More Weekend Concert Previews, A New Local Punk Band, And An Archive Interview!!

Before we begin this post, I wanted to offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends of veteran local journalist and concert videographer Mike Caruso, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 77. You can read his self-penned obituary at this link, which confirms that he is survived by his son Chris, sister Rose, a niece and multiple nephews, and their extended family. There will be no funeral services, but arrangements are entrusted to the O'Sullivan Funeral Home, and donations to the Rotary Club of Sault Ste. Marie in his name would be appreciated. Mike was a mainstay of Sault Ontario news via his association with Craig Huckerby's local news websites (LTVNews, SooNews, Local2, SaultOnline, and FirstLocalNews) over the years, with his camera frequently rolling for articles and features. Mike was an ardent supporter of local music, and he filmed countless bands at nightclubs, charity events, and festivals over the years.

While videos uploaded directly to the news sites are obviously long gone, Mike uploaded dozens of concert videos to his YouTube channel from 2010 to 2020, capturing a wide swath of local musicians in their element, often focusing on veteran cover acts, and he remained supportive even amidst his more recent health issues. Mike also acted in the first six seasons of the local Rogers TV soap opera Tami. My interactions with Mike were largely just brief pleasantries at concerts, but he was a good man who did so much to promote local musicians and the Soo at large, and he will be missed. R.I.P. Mike!

Today's post otherwise wraps up this weekend's concert previews, plus a surprise interview find, and to start, here's our preview of a show from a debuting local band and new addition to our links, namely Dos Amigos! A spinoff/sister band to both The Inner City Surfers and Bookclub, Dos Amigos (whose name and branding is inspired by the movie Three Amigos) feature singer/guitarists Dustin Jones and Mikey Hawdon in another collaborative project. If you're familiar with their other band work (let alone Mikey's acoustic exploits on his uke), you should be right at home here, and they will make their local concert debut TOMORROW NIGHT at The Whisky Barrel! Apologies for the short notice, the show was only announced this week alongside the band's public launch. This new project doesn't have public videos yet, but two "Reels" are circulating on personal Facebook pages, and you can see Mikey & Dustin covering Blink-182 and Bad Religion in them.

What I heard sounds good, and definitely would seem to indicate a lean more into punk than Bookclub tend to play, so definitely track those "Reels" down for a preview of TOMORROW'S unplugged action on Gore Street! Two more shows were announced on personal postings, but I'll wait for public advertising of them before covering them here, unless none is forthcoming, then they'll get the short notice treatment. TOMORROW's debut of Dos Amigos goes down at 8:00 PM at The Whisky Barrel with a 19+ age limit and no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more on Dos Amigos!

Next up, here's the last known local hard rock concert for this weekend, which will see former Haggith/Eclipse frontman Curtis McKenzie make his debut at Beck's Bar TOMORROW! While best known for playing at The Dive since resurrecting his solo project, this will be a prime opportunity for Curt to unleash his hard and alternative rock covers on a new audience and locale, so head to the former Vibe Lounge on Goulais Avenue (near Millie's Mini-Mart) tomorrow to hear some solid covers in a familiar but still new locale! Tomorrow's show is in Beck's 3:00-7:00 PM matinee timeslot, and precedes that night's separate concert from Tex Riviera & The Ride (Curtis isn't "opening" for The Ride, these are separate concerts on the same day, but you can stick around to see both if you choose). Early start aside, this has a 19+ age limit and no announced cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Curt live!

Finally for today, here's a surprise YouTube discovery, namely a video upload of a text interview, and it was with late Woods of Ypres frontman David Gold! This dates back to November 27th, 2004, shortly after the release of their second CD "Pursuit Of The Sun & Allure Of The Earth", and was conducted by "Lockeed" of the old online metal magazine Lunar Hypnosis. Almost two decades later, 'zine founder Joe Mlodik re-published it in video form for his his YouTube channel Joe's Metal Mancave this past September, with music supplied by his Wisconsin-based ambient solo project Noctilucant. The interview is literally screenshotted in from Lunar Hypnosis, and the contrast isn't ideal to read the text even at full screen, but you'll see David discuss the early response to "Woods II", how he described their sound at the time ("summer black metal" is what he called it), the inspiration behind their name, ...

