A New Local Punk Band, Crush Updates, And More Recent News & Notes!!

As we wrap up the busiest month (for post count) in the 19+ year history of the SMS, here's one more news post for the end of August before we go into autumn, and it includes updates from an EUP hard rock band, clarifications on who played a recent all-day charity concert, and some assorted shorter updates, but we'll lead off with a debuting supergroup that will be intriguing for many local punk and hard rock fans! Here's what you should know!

We have a new local punk band to add to our links, and they are Dead II Society! While their Facebook page was only launched yesterday, they were one of the two mystery bands announced for October's Punk Rock Fiesta at The Rockstar Bar (we are still waiting for details on The Baby Rails). Self-described as "an outlaw punk rock (band) specializing in loud, high energy, foot-stomping songs", their lyrics are planned to revolve around members' personal lives, health, and relationships. The band features former Garden of Bedlam/Changing Lanes singer/guitarist Erik "Buzz" Boissineau alongside former Northwest/Terminal guitarist Mike Yakasovich, veteran local bassist Andrew Torgerson (most recently seen down south in The Epifats and Grant Boyer's backing band), and Billy Bastards drummer Charlie Yanni (he will be pulling double duty with both bands on October 3rd).

Dead II Society are working on original music for major streaming services and Bandcamp, and your first teaser is this video featuring an instrumental track and silent footage of the guys meeting up and jamming. Their first single and full-length video (presumably both for this song) premiere on September 16th, 2½ weeks before their Punk Rock Fiesta debut. Sadly, the video is both vertical and black & white, aspects that I hope don't translate to what we get in two weeks, but it's great to see this promising band full of established names making their debut shortly, and it'll be interesting to hear how Buzz's long-teased original punk songs turn out! See more from them above and below, and stay tuned for updates!

Next up, let's bolt across the border to Sault Michigan for the latest updates from local hard rock trio Crush! It's been a few months since we last talked about Tarnished's original-heavy splinter group, who haven't played a local concert in over four months (or downstate since May), but they haven't been completely idle. After jokey posts, AI-generated memes, and more love for Big Boy restaurants over the summer, they have announced two tour dates for September on their Facebook page, one being a show on Friday at Bemo's Bar in Bay City (3½ hours south of here, outside of Saginaw). Best of luck on the road trip for sure! The other gig is technically outside of our coverage range (an hour's drive from the Soo), but it will be their closest show since April at The Merch, and it will see Alex, Josh, and Iggy open for their friends in Rose City metal band Tribe989 at Bates Corner Bar & Grill in Gould City on Thursday, September 24th.

Hannahville "rez metal" band Ghidora (who Heavy Lies The Crown fans will know well) are also playing this show 90 minutes west of the Soo. If you can make the drive to western Mackinac County, this show may be of note, and despite Gould City being pretty small, they can book big names at Bates Corner (Buckcherry played there earlier this month!) Click here for details on the Gould City concert. Lastly, they posted this short teaser video for the Bay City show on Friday, with Iggy promoting it from an... unexpected place, while the caption at the end notes that Crush have been busy in the studio recently working on original material. Hopefully we hear more soon, so get Crushed above and below, and I hope next month's shows go well!

Also today, here's some clarification of the lineup for Maddy's Mighty Mutts Family Fun Day at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion in Sault Ontario on August 5th! The advertising for the event had conflicting details on who was and wasn't playing, but organizer Paige Dennie listed off performers in a personal Facebook post shared to Maddy's Facebook page the next day to thank everyone for volunteering. Ten acts ended up playing the Wednesday outdoor-ish concert under the big tent, with this AI-generated poster being accurate to the final bill aside from omitting Tex Riviera & The Relix Ride for one reason or another (not only did they play, they were up first!). The acts that dropped out (both for unannounced reasons) were solo musicians Arin Karki and Leslie Cook, with Tym Morrison being a last minute replacement for one of them. Of note, Jason Taillefer's sister Kelly guested for part of his solo set, which was implied to be keyboard-heavy.

Paige noted that 5 Dollar Bribe donated their drum kit and PA system for the day's full band's to use, which was nice of them, while TNT singer/guitarist Travis Sharpe helped with sound and managing set changes, and Bone Yard 225 were the headliners. It does sound like things went well, and Paige was very appreciative of everyone helping out, both from the concert aspect and towards supporting the dog rescue charity itself, so visit the above links for more on what went down four weeks ago!

Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual for our short-form story blocks, these are in alphabetical order by artist or company name:

 

• A memorial concert for late local musician Dale Corcoran will be held at the resurgent Rockstar Bar on Saturday, September 19th! Proceeds will go to his widow Clare for her own recent expenses, and the show is implied to largely be an informal and unrehearsed jam featuring friends and former bandmates rather than something with firmly scheduled and advertised bands (though I'd assume that we'll see members of Tex Riviera & The Ride). Could we see throwbacks to his local metal and hard rock work of the 1980s? Tickets cost $20 + processing fees at this link, and I do hope that this celebration of life is a huge hit across the board!
• I apologize for missing this among our backlog clearout, but a demonstration named Navigating the Modern Music Business As An Independent Artist was held at The Art Hub At Spring this past Tuesday. Hosted by local musician and manager Ryan St. Pierre of The Lonely Listeners Club and the upstart music management program Lisinin, the program was to promote his work and help encourage independent artists to explore today's music industry and better network in music communities. All are definitely good plans to help aspiring musicians in their career, so click here for more on what went down last week, and what Ryan continues working on!
• The performance order for the aforementioned Punk Rock Fiesta at The Rockstar Bar on October 3rd has been unveiled via this poster shared on the Punk Canada Facebook group two weeks ago! The running order is mostly what you'd expect given band notoriety, with everyone but headliners Random Killing having a half hour timeslot (the debuting Baby Rails lead off at 6:30 PM), but local crossover thrash trio Hails will surprisingly get the 10:30 PM co-headlining slot over the Billys and Fist Magnet reunions. This will be a huge show no matter when bands are on, so visit the above links for more on what to expect in just over a month!

 

That's all for tonight, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the SMS next month! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Crucifest!!)

