The Realignment Project Updates, Plus Their Interview On The Borderline!!

It's high time that we play catch-up on what local industrial metal solo act The Realignment Project have been up to in early 2026, especially as my next EP review of theirs is coming up by month's end! In early January, "Bones & Dust" from their third EP "War Songs" was included in an episode of The Autopsy Report Rock & Metal Radio Show, a British-based podcast where host Hellwyck plays and spotlights independent & unsigned rock artists. Kudos to him for giving some attention to artists from across the pond, and click here to directly hear the episode with T.R.P.! On January 5th, project leader Matt Hicks confirmed that their fourth and newest EP "Let You Fall" would be released on vinyl via his indie label East London Recordings and ElasticStage, also confirming that both it and "War Songs" would get standalone vinyl releases with each having its songs split across two sides.

As you may recall, The Realignment Project's first two EPs were combined on one vinyl release, but as "The Frustration Sessions" exceeded 23 minutes in length, most songs were edited down to fit the limitations. Both "War Songs" & "Let You Fall" would have to have been similarly cut down to do the same, so Matt clearly decided to give each their own unedited spotlight on vinyl. CD copies of both of the latter EPs are also now on sale via ElasticStage, but at press time, you can't buy the first two EPs on compact disc. Work on T.R.P. EP #5 was ongoing in early January, with Matt teasing on the 10th that he was "working on something that's... a little bigger". Is he referencing a full length album, the scope of the music, or something else? As teased in this vertical video, Matt was interviewed about The Realignment Project on local internet radio station The Borderline, so what should you know there?

Premiering on January 21st, this was for an episode of Across The Tracks, the local musicians interview show hosted by Adrian Vilaca that last crossed SMS territory when he talked with the late Troy Isaac in 2024. The 51 minutes-long episode starts with Adrian asking Matt about the inspiration behind the Realignment Project name (he had the name in mind since 2003), his musical subgenres, his prolific EP release schedule, what brought him back to original songwriting, and the process behind writing the title track from "Let You Fall", which is played on air at 9:15. The interview resumes with Adrian asking Matt about the personal lyrical themes of his songs and his own frustrations, leading into the song "Where Did You Go?" (also from "Let You Fall") at 16:35. Afterwards, Matt discusses the background behind "Scatterbrain", which is played at 25:10 to start the second half of the episode.

Next, Adrian asks about Matt's usage of "they" as an ominous force being spoken up against in T.R.P.'s songs, and his views about original music acceptance in Sault Ste. Marie and trying to break a stigma that only cover acts can get regular attention. The next two songs played on air (at 32:45 and 38:20) are also cuts from "Let You Fall", namely "By Myself" and "The Last Time You See Me", with Adrian asking directly about the latter in between. In the last pre-song stretch, Adrian asks Matt about his vocal style and emotions in his songs, especially in regards to Matt being a father and what he's hoping for in the future. The last song heard in the episode is the last unheard song from "Let You Fall", namely "Find My Way Out" at the 46:25 mark, and this installment of "Across The Tracks" wraps up with the possibility of inviting Matt back to talk about their fifth EP in the future.

This was an entertaining interview and a personal one with Matt going into good detail about the background of his Realignment Project material! Note that, despite the description on The Borderline's website mentioning Matt's local band work in the the 2000s and early 2010s, Adrian does not ask about Dirty Virgin or Riverin in the interview proper, which is by and large about "Let You Fall". Of course, we'll be reviewing the preceding T.R.P.'s EP "War Songs" on the SMS this month, but fans of industrial rock and metal should definitely give Matt's solo music a spin and/or hear this interview at this link or at the above links! Thanks everyone!

Our Recap Of Troy Isaac's 2024 Across The Tracks Interview On The Borderline!!

Today's post was supposed to be this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, with the former local hard rock solo project Stone Smyth randomly selected for the honours last month. However, I am going to slightly delay it so we can belatedly take a look at frontman Troy Isaac's interview with Adrian Vilaca on his series Across The Tracks on local internet radio station The Borderline! This interview premiered on May 29th of last year, fifteen months before Troy lost his battle with cancer, and alas, I didn't knew he did an interview with The Borderline until shortly after his passing. Better late than never, and this will help with additional context and information for when the Defunct Profile on Stone Smyth goes live! Before this interview, Adrian hadn't met Troy before, but he first came to know who he was via his presence on the 1998 compilation CD "Local Steel", where he played "A Long Cold Rain Comin' Down".