...then-recent band member departures, the launch of his own label Krankenhaus Records, and their 2005 plans, including their unreleased cover of Bathory's "Lake Of Fire", early teasers of "Woods III", and their next lineup additions. As a bonus, three Lunar Hypnosis reviews of Woods' first two CDs are screenshotted at the end, with "Greg B" giving their first two CDs a 7/10 and 8/10 each, and "Steak Eyes" giving "Pursuit..." a 7/10. Not the easiest interview to read visually, but it's great to see someone republish an old 'zine interview like this, let alone on Woods of Ypres, and it's interesting to see how things were going early in Woods' Toronto era with two decades of hindsight! Check it out for yourselves below, and R.I.P. David!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!

Most Of This Weekend's Hard Rock/Punk Concert Previews!!

For this penultimate concert weekend of May 2025, things are actually busier than they were for the Victoria Day long weekend, so we'll hold our previews of Saturday night's Dos Amigos and Curtis McKenzie shows for tomorrow's post. Today, we're looking at hard rock/punk shows taking place tomorrow at least partially, so here's what you should know to kick off your weekend!

We'll start at Soo Blaster, where Toronto progressive metal quintet Derev will headline in their first local concert appearance TOMORROW NIGHT! Derev bring a unique blend of influences to the table with their melodic prog rock sound, with a strong technicality supplemented by Middle Eastern influences, and they'll be an interesting change of pace for metalheads looking to hear something different! Learn more about Derev via this SooToday press release. While a search for a formal co-headlining band didn't lead anywhere, promoters Heavy North Entertainment did secure a strong support lineup of local talent, including hard rock quartet Sylo in their first gig of the year and first with new guitarist Owen Middleton, party metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty in their first show since opening for Robbie G at Soo Blaster last month, and a set from prolific folk punk/extreme metal artist Chase Wigmore.

Diverse lineup of strong local talent, so don't be late for this one! The third post-relaunch concert from Heavy North Entertainment and their first not headlined by Selias, this show (named "Mayhem 2025") has no age limit, a 7:00 PM start time, and admission fees of $15 in advance at this link or $20 at the door. This will be an entertaining night of "mayhem" for metal and hard rock fans, so visit the above links for more details on this concert, and for a preview, here's Derev live!

Next up, there's more touring action TOMORROW NIGHT, this time at Venue (the new public events space at the former Fortune Shop/Void Vinyl location at 482 Queen Street East), where Hamilton outsider folk/acoustic punk musician B.A. Johnston will take the stage once again! While this was (by my count) B.A.'s sixth local date, B.A. figures that he's played here at least fifteen times over the years, as noted in this brand new SooToday article by Kenneth Armstrong, featuring solid interview remarks from B.A. about his style of music, Canadiana-influenced songs, comparisons to Stompin' Tom Connors, and how he never plays the same local venue twice. Solid article to help set things up, but of course, B.A.'s comedic and audience participation-laden live shows are very hard to describe in text alone, so watch some videos of him to get an idea of what to expect at Venue tomorrow! Former Elements/Wyld Stallyns frontman Rob Speers will open tomorrow's festivities, as he did when B.A. rocked The Whiskey Barrel last fall, so don't be late for his acoustic covers!

There's no announced age limit for tomorrow's show, which has a $10 cover charge and 8:00 PM start time, though be advised that Venue is a very intimate locale for concerts, with their website listing a capacity of 60 guests, 30 seated. Always good to see B.A. on a local stage, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here he is live!

