, and here's Tarnished live!

Finally for today, let's look at an internet episode that aired on Sault Ontario internet radio station The Borderline back in April as part of station owner Adrian Vilaca's Smart As Trees podcast, entitled "Jimmie Chiverelli & A Sault Metal Story"! Given the title and some of the discussion, I just wanted to clarify that while I love the idea of the episode, I knew nothing about it until now (if I had, it wouldn't have taken me two months to cover it here!) The guest of honour is former Kalle Mattson drummer Jimmie Chiverelli, who metalheads may recognize as the original drummer for defunct local progressive/death metal band Gates of Winter (then credited as James Chiverelli), and he definitely maintained his genre love despite his later local music work! The 67 minute podcast starts with Adrian & Jimmie discussing the origin of metal in general and in the Soo, and the first played song is an early local metal example, Amethyst's song "Snakeye Strut" from their "Innocent As Hell" CD.

Next, Jimmie talks about his introduction to heavy metal music, how he learned drums, his early band experience, how Gates of Winter formed in the early 2000s (I never knew Mike Yakasovich from Northwest factored into their origin), and the earliest demo recordings that Jimmie recorded with Yak and Bryan Belleau, complete with part of "Into The Chapel" being played on air. They next talk about Gates of Winter's self-titled 2005 demo (which I still find is underrated), which notably featured programmed drums rather than his own live recordings, and Jimmie also discusses their early gigs, often at Madison's Pub and The Oddfellows Hall at that time period. After noting how he discovered new metal music in the early-mid 2000s, Jimmie discussed his first major live metal concerts in the Twin Saults, and discovering Woods of Ypres when they toured here early in their existence.

Adrian and Jimmie discuss some other contemporary local metal bands from the mid-2000s next, like Soldiers of Misfortune & Fitswitch, as well as loyalty to extreme metal subgenres, and the connection of metal to classical music, even playing Metallica's cover of "The Ecstasy of Gold". Afterwards, Jimmie talks about metal's modern trajectory and the classic throwback bands that have popped up, while also discussing other local acts like Garden of Bedlam, The Bear Hunters, and Pillory, as well as the demands of playing in a metal band, and his stockade of filmed concert footage from his tenure in Gates of Winter. The interview closes with what Jimmie's done (musically & otherwise) since leaving Kalle Mattson in 2011, and suggestions that Jimmie should host a metal show of some kind on The Borderline, before wrapping up by playing "Far Gone" from the 2005 Gates of Winter demo.

This was an entertaining listen, and Adrian gave Jimmie lots of space to offer his own personal thoughts and experiences, both as a musician and genre fan! Jimmie came across as eloquent, humble, and appreciative, and I like that the backing incidental music wasn't as loud as it can sometimes be for Sev's Cellar episodes. I wish I had knew about this episode before now, but give it a listen at the above links, especially for the early Gates of Winter insight, as that band is definitely missed around here! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 906), New Original Songs, And Much More!!

Let's get a new news post going on the site on this Thursday morning, so what lies within? New videos regarding promising original material from two very different local projects, some assorted recent news and notes, and leading off, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for our Yooper readers!

Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 will play their first public concert since the beginning of the pandemic TOMORROW NIGHT when they return to Eckerman (an hour west of the Soo) at The Strongs Tavern! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced this show via their Facebook event page this past Friday, but The Strongs Tavern plugged it on their Facebook page back on June 7th. The return of concerts in Michigan is still something I'm adjusting to, I will work to make sure I get word earlier next time! Project 906 only played one public date last year (in February 2020 at the same venue) before the world got turned upside down, and with 16 months to prepare and work on new covers and originals alike, will they be on top form or shaking off the rust still? I don't know, but it's great to see Project 906 back at last! This will also be their first show since ex-Tarnished drummer Gary Croad replaced Tommy Korcal earlier this year.

