A Brand New Local Band, New Woods of Ypres Songs, And More!!!

Well guys, I'm in a good mood, got some cool new stuff to share with you all today, including LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, new Woods of Ypres songs, and lots more! So let's get started with a new local band I just discovered!

In my searching for anything new to report, I came across a new band from Sault Michigan named Riot! By Night! These guys appear to be a side project from Pickford hard rock band Absolute, only with local singer Ryan Harrison in the place of Absolute frontman Donny Newell. The new band don't have any songs posted on their MySpace page yet (they just formed in August), but they describe their sound as "modern rock with feeling", and are influenced by bands with "angry lyricists, great drums, heavy guitars, and pounding bass." If they're anything like how Absolute sound, Riot! By Night should be a welcome addition to the local scene!

That brings me to my next point, as I have updates for two upcoming shows! Riot! By Night are scheduled for two concerts on Halloween weekend at The Bird! They're at 10:00 PM on October 30th and 31st. These aren't the first shows from Riot! By Night (my bad for missing them), but they're the first ones I've heard about. I'm not calling these new concerts because it looks like they're playing with Absolute that weekend, which makes perfect sense, seeing as they share 3 members! I have updated the concert listings on the right of the page to reflect this, and added Riot! By Night to the Local Metal Band Links as well!

And before I jump to any other news, I've also added Absolute to the Local Metal Band Links. Seeing as Pickford's in Chippewa County and within driving range, it only makes sense. I'll cover Kincheloe and Echo Bay and such areas, why not Pickford? Good band, if you haven't checked them out, do so on MySpace!

Next up, I wanna direct you to the new website for Stereo Soul Studios. That's the local recording studio run by Miguel Gauthier, and their new website is really slick, including portfolio information from their past and future productions! This includes Gates of Winter's "Lux Aeterna" album and Garden of Bedlam's self-titled EP, among many others! But what interests me most is two items relating to upcoming album releases. One is for Stillbroke's upcoming EP, "Never Enough", which was recorded there. The album cover (or what appears to be it) is posted on there, and here it is for you guys to see! Plain but effective, I can't wait to hear the EP when it's released!

But also, I saw there was a spot up for Woods of Ypres' upcoming album, mistakenly labeled as "Against The Seasons" (complete with the album cover.) Now, Woods fans, you know that "Against The Seasons" was their first album. Odd mix-up, but ignore that, and you'll notice a music player beside the blurb about the album. And lo and behold, there's TWO NEW WOODS OF YPRES SONGS! Neither are titled, just labelled by their track number, but they are definitely brand new songs! I gotta say, I love the guitar on these songs, but I'll hold any major critiquing until "Woods IV" comes out!

A short description of the album is also featured, and mentions that they have "left their black metal days in the past to re-emerge as a more progressive metal power house." Seems accurate, the songs don't reflect the old school stuff as much, but they sound good! But don't take my word for it, head to Stereo Soul Studios' official website to hear both songs! And remember, you can hear another new song "Everything I Touch Turns To Gold...Then To Coal" by downloading the August episode of The Governor's Ball at this location! Oh yeah, if you didn't notice, the above image appears to be the official album cover for "Woods IV: The Green Album"! They uploaded it to their Facebook page yesterday! Very nice!

And two more quick updates for this morning: First, as you can see on your right, the official poster has been unveiled for next Saturday's Garden of Bedlam/Bring The Fallen concert! Looks good! Nothing else new to report on this show, just reminding you all to go check it out if you're of age! Get more details at this location! And second, I have uploaded a pair of new local band clips to YouTube! One is Lion Ride's song "Lazer Lover", which was an early demo recording of theirs, and is still played frequently at their shows. The other is "Waiting For Lightning", the title track from local hard rock band Aftersight's 2003 debut album! Check out these and more at The Sault Metal Scene's official YouTube channel! Here's "Waiting For Lightning", which is a good song, expect a review of the album next year on the SMS!



That's all for today, stay tuned for more news and updates as I hear them! Thanks everyone!