Another New Album Release, New Videos, And Much More!!

Happy Thanksgiving and/or Columbus Day, everyone! Hope you guys are enjoying the holiday (if you're off), and remember that if you're up for a punk show tonight, go see Dearly Beloved, local favourites Redundant, and a new local band named The Northern Tragedy (featuring at least one Changing Waves member) TONIGHT at The Rockstar Bar! No word on if the latter band are heavier or not, but if I hear anything, I'll let you guys know, and click here for show details! Now, today's post (which thankfully has no band breakups) does feature some assorted recent stories, new videos from a local guitarist, and leading off, another new album release, so here's what you need to know!

Just a day after our drought for new Sault Ontario metal/hard rock albums ended, another one is already out, but from a familiar recent source, as Haggith drummer Mike Haggith has finally released his newest solo album "Neighbourhood Watch"! Over 8 months after it's originally announced release date, Mike has finally released his 45th official solo album for fans to pick up & stream, following months of delays and external work with other projects, so what should you know? His first main solo album since his independent label Rotten Records became Galactic Records, the album's final track listing has been amended & pared down from it's last posted incarnation, with it now featuring (in order) "To Whom This May Concern", "Room 822", "The Ballad of K2-K3", "The Day The Lights Went Out" (returning from older track listings), "Limb Coast", "Leon The Janitor" (itself a recent Haggith live track), and a new addition named "Far Too Long". As a result, the songs "Door To My Mind", "Wicked Midnight Ride", "Fading", and his covers of Black Hole Suns material have been removed for unannounced reasons, but there's still 7 quality original songs to give a listen to!

The album can now be purchased in mp3 format for the low low price of $4.50 via Mike's store on his Reverbnation page, with individual tracks going for 99¢ and ringtones for $2.49, but note that you'll save almost $2.50 if you buy the whole album rather than the songs individually. Physical copies can be bought as well by contacting Mike directly at this location, but if you just wanna stream or preview this new material, then you're in luck, as Mike has posted the whole album (as one 38 minute audio file) on his YouTube channel! Mike has described "Neighbourhood Watch" as having a lighter and more of a jam/groove feel than his last solo album "Suspended Animation", but what are my thoughts? I won't say yet, as I plan on formally reviewing this album soon on the site hopefully by year's end! We already have his band Haggith's debut "Dragon Joy Ride" lined up for this month, so a "Neighbourhood Watch" review could be coming as soon as next month, pending other new releases. Either way, there's a lot of new stuff from Mike's local projects to check out, and it's great to see this album finally out, so support his new material by buying it at the above links, and here's the full new album to stream!



Next up, here's some notes on a YouTube channel from a young local guitarist! After Sault Ontario hard rock quartet Ashes To Dust linked Facebook fans to a video of band members covering Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" with other students at a recent school performance, I found out that the video is one of many featuring and edited by Ashes To Dust guitarist Alex Hemy, who has posted numerous solo guitar covers to his YouTube channel since this summer (along with that Pink Floyd performance.) His channel features 19 solo guitar covers at present from various genres, ranging from Black Sabbath, System of a Down, and Drowning Pool to Bryan Adams, Gotye, and Lifehouse covers, including many songs that Ashes To Dust play in concert, so check the above links to see some or all of them! The editing and camera angles are nice on these videos, and Alex shows clear skill as a guitarist, and he keeps up well with the backing tracks when used!

I'm curious to hear Alex try some more heavier material, or maybe some original compositions, but Alex is a guitarist to keep an eye on, so check the above links for more, and here's his rendition of Three Days Grace's "Animal I Have Become"!




And finally, here's three more assorted shorter stories from the last little while, and as always, these are in alphabetical order by band name:

• Sault Michigan hard rockers The Hubbard-Menard Band have quietly changed their name to 415E for unannounced reasons, though I'd assume the addition of bassist Jack Slater is partly related, as they're no longer just Hubbard & Menard. 415E is the name of both their independent studio & one of their original songs, so there's roots already there for the new moniker. I like it, but hopefully we'll hear some more news from them soon, and SMS links are now updated for the new name!
• Though public updates continue to be sporadic, and their live hiatus is now approaching 20 months, local old school hardcore quintet Destroilet are working on new original recordings right now, with a song named "Eternal Fire" being previewed via this raw video from drummer Matt Waples' personal Facebook page! The quality's not too clear, but there is something there, so check it out above (I can't embed it here) while we wait for more Destroilet updates!
• According to their Facebook page, local grimecore trio Shit Liver are looking to play a Halloween concert of some type, be it at an actual concert venue or elsewhere. If this goes as planned, it will be their first live concert in over 4 months, but if you can help them out, give them a shout at the above links!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news shortly, including our latest Defunct Local Band Profile on Unleashed on Wednesday! Thanks everyone!