Sykotyk Rampage - "Waerlogas Sagas 1: Konfysion Of Fyck" Album Review!!

It's now time for our 185th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and after a two month delay, we are finally looking at local "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet Sykotyk Rampage's 70th studio album "Waerlogas Saga 1: Konfysion Of Fyck"! Released to their Bandcamp page and major streaming services on September 1st (though backdated a month), this was recorded at their own River Front Recreation Studios once again earlier this year, and they're clearly not resting on their laurels this deep into their run. While not only a very long album (3+ hours in length, necessitating three discs if released physically), it is also a concept album with a companion comic book that is also on sale! Sykotyk Rampage are no stranger to lengthy concept albums (remember "WYRD Radio 2: Kype The Jesus Boots"?), but a 137 page comic book with visual accompaniment is a new one for our reviews, and definitely gives this some extra points!

Sykotyk Rampage are represented here by their current lineup, including singer/drummer Paul Becker and his brother Dirk on vocals & guitar, plus guitarist Shane Kokis and bassist Tony Briglio. "Special apparitions" are also made by their former bassists Dennis Becker (Paul & Dirk's late brother) and Brian Cattapan, though individual song credits for what songs they appear on are not given. "Waerlogas Saga 1" (yes, a sequel is in the works) is on sale on Bandcamp for $70, but this includes the comic book to be shipped to your mailing address, and it's printed on high quality paper at 6.5'' x 10.5'', so keep that in mind! If you just want to hear the songs, the album can be streamed on Bandcamp for free, and is also streamable on Amazon Music, Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. You can buy the album alone on mp3 on Amazon for $7.99 and on iTunes for $9.99.

Buying just the comic with no mp3 copy of the album is doable, but the comic (authored by Dirk Becker) is only separately on sale on Lulu for $90, so curious environ-mental suit-wearing fans will probably prefer just paying $70 for everything on Bandcamp. Given the massive length of "Konfysion Of Fyck", augmented by a comic book explaining and depicting the story, I do plan on condensing my thoughts of the album to keep this at a (more) manageable length, and I'll try to do that by focusing on one paragraph or less per chapter (there are nine chapters), with the songs laid out as the story progresses. Now, let's get this marathon album review underway! Just as a quality note re: the comic, the included art appears to be AI generated for the most part, and text often has contrast issues being placed onto the images, so keep all of that in mind. Actual photos of Sykotyk Rampage are included at the back along with credits and the band's biography.

The "Waerlogas Saga" ("waerloga" being Old English for a traitor or liar) is a fantasy epic, told in verse with transcribed song lyrics in the comic. The "sykotyk waerlogas" are the wizard Laup, necromancer Krid, warlock Enahs, and sorcerer Ynot, with duelist Nairb and dwarf Ned (not Sinned) also appearing. One guess as to how the character names were made! A synthesized AI voice is narrating the spoken word sections, which is tipped off by inconsistent and sometimes inaccurate word pronunciations. The narration is not always verbatim to what is printed in the comic, but it's close enough to follow along. Spoken word tracks are depicted with comic pages, whereas the formal songs have printed lyrics on one page and a descriptive image on the other. Nice to see Sykotyk Rampage post lyrics for their songs like this! Many of the tracks are longer than normal to boot, including ten that exceed 6 minutes in length.

A spoken word track named "Chapter 1- Astro-Travelers" sets up the adventure, as the waerlogas prepare to go on a quest to defeat a "cyclops orange demon" and his magma imps with the aid of of the Dead God's Eye. with Ynot's cat left to hold down the tower while they're gone. Chapter 1 has three formal songs, and while the lyrics do link to the comic, they are loose enough in themes and interpretation where you can hear them on their own without issue. Of these, "Konfysion Of Fyck" is a Paul-sung track where he trades off with a woman's spoken word voice where she seems to be longing for him, but his views are more excitable and less wordy. "Well Of Konfysion" has Paul wondering how you get out of the title location, a dimensional portal on the waerlogas' quest. "Astro Travellers" is the first song on the album with Dirk singing lead, and it's basically about how you can make astral projection happen for yourself to travel the cosmos, perhaps to go to Konfysion!

Of the three actual songs in the first chapter, my favourite was "Well Of Konfysion" for its freewheeling crash rock sound that won't be out of place at all for Sykotyk Rampage diehards. The prior track was a little too layered and repetitive by comparison, while the latter did kinda meander after a while despite fitting the spacey vibes of the lyrics. All three are fun for fans of Sykotyk Rampage though, and set the story off well enough!

Chapter 2's lead-off spoken word track ("Chapter 2- Larry The Zombie") has Enahs conjuring Loser Larry Sam (his familiar) in a creative manner, then sending him off to retrieve the Dead God's Eye from the den of Abehs the spider queen. For the four songs here, "Flesh & Blood" has Paul questioning what Larry is made of, and is nicely paced hard rock fare with strong energy. The much slower & bluesier "Larry Sam The Zombie" actually has Dirk singing, and about Larry himself, who doesn't sound much like a warlock's familiar as described. More meandering than I like from this band. "Into The Fyck Blue Yonder" has Paul singing about good experiences that he wants to give and recieve, and while tighter, it's a little spare despite a strong bassline. Lastly, "Charysma Of The Eye" (the shortest song on offer) is a passioned rocker about how fast Dirk fell in love, and it's Dirk's best vocal performance so far despite muffled audio.