Extreme metal fans will want to circle the last weekend of July on their calendars, as Crucifest comes to Robbie Adamson's old church in nearby Leeburn on Friday, July 26th! A spiritual successor to the late 2010s Oh!No festivals at the same locale (not to mention the technically private Bear Hunters reunion event there last July), Crucifest is brought to us by new local promoters Deciduous Events & Decor (a.k.a. D.E.A.D. and formerly Events By Vann), a decor company that launched in 2022 and has worked for clients from Southern Ontario to our neck of the woods. They have recently decided to branch out into promoting their own events, with Crucifest being their first proper concert that I'm aware of. It'll be interesting to see how well this does, and if it leads to more from Courtney & Jessica in a local concert environment! While more acts are allegedly to be announced, nine bands are already signed, including five touring acts!

Perhaps owing to the long pandemic-affected gap since we had a regular local extreme metal promoter here, all five touring bands will be making their local debuts at Crucifest. Given how local bands are mixed in, I'm unsure if the poster layout is indicative of the performance order, but the five out-of-town bands are Toronto deathcore quartet Beguiler, Ottawa death metal quintet Salem Trials, Peterborough "beatdown/core" quartet Seagrave, Sudbury hardcore band Drugwolf, and newer Kitchener metalcore band Dead Roots. There's a lot of ground to cover between these bands, but there's lots of talent and brutality within, so give all five a listen to prepare yourself for the metal attack in two months! Of the four local bands, two will be familiar to 2020s concert goers, including punk/thrash trio Hails (who played at The Bear Hunters' private event in Leeburn last year) and young metal trio The BAG in (I believe) their first show outside of city limits.

Also playing at Crucifest are local death/thrash metal band Pillory in their first announced public concert in almost five years! Fans/friends may recall seeing occasional social media teasers and false starts towards Pillory resuming as a live act (they were even briefly advertised for The Bear Hunters' private Leeburn event last year), but it looks like they are definitely back now! As you may recall, Pillory were originally active off & on from 2012-2019, and they still feature frontman Robert Sartini (recently of Pointless and All Over The Map) on vocals & guitar alongside ex-Lazer Queen/Issues drummer Bret Shuttleworth. No word on their current bassist, but Blair St. John filled in for their last few late 2010s sets. In the past year, Bret has posted dozens of solo drumming videos to his YouTube channel (look at his setup!), and a handful of videos were uploaded two months ago of him and Robert playing some metal covers.

These include bass-less renditions of Sepultura's "Territory",  Megadeth's "Youthanasia", and as embedded below, Pantera's "Use My Third Arm". Sounds good and faithful to me, but these are not technical death metal songs, as we were hearing from Pillory in the mid-late 2010s. Is this a sign of a shift to their earlier sound or just them jamming some covers? In any event, it's great to see Robert and Bret back at it, and don't bypass Bret's ample solo drumming videos too, as he's got serious chops (with that kit, he'd have to!). Pillory are back in our active band links, and check out theirs & Bret's new videos above and below!

The other band playing at Crucifest (so far) are a debuting local metal band named The Sault Side Squad, and while they currently lack social media pages or videos, their lineup is full of familiar faces! I can confirm that they feature ex-As It Stands singer Justin "Nadj" Pregent, A Dire Setback guitarist Chris Nielsen, former Jack Spades/Sativa Rose guitarist Anthony Orazietti, Skinbox/Stoned To Deaf alum Jordan Wardlaw on bass, and Anthony's old Winkstinger bandmate Jonas Gasperas on drums. We await further specifics, but given Justin's past vocal style (his recent rap career aside), I'd expect The Sault Side Squad to have hardcore influences. Very impressive lineup, and it'll be interesting to hear how The S.S.S. do in July and beyond! The listed times for Crucifest on the Eventbrite ticket sale page are 8:00 PM-2:00 AM, but there are separate tickets for Saturday, July 27th on sale for the same price as Friday alone.

The listed times imply that bands will only be playing on the 26th, which is how we're currently treating it, but if D.E.A.D. confirm that the lineup is split up with bands on Saturday the 27th too, we will let you know (the Saturday pass may only be for campers' benefit). In any event, tickets cost $25 per day and $45 for both days plus, and there are no advertised cover charges, so click here to buy yours! In what's shaping up to be a big year for summer camping-encouraged concert festivals, Crucifest will deliver the goods for fans who've found extreme metal to be lacking in the Soo as of late, so definitely visit the above links for complete details on what's going on 53 minutes east of the Soo at 5756 Highway 638, and we'll have more on another Leeburn-bound concert festival tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Convergence - "Dead And Dreaming" EP Review!!

It's now time for our 178th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and as our lengthy run of new album reviews crawls along, we're now taking a look at local progessive metal band Convergence's second EP "Dead And Dreaming"! Independently released to their Bandcamp page on January 1st (and thusly the first local metal album released in 2024), this EP was recorded at guitarist Brendan Christie's own Yellow Room Studios last year. The former Kraken Mara are again represented here by Brendan and his brother-in-law Jake Valois on guitar (bassist credits are not given), while the album features programmed drums aside from bringing back session drummer Cliff Aubut for "The Ebb". For the record, current drummer David Peredun didn't join Convergence until March. You can buy "Dead & Dreaming" on Bandcamp for $4.99, and while it can be streamed for free there, consider buying it to support the band's work!

With five songs (all instrumental) running for over 23 minutes in length, let's begin with this review with it's opening & title song "Dead And Dreaming"! While this runs for an album-low 40 seconds, it really only has 28 seconds of audible material, with a full band performance building and escalating before it ends and we hear more atmospheric noise & effects that fade out. I've never been a massive fan of intro/outro tracks like this, so this is filler to me, especially when it doesn't directly lead in to the following song. The first full song on offer is "Dig Up Your Ghost", which picks up where they left off on "One" with a strong catchy lead riff and a nicely paced structure that would fit well for verses and choruses if a singer was present (larger chorus sections was cited by the band as something they aimed for on these songs). I'd have had a much longer guitar solo though, especially given how a softer bridge immediately follows it.

