Tuesday, July 8, 2025

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Krang & Project 906), The M1 Concert Preview, And A New Punk Cover!!

Here's a new news post to check out on this Tuesday evening, which is half devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, with the back half featuring a special Wednesday night concert preview and a new studio cover to check out, so let's get things rolling!

Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quintet Project 906 will return to The Strongs Tavern in nearby Eckerman on Saturday, July 19th! Not yet announced by the band on social media, this concert was announced by the venue's Facebook page two weeks ago in this poster advertising July events (or lack thereof, as they closed for two days during the Fourth of July long weekend). Last seen on stage in Brimley late last month, the guys last played in Eckerman at the end of May, and hopefully the #summerof906 continues well with another night of strongly performed and crowd friendly hard rock classics next Saturday! You can see Billy, Joe, Dustin, Jason, and Brian take the stage at The Strongs Tavern next Saturday at 8:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details on Project 906's next show, unless they announce something on short notice prior!

Next up, remember how two Swiss death metal bands played in Sault Ontario this past Sunday night? Well, another band is trekking all the way from Europe to play in the Soo, as Czech skate punk band Krang will make their local concert debut on Monday, September 8th at The Distraction! An upbeat pop punk band whose songs are heavily based on retro pop culture and nostalgia (yes, the songs are in English), Krang will absolutely pique the interest of local punk fans this fall, so don't bypass their fun original attack in two months! Local support will include online page-less "east end rock & roll" duo The Spaceship Opening (featuring ex-Fitswitch/Redundant bassist Andrew MacDonald alongside Ralph Barber) and A.S.D.P., which I am 99% sure stands for "Adam Smith Death Parade". You may recall seeing them debut as a late replacement band at the private Go Skateboarding Day replacement event last month, which also featured The Spaceship Opening.

The venue describes A.S.D.P. as "crackrocksteady", so does the "rocksteady" reference imply ska punk? I don't known anything else on A.D.S.P., but stay tuned when we hear more! Taking place in The Distraction's current basement locale on East Street (all shows were moved out of the former hair salon upstairs starting last summer), this all ages concert will have a 7:00 PM start time and a cover charge of $15 or "pay what you can". Sounds like a fun way to kick off the fall season in style, so don't miss this stop on Krang's Real Canadian Moose Pit Tour if you can swing coming out on a work/school night!

Also, here's a special mid-week concert preview for your Motorhead fans in the area, as Calgary-based Motorhead tribute band M1 will rock Beck's Bar TOMORROW NIGHT! The first time that a touring band has headlined at Beck's since the Goulais Avenue nightclub re-opened three months ago, M1 will bring a faithful sounding (if not looking) tribute to Lemmy Kilmister and crew to local audiences, and it will be neat to hear Motorhead songs other than "Ace Of Spades" covered at a local concert, let alone this many! As per a quiet update to the Facebook event page, Dodge This singer/guitarist Jason Taillefer will open tomorrow's festivities. Having an acoustic solo artist open for a Motorhead tribute may seem odd, but Jason has ample experience in hard rock bands, most notably the out of town groups Phatstick and Human Disorder, so I'm sure he'd tailor his set somewhat for the occasion, and he is a very talented musician, so don't be late!

This 19+ concert has a 9:00 PM start time (moved up from 7:00 PM), and despite featuring a touring headliner, it will have no cover charge! While the work night scheduling won't be ideal for many, Motorhead fans won't wanna miss M1, especially at that (lack of) price, so visit the above links for more details, and here they are live!

Finally, remember how local crossover thrash quartet Hails released a self-titled album last month without much public warning? Well, that was prefaced by their appearance on the new compilation album "Punk Canada Vol. 4", and they released their contribution to it errrrrrrrrvrywhere on major streaming services on June 10th! Curated and released by Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz, you can get physical copies of the album (which features covers of Canadian punk bands by modern acts) on vinyl via Ha!ls members, and you can hear the whole thing on Bandcamp at this link, including Sault native Ash Richtig's band Avoid The Comment Section's cover of Grimskunk's "Dead End Violence". Hails contributed a cover of "Meathook" by Toronto punk legends The Almighty Trigger Happy, in their first studio recording with guitarist Carmen Muto in the fold. How is the cover overall?

Played a touch faster than the original (running for just 92 seconds), this isn't quite as ferocious as Ha!ls can get on their heaviest originals, but it's a faithfully executed cover that Trigger Happy fans will like, with a good pace & solid hardcore punk intensity! Give it a listen below or on other major streaming services, check out "Punk Canada Vol. 4" above, and look for our review of Hails' new album in October!

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

Sunday, July 6, 2025

Spades GT Updates From Late June 2025!!

