Dayglo Abortions Concert Review!!

It's now time for our review of last night's Dayglo Abortions-headlined concert at The Roosevelt Hotel, but first, just some acknowledgement of the severe rainstorm we had last night. The West End was hit hard by flooding, but the area of The Rosie was neither flooded nor lost power for the balance of the night, and no bands dropped out either! This reminded me in many ways of Oddzfest 2013 Metal Mash-Up in July, which was also severely dampened by a rainstorm, but even though last night's was worse, a solid crowd turned out to see the hardcore punk action! Visibly smaller than The Dayglo Abortions concert at The Rosie in 2011, but along with the weather, the Monday/fall scheduling has it's own challenges. Even still, dozens of fans braved the weather to rock out, with the pits and floor hopping like mad by night's end! As for the reports of flooding at The Canadian Nightclub on Pim Street, I'm well aware of what happened (I live near there), and that will lead off tomorrow's news post, so keep an eye out for that and related updates in our next post. Now, let's look at how each band did last night!

Opening last night's concert was the full live debut (one song preview sets aside) of new local band Jack Spades (essentially T-Rex Manning + The Bear Hunters), so how'd they sound? The band played three originals (mainly based on horror movies, a'la frontman J.D. Pearce's Frightlight work), while their covers (which weren't Misfits focused) included Judas Priest, Ripcordz, and Pennywise songs, among others. Their sound is reminiscent of J.D.'s other bands, and while the songs leaned heavier (especially their original "Breakneck Speed"), there was more of a straight punk sensibility. Talent-wise, J.D. and guitarist Tiffany Stocco played about as well as you'd expect from T-Rex Manning shows, but seeing Justin Lam and new drummer Johnny Belanger play a more punk style was a change from their usual death metal work. Luckily, everyone played well, and hopefully their next shows get tighter and better attended up front! (Also, I can't believe I forgot until now, but Jack Spades are now in our active Sault Ontario band links!)

Next on the bill was Peterborough hardcore punk trio Cross Dog, including the first local concert appearance by bassist/Sault native Mark Rand since Lion Ride's last show in July 2011! Soundwise, they have similarities with Mark's old band Detroit, only with a female singer and no guitarist, but on some songs, it was easy to forget there was no guitar player, with Mark's bass cutting through everything nicely! Their set included all 10 songs from their debut album and a cover of Fu Manchu's "King of the Road", which fans definitely responded to (even if some prodding was needed for the night's first mosh pit), and Tracy Ashenden's piercing lead vocals definitely lent a unique edge & solid stage presence to their material! Solid rapport with the crowd, Mikey Reid's drumming was quality too, and even if they were oddly low on the lineup for an out of town band, they fit right in, and hopefully Mark brings Cross Dog back home again!

Local hardcore punk quintet Destroilet occupied the middle slot in the band order, and they were up to their usual tricks during their well recieved set! The guys played all of the songs from their album (except "My Life"), along with select covers, including a surprise Dayglo Abortions cover midway through, and musically, they were on form from past live gigs! However, like their last Roosevelt Hotel appearances, they did seem more restricted on the small stage, which benefits my photography but not their stage presence. I'll give special notice to the backing vocals from Christian Foisy & John Conway, which added an extra kick to Mike Hull's aggressive lead singing, which was louder than the last time I saw them, which was welcome! The hardcore punk fury saw a good response, and though the hyped possibility of new song debuts didn't come to fruition, Destroilet are continuing their local resurgence, and here's hoping for more awesome live shows when they rock Echo Bay and the Halloween Party next month!

Co-headlining was Victoria, British Columbia's own The Last of the V8 Interceptors in their second local stop of the year, and if you missed them in July, you may notice that they looked very familiar, maybe because Dayglo Abortions bassist Willy Jak and drummer Blind Mark were also in this band? Very different style though, with hardcore elements replaced by a grittier and bluesier sound that feels just right for driving down the highway (which fits with their Mad Max themes and personas.) They're definitely heavier live than they were in studio tracks (though they've had lineup changes since), and frontman Rhys Palmer delivered a deliberate and casual, yet aggressive style on songs like "Five Tall Cans In" and "Suicide Machine"! Though the crowd levels retreated somewhat, The Last of the V8 Interceptors delivered a fun set, and hopefully they made as many (or more) fans as they did at the BFGs show!

And of course, your headliners were Victoria hardcore punk legends The Dayglo Abortions, and fans definitely ate up their slightly abbreviated set, as rain can't keep them down! The biggest difference from their 2011 show here in terms of their set was the addition of new songs towards their next album, including "Sick Of The Lies" and "I Love My Mom", but aggressive classics like "Proud To Be A Canadian" and "Religious Bumfucks" kept longtime fans and supporters going! Even if the crowd was smaller, the pit was rough and almost caused me to fall a few times, so you know that's a good sign! Murray "The Cretin" Acton's vocals were much clearer to hear this time around, while Willy Jak & Blind Mark contibuted well in their second set of the evening (Jak was even more animated), and their classics, offensive as some may be, fueled a very entertaining night! Their set was sadly cut a bit short, but what we got was awesome, and hopefully we're not waiting two years for the next local Dayglo Abortions concert!

Overall, this was a great show that no amount of bad weather could stop, and though the rain probably hurt the turnout a lot, kudos to everyone for making it (and to Redundant bassist James White for providing awesome sound all night!) I got plenty of photos that you can check out at this link or at our Facebook page (which also has a "Tag Yourself!" crowd picture), and as for videos, I got one of each band, so here's Jack Spades playing their originals "We're Here To Chew Bubble Gum & Kick Ass, And We're Out Of Gum" & "Rise", Cross Dog playing "Martyr's Cross". Destroilet covering The Ducky Boys' "Cross To Bear", The Last of the V8 Interceptors playing "Night Rider" & "Style", and The Dayglo Abortions playing "Your Facebook Can Kiss My Assbook", "Stupid Songs", and "Argh Fuck Kill"!











That's all for today, but stay tuned for news on the Canadian Nightclub's status and more tomorrow! Thanks everyone!