This song shows off what Brendan & Jake do well and the technicality is very obvious, so it's a good true starter to the EP! The next two songs run both run for 6:30, making them the joint longest songs on "Dead & Dreaming". Of them, we first hear "Glass Statues", which was the name of a late 2000s local blues rock band that featured two of Brendan's future Late & Loud bandmates, incidentally. This one starts off softer and prettier, but gets more into a djent metal groove after the first minute. For pure guitar skill and melodies, I do prefer "Glass Statues" of the two early songs, and while not as punishing for metal riffs, it has a nice variance and structure that would be neat to see fleshed out further! That's followed by "The Ebb", which was briefly appended to "One" after its release but later moved to this follow-up EP instead. This song opens more atmospherically for the first 45 seconds before the djent riffs kick into full gear.

Strucutrally, this is more reminiscent of "Glass Statues" with the ebbs (of course) and flows of the guitar work from heavy to softer, and while still very well composed across the board, I don't think it glides along quite as well musically, at least for me. Cliff's drumming is welcomed and seems to settle into the song more naturally than the programmed drumming elsewhere, though if you like louder percussion, keep that in mind. Strong track all around for prog metal fans! "Dead And Dreaming" closes with "Awake", which was inspired by and dedicated to Brendan's grandma, who died in December after battling dementia, with the song influenced by his worsening communication with her & moments of lucidity as her memory declined. While certainly still a metal song with the riffing to match, "Awake" is the lightest song on average here, with Brendan & Jake making use of their composition abilities to good effect!

While this is an instrumental, I can see what Brendan's going for thematically, especially on softer passages, which definitely have a more melancholy mood, if still soaring onward, which is a sensation that their music always had for me. This is a quality closer that definitely means a lot to Brendan, so don't bypass it! So, what are my final thoughts on Convergence's sophomore EP? I'd have included more guitar solos, but this was a really good sequel to "One" that fans of progressive and djent metal will find a lot to like in! A lot of my nitpicks from their prior EP were addressed here, and we got a strong suite of instrumental metal that definitely played to their melodic strengths and songwriting abilities! If anything, these felt unfinished in that there was even more obviously parts meant to have a vocalist present, which they have been looking for, and it'd be neat to see these songs redone with one.

My favourite song is probably "Glass Statues", but aside from the title intro track, everything on here will deliver for subgenre fans! While there are lots of good breakdowns and riffs on offer, I'd have added more guitar solos and at least merged the intro into "Dig Up Your Ghost", but the prog metal attack is well composed and delivered, and here's hoping that "Gemini" comes out even better with David on board! Buy or stream "Dead And Dreaming" at the above links, and I hope you guys liked this month's CD review! Look for our next review of folk punk project Agnosticism's new EP "A Letter Of Resignation" next month, and for more news and notes on the site next month! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Half Past & The BAG) Plus Two New EP Releases!!

Today's post is split between two topics: the first local metal album releases of 2024 and a pair of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for next month, so here's what you should know on both fronts!

Remember how The Esquire Club's early 2024 concert calendar lists a band named "The B" as playing there on Friday, February 2nd? Well, they're not a mystery, rather a misprint, as young local metal trio The BAG will return there on this night! Frontman Spencer McGillivray confirmed that they are The B(AG) via their Facebook group on Friday, in what will be their first concert set of the year and their first appearance at the Second Line West nightclub since March of last year. Not sure what took them this long to come back, but hopefully Spencer, Austin, and Bradley deliver the metal goods for west end fans next month! In a rarity for The Esquire Club, this show will have an opening band, namely local punk trio Vanity First, in their second show together in under a week, following the previously announced Distraction concert on Saturday, January 27th, so this could be a rain date!

It's not every day when you get a double dose of original-heavy bands on stage together at The Esquire Club, so don't bypass this show next month for metal and punk action! This show is a 19+ event with no announced cover charge and a 9:00 PM start time. See above for more details!

Next up, reunited local hard rock quartet Half Past will finally return to the public concert stage on Saturday, February 3rd on Shooters Downstairs Lounge! As you may recall, Half Past were briefly advertised to return at Shooters in August of last year, only for that show to be cancelled without comment from the band, but with six more months to dial things in, hopefully next month's show is a huge hit for their comeback! This will be Half Past's first public concert in over twelve years, last seen at The Rockstar Bar in October 2011, and will see Jordan Rains, Alain Fletcher, and Arthur Lacasse now joined by Al's old Skeyes of Seven bandmate Jonny Amendola (original drummer Chris Thompson passed away in 2021, not long after Half Past relaunched). Hopefully their modern hard rock cover attack is welcomed back to the stage with ease after such a long layoff next month!

Note that this show (as well as Mid Life Crysis' show last night and Bone Yard's one nighter next week) are all Saturday nighters, seemingly indicating that Shooters has ended the Saturday DJ nights that they began last fall (or moved them to Fridays?). Half Past take the stage at 9:00 PM on February 3rd, this is a 19+ event, and there is no announced cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details!

Also today, I apologize for the two week delay in this making the site, but local progressive metal duo Convergence released their second EP to their Bandcamp page on New Year's Day! Entitled "Dead & Dreaming", this was recorded at guitarist Brendan Christie's own Yellow Room Studios, and is the end result of what was previously uploaded as a single to Bandcamp, and features five songs (well, four and an intro track), including "The Ebb", which was briefly appended to their "One" EP from last year. That song features returning session drummer Cliff Aubut, but unlike on "One", no songs here feature vocals. Along with a couple of unembeddable "Reels", the former Kraken Mara did share the Facebook video embedded below of Brendan playing 47 seconds of the closing track "Awake" in studio, with the format and setting being fairly similar to much of their 2023 videos ("Reels" or otherwise). The EP costs $4.99 on Bandcamp, and can be streamed for free there too.

A review of "Dead & Dreaming" is not pencilled in for the SMS until at least April, due to our policy of putting a buffer period of at least six months between reviews of the same project's albums, to avoid any accusations of bias or favouritism (we only reviewed "One" in October 2023). At present, we have Bold Noize, Sykotyk Rampage, and Sell This! slotted for the next few months, but don't worry, Convergence are coming up in the spring as our bumper crop of heavier album reviews continues! I'll hold comment until then, but if you like djent-laden progressive metal, do not skip past Convergence's new material above & below!