Today's SMS post takes us to the world of local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT, who have had an eventful past 2+ weeks! We last left off with them in mid-June, prior to the release of a new podcast interview featuring drummer Tyler Reiner, so what should you know there? This was for Drummers Paradise, a new Barrie-based interview series where drummers interview other drummers, and it's co-hosted by The Feels/Mad City drummer Adam Vetter and... Tyler himself! For the season finale episodes, the two took turns interviewing each other in shorter installments, though click here to watch longer-format episodes featuring the two interviewing other rock drummers (episodes can also be heard on major podcasting services). If you're curious, notable drummers from past local concerts like Andrew McMullen (ex-Fairmounts/Merves) and Tommy Metcalfe (of The Anti-Queens) were interviewed early in season 1, but you should recognize a few other bands.

Tyler's interview from June 20th runs for just 25 minutes, and before any questions are asked, we see a clip of Tyler drumming along to his old band Caym's song "Willow Farm", courtesy of his TikTok page. At least they zoomed in for YouTube's sake to remove the vertical pillarboxing! Strongly brutal performance, especially for fans of Caym's two local dates in the 2010s, and it's neat how the video is monochrome except for his drumkit! The interview proper begins with Adam asking Tyler about his upbringing (yes, his dad & Anvil come up), how he got into drumming and learned how to drum, and what gear he currently uses, before we jump to a different day, where Adam literally tested how fast Tyler could drum in beats per minute to compare to guests from prior episodes. Tyler next discusses his beginning playing in live bands and helping Anvil on their tours, and if you're looking to skip ahead directly to Spades GT talk, that comes in around 16 minutes into the interview.

We next hear about how Tyler was invited to join the former Jack Spades after taking a hiatus following Caym's breakup (he does reference their beginnings in the Soo), before plugging Spades' then-upcoming plans, primarily their new album "United" and how things came together in studio for it. A 90 second clip of the title track is next played, which Adam said was "a killer track". We get more insights about the recording and songwriting process to close the interview out, capping with thank yous and hype for season 2 of Drummers Paradise. Solid and comfortable interview with Tyler giving a bit more personal insight than I've seen from some of his past video interviews, so give it a watch for yourselves below!

In terms of the full band, Spades GT's next concert took place on June 27th when they headlined at the sci-fi themed Toronto venue See-Scape, and in a recent rarity for them, the show was actually all ages! The whole band plugged the show, while emphasizing the lack of an age limit, in this Facebook "Reel" a few days prior, but they did post their usual recap video from that night afte the fact, and while not a "Reel", it is still vertical. After guitarist Daniel Horton picked up singer J.D. Pearce for the drive to the venue, we see the guys mingling outside of See-Scape, before we get shots of everyone inside, where you get good views of the sci-fi and video game-themed decor! This is set to the second advance single from the album ("Demons"), more on that in a bit. After some views of one of the other bands that night, we do see Spades setting up for their set, but unfortunately, there are no clips of their set included here, not even ones dubbed over in post.

The recap video ends with the whole band praising the show and hyping future plans, though Dan did admit to breaking an amplifier. Both for the new material and the venue alone, I'd far prefer longer, raw, and horizontal videos, but this was a well edited teaser, so give it a watch at this link! As Facebook content matched "Demons", I can't embed the video on external websites like this, even though it's Spades' own song and not even in full. However, let's end on something that I can embed here, as since our last all-Spades post on June 17th, they did release the "United" album! Our coverage of the album proper and its release party is coming soon, but for now, let's stay in the rough timeline, as the teased advance singles "United" & "Demons" were released to all major streaming services as promised on June 21st and 28th! Outside of samples in prior Spades video content, I have yet to hear either track, as I'm waiting for our review this fall.

I can tell you that, from what I have heard, existing Spades GT fans will approve! Also, neither song has one of the credited guest musicians. We'll have much more from the guys on the site soon, as we outline the album release proper and its launch party in Toronto that actually took place yesterday. Stay tuned for more on "United" in the coming week, if all goes well, hear the title track below, and stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

Saturday, July 5, 2025

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (WestFest & The Nameless), Plus The Virvum Concert Preview!!

We're not quite done with this weekend's concert previews, as a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT came to my attention earlier today, and there was a long-since-known-about Sunday nighter yet to be addressed! To fill things out, we have extended details on a debuting local concert festival later this month, so here's what you should know!

Local hard rock quartet The Nameless will rock The Islander Bar in Hessel for the first time TONIGHT! I profusely apologize for the short notice, the band first announced this show via their Facebook page this past Saturday, and it slipped me by until this morning when there was time to slot it into our regular previews. Regardless, The Islander Bar has not publically confirmed TONIGHT's show on their own Facebook page, instead focusing on food & drink specials in recent weeks. It is somewhat hard to believe that The Nameless haven't played in Hessel before, but hopefully their hard rocking cover slate draws a good crowd TONIGHT despite the late notice! This concert takes place at 8:00 PM, has no announced cover charge, and a 21+ age limit as usual for E.U.P. bar gigs. Visit the above links for more on The Nameless' Hessel debut TONIGHT, and for a preview, here they are live earlier this year!

