LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Dos Amigos & Curtis McKenzie), A New Song, And More Updates!!

We've made it to the month of June, and as far as I'm concerned, the summer season has also begun! Starting off things for June 2025 is a new news post featuring LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (one on very SHORT NOTICE), a new single from a local metal project, and some assorted recent notes, so here's what you should know on this Sunday morning!

Former Project 421/Eclipse frontman Curtis McKenzie will return to Beck's Bar for a matinee concert TODAY! Apologies for the short notice, this gig is legitimately a late notice replacement show due to folk singer/guitarist Matthew James dropping out of his planned Sunday matinee date there for publically unannounced reasons. Hopefully all is well with Matthew, but kudos to Curt for slotting in on a day's notice, and if you missed him at The Dive on Thursday, you have another chance to see his hard rock covers earlier than you may have realized! However, TODAY's matinee is a change from the former Vibe Lounge's usual scheduling, as it will have a special start time of 1:00 PM rather than 3:00 PM. This is to accommodate Beck's Bar's late involvement in the United Ironworkers Motorcycle Club 786's annual Poker Run, which will see participating bikers stop in at Beck's en route. Click here for full details on the Poker Run itself.

Should be a unique atmosphere for this concert, especially so recently into Beck's run since re-opening, and hopefully there's a good turnout for Curtis' covers at this Goulais River nightclub TODAY! As usual, expect a 19+ age limit and no cover, and remember, this show starts two hours early for the Poker Run's benefit, so Curt's not guaranteed past 5:00 PM. Visit the above links for more on TODAY'S late notice concert, and here's Curt live!

Next up, new local acoustic punk cover duo Dos Amigos will take part in the Lot & Loaded Parking Lot Jam outside of Forty Five Social on Saturday, June 14th! This special multi-act concert is being held concurrently with the annual Sault Ste. Marie Festival of Beer, and will take place in the parking lot of the men's clothing store in the former Salvation Army building at 117 Spring Street, which is just a stone's throw from the Festival of Beer itself, and "crafty cocktails" will be offered on site while checking out Lot & Loaded. We await full confirmation on the Downtown Plaza music lineup for the festival proper, but the Parking Lot Jam means that Mikey Hawdon & Dustin Jones will be pulling double duty, as they'll be playing prior at some point with their alternative cover band Bookclub. Should be a fun, if busy day for Mikey & Dustin, so don't miss out in two weeks at both locations! At Forty Five Social, Dos Amigos are co-headlining at 7:00 PM, which is when the Festival of Beer itself ends.

Headlining here is veteran local musician Jay Case at 9:00 PM, while the other musicians are the aforementioned Matthew (or "Matty") James at 4:00 PM, Pillory bassist Blair St. John at 2:00 PM, and country music veteran Marty Frolick at 1:00 PM. There is no announced cover charge for this outdoor concert, and while there isn't a stated age limit, remember that this is coinciding with the Festival of Beer. Visit the above links for more details!

Also today, here's a brand new studio single from local deathcore duo Hollow Sky! Their third original song and first in just over a year, the song is called "To Die For", and according to the band, it's streaming "everywhere". Definitely not an accurate claim, as unlike their first two singles, it's not on Boomplay (yet?), let alone Bandcamp, Tidal, and so on. By "everywhere", they mean Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Amazon Music, and Deezer. To promote the single, Hollow Sky ramped up their social media presence in the preceding weeks, including teaser "Reels" featuring the single cover artwork and clips of the song, one featuring guitarist Adam Fahrer playing a djent riff from it. While we're in the unembeddable and vertical portion of this post, they also shared a "Reel" of Adam playing along with Dream Theater's "Strange Deja Vu", a song whose riff he loves. Sounds good to me!

The last teaser video (not a "Reel" despite being vertically framed) features on-screen lyrics for the sample clip, implying that they might be posting a full lyric video for "To Die For", but as best as I can tell, there isn't one yet. Featuring clean vocals along with death growling from Liam Tallon alternating relatively frequently, this track has a catchy bounce to it while still displaying really solid technical guitar work, and the production suits everything well, so it's great to see Hollow Sky back at it! No word on if we'll be waiting another year for their fourth song, but give yourself something to die for below, and stay tuned for more Hollow Sky updates!

