LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Who Made Who & Crued), Plus Kiss News, And More!!

As promised, it's time for some more local metal news and updates, and kicking things off are LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!! And since yesterday, I found another, so there's two new concerts to tell you guys about! Here's what you need to know!

Who Made Who, The Ultimate Tribute To AC/DC are coming to Sault Ontario... again! Just one month after their show at The Canadian Nightclub next week, the popular AC/DC tribute band will be back in town for a concert at The Rockstar Bar on July 24th! That will be Who Made Who's third local concert in a six month span, how about that? There's a twist to this one though, as there will be local openers! Wishbone, the local rock band featuring former Browbeat drummer Chris Smith on bass, will kick off this concert! Nice seeing them back booking shows, even if they're not metal, I'm a fan! The show starts at 9:00 PM on July 24th, it is 19+, tickets are $6 and can be bought at The Rad Zone and at The Algonquin Hotel's front desk downstairs from The Rockstar Bar! If you show up at the door with no ticket, it will cost $9 to get in. This should be a fun concert, and judging by the fact that there's ticket sales and an opener, it looks like there's a lot being put into this concert! Who Made Who are a great AC/DC tribute, click here to check out more, and make sure to visit the Facebook event page! If I hear more on this concert, I'll let you guys know!

So what's the second concert? Well, if you like tribute bands, you'll love this! Crued: The World's #1 Motley Crue Tribute Band are coming back to Sault Ontario this fall! The popular Toronto-based tribute band will return to The Canadian Nightclub on September 24th for their first show here since May 1st! A start time of 10:00 PM is listed on the Facebook event page, expect a cover charge of $5 or less, and you must be 19 to get in. I had to miss Crued in May due to a trip out of town, maybe I can make it to this one! They look and sound the part as much as possible, and they play tons of Motley Crue classics past and present! If you're a Crue fan, you're bound to have a good time! Check out more from Crued at their official MySpace page!

The Canadian's sure been ramping up on the tribute band bookings, haven't they? Just as an aside, you know what tribute band I personally want to see back at The Canadian? Sandman: A Musical Salute To Metallica. They had a great Metallica sound, some of the members were in Helix, and they played my first ever 19+ bar show in June 2008! Here's hoping they're back some day!

Next up, here are the latest updates on the Kiss concert on August 10th at The Essar Center! Sorry skeptics, I told you they would come here! First off, did you remember to get your ticket today at the box office? A limited number were released for sale today at the box office and online at this location! I imagine they went fast, but try for a ticket A.S.A.P. just in case! Now as you can see on your right, an official poster for this concert has been released, click on it for a larger version or click here for an interactive huge version. Notice who's listed as the special guests? Garden of Bedlam, of course! Cool to see them on a poster of this calibre, just wait until we see them opening this concert! Also of note: $1 from each ticket sold will go to The Wounded Warriors Fund to benefit wounded war veterans, which is an awesome gesture! No word though if it's for all tickets or just the ones since the new date was announced. And as best as I can tell, the live CD recording of the concert that we would have gotten from the cancelled December 15th Kiss show will NOT take place at this one, but if I'm wrong, I'll let you know! Remember, tickets are $99.50, tickets from the cancelled date will be honoured, and you can get refunds for those tickets at the point of purchase if you want.

While we're on the subject of Kiss, here's some more updates from local news sources on the show! SooNews.ca reported the news of the new date for the concert on Monday, click here to read the article! The Sault Star posted a similar article three days ago, click here to read it too! None of the articles tells us anything new or groundbreaking, but really, after over a year of Kiss discussion in the local media, can you blame them? Remember, Kiss and Garden of Bedlam at The Essar Center on August 10th, I will see you all there!

And finally for today, lots of news from Glen Thomas' excellent news site The Barking Eye! His newest article is his first "Attack of the Garage Bands" segment, which is particularly interesting to us at the SMS because it's all about Sykotyk Rampage! It features a lengthy write-up on Sykotyk Rampage contributed by guitarist Dirk Becker, including how exactly the band writes and records their unique brand of hard rock! Interesting to see their own take on the songwriting and recording process, I guarantee no other band does it the same way! Dirk also contributed some extra band news, including confirmation of bassist Brian Cattapan's departure (he moved to Sudbury, but he will be featured on the band's upcoming albums), and confirmation of the band's 24th album, which will be a double album coming out in September, entitled "Genius Mushrooms with Thoughts of Intellect"! Can't wait to hear that! Check out the entire Sykotyk Rampage piece at this location, maybe you'll learn a few things about how to craft your own brand of blue Chinese metal crash punk! Also stay tuned for the release of "Bella Disgusta" this summer!

