LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Nameus), Din Updates, And Much More!!

I wasn't expecting to have a full news post today, but with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALRT, we can't avoid it, so that leads off this post! Alongside it, we have some cool news from local radio, a local band's latest video and road trip news, and a belated song posting from a band of the late Guy Thiffault, who we memorialized this afternoon, so read that post below if you missed the original announcement. Here's what you need to know!

New local classic/hard rock cover trio Nameus (no formal new name yet) will make their Rockstar Bar debut TONIGHT! Apologies for the extremely short notice, we only got full confirmation about the show via the venue's Facebook event page this afternoon, though note that their physical marquee board had previously advertised "Travis Band" as playing today, which we now 100% know was meaning frontman Travis Sharpe. A one-nighter due to tomorrow's return of pop rock cover band Crush (formerly Cherry Crush), this won't be Nameus' last concert of 2016, but it'll be their last regular, non-New Year's Eve party event of the year, so if you want to take in some hard hitting covers, be at The Rockstar Bar TONIGHT! Also, note that this is the first publically announced Rockstar Bar show for a Terry Eaton/Steven Flint band at The Rockstar Bar since Mourning Wood played there back in February. There's no announced cover charges for TONIGHT'S 19+ show, and despite what the event page might tell you, expect a 10:30 PM-ish start time.

I wish the guys in Nameus would have plugged this show in some form of advance fashion (and/or launched an online page already), but if you're familiar with the guys' chemistry and backgrounds, you'll know that they should have a solid night of covers in store at The Rockstar Bar TONIGHT! Don't miss out if you can help it, hopefully videos turn up soon, and apologies again, we'd have covered this with our weekend concert previews had we known about it beforehand!

Next up, here's the latest from local alternative/hard rock trio The Din, starting with some intriguing news, as they're taking a road trip to Toronto for their out-of-town debut at The Revival Bar on January 6th! The show is part of Landmark Events' Showcase Festival, a concert series that will help rising musicians network with other acts, radio personalities, and industry professionals. No word on the complete lineup yet, but the show will apparently be live streamed as an i-PPV event, so if you buy an e-ticket, you can watch it online as it happens! It looks like their set is at 3:45 PM on January 6th, and e-tickets are $13, just $1 less than the regular in-person admission, for what that's worth. If you're interested in watching the stream, click here and visit The Din's Facebook event page for full details! For something new that you can watch free, The Din's eighth Cover of the Month video was posted to their YouTube channel yesterday, so what should you know on that?

Their first of this video series to have it's cover suggested by a fan, this month's cover is of The Gin Blossoms' "Hey Jealousy", but in this case, it was recorded at Mission Control Studios, where they have been recording something or another recently. The multi-camera video is well shot and the band sound as reliably good as ever, with the cover suiting their sound, but I'd have angled the camera up a bit for the wide shot, as too much of the table is in the road. Give The Din's latest cover a look below!

Also today, here's some surprising yet cool news from the world of local FM radio, as Brian Davie has returned to Rock 101 to resume co-hosting Scott & Brian In The Morning! The surprise announcement was made on air at 101.3 FM and via the show's Facebook page on Tuesday morning (also Brian's first day back), with co-host Scott Cook jokingly saying that Brian was back "by mediocre demand". A 20 year veteran of local radio, Brian originally left the Sault Michigan rock station in March of last year for personal reasons, with Scott hosting the morning show solo in the interim, but fans definitely seemed to welcome back Brian with open arms! He was always very kind and cordial to our work here at the SMS, and he always had a great chemistry and rapport with Scott in the mornings, which was often very noticeable over the past 21 months when Scott had no one to play off of. Tune in to the newly renamed Scott & Brian in the Morning weekday mornings from 6:00-10:00 AM on Rock 101 for music, infotainment, and much more for your morning drive!

Finally, here's a new song that I found online today from the late Guy Thiffault's mid-2000s punk band The Hangdowns! Guy himself posted this song to his YouTube channel (his only upload there) in October 2012, and it's of their original "No Man Is An Island", which notably wasn't on the band's MySpace page previously. I can't date this song specifically, but it could be from their planned 2004 album, which I can't verify if it ever saw a public release or not. The fireman picture is a little ambigiuous, but it's a solid fast-paced punk number of this missed band, so give it a listen below, and continue keeping Guy in your thoughts at this difficult time!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates over the weekend. Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Mourning Wood), Local2's New Tuned Episode, And More!!

