This Weekend's Local Metal/Hard Rock Concert Reviews!

As we wave goodbye to June and the first half of the year, a new month is upon us, and we have lots of concerts this weekend to mark the midway point of 2011! I don't know of any metal or hard rock shows in Sault Michigan this weekend though, so let me know if there's some going on, as it's a lot harder for me to get show information across the river. Also, if you're curious as to the lack of Titan's Eve or C'mon previews, I'll have them later in the weekend to spread the shows out better, likely on Sunday. So, let's get to the previews of the 5 shows I know of between TONIGHT and Saturday!

First, it's the 22nd Roosevelt Hotel metal night TONIGHT, and two bands are currently confirmed for the show! The announced headliners are local classic metal quartet Sativa Rose, who will be looking to build on recent momentum stemming from their successful opening slot at the Dayglo Abortions show earlier in the month! With lots of exciting originals and covers in store, get ready to enjoy Sativa Rose's proficient classic metal assault tonight at The Rosie! Also announced are local hardcore quintet As It Stands, making their first Thursday metal night appearance in a month (and record-tying 10th overall), following recording sessions in Mississauga and a last minute opening slot for Versus The Nothing at The Rockstar Bar earlier in the month. These guys should be psyched to get back on stage tonight, so definitely make sure to see them tonight as well, as they're always good for a moshpit! A third band has yet to be officially announced, but I will keep you posted if Dismembertainment announce anyone before today's show. As always, there will be no cover charge, a 19+ age limit, and a 9:30 PM-ish start time, possibly later if it's just the two bands. Check the above links for more details!

This should be a good show, though I'm sure many of us are curious as to if a third band will be added. Not sure if I can hit this one, but I'll definitely be seeing Sativa Rose on Monday! (More on that in our next news post.) Head out to The Rosie TONIGHT for some great local metal, and for a preview, here's Sativa Rose covering Ozzy Osbourne's "Bark At The Moon" earlier this month!



Now to a band hitting the stage this weekend for double shows tomorrow night & Saturday night, but first, I have (at least temporarily) removed Full Circle's announced shows this weekend at The Nicolet Tavern from our concert schedule. If you remember correctly, the band announced a pair of short notice shows at The Nic last weekend, but nothing has been even implied for this weekend, which originally had Nicolet concerts as per the old Turner Up Facebook group. It looks like the band and/or The Nic's management opted to bump Full Circle up one weekend, and as such, I doubt they're playing any shows this weekend. If I hear differently, I will let you guys know, and remember to check them out next weekend at The Rockstar Bar!

If you're looking for some classic influenced hard rock, I do know of a spot you can hit this weekend though, as Sneaky Pete are playing a double weekend set for the first time! The rising local quartet will hit The Roosevelt Hotel tomorrow & Saturday night for a weekend full of hard rocking covers that should get fans moving and grooving! Nice to finally see them play two shows in the same weekend, I know they'll make lots of fans at both concerts! Both shows have 10:30 PM start times, neither have a cover charge, and you must be 19 to hit both. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details! Sounds like a fun weekend of hard rock from Sneaky Pete! I know Mike, Mario, Bill, and Sean have loads of talent and experience to deliver some great covers this weekend, so definitely check them out if you can! Visit their Facebook group linked above for some live videos that, though unembeddable, are worth a watch!

Also scheduled for Saturday is Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison, who begins a brand new weekly concert arrangement that day with two separate sets at Service Grill Pizza on Korah Road, not far from The Rosie! After sporadic solo shows following the end of his last weekly arrangements in March, we're in for a lot of acoustic hard rock goodness this weekend and beyond through the summer, especially given that Tym will play TWO shows daily! One at 3:00 PM and one at 10:00 PM, going for around 4 hours each like usual. Neither set on Saturday has an announced cover charge, and at the very lest, the matinee at 3:00 PM should be all ages. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see Tym back for some regularly scheduled solo shows, make note of this Saturday summer schedule, and as new dates are officially announced, we'll have them here! So go see him at 3:00 or 10:00 on Saturday, and for a preview, here's Tym covering Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" last year at Foggy Notions!



And finally, it's the weekend's likely biggest metal show, as Lion Ride are back home on Saturday night! Almost three months after last rocking the local stage, the local favourites will be back at The Rockstar Bar once again to deliver their punk/metal attack with their trademark speed and attitude that we've come to enjoy so much since their 2007 debut! This show will cap off the band's short "Summer Kick-Off Tour" in style, with the band sure to unleash originals like "Slapdance" and "Snail Trail" along with select covers! Also scheduled are local roots duo The Boot Hill Crooners (featuring Sheldon & Marshall Jaaskelainen of The Wild Turkeys), who are another talented openers choice, though not the best genre matchup. I should note that The Rockstar Bar's Facebook event page lists them as the headliners, which sounds odd given Lion Ride's prominence, and that Lion Ride themselves have never publically acknowledged any other bands for Saturday, so I'll have my eye on that for sure. A $5 cover charge is likely for Saturday night, you must be 19 to enter, and a 10:00 PM-ish start time can be assumed. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

This should be a great concert, hopefully I can make it out if I'm free that night! Lion Ride never cease to impress, and The Boot Hill Crooners will be at least interesting to see and hear for the first time live! Hopefully I'll see you guys there, and for a preview, here's Lion Ride playing their song "Stick It In" in Kitchener in January!



That's all for today, in all likelihood, as I don't have enough faith in my computer to trust it to work consistently given the weather forecast. Dirk from Sykotyk Rampage is apparently coming by Friday to take a look at it, so hopefully we can finally fix the overheating issue! I'll be back soon with a new news post though, including the openers for Monday's Titans Eve show (and our next "Where Are The New Albums?" post), so stay tuned for all of that! Thanks everyone!

Woods of Ypres & Rock 101 News, Plus New Videos!!

Hey guys, here's some more news before we preview this weekend's concerts tomorrow, but also remember to check out our Jeff Nisbet profile in the post below this one! Today, we have some surprising lineup news from a local band, a cool new update from Rock 101, and some new videos (including this week's classic video), but first, I wanted to apologize for a missed concert. Apparently, Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Monkey's Uncle played a show at Golanka's Bar (The Bird) on June 18th, as cited on The Bird's Facebook page. I apologize for missing the show for SMS coverage, but in all fairness, the band never announced it themselves, and The Bird only announced it the day of the show. Hopefully it went well, they're a solid band! Now to the news! (Edited July 2nd at 2:33 AM)

According to a few different pages, local blackened doom metal band Woods of Ypres have parted ways with bassist Shane Madden & drummer Evan Madden. Postings on a topic on Woods of Ypres' forum and Evan Madden's personal Twitter account seem to confirm the surprising news. I won't quote anything that Evan said online to try to avoid the negative feelings expressed (and to remain impartial; we only have one side of the story here), but let's just say that the split doesn't sound amicable. I haven't heard a concrete reason from any source for the Madden brothers' apparent departure, but from past experience, I imagine Woods of Ypres won't acknowledge lineup changes until new members are found. If true, this news is really surprising, as the band's current lineup seemed stable & successful! Evan had been Woods of Ypres' drummer since frontman David Gold's return from South Korea in 2008, while his brother Shane replaced Steve Furgiuele as their bassist before their summer 2009 tour run. Both Madden brothers were featured on "Woods IV: The Green Album" & the "Woods 4.5" sessions that led to the "Home" vinyl release this spring.