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

 

• I have moved local hardcore punk solo project Choking On Appendages to our inactive band links. A heavier solo project than we had previously seen from Hails/Agnosticism guitarist Mikhal Muto, C.O.A.'s only public activity was the release of their debut EP "Macabre" on Bandcamp on May 30th last year, with no further social media pages launching for the project. I liked what I heard from Choking On Appendages, and hopefully Mikhal revisits them down the road, but follow his current bands and promoted concerts to see what he's currently up to!
• Also back in our inactive links is local death metal band Chronic Demonic, who have not posted on their Facebook page since one year ago yesterday. A long-gestating group led by ex-Frightlight guitarist Kevin Powe & ex-Faithless Sin bassist Ryan Gratton, Chronic Demonic played live just once, covering The Misfits at the former Roosevelt Hotel back in 2013, though they continued updating fans on their updates (or lack thereof) for over a decade afterwards. Their perseverance was always nice to see, and it'd be great to see that proper concert down the road! Hopefully we hear more from Nik, Kevin, Ryan, Jonathan, and other ex-members soon, and R.I.P. Sabrina!
• In a late addition to the Derev-headlined concert at Soo Blaster on May 23rd, promoter Tyler St. Amour (also using his middle name William in the advertising) opened the show with a solo set, as per his agency Heavy North Entertainment's Facebook page that morning. Tyler's addition was "due to some scheduling conflicts", but whether he was replacing advertised solo opener Chase Wigmore or was an extra act, I can't immediately confirm. As a musician, Tyler is best known as a metal bassist and vocalist with bands like Them and Bardo, but this was implied to be an acoustic set, so it'd be interesting to hear how he sounds in that format!

 

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Vaegon), New Videos, And More Recent Updates!!

Before we begin today's post, I wanted to apologize for missing local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations' one-nighter at The Water Tower Pub this past Saturday for coverage on the site. While the venue never plugged the show on social media, drummer Tony Santoro plugged it thrice on their Facebook group between June 5th and that afternoon, all of which passed me by at the time. I apologize again and will do better to keep tabs on their updates, but hopefully it was a big hit, and don't miss Generations at Rotaryfest next month, especially with the schedule coming out this week! Now, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, new videos, and much more from Sault Ontario in the last while!

Remember the era of Roosevelt Hotel metal nights in the early 2010s? Well, we're getting a return to the good old days on Sunday, July 21st, as the former Rosie (now known as Jay's Piston Broke Pub) will host touring extreme metal bands that night! Both making their local concert debut, the bands in question are technical death metal bands from western Canada, including Edmonton quartet Vaegon as the headliners alongside Vancouver quintet Exterminatus, who are touring Canada on the Particle Eclipse Canada Tour (named for Vaegon's newest EP). It's not hyperbole when I say that this will be the heaviest show to take place at Jay's/Reggie's West since The Rosie was sold in 2014, and between Vaegon's intense original material and Exterminatus' Cannibal Corpse-reminiscent sound, both containing groove metal elements, extreme metal fans should be right at home at 306 Korah Road next month, especially on Rotaryfest weekend!

Local support will come by way of young metal trio The BAG in their first announced show in three months, and if Facebook comment replies are to be believed, they were key in getting this show booked. Not an extreme metal band, but Spencer, Austin, and Bradley will set the tone well! This 8:00 PM and 19+ concert has $10 tickets, presumably available at Jay's and through BAG members. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details on the brutality hitting Jay's next month, so metalheads can party like it's 2011 or so all over again!

Next up, here's the latest from local hard rock trio Bullet Train, who posted their newest at-home demo single to their YouTube channel two weeks ago! After a few weeks of teasers hinting at new material, they delivered with "Profit", which also has a music/lyric video giving us our first look at real (if monochrome) video footage of Cory, Bones, and Anthony on camera performing in this project! AI imagery also alternates with the performance clips, and sticking close to their past songs/videos, this one is very much focused on current issues, specifically the belief that it's more profitable for pharmaceutical companies to medicate illnesses than cure them. I am not qualified to comment on stuff like this, so I'll leave that to people who are, but fans of Cory's old bands like Sense of Truth will like the chugging riffs and melodic vocals on display, though I'll leave any analysis of the lyrics for others. Check out "Profit" for yourselves below!

