This Weekend's Concert Previews, Plus A New Ripcordz Video!!

Happy Halloween, everyone! Before we post our review of last night's Devil's Night all ages show at The Oddfellows Hall (the video uploads are likely gonna take a while), we have previews of this weekend's known & verified hard rock/metal concerts in the Twin Saults, and therefore, the first of November 2013! Note that while I know some bars in the area are doing late Halloween events tomorrow, none of the concerts we're previewing have an explicit seasonal theme, so be wary if you want to wear a costume. We also have a new Ripcordz video to cap off this post, but let's start with the only verified hard rock concert in Sault Ontario this weekend!

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will make his debut at The Harp Pub & Grill TOMORROW NIGHT! A rare solo concert outside of The Roadhouse Bar & Grill (at least in recent months), you may remember that The Harp (at 701 Pine Street in the Food Basics plaza) used to be Madison's Pub until renovating and shifting to an Irish theme this summer, so Tym is both the first non-open mic performer of a hard rock vein at The Harp, and the first at this location since 2009. Aside from the central venue, Tym's show should be business as usual tomorrow night, with his diverse selection of unplugged covers (including many metal/hard rock classics) sure to entertain fans and Harp regulars! There's no announced cover charge, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Though I'm fairly certain that The Harp is acoustic-centric (like the new Coch's Corner), it's good to see some metal back at the former Madison's, even in this form, and hopefully Tym knocks it out of the park again! For a preview, here's Tym covering Heart's "Alone!



Switching to Sault Michigan for the rest of our previews, we'll start at Dan's Place in nearby Rudyard, Michigan, where Kinross classic hard rockers Banned will return to the stage TOMORROW NIGHT! Fresh off of their Halloween weekend set in Gould City (and a more local solo date for Alex Traynor in Pickford), this will be Banned first date within an hour of the Soo since playing at Dondee Lanes on October 4th & 5th, and their first in Rudyard in three months, so if you've missed Alex and company, keep tonight's show in mind for some entertaining covers and originals! Still curious as to why they no longer list their lineup on Facebook, is there more member turnover than we would assume? Tomorrow's show (which is about a half hour between the Soo and St. Ignace) goes down at 9:00 PM, there's no announced cover charge, and you must be 21 to attend. For more details, click here! Hopefully tomorrow's concert goes well, and hopefully we'll hear more on Banned's current lineup (and get some more videos) in the coming months! For a preview, here they are playing their song "Deadbeat Dog" in Charlevoix!



Finally for the previews, Sault Michigan modern hard rock cover quintet RamWagon will play at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT for the third time! One of the various late 2013 concert weekends picked up from guitarist Nathan Switzer's now-defunct other band Sir Charge, this should be another entertaining weekend of heavier covers from this newer local band (featuring alumni of The Highest of Fives, Monkey's Uncle, and Full Throttle), so don't miss their sets this weekend in the Soo! There's no announced cover charge, both tomorrow & Saturday's shows should be 21+ events, and each should start at around 9:00 PM. For more details, check the above links! RamWagon have left a good early impression since their LemmaFest debut, and here's hoping they keep it up this weekend, so don't miss their return to the Sault Kewadin this weekend, and for a preview, here's the guys covering Cameo's "Word Up"!



Finally for today, here's a new video of Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz from their headlining set at The Roosevelt Hotel this past Thursday during J.D. Pearce's annual Halloween party! Filmed by ex-Chronic Demonic singer Sabrina Strange and shared on Destroilet's Facebook page last week, it focuses on the crowd moshing during two Ripcordz songs with little direct attention to the band, but this is a unique and neat angle to see the costumed moshers in full swing! Nice video, so give it a look below, and stay tuned for some new Destroilet videos in our next news post!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for our review of last night's Bear Hunters-headlined all ages show at The Oddfellows Hall, with photos and videos ongoing for their uploads tonight! Thanks everyone!

Bear Hunters Concert Preview, A New AlgomA Video, And Sault Michigan Updates!!

Tonight's post at the SMS is headlined by a special preview for a Wednesday night concert in honour of Devil's Night (a'la the Garden of Bedlam-headlined one at the same venue in 2009), but we also have a new concert video and some assorted updates from across the river, so read on below for what you need to know! (Updated on Wednesday at 2:44 PM)

A unique all ages show hits The Oddfellows Hall TOMORROW NIGHT featuring some familiar and new faces, including the non-house party debuts of many Blood Shed Productions artists! Promoted by said local grindcore label and Social Suicide frontman Tyler St. Amour, the show (officially titled "Devil's Night at The Oddfellows") will be headlined by local death metal mainstays The Bear Hunters & Crimson Crusade in their first concert sets since their Echo Bay turn on the 12th, and they should put in brutal sets to end the evening! They'll be on at 12:30 AM & 11:15 PM respectively (oddly late for an all ages event), while the preceding 3 acts are all official members of the Blood Shed roster. Owner Ringsnaps Gibson's main goregrind solo project Crucify The Whore will play at 10:15 PM, with his similar newer duo Rotopsy (featuring him & singer Dylan Taylor) are on before them at 9:30 PM. Local solo alternative musician Chase Wigmore plays at 8:40 PM, while the 8:00 PM slot has been traded from Austin McCrae's solo death/grind project Brutaly Fatal to Chase's new local alternative metal band Project Legion for unannounced reasons.

I will note that Project Legion's Facebook page has had it's name changed to both "Bond, Gold Bond" and "Theory of a Nickelcreed" in the last few days, but I have no idea whether those were in jest, or if they actually did change their name (we'll find out for sure tomorrow!) The opening two acts tomorrow include Project Legion bassist James "Delusionair Lionhair" Watterworth at 7:15 PM and the aforementioned Brutaly Fatal now opening at 6:30 PM, after briefly exiting the lineup due to technical issues. Admission is $5 in advance through Blood Shed Productions or Tyler St. Amour on Facebook (the cost jumps to $7 at the door), doors open at 5:30 PM with Brutaly Fatal opening at 6:30 PM, and yes, this is ALL AGES! For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! I'd also note that with four of the seven announced bands featuring two or less members, I would not be at all surprised to see guest performers with them tomorrow night (in fact, James' solo set at The Zombie Walk featured both Chase and Haggith's Daniel Horton), so keep that in mind.

This could be a very interesting concert just for the newer artists alone, but come with an open mind if goregrind isn't something you're used to. I'd have to imagine this is the last major metal show of the Halloween season, so don't let it pass you by tomorrow, and I'll be there with a review following on Thursday if all goes well! For a preview, here's The Bear Hunters playing "Bloodthirst" at The Oddfellows Hall in August!