We'll close today with one more album release, and while I was unable to go to the release party due to prior commitments, local/Winnipeg industrial/punk solo project Sell This! released their third album "Empires Everywhere" last night! The album did not turn up on the project's Bandcamp page until today, but it is an EP with five songs, including two instrumentals. However, two of the songs run for 8+ minutes, so this is a near-half hour listen front to back. The songs do feature percussion too, but project founder/cellist Pete Mozarowski is the only credited musician on offer, so I don't know if he drummed here, and/or if he had a guest/session drummer, let alone for their set last night at The Distraction. "Empires Everywhere" is on sale for $5 (a whopping 1¢ more than "Dead & Dreaming") and can also be streamed for free there. As alluded to above, I have this album pencilled in for an SMS review in March after Bold Noize and Sykotyk Rampage.

This is due to our continued new release backlog dating back to late 2022, and while I try to go in chronological order, this will leapfrog "Dead & Dreaming" despite being two weeks newer due to our six month anti-bias buffer period between reviews of the same artist's albums. Both are coming in the spring, but buy or stream both albums above, and look for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

Forever Will Be - "Dead And Dishonest" Album Review!!

(Updated at 9:15 AM) It's now time for our 165th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, as we're taking a look at newer local pop punk solo project Forever Will Be's debut album "Dead And Dishonest"! Released to major streaming services on November 17th of last year, this is the home project for former As It Stands/For July guitarist Ryan McLaughlin's independent studio/label Relentless Audio, who previously worked on original material for other acts as well as Forever Will Be's original guise as Great West Falls. "Dead And Dishonest" was recorded over the preceding year, and while Ryan is the only credited band member, vocals were provided on a session basis by Billy Douglas of the British pop punk band Colosseums. You can stream it on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Pandora (US only), or Deezer, all handily linked on Hearnow. If you actually want to buy the album and own the mp3 files therein, the album runs for $7.92 on iTunes, so consider that option to support Ryan's work as well!

With eight songs running for around 27 minutes in length, let's begin this review with its first song, "Former Self"!  Opening with an extended drum intro, the rest of the instrumentation and Billy's vocals come in slowly with intent, building to a screamed half-verse and melodic choruses. He has the pop punk/screamo balance down nicely, but the music definitely takes a back seat to the vocals, more keeping time with the lyrics than standing on their own. Still a good opener for pop punk fans, and with good lyrics to boot! Next is the album's longest song, "Afflicted", which opens with a solid guitar riff but it stops dead in its tracks for the verses, though not in a bad way, setting the tone for the lyrics well. This actually builds up the vocals better for me, and they work in concert with the music better!

Billy lets loose with the screaming on the choruses to strong effect, and if he did all of the vocals in one take, then he switches from screaming to clean singing seamlessly! The fade-out at the end feels like it came out of nowhere, but an improved and more prominent instrumental section and some passioned vocals put things on an upward trajectory already! Third up is "Shadow Of Myself", which makes use of a good spacey guitar riff before the full song kicks in, and it is the heaviest and fastest song yet, so screamo and post-hardcore fans will definitely be drawn to this one! No reinventing the wheel here, but the up-tempo energy and enthusiasm is sure fitting on this track, and Billy's varied vocals fit the mood whether screaming or singing, so this album definitely continues improving track by track! Fourth on the album is "Antihero", which is not nearly as aggressive as the preceding but has another catchy intro going for it.

Interestingly, he seems to skip an initial chorus, but it still structurally works for pop punk fans, and the bass pokes through the best on this song of the ones so far! I will say that some of Billy's harsher vocals sound a little forced compared to earlier songs, and the opening guitar riff should have repeated itself more than it did, so the song is a dip in quality for my tastes but certainly still worth hearing. The second half leads off with the album's shortest track, namely "Conversations In The Dark", which is a 2+ minute instrumental piece. Until the last 35 seconds, we just get spare guitar work with muffled background dialogue (the title conversations, no doubt) before the full band kicks in for a heavier-leaning punk attack. For me, it's a shame that the closing stretch wasn't longer, as I honestly wasn't feeling this song until then, but I understand that it was probably intended to break things up on the album.

We're back to traditional songs from Forever Will Be next, with "Nosedive", which honestly reminds me a bit of early Fall Out Boy aside from the screamed vocal parts (which are less prevalent here than on the first half). Admittedly, I don't like Fall Out Boy, but emo punk fans will like the comparison of styles here! The higher vocals and more vibrant playing help this song stand out, and it is well performed, but for my genre preferences, I do prefer the album's first four songs for aggression and guitar work. The penultimate song is "Drown", which does return to the style of the first half of the album with more screaming, more of a punk edge, and more of a freewheeling attack that accentuates the solid guitar work. The big addition is actually voicemail from an unidentified woman during the bridge, which makes more sense in context. Definitely a return to form for "Dead & Dishonest" overall, and not a moment too soon!

The album closes with "Downsides", which you may also know from its later acoustic version (Forever Will Be's newest release at press time). This is a more melodic song on average with limited screaming, but unlike "Nosedive", this isn't as Fall Out Boy-esque. At the same time, the vocals are (on average) sung safer and without as much energy and changes in tempo or pitch. Not a bad closer to the album that is well within the ballpark for subgenre fans, but also not as lively and intense as earlier songs, but listen for yourself to see what you think!

So, what are my final thoughts on Forever Will Be's debut album? It's inconsistent for what I go for in punk rock, but fans of pop punk, emo, and/or screamo will find a lot to like here! Ryan shows clear multi-instrumental talent, while Billy uses his voice in lots of different ways to get across the sounds and styles on offer, and if I had to compare the songs here to a known band from the mid-2000s glory days of emo-leaning pop punk, I'd say The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus would be a reasonable choice. The production quality helped this album stand out despite its independent trappings, and you can tell that this comes from a place of love for these subgenres (if Ryan had put this out twenty years ago, it'd have been huge locally). "Afflicted", "Shadow of Myself", and "Drown" were my favourite songs based on the aggression and guitar riffs in particular, but there are things to address.