Next up, let's talk about WestFest, a newly announced Sault Ontario community festival on Saturday, July 26th, so what should you know about this? The name does imply the location of the event, as it will take place at Anna Marinelli Park at 169 James Street, off of Albert Street West near the Soup Kitchen. In terms of downtown Sault Ste. Marie, you can't get much further west without hitting Algoma Steel! WestFest is being described as "block party meets music festival", with aims of being a safe, inclusive, and family friendly event, according to the hosts, the West Village Revitalization Project, and you can read more about their plans to give new life to the Steelton and Jamestown areas of the city at this link. The implication is that WestFest will be an outdoor event, but I'm unsure how it will be staged (Anna Marinelli Park is literally a park, after all), so stay tuned for updates on that end.

Six acts will hit the WestFest stage, and the headliners are SMS-amenable, namely local alternative hard rock band Handsome Sandwich in just their second public concert of 2025! Good to see them back playing live a little more regularly, and they'll cap things well at 8:00 PM on the 26th! The band bios on the WestFest website do not mention rhythm guitarist Brandon Ruch, seemingly confirming that he has left the band for unannounced reasons (he wasn't present when they opened for HeadF1rst in May, though nothing was said publically about his status at the time). However, things are amicable, as he is co-headlining at 6:00 PM alongside drummer Johnny Belanger in their bluegrass/country quartet The Golden Scoundrels! Pop rock quartet Jupiter Marvelous performs at 4:45 PM, preceded by folk singer/guitarist Matthew James at 3:45 PM & indie rock quartet Lucy's Diner (who recently changed their name from The Hollow Heads) at 2:45 PM.

Former Soundcheck singer/guitarist Cameron Oliver will continue his summer farewell run before his teased move out of town when he kicks off WestFest at 1:45 PM. Various local vendors and businesses will be on hand in three weeks as well, so click here to see who will be at the park for this debuting festival. As best as I can gather, WestFest has no admission fee, and it is absolutely all ages, but it is a licensed event with an on-site beer garden. This all sounds like a good time for local music fans and families alike, almost like a Rotaryfest encore (all six acts will have played Stage 2 at least once since 2023), so visit the above links for more details on the first annual WestFest!

We'll close this post with one more weekend concert preview, as two death metal bands from Switzerland (yes, really) will make their local debuts TOMORROW NIGHT at Jay's Piston Broke Pub! This one-off return to the glory days of Rosie metal nights will be headlined by Zurich progressive death metal band Virvum and Geneva blackened death metal quintet Stortregn, who will bring their own crushing brutality to local audiences! Virvum's more technical and punishing originals will compliment Stortregn's more black metal-influenced sound well, so definitely don't miss either band if you can swing coming out on a work night! Local support will be provided by thrash metal trio The BAG in their first public date since opening for Sentiment Dissolve in May, and they should set the tone off well with their heavy originals and covers! I am unsure if this show is being put on by The BAG, Jay's, or a separate promoter.

This stop on Virvum & Stortregn's Canada Takeover tour begins at 8:00 PM with a 19+ age limit, and tickets run for $15.99 at this link and presumably at the door, though I don't know if the price will jump there. Kudos to Jay's for occasionally booking true metal concerts after they largely vanished in the Reggie's West era, and despite being on a Sunday night, hopefully there's lots of headbanging and moshing tomorrow! After all, Virvum and Stortregn are from Switzerland, show them some love! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Virvum live!

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

Friday, July 4, 2025

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Bookclub, Tym Morrison, And Dodge This) & More Weekend Concert Previews!!

For this second post on our 18th anniversary, we're continuing this weekend's concert previews by looking at Saturday nighters, along with LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, mostly of the SHORT NOTICE variety! Sunday's death metal concert featuring Swiss bands Virvum & Stortregn will be in tomorrow's post to give it proper emphasis given its scheduling. Here's what else you should know for this weekend & beyond!

Local classic/hard rock cover trio Dodge This will return to The Dive Gastro Pub for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced yesterday via the venue's Facebook page's concert calendar for this month. This is Dodge This' only advertised gig at the former Low & Slow this month (two open Saturdays on their schedule acknowledged), and fans of their hard rock-infused batch of covers should find a lot to like from Jason, Jamie, and Jeff TOMORROW, so don't miss their latest Queen Street East stop then! As usual for Dodge This shows in "The Naughty Corner", TOMORROW'S Dive concert takes place at 9:30 PM with a 19+ age limit and no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Dodge This live!