Next up, here's a new video from the aforementioned Big Loonie Bus Show in Echo Bay, this time of headliners AlgomA playing their song "Tertiary Syphillis" at La Cucina on October 12th! Likely filmed on the same camera as 62nd Chamber Productions' earlier videos from this concert (odd that there's none of Destroilet yet), this is planned to be just the first of multiple videos from this solid and brutal trio here, and despite being side-stage, everything's visible, so check out their newest live video below!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter stories, all from the Sault Michigan area (which has been relatively quiet lately for hard rock/metal notes), and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• I admittedly missed this at the time, but apparently, Banned singer/guitarist Alex Traynor played a solo set at The Sundown Lounge in Pickford this past Sunday during a customer appreciation event that Rock 101 were broadcasting live from! No word on if his solo set was markedly different from Banned's, or if this is the first of many from him, but hopefully it was a success!
• On Friday, Dafter solo hard rock artist Ken "SweetKenny" Sutton uploaded a new song from his forthcoming album "Cracks In The Wall" onto his Reverbnation page! Entitled "Booze & Broads", it's a mid-tempo hard rock instrumental that sounds good, but stay tuned hopefully for the full review of it's CD next month (that or "Perception"), and note that the album's release date has been postponed from Halloween to November 15th for unannounced reasons, but stay tuned for updates on it!
• Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night recently recorded a cover of the theme song for the classic horror movie "Halloween", and you can now stream it at their Reverbnation page also! Very nice job of retaining the original creepy ambiance while making it heavy, so give it a listen for some seasonal metal!

That's all for tonight, but in case there's no new post tomorrow, I'll see you guys at The Oddfellows Hall for The Bear Hunters, Crimson Crusade, and much more! Thanks everyone!

Mike Haggith & The Din's Breakup, And Much More Assorted Notes!!

Back to the news today as we slowly wind down October 2013, so what's on tap for this Monday afternoon? Mostly some recent shorter news items, but first, we do have new goregrind material and a new band breakup to take note of, so read on below for what you need to know! (Updated on Tuesday at 4:20 PM)

Local acid jam/hard rock trio Mike Haggith & The Din are also breaking up (or have already?), joining sister band Haggith's planned dissolution in December. The news was revealed on frontman Mike Haggith's solo project's Facebook page on Saturday night, and though a direct public reason for The Din's breakup hasn't been made, I'm fairly certain it's for the same amicable/personal reasons that Haggith are breaking up. Featuring 3/4ths of Haggith in shuffled roles, and playing extended jam versions of Mike's solo material, this short-lived project only played one public concert in Sault Ontario (at Bushplane Musical Madness II in July), though other gigs took place at private events, and helped provide nice quality audio recordings that later made their way to YouTube. I thought Mike Haggith & The Din was a solid outlet to get more of Mike's original material to a wider audience, but best of luck to Mike, Curtis, and Daniel in their future plans! No word though on what this means for other bands that Haggith members were in this year (i.e. Sound X, Purple Core, and The Nirvanabees), but I don't believe Mike's solo project as a whole is ending.

Perhaps as a last act as a band, Mike did post two live audio recordings of him & The Din playing the originals "Lay My Body Down To Rest" and (as embedded below) "Limb Coast" at Bushplane Musical Madness II onto his YouTube channel on Saturday, and it provides the same entertaining jam rock sound that fans were accustomed to from their few live dates, so give it a look below, and don't miss Haggith's last two shows at The New A next month and at The Algonquin in December!



Next up, here's a new audio upload from Blood Shed Productions goregrind solo project Malignant Neoplasm! This video comprises of this project's part of the label's "Bloody 3-Way" split demo with Rotopsy & Brutaly Fatal, and though we've heard most of these 5 songs before, the first and last ones ("Malignant Neoplastic Disease" & "Postmortal Inflammation") are new to YouTube and weren't posted earlier as single tracks. Totalling just 5:26 in length, the songs continue with Ringsnaps Gibson's medical & more techno-influenced themes while incorporating his usual grind vocals & style, so if you like his other projects and this genre, give the full Malignant Neoplasm third of the demo a listen below!



Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news and notes from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or venue name:

• As they've now hosted two distinct public concerts with hard rock/metal acts (the Soul Killing Female & Project Legion-headlined shows), I've now added 180 Projects' Facebook page to our active Sault Ontario venue listings on your left! A concert spot and art exhibition space at 180 Gore Street (the former MJ's building), it's great to have an active host for concerts on Gore again, and stay tuned for more on their next show bookings!
• Recently dormant hardcore quintet As It Stands revealed on their Facebook page on Friday that they're back to jamming and hope to play some concerts A.S.A.P.! They also said that they're planning to have mostly new material, but unlike their 2010 reunion, they will have a few older songs & were asking through Facebook what old songs should be brought back. I don't think they should scrap most of their old songs, but I can't wait to see As It Stands back, as it's been far too long! Stay tuned for updates!
• I've moved both the new Coch's Corner and The Harp Pub & Grill (formerly Madison's Pub) to our active Sault Ontario venue listings as well due to their recent return to hard rock bookings, albeit in their current all-acoustic directions (so for convenience, I've noted there that both venues host only unplugged music acts.) I also deleted the separate Madison's link that we had, as it was changed to a Harp personal account to go with the new name, and no other Madison's pages remain online.
• Last week, a review and photo album of last weekend's One Bad Son/Crash Karma show at The Rockstar Bar by SooToday's Donna Hopper was posted online at this link, featuring some positive comments on the bands, including the headlining supergroup! For hard rock fans, she gave nice brief thoughts on them and also took 5 photos of them in the included album (though all 22 are black and white.) Solid as usual, so check everything out above!
• I don't usually go back & edit news posts this old, but I was asked to give full name credit to an earlier artist mention on here, so I thought I should do that! In this November 2012 post (mostly related to assorted shorter stories like this), I mentioned that an artist named "Morkryd" had featured on metal material from ex-Dark Salvation singer's Kevin Calder's most recent solo work, but I now know that Morkryd's real name is John Verdone. Thanks to John for the clarification!
• Asylum Country drummer T.J. Case (who recently had brief stints with Jack Spades & Project Legion) is again looking to join a new local band, as he's not playing live often, and he's even open to fill in with a band if need be. T.J.'s a solid drummer with metal experience, so if your band needs a drummer, message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from last week!

That's all for today, but stay tuned TOMORROW for more updates and our preview of Wednesday's Bear Hunters-headlined all ages show at The Oddfellows Hall! Thanks everyone!

Ripcordz/Halloween Party Concert Review!!

It's now time for my review of last night's eighth annual Halloween Party from local concert promoter J.D. Pearce! Moving to The Roosevelt Hotel this year after spending 2012 at The Algonquin Pub, The Rosie was of course nicely decked out in Halloween decorations, and sound was provided this year by White Wreckords, but while there was a decent turnout, I wonder if it would have been bigger if recent "incidents" hadn't happened there? Luckily, nothing bad went down, and everyone had a good time and were dressed well for the occasion! Later start time too of 11:00 PM, but here's all that went down for the bands!

Opening the night was local hardcore punk quintet Destroilet in their first appearance at this annual Halloween weekend event, and most of the band was in their Halloween best to start their set, including Mike Hull's half-shaved head & goatee! Their setlist was again packed with tons of generally short originals & covers, including every song from their self-titled CD, a handful of non-album covers (including Dayglo Abortions and Descendents classics), and a new song late in the set with an odd name that definitely fit well with their other tracks! Musically, they were on form from past concerts, though with a bit more of a rawer chaotic vibe to go along with the seasonal themes, but like before, Mike's vocals could have been louder. John Conway was particularly impressive on guitar, and it was good to see a nice contingent of fans rocking out to their stuff last night! Very solid set, and don't miss Destroilet as they open for Bam Margera's Fuckface Unstoppable in their Canadian Nightclub debut in December!