Also taking place TOMORROW NIGHT is local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9's return to The Water Tower Pub for one night only! Their first stop at this popular Great Northern Road nightclub for 2025 will also end their early 2025 concert calendar in terms of standard bar gigs, as like they have since their debut, they're taking the summer off aside from private bookings, benefits, and festivals. We will see them back out there a bit (they will reportedly be at Rotaryfest Stage 1 again), but if you want to take in Silent 9's fun and upbeat blend of classic and hard rock covers, don't bypass tomorrow's central gig, as they won't have a solo headlining one like it until the fall! Remember that The Water Tower Pub traditionally hosts different nightly musical acts, with the band playing on Saturday being new local soft rock cover quartet North Channel Sound. As usual here, Silent 9 take the stage tomorrow at 8:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge.

Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's a brand new clip of Silent 9 in concert! Uploaded to their Facebook page on May 13th (and cross-posted from Instagram), this video is of them at The Esquire Club earlier this month covering Billy Joel's "You May Be Right" with drummer Steve Porco on lead vocals. Now, very early in the clip, Steve drops his left drumstick, but he doesn't miss a beat with the song and improvises well for drumming one handed before frontwoman Jess Amadio (on backing vocals) locates the stick and gives it back to him. Nice save, and the cover is well done for what we hear, though alas, the video is vertical. Check it out below!

Finally for this preview post, we'll head west to Jay's Piston Broke Pub, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down will mostly hit the stage TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! While fans last saw Double Down at the former Reggie's West early last month, this weekend's shows will be very different, as singer/guitarist Beej Syrette will be absent for unannounced reasons, according to band members' personal Facebook pages. In his place, Double Down have enlisted bassist Dan Beaupre's Sidekicks bandmates Steve Cardiff and Tracey Hilderley to join him, Joel, and Ric for a joint concert! The branding suggests that the two bands are both playing separate sets this weekend, which makes sense when you realize that Tracey's involvement means that there's two drummers present, but some of the advertising is left vague, and there is at least an implication that Steve is sitting in for Beej in Double Down's sets.

Regardless, it'll be a unique weekend, and while The Sidekicks never leaned heavier from my knowledge of what they play, it'll be neat to see both of Dan's current bands join forces! And of course, hopefully all is well with Beej and that he's back with Double Down before long! This weekend's shows both have 9:30 PM start times, 19+ age limits, and no announced cover charges. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Double Down live with Steve earlier this year!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Curtis McKenzie and Dos Amigos previews (and more) next! Thanks everyone!

New Videos From Metal/Hard Rock Bands, Plus An Inactive Band Note!!

Before we dive into another round of weekend concert previews, here's a new news post to check out on this Wednesday night, which includes new videos from/about Soo Blaster concerts from three different local bands, plus an addition to our inactive band links. Here's what you should know!

In their first major update since releasing their new album "Road Trippin'" on May 3rd, local hard rock quintet HeadF1rst have released the first music video from it! The video is for the album's first advance single "Slay The Dragon", and was uploaded to their YouTube channel earlier today. It features footage of HeadF1rst playing this song at Soo Blaster during the album release party, including clips featuring album producer/guest guitarist Bill Priddle, who joined them on stage to play this song at set's end. Footage was shot across both a stationary camera and by a roving filmer, with Ella Kallonen and A Dire Setback's Matthew Quinn both credited for videography, while the video makes heavy use of the 1929 Disney short cartoon Hell's Bells, which is now in the public domain. You can tell that the performance footage isn't always synced up with the song, but the video is well shot!

Note that a good portion of the video features bassist Claire Jeffrey on lead vocals with her brother Red Jettison playing guitar, despite this song having Red singing lead, which may be a preview of other songs on the album if you haven't heard it yet (our review hits the site by month's end). Another song from the album will be getting a music video on May 28th, but will it feature more footage from the release party? We'll know more next week, but give HeadF1rst's... first music video from "Road Trippin'" a watch below!