Also new on The Barking Eye, a short article where Glen promotes Reverbnation, the popular music site that many local bands are finally using actively, a plug for the Kiss show on August 10th (with some skepticism), and an article featuring some old videos featuring local bands and Saultites! Two have a metal connection, including one featuring Saultite Keith Danby (a veteran of some local hard rock bands way back), and much to my surprise, the music video for "Puzzled" by Human Disorder (featuring Saultites Jason Taillefer & Joe LaVergne from Phatstick), which I uploaded to YouTube last month! Check out the new articles at this location, and for more Barking Eye updates, join the new Facebook group for it by clicking here!

I'll leave you guys today with a picture I scanned from Sault This Week on Wednesday, of a local metalhead accepting his diploma at a recent mature students graduation ceremony at Roberta Bondar Pavilion! You can tell he's a metalhead with the devil horns and the Jack Daniels hat! Looking back, I should have flashed the horns for my Grade 12 grad photos! I found the photo amusing, especially being on the front page of the paper, so I thought "Well, why not scan it? Metal's spreading locally as it is!" Tomorrow, I should have a new post with updates from Browbeat, Silver Dream, a local guitarist from a few of Tym Morrison's old bands, and maybe some stuff on Kiss, Garden of Bedlam, and Woods of Ypres. You'll have to swing by the SMS tomorrow to find out what'll be up! Also, remember that Tesla are playing tomorrow night at Kewadin Casino, my newest out of town bands (with Saultite members) profiles will be up by Wednesday, and the SMS turns 3 years old in just 9 DAYS!!!!!!

Weekend Concert Previews & An Update On The Derelict Show!

Hey guys, my exams are finally over, so if you've noticed any posting delays in the last few weeks, those SHOULD be in the past now! Today's update will mostly revolve around previews of this weekend's local metal and hard rock concerts, though at the end, I have a couple of other assorted news updates! Let's get started with your local concert previews!

We'll start in Sault Michigan, or should I say, the area surrounding it. Take a drive out to Barbeau, Michigan tomorrow night and head to The Cozy Corners Tavern Bar & Grill (you may recognize this venue for previously hosting Nixxon Dixxon sets) to check out Riot! By Night! Yes, the local hard rockers continue their string of local tour dates that are just outside of town tomorrow at 9:00 PM! No cover charge is listed, there actually isn't much to speak of about this show, but it is definitely going on! Get more info on Riot! By Night at this location! Should be a good set, I wish I could show you guys how the band sound, but if you want a bit of a partial preview, check out some acoustic solo performances by frontman Ryan Harrison at his YouTube channel!

Meanwhile, Kewadin Casino welcomes local hard rockers Monkey's Uncle (formerly Jager and Bad Monkey) this weekend for two shows at The Rapids Lounge! Now as you'll remember from my 100% Sault Michigan post last week, these shows were only announced on Kewadin Casino's entertainment page, and I only found out about it last week from searching for news on the July festival. For whatever reason, Monkey's Uncle haven't listed scheduled shows on their MySpace page since they were still known as Jager, and honestly, the entertainment page on Kewadin Casino wasn't previously a site I tended to look at often, so I missed reporting on at least a handful of Monkey's Uncle shows at Kewadin, and possibly elsewhere. So, to put it simply, though the band haven't confirmed the shows, Kewadin has, so there's your proof! Both shows (tomorrow night and Saturday night) have no cover charge, and a start time of around 9:00 PM (as cited on Kewadin's calendar page.) Though I really wish the band would update their MySpace to reflect future concert dates, it is nice seeing them playing this weekend, they've always impressed me! Click here for more info on the band! Sadly, they've pulled down their old video clips from MySpace, so I can't show you any of them for preview purposes, but their MySpace has audio recordings!

Now onto the five hard rock/metal shows in Sault Ontario this weekend, and curiously, there's none downtown, despite the amount! We'll begin at The Roosevelt Hotel, when local metal cover band Caveman Morrison return to the popular bar on Korah Road tomorrow night and Saturday night! There is no announced cover charge, things should start at around 10:00 PM. So if you want some heavy metal madness, head on out to The Rosie this weekend! It's been a few weeks since their last shows, so if you've been missing Caveman Morrison, now's the weekend to head on out to see them! As always, expect a great night of your favourite metal and hard rock covers, I recommend going! To get full details and to confirm your attendance, click here! Of course, get more info on the band themselves at their official website! For a preview, here's a clip of Caveman Morrison covering Metallica's "For Whom The Bell Tolls" from a January show at Foggy Notions!