Local punk/metal quartet Jack Spades replaced frontman J.D. Pearce's main band Frightlight in the co-headlining slot last night due to Rick White's ongoing injury recuperation, and they kept the same sort of vibe for much of their set, including covering two Frightlight songs and covering some of their own Misfits standards! The new band had their own flavour though, including covering SNFU, Pennywise, and Judas Priest material, and playing a triptych of mid-set originals (including "Breakneck Speed") that fans seemed to enjoy! J.D. (as Batman) delivered another fun vocal performance, with help from some fans on vocals on a few covers, and the other band members did well also! Justin Lam's bass work was as solid as ever, Johnny Belanger's black metal facepaint didn't impede his ability, and Tiffany Stocco did a fine job as usual on guitar and backing vocals! Jack Spades remind me in many ways of T-Rex Manning with more of an original emphasis, and hopefully they keep that angle up at future concerts as they continue to make their own name!

Headlining last night's show were Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz, and if you missed them in April, they were back in full force at The Rosie with another very entertaining and hard hitting set of punk and hardcore original songs! Must have been nice to come back here, as they even had a special Sault Ste. Marie-exclusive t-shirt on sale! Over a dozen of their classic songs and newer originals were in full force, including "Hardcore", "Ghosts of Griffintown", and "Riot", and though the crowd levels for their set were sparser than I'd expected, the mosh pit was very active and fitting of a Ripcordz show (my knees felt it at one point!) Paul Gott and company were just as good musically as they were in April, aside from an early bass string malfunction, and his singing and guitar work were as solid and often heavy as ever, which is a good sign compared to some other veteran jhardcore punk bands who haven't universally held up the same. Another great show, and hopefully The Ripcordz come back to the Soo in 2014!

Very entertaining concert, and another fitting edition of J.D.'s annual Halloween series, but hopefully Rick White gets better soon so we can see him on stage for next year's edition! The Rosie was a fitting host, I wonder if it will be back there next fall? I did get photos that you can check out at this link or via our Facebook page, and I also posted videos there of each band, so here's Destroilet playing their original "Truly Infected", Jack Spades covering SNFU's "Drunk on a Bike", and The Ripcordz playing their classic "Army Boots"!







That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile: Life In Shadow

It's now time for our last monthly feature post of October 2013, as it's time for our latest Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile! As always, this series looks at a metal/hard rock band that, though never based out of the region, features at least one Saultite/regional resident in any of their lineups. These bands deserve some local props as a result, so why not profile them and their history, material, and successes? This month's profiled band is our first featuring a Sault Michigan-area alum since last year (coincidentally, it's the same Saultite in both bands), so read on below to get caught up on this earlier band of his! (Updated on November 27th, 2014)
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Life In Shadow (Montgomery/Bolingbrook, Illinois)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED; members not in their last lineup in italics. This lineup is incomplete, mainly concerning ex-members' full names, though some older members may also be missing. If you can help fill in any blanks, e-mail me at robertfigures@outlook.com)

Mark Ebbers, vocals/guitar
Scott Mills, vocals/guitar/bass
Devon Kizer, guitar

Brian Smidt, vocals
"S810", guitar
Derrick "Rev. Dirtbag" ?????, guitar
Chris "Gorespawn" Wirstrom, bass
Mark Jenkins, bass/backing vocals
Tony Spillman Jr., bass/backing vocals
Martin ????, drums
Brad Herwy, drums
Josh Abbott, drums
Sean ?????, drums 
Paul Johnsen, drums/guitar
Paul Wood, ?????
Tony Lovan, ?????

Official Facebook page: http://facebook.com/pages/life-in-shadow/224110734271095

Official MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/lifeinshadow
Official MySpace page (original): http://www.myspace.com/lifeinshadoworiginal
Official Reverbnation page: http://www.reverbnation.com/lifeinshadow

Local Info:  Life In Shadow's only verifiable Saultite member was founding singer/guitarist Scott Mills (no relation to the Mills brothers from Life's Eclipse), who lived in Sault Michigan in the 1990s and (I believe) was in at least one local band then! He also has family in the area still, but he's been based out of Illinois in recent years, where he currently plays in Bury Your Demons, along with past work with bands like SkankBlack, so if you're in the Montgomery/Chicago area, you're bound to hear of Scott in their music scene at some point! 

Band Bio: Originally known as Affliction, Life In Shadow were a long running death metal band in the Montgomery, Illinois area from 2003-2012. Peaking in the mid-late 2000s, Life In Shadow released two demo EPs during their heyday, along with playing numerous concerts around the midwestern United States, and gaining solid press coverage on MetalUnderground.com at that time. Surviving information on Life In Shadow isn't in as plentiful supply as expected, but activity died down in the early 2010s, and after the return of singer/guitarist Mark Ebbers in April 2012 & a hyped drummer search, no updates would follow, and they're presumably now inactive. Life In Shadow proved to be a brutal and entertaining band during their run, and their studio tracks and live videos showcase songwriting maturity, ample aggression, and a good chemistry! Mark Ebbers' vocals were really solid and clear for death growling, Scott Mills was a talented lead guitarist throughout, and their various lineups were well chosen!

Maybe not as technical as some other contemporary death metal bands, but they had a nice melodic streak and enough brutality to go around, and it is disappointing that they slowly faded out in recent years, but hopefully their main members stay active in music! The above links have solid samples of their studio output, and as for videos, there's a good amount of concert footage on YouTube at this link and this link, so click through each to give their late 2000s concerts a look, and here's one of their better videos with 10 minutes of original set-closing action at a December 2008 show!

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I hope you guys liked this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile! Next month, we'll again not profile a new band in this series so I can devote November once again to updating past profiles in this series to reflect new updates, lineup changes, band breakups and reunions, photo restorations, typo/error fixes, and other changes & new stuff where applicable. There's a lot of ground to cover (especially when we don't touch on these bands nearly as much as full local projects), but I hope to have everything public, restored, and up to date by November 26th, so watch out for all of that next month, and stay tuned for my review of TONIGHT'S Halloween Party at The Roosevelt Hotel tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Crued & Tym Morrison) And New Facebook Video Uploads!!

In our last post before TONIGHT'S Ripcordz-headlined Halloween Party at The Roosevelt Hotel, we have some more big recent news to touch on, including new audio samples that were recently posted on Facebook, and LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for next month in Sault Ontario, so read on below for what you need to know!

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will play his first ever concert at The Harp Pub & Grill at 701 Pine Street this Friday! Previously known as Madison's Pub before renovations, a name change, and a shift to an Irish theme this summer, this will also be the first hard rock-leaning concert at this central venue (in the Food Basics plaza) that I can verify since Garden of Bedlam played at Madison's in December 2009, so this is a long time coming! I will note that since re-opening, The Harp appears to have focused on acoustic bands, in a similar vein to Coch's Corner after moving to Queen Street, so Tym's acoustic hard rock covers should be a nice fit given their recent trends! Keep in mind though that The Harp's Facebook page lists Fridays as usually having an open mic night, but I can't confirm whether both are taking place, or if there's a schedule change for it this Friday. A 10:00 PM start time is in effect for this 19+ concert, and I'm not sure if there will be a cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! If The Roadhouse is too east for you, keep Tym's Harp debut in mind this coming Friday, and stay tuned for possible updates!

