Gob Concert Review!!

Hey guys, it's time for our first of three concert reviews from our run of three SMS-covered Halloween season concerts in three days (with Archelon to come TONIGHT and Frightlight TOMORROW), but be sure to check out our previews of most of this weekend's remaining Sault Ontario concerts in the post below this one! As expected, last night saw Gob and three local bands rock out to a packed house at The Rockstar Bar (definitely one of the best crowds I've seen there), and yes, there were still plenty of Halloween decorations around the bar! Now, to the bands!
 

Opening last night's show was local punk trio Redundant in the first concert appearance of the fall, and they were up to their usual tricks! Blending covers from bands like Green Day, Weezer, and even the likes of John Denver and Eminem, plus originals like "That December", the guys made the most of their set with plenty of entertaining songs and a lot of unfiltered and amusing banter, even introducing members for the first time on stage! Though the guys kept to their punk attitude and liveliness, a moment of poignancy came before "Molly's Lips" when frontman Justin Langlois offered a toast to his late best friend, Woods of Ypres frontman David Gold, as their first punk show was seeing Gob at Club Princess in the 1990s, and they had vowed to see Gob together again. Nice moment, I know how hard David's passing hit him, but I bet he'd be proud! Also joined for a late set cover of The Ramones' "Blitzkrieg Bob" by Jack Spades' J.D. Pearce, it was good seeing Redundant again, and hopefully we get more punk action soon!

Next up was local indie/punk quintet Northwest (replacing Oakville punk band Seaway), who unveiled a surprise lineup change last night, as they've enlisted Marc Santos (ex-A Fall From Innocence, Fuller) as their new drummer, replacing Clint Wilson. Frontman Wayne Watkins told me that Clint left amicably due to his own busy personal schedule, and if there was any doubt to that, Clint joined the guys to sing chorus vocals on "I Got You", which was cool, and best of luck to him in other projects! Northwest's short half hour set included all 4 songs from their new digital EP plus two non-EP originals ("Hangover Habits" & "Drinking Games"), and given that this was my first time seeing them outside of a battle of the bands, I can say that they seemed looser and more energetic this time around! Marc's a solid fit on drums, and the triple guitar attack from Wayne, Greg Callaghan, and Mike Yakasovich didn't seem like overkill! Solid sound that will appeal to fans of members' older bands, and apologies to Mike Smykacz on the lack of great pictures, I was stuck where I was!

Last among the local bands last night was local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades in what personal Facebook posts were hinting would be their last concert set of the year,  so it's a good thing that the guys delivered a solid set of originals and covers to leave us wanting more! Their nine song set included all 5 songs from their EP "The First" plus their newer songs "Crossroads" and "Motorwolf" and Misfits & SNFU covers (with Northwest's Greg Callaghan joining in for guest vocals on "Drunk on a Bike"), and even with "Frederick" dropped from the set, all was well! Though J.D. and guitarist Jesse Cook dropped their masquerade mask and Link wig early, the Halloween spirit radiated throughout their set, including with Tiffany Stocco's skeleton dress! Solid and hard hitting punk & metal, with Justin Lam shining on bass as usual, and J.D.'s vocals soaring at their heights, so hopefully the guys make the most of their end-of-2014 break, and don't miss Frightlight tomorrow!

And of course, your headliners last night were Langley, B.C. punk veterans Gob in their first local appearance since headlining at The Outback almost 6 years ago, and they definitely left it all on stage for their return! This was one of the most densely packed crowds I've ever been in at a local concert (definitely #1 for The Rockstar Bar), but moshpits still made their mark, with someone's beer even hitting me dead in my left eye during "Oh! Ellin". In other words, this was a great punk crowd, and they ate up every song, from classics like "Soda", "For The Moment", and "Ming Tran" to songs from their new CD "Apt. 13" like "Cold" & "Radio Hell", and you can tell the guys were happy to be back in the Soo! Singer/guitarists Tom Thacker and Theo Goutzinakis commanded things nicely with solid punk riffs and rhythms, and Steven Fairweather's bass held up well also amids the punk chaos! After being stuck in line for a drink for most of Gob's set in 2009, it's great to see them as intended last night, and hopefully they're back far sooner next time!

Great concert overall, and it's nice to hit more of a straightforward non-hardcore punk show for a change, hopefully we get more in the coming months! Kudos to J.D. for bringing Gob in again, and remember to go see him and Rick from Redundant with Frightlight TOMORROW NIGHT downstairs at The Algonquin, plus James White with Haggith TONIGHT at The Oddfellows Hall! SooToday's Donna Hopper was on hand for at least part of the night, so hopefully some photos turn up there in the coming days, and as for our photos, you can check them out at this link or at our Facebook page! Lastly, here's our videos, so here's Redundant covering Rise Against's "Swing Life Away" & Operation Ivy's "Knowledge". Northwest playing "Young, Wild, and Hopeless", Jack Spades playing "Crossorads", and Gob playing "Oh! Ellin"! (Each video works, double click on the black box twice!)

Redundant - Swing Life Away & Knowledge

Northwest - Young, Wild, and Hopeless

Jack Spades - Crossroads

 Gob - Oh! Ellin

That's all for today, but stay tuned for our last of the Halloween weekend concert previews tomorrow morning, and we'll see you guys at The Oddfellows Hall TODAY (in a couple of hours, as a matter of fact) for Devil's Night with Archelon, Haggith, and much more! Thanks everyone!