Same nights, different spot now, as we come to the newly opened Vibe Lounge on Goulais Avenue, where they welcome Turner Up for their first non-private concert sets at the new venue! With two nights full of rock covers in store, and the heaviest stuff waiting in set 3, there'll be something for everyone this weekend! And of course, this could be your first glimpse at The Vibe Lounge, from the same crew that brought you Nite-Life Dance Club! Both shows start at 10:30 PM, there is no announced cover charge, get full details and confirm your attendance at this location! And as always, learn and find out more on Turner Up themselves at their official Facebook group! Though it's always fun to see Turner Up live for the music, going to the newly opened Vibe Lounge must be attractive in ways also! But of coue, music is the main attraction, and here's a preview of it: Turner Up covering Def Leppard's "Hysteria" from a show at The Canadian Nightclub!



...speaking of The Canadian Nightclub, we come to the final metal show of the weekend, and likely the biggest! If you're craving to hear some Motley Crue hits in advance of Vince Neil's set here at the Kewadin Casino festival in July, this is your best bet! Crued: The World's #1 Motley Crue Tribute Band will be in Sault Ontario on Saturday night for a big time concert! The Toronto based band will bring an authentic Motley Crue-style sound and look to The Canadian this Saturday, featuring "Saints of Los Angeles" era costumes and extremely good versions of Motley Crue's biggest hits! And it's not just a concert either, Crued are bringing along Alleykatz Studio to do piercings and tattoos at the concert! How about that? There will also be a contest for the craziest mullet, so do your hair for the occasion! Tickets are $5 in advance at The Canadian, or $8 at the door, it's 19+, and it all starts at 10:00 PM on Saturday! This should be an awesome concert, if I was in town, I'd very likely go check it out! Hopefully there's a huge turnout! There are two event pages for this concert: One made by the band, and one made by The Canadian, click on those links to get full concert details! And of course, get more details on Crued themselves at their MySpace page!

Great Motley Crue sound that these guys are possessed with, here's some video proof from a 2008 show in Toronto!



Closing today's post is more information on that Derelict/Beyond Within/Thekillingfield show that will be taking place on May 6th! There is FINALLY a Facebook event page online for it, so I can now share extra details for this concert! For one, there will be local openers, and they're the best fit possible: Bring The Fallen, in their first show since Algoma Hope4Haiti! Wall to wall death metal is ensured now, so this will be bound to tear some faces off! Also, ticket prices have been announced, and they will be $6 in advance (tickets are not on sale yet) and $8 at the door! Not a bad price for this much metal! A 10:00 start time is listed on Facebook, but if things start earlier, I wouldn't be surprised, seeing as there will be four bands playing. More details as they come in, get ready to mosh!

I know I promised Lion Ride news today, but it would get buried amongst all today's updates, so I promise it will be in my next update, which will come this weekend at some point! Now I'm going out of town for a family vacation tomorrow, but I will have computer access, and I will update the SMS whenever possible! I will miss the Crued, Derelict, SBD, Blind Baby, and Destroilet shows though, sadly, so PLEASE hit one or all of those shows, make them all major successes! More news coming soon, stay tuned for more!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Crued & Orange October), Rotaryfest Info, And More!

It's news time! I've missed a lot over the past week, but now we can work towards getting you all caught up once again, and kicking things off today are some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!! And if you notice something missing, no worries, that's coming in an upcoming post too!

Firstly, this should interest fans of a major band that's been here before! Crued, The World's Number One Tribute To Motley Crue are coming here in a couple weeks! Based out of Toronto, Crued have a really cool stage setup and costumes identical to most eras of Motley Crue's storied history (They'll be rocking 2006 "Saints of Los Angeles"-era gear for this show), and they have the sound to back it up! So if you wanna rock out to some live Crue hits, you'll wanna be where? The Canadian Nightclub! When? May 1st, and I apologize for the short notice of the show, it's not well advertised locally. A start time of 10:30 PM is listed, and bring cash too for a cover, cause I doubt it's free! And yes, it's 19+. For more details, visit this location to confirm your attendance! They definitely have the goods, I'll sadly be out of town when they're playing this show, but hopefully there's a good turnout! For more information on Crued, and to check out some of their versions of Motley Crue classics, check out their official MySpace page!

The other new shows I have are courtesy of a Michigan band that are finally coming back up here for shows! Muskegon hard rockers Orange October are finally back in Sault Michigan for a pair of weekend shows next month! I don't think they've been here since, at the latest, early last year, so it's been a long time coming! They'll be playing at The Satisfied Frog on the last weekend of the month, playing there on Friday, May 28th and Saturday, May 29th! Start times of 10:00 PM are given on their MySpace page, and knowing shows at The Frog, there shouldn't be a cover. These should be fun shows, especially for those of you that miss Orange October! Solid accessible hard rock, really catchy too, I like Brian Swisher's vocals! Click on the above links for more info on Orange October, hopefully some of you can make it out!

On a personal note, that weekend with the Orange October shows is the last weekend where I'll be under American drinking age. So close and yet so far!