Also, Toronto-based Motley Crue tribute band Crued will return to Sault Ontario on Saturday, November 30th for a concert at The Rockstar Bar! My source for the news is this concert poster that Crued are tagged in on Facebook, so it has been publically announced through there, but no word on if physical posters are up at the venue yet. Last seen via a handful of early 2010s Canadian Nightclub stops, this will be their first local concert appearance since April 2011, so it's been a long time coming for "The Notorious Motley Crue Tribute" to return north to the Soo! If you've seen Crued in town, you'll know that their sound and look pay close homage and respect to the original hair metal legends, so you won't wanna miss this concert! If there's an opening band planned, they've yet to be announced, but for reference, Dirty Virgin and Redundant (then Motion Carried) opened for them at their last local date. A 19+ age limit and 10:00 PM-ish start time are to be expected, but I don't know if there will be a special higher cover charge or not. For more details, check the above links! Crued usually put on a good show, so don't miss this concert next month if you love Motley Crue, and stay tuned for updates!

Lastly, here's a few new Facebook videos (it's great we can embed these now) from some local hard rock/metal talent, starting with a new teaser video for local death metal standouts The Bear Hunters' forthcoming debut album "Eternal Hibernation"! As you may know, their most recent (and most fruitful) sessions have been done with Redundant/Caveman Morrison bassist James White at White Wreckords, and after hyping some audio samples for the CD shortly after launching the studio's Facebook group, James finally posted this 81 second video there yesterday featuring a handful of unmixed instrumental clips from the sessions (and yes, they do feature departed guitarist Josh Stephney, his parts were completed before he moved.) No timeline beyond "soon" was given for the release, but the clips do sound promising, and I can't wait to hear the final product when it's completed! Check out the full video below, complete with amusing anti-bear imagery!



Finally, here's a couple of new cover audio uploads from Project Legion/ex-Chronic Demonic singer Sabrina "Strange" Lavoie! As uploaded to her company Sabrina Strange Productions' Facebook page yesterday, they're covers of Sublime's "Santeria" and (as embedded below) Billy Idol's "Rebel Yell", and they're not bad at all! She handles each well vocally (though "Rebel Yell" is clipped at the beginning), and I like the added soul she puts on these songs vocally, so check out her Billy Idol cover below, and don't miss the debut of her new band Project Legion at The Oddfellows Hall on Wednesday!



That's all for now, but stay tuned likely tonight during the Halloween Party at The Rosie for this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile on Life In Shadow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Haggith) And The Rest Of The Halloween Weekend Concert Previews!!

Today's post closes the known hard rock/metal concert previews in the region (i.e. ones I can verify have a heavier band), including the return of two annual & seasonal concert events, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT regarding a prominent local band's surprising announcement about their impending last show.

Local grunge/alternative quartet Haggith have announced a headlining date at The Algonquin Pub on Saturday, December 7th that will apparently be their final live concert, with the band breaking up afterwards. The news was revealed last night via the show's Facebook event page, and though a reason for the impending dissolution has yet to be publically made, I do know it's amicable and related to a band member's personal commitments. Support will be provided by local alternative hard/blues rock quartet Sykotyk Rampage and newer all-female hard rockers The Danger Cats, both of which have shared the stage with Haggith this fall, so they're good lineup additions! This will likely be a 19+ event, but admission costs are yet to be finalized, and the listed start time of 8:00 PM sounds too early to be accurate. Check the above links for more details! This is really disappointing news, especially given how they've grown in prominence and success this year, and knowing the optimistic album plans that they've hyped to me in personal conversations, but hopefully all works out how it should!

At least this won't be the only remaining concert (TOMORROW'S Zombie Walk set and their New American show on November 22nd come first), but we'll of course keep you guys updated on this show and any preceding updates as they come in, and I just hope the guys all stay active in music after December 7th! Keep watch for updates, and note that I don't know what this means for the various other band & solo projects that members are in, but if I find out more, I'll let you guys know!

Now to the rest of our heavier Halloween weekend concert previews, starting with the 8th annual Halloween Party from local concert promoter J.D. Pearce (a.k.a. Johnny Pints), which makes it's first ever appearance at The Roosevelt Hotel TOMORROW NIGHT! After spending last year at The Algonquin Pub and the prior 6 at the old Coch's Corner, this annual tradition hits the West End for what will hopefully be an incident-free night of hard hitting metal & punk music, costumes, and good times! Like past years, there will be a costume contest (the winner gets a VIP ticket for the Fuckface Unstoppable show on December 14th), and while the band count drops back to it's usual amount of three, it will continue from last year in one way, as there will be an out of town feature band, that being Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz! Making their second local appearance of 2013 following their Algonquin show in April, their hard hitting and attitude fueled set should be a great way to cap off this Halloween party, so don't miss these local favourites in their return tomorrow night!

The local opening bands include hardcore punk quintet Destroilet (in their first appearance at this yearly event) and J.D.'s newer local punk/metal quartet Jack Spades, who are replacing his main band Frightlight at tomorrow's concert due to guitarist Rick White's ongoing recovery from injuries he suffered last month. Had Frightlight played tomorrow, it'd have been their 5th straight set at this event, but Jack Spades (featuring Bear Hunters & T-Rex Manning alumni) will bring a special Halloween-themed set to the proceedings, so no need to worry (and Destroilet's hard hitting sounds will be welcomed as well!) Admission is $10 in advance through local band members and at The Rad Zone, but the price jumps to $15 at the door (or $13 if you come with your Zombie Walk bracelet.) This is still a 19+ event, and doors open tomorrow at 9:00 PM. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! I haven't missed this event since my first of J.D.'s Halloween parties in 2010, so you know I'll be at this one!

Aside from Jack Spades' Justin Lam and Johnny Belanger, every band member tomorrow was a part of The Ripcordz's local show in April, and you know they all delivered there, so I'll see you guys at The Rosie tomorrow night, and fingers crossed nothing abnormal happens, besides the Halloween happenings! For a preview, here's The Ripcordz tearing up the stage earlier this year at The Algonquin Pub!



Finally for the proven hard rock concerts this weekend is the fourth annual Soo Zombie Walk afterparty TOMORROW NIGHT at Coch's Corner! With the majority of bands shifting to the afternoon before the walk (and the host venue moving to the Bushplane Museum), the afterparty has been downscaled and moved from The Grand Theater back to it's original host venue down the road at 708 Queen Street East. However, unlike the 2010 edition at the former Foggy Notions, the new afterparty will only feature two acoustic acts, as Coch's Corner has focused on all unplugged bands since moving to the Foggy's location last spring. As a result, this is the first concert with hard rock acts at Coch's Corner since February 2012 and at 708 Queen since 2011, so it's been a long time coming either way! The headlining band will be Sudbury acoustic hard rock trio Aggressive Acoustic, featuring former Sykotyk Rampage bassist Brian Cattapan (in his first local concert appearance in over 18 months) alongside fellow musicians Sean Trottier & Angie McBride, and their hard rock covers in an unplugged setting should be a nice change of pace!

A late notice opener has also been secured, as Project Legion bassist James Watterworth will play his second Zombie Walk set of the day tomorrow night (he opens the pre-walk band lineup at 2:00 PM also), so don't be late for his creative & impressive solo originals!  Doors open at 9:00 PM for this 19+ event, and while there is no cover charge with a Zombie Walk wristband, one may apply if you don't have one. For more details, visit the above links! Time will tell if the new Zombie Walk format & date prove to be successes, including the downscaled & all-acoustic afterparty, but it's nice to see Brian back in town & to see hard edged performers at Coch's/708 Queen again, so hopefully tomorrow night is a success! For a preview, here's Aggressive Acoustic covering Down's "Stone The Crow" in Sudbury!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow before the Halloween Party! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Griphook) And The First Of The Halloween Weekend Concert Previews!!