Next up, I'm behind on recent video content from local death/thrash metal trio Pillory, so let's start rectifying that with a full set video from last month' all-local metal show The Pit at Soo Blaster! This was uploaded to drummer Bret Shuttleworth's YouTube channel on April 21st (three days after the concert), and unlike in his prior full-set uploads, he did label all songs in the description with tags as to when they start. In order, Pillory played eight original songs here, none of which are carry-overs from their 2013 debut EP "Cringe At The Cross" (which predated frontman Robert Sartini taking on harsh death metal vocals). In order, the guys played a short intro track named "End Of Small Sanctuary" before diving into "Specimen Of Egotism", "Sculptor Of Cadavers", "The Angst Of Existence", "The Passing", "Abhorred Apprehension", "The Curse Of Eternal Sickness", and "A Drop Of Shame In An Ocean Of Guilt".

This set ended with a cover of Sepultura's "Territory". The video was shot with a stationary camera aimed towards the stage and the first few rows of fans on the floor, and if you're wondering why the top strip of the video is blurred out, Bret explained in the description that he did that because "the lights (above the stage) were seizure inducing". Nice and brutal performance from a solid angle, and if you like Death-inspired death metal, you'll like what Pillory are cooking up here, and there's more from them ahead! Give their full concert set in/at The Pit a watch below!

Also, here's a new video from local progressive metal band Convergence's Facebook page to hype up their upcoming concert at Soo Blaster on June 28th! The vertical promotional clip sees singer Stephen Gagnon-Ruscio and guitarist Brendan Christie pulled over by a "cop" (guitarist Jacob Valois) for "going too fast", but can Stephen make things right by giving the "officer" tickets to The Upheaval? Funny clip for what it is, though part of me was hoping to see some live footage from their debut concert (the aforementioned The Pit at Soo Blaster). Lots of pictures from that night are on their Facebook page, but so far, no videos to sample how Convergence sound with a vocalist. Check out the Upheaval commercial below!

Finally, I have officially moved local funk/hard rock cover band The Wyld Stallyns to our inactive links due to almost one year's inactivity. There had not been a public update on The Stallyns proper since posting on their Facebook group on May 23rd of last year, with singer/guitarist Rob Speers quietly transitioning into work as a solo musician last summer, including taking over the band's advertised set at The Northern Vibe Festival. It is worth noting that he and his wife Christina (who sang most lead vocals) separated last year, which may or may not be related. Launching as an acoustic duo from Rob and his then-Elements bandmate Jesse Cook in November 2017, the former Kariokeheads took on their Bill & Ted-inspired name in early 2018, adding Christina in time for numerous concerts at nightclubs, charity events, and festivals. The band later added drums in 2019, and post-pandemic, they became a full electric group, adding bass guitar to their live ranks.

Their rhythm section frequently rotated in the 2020s, and their last six-piece lineup only played together briefly in the spring of 2024, though Rob enlists guest musicians (some being fellow Stallyns alumni) at many of his solo gigs. While not as heavy as The Elements could get,The Wyld Stallyns were a fun act who could entertain at a multitude of live events with sets tailored to any occasion, and with The Elements not re-emerging after the pandemic, their sister band's expansion beyond unplugged shows was a good one. Everyone in their last lineup is still performing, so look for Rob, Christina, Jesse, Blair, Brandan, Josh, and their other former members on a local stage near you, and look for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Spades GT Updates From April-May 2025!!

Here's the latest from local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT on this Victoria Day, so what have they been up to in the past month? As part of their "100 days of thanks" series of posts on their Facebook page, they revealed on April 24th (day 5) that Tom Vujcic and his label Reel Wolf Productions will have "a wicked feature on our new album". Tom is best known as a rap producer and music video director out of Toronto, and Spades did say that they "can't wait to hear those bars", so can we expect a rap rock crossover? We should know for sure by July! When promoting their gig opening for Selias in Barrie on June 11th, the former Jack Spades teased that "we have some surprises in store for yeah" (sic), while "lots of new things (have) been finalized & (are) coming your way", the new album included. On May 4th, an unspecified band member noted that he woke up that morning to "the masters of the new Spades GT album". so you know the release is getting closer!