"Chapter 3- Spiders Under Your Skin" is the longest one yet, where we learn that Larry has retrieved the Dead God's Eye, but incurred Abehs' wrath as she and her spider minions attack our heroes. Do they survive? In the four songs here, "Spidersweb" is a Paul-led love song with a bouncy riff, great bass from Tony, and a fun jam rock atmosphere, even if it doesn't call to mind the album concept! "Push It" is thematically about pushing yourself to your limits from outside pressure, and I believe Tony is on vocals here given the lower, gruffer tones. Overly long but a solid enough driving rocker! "Suffering" is about what the title suggests, but Paul's singing is very processed & often very hard to make out. Otherwise, a tight enough song instrumentally with good percussion! Lastly here is "Spell Of Dance", which runs for an album-long 11+ minutes. This is sung by Dirk and "Abehs" as she does her dance of death in the story, and Abehs' vocals take this out of any innocuous love song territory. Way too long for my tastes but it wasn't boring or repetitive, and it best fit the story in this chapter!

Now to "Chapter 4- Dead God's Eye", where the waerlogas next encounter He, a one-eyed orange demon who is the dead god in question, reclaiming his missing eye from them and sending them into another dimension inside the God's Eye. Four Paul-sung numbers here, starting with "Covet Me", the chant that He made when first encountered in the story. The song itself has Paul criticizing stupid/people behaviour and how they should want to be him. Too deliberate & spare for me, but well recorded! Next is "He", which is basically He's villain song. Mid-tempo but dark for a Sykotyk Rampage song, it's effective for what it is, and has good guitar work! The song named "Dead God's Eye" (all 10+ minutes of it) is about what happens when you look into the title object. I don't know what to make of the recurring upbeat verse, but this psychedelic rocker is effective otherwise, despite being overly long and really burying the vocals in the mix.

Lastly in this chapter, "Darkness" is about anticipating and fearing something in the dark. An ominously paced track that feels a bit like they heard some Tool songs for inspiration, it still feels sykotyk enough for fans, and Paul's voice does have a touch of dread and emotion to match!

The back half of this marathon album starts with "Chapter 5- Battle To The Well Of Souls", where the waerlogas finally encounter Ned & Nairb in their travels through the God's Eye, but how do their old colleagues factor into the fight to escape and defeat He? A fan favourite Sykotyk Rampage song comes up a couple of times here, so keep that in mind! Just three songs in this chapter (all sung by Paul), starting with "Fight To Hell", about ending up in "rock n' roll Hell", where you can only hear one song on repeat. A little grindy, but the distortion works well, and Paul has decent range! "Wizards' Battle" isn't directly about the story, and talks of processing the reason for life events. Trippy number with heavily layered vocals, so fans of their psychedelic sound will take to it. "Celebration Whiskey" is a pure drinking song, but this isn't as freewheeling and fun as their best ones. It's too deliberately paced, but it's still good!

"Chapter 6- Well Of Souls" has our now six heroes travelling to the title well and encountering the psychopomps and the mysterious sister of He, who they must ask help from to escape from and remove the God's Eye. Three more songs with Paul on vocals here, leading with "Cascade Of Souls", which is more cryptic lyrically, and is about questioning someone's immediate actions. Another trippier number, but with clearer vocals and more ominous overtones, so it has some good qualities! The very metaphorical "Screaming Bridge Of Flesh & Bone" is next, and it's a stronger song for fans of their regular crash punk style with effective guitar. However, I can barely hear what Paul and/or the psychopomps are saying. "Pedal To The Metal" is a straightforward song about loving to drive one's car fast, but the song doesn't have the implied forward motion. It's just a jam rocker not unlike many in the vast SKR catalogue, but it works well!

We next enter "Chapter 7- Sleepy Time Tea", which presents the ongoing story as a book being read by a grandpa to his grandkids, but in-universe, the waerlogas have entered a steampunk realm unfamiliar to them. This chapter only has two songs, the first being "Sleepy Time Tea", but it has nothing to do with the concept of the album, instead being Paul's "love song to you". A too deliberate and spare song for my liking, but the bass is solid, The other song in this chapter is "Steam World", which is actually an instrumental. If it's supposed to be thematic of steampunk, then I'm not sure it really comes across, as it still sounds very sykotyk, if with a grandiose ending. Still a solid (if relatively short) jam that fans who have seem them rock out in The Cave will appreciate! "Chapter 8- Not In Konfysion Anymore" is the longest of the nine AI-narrated chapter tracks on the album, but the story's nowhere near done.

In this chapter, the waerlogas plot their next move to get out of their current location and stop He once and for all, while bringing back Loser Larry Sam the zombie as well as a new ally, a thief named Johnny Timesmith. That character is the basis of the next song, "Johnny Go Go Go", which sounds like an extension of "Johnny B. Goode", but in practice, it's a steady mid-tempo rocker with a trance-like quality, and vague lyrics that don't allude to the story. The chapter's (and album's) last song is "Steam God's War", which is basically an acknowledgement that nuclear war has hit and it's horrible, even ending with a bomb blast. On a musical basis, this ends things strongly with a well building ambiance, effective vamping from Paul behind the mic, and the noisy crash rock that fans have come to expect! "Waerlogas Saga 1" ends with its final (and shortest) narrated track, "Chapter 9- Dream Away Until The End".