Troy starts the discussion by elaborating on how he first got into playing music as a kid in British Columbia, what instruments he played early on, and his early run in the band Angel Dust. In his youth, he lived in West Germany as a time while his stepfather served in the military overseas, and he played in a band named Machine Head (no relation) while living there. He began songwriting at about 15 years old in the late 1970s, and followed a normal career path as opposed to chasing the musician dream, but eventually started recording his own music, and was taking advantage of at-home recording software now that it was much more affordable and accessible than it was. Aside from guest female singers, all of Stone Smyth's music was purely a solo operation. Troy next discusses the recording experience for "A Long Cold Rain Comin' Down", which led to the "Local Steel" release concert at the former Peachy's.

The re-recording of that song by Stone Smyth (now titled simply "Cold Rain") is played in full at the 9:45 mark, with the interview picking back up at around 14:50. After discussing why he re-recorded the track, Troy discusses the sounds and styles he liked incorporating in his music, Troy talks about some of the favourite concerts of his as an attendee, and his far flung times living all over Canada, before setting up the second full song played in the interview, Stone Smyth's "Hanging Onto Fire", which comes on 19:20 into the episode. The second half of the interview begins at 23:20, with Adrian asking about Troy's one-man operation and recording process, with Troy aiming to take Stone Smyth to live concert stages (it is sad that he never got to realize that goal), while addressing how the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns affected his music plans back in 2020.

At this stage of his life, Troy was focusing on doing what he loved artistically rather than money, and this leads into the third song played during the episode, "Last Chance Mountain" (27:15). Adrian picks things back up at 30:40 by talking about how much he likes Troy's new song "Summertime", and asking about what kinds of messages Troy wanted to convey in his original music. He did note that he wanted to have uplifting messages in his music more than political or divisive content. "Summertime" is played on air at 34:15, with the interview resuming at 37:40. When asked about his then-future plans, Troy noted that he had a stage setup built for eventual live gigs, and eight more songs (as of May 2024) ready to release, while also acknowledging the rings that he wore to the interview. After setting up the final song to be played on air ("Hari Cari"), we hear that at the 40:40 mark, and the last segment of the interview beginsat 44:05.

To close, Adrian asks where we can hear Troy online, and he finally addresses where the Stone Smyth name comes from here, specifically a play on "blacksmith" without using the same spelling as Aerosmith, and he used the name for his own studio and planned guitar line as well. Troy was also hoping to begin shooting live videos in the fall of 2024, Nice casual interview that helps explain a bit about who Troy was and what he was aiming for with his music, and it is a shame that he passed at just 63 before some of his bigger future plans could be fully realized. Hearing this finally will be good to fill in some blanks for our Defunct Local Band Profile, but give the full Borderline interview a listen at this link or above, and R.I.P. Troy!

Details On Dustin Jones' Interview On Across The Tracks On The Borderline!!

Back in June, two veteran local punk musicians were separately interviewed for radio shows on local internet radio station The Borderline, and I do apologize for both being so late to be covered on the SMS! We'll start with the June 23rd interview with Jonesy Land frontman/Bookclub bassist Dustin Jones, marking his second long-form interview with the station, following an episode of Sev's Cellar three years ago. This time, Dustin featured on Borderline founder Adrian Vilaca's interview series Across The Tracks, which focuses on detailing original songs, and the episode runs for 53 minutes. Conducted in studio, it's clear from the off that they've known each other for years, which helps for the comfort level! The interview started with Dustin explaining why he launched the Jonesy Land project apart from his bands, as well as the overall lighter/reserved tone of the project's debut album "Zoom-Out".

Like in past episodes of Across The Tracks, Adrian asks about the origins and themes behind songs by the interview subject, and while he does not stick to the release order of the album, the songs in question are played after that segment wraps up (though they are rarely directly introduced by Adrian, so that can catch you off guard at times). "Father Time" comes up first, but "Ode To The Boys" is discussed next, and it's neat hearing some insight as to The Inner City Surfers' heyday! The song actually wasn't directly about his old bands, moreso old friends, but Dustin does also give some advice to current musicians to start their careers, especially with how easy self-promotion and networking is compared to when he was younger. The debut single "Old Man" is next to be outlined, though note that the interview predates the music video for the song. Next, they discuss his love for Sault Ste. Marie and the Algoma District.

That ties directly into their discussion of the Jonesy Land track "Superior Sons" and some of his surprising inspiration in that song's composition. Adrian next asks about Dustin's own Mission Control Studio and his experiences working with musicians who record there, leading into talk of "Keep Trying", which featured Shannon Moan on guest vocals. Dustin next talks about his views on the local music scene at present, as well as his experiences running a local songwriters competition with Greg MacLachlan pre-pandemic, while explaining how he's approaching music as he gets older, and how this album has a different edge than on his prior albums. This led into "Lonely Boy", before Adrian asks Dustin about fatherhood and his experiences with his kids, while also noting the experience he had making this album and some of the (largely) positive reaction that he received from listeners.