In one of two brand new show announcements, Spades GT will make their first ever appearance in Windsor (believe it or not) on Friday, June 13th when they open for Windsor thrash veterans Devilz By Definition and London deathcore band Tortured Saint at The Cherry Rock Lounge. There will be a slight local reunion (albeit from 5 hours south) on this night, as one of Tortured Saint's guitarists is Andrew Angelic, who local fans may remember from his late 2000s-early 2010s work in local bands like Chillum, Talk Shit, Sativa Rose, and The Valentine's Day Massacre. Good to see that Andrew is still tearing it up in Southern Ontario, and keep this show in mind if you'll be in Windsor next month! The other new date is in Toronto on October 19th, when Spades will open for British hardcore punk legends The Exploited once again, this time at The Rockpile on night #2 of The Exploited's weekend stay there (not night #1).

Spades GT had done the honours, albeit shorthanded, when The Exploited headlined alongside Total Chaos at Lee's Palace in September, so it should be another huge night for them to help kick things off in five months' time! If you want to hear a complete song from Spades' new album (live takes of "United" aside), your first chance will actually be tonight, as the song will be previewed on tonight's episode of Monday Night Metal with Dave Sheldon on 89.1 Max FM out of Orillia (right near Spades' current Barrie homebase), between 9:00 & 10:00 PM. I don't know if "United" will be posted online for all to hear at their leisure imminently, but if you want to hear it first, tune in to 89.1 Max FM tonight on their website and on radio streaming applications, and Spades GT are actually hosting a contest relating to the debut airing of the single, so what should you know there?

Drummer Tyler Reiner stars in the new Facebook video below where he teases the cover artwork for either the single or album (heavily pixellated for now), which is slated for release on Saturday, July 5th! For the record, their "100 days of gratitude" will run beyond the release date if they keep up with it. The contest entails filming yourself listening to "United" during tonight's premiere airing on Monday Night Metal, and sending the file/a link to the band via their Facebook inbox, for a chance to win a free copy of their new album and a merchandise bundle, specific contents unclear. What's not elaborated on is if the band will be posting/sharing the submitted videos after the fact (could be a music video idea if they did), and what the criteria for winning is (are they looking for the best reactions, or is this randomly drawn?), but if you want a chance to win some Spades swag and the new album, get your camera rolling and send the video off!

We're now 100% caught up on Spades GT news and notes, but tune into Max FM tonight to hear "United" for yourselves before everyone can (and perhaps enter the contest), and between that and their Southern Ontario shows in June, they'll have some more big content soon before the album drops! Visit the above links for more from J.D., Daniel, Matthew, Sean, and Tyler, check out the contest reveal video below, and stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

Sentiment Dissolve Concert Preview, New Live Videos, And 104.3 The Fox Updates!!

I hope everyone's long weekend is continuing on a good trajectory (and if you're in the E.U.P., hopefully your Memorial Day long weekend goes well next week!) Today's post features new live concert videos, local radio station updates, and leading off, one more long weekend concert preview, so here's what you should know on this Sunday afternoon!

Here's a special Victoria Day concert preview, and if you're into death metal, you'll wanna head to Jay's Piston Broke Pub TOMORROW NIGHT for this one, as London progressive death metal quartet Sentiment Dissolve and Brantford tech/deathcore quartet A Tyrant's Lament will make their local debuts here! Both relatively newer bands as far as Southern Ontario extreme metal goes, Sentiment Dissolve's technical and proficient brutality will be complimented nicely by A Tyrant's Lament's rawer but still skilled aggression, so don't miss out on both bands tomorrow at the former Roosevelt Hotel! Local death/thrash metal trio Pillory and heavy metal trio The BAG (both last seen at The Pit at Soo Blaster) will open tomorrow, with this being an appetizer of sorts before The BAG open for Switzerland's Virvum & Stortregn at Jay's in July. Talented local metal with hard hitting originals will be an ideal kickoff tomorrow!