The album (and comic book) wrap up with the grandpa from chapter 7 pausing the storytime before putting the grandkids to bed, but the story will resume on another day. Yes, there will be a second "Waerlogas Saga" to come in 2025, so stay tuned if you want to find out how the story wraps up and how Luap, Krid, Enahs, Ynot, Ned, and Nairb's quest continues! With all of that said, what are my final thoughts on Sykotyk Rampage's marathon new concept album and comic book? You certainly can't fault their ambition, and while it is inconsistent, I liked the music here more than on their prior album "69"! The guys weren't reinventing the wheel here, so if you liked their prior albums, you'll have been fine with this one! This is my ninth Sykotyk Rampage album review, and there's not a ton to say for the actual songs that I haven't seen/heard previously, but at their freewheeling jam best, they still deliver the goods!

Songs like "Spidersweb", "Well Of Konfysion", and "Steam God's War" show off SKR at their best, and it'd be neat to see some of these songs learned for live shows if they ever resumed them! Everyone performed well here, with Tony shining on bass multiple times, while Dirk and Shane paired well on riffs for most of the runtime! Of course, I'd like to see the guys rein in some of the slower, more deliberate, and musically spare numbers, and I did miss hearing Dirk's snarl on lead vocals after chapter 3. Regarding the concept, I fully applaud the effort at a fantasy epic, but many songs only linked to the Konfysion arc in a loose thematic sense, if at all, and I don't think Sykotyk Rampage's music really suits a steampunk environment. The AI narrator voice could stand to have either more proofreading or consistent spelling too, as words changed pronunciation multiple times, though Dirk picked a good grandfatherly vocal model for the narration!

The quality of the comic book will vary depending on your acceptance of AI art, but it at least looks good, if somewhat inconsistent from page to page. My biggest issue across album and comic is poor text contrast for the comic itself. Given the chosen backgrounds and font, parts of some sentences were not legible at all, and I would have had them in separate boxes or outlined or something. For a one-man idea (I believe this was all Dirk), it has a lot of variance and imagination, and I'm definitely game to see where "Waerlogas Saga 2" takes the story! Overall, this is a fun (if long) album that Sykotyk Rampage diehards will get into, and while the comic is a fun bonus, it's not essential to enjoy the music with. I hope you guys liked this month's album review at the SMS, but what album are we ending 2024 to look at in December? For the first time since 2022, I may not have an idea going into the end of the year!

Priority for album reviews always goes to new releases, but I believe we're about caught up for new local metal, hard rock, and punk albums. I do have some ideas of unreviewed archival albums to look at, but I won't show my hand yet as I normally like tying in archive album reviews with a musician playing live in the same month, and there should be some notable holiday season concerts to be announced. Stay tuned by year's end in any event, and for more news and notes on the site very soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Id Iota) & Rotaryfest Stage 1 Concert Previews!!

The biggest local concert weekend of the year (holidays excepted) is upon us, so here is the first of our weekend concert preview posts! We're largely focusing on half of a major annual festival today, but let's start with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Local indie/hard rock quartet Id Iota will headline one of two post-Rotaryfest afterparties at LopLops Lounge TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced this past Friday. After co-headlining Stage 2 at 7:30 PM (more on that later today), this fan favourite band will head to LopLops to continue that venue's "re-directed"-era run of post-Rotaryfest concerts with Stage 2 performers, and they should be in fine form with their high energy originals TOMORROW! An opening act is teased, but not announced yet, though if past years are any indication, they'd likely be a Second Stage performer this year as well. We'll let you know if one is announced! TOMORROW'S 19+ concert has a $5 cover charge, and a special late start time of 11:00 PM to not conflict with Treble Charger's headlining Stage 1 set at 10:00 PM (more on that later in this post.)

The late scheduling makes sense, as punk and indie fans now don't have to pick and choose who to see on Friday, especially if you couldn't see Id Iota on the Second Stage that evening, and hopefully they deliver a knock-out set in both of their concerts TOMORROW NIGHT! Stay tuned for more on the opener if announced, and for our Stage 2 previews in our next post, but don't miss out on tomorrow night's action, and here's Id Iota live!



Next up, let's move to Clergue Park, where Rotaryfest's two stages are returning, and the covers-centric Stage 1 is taking things back with the "Rotaryfest Rewind" theme, in honour of the local Rotary Club's 100th anniversary! For the 20th modern Rotaryfest, stage director Shaun Antler and organizers have largely dropped their regular performer lineup in favour of hosting one-off reunions of defunct local bands of all stripes, with only five bands this year having played Rotaryfest at all since 2006, so if you've complained about the samey lineups of past main stage lineups, you'll want to pay attention! Given the roster of bands, I expect the covers-only rule won't be enforced as stringently either. Today's opening night lineup is hard rock free, as usual for Stage 1, but there are still many familiar faces scheduled! In descending order, today's bands are 1970s-1980s country band George Pinder & Patches at 10:00 PM, ...

...1960s classic rock outfit The Dark Side at 9:00 PM, 1960s-1970s classic rock quartet The Polisi Basson at 8:00 PM, 1980s jazz/blues rock quartet Zak's All-Stars at 7:00 PM, and 2000s Rotaryfest mainstays The Northern Jazz Ensemble kicking things off at 6:00 PM. No heavier bands to speak of, but expect a great lineup of local entertainment for FREE at Clergue Park today, especially if you were around for these bands' original runs!

TOMORROW'S lineup will be headlined by local indie/punk veterans Treble Charger at 10:00 PM in their first recorded Rotaryfest appearance and first local show in almost a year, so if you want a free & high profile set from them, here's quite the opportunity! A special tribute set will take place at 9:20 PM to honour past local musicians and bands, now to be hosted by Mac Headrick instead of Adrian Vilaca, and it'll be interesting to see what form this takes, especially with the involvement of Ric Datson from the Sault Ste. Marie Museum! Classic rock veterans Mustang Heart will play a special Bon Jovi & Journey tribute set at 8:30 PM to continue their current iron band streak at the festival. Early 2010s classic/hard rock cover band Turner Up will play their first Rotaryfest set since 2011 (as Full Circle) at 7:30 PM, featuring a five-piece composite lineup from across their run, while 1980s country/bluegrass quartet Road Fever will precede them with a reunion set at 6:30 PM.