Given the talk about his family, this naturally led into "Shine On" (written for his daughter Jett), and the interview naturally wrapped up with "Summer's End", which was written for his late stepfather and written in the style of music that he loved. The interview ends with Dustin thanking Adrian for all he does locally, as well as plugging Jonesy Land, Mission Control Studios, and Tidal Records, though no sign of a dedicated band page for Jonesy Land yet. Fun interview that really explores the "Zoom-Out" album in depth and Dustin's maturity as a songwriter, and while the album proper is light on "punk" content, you can see how his life's experiences as a whole shaped things on the final product! I'm kinda surprised that he didn't talk about Bookclub though, as they are is current live band, past teasers about Jonesy Land playing shows again acknowledged. Check out this Across The Tracks episode at the links above!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews next, and that other June interview with a local punk icon on The Borderline will be covered in an upcoming SMS post! Thanks everyone!

Our Recap Of Mike Haggith's Dual Interviews On The Borderline!!

Today's post is 100% devoted to local alternative/hard rock musician Mike Haggith, but not his live-streamed concert on Saturday night, which will be hitting the site in the near future. While that live-stream was a great way to promote his new album "Bridges", some big time exposure for him & the CD preceded it on local internet radio station The Borderline earlier this month, as Mike was interviewed twice on two different programs on November 6th! In both cases, these are return appearances following Mike's 2020 interviews to promote the "If Ever Comes The Day" release. Both of the new episodes are now available to stream on demand on The Borderline's website, and we'll start chronologically with Mike's appearance on Across The Tracks with Adrian Vilaca (also the station's founder), which aired first that day. If you're curious to hear this one, strap in, as it's a 96 minute episode broken into two halves, and on the website player, part 1 is the second (lower) file, so keep that in mind.

Unlike his first Across The Tracks episode from August 2020 (which ran for a paltry 84 minutes), this was conducted in person rather than by phone, specifically when Mike was in the Soo visiting in September. If you were wondering why his advertised interview that month never went online at the time, now you know! Not unlike his 2020 episode for "If Ever Comes The Day", each song is played on air, with discussion about each one bookending throughout, which will come easy to Mike given how personal the lyrics and themes are, though they do not stick to the running order of the album. Beyond the discussion about individual songs, Mike also tells Adrian about the delayed release, the album's overarching concept, how it was recorded & produced, what he has learned culturally and personally through living in Thompson, his musical evolution, the potential for these songs being played live, ...

... what he misses about the Soo, his day job, the launch of his official website (more on that soon), and where you can hear/buy "Bridges". If you're curious about specific tracks, part 1 features songs #2-3, 7-8, and 10, with the rest being covered in part 2 (the higher of the two files). Entertaining listen that gives fans more information than you may ever need about the new album, and it's a nice casual interview while also showcasing Mike's real feelings and emotions that led to this album coming together. Click here or above to hear the whole thing!

The second Borderline interview Mike had on November 6th was a return engagement with Sev's Cellar, the musician interview series hosted by Mike "Sev Micron" Severin, who previously featured Mike Haggith in an episode that aired last spring, not long after the pandemic began (click here to hear that episode). Like last year and the Across the Tracks episode, this is broken into two files (good thing too, as this runs for over 2 hours!), but at least the higher file is part #1 here. Conducted by phone like last year, this interview obviously covers a lot of the same ground as Across The Tracks did earlier that same day, complete with every song on the album being played, so casual fans should be advised about redundant ground being covered when hearing both in short succession. On Sev's Cellar, Mike discusses the album's themes, the recording process, the potential for playing these songs live, ...

..., his musical maturity, his feelings on the pandemic, his surprise website launch, his cats, his ideal backing band, while also dipping into some of the standard weekly questions that recur in every episode. Yes, you will have heard Sev ask Mike many of these last year, but these still do lead some surprising paths, even playing a couple of non-"Bridges" songs on air, like "75" from the upcoming Din live album, and even "Sun Perfume" from Mike's first Sault-era solo album "Suspended Animation"! Songs #2, 5, and 7-10 from "Bridges" all get played in part 2 this time, so that half is more weighted as the album is concerned. While there is a lot of obvious crossover in the subject matter from both Across The Tracks and last year's Sev's Cellar episode, fans of Mike's will find a lot to like here from both the album discussion and the lighter personal questions, and despite a few flubs early, Sev is clearly a fan of Mike's music and The Din, which helps a lot!