I won't pass judgement on anyone connected to the band over the split, as again, I don't know both sides of the story. It's unfortunate to see Evan and Shane leave, but they do have a bunch of great bands in Philadelphia to focus on too, like The Green Evening Requiem, so hopefully they have lots of music in store for us metalheads! As for Woods of Ypres, hopefully they'll be back soon as well, and though the split is disappointing, I know David & Joel will be sure to have some great stuff up their sleeve for "Woods V" and beyond! I'll keep you guys posted!

Next up, here's some new updates from Rock 101, our local FM rock radio station! I'm sure I'm not the only one who's had this problem, but one of my qualms with Rock 101 over the years was the lack of a formal request line. Only The Hair Scare ever seemed to have regular song requests from listeners (if I can remember correctly.) Well now, Rock 101 has an official toll free request/contest line where you can call in to ask for certain songs and enter contests! The number is 1-855-876-2536 (or 1-855-8-ROCK-FM), and can be used FOR FREE on both sides of the border! You can use this number to call in for any occasion where the Rock 101 crew asks for callers, like during contests, request hours, and so forth. This appears to be a relatively recent addition to the station, and gets prime placement on Rock 101's website too, so take advantage of their new toll free number and get calling for whatever interests you at The Sault's Rock Station at 101.3 FM!

We'll close this post with new videos, and firstly, here's some new solo material from local guitarist Mike Cliffe! Mike has posted two new songs on his Reverbnation page, so here's what you should know! One is called "Shut The Front Door", which mixes a low volume hard rock instrumental with experimental talkbox-like effects to create an interesting little song that should wet the appetite of Mike Cliffe fans who've missed heavier original songs! The other new song is entitled "Rainy Day Romp", which is a shorter track but very heavy, using some slightly distorted riffing and a slow building pace to show off Mike at his rocking best! Very solid 2:20 of hard rocking there, but both of his new songs are worth checking out, so do so at the above links! Mike has also uploaded "Rainy Day Romp" onto his YouTube channel just yesterday, accompanied by a "raining fire" visualization of some type, which fits the song pretty well (typo in the title aside), so check out his video for "Rainy Day Romp" below, and get lots more from Mike Cliffe's solo project at the pages linked above!



And finally, here's this week's classic video! With Lion Ride back in town on Saturday, you may have expected this week's video to be of them again, but actually, we're gonna look at frontman Mikey Hawdon & guitarist Mark Rand's old band Detroit once again! During their 2008-2010 run (also featuring former bandmate & Maximum RNR frontman Brenton Ellis and his The Labour Of... bandmate Curtis Faux), Detroit tore up local and Toronto-area stages with their trademark short and brutal originals, and many of these shows took place at Toronto's famed Bovine Sex Club. A common sight there is area promoters' The Pink & Black Attack's Tuesday night concerts, and Detroit were part of a bunch during their active period. This video comes from one circa January 2010 (unsure of the exact date) in what may have been their last show before they went inactive! It's of Detroit playing their original song "Shithouse Ratt" from their original "Let The Hammers Fly" demo, and it's of pretty good quality! Trademark Detroit sound, and though the colour contrast makes Brenton yellow closer to the stage, it's well shot with a good camera!

This video was shot by attendee Misad Justdna Venture, who uploaded the video to her personal Facebook page not long after the show. The original video can be seen at http://facebook.com/video/video.php?v=236702511915 and I mean NO HARM with this upload! It's one of the very few Detroit videos not on YouTube, and it deserves a wider audience! NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED!! With that said, check out Detroit playing "Shithouse Ratt" at one of their last concerts below, and for more Pink & Black Tuesday sets from Detroit from mid-2009, head to this link, click "Uploads", and search for "Detroit"!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for concert previews for shows taking place tomorrow-Saturday in our next post! Shows on Monday will likely be profiled Sunday night. Stay tuned, and remember, our 4th anniversary is in FIVE DAYS!!!

Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile: Jeff Nisbet

One more feature post for the month of June, now in it's new permanent spot near the end of any given month, and for just the second time, we are taking a look at a solo artist originally from Sault Ste. Marie! As always, this series profiles and discusses bands and acts that, though not based here, feature at least one local member. That continues today, and hopefully you guys enjoy what I have for you guys in this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile! Of course, please tell me if I have anything incorrect, missing, or misstated, but for now, check out this month's profile below! (Updated on November 26th, 2014)
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Jeff Nisbet (Kitchener, Ontario)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED; ex-members in italics)

Jeff Nisbet (all instruments)

Official Reverbnation page: http://www.reverbnation.com/jeffnisbet
Official Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/jeff-nisbet/354155820749
Official SoundCloud page: http://www.soundcloud.com/jeffnisbet

Local Info: Fans of the local scene from the 1990s are bound to remember Jeff Nisbet, most notably as guitarist for the defunct local punk band The Spigots! They (and Jeff) were prominently featured in Paolo Colasacco's book "Going Underground" if you want to read up on some of the more detailed elements of Jeff's run as a prominent local guitarist, which included numerous concerts at The Windsor Hotel during "the second wave". Click here to listen to a rate Spigots original! However, Jeff was a metalhead first and foremost, growing up playing metal in the 1980s, eventually forming the local metal band Broken Halo during his high school years. Though Jeff got a Bachelor of Arts in classical guitar, he opted to seek employment in other fields, now owning a Kitchener-based consulting firm, though he never dropped the guitar!

Band Bio: Though largely playing the guitar for fun in recent years, Jeff launched solo band pages in early 2010 to share some of his original compositions with a wider audience from his current base in Kitchener. Old fans of The Spigots may be hoping for punk, but this stuff is straight up metal, and Jeff certainly hasn't lost a step over the years! His original tracks posted on his Reverbnation & SoundCloud pages are all very proficient, while being very heavy at the same time! They don't follow rigid structures, the drum arrangements are well done, and it's hard to believe when listening that just one guy is doing all the work! Jeff has an ear for heavy riffs and melodies, very thrashy feel to everything, and his solos? Very nice! I can only imagine how this would sound live, or with vocals. I understand the lighter approach to his solo work, but it'd be cool to see these songs progressed further, cause Jeff himself is doing everything right to make some really fast, thrashy, and awesome heavy metal tracks! His solo project appears to be inactive (with no updates since August 2011), but definitely become a fan, you should really dig his solo work!

The above links contain some nice solo work, so check the above links to hear his five posted solo originals, but remember that I did link a classic Spigots original above as well! Because there are no videos of Jeff's solo work online, I decided to upload one of my favourite Jeff Nisbet tracks onto our YouTube channel! I mean NO HARM with this upload, I want people to hear his work, and hopefully he'd feel similarly! NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED! With that said, check out "The Juice" below, and much more at the above links!


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There we go, I hope you guys enjoyed this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile! Next month, we'll return to a full band, as we'll focus on another band from Saultite (and prolific musician) Ash Richtig! As I alluded to when we profiled The Heatseeking Moisture Missiles in April, we will indeed take a look at his Windsor-based sludge metal band NeanderTHRALL next month, hopefully on July 26th like we originally promised when we announced the new feature post schedule (it got lost in the shuffle of other news and computer overheating this month.) So look out for that next month, and stay tuned for more news, weekend concert previews, and much more very soon! Thanks everyone!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more local metal news and notes very soon, including weekend concert previews! Thanks everyone!

A Band Name Change, A Possible New Show, And Lots More News!!

