A New Local Punk Band, An Inactive Band Note, And A New Music Video!!

Here's a new news post to check out on this Sunday morning! While it includes a new music video and an inactive band note, things are leading off with a new and promising young band to roll into our full coverage. There's a lot to get to, so here's what you should know!

We have a new local punk band to add to our band links named Vanity, so what should you know about them? Launching their Facebook page just last week, they actually have had a YouTube channel since December, and quietly debuted as early as October 2020 when former Mustang Sally guitarist Mikhal Muto (son of ex-Issues/Band Camp Rejects bassist Mike "Vinyl" Muto) posted on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group looking for a bassist for Vanity. A relatively younger group, Mikhal is joined here by singer/guitarist Andrew Beggs, bassist Nick McClelland, and drummer Keegan McAllister (credited as "Ljubov" in their Facebook teaser video), none of whom I'm familiar with from prior bands, but Andrew does have live stage experience in local musicals. Despite not being a proper live band yet, Vanity have already carved together a few original songs, which is very encouraging at this early-ish stage!

The Facebook video notes that they "are working on producing our first EP", but whether they're officially recording for it isn't clear. The guys also have covers in their repertoire, mostly of 1990s punk & alternative songs, though they do go newer and heavier on occasion, and they talk up their approach & aims for their sound in the Facebook video mentioned above. You can also find some short video content on Vanity's TikTok page and on Instagram, plus one demo on Keegan's Soundcloud page. Covers-wise, they tackle the likes of Green Day, Weezer, Rage Against The Machine, Billy Talent, Pennywise, NOFX, The Cars, which is a good range of bands to start with, plus a few surprise cartoon theme songs! The original song in the Facebook teaser is named "Empty Home", and their other originals so far are titled "Breathe" and "Black Flies", but overall, how do Vanity proper sound so far?

Not bad, they already have a good sound that wouldn't feel out of place from busier times for local punk bands, and the guitar & bass especially fit on these songs so far! Andrew's voice has a good melody and tone for more melodic punk songs also. Local bands that work on original material before debuting tend to get off to quicker starts, which bodes well for Vanity, though I have no clue how much the pandemic would affect their eagerness to play live short term. We'll let you know when more comes out, but give Vanity's Facebook teaser video a watch below!

Next up, we have a notable band to reluctantly move to our inactive band links, namely local grindcore trio Shit Liver. The band has not issued a public update since one year ago today on their Facebook page, ironically when they noted there that November 21st, 2020 was the 10 year anniversary of their live concert debut. For current activity, we last saw Shit Liver via the belated release of their 2016 tour documentary earlier that fall, and they were last seen live opening for Dopethrone at The New A in May 2019. One of the most prominent local extreme metal bands of the 2010s, Shit Liver started as a metal concert staple in the early 2010s before moving to St. Catharine's in 2013, after which they grew in prominence both in the province & nationally, especially with their two nationwide tours and their 2014 self-titled album, it's 2018 follow-up "Hitting The Fan", and their 2017 "Trading Faces" split cassette tape with AlgomA.

Of course, the pandemic may play a factor in Shit Liver's live hiatus, but most of the band has remained artistically active in recent months, from Josh's continued filmmaking work with Spacebag Productions (more on them in a second) to Mike's acoustic folk output in his Sibling project. Shit Liver didn't close the door on a return to the stage in their November 2020 post, and hopefully their brand of raw, fast-paced grindcore returns to the stage in some form when the time is right, but best of luck to Josh, Mike, and Matt in the interim, they've definitely been missed around here!

We'll close today with the long awaited release of local party metal duo The Apocalypse Afterparty's music video for their cover of Saul Williams' "List of Demands (Reparations)"! Released on schedule as planned this morning on singer/bassist Paul Stanghetta's YouTube channel, this was filmed by the aforementioned Spacebag Productions, and confirming the teasers, it primarily features Paul and his wife Amanda (on drums) playing this staple cover of theirs in a small cramped room with concert lighting, and eventually, a lot of smokebombs. Well shot video that shows how many distinct angles Josh could get in such tight quarters, and the song proper is well performed and lively, showing that you can get a full sound with just two people, let alone without a guitarist! No word on if this studio recording will lead to more songs from The A.A., but we'll keep you posted when/if more comes out, and give the music video (at last) a full watch below!

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