There is a lot to hear between these two interviews, even taking out the songs, so click here or above to hear the Sev's Cellar episode, let alone the Across The Tracks interview, and of course, we have a lot more from Mike coming on the SMS in the next two weeks, like our recap of Sunday's live-stream, plus our own review of "Bridges", so stay tuned for all of that, and for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

New Musician Interviews From The Borderline Radio, And More!!

Before we begin today's post, I wanted to offer our deepest condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of veteran local radio personality, program director, and sports announcer John Bell, who recently passed away, as per an announcement on 1230 WSOO's Facebook page yesterday morning. Stay tuned to relevant Sault Michigan news outlets for information on services when it becomes available. A Minnesota native, John would become a fixture of local radio over the past 35 years across multiple stations and companies. SMS readers may best recognize John as the long-time news anchor for Rock 101 and their sister stations, but his on-air and behind-the-scenes roles on the Sault Ste. Marie airwaves go well beyond that, including lengthy runs as a DJ and/or morning host with WSOO, 99.5 Yes FM, and the former Know AM/Talk Radio 1400, as well as doing play-by-play for the Sault High Blue Devils hockey team and local junior hockey clubs like the Soo Eagles and the Soo Indians.

John had dealt with major health issues in the last couple of years that I won't get into here, but a fundraiser burger bash was held in his honour in October 2019 at The Elks Lodge, and that seemed to go over pretty well. I never met John, but his familiar voice and on-air talents were ever present when listening to local radio, and he will be missed by all that knew and respected him, if social media testimonials are any indication. R.I.P. John!

Now, today's post continues in the realm of radio, specifically Sault Ontario internet station The Borderline, which we covered shortly after it's launch last fall, and one missing aspect for me at the time was the ability to listen to episodes online after the fact if you weren't able to catch them live. Well, they have done just that on their redesigned website, and 10 of The Borderline's shows have streamable-on-demand episodes at this link! As such, let's at least start to spotlight the series that have episodes dealing with local metal, hard rock, or punk music, and we'll first look at Across The Tracks, where host & station founder Adrian Vilaca talks to local musicians about the story behind their original music. Most aren't hard rock artists, but back in August, Adrian did interview local/Thompson, Manitoba alt/hard rock musician Mike Haggith about the background of his newest CD "If Ever Comes The Day", so what should you know behind that episode?

An 84 minute listen, it features Mike discussing the lyrical inspirations and real life feelings that enveloped the album and it's individual songs, including how his day job in aviation puts things in another perspective, the reason behind the two blank tracks. Every full song from "If Ever Comes The Day" is included after the interview segments, though they aren't discussed in their running order on the actual album. This is an entertaining listen that will likely be the most context you'll ever hear from Mike re: the album's concept, and Adrian gives Mike lots of room to go into lots of details therein, so fans will want to hear the whole episode at this link! While we're on the subject, fellow Borderline staffer Mike "Sev Micron" Severin interviewed Mike Haggith himself on Friday for an episode of his own interview series Sev's Cellar, which has interviewed multiple hard rock performers so far.

Honestly, I'll hold a full write-up on Sev's interview with Mike Haggith for now, because only the second half of the interview is available to stream on demand. It's not labelled as such in the description, but Sev clearly notes that it's part 2 about three minutes into the 68 minute file, before jumping into the interview in progress. Hopefully the first half is posted at some point!

We'll close by looking at a full episode of Sev's Cellar from early last year, where he interviewed Jack Spades/Frightlight frontman and local concert promoter J.D. Pearce (a.k.a. Johnny Pints)! However, be advised that this was recorded before the pandemic, hence why J.D. promotes the local First Jason and Anti-Queens concerts and Jack Spades' annual July tour run, all obviously being cancelled. He also alludes to the lineup changes in Jack Spades, including an apparent new guitarist & drummer, but again, the pandemic may have delayed a further public reveal. The interview afterwards features J.D. discussing his inspiration as a songwriter, his favourite lyrics, songs he's listening to now, info about his personal life, why his concert output was decreasing, memorable local concerts of his, and advice for young musicians, among other topics. "Fright Night" and "C.H.U.D." by Frightlight are also played in full.

Mike revealed in the episode that J.D. would be hosting a punk/metal show on The Borderline, but as best as I can gather, that series never premiered. A lot of the context of the interview is very much dated now (this was only posted for on-demand listening last month), and the background music seems out of place despite reflecting the interview discussion, but this is a fun listen that has some interesting insights from a performing and promotional viewpoint! Give it and more a listen above, and stay tuned for more from Sev's Cellar and beyond in the coming days! Thanks everyone!