Before we get to today's previously scheduled local metal stories, I wanted to take a second to offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Sault Star reporter Frank Dobrovnik, who suddenly passed away just recently while vacationing in Italy with his wife. Frank had been a well respected writer & reporter for The Sault Star since 1998, and regular SMS readers may remember us featuring articles he has written surrounding certain major Essar Centre concerts, along with the Kiss concert campaign and aftermath, although his body of work stretches far beyond just those topics. I never met Frank, but I've been a fan of his writing style & articles for some time now, and this is completely shocking news to hear, especially for his young children and his own young age. Click here to read Frank Rupnik's tribute article from the paper, and local news sites should keep you guys posted on arrangements and donations to the family as they are made public. R.I.P. Frank!

Now, we have some more positive news to share on this rainy Tuesday, including some new songs, a band looking to play here, and kicking things off today, a local death metal band has changed their name! Yesterday afternoon, Bring The Misery officially changed their name to Unleash The Blackened Sky, after just two shows under their old name. With the name change, their Facebook page's link is different too, so we've updated our band links to reflect the change as well. No reason was publically given for the name change, though I imagine it's partly due to Dan Souliere's departure, as the "band merger" style of the old name (Bring The Fallen + State of Misery) doesn't have the same meaning when only one BTF member is left in the current lineup. Plus, the new name is more original, and it sounds very metal, so hopefully it sticks! Curiously though, their page still doesn't mention Daeson Lesage as their new rhythm guitarist, you think that would be updated by now. Stay tuned to the SMS for when we hear about Unleash The Blackened Sky's next shows!

Next up, there's another band looking for a local booking, so here's what you should know! I got an e-mail yesterday from Chris Woodford of the Toronto metal band Titan (not to be confused with Titans Eve), and he's looking for a local booking this summer! The band, who play sort of a mix of sludge and hardcore metal, are hoping to play a local concert on August 5th, between their Toronto & Thunder Bay shows on the surrounding days, and are open to playing anywhere that will book them! Dismembertainment can't do the show due to prior engagements that day, so Chris asked me if I could promote their search on the SMS, and I happily obliged! Titan are inspired by bands like Converge and Neurosis, and they have a nice slow and heavy sound with lots of aggression and intensity to get some moshpits going! It'd be cool to see Titan here on August 5th, so if any of you guys are interested in booking, helping book, or playing with Titan for a show that night, give the band a shout at their MySpace page linked above or at titanslays@gmail.com! Remember, if you wanna see Titan here, consider messaging them, they'd love to play here, someone just needs to extend an olive branch to start the process!

Now to some new updates from new local metal band AlterWhite! The band has uploaded two new demo covers onto their Facebook page (and their brand new YouTube channel), which may seem a bit odd when you think of metal covers. One is a cover of Creed's "My Own Prison" and the other (believe it or not) is of Wham!'s "Careless Whisper"! Now that's unexpected, especially the latter! Both end up sounding similar to their originals, as in they have some musical promise, but are very empty and unrefined, but remember, the band has just two guys at the moment. I find with both songs, the songs are obviously ratcheted up in heaviness, but honestly, Mike Matthews would be better served to actually try and sing the covers, not go into James Hetfield-mode, as it doesn't flow consistently with Kevin McCarthy's riffing. That said, I've never been a fan of George Michael, so I find the "Careless Whisper" cover to be an improvement! I want to hear these songs with another guitarist and a bassist, and maybe some more controlled singing, cause there is something there with AlterWhite that they need to expose musically! Check out the new covers (and more) at the above links, and here's their "Careless Whisper" cover!



And finally, if you've been a reader of the SMS in it's various forms over the years, you may know that July 4th is not just Independence Day, it's also the SMS' anniversary. We're coming up on 4 years since I started The Sault Metal Scene on Monday, and you may have seen a bit of a "countdown" of sorts on our Facebook page lately. That's just to build suspense, as we have 4 "surprise" announcements to make! Two involve the SMS blog/website itself, though what is happening there is up to you to speculate. One involves monthly features (all I'll say is none are being cancelled), and one involves one of our external pages. Yes, I'm keeping things vague for a reason, cause I want you guys to speculate and not know what's up my sleeve! Rest assured, nothing bad is happening, nothing drastic is going to happen in terms of overhauling our goals and aims, and (as I often reiterate), it's not related to me personally booking a concert. These announcements are all good, and in at least one case, I'll be able to provide you guys with something more than just text and media. Let the speculation run wild, and on Monday, you'll know exactly what we're doing to celebrate our 4th anniversary!

That's all for today, but stay tuned TOMORROW as our final monthly feature post of June is unveiled, where we profile Saultite Jeff Nisbet's solo work in our Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile Series! Stay tuned for that, and much more to come! Thanks guys!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Sativa Rose, Tym Morrison, And C'Mon) Plus Much More!!

If you have me as a friend on Facebook, you may have notice my grumblings about my computer recently. This overheating issue got so bad with the temperatures yesterday (which sadly didn't drop dramatically in the evening) that it didn't come on for good until after midnight, hence the lack of a Monday post. So today's post (hopefully the first of two) will cover some big stories, including THREE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, some awesome TV time for a notable local metal company, and a brand new SMS contest, as we close in on the final week before our 4th anniversary! Now, to the news!

This Thursday will mark the 22nd Roosevelt Hotel metal night, but who's playing? We know of two of the bands, including announced headliners Sativa Rose! The talented classic quartet will take the stage on Thursday night at The Rosie to unload some of their potent and high energy covers, along with some select originals to get us metalheads going! Also scheduled are local hardcore quintet As It Stands, in their first Rosie metal night in over a month, and record-tying 10th appearance overall! With their recording sessions and a big opening slot for Versus The Nothing in that span, they should be all geared up for a devastating set of metalcore originals on Thursday as well! A likely third band has yet to be formally announced, and though I did hear from one band about their possibly involvement via e-mail, nothing's officially confirmed, so I'll hold off saying anything yet. As is usual for shows without out of town headliners, there is no cover charge, a 9:30 PM-ish start time, and a 19+ age limit. For more details, check the Metal Nights at The Rosie Facebook page! Sounds like fun, hopefully I can make it out! I'm kinda disappointed that I missed last week's (more on that shortly), but maybe I can clear the schedule for this week! Stay tuned for updates!

Next up, remember when Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison had weekly/bi-weekly solo engagements at varying venues from late last year through March? Well, he's got a brand new one, so here's what you should know! It looks like his last two Saturday gigs at Service Grill Pizza on Korah Road were a success, and with that said, he's apparently gonna be back there each Saturday for the remainder of the summer! This includes TWO gigs on the Saturdays, including a matinee show (likely at around 3:00 PM) and a more standard 10:00 PM night set. Only one Saturday in the arrangement with Service Grill Pizza has been announced, specifically for THIS SATURDAY (we'll announce others formally when he does), but there should be lots of Tym Morrison's acoustic solo covers to go around for at least the next couple months! The exact length of the arrangement isn't known yet (when "summer" ends could vary), but hopefully these are successful for the long term! So remember, he'll be there on Saturday at 3:00 PM & 10:00 PM, there's no announced cover charge, and at least the matinee at 3:00 should be all ages. Check out the Facebook event page for more details on the upcoming show!

Sounds great, hopefully I can see him break out some metal covers this summer at some point! I wonder how this will impact potential Caveman Morrison dates though, as they usually play a full weekend, and with Saturday likely booked for the season, it could put a wrench in fans' hopes for the usual double weekend attack. It's all good though, I'll keep you posted!