For today's post, we're focusing on previews of the Halloween weekend hard rock/metal concerts in the area! None are known in Sault Michigan of the heavier persuasion for this weekend (at least, within our coverage range), but as Sault Ontario is pretty stacked, I'll save our previews of J.D. Pearce's annual Halloween Party & the Soo Zombie Walk afterparty (both on Saturday) for TOMORROW'S post. I don't want them to get lost in the shuffle, so look out for them then! Today's previews include the expanded Zombie Walk lineup and another Roosevelt Hotel show, but first, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Local classic hard rock quartet Griphook will return to the stage TOMORROW NIGHT at The Nicolet Tavern! Apologies for the short notice, the band only launched the Facebook event page for it this morning. Their first show since the Ray Brown benefit, tomorrow's one-night-only gig follows their classic rock sister band The Seven Year Itch's Roosevelt Hotel gigs last weekend, and it's nice to see everyone back together to rock The Nic tomorrow night! No word on why they're not playing Saturday, but I'll note that Griphook's advertising for tomorrow's concert does NOT imply a direct Halloween connection, so keep that in mind before you bring a costume. There's no announced cover charge for this 10:00 PM concert, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit the above links! It's always good to see Griphook on the local stage, and hopefully this veteran quartet (featuring Flat Stanley, Bigsuit, Hollow, and Fusion alumni) have a great night tomorrow with their diverse and often heavy mix of covers! Check above for more details, and for a preview, here's Griphook covering Finger Eleven's "One Thing" at The Nic earlier this year!

Now to previously announced dates, starting with another cover hard rock band, as Turner Up successors The Thrill Junkies will return to The Roosevelt Hotel TOMORROW NIGHT themselves! Also fresh off of the Ray Brown benefit, this is a one night only gig due to the aforementioned Halloween Party on Saturday, though like with Griphook's show, there's no announced Halloween theme for tomorrow's Thrill Junkies' gig. This will also be the first hard rock concert at The Rosie following the shooting incident there on Sunday morning (our best wishes go out to the victim), and I sincerely hope no nonsense like this happens here this weekend! What should be going down tomorrow is a fun night of hard and classic rock covers from The Thrill Junkies, who have a lot of talent and chemistry from their past band work, so don't miss their Rosie return! There is no announced cover charge for this 19+_ concert, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and when video footage of The Thrill Junkies turns up, we'll have it here!

We'll close today with all the details for the musical entertainment around this year's fifth annual Soo Zombie Walk THIS SATURDAY! Moving from The Grand Theater to The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre this year for unannounced reasons (and moving up a week later to coincide with the Halloween weekend), the location & date aren't all that's different for this year's event. Before you guys rampage downtown for brains in your best zombie costume, there's a far-expanded slate of pre-walk activities, including the shift of the majority of live bands from the afterparty to the afternoon before the walk begins. There will still be a downscaled afterparty that we'll touch on tomorrow, but here's what to expect from the actual walk activities! The Zombie Walk itself begins at 6:00 PM from the Bushplane Museum with the closing ceremonies and prize announcements taking place at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, with orientation, photos, and setup for zombie resistance members in the 5:00 hour. The headlining band on Saturday (making their third straight Zombie Walk appearance) are local "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet Sykotyk Rampage, whose own zombie themed songs & creative improvised originals will fit well once again at the Bushplane Museum!

Prior to pre-walk announcements at 4:30 PM, local grunge alternative quartet Haggith will make their second straight Zombie Walk appearance at 4:00 PM, and with their planned "Apocalypse II" CD still in the works, some zombie songs from that could be in the planned setlist, so keep that in mind as well! The other performers are solo musicians (both with past experience as bassists in prominent local bands) taking the stage prior to some brain-eating contests at 3:15 PM. The opening artists are North West member Greg Callaghan (credited as "Greg Calhoun" on official posters) at 2:30 PM and Project Legion bassist James Watterworth kicking off the music at 2:00 PM. Doors will open at the Bushplane Museum at 1:00 PM, with zombie face painting, photos, games, contests, and vendors available throughout the afternoon. Admission is $2 plus a canned food donation, and supervised children can get in with a food donation too. For more details, visit the walk's official Facebook group! I'm very curious to see how successful the Zombie Walk is given the expanded pre-walk activities, decreased emphasis on the afterparty, and date/location shifts, but the event has seen solid growth in the past four years, and I have a good feeling about this year's format!

Also, note that all of the musical performers (aside from Greg Callaghan/Calhoun) performed at Bushplane Musical Madness II in July, so if you missed that event (and love zombies), here's your makeup date! I don't know if I can make the Zombie Walk this year (blame scheduling if I can't), but I still plan on hitting the Halloween Party at The Rosie that night, so you'll see me somewhere with camera in hand to take in some seasonal metal and hard rock! For a preview, here's Sykotyk Rampage playing "Sweet Young Thing" at The Bushplane Museum in July!



That's all for today, but stay tuned TOMORROW for our previews of the Zombie Walk Afterparty and the Ripcordz-headlined Halloween Party at The Rosie! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Viva La Battle), New Concert Recordings, And Oh! Right Arm! Show Updates!!

Before we preview the Halloween weekend metal/hard rock concerts in the region, we have another news post today, including a bunch of assorted updates from upcoming AlgomA-related concerts, some very cool new live concert clips from a new local studio/sound company, and first, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT concerning a previously announced event that now has an official date, so here's what you need to know!

A final date is set for next month's battle of the bands Viva La Battle at The Canadian Nightclub, where the fan-voted winners will open for Bam Margera's Fuckface Unstoppable at The Canadian Nightclub on December 14th! The battle will now take place on Wednesday, November 13th (almost a month before the show itself), and while the mid-week setting might be unfortunate to some, I'm just glad to see that The Canadian's back up and running to host everything! As previously announced, the battle will have ballots given to attendees at the door to vote on after the bands wrap up (similarly to last year's Battle For The Blood), and I assume it's a 19+ event, but details on admission costs, a start time, and any possible non-competitive performers have yet to be announced. A fourth band has been confirmed for the lineup though (joining Rockstar Bar Battle winners The Suicide Kings, fellow finalists The Bear Hunters, and new local band North West), and they are a new local band named Keep It Lit! From what I've been told, they're a "secret band" (similarly to Sarah's Valley from the Rockstar Bar Battle), but like them, I do know that they have battle experienced membership.

If anything public comes out on their lineup, sound, or anything else before November 13th, we'll have it here! It looks like promoter J.D. Pearce is hoping for more than 4 bands for the battle, and registration ends on November 1st (next Friday), so if your band is interested in competing to open for Fuckface Unstoppable at The Canadian in December, apply A.S.A.P. at the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more updates!