Friday's openers are local hard rock/funk trio Tripod the Dog, who will bring their swing and ska-influenced sound back for the first time in over a decade at 5:30 PM. This may be the best package of hard rock and punk-per-pound at this year's Rotaryfest on any stage, so don't miss the FREE & ALL AGES action tomorrow night, and it's great to have these bands back at it! For a preview, here's Treble Charger live last year!



As for SATURDAY's extended lineup, that will closed by local classic/hard rock cover favourites That's Chester in their first show since Rotaryfest 2016, with guest guitarist Dan Belanger in tow, plus a special appearance by original singer Richard Fullerton, so look for more hard rocking hits at 10:30 PM! The nominal headliners are Juno-winning Calgary classic rock trio The Stampeders (of "Sweet City Woman" fame) at 8:30 PM, making them the first non-tribute/cover headliners at Rotaryfest in nine years, while another short tribute set to past local musicians will precede them at 7:50 PM. Local Celtic punk quartet Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide (with Chris Johns on drums) will make their Rotaryfest debut at 7:00 PM, while Chicago-influenced 1970s soft rock collective Pegasus will return at 6:00 PM, and 2010s hard rock quartet The Suicide Kings (featuring guest drummer Johnny Belanger) will play their fourth Stage 1 set at 5:00 PM, in their return to their original name.

Sporadically seen jam rock favourites Odd Man Out are on at 4:00 PM, while one-off pop rock tribute The Sun Dogs will host a "summer beach party" at 3:00 PM featuring covers of 1960s and 1970s summer and beach-themed songs. Wailing Aztecs alumni will perform folk & pop covers under their own names as McGillivray, Martinelli and Roy at 2:00 PM, while members of Korah Collegiate's school band Mustang Sally will kick things off under the name The Kids From Sally at 1:00 PM. Quite a stacked lineup of local favourites and special attractions on Saturday, let alone for FREE & ALL AGES, so see above for more details, and here's That's Chester live!



We're just getting started with our weekend concert previews, so look for our previews of the Second Stage and Saturday night's LopLops afterparty (a.k.a. The Dinunion) next on the SMS later today, with more yet to come on this stacked local concert weekend! Thanks everyone!

Rotaryfest Stage 1 & Sault Michigan Weekend Concert Previews!!

To stay ahead of things regarding this weekend's concert previews, we're doubling up on posts today, tackling shows taking place in Sault Michigan and for one stage of a major annual festival. If you're interested in previews of this weekend's Tym Morrison and (short notice) Soundcheck shows, or tonight's Downtown Street Party, check out this morning's post below, and if you're hoping for The Tea Party, Stage 2, Northwest/K.I.C.K., and Id Iota/ Mike Mikus previews, check back tomorrow! Now, let's continue this weekend's stacked concert previews!

This year's Rotaryfest began TODAY at Clergue Park in Sault Ontario, and that includes three days' worth of all-covers action on Stage 1, so what should you know about it's lineups this year? Unfortunately, this year's main stage lineup at our annual summer festival has noticeably fewer hard rock bands (partly due to That's Chester and Griphook falling inactive), and as a result, only tomorrow's lineup has bands whose genres fit our primary coverage. That said, many readers will be curious as to the full lineup, so here's who to look for tonight and Saturday! Tonight's schedule will be headlined by new Coverfly side project Encore, with country quartet Crossroad, local DJ Jeff MacNeice's Neil Diamond tribute band Hot April Night, classic rock veterans Flathead Ford, and blues/country mainstays The Algo Rhythms opening. Saturday night's lineup will actually be headlined by local country veterans Bone Yard, with Southern Ontario-based Keith Urban & Blue Rodeo tribute bands Ultimate Urban & Blue Radio playing featured sets prior.

Remaining local bands on Saturday will include R&B collective The Reptiles, blues rock standout Paul Dellavedova, Obsession frontwoman Valerie Powley's new Janis Joplin tribute band Janis Full Tilt!, 1960s-themed classic rockers The Peace Vibe, blues rock quintet Red & The Muscle, and improv jazz outfit The Jazz Cats. Solid lineup of local talent on these two nights, including many familiar and newer faces alike, and lots of tribute band action, so see the above links for more details, and click here for full set-times and band descriptions (or find your program from the mail!) 

As for TOMORROW's lineup (expanded from 5 bands to 6 this year), tomorrow's music at the main Clergue Park stage will be bookended by some hard rock action, so who can you look out for? Your 10:30 PM headliners are hard/party rock cover trio Stiffler's Mom in their third Rotaryfest set in four years, and they should end things with a bang as usual tomorrow night! Classic rock veterans and Rotaryfest regulars Obsession will co-headline at 9:30 PM, as preceded by a special Garth Brooks tribute set by local country artist Mark Tarantini at 8:00 PM, similiarly to his tribute last year that the former Mourning Wood served as backing band for. Classic rock quintet Mustang Heart's 13(+?) year streak of Rotaryfest Stage 1 sets will continue at 7:00 PM tomorrow, while veteran blues rock quartet Five Below Zero will return to the festival at 6:00 PM. Finally, classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will open the evening's action in their Rotaryfest debut at 5:00 pm, shortly before they hit The Esquire Club.