Now for a handful more news stories (And don't you worry, there's more later this weekend!) Starting things off is more info on Sault Ontario's longest running music festival, Rotaryfest! No word on metal bands on the main stage, but here's something that could apply to the metalheads of the area! For a sixth straight year, Rotaryfest is putting on The Tenaris Second Stage as part of this year's music festivities, where Square 1 of Queen Street East will once again be shut down, and local acts will hit the stage there to rock downtown! This year, the Second Stage will be on July 1st from 1:00 PM until midnight, and who's playing? We don't know, and that's where you guys come in! As always, the open call's out for bands of any genre to send in entries to possibly be added to this year's Rotaryfest lineup, and maybe YOU will be on the Second Stage this year!

If you'd like to play in this year's Rotaryfest, here's what you need: You need a professionally released CD (or mp3 files of it if you're submitting online), with at least three good quality original songs that you own the copyright for. You also need a press packet with a band biography, a good quality photograph of the band, links to internet websites/pages/videos, and optional press clippings. Preference will be given to bands with released or planned pro-quality material. If you are interested in compiling all this to submit to Rotaryfest for consideration for a spot on the Second Stage, you can submit it two ways: Online by clicking here (might be easier, if you want my advice), or by mailing it all to this address:

Tenaris Second Stage selection committee
c/o The Rotary Club of Sault Ste. Marie
364 Queen Street East
Sault Ste. Marie, ON
P6A 1Z1

Keep in mind that any CDs, photos, press clippings, or papers that you send to Rotaryfest will NOT be returned to you, for whatever reason, so keep that in mind. The deadline to submit your entries is MAY 7TH, so get on that if you want to play at Rotaryfest! More info can be found at SooToday's article on the Second Stage, and if you have questions, e-mail ken.desaulnier@shaw.ca with them! Hopefully this year's Rotaryfest is a blast, though I was curious as to the lack of metal last year. Rotaryfest has hosted prominent metal bands in the past, like Gates of Winter and Stillbroke (you can see pics of them on the Second Stage front page) yet last year we were completely dry for it. So come on metalheads, send entries in! And even if there's no metal, it should be a fun festival, it always is, bring the family out and enjoy yourselves!

And finally for today, I can scratch a local metal CD off of my wish list, as I am now in the possession of The Harsh Heads' lone disc, "First Hated Then Forgotten"! Recorded as cassette demos way back in 1994, the songs never found an actual release until 2005 when copies were made into CDs and distributed locally! Prominently featuring Destroilet/Billy Bastards mainman John Conway and his Billys bandmate Aaron Gibbs on drums, they were a prominent fixture in the local punk/metal scene in the early-mid 1990s as teenagers, and their album is pretty good stuff, nice punk/thrash sound, fast and unrelentless! And I give HUGE thanks to John's Destroilet bandmate Christian Foisy for helping hook me up with the mp3s from the album, and I was able to get the liner notes from The Harsh Heads' MySpace page, so all is well on that front! Thanks Chris!

So now that I have the album, I'll tell you guys this much: There WILL be a review of "First Hated But Forgotten" in the coming months, and I have uploaded the whole album to YouTube! All 13 songs are now streamable on The Sault Metal Scene's YouTube channel, along with a little bonus: The early '90s public access TV interview with guitarists Hugh Merz & Bob Bromley Jr. that was only previously available on Photobucket! NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT OR ILL WILL IS MEANT IN UPLOADING THE ALBUM OR THE INTERVIEW ONTO YOUTUBE! This is great stuff that the world should see, because the more exposure it gets, the better! I'll link you guys to the first track on "First Hated Then Forgotten", entitled "Violence", but click here to check out the rest of this album that shouldn't be forgotten!



That's all for now, but here's what's coming up on The Sault Metal Scene! Tomorrow, there will be my profiles of two more out of town bands with local members (Levitate and Necramyth), while Sunday will have both my review of the Garden of Bedlam fundraiser tomorrow night (I AM GOING!) and all kinds of stuff pertaining to the SMS poll! And yes, somewhere in there, there will be a news post with some more exciting news! Stay tuned everyone, there's much more coming!

(P.S. Does ANYONE have the As It Stands, Foothill Road, or Infrastrate albums?! How hard is it to find them? I am willing to reasonably pay for copies, and will take mp3s and album scans if need be!!!)

Friday Concert Previews, A Concert Cancellation, And Much More!

Good afternoon, metalheads! Lots to get to today, including a quite packed concert schedule for tomorrow night, so let us begin with that! Here are your local concert previews for this weekend! (Stay tuned after for news on a concert cancellation, plus Woods of Ypres and Kiss ticket updates!)

