Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Band Status Updates, Concert Date Changes, And New Videos!!

Here's a post full of assorted news items for this likely warm Tuesday, so we've got a pair of local metal act dissolutions, a couple of notes from Sault Michigan (including a band revival and concert date changes), and a pair of new videos from across the river, so read on below for all that you need to know!

It looks like local hardcore/death metal quartet Skull After Betrayl has broken up for a second time. They quietly deleted their Facebook page earlier in the spring, though other online pages still exist, luckily. A public statement hasn't been made about their breakup, but I can confirm that the split was completely amicable, and I can assume that frontman Mike Vincent's recent band search & guitarist Justin Polutanovich's new role in Borderline Divine were indicators that their status was in question. This ends a brief & uneventful reunion that started in October after their initial 2 month breakup last year, but after bassist Adam Brett briefly moved out of town in January, band updates stalled. I'm disappointed to see them officially throw in the towel, as they were steadily improving as a band during their initial early-mid 2011 run, which saw them open for the likes of The Dayglo Abortions and Titan's Eve. Hopefully the guys all stay in music, as they all were clearly talented or noticeably improving! Best of luck to Mike, Justin, Adam, and Anthony in the future, and I've moved Skull After Betrayl to our inactive local band links!

The other recent end is for ex-Browbeat frontman Dutch Vanderploeg's latest solo project, as he deleted his Facebook & Reverbnation pages at some point this spring. He usually wipes his band pages for every project he leads that dissolves, which is disappointing for fans, though he thankfully left his YouTube channel up this time. Dutch is and always has been a very talented musician, and I hope he revisits his original music again in the future! I find his music doesn't get the appreciation it's deserves, and hopefully this won't be the last we hear from him! As YouTube channels aren't really band pages, I've regrettably removed Dutch from our band links, but if he gets back into a band, you know they'll be linked & covered here!

Now to some positive stories, both from the Sault Michigan area, starting with a band revival! On May 4th, you may remember that Kincheloe metal band Chained Memories had disbanded for unannounced reasons, not long after singer Sean Roush had left. Well, just a week later, the band confirmed on their Facebook page that they're "back in business" and are looking for musicians with "any talent" to hit them up, presumably to join the band in some capacity. Whether Sean's back or if any other members are out isn't known yet, but the post implies that there is some member searches in the works. It's great to see Chained Memories giving this another go, and hopefully Mike & company can finally take off and accomplish big things in the area! The other Sault Michigan story is that Cheboygan metal trio Peril's next planned concert weekend at The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino has been pushed back a week from July 20th & 21st to July 13th to 14th. A reason for the change hasn't been announced, but Peril have not confirmed concert dates beyond June yet on band pages, and Kewadin Casino have no one new booked for the July 20th weekend yet, as per their entertainment page, so the jury's out. The sooner the better, hopefully, so keep Peril's new next concert dates in mind for this summer!

Let's close with new videos, starting with a new video of Kinross hard rockers Banned from their concert at The Runway Bar in Hessel (50 minutes from Sault Michigan) on Saturday! Filmed by frequent filmer/family member Ashley Traynor and uploaded to her YouTube channel on Sunday, it's of Banned covering the Bachman/Turner Overdrive classic "Takin' Care of Business" at that concert! Lead vocals were provided by drummer Don Traynor (leaving singer Mike Straw to backing vocals), while Banned were rejoined by former bassist Alex Schrovenwever on rhythm guitar at this show as well, similarly to their March concert at The Bird. If Alex has permanently rejoined, band pages haven't confirmed his return, but it's good to see him back with the Traynors, even if just once! This is a solid cover, and Don sings well on it, but I've seen better videos of Banned. The colours are very washed out, dancers get in the way, Jim Pentland is barely visible, and I still wanna hear Mike sing more in Banned's live videos, but this is still another good video of Banned live, so give it a look below, and keep posted on Banned's next local & area dates at the above links!



Finally, here's a new promo video for Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night's new album "The Dawn's Early Light"! Though called their second promo video, it's effectively a replacement for their first one, as they made it private for unannounced reasons in the last week, merely saying that the original had "expired". Posted on their YouTube channel on Sunday, it is actually an improvement, as it moves any "Christmas Night" mentions to the end, lessening the seasonal vibe. The only real new information on "The Dawn's Early Light" in this video is that "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" will also be performed on the album, meaning that 9 of the 12 songs have now been announced. Sounds good to me, so check out Theatre of Night's new promo video below, and stay tuned for updates as we inch closer to the summer!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news to come this week! Thanks everyone!

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