All three days of entertainment on Stage 1 are FREE & ALL AGES as usual, so check the above links for full timeslot and additional information on this year's first stage! While those who complain about Stage 1's covers-only focus and regular bands may not be won over, there's still a lot of variety within their range, with many new bands, a lot of tributes, and for the first time since 2009, out-of-town country bands, so there should be lots of classic tunes this weekend! Of course, if you want hard rock, I recommend coming tomorrow night, but give this year's bands a look to learn what to expect, and here's Stiffler's Mom live at Rotaryfest 2014!

Next up, let's touch on Traverse City, Michigan metal trio Scarkazm's return to The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, as they'll return north for headlining shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Definitely Scarkazm shows after last month's confusion whether they or Peril were playing in the Soo over the June 15th weekend, these will be Adam, Dave, and Jeff's first collaborative shows in our area since headlining in St. Ignace in May, and first at The Rapids Lounge since April. Always great to see Scarkazm up north, so look for more heavy originals and covers this weekend! As usual for Scarkazm's local gigs, expect 9:00 PM start times, no announced cover charges, and 21+ age limits tomorrow and Saturday night. Scarkazm always deliver a solid night of hard hitting selections, so keep their return north in mind for this weekend, visit the official Facebook event pages linked here & here for more details, and here they are live!



Finally for today's previews, this weekend will see more out-of-town headlining action in Sault Michigan, as Marquette hard rock quartet Spun will return to The Satisfied Frog for shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT themselves! The Nudge successors will be making their third trip east on this busy concert weekend, and fans of their accessible and hard hitting covers should be out in full force at The Frog, so keep their local return in mind over the next two nights! As was the case during Spun's prior local bookings, expect 9:30 PM start times tomorrow & Saturday night, there are no announced cover charges, and you must be at least 21 years old to attend. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details on Spun's local gigs this weekend, and here they are live!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our third weekend concert preview post of this extremely busy weekend next! Thanks everyone!

Rotaryfest 2016 Concert Video Showcase, Including That's Chester's Special Guests!!

Apologies for the week+ delay in getting these on the site, but here's a showcase post of YouTube videos from this year's Rotaryfest! Surprisingly, Sault Online's Mike Caruso has not posted any footage of this year's summer festival band lineup, but the always generous Christopher Paci was on hand for the Saturday lineup to film many of the day's bands, as uploaded to his YouTube channel last week, so kudos to him for getting as much as he did! Shaky camera at times, but the audio is consistently good! Going in descending order, we'll start at the covers-only Stage 1, where Chris filmed three songs from co-headlining Paul McCartney tribute band The McCartney Years, including their renditions of Beatles classics "I've Just Seen A Face" & "The Long & Winding Road", plus the Wings song "Nineteen Hundred & Eighty-Five". Not badly done at all, Yuri really does sound like Paul, and the Soo's own Dean McKey is solid on drums! However, Chris didn't film The Ghost Town Cryers' closing set.

The only other main stage band that Chris shot was local classic/hard rock cover veterans That's Chester, who made their long awaited return to the stage at this year's Rotaryfest! The band had teased guest appearances via jam session photos on their Facebook page in the lead-up to the festival, but only formally revealed their identities that evening & later via personal Facebook postings, so who were the guests? Original That's Chester frontman Richard Fullerton (now of the Ottawa cover bands Mothership & Trashed Taxi) came home for the occasion, while the teased female singer was Jeannine Jefferson, who played the Acid Queen in last fall's stage production of The Who's Tommy (in which That's Chester played the house music.) As for the guest guitarist, that was North Bay musician & sound/lighting tech Dan Belanger, who also worked on Tommy, and has jammed with That's Chester in the past. He's a solid player, and while it's tough to fill the late Eugene Orlando's shoes, he fits in nicely!

Chris' videos both feature Dan on guitar, including a cover of Doucette's "Mama Let Him Play", but embedded below is their version of Kiss' "Rock & Roll All Night" with both guest singers joining in (Richard splitting lead vocals with Greg Simpson, and Jeannine on backing vocals.) Attendees heads can get in the way, but That's Chester sound great, and I'm sure Eugene would be proud of their set! If only fellow That's Chester alum Jim O'Leary was available, imagine if all three singers performed together? Check out their Kiss cover below, and see more above!



Moving to the original-focused Stage 2 (also at Clergue Park), Chris filmed every act there except Liam Seymour's solo band and The Wild Iris. Two of his videos were of headlining indie rock quartet K.I.C.K., who were filmed playing their songs "So Long" and this song whose name I can't place off hand. The Keep It Cool Kids sound good and on their battle winning form, so indie rock fans will want to check those out! Post-punk quartet Gnaeus were also filmed playing their mellower original "The Edge", and while it's not one of their more up-tempo songs, the guys play this song nicely as the build towards the "Meditations" release continues, so check it out below too!



Progressive rock quartet Machines Dream's video features them playing (most of) their song "My Ocean Is Electric", and if you're not familiar with their technical and skilled blend of prog originals, do yourself a favour and give them a listen! They're not "heavy", but yet, they are very heavy in other ways! Another video from Stage 2 comes from alternative hard rock quartet Id Iota playing their EP-opening original "California Wasted", and while Dustin Goodall is often obscured behind the stage's lineup banner, Id Iota sound solid on this fun sing-along track, so give it a look below!