"Conversations In The Dark" was filler until it wasn't, "Nosedive" (despite being the single with music video) was a little too emo compared to what I like, and I do think the album started and ended on songs that were a little too direct and vocal driven despite not having the peaks & valleys of other songs in the vocal department. Still, for a first solo effort, Ryan (and Billy) impressed with Forever Will Be's debut, and if you like early-mid 2000s screamo and pop punk, do check this out for yourself above! I hope you guys liked this month's CD review, and look for our review of Mike McCleary's new solo EP "Fallout From Midnight Tides" on the site next month, and for more news and notes this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Soundcheck), A New Local Punk Project, And New Videos!!

Today's post was going to be our latest Defunct Local Band Profile, but a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (partially missed, at that) hit my desk this morning, so we're pushing the feature post ahead slightly. To fill things out, there's also some new videos and a surprise new local punk band to take a look at, so here's what you should know!

We have a new local screamo/pop punk project to add to our Sault Ontario band links, namely Forever Will Be! This act is led by former As It Stands/For July guitarist Ryan McLaughlin, though I don't know if this is the same project as his 2019 offering Great West Falls or not, or if anyone else performs on their material. Their Facebook page is mostly a shell so far, but Forever Will Be is considered "the home project" of Ryan's independent studio/label Relentless Audio, who have been covered on the SMS previously for working on his old band As It Stands' posthumous EP "The Lost Tapes" and Christopher Raginskis' online page-less punk solo project 9 Times Dark's debut album "Vicissitude", both from 2020. According to posts on Relentless Audio's Facebook page, Forever Will Be's debut album from November 17th (entitled "Dead & Dishonest") has been "a year in the making" and he hopes to take listeners back to 2004 with the songs.

You can hear the album for free on major streaming platforms linked via this Hearnow page, but it is on sale on iTunes for $7.92, so consider buying it if you want the mp3s and/or to support Ryan's work. I'll hold comment on the songs until I review the album proper (likely next month), but definitely check out the album's preview videos on the Relentless Facebook page, and here's their first music video for "Nosedive" from their YouTube channel, set to clips of people in varying states of despair. If you like Ryan's past local band work, do check out Forever Will Be above & below!

Next up, here's that LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Reggie's Place for a concert TONIGHT, after previously playing there last night! I profusely apologize for the short notice and for missing yesterday's show in our concert preview post on Thursday, I just heard about both this morning via Reggie's Facebook page (who only announced them Wednesday night), and Soundcheck themselves have not mentioned them on their own Facebook page. Yesterday's and TONIGHT'S shows mark(ed) Soundcheck's first at Reggie's since mid-October, and hopefully their fan-friendly blend of classic, hard rock, and country covers found a strong audience last night, and will do so again TONIGHT! It is worth noting that Reggie's is now up for sale for $480,000, as per this SooToday article by Kenneth Armstrong on Monday, noting that Reggie Daigle himself actually still owns the property.

The sale "doesn't include the business", as from what I understand, Randy Lapossie is just managing bar operations, but whether the new owners would keep things as they have been since late 2020 is yet unknown. It sure seems like business as usual for now at Reggie's, but after Reggie sold Reggie's West, this can't be too surprising. We'll keep you posted! TONIGHT'S (and yesterday's) show has a 9:00 PM start time, no cover charge, and a 19+ age limit. See above for more details, apologies again for missing last night's concert, and here's Soundcheck live!

Also today, here's a couple of new videos from prolific local extreme metal/folk punk guitarist Chase Wigmore's Facebook page! One is just a Facebook copy of his original song "The Guilt And Shame In Being" from his newest solo album "We Are All Going To Die", and while I'll hold comment on it pending our review of the album later this month, Chase did clarify that this is "one of the quieter ones" on the album. The new video proper from Sunday is cryptically titled "$20", and features him playing the guitar solo from Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb". The grainy black & white filter combined with a poorly placed light over Chase's face don't add to the video, but he nails the solo, helping forget about the visual deficiencies. Check it out for yourself below, and stay tuned for more from Chase!

Finally for today, here's some new videos from local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek's Facebook page, albeit not primarily focused on their "Christmas Blowout" at Soo Blaster tonight. As they have done for a guitar last year, Fort Creek recently held a raffle on Facebook for a custom jazz bass donated by Tommy Lair, with proceeds going to the Algoma Regional Community Hospice (or ARCH). That, along with a giveaway for a band t-shirt and tickets to tonight's show also took place in the past couple of weeks, with bassist Robin "Bones" Lee and drummer Anthony Fabiano appearing in this one hyping all of their draws, and more band members turned up in this video to announce the winner of the shirt/tickets raffle. Be advised that some of these recent videos have awful audio that almost sounds like an old 78 RPM record, not sure what happened there.

The draw for the bass is ongoing until December 21st (or until all 100 allocated tickets are bought, whichever comes first), so visit their Facebook page for details on how to enter! As for the videos, I'll embed the one from November 29th here, which features a clip of Bones playing the bass to demonstrate its abilities and sound for prospective ticket buyers, as preceded by a clip of their studio original "Hammer Down" and an oddly echoed audio recording of him discussing the raffle. On the gear and performer's end, everything sounds good, so definitely check it out below, get details above, and don't miss Fort Creek tonight at Soo Blaster!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on the site next! Thanks everyone!

The Bear Hunters - "The Dead Testament" Album Review!!

It's now time for our 138th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and final one of 2020, as we're taking a look at local death metal band The Bear Hunters' second studio album "The Dead Testament"! Surprisingly released on their Bandcamp page on November 21st, recording sessions took place between October 2015 and 2018 at Mission Control Studios with producer Dustin Jones, while the album was mixed by Kyle Whittaker at Strange Pumpkin Studio in St. Catharine's, who also mixed albums from such Mission Control-recorded acts as Northwest and The Rising Tide, among others. The Bear Hunters lineup is credited as vocalist Nik Deubel, guitarist Mitch Sirie, bassist Justin Lam, and drummer Johnny Belanger. While early indications had relocated rhythm guitarist Josh Stephney recording tracks for the album, he is not listed on their Bandcamp lineup (note that he has not played live with The Bear Hunters in over four years.)

