Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Id Iota

It's now time for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, continuing our monthly feature spotlights on local metal, hard rock, and punk bands from the past, all as randomly selected from our inactive band links! This month's choice is a very notable and familiar band that straddled genre lines to a strong run in the late 2010s, so here's what you should know on them!

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Id Iota

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Genre: Alternative/Hard Rock

Lineup (Members not in their last known lineup in italics):

Christian Lemay (Free Beer, Habitat Shuffle), vocals/guitar
Dustin Goodall (Pointless, Free Beer), guitar
Robert Sartini (Pillory, The Peach Thieves), bass
Blair St. John (The Dirty Few), drums/studio bass
Justin Girardi, bass
Dan Linklater (The Vertically Impaired), bass

Audio/Video: Id Iota released one four song EP during their run, namely April 2016's "Maudlin Fair", and while now out of print, you can buy and stream it on their Bandcamp page! The band had more originals than just these, notably working on an unreleased studio album afterwards (also at Dustin's own studio Unsalted Audio), and you can see some of them via surviving videos on social media, including on their own Facebook page & YouTube channel, and I even filmed them for the SMS' Facebook page. Here's Id Iota playing the non-EP original "Introduction To American Literature" at LopLops in 2017!

Info/Analysis: After the release of then-new local alternative rock band Habitat Shuffle's EP "Sober Drift" in August 2014, 3/4ths of that band surprisingly opted to start over under the name Id Iota in mid-2015, moving to a somewhat softer sound in the process. Id Iota would debut at The Algonquin Pub that June, and would become a fan favourite sight at a wide variety of shows over the next three years, including opening slots for bands like Saturn Alien, Windigo, and The Almighty Rhombus, sets at the NLFB Meltdown battle of the bands and Lopstock 2, two different Ontario tour runs supporting Mike Mikus-led projects in 2016, and three consecutive Rotaryfest Stage 2 sets. The band's classic lineup (with Christian, Dustin, Dan, and Blair) were prominently seen in 2016 & 2017. Id Iota played their final shows in early-mid 2018 alongside new bassist Robert Sartini, closing with a Rotaryfest afterparty at LopLops.

The band (minus Christian and plus Bill Priddle) covered an unreleased Pup song in their last public act in February 2019, and they quietly disbanded later that year. While fans of Christian & Dustin's prior ska punk band Free Beer may have been disappointed by the shift in genre, their increased songwriting abilities and maturity were clearly evident during Id Iota's heyday, combining an indie sensibility with some punk influence, raspy vocals, and solid melodies that made them easily adaptable at shows of many stripes! Not every band can make a melodica work in a live setting, but Id Iota pulled it off! They had a good thing going, and hopefully they'll turn back up again down the line, perhaps completing that album?

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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! Next month in this series, our random selection will keep us in Sault Ontario for a look at a contemporary punk band of Id Iota's, namely Stegadeth! Look for that on or around June 10th, and for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!