Next up, prolific local classic/hard rock singer/musician Tym Morrison will continue his busy summer of acoustic solo dates when he rocks Misty's Fifties TOMORROW for another matinee concert! Most of Tym's 2025 dates ahead are at this Second Line West staple, and while we're on the subject, let's add two more shows of his to the calendar now that things aren't as clogged for announcements late in the year from just one artist. Among other still-too-distant dates, Tym will set up shop at Misty's for Saturday matinees on September 27th & October 11th, so while we'll be seeing him six times there prior (tomorrow included), keep those two fall gigs in mind! Meanwhile, Tym will also return to Beck's Bar on Sunday, September 28th for another matinee there, via those shows' Facebook event page. Regardless, Tym's ample setlist of classic and hard rock favourites should pull a solid reception tomorrow, so don't miss out! 

Tomorrow's gig and this fall's at Misty's are 4:00 PM matinees with 19+ age limits and no cover, and while the Beck's show in September is similar, it starts earlier at 3:00 PM. Visit the Misty's shows' batch Facebook event page and the above links for more details, and here's Tym live!

Also, here's a brief detour from this weekend, as local alternative/punk cover supergroup Bookclub will rock The Roberta Bondar Pavilion on Tuesday, July 29th as part of the City of Sault Ste. Marie's annual Summer Concert Series! The lineup for 2025 was announced via this concert calendar post from the city's Facebook page on Wednesday, with Bookclub being the only SMS-amenable band scheduled for this year. This year's Summer Concert Series kicked off with Angry Joe & The Growlers yesterday (Generations' Canada Day show on Tuesday was separate), with the big downtown tent playing host to live musicians every Tuesday and Thursday ahead until August 21st. Good to see Bookclub back at it with another fan-friendly night of unique rock covers, so don't miss Mikey, Brandon, Dustin, Al, Erin, and Josh there later this month! The Facebook post plugging the series notes that the shows are "weather permitting", so the tent may not be enough rain cover for comfort. Keep tabs on the forecast if you can!

All concerts in this series are FREE & ALL AGES, and run from 7:00-9:00 PM (the Growlers show last night was an hour later though). While largely more for general audiences than SMS loyalists, it's always good to see lots of live music at the Pavilion, and hopefully all of the shows ahead have a solid turnout, Bookclub included! Visit the above links for more details!

Finally for this post, let's head back to Beck's Bar for this weekend's entertainment, as local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will take the stage there TOMORROW NIGHT & SUNDAY for a unique double header! Fifteen years after the then-country cover quartet debuted at what was then The Vibe Lounge, Bone Yard will return to this Goulais Avenue nightclub with a full plugged-in concert there tomorrow, and it will be fun to see how things go as they conduct their next sermon at a new-ish locale, especially given how Greg and crew have changed since the last time! However, in a rarity for Beck's since opening, the same band is playing consecutive nights there, as Sunday's matinee slot goes to your local 225 "uncorked", a'la their acoustic Water Tower Pub and Gateway Casino gigs. Interesting to see Greg, Alex, and Warren playing both formats at the same venue, let alone the same weekend, so keep both in mind depending on what you like!

As hyped by Greg in this Facebook "Reel", tomorrow's Beck's concert is at 9:00 PM, the Sunday matinee is at 3:00 PM, and things are 19+ with no cover charge regardless. Dodge This singer/guitarist Jason Taillefer is the Saturday matinee performer at Beck's tomorrow, but remember that this is a fully blocked matinee concert of its own, and he isn't "opening" for Bone Yard (and yes, Separate Wayz/ex-Soundcheck frontman Terry Eaton is this week's DJ tonight). Visit the above links for more details on this weekend's concerts, and for a preview, here's "The Dirty Three" live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Virvum/Stortregn preview and more on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Sylo & Tarnished!!)

Just before things get rolling on the SMS, today marks our eighteenth anniversary since launching the original group. No major plans to commemorate the day, but just a brief thank you acknowledgement to all of our readers and followers for continuing to stick around and read/engage with our content, and here's to another big year for local metal, hard rock, and punk music ahead! For our first batch of weekend concert previews for July 2025, we have an all-LOCAL CONCERT ALERT post, mostly of the SHORT NOTICE variety, so here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan hard rock/classic metal quartet Tarnished have a busy and all-short notice concert weekend ahead, and before we get into all three gigs, I apologize for the short notice on all of them, Tarnished only announced the three via their official Facebook page earlier today. Is that a record for late notice gig announcements by one local band at different venues on a given weekend? Regardless, Tarnished will kick off the Independence Day long weekend TONIGHT when they return to the annual Fourth of July parade in Sault Ste. Marie, marking their fourth straight year playing on a float during the parade! Of course, the idea of a SMS-amenable band playing during a parade is still uncommon for bands other than Tarnished, but it'll be like a brief concert coming to you, which will be neat if you're checking out the parade TONIGHT! Obviously, this is free and all ages, but where can you see Tarnished along the parade route?