The album proper and a planned CD release party were both delayed due to personal life concerns and the ongoing pandemic, hence the quiet digital-only release, with customers able to buy it on Bandcamp via a "name your price" model (you can also download & stream it free, but consider paying something to support their work!) The Bear Hunters do hope to sell CDs and give it a proper launch concert when they are able. With 12 songs running for about 54 minutes in length, let's begin this long-awaited album review!

"The Dead Testament" opens with "The Void" (a sequel to "Render This Void", which closed their 2014 debut "Eternal Hibernation"), and there is some odd feedback before the song proper kicks into full gear. I am glad to say that the production quality is much better than on their first CD! Nik's brutal yet well enunciated death growling is front and center on the verses, which are about a torturous fate in the title void that will never end. The guitar riffs are crisp yet have a grandiose feel to them, Justin's bass work fits in fine, and Johnny's drumming adds some strong pounding rhythms. I'd have liked more of a guitar solo, and to a point, I think the song is dictated by the vocals too much, but it's a strong opener! Second is "The Omen", which is inspired by the 1976 horror movie and/or it's 2006 remake. A much faster paced and thrashier song, you wouldn't expect these lyrics on such a fast number!

The guitar melodies on the choruses are so catchy, and Mitch's guitar solo shines brightly when it arrives, while Nik's controlled growling tells the story well, including on his rapid fire recitations after the solo. My big problem with "The Omen" is it's all too abrupt ending, and given the song's relatively short runtime, it came way out of left field. Until then though, this is absolutely a crushing album highlight! Next is "For Glory", which is essentially a rally song for a viking horde (violent warriors, at any rate.) Opening with a brief yet strong guitar solo, this steadily driving song has an Amon Amarth-ish quality, but here, you can clean vocals from Mitch alternating with Nik on the choruses. It's definitely not "Squirrel Buddy", but it's nice to hear Mitch chime in like this, and he has an underrated range! Johnny's drumming is particularly effective for this march, and while the ending is again too sudden, the composition and pacing suit the story very well here!

Track #4 is "I Fear No God", which was this album's premature first single in December 2018, complete with it's own music video. Lyrically about blind faith in religion, even when the world is falling apart, this song has a lengthy introduction before the first verse that I honestly would have trimmed, but the song proper delivers the death metal goods. This is a relatively slower and darker song, but that suits the lyrics, and it still has a brisk pace, with solid growling, great bass work by Justin, and another quality guitar solo. Enjoyable song with evocative lyrics overall! Following is "Servitude", which is about following what others say and demand, and not thinking for yourself. This definitely feels like a song that could have been cut from "Eternal Hibernation", with it's guitar-driven sound and specific distortion, but of course, it sounds better here by default.

Nothing is shockingly unique compared to earlier songs, but it's a good vehicle for Nik's rapid-fire vocals, Mitch and Justin pair well on this song, the guitar solo really lets loose, and the ending actually makes sense for the composition. Not a bad song at all, it's relentless and fits for fans of The Bear Hunters from the start! Next up is "Transcend Judgement", which feels like a companion piece to the prior two songs based on it's lyrics about not blindly following what others demand of you. Very black metal-inspired number at first, with more of an atmospheric sound on the verses, contrasting sharply with Johnny's relentless drum tap-led choruses (admittedly, this can get repetitive.) Mitch's guitar solo has a very 1970s prog vibe to it, if that makes any sense. The closing stretch is more death metal inspired, with some nice guitar flourish, adding up to a very piecemeal song, but still very brutal!

Seventh on the album is "Neckbreaker", which is another seemingly viking-inspired song like "For Glory", this time about the title character's violent pursuits in battle. This is a return to the fast driving style of early tracks, with relentless and purposeful vocals, very solid drumming, a nicely suited bass line, and evocative & very metal lyrics. Another abrupt ending, but this song comes together well otherwise, and everyone delivers in their own way throughout! Afterwards, we get "The Dying Den", which seems to be about struggling to overcome depression or strife, or else be doomed to live in the title location. The distorted intro (which recurs after the guitar solo) wasn't my favourite, but the song proper will please fans with it's aggressive pace and clear lyrics! Very wordy song, admittedly. Everything's paced well, the instrumentation is strong, and it's definitely a strong rhythm showcase!

There are more instantly memorable songs, but The Bear Hunters aren't losing steam yet! Ninth is "Wrath of Angmar", which is inspired by The Lord of The Rings, a series I have never gotten into, but Tolkien fans will appreciate the intricate lyrics! The pounding riff pairs well with Nik's typically aggressive vocals, especially on the choruses, and the ominous bridge before the guitar solos is well handled, if brief. Another abrupt ending, but this song is brutal as you'd expect, even if the lyrical inspiration flies right past me! On the future physical releases, the last non-bonus song is the title track "The Dead Testament", also the album's longest track. Lyrically about a last violent siege against religion. Justin leads off with an isolated, slow bass line before the full band unleashes the fury. Strongly composed, and like with "For Glory", Mitch brings back his clean vocals in compliment with Nik's growling during a few extended choruses.

The first one honestly runs too long, and next two are placed somewhat awkwardly over blast beats, but everything comes together in this regard at the end. I like the progressive and less predictable structure, and the guitar work is the star here, but shorter songs seemed to get the heavy point across better. The album closes with two bonus tracks (unlabeled as such on Bandcamp), starting with the shortest song on offer, "The Forest of Forests", which is a straight-up parody of black metal, with lyrics about how Norwegian forests are dark and cold. It's well handled, especially during the amusing spoken word section, and while this is a parody, The Bear Hunters probably could go full black metal if they chose! Nik's shrieking fits the genre, and it's well written, but again, it's very short. The final track is a re-recording of "Deception" from "Eternal Hibernation". You can hear the original version at this link, and read our review of the original song at this link.