Next up, we have a new recording studio and live concert sound company that you guys might be interested in! As some of you may know, Caveman Morrison/Redundant bassist James White (a.k.a. Yimmy Blanco) has been providing sound at concerts and doing some recording sessions with local bands in recent months, but only last Friday did he launch a Facebook group for his work in this area, under the alliterative moniker White Wreckords. Full details on his work in this area isn't too elaborated on yet, but feel free to message James on Facebook or on the group's wall if you'd like to have White Wreckords to provide sound or recordings for your events! His work is good, as some mp3 samples there will indicate, given that James posted a pair of live concert recordings to the group as Facebook videos in the past week! These both come from the benefit concert at The Roosevelt Hotel on August 1st for Frightlight bassist Mike "Eddie Fright" Gingras' upcoming short film "The Kid Who Made The Face", one of which being a high quality audio clip of the original Chronic Demonic lineup's only live appearance!

A cover of The Misfits' "London Dungeon" (as previously seen here), this featured current guitarist Kevin "St. Mayhem" Powe & bassist Ryan Gratton alongside ex-singer Sabrina "Strange" Lavoie and then-drummer Rick "Styles" White. The only song they played during their surprise appearance that night, the quality's really good, and Sabrina's vocals are a nice change of pace with a solid tone, which is another positive sign for her current band Project Legion! Of course, the new lineup (featuring Bear Hunters alumni Nik Deubel & Mike Vincent) will likely sound very different at least vocally, but give the first Chronic Demonic live performance a listen below!



The other concert audio posting comes from Kevin & Rick's headlining set that night with their main horror punk/metal band Frightlight, featuring their performances of their original songs "Dead Town Anywhere" and "She Screams"! Their only concert since last fall featuring Eddie Fright on bass (and their last to date with this lineup), the songs are a bit messier than on some earlier dates, but their usual punk attitude and horror influences are clear as day, and they have been missed this fall! Check out the full video below, stay tuned for announced Bear Hunters studio clips from White Wreckords, and they're now in our Other Sault Ontario Metal Links!



Finally for today, here's assorted shorter notes relating to three upcoming concerts promoted by AlgomA frontman Darby Wigwaus' Oh! Right Arms! Promotions in a collective with/or drummer Jamie Vincent, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by the name of the highest slotted hard rock/metal band:

• The announced concert on Tuesday, November 12th featuring local grunge duo Bad Back opening for Calgary experimental punk band If I Look Strong, You Look Strong has been cancelled, as per the deletion of it's Facebook event page on Monday. A reason hasn't been announced, but the show never had a confirmed venue publically, which is why we didn't officially call it on here when still scheduled. Disappointing, but hopefully I.I.L.S.Y.L.S. try again for a local date!
• The Biipiigwan-headlined concert at The Moose Lodge on November 24th is indeed licensed for alcohol sale, so you don't have to worry about the all ages nature of it impeding any desire for a few drinks! My source is the show's Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more updates!
• If you're wondering why we haven't plugged the upcoming Halloween night concert featuring local grunge/acoustic project Telephone & Address (joining the aforementioned North West as openers for Winnipeg punk quartet Clipwing), it's because the show is taking place at Jamie Vincent's home, with the address only being given out on request. As a rule, we don't plug house parties on here unless they're treated as a publically available concert with a public address, but if you want more information, click here!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for Halloween weekend concert previews TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Bear Hunters), Two New Local Bands, And New Videos!!

Today's post is stacked with big new updates, including a new live concert video, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, and a pair of new local metal/hard rock bands, so let's not stall any longer! As usual, read on below for all you need to know, and check out this month's YouTube Channel Profiles in the post below this one!

One of the new bands we have today is one that we alluded to on the SMS on Sunday, that being the new local hard rock band Project Legion! Fresh off of their late notice debut at 180 Projects on Saturday, this is the new band from former Chronic Demonic frontwoman Sabrina "Strange" Lavoie, who sings and plays guitar in this act. She's joined by two musicians known more recently for solo work, including alternative solo singer/guitarist Chase Wigmore (who has metal experience from projects like The Smiling Giraffes) and skilled local solo singer/bassist James Watterworth (a.k.a. Delusionair Lionhair), and this all adds up to a promising and talented lineup! A full time drummer is apparently being sought (though they have the position filled on a temporary basis by an uncredited performer), so if you or someone you know are interested in trying out, message Project Legion at their official Facebook page. There, the band is described as "a project of discovery" that will play a diverse mix of everything from funk to metal (including both originals & covers), with Tool, Megadeth, and Nirvana cited as influences

I have a feeling that Project Legion will be a welcome deviance from the norm in some respects, and I know all three current members have the talent, so hopefully they find a drummer and make some waves! As for how they sound, two cover videos were posted on their Facebook page yesterday of Sabrina & Chase at a recent Coch's Corner open mic night covering Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" and (as embedded below) Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", and while these lack the full band experience (and have bad visual quality), they show a nice chemistry and solid vocal range, so check out the Nirvana cover below!



The other new band definitely isn't new to the site, but they only just recently had a Reverbnation page launched to cover them, and the band in question is Rotopsy, the "porngrind" duo that is among the newest public acts on Ringsnaps' independent grindcore label Blood Shed Productions! Launched last year under the name Spitneck before finally making their public debut under their current name last month, this project features singer Dylan Taylor alongside label head Ringsnaps Gibson (also of Crucify The Whore & Malignant Neoplasm) on guitar, backing vocals, and programming. According to their Reverbnation page, they want to "bring grind to everybody", and they also included some bio information and links to some material of theirs that was previously posted on Blood Shed Productions' YouTube channel. Musically, there is something of a fuller sound here than on some of the one man acts through Blood Shed, with Dylan's vocal style a bit harsher and more accessible, but their music is still something of an acquired taste unless you're already familiar with grindcore. A full demo is planned for next year, but when can you see Rotopsy live?

Next week, in fact, as both Rotopsy and Project Legion are among the performers at an ALL AGES Devil's Night concert at The Oddfellows Hall on Wednesday, October 30th! Sort of short notice for an Oddfellows concert, but it's all good. The event is being promoted by Social Suicide bassist Tyler St. Amour (ex-March Into Regression) and Blood Shed Productions, and many of their artists will be making their live debuts next Wednesday, or at least their first outside of a house party. Two full established local death metal bands will headline the show, with The Bear Hunters closing out at 12:30 AM and Crimson Crusade coming on at 11:15 PM, in both of their first concerts since The Big Loonie Bus Show in Echo Bay. The four preceding acts are all Blood Shed roster members, including local goregrind project Crucify The Whore at 10:15 PM, the aforementioned Rotopsy's live debut at 9:30 PM, Project Legion guitarist Chase Wigmore in a solo set at 8:30 PM, and the debut of Austin McRae's one man death metal act Brutaly Fatal at 7:45 PM.

The opening bands include Chase's Project Legion bandmate James Watterworth in a solo set of his own at 7:00 PM, with Project Legion themselves making their Oddfellows Hall debut to open the night at 6:15 PM. Doors will open at 6:00 PM next Wednesday with a $7 admission at the door, though you can get advance tickets for $5 by messaging Blood Shed Productions at this link. This show runs oddly late despite being ALL AGES, but with 14 performers among 8 live acts, including a lot of new faces, death metal & grindcore fans should find something to like! I hope to be there myself, so visit the Facebook event page for more details, and both Project Legion & Rotopsy are now in our active Sault Ontario band links!