This stop on the Dissolving Tyrant Entities tour has a 19+ age limit, 8:00 PM start time, and an advance ticket fee of $10 at this link (the price jumps to $15 at the door). While taking place on a statutory holiday, this will be a work/school night for many, but it will be awesome to see some legit extreme/death metal from afar on a local stage, and hopefully there's a decent turnout so that we can have more "Rosie metal nights" anew! Visit the Facebook event page for more details, and here's Sentiment Dissolve live!

Next up, here's a surprise find from when I was looking up potential uploads from The Dayglo Abortions' show at Soo Blaster earlier this month, as I did find videos of them there... albeit from 2023! These come from attendee Rick Sutherland, who only uploaded them to his YouTube channel in March of last year, hence why I never even found them until now. As of this writing, the videos have three views combined, so let's rectify that! Rick filmed the Victoria, B.C. hardcore punk legends for eight minutes of their 2023 local set across three videos, which see them playing their original songs "Sacks Of Meat" and "Proud To Be A Canadian", but the longest of the three is embedded below. Not the highest framerate going here, but Rick had a good view of the stage and the front rows of fans rocking out two years ago, and they still packed in lots of intense fury and attitude into their set, so give The Dayglos' new-ish 2023 videos a watch!

Also today, here's our first look at a heavier local music act rocking Beck's Bar (the former Vibe Lounge) on Goulais Avenue, and this is specifically of local hard rock quartet Half Past there on April 26th for their opening weekend! The 6 minutes-long video features the guys covering most of Tool's "The Pot", which will be old hat for guitarist Alain Fletcher given his old(?) Tool tribute band Parabol. Jordan's voice does get strained at points on this cover, but it's solid throughout, and it gives us a look at the effective staging and lighting at Beck's for bands! If only they hosted live bands more than once a week. Give this new Half Past video a watch below!

Let's wrap things up with programming updates from Sault Ontario rock radio station 104.3 The Fox, which I haven't noted on here in over a month, so what deviations from the norm have they offered on air since? On the Easter long weekend, The Fox and their sister rock stations in Rogers Radio's Ontario loop held a Classic Rock Long Weekend playing just 1950s-1980s songs for three consecutive days in their music rotation. In other words, if you love the Classic Rock Sundays there, you got a triple dose for Easter! Personally, I wanna hear newer stuff too, but I know I don't speak for all rock radio listeners in the market. In lieu of the Sunday Night Vinyl Series that night at 8:00 PM, CJQM morning DJ Heather Williams hosted a Power Up special on AC/DC (in advance of their Canadian tour this year) featuring archival interviews with Angus Young & Brian Johnson. That would have neat for AC/DC fans!

Another programming stunt is ongoing for the Victoria Day/May 2-4 break, namely the Time Machine Long Weekend, where a different year in rock music history is beinfg relived in half hour blocks for three straight days (as in, you'll hear just songs from 1974 for a half hour, then maybe 1996, then maybe 2021, etc.) Fun idea, so look for that on the former Q104 through tomorrow night! As best as I can tell, there was no artist/genre theme week this past week, and I haven't seen any reference to a Sunday Night Vinyl Series episode tonight. That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Virvum & Convergence), Derev Concert Updates, And More!!

Before we begin this post, we have a concert cancellation to take note of, as The Raygun Cowboys are not playing at The Whisky Barrel tomorrow night due to "an artist scheduling error", as per promoters Piecing It Together Shows' Facebook page yesterday. The show is still being advertised by the Edmonton psychobilly/punk band on social media, but note that they are scheduled to play in Ottawa tonight, and did not have a show lined up afterwards until Thursday in Alberta. Hopefully all is well with The Raygun Cowboys and that they try here again on a future tour! Remember that this show was always going to have no cover charge or tickets.