The other new show is in quite an unfamiliar site for local hard rock shows, but hey, hard rock is hard rock, and it's finally back at LopLops Lounge! Didn't expect to hear that on the SMS, did you? Well, the guys at LopLops (on 651 Queen Street East) are bringing in a unique hard rock trio from Toronto (and New Orleans) on Monday, so here's what you should know! The band is C'mon, a very original sounding hard rock/experimental band who happen to feature ex-members of bands like Nashville Pussy & Monster Voodoo Machine in their lineup! Once previously seen here at Foggy Notions, C'mon have a hard to describe sound, but there's some heavy riffs and a nice energy to go along with some unique melodic touches! Hey, if we can cover bands like Grady when they come here, C'mon are definitely up our alley! Though unannounced officially, local punk supergroup Brad Example & The Role Models are likely to open the show (as confirmed by guitarist Marco Pedalino on his personal Facebook page), which should fit well, and it's nice to see them opening for a different band for a change too! A 10:00 PM start time is listed, you must be 19 to attend, and though there is no announced cover charge, bring cash just in case. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

It will be interesting to see how successful this concert is (especially up against Titans Eve, more on them in a bit), cause heavier music definitely isn't typical at LopLops. The last time I can recall a metal band of any fashion there was Gates of Winter's 2006 acoustic show, though I may have missed some in between. I'll be at Titans Eve that night, but definitely consider this concert, cause if C'mon are successful, heavier bands could pop up more frequently at LopLops!

Now to some big news, and first, do you remember when As It Stands got a piece on Shaw TV (Channel 10) from local reporter Christian Lemay? Well, Christian has a new metal-relevant interview to share on Shaw TV, which is now in rotation every half hour, and it's on local concert booking agency Dismembertainment and owner Rich Moreland! The piece features Rich (or "Richie" as he's called at first) talking about the formation of Dismembertainment, how the Thursday metal nights began, some of the bands he's booked in the past, the recent punk integration, and his own personal feelings on the scene and his concert bookings. The video, which shot in and around last Thursday's metal night, also features video footage of both Winkstinger and what was then Bring The Misery's sets (more on them later tonight), as well as short comments from attending fans Nikk Aspregen & Cody Knight on their thoughts on the weekly metal nights. It's a nice 4 minute long piece that gives some great press for Dismembertainment, but I would have liked to have seen more emphasis on the local bands, like naming the bands that played in the clip, or featuring one or two band members in the piece to talk about all the hard work Rich has done for the local scene.

As I said, this video is running once every half hour, although due to other scheduled programming (like City Council meetings), it doesn't have a set daily airtime. I saw it at :24 and :54 on the hour originally, but tonight, it was pushed forward roughly ten minutes due to earlier scheduled programs. For reference sake, the video runs all this week, and it will be right after a piece on Anchors Away (a great store), which itself follows a review of the movie "Hall Pass", just so you know when to see it roughly. Great interview, congratulations to Rich, and I will try to post a copy of it on YouTube in some form once it's rotation ends!

And finally, here's a cool announcement: We're holding another contest!! Our Rad Zone contest earlier in the year was a success, and I got a great opportunity from this band's management recently, so we're gonna have another one for some awesome prizes! As you likely know, Vancouver thrash metal band Titans Eve are playing at The Roosevelt Hotel on MONDAY, July 4th, and in honour of said show, we are giving away two Titans Eve prize packages! Courtesy of the band and their management, we're proud to be giving away two packages consisting of an official band t-shirt and their brand new album "The Divine Equal" (seen on your right) to two lucky fans! How can YOU enter to win these Titans Eve goodies? Similarly to our Rad Zone contest, all you have to do is post a comment with YOUR NAME onto our contest status from last night on our Facebook page! We'll only accept entries that are comments on that status that feature your name of some kind. Comments elsewhere won't count, nor will duplicate entries. We will announce the two winners of the contest at 5:00 PM on Monday so I have time to get in contact with the winners before the show! If you win and are attending the concert, you can claim your prizes by contacting frontman Brian Gamblin directly at the show, he'll hook you up, or I'll get you to him, either way!

If you're NOT going (or planning on going), you may still enter, but if you win and can't make it, let me know on Monday so I can give the band your mailing address so they can send you your prizes. I apologize for the late blog notice on this, but computer overheating issues suck. You guys have until Monday at 5:00 PM to enter, so follow the above instructions to get your entries in on the contest status on our Facebook page! Good luck, and metal on! We'll have a new news post later tonight, so stay tuned for that! Thanks everyone!

Saigon Hookers Concert Review & Half A Man Updates!!

Hey guys, I'm back from last night's Saigon Hookers concert at The Rockstar Bar, so how'd it go! I will tell you in this review, followed by some new updates from Half A Man! I regrettably got to the show late, so I probably missed half of Brad Example & The Role Models' set, but I made a point to rush there when I finally left to see what I could! Fittingly, they were covering Black Sabbath's "The Wizard" when I arrived, which was cool! The band's lineup looked mostly the same as they did in March when I last saw them, although the drummer may have been different (don't quote me though.) Musically, what I saw was about as good as The Role Models' March show, with Brad Example making the most of his grittier punk singing, and Dave Bahun was as good as ever on lead guitar! Again, I wish Marco Pedalino had more lead time, but I'm only judging by what I saw. Decent sized crowd cheering them on, and they deserved it from what I caught! Nice straightforward punk with some metal flourishes here and there, hopefully they play some other shows at some point, cause hopefully I'll see the whole thing next time!

Then were the main attraction, The Saigon Hookers, returning from Kitchener for round 2 in Sault Ste. Marie! Their set was, musically, as good as it was in March, with tons of punk inspired hard rock for their fans, including originals like "Devil To Win", "Stray Dogs", "Ignition", and "Hopeless Case Of A Kid In Denial", and some Hellacopters, Rolling Stones, and Thin Lizzy covers to boot! Their sound is always an energetic blast of alcohol and hard rock, and they shown that again last night, from Tommy Smokes' attitude-infused singing to Ron Cybulskie's fast shredding! (Also, kudos on the retro Lion Ride shirt!) Lee Brook deserves lots of credit too for rocking out awesomely on bass despite a broken ankle, though it did restrict his on stage movements. While musically, everything was on par (save for some too-quiet singing early), the overall atmosphere of the show was lacking compared to the March show. Many fans seemed to leave when The Role Models wrapped up, very few people got on the floor until very late in the set (and only to dance), and there didn't seem to be a large amount of energetic response to the Hookers like the first time around. Many fans who stuck around enjoyed themselves, but I don't know, something seemed off.

I had fun though, and I know many in attendance did too! The Saigon Hookers rock and have lots of great tunes to go around, and Lion Ride fans will sure enjoy them! I also forgot to mention this in March, but The Saigon Hookers don't have a set break, they play all their songs straight through, so you get a non stop relentless attack and lots of time to drink post-show, which I find cool! Hopefully they come back sooner or later, though hopefully with some better advertising and more advance word, the environment will be livelier! I did get a bunch of photos, so click here to check them out, or visit our Facebook page! And yes, I did get a video, so here's The Saigon Hookers playing their original song "Ignition"!