Finally for today, here's another live video from new local classic/power metal quartet The Hydra's Teeth's live debut at The Algonquin Pub last month! Uploaded to frontman Brendan Christie's YouTube channel on Sunday (and from the same filmer of his prior videos from this show), this is of The Hydra's Teeth playing their song "Army of Bones", as preceded by a drum solo by Roy Kreutzberger, and both song & solo live up to their early promise! Solid talent and energy all around, and hopefully there's more to come soon, so check out The Hydra's Teeth's newest live video below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes this week! Thanks everyone!

YouTube Channel Profile Series: mlibz, Candianchic29, and Tyler Gibson's Channels

For the first time in 8 months, we're looking at 3 separate YouTube channels in this month's YouTube Channel Profile installment! As the first channel we selected only had 3 similar videos, and the second had one total, it led to this situation, but there's some solid stuff within, so no worries! As usual, this monthly feature post looks at 1-3 YouTube channels (all randomly selected) to profile their content, information, and reasons to subscribe, and this month's profiles cover a lot of bases, so read on below for each of these 3 mini-profiles!
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mlibz's Channel (http://www.youtube.com/mlibz)

Owner: Toast/Galactic Alignment guitarist Mike Libertoski, who's also known from past work in bands like Swayze Train and The Slackjawed Rats, among other projects

Channel Timeline: Launched on June 20th, 2011; Videos uploaded on January 18th, 2012

Channel Summary: The most recent active YouTube channel from this very talented Sault Michigan metal guitarist, this follows an earlier channel that featured a mix of audio & video recordings from the late 2000s. The new account was 100% focused on live performance videos of him playing along with progressive metal songs circa January 2012, including The Faceless' "Legions of the Serpent", a portion of Beneath the Massacre's "Lithium Overdose", and his most popular cover, Animals As Leaders' "The Price of Everything & The Value of Nothing", which is embedded below. I've always found Mike Libertoski to be one of the more talented local metal guitarists of recent memory, and these covers (despite some rough patches) show his skill at progressive metal & more complicated structures! If you like Mike's videos on this channel, check out his Galactic Alignment work, but note that this channel hasn't been actively used since the featured videos were uploaded.


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Canadianchic29's Channel (http://www.youtube.com/canadianchic29)

Owner: YouTube user Canadianchic29 (real name unknown, but she may have been 29 at the time of the channel's creation)

Channel Timeline: Launched on December 3rd, 2006; Only video posted on December 18th, 2009

Channel Summary: Though Canadianchic29 launched this channel almost 7 years ago, she only uploaded one video there, that being of Sault Ontario metal cover trio Caveman Morrison covering Metallica's "Seek & Destroy" at The Rockstar Bar in December 2009. Featuring the band's 2009-2010 lineup (including singer/guitarist Tym Morrison, then-bassist Rick "Styles" White, and his former Frightlight bandmate Jeff "Shrek Ogre" Richards on drums), this is a well played cover with a solid heavy bite & nice melodic chorus vocals, but the video is tilted sideways on three separate occasions, including for most of the video's first minute, and I'm not sure why. That aside, this is a nice quality video from early in Caveman Morrison's local resurgence, and the deep red lighting & Christmas tree help give this a nice Christmas ambiance if you come across it during the holiday season! (Note again though that Canadianchic29 hasn't visibly used this channel since at least 2010.)


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Tyler Gibson (http://www.youtube.com/tyler44gibson)

Owner: Former T.E.N. guitarist/programmer Tyler Gibson

Channel Timeline: Launched on March 17th, 2010; Videos uploaded between May 2011 & May 2013

Channel Summary: Effectively the official YouTube channel for the defunct 2011 comedy metal band T.E.N., Tyler Gibson (who may be a relative of Crucify the Whore's Ringsnaps Gibson) posted three demo original tracks there, two during their run, and one (a solo guitar track named "It's Your Mother, But Better") coming posthumously in May of this year. The included songs (including an unfinished intro named "Yeah") don't retain much of the earlier comedy influences, with only the most popular video "My Movie" (which is embedded below) featuring vocals from singer Eric Welker, but parts of these songs were likely on some demo discs distributed in 2011. There is something to these demos, particularly in terms of Tyler's guitar work, but the unfinished nature of them leaves a lot of questions as to what could have been. Hopefully Tyler revisits his music in the future, and he does still use his YouTube channel, so subscribe just in case!


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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! Next month in this series, we'll return to a single channel model, as through completely random selection, I've chosen former Sue Inside frontman Shane Lipsit-Fraser's YouTube channel for our November 2013 profile! Though all of his videos are from after the band's relocation to Southern Ontario, there's some solid performances within, so watch out for this profile on or around November 22nd, and stay tuned for a packed new news post later today! Thanks everyone!

A New Local Metal Band, Plus New Videos From The Bear Hunters & Blood Shed Productions!!

As we creep ever closer to the Halloween weekend, the news definitely isn't slowing, so what's in store for this Monday morning update? Mostly new videos, including new live clips from an upstart grind label, and a full set from The Big Loonie Bus Show, but first, here's a new band that you guys should be quite familiar with!

We have a new local band to add to our Sault Ontario band links, and they are a new melodic death/groove metal quartet named Saints & Serpents! Note however that they are primarily based out of London, Ontario, but they list the Soo and London equally as their hometown, and given that, plus their membership & local ties, they definitely count. You may recognize 3/4ths of their lineup as members of the early 2010s local deathcore band The Valentine's Day Massacre, and personal Facebook pages have alluded to Saints & Serpents as a resurrection of sorts, but as best as I can tell, this is generally considered a brand new band. Their lineup is mostly the same as their predecessors, with D3athcharg3r bandmates Steve "Syk Ace" Rhodes & Andrew Angelic on vocals & guitar respectively, along with Adam Veale on bass, though London-area drummer Ian Timmermans takes over for Kyle Umgeher (who moved back to the Sault this summer) in the new band. Saints and Serpents describe their sound on their new Facebook page as "a healthy matrimony of death and groove, thrash and melody, old but new", but song samples have yet to be posted online.

A live debut is forthcoming, but I'll note that after moving to London last fall, The V.D.M. only played one local date before falling inactive this spring, so hopefully we'll see Saints & Serpents here more often! I'll admit that the sound description does sound like an improvement, as the earlier deathcore stuff wasn't entirely my thing compared to heavier death metal subgenres (plus, the name was cumbersome compared to both View To A Kill and Saints & Serpents), so I'm very curious to see where this new project leads! Stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's a new live video from local death metal quartet The Bear Hunters, courtesy of last weekend's Big Loonie Bus Show at La Cucina in Echo Bay! Also uploaded to 62nd Chamber Productions' YouTube channel and posted online on Saturday, this follows in the same side-stage angle from the earlier videos from this concert, but luckily, the camera was lowered to catch more of the band than in the Crimson Crusade video. Their whole 45 minute set was filmed (perhaps excluding the "Teddy Bears Picnic" introduction?), and in order, the songs played include "Dominate", "Deception", "Bloodthirst", "I Fear No God" (which is a new track), "Servitude", "Transcend Judgement" (another new one), "Collapse the Sun", their cover of Amon Amarth's "Guardians of Asgaard", "Render This Void", and finally, a fan favourite cover of guitarist Mitch Sirie's solo track "Squirrel Buddy", so click each link to hear each song! I did miss a few songs like "Succumb to Eternity" and "Karma", but you've gotta make room for the new tracks, and what we did get was brutal!

