LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Redneck Rock Bash), More Weekend Concert Previews, and More Updates!!

Before our review of last night's Id Iota/Pixo Control/Gnaeus concert goes up on the SMS, we have the last of this weekend's concert previews, and it includes a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT! We're filling things out with some assorted big updates from some linked local hard rock artists, so here's what you should know on this Friday morning!

Five local hard rock and punk bands will join forces for a late notice concert at The Rednecks Saloon TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, word about the event only came via promoter Terry Eaton on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group last week after the event "just came up", with the lineup only being publically finalized a few days ago. Entitled the "Redneck Rock Bash", the show is basically the sequel to the Rednecks Saloon's relaunch party from earlier this month, wth two bands from that night (alternative hard rock trio The Din and funk/hard rock quartet The Elements) returning to the former Nicolet Tavern for what should be fun sets once again! No word though on if Alex Hagerman will be back behind the drum kit for The Elements. The lineup will also feature modern hard rock quartet Eclipse (in perhaps their last show before their planned quintet expansion), and local punk trio Redundant (in their first show of the year, and perhaps since last summer, pending if they played at the Jason Michaud benefit or not.)

It's great to see Justin, James, and Rick back at last, so don't miss their fun live experience TOMORROW! Opening will be newer local pop/hard rock quartet Heavy Head in their Rednecks debut and first show since last month's VM Radio Battle of the Bands, which is encouraging given their recent online quietness, so hopefully they deliver a big rebound set! This is a FREE concert (albeit 19+) that will start at 9:00 PM, and with this strong lineup of hard and alternative rock, don't bypass the Redneck Rock Bash TOMORROW NIGHT, or it's planned follow-up from the same promoters in June! Here's The Din live!



Next up, here's the last heavier show of the weekend that I can verify (barring anything on extra-late notice), as Montreal thrash metal quintet Reanimator will make their local concert debut THIS SUNDAY NIGHT at The New American Pub! This fast-paced & hard hitting thrash outfit has been melting faces for the past decade, and if you love the modern thrash metal revival, Reanimator should be just what the doctor ordered, so be sure to welcome them to the Soo with open arms on Sunday! Reunited local thrash trio Pillory (in their New A debut) are perfect choices to open with their death/thrash metal hybrid, while goregrind duo Rotopsy will kick things off in their first non-house party show in almost a year, so if you haven't seen either band since their respective returns to the stage, this might be up your alley! Presented by Six, Two, Oh., this is a 19+ concert, a $5 cover charge is in effect on Sunday, and everything is starting at 9:00 PM.

This should be a very entertaining concert for extreme and thrash metal fans, and it's not every day when we get some out of town thrash metal action in our neck of the woods, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details on Sunday night's show, and here's Reanimator live! 



We'll close today with new video-related updates from Haggith alumni's current band projects, starting with the latest from the aforementioned Din, who revealed on Monday that they were releasing their first studio single from their forthcoming debut album "Give In To The Din", as per this teaser video. As planned, the full track (a studio version of "In Search Of The Perfect Moment") was posted on the band's YouTube channel on Tuesday, confirming there that the song (and presumably the whole album) is being recorded at the upstart Pretoria Hill Productions with Daniel Schmidt producing. I'm not familiar with either, and this is a bit of a surprise given frontman Mike Haggith's extensive past work with PaperClip Productions and Galactic Records, but the song sounds well produced and mixed! We'll hold on further comment until our likely review of The Din's debut album, but check out "In Search Of The Perfect Moment" below, and don't miss The Din TONIGHT!



We'll close with a new update video from Mike's former Haggith/Din colleague Curtis McKenzie, which he posted onto PaperClip Productions' Facebook page on Tuesday. The black and white video serves to update fans about the current updates and plans from PaperClip-associated artists, so what do we learn in it? Curt started by plugging his classic metal band Project 421's return show next month, before noting that local folk/acoustic solo artist Shit Creek Survivor's album recording sessions are coming along well at PaperClip, though a release date isn't known yet. He next revealed that Mike Haggith's upcoming "Neighbourhood Watch Revisited" re-release (with the early-mid 2015 Din lineup) is "steadily nearing the completion stage", though he doesn't foresee a final release until October. Curtis next noted that his long-gestating solo debut CD is "finally in the engineering stages", but as has been the case in the past year, he didn't give any details on what form and/or sound it will take.

Curtis plugs the ongoing contest on the defunct Haggith's Facebook page next, reminding fans that if their page gets 475 likes, the 475th person will win a Haggith merchandise prize package, and if they hit 500, the band will play a reunion show. For each, they are 60 and 85 likes away as of this writing, and the deadline is May 10th! He finishes by plugging Eclipse's upcoming Rednecks Saloon shows tomorrow (albeit sans The Elements) and on May 20th (though with the incorrect date), and teasing a 4/20 surprise that we'll cover in an upcoming post. Packed and informative, though with slightly muddled audio, so check out the full video below, and stay tuned for more from PaperClip Productions!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for our review of last night's triple header at LopLops Lounge next! Thanks everyone!