And finally for today, here's some more news from Brimley hard rockers Half A Man, who are still hard at work on their first album! The band has uploaded two new videos from the sessions, likely at McNally Smith Studios in Minnesota, onto their YouTube channel over the past couple of days. One is a video showing various computer screenshots from Mikey Bishop's drum tracking, as overlayed with other song portions from various songs to be featured on the album. Not a lot to say on it, but the song clips sound promising, though obviously incomplete. The other video, which we have embedded below, is of Mikey doing live drum tracking, with him on camera busting out his parts for their song "Bad Way"! If you haven't heard the song before, it will basically just sound like a solo drum piece, but it's very well played and should sound even better with guitars and such wrapped around it! Nice video quality too, if a bit dark. Check out Mikey's drum tracking for "Bad Way" below, and stay tuned for more Half A Man studio updates! Check the above links for more studio stuff too!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for a new news post with a big announcement concerning how YOU can win something related to an upcoming concert! Thanks everyone!

Two New Local Bands, A Band Looking To Play Here, And Shit Liver Updates!!

It's time for some more news, but before we get too much farther, I will wish all the Sault Michiganders well today as the first annual LemmaFest debuted this afternoon at Dondee Lanes! I hope it's a roaring success, and I hope to make next year's when I'll hopefully have long since gotten my vehicle insurance! Now to today's news, and we have a band looking to play here, new Shit Liver updates, and leading things off, two new Sault Ontario local bands, so here's what you should know!

Firstly, we have a new local metal band named AlterWhite, who I've actually heard about for a few weeks now since they launched a now-deleted "personal" Facebook page, but now they have a more general band page, and yes, they are metal! AlterWhite formed in January, and currently only have two members, singer/drummer Mike Matthews and guitarist Kevin McCarthy, neither of which I'm familiar with from recent local bands. According to their Facebook page, they currently play covers, but are working towards new original material. There isn't too much about the band specifically to say yet, but they have two original demos posted! They're of songs titled "Lost Souls" and "Help From Above", and were uploaded via Facebook videos. Both are obviously unfinished (only two members), but there is something promising there! Slower heavy riffs and James Hetfield-inspired vocals are cool to hear, but the production needs some work, and of course, a full lineup (and some solos) would fill out these songs better, which sound empty on their own. I have a hunch we'll hear more from AlterWhite sooner or later, so give them a look and see if you think there's something there! I'll keep you posted as updates come in!

The other new band I have today actually just broke up yesterday, but they also only launched their Facebook page in May, so they're kinda both old AND new! The band's name was T.E.N., which stands for the band members' first initials (a'la SBD.) The band featured singer Eric Weiker, bassist Nick Ritchie, and guitarist Tyler Gibson, who also handled drum programming. These guys appear to be high school students, so I don't think they did much before T.E.N. in local metal circles. This band appeared to be active for about seven weeks (May 10th through yesterday) but they managed to get a lot done in that span! Last month, they finished a demo CD of some type and sold it for $5 or less (I'm unsure of it's form or content), and I believe it was mostly distributed to fans and classmates. Plans were also in place for an EP called "When Play Time Ends" that apparently was close to completion before they abruptly broke up yesterday. Tyler did upload some original material samples onto his YouTube channel, so follow that link to check them out! The posted songs are short, and apparently take on a dark comedy/metal hybrid sound, but the comedy aspects are barely heard due to a lack of extensive singing on the posted songs.

Tyler's guitar work has promise though, but there isn't much to the posted samples. I hope their demo had more substance, It's surprising T.E.N. broke up so fast, though hopefully the members stay in music in some form, I'd be curious to see how far they could take a comedic metal approach locally! Check out the longest T.E.N. original demo below, and check out more on them at the above links!



Thirdly today, we have another band who's looking to get booked for a concert in Sault Ontario! On Thursday, James Bok (a.k.a. Mortis), singer from the Sudbury black/death metal band Before The Black Gates posted on our Facebook page inquiring about booking a show in town. I forwarded him to Dismembertainment, but in the event nothing comes from that, I opted to plug them on here to see if any of you guys are interested in booking them! Sudbury's proven to be a solid base for Ontario black metal (Wolven Ancestry are the best example), and Before The Black Gates sound like a really solid black metal band in their own right! They have some good guitar melodies intertwined with brutal black and death metal vocals, and really good drumming too! James/Mortis didn't specify a date for a local show, so I imagine the band are flexible for a possible local booking. If you're at all interested in booking, helping, or playing with James and Before The Black Gates in their local show quest, give him a shout at this location or the above links! And of course, if I hear anything from them on a local concert, I'll be sure to tell you guys when the coast is clear!

Finally today, here's the latest from local grimecore trio Shit Liver! The band posted no less than eight new videos onto their YouTube channel yesterday, all from Thursday's Roosevelt Hotel metal night, so here's what you should know! The videos are of their originals "Shit Liver", "Survival of the Shittest", "Friendly Old (Uncle Joe)", and "Contribute or Perish", their old band OBCD's song "You Speak of Weak, And We Don't Care", and three newly recorded songs, "You're Scared", "Fabricated Nonsense", and "Hateroleum"! The videos, in terms of quality, are actually worse than the ones they uploaded in January, because the filmer was much further from the stage (why didn't he/she get closer?), and with fans on the floor, the view's often obstructed. I did notice that Josh and Mike flipped spots, which is odd! The audio quality makes up for it though, if you like their sound! As well, all of their original songs (and OBCD covers) were also recorded on audio at this show using a different device and posted on their MySpace page yesterday as well! This includes two originals that went unfilmed ("Sooer Living" and "Drowning in Shit"), and the audio quality is actually really nice, so check out their posted live audio clips from Thursday at this location!

Nice to see new media from these guys, who leave an impression at every show they play with their crusty brand of death metal! Now this will likely be the last time we see Shit Liver on stage until maybe late July or August, as the band said yesterday on their Facebook page "cya guys in a month er so." Though a reason for the hiatus wasn't mentioned, I believe drummer Matt Baic is travelling east next month, though don't quote me, I may be wrong. When they come back though, they'll be out in full force! Check the above links for all the latest Shit Liver shit, and here's the longest of the brand new songs recorded on video, "Fabricated Nonsense"!



That's all for today, but I will see you guys at The Rockstar Bar TONIGHT for The Saigon Hookers! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Rotaryfest Main Stage), LemmaFest Updates, And More!!

Well, the news keeps rolling in, and in tonight's post, we focus on a number of topics we touched on in recent posts, including more LemmaFest updates & more on Bring The Misery's new guitarist's old local work, but first, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS relating to an upcoming local festival!

The official lineup for this year's Rotaryfest main stage (or simply "The Stage") at Clergue Park has been announced, and luckily for you hard rock fans, there's a couple bands up your alley for the Rotaryfest main stage schedule! We'll start on Friday, July 15th, as local classic hard rock cover quintet That's Chester will take the stage once again after rocking the Friday of Rotaryfest weekend last year as well! They headlined that night last year, but they year, they'll be at 8:00 PM on the 15th, but either way, they'll have lots of great classic hard rock covers in store at Clergue Park, in a rare non-Docks appearance! Actually, the top 3 headlining bands from the Friday last year are the same this year, just in reverse order, so here's the full lineup for Friday! The headliners for this night in 2011 are local country rockers Thin Ice, with local veterans Mustang Heart keeping the country going as the co-headliners! The Friday lineup is rounded out by veteran local bar band Fusion, blues band Lady Sings The Blues, and local bluegrass quintet Tyler Marshall, Brandon Ladd, and Tradition Continued opening at 4:15 PM on the 15th. Remember, this is FREE & ALL AGES, so head out for this varied lineup of talented local bands on July 15th! And now, to the Saturday lineup, also with a hard rock band!