Lastly of Chris' uploads, he filmed opening alternative hard rock trio The Din playing their song "Potato (Should Have Known Better)", which was previously known by the longer name "This Potato May Be Used As A Flotation Device". Solid performance from this fast rising band, on what looked like a beautiful day, so give their Rotaryfest video a look below, and kudos again to Chris for the videos!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Rotaryfest Stage 1 Concert Previews!!

It's now time for our second concert preview post of the day, but be sure to check out our previews of non-Rotary shows from tonight through Saturday in Sault Ontario in the post below this one! This post is 100% devoted to our extended preview of this year's Rotaryfest Stage 1 lineup at Clergue Park, as there are three days worth of live music in store once again as part of our annual summer festival, and before we dive into the schedules, remember that the music is FREE and ALL AGES as usual! Of course, visit Rotaryfest's website for full details on the extensive non-musical events this weekend. We'll start at the covers-only main stage TONIGHT, whose lineup is themed "A Musical Journey Through The Years", but it remains hard rock free as usual. Today's headliners are 1960s classic rock cover quartet The Peace Vibe at 10:00 PM, with new classic rock quintet Jukebox Deluxe playing at 9:00 PM, 50s-60s classic rock band Flathead Ford at 8:00 PM, country veterans Crossroad at 7:00 PM, and new jazz/blues collective Lise White & The Sault Crew at 6:00 PM.

Though Flathead Ford & Crossroad are each making their third Rotaryfest appearance, tonight's bands are mostly making their Rotaryfest debuts, so if you like classic rock in particular, be at Stage 1 tonight, and remember, it's FREE & ALL AGES, as is to be expected!

TOMORROW'S Stage 1 lineup (which is themed "Rock the Night Away") will remain at just 5 bands for a third straight year, but a solid lineup is on hand, with local hard rock cover trio Stiffler's Mom rocking the main stage for the second time in three years as the 10:00 PM headliners, and they should be in fine form with their party-inspired covers! R&B cover big band The Reptiles will return to the festival at 9:00 PM in their sixth Stage 1 set since 2009, while classic rock veterans Mustang Heart take the mantle of Rotaryfest's iron men (and woman) by continuing their 12+ year run of main stage sets at 8:00 PM. Newer hard rock quartet The 3 Day Millionaires will make their Rotaryfest debut tomorrow at 7:00 PM (which should pique the interest of fans who ever wanted to see their sister band Havadder on Stage 1), while classic rockers Mid Life Crysis will play their fifth straight Rotaryfest set to open tomorrow's lineup at 6:00 PM.

Though only The 3 Day Millionaires are new to Rotaryfest, just 2 of tomorrow's bands played the festival last year, so there's enough variance from 2015 that skeptical fans should be receptive, especially if you love classic and hard rock! Be there tomorrow for the FREE & ALL AGES action, and here's Stiffler's Mom at Rotaryfest two years ago!

And finally for Stage 1, the covers action concludes on SATURDAY with music all day at Clergue Park for what is called the "Saturday Sound Smorgasbord", and for the third time in four years, two out of town bands are on tap! Pembroke folk/classic rockers The Ghost Town Cryers (featuring veteran local musician Kyle McKey) will headline at 10:15 PM, while his brother Dean and his London-based Beatles/Paul McCartney tribute The McCartney Years are the day's featured band at 8:30 PM. It's great to see the McKey brothers (and former Sailor's Tongue bandmates) back home, so be sure to give them a big welcome back! The highest placed local or hard rock band are classic/hard rock veterans That's Chester at 7:00 PM, in their (at least) seventh Rotaryfest appearance, their first show since the passing of guitarist Eugene Orlando last fall & their preceding stage production of The Who's Tommy, and first traditional concert set since last year's Rotaryfest. I'm sure That's Chester will do Eugene proud in their long awaited return, so rock out with them as well on Saturday!

Note that That's Chester's Facebook page has been strongly hinting that their set will feature guest singers in some fashion, though to what extent (or their identities) have not been publically confirmed. If we hear anything, we'll let you know! Country rock cover favourites Mojo will make their festival debut at 6:00 PM, while hard rock cover quartet Griphook will play Stage 1 for the fourth straight year at 5:00 PM, also marking just their second announced show since last year's main stage. Hopefully the guys have more in the works, they've been missed as of late! Classic rock veterans Obsession will play their eighth Rotaryfest set since 2008 at 4:00 PM, while classic rock quartet RPM (with new bassist Rob Gilmar in tow) will play the main stage for the first time at 3:00 PM. New classic rock/country cover band Indians & Cowboys (not the defunct original indie band Cowboys & Indians) will hit the stage at 2:00 PM, while classic rock veterans Coverfly will open Saturday's lineup at 1:00 PM in their eighth Rotaryfest set in nine years.

Very strong Saturday lineup this year, and while it is familiar from past years, the double whammy of homecoming sets for the McKey brothers, the long awaited return of That's Chester, and three debuting local bands should keep things varied enough! Of course, it's worth noting that recent Rotaryfest regulars like The Bob Jenkins Band, Spyder's Web, Summer Thunder, and Thin Ice are not playing this year, but hopefully they'll be back in the future, as their fans will miss them in 2016! Saturday's Stage 1 lineup is of course FREE & ALL AGES, so check the above links for full details on this year's covers-centric main stage, and here's That's Chester (with Eugene) last year!



That's all for today, but stay tuned next for Sault Michigan concert previews and more! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Rotaryfest Stage 1!!)