Now, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS and related updates on the heavier side of things! Firstly, if you missed the all-local metal concert named The Pit at Soo Blaster on Good Friday, then you'll want to take note of its sequel, named The Upheaval, and it goes down at the same venue on Saturday, June 28th! This is a very similar show, with two returning bands both making their second local concert appearances on this night, including headlining progressive/djent metal quartet Convergence and new local hard rock quartet Maynard Hayes! No word yet on the former's teased tour run, but we can now confirm (most of) Maynard Hayes' lineup, which features singer/guitarist Damon King (ex-Infamous) and Convergence drummer David Peredun alongside guitarist Nathan Snider and a bassist who uses the handles "gabdontlike" and "gabnolike" on social media (I don't know his real/full name to my knowledge). 

Maynard Hayes still have no public videos on social media, but there is some personal media out there! The third and final band at The Upheaval will be The Sault Side Squad, the online page-less (not even Instagram) metal supergroup that played three shows in mid-late 2024, most recently opening for Cross Dog in October. Good to see them back in the new year, but hopefully they get some public online material soon! Despite having one fewer band than at The Pit, this show has a $15 ticket cost and $20 door charge, $5 higher in both cases. Click here to get your tickets for this all ages show, which has a 7:00 PM start time. Another intriguing show for metalheads, so see above for more details!

Next up, here's some more extreme metal action taking place deeper into the summer, as two Swiss death metal bands will be rocking Jay's Piston Broke Pub on Sunday, July 6th! Yes, as in from Switzerland! The bands in question are Zurich progressive death metal quintet Virvum and Geneva blackened death metal band Stortregn, obviously both making their local debuts. Fans of extreme and death metal will be very interested in this show, with Virvum's technical brutality and Stortregn's more atmospheric intensity both boding well, so definitely check both groups out to prepare for this intriguing concert! Local support will come by way of metal trio The BAG, who are also opening for Sentiment Dissolve at Jay's on Monday, preview hitting the site tomorrow. I don't know if The BAG are the promoters/facilitators for the former Roosevelt Hotel's return to hosting touring extreme metal bands, but hopefully things go well both tomorrow night and in July!

This 19+ concert on Virvum's Canada Takeover tour starts at 8:00 PM and has an advance ticket cost of $15.99 at this link (I don't know if you can buy advance tickets at Jay's or via BAG members, or if admission fees will jump at the door). Just from being hosting two European metal bands alone, this show will be of note, even on a work/school night for many, so definitely visit the official Facebook event page for more on this huge death metal show!

Also today, promoters Heavy North Entertainment finally announced the local openers for the Derev-headlined concert at Soo Blaster on Friday via the new official Facebook event page on Tuesday, so what familiar faces are opening for the Toronto progressive metal band next week? One will be local hard rock quartet Sylo in their first public concert set since their Soo Blaster headlining date in August, and if you want to know more about them, bassist Alder Devries actually has launched a website for them on Wix! As such, we can finally give them a proper link here that doesn't reflect their original run as Raincourt (though their two singles from then are linked there). The site hasn't been updated to reflect new guitarist Owen Middleton joining the group yet, but if lack of content and information on Instagram has stymied you on Sylo, do check out their website! A video of Sylo is also there, so what should you know on that?

The clip sees Eli, Alder, and Jakob playing "War Times" at Soo Blaster last summer, and it has a good casual hard rock groove that will serve them well during their (summer?) return! You can watch the video at this link, but be warned that, while Sylo aren't on Facebook, this is basically a Facebook "Reel", as it's vertical, unplayable in background tabs, and unembeddable on external websites. Also, why would the filmer have shot it vertically to accentuate the crowd levels on the floor like that? Back to the Derev show, your other openers on Friday are party metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty in a rare Soo Blaster appearance opening for an actual band as opposed to a touring rapper, while prolific local folk punk/extreme metal solo artist (and new Eagles Club jam night host) Chase Wigmore will open in an increasingly rare appearance at a multi-band concert like this. Solid lineup of diverse opening local talent!