I won't re-review the song proper here, but the re-recording is the same song but slightly longer, and it blows the original version out of the water, largely thanks to much richer, fuller, and less tinny instrumentation, and the guys made the right call to get this thing recorded and mixed where they did! Nik's growling is comparable on both versions though, the vocals came through the best on the first CD. It'd be great to see The Bear Hunters re-record the entire "Eternal Hibernation" album in similar conditions, but who knows where that falls on the priority ladder.

So, what are my final thoughts on "The Dead Testament"? Overall, this is an improvement in every way on "Eternal Hibernation", and it's great to see this finally on sale six years after their debut! The Bear Hunters' chemistry and musicianship is on full display throughout, with Nik's brutal and clear growling a constant presence, Mitch delivering strong riffs and solos, Justin laying down excellent bass throughout, and Johnny providing solid percussion and blast beats where necessary! While not a massive leap upward in compositional quality from their debut, the production and mixing make these songs shine (in a brutal, heavy way), so kudos to Dustin and Kyle for their hard work in giving us the best version of these songs! I like the variance into black and progressive metal on some songs, Mitch's clean vocals added some zest, and the lyrics were all well written for their genre, especially on highlights like "The Omen", "For Glory", and "Servitude", among others.

In terms of criticisms... a few songs seemed to be exceedingly wordy, abrupt endings happened too much, and given how well he complimented Nik, I'd have liked to have heard more of Mitch's clean vocals, but those are all minor. If you love death metal (especially of the local persuasion), you owe it to yourself to buy "The Dead Testament" at the above links, and hopefully they'll have a proper CD release party in the new year, pandemic willing! I hope you guys liked this month's CD review, but what will lead off 2021 in this regard? I have no idea, but our newest "Where Are The New Albums?" post below may give some hints. If no major new albums come out, we'll dip into the archives, but the next review subject will not be any project we've reviewed since August due to our 6 month anti bias buffer. Stay tuned, and hopefully we'll have a new news post on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Fort Creek), A Surprise Album Release, And Much More!!

In what will likely be our last news post of this painfully slow month at the SMS, we have some new videos, a couple of bands likely destined for our inactive band links, and a very surprising metal album release. Leading off are a pair of SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, and while this is a day earlier than usual, keep in mind how slow things have been this month, I have to slot in stories where I can. Here's what you should know!

Local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek will return to Reggie's West for concerts on FRIDAY & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, these dates were only announced via the band's Facebook page on Monday. One week removed from rocking the downtown Reggie's, this will be Fort Creek's second concert weekend at the former Rosie, following their debut gigs there over a month ago. Like this past weekend, FRIDAY & SATURDAY'S concerts will double as Christmas Cheer donation events, so if you have new/unopened toys or non-perishable food items, bring them with you to the Reggievelt to help those in need over the holidays! You can witness Fort Creek's brand of hard rocking covers on FRIDAY & SATURDAY at 9:30 PM with a 19+ age limit and no announced cover charges, but remember to respect the venue's social distancing protocols. See above for more details, and here's Fort Creek live at Reggie's West last month!

Next up, local death metal quintet The Bear Hunters have finally released their second studio album "The Dead Testament"! Over five years after recording sessions began at Mission Control Studios, and almost two years after the debut of their "I Fear No God" music video, the album was released on their Bandcamp page on Saturday on a "name your price" model, with all twelve previously teased songs present, though "The Forest of Forests" is no longer labelled as a "bonus track". In their new Facebook page posting, the band revealed that "the album has spent far too long sitting here ready to release", but a proper CD release party hasn't taken place due to personal life commitments and the ongoing pandemic. The guys admitted that "proper metal shows are probably still a long way off", and while they did want to finally get the album out there, they hope to be able to sell CDs at a normal live concert and play the album in full there when "the day finally comes".

Of course, The Bear Hunters have only played two concerts since the end of 2017, and until Saturday, they hadn't been publically heard from since the Lycanthro concert in April was cancelled. Though the circumstances certainly aren't ideal, it is great to see "The Dead Testament" finally on sale, and while you can download it for free, consider actually paying something for this labour of love! Not expecting any metal/punk albums to go on sale in November 2020, I already reviewed an archive album for this month, but "The Dead Testament" will be reviewed on the SMS in early December, I promise! Buy or stream the whole thing at the above links!

Also, let's head to Sault Michigan for more new videos from local hard rock quartet Tarnished's Facebook page, where they have been staying busy in in the last few days! Following the reveal of their planned merchandise give-away next month, the guys next uploaded a short video of them driving to the recording studio at night, which has some amusing moments while it lasts! Next was this short video of a band member(?) in a fox mask eating a shirt(?!), while three videos followed where the guys showed off a huge lot of Yooperlites (the syenite rocks found in this region that glow orange under blacklights) that they borrowed from discoverer Erik Rintamaki (yes, the former Half A Man frontman) to make their logo and other designs with. Fun and decidedly local idea, hopefully I'll find even one Yooperlite in my travels!

Lastly, Tarnished uploaded two blooper-reel videos from their merch give-away video shoot, including a short one featuring line flubs from Josh and Nathan. Embedded below is the first of the two, which is also on their YouTube channel, and features failed takes from Alex's appearances in the giveaway video (this and the "On The Road Again" video are the only new ones covered above to be uploaded on YouTube). Fun idea to generate some new content and make light of themselves, so give the blooper-reel videos and more a watch above and below, and also visit the the band's new TikTok page (that's a new one for the SMS!)

Finally for today, I wanted to acknowledge two Sault Ontario-based tribute bands that I will likely be moving to our inactive band links on Sunday due to a year's inactivity, namely Volbeat tribute quintet The Guitar Gangsters and Distillers tribute quartet Coral Fang. I'm lumping them together here because both bands share a common member (guitarist/vocalist Tiffany Stocco), and we last heard from either band when they both took a road trip to Sudbury for a joint concert on November 29th of last year. Naturally, the pandemic could be a big factor into both bands' public hiatuses, but with Tiff and Guitar Gangsters frontman Buzz living out of town, updates would naturally be slower on that basis already. Coral Fang debuted at J.D. Pearce's annual Halloween party in October 2018, and resurfaced at last year's Joni Radford memorial concert and Go Skateboarding Day, while The Guitar Gangsters played their only local date at J.D.'s Halloween party on November 1st of last year.