As last year, the parade begins TONIGHT at 7:00 PM behind the U-Haul on Davitt Street, running until Magazine Street, and will move north along West 14th and Ashmun Streets, as well as West Portage Avenue, so pick a good spot to enjoy the parade, with some hard rocking tunes from Tarnished alongside! Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for mostly cloudy skies with weather around 70° (21° Celsius), which sounds like fine conditions for a parade! Click here for complete details on the parade itself. Tarnished will continue the rocking in short notice show #2, as Alex, Josh, Chris, and Ron will set up shop at The Savoy Nightclub TONIGHT at 10:00 PM! This will be Tarnished's first show at the 117 West Portage Road bar in over two years, and while The Savoy's modern social media presence isn't high, it is good to see that they're still open and hosting live music there! This is a 21+ concert with no announced cover charge.

Finally for Tarnished's busy long weekend, they'll return an hour south to St. Ignace TOMORROW NIGHT as part of the annual Music By The Bay summer concert series at American Legion Park at 200 North State Street, and in one more new show announcement, they'll return there on Saturday, August 16th as well! Good to see Tarnished spreading their wings and helping prove that there's more going on for St. Ignace concert venues than just Kewadin Casino, so keep TOMORROW'S show in mind! Click here for the full daily schedule at the Music In The Bay series too, it runs until the end of August. This is another free & all ages concert taking place from 7:00-9:00 PM, and while the stage is covered for the band's sake, be advised that 9&10 News is calling for a 40-60% chance of rain TOMORROW with 75° weather (24° Celsius). Visit the above links for more on Tarnished's shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT, and for a preview, here they are live!

Finally for this all-LOCAL CONCERT ALERT post, Sault Ontario hard rock quartet Sylo will return to Reggie's Place TOMORROW NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced on the venue's Facebook page on Sunday (remember, Sylo don't have an active Facebook page). This has been a long time coming, as Sylo haven't played a show on record at Reggie's since 2022, so it will be neat to see Eli, Alder, Owen, and Jakob back at this Queen Street staple for a rare solo headlining appearance! Sylo have been making the most out of their return to active gigging this summer, and here's hoping for more of the same entertaining originals and covers from this talented young foresome TOMORROW! This is a one-nighter due to or resulting in classic rock cover quartet RPM playing there tonight. TOMORROW'S Sylo concert is at 9:30 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover. See above for more details, and here's Sylo live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Thursday, July 3, 2025

Where Are The New Albums? (July 2025 Update)

It's now time for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post, as we again check on the current whereabouts and most recent public updates on upcoming local metal, hard rock, and punk albums! No new additions or removals (though June 2025 had a surprising number of album releases that had no public pre-release hype), though three of this month's entries have updates, as noted with the titles in italics. So, where are the new albums? Read on below to hopefully find out!

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Bone Yard 225's debut album

Rumoured Songs: "F.A.F.O.", "Gypsy Spell", "Fuck!"

Background: After months of teasers that they were planning to record original music (as previewed in their live concerts prior), local southern hard rock cover trio Bone Yard 225 began releasing their own songs on major streaming services in July 2024, a whopping fifteen years after the pre-225 band debuted as a country cover quartet. Their first three singles (all recorded at their home studio) were posted online by January, though it took until May 2025 for the band to confirm on their Facebook page that they were indeed working on a proper album. It's not immediately clear if their existing three singles will be included, but it's not a given, as Jonesy Land fans saw with "Zoom-Out".

Current Release Status: In that Facebook post from May 30th, your local 225 said that "the album is coming along nicely", and they hoped to release it "by the end of 2025". Assuming no delay, that's a six month window, and while singer/drummer Greg Simpson did release an EP with his old band Stiffler's Mom, it's hard to compare the release methods and schedule given that "The Demo" came out in 2004.  It is neat to see that Greg, Alex, and Warren are going all in on a studio album, and stay tuned for updates as they roll in!

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Bullet Train's upcoming EPs

Rumoured Songs: "Atmosphere", "Illusions", "Profit", "Wayside"

Background: The current hard rock band from former Sense of Truth/Skeyes of Seven frontman Cory Murchsion and ex-Fort Creek bandmates Robin "Bones" Lee and Anthony Fabiano, Bullet Train have existed solely as a studio band so far, releasing four original songs recorded at their own home studio to their YouTube channel in 2024, all very much influenced by their take on current events. After a quiet summer due to "life's trials", Bullet Train resurfaced on their Facebook page on September 1st to reveal that they were working on two demo EPs, with the first one entering post-production as of the 9th, though it's not clear if their 2024 singles will be on them.

