YouTube Channel Profile Series: Rik DVD

To wrap up another month at the SMS, here's this month's YouTube Channel Profile, our monthly spotlight feature on 1-3 YouTube channels whose content is half or more comprised of videos relevant to local metal, hard rock, and/or punk artists and/or concerts! I only realized when I got to work on this post that I did not pick our next featured channel last month, as usual for the series, so until I started writing this intro, I had no idea what channel I'd randomly select. I did randomly pick a channel now though, as well as the channel(s) for next month, so we're back on track, and let's take a dive into a channel with some interesting footage from two very different local periods!

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Rik DVD (http://www.youtube.com/rikdvd) 

Owner: Dell Bros. drummer Rick Dellavedova, also known as "Rick Widow", frontman of the defunct local glam metal band Amethyst

Channel Timeline: Launched on October 23rd, 2010; Videos uploaded from that day until April 2014

Channel Summary: Rick noted in the channel's description that it had "live performance music videos", which is largely correct. Five of his seven videos of local bands in action on stage, all filmed by himself for CML Productions, including one of original rock veterans Wishbone in 2014. The other two include a music video for an old band of his, and a 14 second clip of Crank Sound Distribution setting up their equipment before a 2010 concert that Rick filmed for his channel. While ostensibly for personal use, Rick did advertise his services for professional event filmography there.
 
Why You Should Watch: This channel will primarily interest fans of Garden of Bedlam, who are the focus of four of the videos and cameo on the Crank Sound Distribution clip, but fans of Amethyst and Wishbone will find something to like as well! Note that this channel has not been visibly updated in almost eight years, and it does not feature any videos of Rick with The Dell Bros. (f.k.a. The Paul Dellavedova Trio).

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

 

Amethyst - Snakeye Strut: Rick's first video is a posthumous music video/slideshow for Amethyst's song "Snakeye Strut" from their 1994 studio album "Innocent As Hell", and features a rare extant source of actual Amethyst video footage, especially with their "Waste of Time" music video being taken down from YouTube years back. Featuring Rick alongside guitarists Jose "Wales" Temperao & Mike Haas, bassist Gordon "Chipp" Robb, and drummer Phil Temperao, this video is well edited and gives solid highlights of Amethyst's heyday, and being set to a catchy old school hard rock number never hurts! This is the channel's most popular video aside from the Crank clip, and the entire "Innocent As Hell" album is on Reverbnation.

 

 

Garden Of Bedlam "Shallow" Live @ Foggy's: All but two of Rick's videos have something to do with 2007-2015 hard rock quartet Garden of Bedlam, who he had a working relationship with in 2010 to film their performances, though his videos of them weren't uploaded until 2011. One video on Rick's own channel features Buzz, the Belleaus, and Derek playing "Shallow" during their headlining set at Rotaryfest's Second Stage in July 2010, but the better quality videos are of them at Foggy Notions (now Coch's Corner) playing "New Rain" and (as featured here) "Shallow" again. These appear to be soundchecks before the show proper based on the sparse crowd, unloaded equipment, and dialogue with Crank Sound. In spite of that, these have solid recording quality with strong performances as you'd expect!

 

 

Garden Of Bedlam "New Rain" Live @ Essar Centre: After winning the Kiss Battle of the Bands in December 2009, Garden of Bedlam were tapped as the local openers for the long-delayed Kiss concert at The Essar Centre (now GFL Memorial Gardens) in August 2010, with Rick filming them from a side-stage angle. Note that this was originally uploaded in colour before being taken down to be converted to black & white. Still, this captures Garden of Bedlam performing to their fullest in their biggest ever concert set, and early fans were definitely into it! You can see more of Rick & CML's videos of the band on their own YouTube channel, including proper music videos.

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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! This series will return on or around March 26th, and unlike this month, I did remember to randomly select a channel (two in this case) ahead as normal! I first randomly picked Concert Channel, which features videos for 2019's Offspring/Sum 41 show at GFL Memorial Gardens, but there's not a lot of diversity there beyond just a few videos of both bands, so I chose an extra channel with only has one video to fill things out, namely Old Man Wyrn's channel, which has one song from inactive local black metal project Abhorrent Forest. Look for these next month, and for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Danger Cats), Haggith Concert Preview, And Much More!!

Keeping the news coming on this Tuesday afternoon, we have a special mid-week concert preview, a new solo performance video find, and more assorted news items to touch on, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month, so read on below for more details! (Updated at 9:04 PM)