On Saturday, July 16th, fellow classic hard rockers Full Circle will rock Rotaryfest for the first time when they play at 9:00 PM as the highest slotted local band! It's awesome to see them get such a high placement, they'll deliver a great set of classic hard rock covers for the Rotaryfest attendees on that night! Also note that, according to Rotaryfest's website, Full Circle frontwoman KT Antler will be co-master of ceremonies on the Saturday, which is cool to hear! For the remainder of the lineup, the headlining band will be Eagles tribute band Hotel California, with Full Circle co-headlining, and from the top down, the bands include local dance rockers Boogie Fever, country rockers Bone Yard (also featuring That's Chester members), veteran folk rock cover band Spyder's Web, local rock band Moneypenny (anyone have details on them?), veteran classic band Hat Trik, local cover party band Obsession, and ten-piece local band The Reptiles opening the festivities at 2:00 PM. Of the bands playing before Full Circle, only Moneypenny, Hat Trik, and The Reptiles were not among last year's main stage lineups, so everything should be familiar! Again, this is free and all ages, and check the above links for all current details!

As for the Thursday the 14th, it will be Jazz/Blues in the Park again, with headliners Matt Storch & The Usual Suspects from Cambridge, Ontario, and opening local bands Enviro Gyro, The Bob Jenkins Band, and The Sault Swing Band (the latter two are also returning from last year.) Not metal, but entertaining if you like those genres! Sounds like a great lineup of bands, check out all of the above links for details on these free outdoor shows for what should be another awesome Rotaryfest weekend! I'll keep you posted on the hard rock bands scheduled!

Now to some updates for TOMORROW'S LemmaFest at The Dondee Lanes in Sault Michigan! Firstly, I can confirm that local metal band Great Bodily Harm & local comedy acoustic duo 2PumpChump did indeed swap spots on the lineup, so 2PumpChump were bumped back to 2:00 PM tomorrow and Great Bodily Harm are officially the highest slotted metal band at 8:00 PM, adding to a very heavy stretch of bands from 4:00-9:00 PM! The lineup is now completely official, click here to see the full times! Also, I wanted to go over the uncertainty I had concerning local acoustic band Electric Motor Fish's set at 9:00 PM. While LemmaFest's pages still list them for the lineup, everywhere else (even their own page) implies that a new local band named Swayze Train (get the Trailer Park Boys reference?) will play at 9:00 PM instead. Swayze Train feature half of Electric Motor Fish's lineup, including singer Melissa Strand and drummer Tony Rogers back on bass, with the lineup rounded out by guitarists Mike Libertoski (of Galactic Alignment & The Slackjawed Rats) and Scott Savoie (ex-Insipid Brutality), with Traces frontman Tyler Tidwell on drums. Apparently they play "rock and stuff", but not a lot is divulged. Check the above links for more on Swayze Train!

I still have no clue why Electric Motor Fish are apparently not playing (I assume Fran and/or Mark Blackwood are unavailable), but I have to ask, why aren't LemmaFest promoting Swayze Train as performing? You think a band switch would be addressed if they knew about it. Is it a surprise switch that even promoters don't know about, or is there something none of us knows? I have no clue, but as I hear more, including if I can prove the "metal-ness" of Swayze Train, I will keep you all posted! Remember, LemmaFest starts TOMORROW at noon, admission is $15, click here and here for all current details before you head out!

And finally for today, remember earlier today when I mentioned new Bring The Misery guitarist Daeson Lesage? Well, as I alluded to then, he has a bit of a past in local metal bands, and here's what you should know! For at least five months in 2009, Daeson was the guitarist in a local metal band named The Shit along with fellow guitarist Austin Pine and drummer Jordan Dubois. I may be wrong, but I can't recall these guys playing any major concerts outside of high school functions. Austin posted two live videos of The Shit in action onto his YouTube channel, including a jam session cover of Metallica's "The Day That Never Comes" & a live cover of Iron Maiden's "Phantom of the Opera" from what looks like a high school performance (White Pines, maybe?) The Iron Maiden cover sounds better than the Metallica one, which sounds off in quality and timing. There's talent there, but they needed more preparation, an actual singer (and a bassist too). I don't know what you guys will think, but I wonder what happened to them? Check out the two Shit videos at the above links, and here's their "Phantom of the Opera" cover from June 2009!



That's all for tonight, but stay tuned for new Shit Liver videos, my Saigon Hookers review, and much more this weekend! Thanks everyone, and I'll see you guys tomorrow night at The Rockstar Bar!

Half A Man, Bring The Misery, And Rotaryfest Second Stage Updates!!

Hey guys, here's some more local metal news for your Friday! We have three topics to get to: Half A Man's recent happenings, Bring The Misery's lineup, and the Rotaryfest Second Stage schedule, so here's everything you should know!

Hey Half A Man fans, I finally have some updates from them! I'm sorry for having these so late, but things got shoved back and back and they deserve a lot of attention, as they have some huge news! The Brimley hard rockers began recording sessions for their debut demo/album "Die In Disgrace" on June 12th! I believe they're at McNally Smith Studios in Saint. Paul, Minnesota, as they previously alluded to, but they're not divulging every detail from the sessions. The album looks like it will have around 10 original songs, and there's a poll at this location where you can vote on your favourites, so that looks like the rough track listing. That same link is also for a special "Half A Man - In The Studio" Facebook group where fans can stay updated on the recording sessions, though their Facebook page also has frequent updates. According to their updates on both pages, many of their songs have had some big changes for their studio versions. Plans include online releases in the fall (no word on a physical CD release), recording to wrap up next month, and artwork from local artists (hit them up at the above links if you want to submit some ideas!) Most of the ghost tracking and many of Mikey Bishop's drum tracks are done, with some bass tracks being laid down today, and vocal and guitar recording planned to start tomorrow.

Sounds good to me, I can't wait to hear the finished product! Keep in touch with the above links for all current updates on Half A Man's debut album! Also, a bit of bad news, as Half A Man's planned Fourth of July concert/barbeque in Brimley has been cancelled due to their studio plans. Click here for the official announcement. Sad to hear, but when this album's done, no one will be complaining! I'll keep you guys posted!

Next up, local death metal band Bring The Misery have added Daeson "Shred Bear" Lesage to the band as their new rhythm guitarist, replacing Dan Souliere. Daeson did in fact make his debut with Bring The Misery at last night's Roosevelt Hotel metal night, though only yesterday evening did the band confirm that they'd have a "new shredder". He's not currently listed on their Facebook page's lineup, but I've done a lot of detective work to check my sources, and I'm fairly positive that Daeson is the band's newest member, as I've seen discussions on his personal Facebook page relating to him learning BTM cover songs. I'm not overly familiar with his local musical background, but through some YouTube searching, I've found out that Daeson was previously a member of a short lived local metal band named The Shit in 2009 who actually have a few videos on YouTube! I'll save those for an upcoming post to give them proper attention, but Daeson does have some guitar skill! I couldn't make the show to hear how he did, but I think Bring The Misery know what they're doing when picking musicians, so hopefully he fills Dan's gap well! Stay tuned for Bring The Misery updates as I hear them!

