Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Swampgut

Happy Thanksgiving Day to all of our Canadian readers! Today, we have this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, continuing our monthly spotlight of local metal, hard rock, and/or punk bands who are no longer active, but deserve a modern day spotlight! As usual, bands are randomly selected each month, and this month gives us a wildly varying but firmly locally inspired band that you may recall from two different runs over the past decade, so here's what you should know on them!

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Swampgut

Hometown: Batchewana Bay, Ontario

Genre: "Canadian Shield Rock"

Lineup: (This information may be incomplete, especially regarding their early-mid 2010s run. Let us know if you can fill in any blanks! Advertised guest performers from their 2021 album are not listed)

Frank McCormick (The Rising Tide, Gianni Gagoots), vocals/drums
Rob MacDonald, guitar

Audio/Video: Swampgut's primary surviving media from their comes from their Bandcamp page, where they released their self-titled debut album for $5 in February 2021 and four prior "jam room sessions" demos. From their original run, anything posted on MySpace is definitely unavailable now, but Rob's YouTube channel (as "Rodge MacGodge") features nine original demos with a variance of sound inspirations and eclectic names. Here's one of their heaviest originals, "Red Rock Blood"!

Info/Analysis: Not to be confused with the Sault Michigan-area metal band Swampghas, Swampgut formed circa 2010 and made early noise with their hybrid of funk, psychedelic, and hard rock original songs on MySpace and YouTube, but activity was slower after 2011, and it's unclear if a musician search that year added new permanent members. The band fell inactive circa 2015, before Swampgut was revived in November 2020, getting heavily promoted on on Frank's visual arts Facebook page. This return was short lived but impactful, with their self-titled album release in February 2021 being their final public act before falling inactive. Swampgut's unique blend of genres, strong Northern Ontario geological inspiration, and a loose, experimental approach suited Frank & Rob well, and while vocals were often heavier than the songs called for, don't bypass the funk rock action that Swampgut brought to the table!

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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! This series will return on or around November 10th for a look at another randomly selected local hard rock band, namely 2016 hard rock supergroup Heavy Head. Look for that then and for more news and notes on the site as October rolls along! Thanks everyone!