New all-female punk/hard rockers The Danger Cats will make their Roosevelt Hotel debut on Monday, October 7th when they open for Montreal ska-punk quintet K-Man and the 45s! Though not a metal band, K-Man & the 45s are well known for their party atmosphere and energetic live shows, along with last year's Ramones tribute album, so where else will you hear ska covers of those legends in the Soo? Interesting contrast having The Danger Cats open, but their debut last weekend was well received, and they have a unique sound (plus some new songs) that should find a solid audience, so don't miss out! This show (which is promoted by J.D. Pearce) has a $7 cover charge, 19+ age limit, and 9:00 PM start time, while nothing has been said about possible additional openers. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! There's definitely an interesting mix of styles for this show on the 7th, but The Danger Cats will bring some harder edged stuff, so keep this one in mind for next month, and stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's a special preview for a concert TOMORROW NIGHT, as local grunge/alternative quartet Haggith will kick off a run of one show a month through the fall season at The New American Pub House on Bay Street! This recently renovated downtown venue has really started opening things up to heavier bands in recent months, and though it remains to be seen how successful this run of shows will be, Haggith's fun and edgy original material & covers should be welcomed tomorrow! Local punk trio The Northern Tragedy and local solo alternative bassist James Watterworth (replacing  the newly reunited Havadder) will also make their New A debut (and first live appearances of the fall) tomorrow as the openers, and they should fit in well themselves, so don't show up late! Admission tomorrow night will be $4, you must be 19 to attend, and there is a 9:00 PM start time. For more details, check the above links!

Hopefully this is the start of a solid relationship for Haggith at The New A, so if you can't make their shows next month, you should make a point to be at this one! Stay tuned for updates (including confirmation of their rumoured return to the Soo Zombie Walk afterparty), and for a preview, here's Haggith at The Oddfellows Hall earlier this summer!



Speaking of Haggith at The New A, here's a recent video discovery from a member of their openers on October 20th, as Nikkfitt guitarist Robert Ross has a YouTube channel with some SMS-fitting videos from his past music work! Two of the videos are of live band performances that we'll touch on in an upcoming post, but this first video (from May 2012) is of him playing an improvised guitar piece in G minor, and it's really good! Very clear talent and ability, and this is a good sign for Nikkfitt's live show, though we're still waiting to find out what exactly they play. Check out Robert's solo guitar video below!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news stories from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or company name

• Remember CML Productions, the film production company ran by Christopher Lance that helped produce Garden of Bedlam's early music videos? They appear to be back in operation (as per this Facebook page), albeit with a completely new focus, now generally doing only wedding cinematography. Interesting shift, but their new work is well done in it's area, so if you're getting married, keep CML Productions in mind!
• I've renamed inactive Central Algoma hard rock sextet Durera to their older name The Diego Experience in our local band links, as they were more successful and active longer under that name. In the cases of defunct/inactive bands with name changes in our links, I try to list them under the name they'd be best known for, such as for Stillbroke, who did not attain the same successes or longevity under their last name Borderline Divine. So in case anything looks different, now you know!
• Asylum Country guitarist & local metal band alum Terry Eaton is looking for a rock singer "with a good set of pipes", as per the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on Friday. I assume this is for a new rock band he's starting (perhaps heavier), but few details are known beyond that. Message Terry at this link or above if you're interested in trying out!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews and more updates this week! Thanks everyone!

YouTube Channel Profile Series: Garden of Bedlam

As promised, it's time for our next monthly feature series post at The Sault Metal Scene, and for a third month, here's our next entry in our YouTube Channel Profile Series! Each month, we'll take a look at up to three YouTube channels with at least 50% local metal-relevant videos (the SMS channel excluded), as randomly selected from the 100+ channels that fit this criteria, as seen at this location! We've lucked out to start the series though, with channels focusing on two prominent local bands, and going on three this month, so here's all that you should know in this month's YouTube Channel Profile! (Updated on October 15th, 2013)
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Garden of Bedlam's Channel (http://youtube.com/user/gardenofbedlam)

Owner: A Garden of Bedlam member (not sure which one), though the channel is credited to the band as a whole.

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 15th, 2008; Videos posted between 2010 & April 2011.

Channel Summary: This was the official YouTube channel for Sault Ontario hard rock quartet Garden of Bedlam. Essentially replacing an earlier channel that had just one uploaded video, Garden of Bedlam have uploaded 11 videos to this channel, mostly comprised of the band's entire headlining set at the Tenaris Second Stage at Rotaryfest in July 2010. The other posted videos include two music videos filmed by former Amethyst frontman Rick DellaVedova & edited by CML Productions, and an audio upload of the band's 2009 song "Stand Your Ground". Last actively used in the spring of 2011, it's status as Garden of Bedlam's active official YouTube channel ended when the the "Videos of Bedlam" channel saw it's first video uploads in July 2012.

Why Should You Watch: Because this channel is an excellent source of Garden of Bedlam videos from the past couple of years, not one of which featuring bad quality audio or filming! That said, this channel doesn't appear to be the band's current official YouTube channel anymore, but it's still the largest official source of Garden of Bedlam videos, so watch or subscribe at the above links for more!

Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

Garden of Bedlam - The Truth Shall Set You Free: Easily the most viewed video on this Garden of Bedlam channel, this was the band's first official music video, as filmed by Rick DellaVedova & edited by from CML Productions at their headlining concert at Foggy Notions (now Coch's Corner) on Boxing Day 2009. Released on March 22nd the following year, the video is for Garden of Bedlam's song "The Truth Shall Set You Free" from their self-titled 2009 debut EP. The all black & white video is well shot and edited, and serves as a solid introduction to Garden of Bedlam for any new listeners, especially with how good of a song it is!