Now to some big festival news, as the official lineup for this year's Rotaryfest Second Stage has been released! If you were hoping for metal to be back on the schedule this year, you will be disappointed, as no metal bands were announced. I will go over the schedule though, it's only fair of me, as I covered the Second Stage last year (Garden of Bedlam headlined on the Saturday), so you guys should at least know who's playing. As always, the Second Stage will be held at Square One of Queen Street East (likely outside The Grand Theater and Muio's again), and loads of great local and out of town talent are scheduled! Like last year, the Second Stage festivities start with a short 5 band lineup on Friday, July 15th, including headliners My Son, The Hurricane, an ensemble funk rap outfit from Toronto that feature Saultite Danno O'Shea on drums. The opening bands include local blues trio Big Wheel & The Spokes (one of three returning bands from last year's Second Stage), Halifax bluegrass band The Moonshine Ramblers, local indie rock trio Cowboys & Indians (featuring ex-Soldiers of Misfortune bassist Alex "Xander" White), and local rock quartet Wishbone (featuring veteran local drummer Glen Thomas & Chris Smith of Browbeat & Jar. fame) opening the Friday festivities at 5:00 PM!

Saturday, July 16th's lineup is, as usual, an all day affair, and will be headlined by Toronto pop rock quintet Sweet Thing. You may recognize drummer Tyler Kyte from the old series "Popular Mechanics For Kids", so if you grew up in the 1990s (like me), you'll find that connection pretty cool! Local folk rock quartet Kalle Mattson (also returning from last year's Second Stage) are the top local band on the bill for the Saturday, and the rest of the lineup includes (in order) blues/roots trio Al Wood & The Woodsmen, folk/country band Porter (the other returning band from last year), veteran local rockers Huckster (they were on the main stage last year), roots rockers Frank Deresti & The Lake Effect, solo folk artist Shannon Moan, Toronto solo country singer Romney Getty, a local band of some type named Emma & Robot (anyone have details on them?), and local rock trio Mora Lee Sound (featuring Driver/Floyd Lee Band guitarist Joel Poluck) will open at 12:00 PM that day. For full details on these free & all ages shows, click here! The lack of metal is disappointing (Wishbone are the heaviest of the bands in my opinion), but there's a ton of great indie and folk talent to go around this year, so consider going to the Second Stage this year if you're into those genres!

As for the main stage at Clergue Park, or simply "The Stage", a lineup has yet to be released to my knowledge, but metal and hard rock bands aren't foreign to the main stage (That's Chester played there just last year.) As soon as I hear details, I'll definitely let you guys know! The actual Rotaryfest event page implies that "Jazz in the Park" (a one day theme last year) could be present each day on the lineup, though whether it will in fact be each day, or is subject to change is yet to be determined. I'll keep you all posted!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for LemmaFest updates and much more very soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Sneaky Pete & As It Stands) & New Videos!!

The news keeps on coming for this Thursday, so remember to check out some short notice new shows and previews of all the metal and hard rock gigs this weekend (including an extended LemmaFest preview) in the post below! For this post though, we have two more LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS and some new videos, so here's what you need to know, going (As usual) in chronological order! After three shows in three months, local hard rockers Sneaky Pete will play a full weekend set for the first time ever next weekend! The veteran quartet will return to The Roosevelt Hotel on July 1st (Canada Day) & 2nd for a weekend of hard rocking covers for their fans at The Rosie! Nice to see the shows ratcheting up over the long weekend, and it's nice to finally see Sneaky Pete twice on a given weekend too! There is no announced cover charge, you must be 19 to attend these shows, and everything starts at 10:30 both nights! For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! These should be good shows, and you're in for some talented hard rock covers from this group of experienced and skilled local musicians, so definitely consider a run to the Rosie over the long weekend! Stay tuned for updates if they come in! The other new show is a special fundraiser event, so here's what you should know. One week ago today, the Shaule family residence on Placid Avenue was severely damaged by a fire, of which the cause is currently unclear. No one in the home was hurt, but this was understandably devastating, and you can read more at this location. As such, a benefit/fundraiser is being hosted at The Verdi Hall on July 8th (two weeks from tomorrow) that will also double as a concert, and there is some SMS-coverable bands already announced! Local hardcore bands As It Stands and Changing Waves have been confirmed for this event, as has local solo artist Lisa Steinwedel, with more acts to be announced. Nice to see some metal bands rallying together to help the Shaule family in this time of need! The Verdi Hall will have it's bar open for this event, though it is all ages, so remember ID if you want to order anything alcoholic. Tickets are $15 for this event, and you can purchase them from any of the people listed at the Facebook event page. At least 50 will be held at the door if you want to wait until then, but I'd recommend buying advance tickets in case the door tickets go fast. And before anyone asks, yes this is a public event. As It Stands wouldn't have plugged it on their Facebook page if the general public wasn't welcome. This is a great event that will hopefully raise some well deserved funds for the Shaules in this troubling time! My dad's home burned up in a fire when I was 6, and we lost the cat, much of my dad's magic equipment, and most of our possessions in it, so I remember how it feels. I personally don't know the family, but I feel their pain! Definitely consider making it to this event to help the family out, they could use it! As always, stay tuned for updates on this fundraiser as I hear them! We close today with new videos, and first, did you miss The Isosceles Project when they hit The Roosevelt Hotel on May 23rd? I did, thanks to computer issues (that was around when I traced them to overheating), and I'm still bummed out about it. If you're disappointed at missing this talented Toronto instrumental metal band in action, than good news, as a local concert video from the show is now online! Despite repeatedly calling our city "Sue Ste. Marie", this indeed from the May 23rd concert, and it's of The Isosceles Project playing their 11+ minute original song "Oblivion's Candle"! Filmed on a stationary camera sort of on the side/back of the stage, it was uploaded onto the band's YouTube channel earlier today. Looks good, though the sound is slightly distorted, I'm not sure why. It just sounds kinda off. Makes me wish I was there even more though, they're at their usual proficient and energetic selves here, though bassist Scott Tessier doesn't come through too well due to his stage placement. Solid stuff though, hopefully they come back to town soon! Check out The Isosceles Project playing "Oblivion's Candle" below! That's all for today, but stay tuned for my long overdue news from Half A Man, Rotaryfest & LemmaFest lineup details, and more very soon! Thanks everyone!

SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Full Circle & Tym Morrison) & Weekend Concert Previews!!

It's time to preview this weekend's slate of local metal concerts, and there's a lot of notable shows this weekend that you should be aware of, including a debuting new local music festival! First though, here's some SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so here's what you need to know!

Local classic hard rockers Full Circle are indeed playing THIS WEEKEND at The Nicolet Tavern! I apologize for the short notice, drummer Scott McClurg only just announced the shows on Tuesday, and they weren't previously listed on the old Turner Up pages (Full Circle don't have a page with their new name yet.) The band's schedule through September (as seen here) listed this weekend as an off weekend, so this appears to be a newer booking. My apologies again! So head out to The Nic TOMORROW NIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT to enjoy some classic hard rock covers from this talented quartet, including talented frontwoman KT Antler and past and present members of Lois Lane & Asylum Country! There is no announced cover charge for either night, you must be 19 to attend, and everything starts at around 10:00 PM! For more details, check out the official Facebook event page! Sounds like fun, make sure to check out their classic hard rocking sounds at The Nic this weekend, and apparently next weekend too if you can't swing the next shows! When videos of the band live surface, I'll have them here!