Keeping our busy stretch of news and updates going on this Saturday morning, here's a new post featuring a new concert video, a farewell to a local FM radio mainstay, and the newest episode of a popular local music webseries, but first, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!

Local classic/hard rock trio Mourning Wood will continue a busy (if short notice) weekend with a show TONIGHT at Reggie's West! I apologize for the late notice, we only just heard about this show last night via bassist Steven Flint's personal Facebook page, which joined a show that they played there yesterday that we had no time to get on the site beforehand (our apologies!) These weren't plugged on the band's own Facebook page, much like their shows at the original downtown Reggie's from last week, but I'll note that SooToday's "Soo-To-Do List" mentioned that country cover band Bat Rastard were playing this weekend. Perhaps Mourning Wood are late replacements for them? The guys have a good relationship with the former Rosie, and hopefully there was a good turnout both last night and TONIGHT! Like usual, expect a 10:00 PM start time, no announced cover charge, and a 19+ age limit. For more info, see the above links, and here's Mourning Wood live last year!

Next up, here's the newest episode of Local2's music webseries Tuned with Donna Hopper, which once again looked at the most recent night of the VM Radio Battle of the Bands at The Canadian on Wednesday! Posted on Thursday, this episode follows with last week's theme, look, and structure, though we kick off this week with remarks from judges Rob Speers and myself on last week's action (no sign of Dustin Jones, but I do know that he was battling a cold recently.) Nice feature to touch on last week's events, and I look forward to coming in on Tuesday to talk about night #2 with the Tuned crew! The second half of the video features brief performance footage and short interview segments with this week's bands (winners Mannapool, The Danger Cats, Haggith, and Stereo North), where they introduce themselves and explain why they're in the battle.

The video ends with bonus footage of Mannapool's set, though this week, J.D.'s night-ending reveal of the winners wasn't included. Another solid episode of Tuned, especially if you loved night #2 or missed the incredibly close night of action (remember, 8.5 points separated first and last place!) Hopefully the last semifinal this coming Wednesday is just as exciting, so stay tuned for updates and our preview on it, and check out this newest episode of Tuned above! Remember, Local2's video host doesn't allow external embedding, hence why it's not below.

Also today, here's a video from Thursday night's Telephone & Address CD release concert at The Gore Street Cafe! Posted by Boxes of Boom's Sam Decter (who actually played after Chris, not before, my apologies) on the Facebook event page that same night, it's a 33 second video of Chris playing one of Telephone & Address' usual acoustic punk songs, but the audio is distorted, so I can't place the name off hand. The lighting is generally dark, but the lit background actually sets a nice mood, so give it a look below, and stay tuned for our "Rust Orchid" review this month!

Finally, I wanted to wish happy trails to Brian Davie, a long time fixture in local radio who you'll likely best recognize as the co-host of Scott & Brian In The Morning weekdays on Sault Michigan's Rock 101. Thursday was his last day on the air after a 20 year run in local radio, and while I missed his last show amidst recent family matters, he indicated on his personal Facebook page that he's leaving to start a new chapter in his life, though his departure appears to be 100% amicable, and he's not moving from the area. Brian was always very cordial and appreciative of my work with The Sault Metal Scene, and he always took the time to say hello when we were at the same concerts, even extending an invite for me to be interviewed on the morning show a few years back. He's a friendly and funny guy, and he'll be missed by many Rock 101 listeners in the area! Best of luck to Brian in whatever the future holds!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our newest showcase of Sault Michigan label Werehold Records' new Friday the 13th posting event later today! Thanks everyone!

SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Turner Up) And More Assorted News!!

Good morning everyone, this may be my last post before heading to Detroit, depends on if I'm at a concert tonight to need a review posted or not. We'll start with a VERY short notice LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!!