Garden Of Bedlam "Shallow" - official video: Over a year after their first music video was posted, CML Productions produced a follow-up music video for their song "Shallow" (also from their 2009 EP), which Garden of Bedlam posted to their channel this past April! Unlike the first music video, this one features footage of Garden of Bedlam from multiple concerts at the former Foggy's, along with jam session clips, and it makes minimal use of colour as well. For variance and effects used, I find it's better than the video for "The Truth Shall Set You Free", but both are well done and worth checking out, as it's not ever day you see more professional music videos for local bands like these!



Garden of Bedlam - Against the Grain: The bulk of the videos on Garden of Bedlam's channel are of their entire set as headliners at the Rotaryfest Second Stage on Queen Street East on July 17th, 2010, as filmed from the sound tent behind the standing room area. The band played 8 original songs that night, including 7 songs from their 2011 CD "Everything Will Die" (including the debuting "Around The Bend") and their older original "Shallow", and though the camera angle is a bit far from the stage, everything's clear and sounds really nice, and the band are firing on all cylinders! One of many highlights of Garden of Bedlam's local run so far, I have their set opening song "Against The Grain" below, but check the above links for much more high quality videos from this set!


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I hope you guys enjoyed this month's YouTube Channel Profile! So, what profile did we choose for October's installment of this monthly feature series? Through completely random selection, we're returning to Sault Michigan for another band-centric profile, this time for Bad Side's YouTube channel! Though later supplanted by the Vicious Music channel in terms of content, there's a lot of good stuff to see, so stay tuned for this profile on or around October 22nd! Stay tuned for more news over the coming days, including our Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile on Paricide on Monday and much more! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Destroyer) & New Bands Looking To Play Here!

Well, as you may have noticed, I haven't been online updating very much since making it to Detroit. As it turns out, the computer situation was even worse than I figured, I've barely had time to check my e-mail, let alone do SMS housekeeping! Luckily the Sykotyk Rampage album review went up yesterday as scheduled (Check it out below), so you guys had something new to read, but I really need to fight the slowness of this awful computer and update you all on a couple local metal news items! And today, we will start with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!! (Excuse anything looking weird or blank.)

Hey Kiss fans, are you clamoring for a chance to hear your favourite Kiss songs live in the Sault? Well, we still don't know when Gene Simmons and company are actually coming to the Sault for their rescheduled date, but in the meantime, the next best thing is coming our way! Destroyer, Canada's Premier Tribute to Kiss, are coming to Sault Ontario in April! One of North America's longest running and most successful Kiss tributes, Destroyer will bring the full Kiss experience to The Rockstar Bar on April 3rd, complete with full costumes, fire breathing, and excellent concert setups! This might be the closest thing to the real Kiss that non-ticketholders will get in Sault Ontario, so keep this show in mind! Now tickets are high as far as Rockstar Bar shows go, costing $12 at The Algonquin Hotel front desk or at The Rad Zone in the Wellington Square Mall, or $15 at the door, but the price is understandable considering the bang that Destroyer will give for your Kiss-loving buck! A start time of 9:00 PM is given on the Facebook event page, visit there to confirm your attendance! And check out Destroyer by visiting their official website!

I don't remember if this is the same Kiss tribute band who came to The Canadian Nightclub in 2008, but Destroyer should put on one hell of a show! I saw their stuff online, they do the Kiss sound very well, maybe I'll go! I'll keep you guys posted if I hear any show updates!

Next up, we have more bands looking to play here in the coming months! The other day, I got an e-mail from Steve Smith, who is the lead guitarist for Killing Queens, a hard rock band from Sudbury. Killing Queens are embarking on a tour in May as support for Ottawa metal band Alaskan (pictured), and are both are looking at potentially playing a show in Sault Ontario on Monday, May 17th. Now I sent Steve some contact info for venues and promoters, but it's anyone's guess if that will be any help, so here's another open call! Both are pretty good, Alaskan have a solid extreme hardcore sound, while Killing Queens play some cool heavy rock n' roll! As always, it'd be nice to see both bands in the Soo for a show, so if YOU would like to promote or help out towards a local show on May 17th featuring Alaskan and Killing Queens, e-mail Steve at casual.steve7@gmail.com! Click on both band names to check out their respective MySpace pages, and hopefully someone out there will be interested in making this show possible!

Now I did have a planned post for CML Productions, the company owned by Christopher M. Lance responsible for Garden of Bedlam's first music video (which was filmed by ex-Amethyst frontman Rick Dellavedova!) However, the page appears to have been deleted from Facebook. No word on why, but another CML Productions offering similar video-stuff already exists in California, so maybe it's a name conflict issue. If I hear anything else local-metal related from Christopher and Rick, I'll have it here!

I wish I had more for you guys, but I can't fight with this horribly slow computer all day, I guarantee I'd have a lot more if my connection was better and let me get to my typical habits. I don't know if I'll have another post tomorrow, but if nothing else, something will be up Thursday night or early Friday with stuff I've missed! In the meantime, if you have a local metal news story, update, concert, video, or tidbit that I could use in my next post, e-mail me at robertfigures@hotmail.com! THINGS WILL GET BACK TO NORMAL REAL SOON!!!!!!