A one-night-only event, this concert takes place TOMORROW at 9:00 PM, and while there is no advertised cover charge, expect a 21+ age limit. While the Sault Michigan concert scene is quieter than Sault Ontario's in general (Kewadin excepted), the roll-back of pandemic controls amid vaccination rate increases has allowed things to begin getting back to normal there faster, hence why we're starting to see concerts there already. Hopefully a solid crowd turns out in Eckerman TOMORROW for Project 906's return, so see above for more details, and here they are jamming during the lockdown!

Next up, here's your first look at the reunited, new look Sault Ontario alt-rock band Handsome Sandwich, courtesy of their new YouTube channel! While their pre-pandemic existence was as a cover trio, this video is of their new four-piece lineup playing an original song entitled "All or Nothing", which will apparently be on their debut album! They have not stated yet whether studio recording sessions have begun, or if this is just an eventual plan now that they're working on their own material. The song proper has sort of a punk/power pop hybrid sound that reminds me a bit of an early Foo Fighters song at points. I know they have "no genre", but I'm just calling it how I hear it! While she doesn't seem overly comfortable in the video, new lead singer Taylor Emlaw carries a good tune here, and I'm curious to see how she develops with the band! Mitch Sirie fits in fine for his band debut, but I'd have framed the video better so Jesse consistently showed up on camera.

Despite the year+ hiatus, Handsome Sandwich appear to have hit the ground running in their return via their overhauled lineup and album plans, and it'll be interesting to see what they have in store next, be it in studio or whenever they can play live again! Give "All or Nothing" a watch below!

Also today, here's the latest updates from prolific local folk punk/metal solo musician Chase Wigmore, who is working on another new album entitled "Living Divisions"! As per his Facebook page on June 2nd, Chase revealed that this album is in post-production, it will have 8 songs with an 80 minute runtime, and he has been working on it for three straight months with not many breaks in the interim. Unlike all of his released albums from 2020 & early 2021, "Living Divisions" is not going to be released solely as a free YouTube video, and it will find it's way to major streaming platforms like Amazon, Spotify, and Apple Music (much like his major 2019 albums did), thusly making it eligible for a formal review on the SMS when it actually goes on sale. Chase did upload the album's planned second track "Soul In Eclipse" onto his YouTube channel last week, so what can we glean from it?

 

Running for almost 16 minutes, the length may give away that this is a progressive metal song, and it does feature vocals, but I'll hold further comment for now pending our likely review of the finished product. That said, if "Living Divisions" gets a paid release where none of Chase's other post-2019 output did, he is obviously proud of this album and the work he's putting into it! Give "Soul In Eclipse" a listen below, and stay tuned for more from Chase's solo projects when it rolls in!

 

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

 

• Local/Thompson, Manitoba alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith is exploring the idea of launching an album review series on his YouTube channel that would primarily focus on local bands. I presume he wouldn't be averse to looking at Thompson and Windsor acts too, but he did plug the idea on the local Musicians Wanted Facebook group on June 1st. If you're interested in having Mike review your album in a YouTube video, message him at this link or via his group post for more information!
• After a pandemic-induced hiatus in 2020, the Sugar Island Music Festival in nearby Sugar Island, Michigan will return over the August 13th weekend! However, the lineup does not appear to feature any hard rock bands, not even Tarnished, marking the first Sugar Island Fest without an Alex Traynor-fronted band in a scheduled timeslot since 2010. We'll let you know if any heavier acts get added, but click here for full details on the 2021 installment!
• Sault Ontario hard rock solo musician Tym Morrison has posted a new original song named "The Right Side Of History" onto his Rumble page. Like with his last two Rumble uploads, this song is full of very strong personal viewpoints regarding the pandemic and the COVID-19 vaccine (with video clips & photos to match), and as I try to keep the SMS apolitical in this area, I opted not to embed it here. The song proper is heavy and melodic with strong guitar work, so if you like his classic original material, the song will appeal to you in that way, just be advised of the content beforehand.
  

 

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site by Sunday! Thanks everyone!