First of all, we'll head across the river, where FINALLY, we have a hard rock/metal concert in Sault Michigan in December! And it comes courtesy of rising young stars Free Refill, who will be among the performers at a talent show at Sault Area High School! Not sure on when during the day this is, but knowing past talent shows and assemblies I experienced, I'd put my money on it being during school hours. This (I think) is Free Refill's first concert as a four piece, as guitarist Tyler Wall left the band a while back. Well, it's great seeing Free Refill back playing shows, even if it is something that might not completely count as a "concert". But hey, I bet there's readers who are Sault Area High students, so keep this in mind, there will be some good music! Talented young band, hopefully they'll put in a good performace tomorrow night! I'd link you guys with a video for a preview, but the band has deleted the clips they had on their MySpace page. Trust me though, they play some good covers!

Next we'll head downtown for two concerts, the first of which is in...Station Mall?! That's right, the center of it all will play host to a metal show of sorts tomorrow evening, when Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will perform an acoustic solo set outside of Zoo Zoo, which for you non-mall goers, is near Scotiabank and 4 Seasons Collectibles! Very interesting, I've never heard of any act that's remotely hard rock playing at the mall! Admission is obviously free, just go to the mall. Tym will be performing from 6:00-8:00 PM, so if you're in a shopping mood tomorrow, you'll get some live music too! And if you miss that set, no worries, the Tym Morrison solo experience will be back that same night when he returns to The Big Cheese in Heyden, which is just outside of town! Tym will be playing there from 10:00 PM on through the night!

So if you're in the mood for some great acoustic covers of your favourite metal (and some non-metal) songs, you know where to go! For more information, confirm your attendance at this location for the Station Mall show, or click here for the Big Cheese show! No videos to show, but click here to visit Tym's official website and check out clips from his solo album and some old Caveman Morrison shows!

Next, The Rockstar Bar will play host to a unique concert event called "Rock of Ages" tomorrow night, where the music from the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s will take center stage! Playing the 1950s are The Money Shots, and The Suspects will play 1960s and 1970s music, so if you wanna hear covers of classic songs from those eras, they should do the trick! But the reason I'm mentioning this on the SMS is for the 1980s band, Skid Crue, who just happen to be a hair metal cover band! The band features Inner City Surfers frontman Dustin Jones, guitarist Dave Bahun, and bassist Brad "Example" Lacell! Curiously, drummer Mikey Hawdon (also from Lion Ride and Detroit) isn't part of Skid Crue, but from some searching, I learned that Money Shots drummer Francis McCormick will be behind the drumkit for this performance! They don't have a page, but if you love 80s hair metal, this should be right up your alley! Tickets are $5 in advance from The Algonquin Hotel, CD Plus, or The Rad Zone, or they're $7 at the door! It's an 8:00 concert, so make sure you're there early for a good night of music of all types from all eras! Click here to visit the official Facebook event page!

And finally, the metal concert I believe will be getting the most press, partly because it's the grand re-opening of Foggy Notions! That's right, 21 long months after the famous local bar shut it's doors, it's came under new ownership, been renovated (yes, the bathrooms were too), and went through months of hype, anticipation, and false starts, but now it's officially back for real! And headlining it's return are local hard rockers Sense of Truth! This will be their first live appearance since their Kiss Battle of the Bands finals performance, and their first full concert since Halloween at Top Hat Billiards! Joining them: Local punk rockers The Scary Uncles (featuring former SIGHdEFECT frontman Justin Langlois & ex-Fitswitch bassist Andrew McDonald), who always put on a great show! One of my favourite non-metal bands in town! The given start time is 7:00 PM, so make sure you're there early to drink in Foggies' return! Admission is just $5 for what should be a great first chapter in the return of Foggy Notions to the local scene!

Aside from the excitement of the re-opening, this should be a good concert too! Sense of Truth always impress, and should deliver their same brand of catchy hard rock and some solid covers tomorrow night! Check out their Facebook group for more stuff from the band! For a preview, check out this clip of the band covering the Tool song "Stinkfist"!



Sadly, I'll be in Detroit tomorrow, so I'll miss the concerts. If I was in town, I'd definitely go check out Tym Morrison at the mall, then head to the Foggy Notions re-opening (I haven't seen a full Sense of Truth concert in forever!) I wish I could be in town, but I'll get more opportunities to be at Foggies for a show, Boxing Day with Garden of Bedlam seems likely!

Speaking of Boxing Day, we have a cancellation. Due to circumstances beyond their control, Half Past have postponed their planned concert for December 26th at The Rockstar Bar. No word on the specific reason, but it's still disappointing! And yes, the band confirmed it on their Facebook page, so there's my source. Hopefully they'll be back for a show in early 2010! I haven't seen them live since 2008 when they were still called Fingerbone! However, if you still need something to do on Boxing Day, Garden of Bedlam at Foggy Notions is likely on that night too, so you're not completely out of luck for a concert!