According to a newly posted Facebook event page, local hard rock cover band Turner Up will be playing a normal concert set TONIGHT at Foggy Notions! Looks like this is their first non-jam night performance there since New Year's Eve, and will be their first full concert set since last weekend's Algoma Hope4Haiti set at The Algonquin Pub & Sports Bar! A start time of 10:00 PM is given, I'd expect a $2 cover charge at the door, as is standard at normal Foggy's concerts. Apparently they're back by popular demand, though I question it's short notice announcement, hopefully a good crowd comes in! I'll do my part though, so if you're not going to see Sense of Truth or Nixxon Dixxon tonight, you have a very good alternative! I'm tied up tonight for a concert I won't jinx myself by saying I'll go to, but you guys should head out there, it will be a fun night of your favourite rock songs! Confirm your attendance at this location, and even though the short notice isn't my fault, sorry it's a late announcement!

Next up, if what I see online isn't decieving me, it looks like Lion Ride may have a lineup change. According to their listed lineups on both MySpace and Facebook, bassist Brenton Ellis, a.k.a. Diamond Brent Panther, may have left the band. He's no longer listed as a member on them, and on Brent's Facebook page, the only bands he lists as ones he's a member of are Detroit, The Sexual Vigilantes, and The Labour Of. Odd, especially without a full band announcement, though one may be soon, I don't know. I never saw this coming, especially with the new pro quality photos from Donna Hopper that were just posted this month! Brent had been a member of Lion Ride since 2008 when he replaced Lionel Itchy, and he is a very good bassist, but something must be up. Also to note: The band now doesn't list who plays what instrument on the current lineup, which leads me to think that maybe they're becoming a four-piece with Marky Lion moving to bass (he plays bass in Detroit.) But that could be me reading into stuff too much. Either way, potentially disappointing news, and if there's an official announcement made about Lion Ride's lineup, I'll be sure to share it with you guys!

Ok, more positive news now, as Woods of Ypres have launched a new band page! It's on CBC Radio 3, which is also the host site for band pages from local metal acts like Sykotyk Rampage and Sue Inside! David Gold says that this could become the band's primary page as CBC Radio 3's site is fast, stable, and has better music quality than MySpace and YouTube! And on my first listen, though I don't like the auto-play of what is airing on CBC Radio 3 when you open a new page, I do agree, the sound is really good! However, CBC Radio 3 is not a widespread site for Canadian metal bands to use, it's definitely widespread for almost any other genre though! It's a nice site if you wanna search underground Canadian bands, and you can join with your band and add songs you like to personal playlists, all of which are cool features! We'll have to see what happens, but take a look at Woods of Ypres' CBC Radio 3 page at this location!

And now, updates from local hard rockers Half Past! Firstly, I notice that on Facebook, frontman Luke LeBlanc was leading a campaign for fans of the band to create a buzz for them on the Facebook page for Simmons Records, the record label owned by (who else) Gene Simmons from Kiss! I notice that a lot of locals have joined (hopefully to support Half Past), but no one's writing on the wall to create a buzz either, which is odd. Join Simmons Records' Facebook page at this location, and hype them up, make Gene and company take notice! Also, one more live video clip of Half Past's recent weekend set at Foggy Notions has been posted online, of their 10 Years cover, "Wasteland"! Thanks to drummer Chris Thompson for the upload, and it's ok if Luke's voice isn't at it's best, I won't judge!




And finally, I was browsing SooToday the other day, and I came across an article talking about the newest appointee to the Sault Ste. Marie Bridge Authority, the board that oversees operation of the International Bridge that connects the Twin Saults. Now why I would I mention this on the SMS? Simple, because the new appointee is Rock 101 DJ Brian Davie, who you'll likely recognize from his work on Scott and Brian In The Morning! According to the article, Brian hopes to use his media experience to promote and encourage the development of services that the bridge offers! It also mentions that Brian is the former executive director of the Easter U.P.'s Red Cross branch! Brian's a class act, and he'll be a great addition to the bridge authority! Great DJ too, he and Scott are how I spend my mornings heading to university! Click here to read this article, and congratulations Brian!

That's all for today, my next post will not be a review of TONIGHT'S Sense of Truth show! (Omit the not. Remember, reverse psychology!) Expect to see it, video, and photos tomorrow at some point, be it immediately after the show or after I get to Detroit! Hope the rest of the weekend's shows go well, rock out at Garden of Bedlam for me, support Kim and Kelsey's memories at the Pop Evil show, or go see Turner Up or Nixxon Dixxon tonight, just go have a great time this weekend!