Very solid all around in terms of video quality and performance, and the new songs sound very promising, but like their other recent gigs, the lack of a rhythm guitarist following Josh Stephney's move is noticeable a lot. Check out the full video below, and stay tuned in case anything of AlgomA or Destroilet's Echo Bay sets pop up!



We'll close today with some new videos from Blood Shed Productions grindcore artists, all as uploaded to the label's YouTube channel on Saturday! Two are from their newest heavier act Rotopsy (formerly Spitneck), which include an upload of a song named "Shitneck" from their recent three-way split demo, and it's a minute-long blend of good metal riffs and odd vocal noises that somewhat sound like Ringsnaps Gibson & Dylan Taylor are mimicing farm animals. Check it out if you want above, but embedded below is their first actual live video, of them playing an untitled original composition featuring backing drum recordings and only Dylan on vocals. His growling, if undistinguishable, sounds more like choking than the usual pig squeals in Ringsnaps' bands, but whether that's better or worse is up to you to decide. I will say it's slightly more accessible, but why not try to have some clearer words in there?) Not bad for what it is, so check out Rotopsy's first full live video below, and hear more above!



Lastly for this post, the aforementioned Ringsnaps Gibson's primary music project Crucify The Whore were the subject of another video uploaded on Saturday, this time a solo performance cover of Mortician's "Hacked Up For Barbecue". Only 49 seconds long, Ringsnaps shows solid guitar skills and control as a pig squealer, but the full song isn't featured for one reason or another, and I still think he'd gain a stronger local foothold if he had a full band around his C.T.W. work. Still, he's making good progress with no apologies, so check out Crucify The Whore's new cover video below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profiles TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Aggressive Acoustic & Glitch) And More Recent News!!

We're packing this post with updates and news (no videos in sight) to help clear out some recent stuff, so what's on tap? Assorted recent short items, news on new and old members of Chronic Demonic, and leading things off, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for this coming weekend and next month, including a venue's return to concert booking, so read on below for what you need to know!

Former Sykotyk Rampage bassist Brian Cattapan will return to the local stage for the first time in over a year & a half when he headlines this year's Soo Zombie Walk afterparty at Coch's Corner THIS SATURDAY with his Sudbury-based unplugged hard rock act Aggressive Acoustic! Coincidentally, this will also be the first heavier concert at Coch's Corner since it's move to the former Foggy Notions location last spring, partly due to Coch's current focus on mostly/all acoustic bands. That said, Brian's bringing some "aggressive" acoustic to the afterparty this year for his first appearance at the annual event, which returns to 708 Queen Street East for the first time since Foggy Notions hosted the first afterparty in 2010, though additional acts have yet to be confirmed. As best as I can tell, Aggressive Acoustic features Brian and collaborator Sean Trottier doing acoustic hard rock covers, which will be a bit of a shift from the last 3 years, but as previously reported, the scheduling of full plugged-in bands is now in the afternoon at the Bushplane Museum prior to the Zombie Walk itself, so click here for details on that front.

Admission is FREE with a wristband from the Zombie Walk (cover charges may apply if you don't have one), doors open at 9:00 PM on Saturday, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit this Facebook event page! The downscaling of the afterparty is still somewhat of an adjustment, but Brian's a talented musician who should put on a great show in his local return this weekend, and maybe he'll rejoin Sykotyk Rampage for some songs in their afternoon set that day before the walk? Time will tell, and stay tuned for updates!

Also in new concerts, new local classic hard rock cover quartet Glitch will play their second public concert when they return to The Rockstar Bar for another gig on Friday, November 22nd! After taking October off (barring any interim announcements), it'll be great to see the new band featuring Sneaky Pete, Lion Ride, and Tripod the Dog alumni back at it with their diverse but often heavy blend of covers! Admission should be in the $5 range for this 19+ show, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised, so click here for more details! In the same Facebook group posting to announce this concert, guitarist Marco Pedalino revealed that Glitch will also be among the performers for the second annual Toystock event, which will take place this year on Sunday, December 1st, but a venue has not been confirmed as of this writing. Toystock was the Maxx Entertainment-promoted Christmas Cheer fundraiser concert featuring 10 local bands (mostly cover acts) at The Canadian last November, and it's great to hear that it's coming back for another year, but I'll wait for venue confirmation & such before going much further. Stay tuned, and don't miss Glitch next month!

Next up, the new singer & drummer of local metal band Chronic Demonic have finally been announced, as The Bear Hunters' Nik Deubel and their former guitarist Mike Vincent (most recently of Skull After Betrayl) have been confirmed to replace the departed Sabrina Lavoie and Rick White respectively. The news was revealed on their Facebook page on Friday, and it's especially nice to see Mike back in a local band project! Though I'm not very familiar with him as a drummer, he has a lot of talent that's nice to see put back to use in this new band, and I wonder if Nik will have any new styles up his sleeves vocally himself? Remember, Chronic Demonic had previously identified as a "punk/metal/rock" band (and had a female singer), which is a big change, but will the band adapt to Nik's vocals, and/or will he adapt to their genres? I'm curious to find out! It's interesting to note as well that all 4 current members of The Bear Hunters are now in other bands (joining Caveman Morrison, Jack Spades, and The Suicide Kings), but hopefully this doesn't mean anything bad for their ongoing status and album plans. Keep an eye out for news on Chronic Demonic's next plans!

Speaking of Chronic Demonic, here's the latest from their original singer, also known as Sabrina Strange! Since leaving Chronic Demonic, you may know that she's been hard at work in the local music scene via her upstart company Sabrina Strange Productions and with her turns as an interviewer, but she's also back into new bands, one of which just making their surprise debut last night! Named Project Legion, they're still lacking online pages or any detailed public info (i.e. are they heavier, who's in the band), but they replaced Vancouver "power slop" band The Screaming Queens at an Oh! Right Arm!/Jamie Vincent-promoted punk/alternative concert at 180 Projects last night. I didn't mention it on here due to a combination of no verifiable hard rock acts & no time to slide it into a post, but hopefully Project Legion had a successful debut! Sabrina is also looking for a band to regularly play live with (Project Legion are apparently a "musical discovery project"), and she'd prefer playing old metal & rock covers in it. If you're interested, contact her at this link or via her Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from yesterday, and stay tuned for updates!

We'll close today's post with some more assorted shorter news items, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist, event, or company name:

• Local concert promoter J.D. Pearce is offering a deal for Zombie Walk attendees to get a discount at his eighth annual Halloween Party THIS SATURDAY at The Roosevelt Hotel, where if you show your wristband at the door, you'll only have to pay $13 to get in! I don't believe this applies if you bought an advance ticket though. If you're up to see The Ripcordz, Jack Spades, and Destroilet after the Zombie Walk, keep this deal in mind!
• An aspiring local singer named Michelle Anderson is currently looking to join a local band, as per her post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on Friday. She has no genre preference in mind, but in case any singer-less hard rock/metal bands are interested, give her a shout at this link or above!
• Former local metal musician Josh Stephney (Bring the Fallen, Bear Hunters, etc.) is exploring the possibility of returning home to host a second annual Oddzfest Metal Mash-Up concert at The Oddfellows Hall next year, via a status post on the original edition's Facebook event page on Thursday. If it happens, any details are still a ways off, but the original show in July was awesome (despite the rainstorm), so comment above if you want Oddzfest back in 2014!

That's likely all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes this week and as we creep closer to Halloween! Thanks everyone!