Current Release Status: No idea yet, especially as this band has no prior track record for releasing albums, though all three band members have experience writing and recording studio material to varying degrees. Bullet Train claimed on September 9th that a release date for EP #1 would be announced "in the upcoming weeks", a timeline not realized as of this writing. It'll be interesting to see how fast things come along for Bullet Train, so keep tabs on their Facebook page for further updates!

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Chase James Wigmore - The Chaotic Rite

Rumoured Songs: "The Cities Alive & It's Angry"

Background: Ever the prolific artist & songwriter, local folk punk/extreme metal musician Chase Wigmore has been working on an extensive rock opera for years (once claimed to be a 33 part work), originally named "A Story About A Kid Named Todd". Worked on in between his other unrelated solo albums, released for sale or otherwise, Chase posted a lengthy elaboration of the rock opera in 2022, now titled "The Chaotic Rite", outlining its concept, recording plans, and long-term release timeline. Clips of songs have surfaced on his Facebook page, as have full songs not explicitly tied to the album, as well as the final artwork. In more recent promotion, Chase has hinted that "The Chaotic Rite" might be his final solo album as part of aims to focus on his personal life more than his prolific original material. Regardless, the final product has been pared down to 25-30 minutes.

Current Release Status: Chase elaborated on Facebook last summer that the album was 95% done earlier that year when the files "got trapped on my desktop's hard drive", and he had been unable to procure a backup of the material or recover the files as of that post. In any event, three of the full songs uploaded to Facebook in the previous year were clarified as not being planned for "The Chaotic Rite", but they could surface on a separate EP. Fingers crossed that Chase is able to save this album and put it out when able, especially given the years that he's put into the making of it!

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Convergence - Gemini

Rumoured Songs: "Gemini", "In Bloom", "Breaking News", "It Ate The F&$%ing Moon", "Kraken Mara", "You Are Not Flesh"


Background: Just over a month after releasing their sophomore EP "Dead And Dreaming", local progressive metal band Convergence announced in February 2024 that EP #3 would be named "Gemini", with its cover artwork being released at the same time. Teaser clips of most songs from the EP were posted on their Facebook page and their YouTube channel since May 2024, with guitarist Brendan Christie revealing the names of five songs in a recent Facebook conversation, one named after the band's prior name Kraken Mara, though a new or renamed song named "You Are Not Flesh" was posted an advance single on Bandcamp in September. New drummer David Peredun will make his studio debut here. Convergence have been working in studio recently with producer Dustin Goodall at Unsalted Audio, documenting the sessions in Facebook "Reels", which also now involve singer Stephen Gagnon-Ruscio (who joined the band in the winter), but the newest teasers haven't 100% credited an EP as the end goal. Soo Blaster's Facebook promotion for their most recent concert said that they were "dropping tracks from 'In Bloom'", but the band has not confirmed an album name change on their own social media.

Current Release Status: No clue, and given the complexity of their music yet their independent studio trappings so far, that could bode a quick or lengthy timeline for "Gemini" (or "In Bloom"?) to come out, depending on what angle you take. Since their modern studio cycle commenced in 2023, things have been relatively steady for Brendan and Jake as a recording act, and here's hoping that Convergence keep that up for their third offering! 

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Fort Creek's debut album

Rumoured Songs: "One For The Road", "Sweet Rosie"

Background: Background: Local southern/hard rock band Fort Creek have sporadically teased plans to record an EP since February 2020, but they wouldn't release any samples until almost two years later when they shared (now-deleted) clips of their original song "Hammer Down" on their Facebook page. The guys would play it regularly at concerts from June 2022-August 2023, and were working in studio throughout 2023, revealing that "it's coming along" in a Facebook post that March, and teasing new recording sessions following earlier "learning experiences" there that May. After the departure of bassist Robin "Bones" Lee and drummer Anthony Fabiano (both now of Bullet Train) in the fall of 2023, Fort Creek opted to abandon material recorded with them "as a show of good faith", and have been working on new material and rebuilding their studio over the past year. Now featuring Phil Greco on drums, their first single (the acoustic "One For The Road") was posted online in January, with the band confirming plans to now record a 10 song album at Jettison Studios prior to returning to live concerts, with their new single "Sweet Rosie" coming next.

Current Release Status: Prior release timelines for their debut EP reflected their early 2020s lineup's material, and Justin, Shane, Bill, and Phil have largely kept things somewhat close to the vest prior to putting out "One For The Road". There are a lot of unknowns, especially given the 5+ years of production time and their decision to basically start over in 2023, and that this is a band that was primarily known for their work on the weekend cover circuit before their rhythm section left. It will be interesting to see how things develop, so stay tuned for updates!