Today's post is dedicated to the reveal of this year's Rotaryfest Stage 1 lineup, as our annual summer festival again welcomes plenty of covers-focused bands to the outdoor Clergue Park stage over the July 15th weekend! Though the complete program/schedule is not out yet for the festival proper, the full band lineup for all three nights (and Stage 2, more on that tomorrow) can now be seen on Rotaryfest's website's music page, complete with the requisite biographies for each band, so who can you look for at this year's FREE & ALL AGES lineups? Experimenting with themed daily lineups this year, the Thursday, July 14th lineup is branded "A Musical Journey Through The Years", but like in the past, remains hard rock-free. Bands playing this year include 1960s classic rock cover quartet The Peace Vibe at 10:00 PM, newer classic rock quintet Jukebox Deluxe at 9:00 PM, 50s-60s classic rockers Flathead Ford at 8:00 PM, country veterans Crossroad at 7:00 PM, and new jazz/blues sextet Lise White & The Sault Crew at 6:00 PM.

Aside from Crossroad & Flathead Ford (each two time Rotaryfest veterans in recent years), the Thursday bands are newcomers to the festival, so fans who crave different acts should enjoy the variance and classic rock on the 14th! It's worth noting that this will be the first Thursday lineup in memory without jazz veterans The Bob Jenkins Band, who had played Rotaryfest for (I believe) 16 straight years. I know how respected Bob is in the local scene, especially for still playing live regularly well into his 80s, and hopefully all is well with him and the band!

Moving to the lineup for Friday, July 15th, the theme for that night is "Rock the Night Away", and remains at just 5 bands for a third straight year. Headlining on the 15th are local hard rock cover trio Stiffler's Mom in their second Rotaryfest appearance in the past three years, and they should deliver a fun set to cap the night at 10:00 PM! R&B cover veterans The Reptiles will return after a year's hiatus as co-headliners for their sixth Rotaryfest set since 2009, and you can see them that night at 9:00 PM. Classic rock veterans Mustang Heart will continue their 12+ year run as Rotaryfest mainstays with a set at 8:00 PM, while new hard rock quartet The 3 Day Millionaires will make their festival debut that evening at 7:00 PM. If you ever wanted to see Havadder or Turner Up at Rotaryfest, this may well be the closest thing we'll get, so keep their debut in mind! Friday's lineup will be opened by classic rockers Mid Life Crysis in their fifth straight Rotaryfest set, and you can see them hit the stage at 6:00 PM.

Not a bad lineup for Friday, and while all of the bands (save for The Millionaires) are Rotaryfest veterans, only two of them played last year, so things are varied a bit for fans of classic & hard rock! As usual, this is FREE & ALL AGES, so keep this lineup in mind for Friday the 15th at Clergue Park!

As for the main Saturday lineup on July 16th at Stage 1 (which is themed as "Saturday Sound Smorgasbord"), nine bands are scheduled, including for the third time in four years, two out of town bands, so who can you expect? Playing last that night are The Ghost Town Cryers, a folk/classic rock band from Pembroke who some may recognize as the current band from prolific local musician Kyle McKey, so keep his long awaited return home in mind for the 16th! They're on at 10:15 PM, while the previously advertised headline act, London-based Beatles/Paul McCartney tribute The McCartney Years (who feature Kyle's brother/Sailor's Tongue bandmate Dean on drums), will take the stage at 8:30 pm. The highest slotted local band will be classic/hard rock quartet That's Chester in what will be their first concert appearance since the passing of guitarist Eugene Orlando last fall, last playing publically during their live production of The Who's Tommy in November.

It's great to see That's Chester back after their recent hiatus, so be at Stage 1 at 7:00 PM for their (at least) seventh Rotaryfest appearance! I'm sure Eugene will be with the guys in spirit for their grand return, also notable as their first traditional concert set since last year's Rotaryfest. While the band has not visibly replaced Eugene in their lineup, note that this teaser photo appears to show an unidentified female singer making a guest appearance during a jam session, so read into that however you choose.

Country rock cover trio Mojo (featuring That's Chester's Ric Datson on drums) will make their Rotaryfest debut at 6:00 PM, with hard rock cover quartet Griphook rocking the main stage for the fourth straight year at 5:00 PM, in just their second announced show of any kind since last year's festival. No idea why they've been so quiet lately, but it's great to see them back out there! Classic rock veterans Obsession will hit the Rotaryfest stage for the eighth time in nine years at 4:00 PM, while sporadically seen classic/hard rock quartet RPM will make their Rotaryfest debut at 3:00 PM, albeit with a lineup change, as Rotaryfest's website credits veteran local bassist Rob Gilmar in place of Lindsay Pugh. Without an online page, I can't confirm why Lindsay left, especially with RPM founding via his adult music camp, but hopefully things were amicable, and it's great to see Rob back in a new band!

A newer local band named Indians & Cowboys (not to be confused with the defunct indie rockers Cowboys & Indians) will play classic rock, blues, and country favourites at 2:00 PM, and have a lot of familiar veterans to enjoy! The Saturday lineup will be opened by veteran classic rockers Coverfly for their eighth Rotaryfest set since 2008, so come early for their set at 1:00 PM! The Saturday lineup shakes things up a bit with the McKey brothers' homecoming, That's Chester's big return, and some new bands with familiar faces, and this ALL AGES & FREE entertainment should win over the crowd on Saturday the 16th! It is worth noting that this year's lineup features some notable absences, like the aforementioned Bob Jenkins Band, country favourites Thin Ice (who last missed Rotaryfest in 2008) and Summer Thunder (who played each of the last four years), and one-time festival mainstays Spyder's Web (who haven't played Rotaryfest since 2014.)