And now, to the other new show! Last weekend, you may remember that Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison played a solo acoustic show at an unfamiliar venue, that being Service Grill Pizza on Korah Road. Well, the show appears to have been successful enough to warrant a comeback, as Tym's back at the Service Grill THIS SATURDAY! As far as differences between the two shows go, the only thing I can gather is that this show will indeed be an evening concert, starting at 7:00 PM, unlike the afternoon show the last time around. There is no cover charge, and given that this is a pizza joint with an earlier start time, I can't see it being 19+ either. So if you want to enjoy some more intimate takes on metal and hard rock classics, make note of this short notice concert, and apologies for it being late, Tym only just announced it earlier today. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and here's a preview video, of Tym covering Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" at Foggy Notions last year!



Now we come to the previously announced shows, and first, it's the 21st Roosevelt Hotel metal night taking place TONIGHT! For the first time in six months, there will be an all-local lineup with four bands, so here's who to look out for! The advertised headliners are local melodic death metal band The Bear Hunters, who will become the first band to play a Thursday Rosie metal night 10 times when they play tonight! Officially confirmed by Dismembertainment for the show yesterday as a late addition, look for The Bear Hunters to deliver a brutal set of originals and covers at tonight's show, just their second with their current lineup! Shit Liver will bring their grimy blend of crust, death metal, and punk back to the Rosie tonight as well as the co-headliners! I've heard rumours that this could be their last show for a while due to a band member going out of town for a few months, but nothing official has been posted on band pages. Go see them tomorrow just in case this is true! Also, Winkstinger will return to the Rosie metal nights for the first time in five months tonight for what should be an intense set of extreme mosh-worthy originals! We've seen them at shows in the interim, but don't you miss them on Thursdays? They should be on fire tonight!

And finally, new local death metal band Bring The Misery will also hit the stage tonight for their second ever show, and first without Dan Souliere on guitar. I have not heard word on a replacement, so I'd expect them to be a quartet for at least this show. The band said on their Facebook page that nothing new is planned for their set, but it's tightened up, so hopefully they improve on their debut! This concert, which is also Dismembertainment owner Rich Moreland's fiancee April Fogal's birthday show, is 19+, with a 9:30 PM-ish start time and no cover charge. Check the above links for more details! Sounds like a good and brutal night of metal, maybe I can make it out if I'm not too busy! For a preview, here's The Bear Hunters playing "Casualties Of War" earlier this month!



Now we'll move to Sault Michigan, and first, a local hard rock quintet returns to the stage this weekend to rock The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino! The band in question is River Witch, who are fresh off a show this past Saturday at The Merchant's Bar! This time around, they're back at Kewadin Casino's bar/concert spot once again, and though the band hasn't officially announced the shows (they haven't posted anything on their Facebook page in over two months), Kewadin confirms the shows on their entertainment page, and that is definitely a reliable source! I'd expect the concerts, which are tomorrow and Saturday night, to have 9:00 PM start times, no cover charge, and 21+ age limits. For more details, check the above links! Sounds like good times, though I really wish River Witch would update their page more often and/or post videos or audio of their concerts. Then we could really get a taste of their talents! Still, go see them this weekend, and if you don't go Saturday, there is another chance to check them out that afternoon! What do I mean? Read on to find out!

Then on Saturday, it's the first annual LemmaFest, a local music and family festival at Dondee Lanes from 12:00 PM to 2:00 AM! The festival is in honour of the late Michael Lemma, a beloved Dondee employee who suddenly passed away last summer, and activities are planned all day at the Dondee, including a barbeque, bowling and drink specials, raffles and prize draws, and even horseshoes and beach volleyball! Event glasses and t-shirts will also be sold on a limited basis for this special event, click here (and the link above) for all current details! But I bet you guys wanna hear about the bands, so here's the lineup from start to finish! Each band has one hour slots for their sets, and local southern/party rockers The Hixx will open the festivities at 12:00 PM sharp, followed by local acoustic rock duo Fallen Heroes at 1:00 PM! The band at 2:00 PM isn't currently known, but I wouldn't be surprised if local comedy acoustic rock duo 2PumpChump are playing in this slot, due to their displacement from a later timeslot. I will keep you guys posted on that! Petoskey solo rock project Minus Everyone will replace the dropped-out local metal band Hammerspace at 3:00 PM, and the aforementioned River Witch will rock the outdoor Dondee stage at 4:00 PM before heading back to Kewadin Casino that night!

Local metal trio Scofflaw will reunite for a rare publically announced set at 5:00 PM, and will be followed by the local band Bucksaw at 6:00 PM. Aside from the names of two members (Jason VanLuven & Mark Bowen), I can't tell you a thing about them cause they have no pages or material that I've seen online, so if you can shed any light on Bucksaw, let me know! Munising hardcore metal band Infathom (pictured) are next at 7:00 PM, and though not locally based, they have a nice brutal sound, so click here for samples! Local metal supergroup Great Bodily Harm (featuring past & present members of Hammerspace, I.S.O.M., Half A Man, and River Witch) are now on at 8:00 PM, and though I don't know of a page or media from them (any help?), there is definitely talent there! The outdoor festivities wrap up with local acoustic quartet Electric Motor Fish at 9:00 PM, though I'm hearing conflicting things about their set regarding a possible different band with similar members. Again, I'll keep you posted if I hear more! Though not officially a LemmaFest set, The Hixx will close the night out inside the Dondee for a normal 10:00 PM-2:00 AM set of their party classic sounds, so if you're in the mood for more music after 10:00, head inside and enjoy yourselves!

Admission is $10 for this ALL AGES festival, with all proceeds (tickets and otherwise) going to Michael Lemma's dad to help cover his final expenses. Lawn chairs are recommended as this is an all day outdoor festival, and there's a ton of things going on, so definitely check out all of the above links for details as they come in! This is a huge event with a lot of careful effort and planning, and I give huge kudos to Scott Green and everyone else behind LemmaFest for all their work in Michael's honour! I never knew him, but I bet you he'd be proud! Now I'm still uncertain on some details on the lineup (specifically, when 2PumpChump are playing, whether Electric Motor Fish are on or not, and info/media from Great Bodily Harm & Bucksaw), but if and when I hear news on these details, I will update this post and let you guys know as soon as I find out! I don't have vehicle insurance yet to drive across for LemmaFest (hopefully soon), but I give my best wishes that this will be a huge success that leads to many more LemmaFests to come! For a preview, here's Infathom covering Atreyu's "The Crimson" in 2009!



And finally, we head back to Sault Ontario for a prominent Ontario band's return to Sault Ontario! Fresh off their well recieved local debut in March, Kitchener hard rockers The Saigon Hookers are returning to The Rockstar Bar for another night of mayhem and entertaining originals! Like their show in the spring, this well traveled band (who are good friends of Lion Ride) will be sure to rock the stage with songs like "Stray Dogs", "She Blows My Mind", and "Devil To Win", among many others! Like in March, local punk supergroup Brad Example & The Role Models will open for them with a set of punk rock covers! I know that the band will feature veteran local singer/bassist Brad "Example" Lacell and Lion Ride guitarist Marco Pedalino, though whether Brad's longtime bandmate Dave Bahun and veteran local drummer Phil Greco will be back or not isn't currently known, especially when The Role Models' new MySpace page implies that their "cast of characters is always changing". We'll find out for sure on Saturday! This show will have a 10:00 PM-ish start time, a 19+ age limit, and my money's on a $5 cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

This should be an awesome show, I will absolutely be there! The Saigon Hookers were great in March and well worth seeing again, so hopefully you guys come out too! For a preview, here's The Saigon Hookers playing their song "She Blows My Mind" in a 2007 music video!



That's all for now, but I have a new news post coming either tonight or early tomorrow, so stay tuned for that! Thanks everyone!