And now, Kiss concert cancellation news! You knew this wouldn't be gone for good, did you? The Sault Star has two new articles up concerning it, the first of which is a general article discussing the cancellation and ticket refund info. Nothing new to speak of there. The second is an editorial piece by Frank Rupnik, who gives his take on the postponement. He recommends that the band and The Essar Center keep fans up to date sooner rather than later about when the rescheduled show will take place, and keep us informed to make everything fair. He also expresses that a summer date is better than a winter show because there's more likelihood that it will be a bigger event. Check out the two Sault Star articles by clicking the links in this paragraph! I completely agree with Frank, we have to know these things, and the sooner we find out, the sooner we can make plans! As for ticket refunds, remember, your old December tickets WILL BE HONOURED AT THE MAKEUP DATE! So if you don't want to resell, you can hang on to the seats you have! It's what I'm doing!

And finally for today, a few Woods of Ypres updates! First of all, "Woods IV: The Green Album" is officially available on iTunes! I'm not an iTunes user, so I don't know the exact details on how to purchase it, but searching for Woods of Ypres with it's search function should locate it easily! And if you want a physical copy, it is NOW IN STORES, so head to CD Plus today to pick it up! My source for this is a topic on the band's official forum. Also, the band announced that the new CD is the #2 best seller of this past week on The End Records' website, which is awesome! And, this should be exciting: The band have begun the budgeting process for "Woods V", which frontman David Gold hints will be the band's second CD based on the summer season (after "Pursuit of the Sun/Allure of the Earth") and will be "another exciting shift in Woods of Ypres theme and sound"! Source for this info: Another forum topic, and the band's Facebook page! All sounds awesome, can't wait to hear what Woods of Ypres has in store for us next!

That's all for today! But I should add, today is the LAST DAY TO VOTE IN THIS MONTH'S POLL! I will replace it with a new poll after midnight, and I will update everyone on the results, and what the new question is, so stay tuned for that! Thanks everyone, have fun at tomorrow's concerts, I wish I could be there too!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Caveman Morrison), Kiss Postponing Fallout, And Some More Assorted Updates!

So yeah, Kiss have postponed their Sault Ste. Marie concert scheduled for tomorrow night until the summer due to weather conditions. That's been all over the news lately, and there's more to come! I gave my opinions and a recap of what we knew so far last night, but there's more to discuss, so here's what's new in the latest Kiss saga! (Stay tuned afterwards for updates on some upcoming local concerts and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for TOMORROW NIGHT!) Brian Kelly and Jeffrey Ougler from The Sault Star have wrote up an article on the Kiss situation for today's paper, and you can check it out online at this location! It recaps what we knew yesterday, but it goes into some extra detail about the weather situation that prevented Kiss from coming here, including extremely icy driving conditions in the Pittsburgh area (Kiss were there for their most recent show.) It also includes comments from local Kiss fan Shaun Brown, who was eagerly anticipating the concert (as many of us were), where he expresses anger and disappointment for the cancellation, but hope that they will stick to their word and play here in the summer. Speaking of people being mad about it being cancelled, SooToday has a poll up on their front page asking how people felt about the show being postponed. Much to my surprise, over 56% of people are OK with it! I would have assumed people would be pissed, but honestly, we know how weather can impair plans and engagements, we put up with it every winter, and I'm sure many of you guys would rather see them in the summer over the winter if you had a choice anyway! See the full poll results by clicking here! Now since the postponement, I've seen a lot of people feeling sorry and offering condolences to Garden of Bedlam, who as you know, won last week's Battle of the Bands to back up Kiss at tomorrow's concert. Some were drawing comparisons to how Sense of Truth won the right to back up Skid Row last year, only to see that show cancelled, even though the reasons for both were completely different. Well, I've gotta say, the band are handling this exactly the right way. Frontman Buzz said on the band's Facebook group that this is just a "bump in the road", they've just got to wait a little longer for the show, and in the meantime, they'll have time to finish their first full length album! He also announced that tonight's interview with MCTV is still on, so make sure to watch the news tonight at 6:00 (Shaw channel 11) to check it out! Buzz also mentioned they might have a Christmas show in the works too, so keep an eye out for that! EDIT (3:18 PM): Ticket refund information has officially been announced for the Kiss concert! The Essar Center released a press release apologizing for the postponement of the concert, and have gave full ticket refund info. Refunds will be made available TOMORROW MORNING AT 10:00 AM! The original ticket purchaser has to be there to claim the refund, with the original ticket in hand. If you bought your tickets online or by phone, you can also get your refund by calling 1-866-775-9422. If you got your tickets through the Kiss Army fan-club, or got a V.I.P. ticket package, you'll get e-mailed with info. If you got a ticket through Rock 101 or Eventful presales, or through a Rock 101 giveaway, I have no idea, best to ask people from both for info. Any tickets purchased through the Kiss army or through a presale won't be refunded by the arena. Check out the full Essar Center press release at this location! And remember, THEY WILL HONOUR TICKETS FOR TOMORROW'S SHOW AT THE RESCHEDULED DATE!!!! So, now you're probably wondering, what am I going to do Tuesday night now? Kiss aren't coming, I need my hard rock fix! Well, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT that could do the trick! Caveman Morrison have announced a very short notice concert for tomorrow night at The Rockstar Bar, a venue they just played at this past weekend! The Rockstar Bar was originally going to host one of many Kiss afterparties planned for tomorrow, but now, a different band will rock n' roll all night, and they'll definitely bring the goods! The band, and frontman Tym Morrison, have a nice long slate of shows lined up through January so far, but why not see them tomorrow? You were going to see Kiss anyway, don't deprive yourself of great live music! They hit the stage at 10:00 PM until 2:00 AM, there is no cover charge, get full details at the official Facebook event page! You could call this a preview for the concert too, but I still don't have an embeddable video to share. Soon though, hopefully! I won't be at the show tomorrow (I have to study for a history exam. Fun.) They're a great band though, check them out at their official website! Speaking of The Rockstar Bar, I have some updates on two upcoming shows there! First, you remember the Lion Ride show announced for December 27th? Well, more details have came out for it! Joining them for the concert will be local indie rock band Nebraska Arms, who also backed up Lion Ride at their August show at Coch's Corner, and competed against them in the Kiss battle too! It will be a 10:00-2:00 deal as well, and there is no announced cover charge! They're also hyping this as an alternative for you guys disappointed in the Kiss postponement! For more details, visit the Facebook event page! I'll be there, will you? Meanwhile, I've also learned more information on this Friday's Rock of Ages concert at The Rockstar Bar! Unlike other recent Rockstar Bar shows, there will be a cover of $7, with advance tickets going for $5 at CD Plus, The Rad Zone, and The Algonquin Hotel! It's also a 10:00 concert, and that 80s hair metal band Skid Crue? I can confirm that the three members of The Inner City Surfers in the band are Dustin Jones, Brad "Example" Lacell, and Dave Bahun! Interesting to see them handle some heavy metal, I wish I could check them out! There's also an official Facebook event page for the Rock of Ages show, check it out at this location! And finally, here's two more quick updates:

• TOMORROW is the official in-store release date for Woods of Ypres' newest release, "Woods IV: The Green Album"! I know CD Plus will likely have it, not sure on HMV or The Rad Zone, but make sure you head to stores soon and pick it up! It's well worth it, trust me, it's a great album! And the sooner you get it, the more likely you'll get the bonus Necramyth CD! My source is here.
• The new banner image and logo on our Facebook page is for the 22nd Sykotyk Rampage album, entitled "22"! Thanks to the Three Days Grace show and Kiss concert (before the postponing), I had to wait to put the Sykotyk Rampage ones up until yesterday. It's a fun album, listen or buy it at their official SoundClick page!

That's all for now, more news to come very soon, including my preview of the Caveman Morrison-headlined V.I.P. party Wednesday at Foggy Notions, and hopefully lots more! Thanks everyone!

THREE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, Three Days Grace Show Updates, And More!

How's everyone enjoying this snow? I was happy, I got the day off class, so I got to researching news for an SMS update, and I have plenty of stuff to share tonight! And we'll start with not one, not two, but THREE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!!

Remember last Tuesday, when local death/thrash metal band Bring The Fallen won the Battle of the Bands at The Speakeasy? Well, as you're likely aware, the winner of that battle would (among other prizes) get the opportunity to open for The Inner City Surfers (featuring Lion Ride's Mikey Hawdon on drums) at their concert December 22nd. Well, I can finally confirm this show is a go, and Bring The Fallen are definitely playing support! They're calling this a Christmas bash, and with the timing of the show, that's appropriate! Also scheduled for the concert: local punk rockers The Scary Uncles, who always impress in their live performances! This concert starts at 10:00 PM that night, cover charges or age limits have yet to be announced. Sounds like a fun concert, and Bring The Fallen will help bring the metal edge that's welcome at any show! Get full details at the official Facebook event page!

Speaking of The Inner City Surfers, members of the band will regroup in a new act playing on December 18th at The Rockstar Bar! That night, a concert called "Rock of Ages" is being held, where three bands will play songs from different eras of music. Local group The Money Shots will play a set of music from the 1950s, while local classic rock band The Suspects will play a set of 1960s/70s music. But what caught my eye was a band by the name of Skid Crue, who will play a set of 1980s hair metal songs! I had to ask about them, and Martin Fiser from The Rockstar Bar told me that three members of The Surfers are in Skid Crue! I don't know if this is a one off thing or a brand new band or what, but it sounds good! Very diverse musical lineup too, you won't see such a wide cross-section like this very often! Tickets for "Rock of Ages" are $5 in advance from either CD Plus or The Algonquin Hotel, or $ 7 at the door! If I hear more about this concert or Skid Crue, I'll let you guys know!