Note that, as of Tuesday, Heavy North Entertainment were openly looking for a co-headlining band for this concert (none of the three openers were labelled as such), but at press time, one had not been added. We'll let you know if they find one late! As for other specifics that this show didn't have when it was first announced, a start time of 6:30 PM is listed on the event page, and tickets run for $15 in advance at this link or $20 at the door. Nice to get some big specifics about the "mayhem" in store on Friday, so visit the above links for more on this concert, and stay tuned for more news and notes over the long weekend! Thanks everyone!

Victoria Day Long Weekend Concert Previews!!

The Victoria Day (a.k.a. May 2-4) long weekend is upon us, but in a bit of a surprise, this is a pretty quiet weekend for hard rock and punk concerts. Nothing on short notice (yet) either, but here's who to look for this weekend, including two shows with touring headline acts!

We'll start at The Distraction TONIGHT, where Nanaimo, British Columbia pop punk quartet Danger Box will set up shop in the basement for a headlining concert! The work/school-night scheduling won't be ideal for many, but fans of modern punk rock with hardcore and alternative influences will take to Danger Box's original attack, and hopefully their local debut goes down well with fans on East Street tonight! Fresh off of opening for The Dayglo Abortions last week, local crossover thrash quartet Hails (featuring concert promoter Mikhal Muto on guitar) will be the local support in their second gig of the year, and they should slot in well with their blast of original thrash and punk songs! Tonight's stop on Danger Box's Reality Tour across Canada has a 7:00 PM start time, it is absolutely all ages (the venue is not licensed), and admission is $20 or "pay what you can". Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Danger Box live!

Next up, let's head further downtown to Reggie's Place, where local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will take the stage for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Last seen "uncorked" at The Water Tower Pub this past Saturday, this is the fourth weekend in the past seven that "The Dirty 3" have played at Reggie's, with a return also scheduled for the last weekend of May. Bone Yard have been definitely making themselves at home at Reggie's this spring, and hopefully sizeable crowds turn up to witness Greg, Alex, and Warren's latest "sermons" over the May 2-4 long weekend! If you can't make it this weekend, their next show will be at the Dragonfly Run pre-party at the Downtown Plaza one week from Saturday. This weekend's shows from your local 225 have 9:30 PM start times, 19+ age limits, and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Bone Yard live!

Also this weekend, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will return to the stage for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT at Jay's Piston Broke Pub! This weekend's shows will end their month+ break, having last seen Generations at The Water Tower Pub at the beginning of April, and last at Jay's two months ago. If you've missed this skilled veteran outfit on a local stage, head west for their classic covers! As usual for Generations' stops at Jay's, the band (minus singer Valerie Powley) are hosting tonight's weekly jam night before their full band concerts go down, so if seeing the guys perform with/without guest musicians (or yourself?) is of note, head to the former Reggie's West tonight! We don't cover jam/open mic nights as "concerts" due to their unpredictability. Generations' long weekend shows have 19+ age limits, 9:30 PM start times, and no cover. See above for more details, and here are Generations live!

Finally for this surprisingly quiet long weekend on the hard rock/punk front, we'll end things at The Whisky Barrel, where Edmonton psychobilly/punk veterans The Raygun Cowboys will play their first local concert (on record?) THIS SUNDAY NIGHT! A longstanding presence among genre fans out west, The Raygun Cowboys' genre hybrid sound will appeal to many readers with their horn section, upbeat energy, rough-edged vocals, and punk attitude all colliding into a fun live experience that fans won't want to miss, let alone at an intimate venue like The Whisky Barrel on Gore Street, who only sparingly host touring bands. Many of you have Monday off anyway, so why not rock out with The Raygun Cowboys in three days' time? This concert is promoted by Piecing It Together Shows (the former Dryer Fire) and does not have a local opener. An 8:00 PM start time is in effect for this 19+ show.

Despite the touring headliner, this show has no cover charge, but P.I.T.S. encourage everyone to buy merchandise and/or drinks to help support The Raygun Cowboys on their current tour. Should be a blast for fans of punk, rockabilly, ska, and everything in between, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The Raygun Cowboys live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes in the coming days! Thanks everyone!