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Handsome Sandwich's first EP

Rumoured Songs: "Without You", "Partyfuel", "Change A Bit", "No Idea", "All Done Now"

Background: Before even releasing their full-length debut album "Deconstructed" in May 2023, local alternative/hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich revealed that not all of their existing originals would be on that album, with plans to instead release them and some brand new songs on a forthcoming EP. In September of that year, they began recording this EP (which will reportedly have seven songs) at the Algoma Conservatory of Music, with bass & drum tracks completed that month, and then-guitarist Mitch Sirie was finishing his parts as of that December, with vocals still to go. At least five of the seven songs have had their names revealed in concert setlists. After only contributing to the packaging on "Deconstructed", bassist Rafael Medina will perform on this EP, and a "Reel" of him recording an unidentified song in studio was posted to the band's Facebook page. It's not clear if (ex-?) rhythm guitarist Brandon Ruch will be involved on the EP in some fashion or not, but Wyld Stallyns saxophonist Josh Norling may appear again, as he guested with them to play "Partyfuel" at August's Northern Vibe Festival. The studio version of "All Done Now" was sampled in this Vintage Games & Junque livestream with drummer Johnny Belanger in April, while "Collage" was cited as a possible album name at their most recent concert at Soo Blaster in May.

Current Release Status: To be determined, and while they're not recording this EP at the same place as "Deconstructed", note that the sessions for that album at Unsalted Audio wrapped up four months before the album release. An article about the band from The Sault Star in June noted that the seven new songs "will likely be released as singles", but whether this points to a change of release plans or is just an acknowledgement that they have seven individual singles to put out, I don't know. It will be interesting to see how things progress in the coming months!

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Pillory's first full length album

Rumoured Songs: "End Of Small Sanctuary", "Specimen Of Egotism", "Sculptor Of Cadavers", "The Angst Of Existence", "The Passing", "Abhorred Apprehension", "The Curse Of Eternal Sickness", "A Drop Of Shame In An Ocean Of Guilt"

Background: After a five year hiatus dotted with occasional reunion teasers from band members on social media, local death/thrash metal trio Pillory fully reunited last summer, picking up where they left off in their 2015-2019 run. During that time, they fully moved to death metal with harsh/growled vocals, completely abandoning their originals from their 2013 debut EP "Cringe At The Cross" in the process. While established mid-late 2010s songs and new material have been played in concert in the past year, Pillory only confirmed in this Facebook post on band t-shirts from May 19th that they were working on a full-length album, which they intend on "finishing and releasing", implying that sessions have commenced in some form. It's not yet clear if Blair St. John or his replacement Devon Lucier will handle bass on the final product.

Current Release Status: Given how little Pillory has publically said about the album on social media, it's anyone's guess, but the technicality and brutality seen on the band's death metal-era material (and increasingly so) bodes well towards wanting this music not to stall out in live performances. Keep tabs on what Robert, Bret, and Blair are up to on Facebook, and hopefully the album is on its way reasonably soon!

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Spades GT - "United"

Rumoured Songs: "Anthem", "United", "Demons", "Filthy Lie", "Game For Two", "Wrecked", "Strong", "Die On Our Feet"

Background: Long teasing plans to record their next album this year, local/Barrie crossover thrash band Spades GT began recording sessions for their follow-up to 2023's "Sewer City Radio" on February 17th at Room 21 in Toronto with producer Kyle Marchant once again. Their fourth release total dating back to their original all-local run as Jack Spades, this will be Spades GT's first album with new second guitarist Matthew Voros. Teaser videos on their Facebook page included guitarist Daniel Horton tracking bass on at least one of the planned eight songs (the sessions took place after James Roy Daley's departure but a few weeks before Sean MacNab replaced him) and ex-guitarist Jay Sarrazin returning as a guest musician. The final sessions on February 22nd reportedly featured guest appearances and gang vocals, strongly hinted to be via Fast Life frontman Andrew Moorehouse and rapper Julien "Mersinary" Dos Santos, as per the liner notes. The album name was eventually confirmed as "United", with the full cover artwork, track listing, and two advance singles released last month.

Current Release Status: The band plans to release "United" on Saturday, with a release party taking place that night at The Bovine Sex Club in Toronto (no word on local availability of CDs), and given the hype and pre-release schedule that Spades have in store for this album, it should be a big month for J.D., Dan, Tyler, Matt, and Sean as they prep for the launch! Stay tuned to Spades GT's social media for more on the album in the coming weeks!

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I hope you guys liked this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post! This series will return on or around August 2nd, while this month's Defunct Local Band Profile will likely be our next monthly feature post next week. That's all for now, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

Generations' Canada Day Concert Preview, A New Album Release, And Much More!!