This year's main stage at Rotaryfest is shaping up well, especially if you like classic rock, with dashes of hard rock in store also for fans on Friday & Saturday, so check the above links for full details on this year's main stage, and stay tuned for full schedule details for the Second Stage TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!

Friday The 13th New Music On Werehold Records (Part 3, Plus A New Local Band!!)

I know this is badly late from when it took place, but this got pushed back and back repeatedly thanks to other posts and some personal commitments. The wait is over though, as it's time for our coverage of the second Friday the 13th blitz of new material by Eckerman, Michigan label/studio Werehold Records! As you may remember, July 13th was a Friday this year, and Jason Mills' local label made good on plans to do another Friday the 13th song upload spree to the label's YouTube channel after the success of the first one in April, but this time with just 6 new songs, which is down from 9 that went up in April, so we'll fit this into one post rather than two. As a result, there's no new material from Moss, Wearwithal, or Orb Hearthstone's solo project this time around (or from a mystery band named Awaken Eidolen that Werehold pages also mention), but there is one new artist included this time around, and despite the smaller number of songs, there's a lot of quality songs to cover as there were in April, so let's start this look at what went up for Friday the 13th this month on Werehold Records' YouTube channel!

Let's first look at the bands that either lie outside our current coverage range or aren't metal first. One of the new songs is the "seriously truncated" instrumental mix of Isle Royale metal band The 1,000,000,000s Who Died's track "Declaration", which has promise and a solid low groove, but it's fairly repetitive, and I'd like to hear it with vocals and some more variance. Click here to check it out though! Also new on the 13th was "Nameless", the new song from Brimley electronic project Palaver, and like their earlier tracks, it's an edgier techno/electronic instrumental that isn't as monotonous as other similar songs I can think of by other artists. If you like electronic music, Palaver are an interesting listen, so click here for their new song!

We'll go in alphabetical order for the rest, starting with a new (and overdue) addition to our band links, that being the local thrash metal project Drayton Fever! We hadn't listed them on the site before as their pages described them as being from both Paradise & Hulbert (both outside of our current coverage range), but their Facebook page lists their current location as Sault Michigan, and knowing this project's leader's local band work, they definitely fit for further full coverage on the SMS, but their addition was inevitable regardless! Drayton Fever are led by veteran local musician Doug Reed, who you may recognize from past work with bands like Bludgeoned, Great Bodily Harm, Half A Man, and currently with fellow Werehold acts Swampghas & Wearwithal. A solo project at it's core, Drayton Fever have been active since 2008, and have been working on a solo album named "The Longest Summer" off and on in recent years, which is based around Doug's recent life events. This album is where the Friday The 13th upload "And On With The Killing" comes from, and unlike the other new Werehold tracks, this has vocals! I like the varied singing styles that Doug uses here, but his heavier singing does sound a bit forced. That said, the music (though short) is well recorded and very heavy, and it lives up to earlier tracks like "Mary Kelly", which I really dig!

Drayton Fever is definitely a promising metal project, and hopefully Doug keeps at it so we can hear "The Longest Summer" in full at some point! He's got lots of talent on different instruments, and he puts them to good use on the Drayton Fever tracks I've heard, which is good, as pure thrash metal is a rarity for active local bands. Check out "And On With The Killing" below, and for more on our newest addition to our Sault Michigan band links, click here and the above links!



Next up is the new song from Doug's Swampghas bandmate J.R. Johnson's Strongs-based metal project East Branch! Though they still don't have an online page that I know of, this latest instrumental "haunt" is called "Hillbilly Highway", and it's a lot lighter than "Black Market Body Parts" from April. It's harder to describe than it's fellow Friday the 13th uploads, and almost feels like two separate songs, as the first 90 seconds sound much different from the rest of the song. It's well done, and it has sort of a lonesome travelling vibe going for it late, but it's something you'll have to hear to really get. You can do that below, as it's worth a listen!



Also for the new uploads is a new old song from Eckerman, Michigan metal quartet Life's Eclipse, as led by fellow Swampghas member Jason Mills! Again, we have an instrumental track here (entitled "Up From Sleep"), which is part of an (unreleased?) demo from 1998 named "Deeper In The Woods". I really like where this one's going, as it's very heavy with a dark yet upbeat vibe, but a guitar solo and some vocals would definitely help it be less repetitive, especially midway through. I've always really enjoyed Life's Eclipse, and this song definitely fits with their solid local track record, so check out "Up From Sleep" below!



Finally for the latest Friday the 13th Werehold Records songs is (who else?) Swampghas, and not just the members in other projects this time! The Strongs metal trio's contribution to July 13th's uploads is a demo mix of their song "Fistfight With A Microwave" from the forthcoming "Raco Tower Incident" album, and thanks to the video description, we now know the inspiration for that song title! Despite commenting that this was the version recorded so lyrics could be written, it's also an instrumental, but a heavy and fast paced one, and slightly longer than their earlier originals! The riffing's fast and very heavy, and the drumming suits it well, so I'm eager to hear the full track! Give a listen to "Fistfight With A Microwave" below!



I hope you guys liked this latest look at Werehold Records' Friday The 13th extravaganzas! If they plan to do a third installment of a new music blitz for the label on Friday the 13th, it won't be for a long while, as the next Friday the 13th will be in September... of next year, but when Werehold Records have new media and updates to share, you know we'll have them here! Stay tuned as well for two more all video posts tonight and early tomorrow, including our last CASS Cafe video showcase and this month's YouTube Channel Profiles, and I'll see you guys at the Rotaryfest Second Stage TONIGHT! Thanks everyone!