Friday, March 18, 2016

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Pixo Control, The Elements, and Eclipse), And New Concert Videos!!

Before we dive into last month's poll results and outline this month's poll (which you can now vote in), we have a stacked post featuring lots of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, including one SHORT NOTICE show, and videos from one of the involved bands! Here's what you should know!

Local modern/hard rock quartet Eclipse will join fellow VM Radio Battle of the Bands finalists K.I.C.K. at their previously announced LopLops Lounge concert TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Eclipse's involvement was only publically confirmed yesterday. The Project 421 side project must have really impressed K.I.C.K. on Wednesday to be added as late openers TONIGHT, and while their sound isn't an obvious fit for a LopLops show, their talents and reputation speak for itself! Of course, K.I.C.K. won Wednesday's VM Radio Battle semifinal (with Eclipse securing the wild card), and their own acoustic/indie rock sound will be work nicely at LopLops, as fans of theirs have seen before, so don't miss out on this Din-less preview of next week's finals! TONIGHT'S show starts at either 9:00 or 10:00 PM (the Facebook event page says both), there's no announced cover charges, and you must be 19 or older to attend. Check the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's some new Eclipse videos!

Filmed by frontman Curtis McKenzie's girlfriend April Bryant during Wednesday's battle semifinal at The Canadian Nightclub, two videos of Eclipse's covers were posted on their Facebook page yesterday, including covers of Three Days Grace's "(I Hate) Everything About You" and, as embedded below, System of a Down's "Toxicity". Well filmed from close to the stage, these are our best look yet at this newer local band, so check them out above and below, and don't miss K.I.C.K. and Eclipse at LopLops TONIGHT and at the battle finals on Wednesday!



Next up, local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements will hit the stage for their first non-acoustic show in two months when they headline at The Rockstar Bar on Friday, March 25th (one week from today!) In what's sure to be a fun night of live music action on Good Friday, The Elements have enlisted Lake Effect saxophonist Josh Norling to reprise his guest role from their Halloween Party set last fall, so the full ska-sound will be in effect next week!  Note that the Facebook event page mentions that The Elements will also play 5 original songs to be included on their forthcoming debut EP, which frontman Rob Speers had previously confirmed to me in personal conversations. Very nice to hear, we'll have to see how that turns out! Like with TONIGHT'S K.I.C.K. show at LopLops, Eclipse will be opening for The Elements next week as well, which they'll be a nice fit for, but will their set next week be a victory party after the VM Radio Battle finals on Wednesday?

Next week's concert has no announced cover charge (but bring $5 or so just in case), a 19+ age limit, and a 10:00 PM start time. It should be a fun concert for fans of funk and hard rock, with two strong local bands playing (plus some saxophone action to boot), so check the above links for more details, and again, don't miss Eclipse TONIGHT at LopLops!

Finally for today, local grunge/alternative trio The Pixo Control will headline a special concert called "The Sky's The Limit" that will take place at The Tech (the community center at the former St. Mary's College/Lakeway site) on Friday, May 5th! This special concert event is taking place as a fundraiser for children's mental health, as part of Algoma Family Services' Children's Mental Week, with all proceeds going to support children's mental health services in the Algoma District. Nice cause, it's an area that still needs a lot of addressing! The Pixo Control will have opening bands, but uniquely, this event will be having auditions to determine opening acts. Organizers are seeking bands and solo performers between the ages of 14 and 29 to play at The Sky's The Limit, and there will be auditions at 6:00 PM on April 6th & 7th at The Tech, so message promoters via the links and phone numbers provided for more details on how you can audition for the full event on May 5th! Performance videos are being accepted too, and as the audition is likely not a public event, we won't call it as a concert on here.

For the concert proper on May 5th, it is definitely ALL AGES, and ticket sare $5 for single attendees, $20 for families of 5 or more (given the aim of the event), and can be bought at Algoma Family Services on McNabb Street. There is a 7:00 PM start time, and if we get confirmation about what area of The Tech that this concert is taking place in, we'll let you know. This should be an interesting event for a great cause, and The Pixo Control are a solid choice as headliners, so check the Facebook event page for full details on The Sky's The Limit, and if you're between 14 and 29 years old, consider auditioning!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for last month's poll results and details on our newest poll (which is now live on the site) later today! Thanks everyone!

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