And finally for new concerts, we FINALLY have a local metal concert of sorts in Sault Michigan for the month of December! I've been surprised by the lack of concerts and announcements of new ones lately for across the river, but we have one now! Young local hard rock band Free Refill are back on the live scene, and they'll be playing at a talent show at Sault Area High School! No time is given on their MySpace page, but my money's on it being an after school deal. Sure, it's not a publically open concert, but they're a local metal band playing live, and I'm sure there's readers who go to Sault High, so there's a heads-up! Talented young band, they should have a bright future! Check out more from the band at this location! Also, according to their MySpace page, it looks like guitarist Tyler Wall has left the band. That sucks, but hey, he's still in 7/47, who are promising in their own right!

So there's your three new concerts, and they're now located in the concert listings on the left and right of the page! Now, it's time to update everyone on the fallout from Tuesday's entertaining Three Days Grace concert! Donna Hopper from SooToday has posted her review of the concert at this location! According to the article, the crowd only numbered at around 2,000 people. I wonder why, maybe it was the weather? Ticket prices? Quality of the openers? (Oh come on, I liked Seether more!) She also noted the overall quietness of the crowd and lack of activity for the first two bands, and looking back on it, I noticed that too! What they should have done is grabbed everyone from the stands and moved them to the floor if they wanted, that'd have helped (hey, it worked for Jackyl.) She also noted that Three Days Grace (save for Adam Gontier) later showed up at LopLops Lounge for the official after-party, and mingled with fans and signed autographs and such! EDIT, 8:25 AM: Donna's photo album from the show is finally up, check out her pictures by clicking here!

SooNews correspondent (and friend) Lucas Punkari posted a review and photo album of his own at this location! Nice photos, miles better than mine (remember, I'm not a professional.) Among other local news sources, The Sault Star didn't have a review or recap, though Michael Purvis did post an album with 100 concert photos (again, great quality) which you can check out by clicking here! Nothing from Sault This Week though. And I guess I should mention this, cause I've heard nothing else about it since, but I saw someone get really hurt at the show. They had to clear a big area in the crowd to get a girl out, she was clutching her face and when her hands moved, I saw blood on her hands. I have no clue what happened, it was very packed on the floor, but damn, that sucks! Word of warning, concert fans, be careful, you don't know what could happen! Take care of each other and keep things safe!

And finally, VIDEOS, lots of them! Only two people I know of have uploaded videos so far, but there's lots to go around! One is from YouTube user SLIPKASS05, of the band performing the song "Riot", which you can check out at this location! Not bad quality, and it's the only clip I've seen so far from the floor. The rest all come from barbiegirl8833, who you may recognize for her uploads of videos from the Staind and Papa Roach concerts at Kewadin Casino! She got 13 clips from the show, which (I think) accounts for every song they played except maybe "I Don't Care" and "Just Like You". Quality's alright, she had a good angle of the band from the seats! Check out all of her Three Days Grace videos, plus six from Default's set and one of The Used, at this location! I'll show you guys one here, so take a look at the band playing their hit song "Home"! (Note: Fast forward to 4:55 in the clip. Trust me.)



And of course, if I hear or see anything more coming out of the Three Days Grace concert, I'll let you guys know! Now, here's basically my attempt to catch up on a local metal talent that I barely ever mention on here, but really, he deserves it. Are you familiar with Sault Michigan native Mikey Bishop? Well, he's a noted metal drummer, and he's made a name in numerous bands, some local, some not! The most notable local group he was in was Lower S.E.S., and he's since joined numerous bands behind the kit, almost too many to mention! Probably the most notable is Grand Rapids death metal band Sadomasochism, who did a lot of touring in the 2000s and backed up bands like Superjoint Ritual at some big concerts! Now, Mikey's the drummer for Lansing black metal band Summon, who recently released a new album! I've heard some of Mikey's bands, and I'm impressed! He's an awesome drummer, and it's great to see him succeed as much as he has! Definitely overdue for me to talk about him on here! Check out more from Mikey, including tons of live videos from his bands, and new Summon tracks, at his official MySpace page! He should bring Summon up here for a show!

And finally for tonight, just a quick notification that Rock 101 have officially confirmed that Garden of Bedlam are backing up Kiss on Tuesday! They've updated their front page and concert listings to reflect their opening status! That's all for tonight, next post will likely have a preview of this weekend's Caveman Morrison concerts, along with another LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, and anything else that should pique your local metal interest! Thanks everyone!