Happy Canada Day to our readers and followers in Sault Ontario and area! Today's all-Canadian post gives us a seasonal concert preview, a new album release, a new lyric video, and what's been on the FM dial recently (and later today), so here's what you should know!

We'll start with a special Tuesday concert preview, as local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will headline TONIGHT'S Canada Day festivities at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion! Last seen at Beck's two weeks ago, this will be a large spotlight for Valerie, the Tonys, and Pierre to unleash some fan-friendly rock covers, hopefully with a big chunk of Canadian content for obvious reasons! While their set will take place at around 8:00 PM under the big tent before the fireworks, a stacked roster of entertainment is planned for all ages today, albeit without timeslots on the event poster. Co-headlining are classic rock cover trio The Sidekicks, while you'll also be seeing Toronto magician Magic Mel, local folk musician Matthew James, and the Concert Band Algoma (no relation), plus Ryan Mauro singing "O Canada". Expect lots of family friendly entertainment, vendors, and refreshments throughout the day as well.

Today's Canada Day program begins at 2:00 PM and it is absolutely free to come down to the Pavilion for all of the fun! While the tent is acknowledged, 9&10 News is calling for partly cloudy skies today with weather in the 18-20° range, and no chance of rain, which should be comfortable enough. Visit the above links for more details on the Canada Day program in Sault Ontario, and for a preview, here's Generations live!

Next up, here's a surprise new album release, as local crossover thrash quartet Hails put out a self-titled album on major streaming services on Saturday! This came as a surprise to me, as while I knew that Ha!ls had wrote new original material and performed it live, I don't believe they ever publically acknowledged on social media that they had been recording studio material beyond their Trigger Happy cover for "Punk Canada Vol. 4", but the cover artwork (designed by frontman Brenton Ellis as usual) was posted to their Facebook page in May without context. The album is their first with second guitarist Carmen Muto, and features thirteen songs, at least three of which either share names with or are re-recordings of songs from Brent's solo project Slumshine ("Pink Clouds Of Density", "Reversible Straitjacket", and "BiPolaris"). With all of that said, where can you stream or buy "Hails"?

The album is now streamable on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music, Boomplay, and Qobuz, though unlike their 2023 debut EP "Rock And Rolls", it is not currently on Bandcamp. If you want to buy "Ha!ls", it is on iTunes for $9.99, so it is thusly eligible for a review on the SMS, but given our current backlog, I currently have it pencilled in for October, as Mike Haggith, The Realignment Project, and Hails guitarist Mikhal Muto's solo project Agnosticism all have new albums that beat this to market. (Spades GT's "United" is now slated for November). I'll hold comment on Ha!ls' new album for now, but check it out at the above links, stay tuned for our review this fall, and here's the opening track, "The Lost Cosmonaut"!

Also today, let's look at recent programming notes from 104.3 The Fox, so what has the former Q104 been up to on air as of late? In terms of on-air programming notes, last month saw a bit of variance on Sunday, June 15th, when The Fox and their sister stations didn't air a Metallica album to cap off that week's Sunday Night Vinyl Series (it was Metallica Week). Instead, they had a special about Metallica's 1995 album "Load" to honour the 30th anniversary of its release. While the album was played in full, it was supplemented with features and interview clips from Metallica members, so that would have been neat for fans, especially of their mid-late 1990s output! Learn more about that special at this link. This week on 104.3, it's The Tragically Hip Week, which I believe is just the second time since the format change locally that the theme week has been based on a domestic band (CJQM switched to rock during Rush Week).

For Canada Day today, there is special themed programming for the holiday. Afternoon DJ Lew MacDonald is on air at 8:00 AM & 2:00 PM for The Hip Road Trip, where he will visit locations in Canada that were referenced in The Hip's songs, while their 2005 live album "That Night In Toronto" will be played at 8:00 AM. In between, the fan voted Great Canadian Countdown (as plugged on air by DJs and in commercial breaks) airs at 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM, so if you're curious what Rogers Radio listeners liked the most for domestic rock music, you know when to tune in! Sounds like a fun day of Canadian rock programming on The Fox, so tune in to check everything out, and click here for more info on today's programming schedule there!

Finally for this all-Canadian post at the SMS, here's something that I didn't know about when I briefly mentioned the Spotify availability of local/Barrie alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith's new single "Brand New Day", as he uploaded a lyric video for the song onto his YouTube channel two weeks ago! The lead single from his new album "Frequent Flier" (and one of just three songs from the album that you can hear for free without buying it or obtaining the subscriber mailing list passwords), you can now check out the song on YouTube, complete with a lyric track along the bottom of the screen, if not having the best contrast for visibility. I won't comment on the song yet, as I'm reviewing "Frequent Flier" next month, but the song is a motivational number about preparing for a new adventure and a new day. Give it a listen below, and buy "Frequent Flier" above!
 
 
That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!