With familiar supergroup lineups behind both bands, and solid musicianship to make their tribute sets stand out, both Coral Fang & The Guitar Gangsters delivered for their limited live dates, and hopefully we'll see them (and/or their members) on stage again when the pandemic eases up! Best of luck to Buzz, Jesse, Mike, Derek, Tiffany, Chris, Adam, and Johnny in the future! That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next, barring a sudden influx of stories in the days ahead! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Soo's Got Talent & Tym Morrison) And Our First Of This Weekend's Concert Previews!!

Usually, the local hard rock concert calendar slows down in the autumn (Halloween aside), but that is not the case this weekend, as we have enough concert previews for two full posts, with at least one needing to be in a third post! As such, here's the schedule. This post has two SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS and our Cancer Bats preview (as that show is tonight), while we'll tackle the Whoop-Szo, Chase Wigmore, Soundcheck, and Wyld Stallyns concerts later today, with Peril's St. Ignace dates to follow tomorrow morning along with other recent stories. Hopefully that covers everything, so here's what you should know to start the weekend!

Joining his regular Gliss Restaurant matinees TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT, local acoustic solo musician Tym Morrison will reportedly play at Thomson Farms Cider & Winery on Third Line West for a third straight week TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, a Facebook event page has not visibly been created to plug this show at press time, but the mill advertised Tym as performing on their Facebook page, and the show is also listed on SooToday's events calendar. Whether this is an extended weekly arrangement for the fall season or not, the third time may be the charm for fans of Tym's unplugged hard and classic rock covers, so look for him in the wine barn TONIGHT! For what it's worth, Thomson Farms will have pumpkin spice cider on sale starting today, but if you're not into that, their selection is large. Of course, Tym's ongoing Gliss shows should provide more entertaining unplugged music for your dinner-time entertainment tomorrow and Saturday, so don't miss out!

As was the case in the past two weeks, all three of these shows are age limit-devoid and have no stated cover charges (though mind the locales), and while the Gliss shows are at 6:00 PM as usual, the Thomson Farms show TONIGHT is at 5:00 PM. Visit the Gliss concerts' Facebook event page and the above links for more details, and here's Tym live!



Next up, The Soo's Got Talent officially kicks off it's sophomore installment TOMORROW NIGHT at The Grand Gardens Verdi Ballroom (p.k.a. The Verdi Hall), and there will be one metal band/performer on the preliminary competitor roster, namely the returning Apocalypse Afterparty! Again, apologies for the short notice, their involvement only broke this week when organizers unveiled the first round lineup, and the band proper didn't publicize their Wacky Wings audition last month for us to get an advance teaser. This will be X and z's first public concert since their run of pop-up gigs in mid-2017, so can they shake off the stage rust in time for TOMORROW's talent competition? For what it's worth, their Facebook page teases a new setlist and band member, though of course, remember that they were infamous for wearing masks on stage. However, do not expect a long performance, as twenty-three acts are playing TOMORROW. I won't attempt to list all 23 here, especially as many are unfamiliar to me, but a few other familiar faces are competing!

Regarding returnees from last year, the only finalist that I can discern as playing year #2 is singer Bethany Pelletier (LeBeouf), while L!me's Madi Schomogyi is also advertised as returning. Some other familiar names may include Colin Gasparelli (from this year's Fringe North/Up The Arts music stage), 2017 Soo Youth Songwriters Contest winner Juliana Regan, and local beatboxer Killabeatz, among others. Of course, with a lineup this big, it's hard to predict who will advance, but remember that The Apocalypse Afterparty did mount a surprise finals run in 2015's VM Radio Battle of the Bands, and "songwriter" Paul Stanghetta did place in earlier battles with The Fury. However, remember that this is not a battle of the bands, and expect to see non-musicians TOMORROW NIGHT, including The Dancing Divas. Moving to The Verdi Hall after the closure of The Tech, this event is a fundraiser to support the ARCH Hospice.

Bands selected to advance at night's end will compete again next Friday, September 20th, with semifinals on September 27th, and the finals taking place on October 11th, so be sure to visit the Facebook event page for continuing updates on the competition as it progresses. The show starts TOMORROW NIGHT at 8:00 PM, with a $10 cover charge for adults, $5 for kids 16 and under, and those prices and times also apply for later rounds too. Things sound bigger and better for The Soo's Go Talent II, but who will move on to next week, and what do The A.A. have up their sleeves? See above for more details, and stay tuned for updates!

Finally, here's a big concert taking place TONIGHT at Soo Blaster, as Toronto hardcore punk/sludge metal quartet The Cancer Bats will make their long awaited return to the city for what should be a brutal time! Many fans may recall seeing these four time Juno nominees open for Billy Talent at the Gardens 9½ years ago, but this will be their first headlining show here since 2006. After too long of a wait, The Cancer Bats' hard hitting modern metal attack should melt many faces again tonight! Note that Alexisonfire's Wade MacNeil will be filling in for new dad Scott Middleton on guitar for this tour. Support will come from London post-hardcore quintet The Single Mothers and Baltimore hardcore punk band Sharptooth, who each bring proficient sounds and direct lyrics to the table for sub-genre fans, while Thunder Bay female-fronted punk quintet Forever Dead were quietly added to the bill themselves late last month. Apparently playing here last ca. 2008, Forever Dead have became a very prominent band in Thunder Bay with their fast-paced and energetic sound, and it'll be great to see them back!

Local support will come from punk trio Redundant in their first public show of 2019, where they will reportedly unveil their new bassist, so who's handling the low end now? Find out TONIGHT! Presented by Thunder Bay's Loffredo & Associates (who brought Monster Truck here this summer), this 19+ & 8:00 PM concert has $20 tickets available at this link and presumably at the door. With this huge lineup and The Cancer Bats' positive reputation, I'm hopeful this will be a big hit at the gate and with fans, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The Cancer Bats live!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Whoop-Szo, Chase Wigmore, Soundcheck, and Wyld Stallyns previews next! Thanks everyone!