Also, here's the latest from local hard rock quintet HeadFirst, who return to the stage at Go Skateboarding Day on Friday, but this is very different. As you may recall, Shooters Downstairs Lounge hosted their first annual karaoke talent quest competition last summer, where ex-Re:Born singer Elly McWatters won the $1,000 first prize and a trip to Las Vegas. We don't actively cover 100% karaoke events here, but I did note last year that local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck had signed on as the judges for the event's duration. This year, Shooters have changed things up by enlisting rotating guest judges, and for night #1 on June 9th, the judges were most of HeadFirst! Everyone except guitarist Liam Dinsmore and drummer Anthony Boudreau headed to the Dennis Street nightclub to judge the competition, and they actually filmed the MC's introduction and the first singer for their Facebook page!

Again, I don't cover karaoke-only events here, but as HeadFirst filmed this and are featured on camera, I thought I'd at least acknowledge it. The video features singer Vix Vikken covering My Chemical Romance's "I Don't Love You", and while Vix didn't advance to the top 25 on their first shot, paid registrants can keep auditioning until the top 25 is filled out, so there is still time for Vix to match their top 12 run under a different name last year. Emo and pop punk fans will like the strong vocal cover here, so check the video at this link! I can't embed it here, as Facebook content matched the "I Don't Love You" backing track.

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

 

• Sporadically-heard-from local metal band Chronic Demonic made their first post about real band activity since 2022 on their Facebook page on May 31st, where guitarist Kevin Powe (ex-Fitswitch) revealed that he's "jammin' with my unnamed 3rd project" that also includes drummer Jonathan Harvey (ex-Gates of Winter), and he floated the idea of playing a joint show with all three of his bands. He didn't give the identity of the second band, but it could be the inactive Frightlight, who dropped out of a planned reunion set at the Northern Vibe Festival last year. It'd be great to see Chronic Demonic finally play a full concert, but visit the above links for more info!
• After seeing their album "Deconstructed" nominated for Outstanding Engineer (Dustin Goodall) at this year's Northern Ontario Film & Music Awards, local alt-hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich will hit the road for Sudbury next Friday to play at that night's Soiree d'Ambiance Artist Showcase at Le Studio Desjardins, one of multiple Northern Ontario showcase concerts taking place that weekend around the awards ceremony. Handsome Sandwich and North Bay punk band Peach Pact will be opening for Thunder Bay folk rockers The Honest Heart Collective that night. Best of luck to Handsome Sandwich and Dustin next weekend!
  
• Local metal concert promotion agency Heavy North Entertainment has relaunched after a six year hiatus! Ran by former Them frontman Tyler St. Amour, the company has been plugging events from other promoters in recent months, but confirmed on their Facebook page earlier this month that they are booking events for this year and next year, and are "pleased to be working" the It's The Pits Festival from Piecing It Together Shows in Leeburn this weekend. I don't know to what end Tyler is involved in It's The Pits, as it's not metal-centric like in H.N.E.'s early-mid 2010s heyday, but it's great to see him back promoting concerts in the Sault area!

 

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

Tym Morrison's Second Live-Streamed Concert, Plus New Facebook Videos!!

With a day or so to gather new content for another post on the site, we're dipping back into the solo performance video well today, including new material from a long-gestating local band, a blues cover from a punk staple, and leading off, another lengthy live-streamed set from a familiar veteran presence in the local scene! Here's what you should know!

The second installment of local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison's live-streamed Twitch concerts went up last night, so fans who miss his regular acoustic concert dates have another 2 hour batch of covers to enjoy! Unlike last week's debut of the "Live Guitar & Singing Of All Mightyness 7th Show", the wait for this one to start is much shorter (only 14 minutes), but yesterday's live-stream was broken up into two videos. The first half is embedded below, and it features Tym starting with Supertramp's "The Logical Song" before pausing the stream to restart his computer over bandwidth concerns. After a minute or so off-air, Tym returns to cover Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud", The Beatles' "Here Comes The Sun", Amanda Marshall's "Trust Me (This Is Love)", Chris de Burgh's "Lady In Red", Oasis' "Wonderwall", and The Romantics' "Talking In Your Sleep". The second half of the live-stream features Tym covering Journey's "Lights", A-ha's "Take On Me", Tom Petty's "Yer So Bad" ...

... 10cc's "I'm Not In Love", Phil Collins' "One More Night", Yes' "Owner Of A Lonely Heart", The Beatles' "Blackbird", Jim Croce's "Time In A Bottle", Bryan Adams' "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)", Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive", Roxette's "It Must Have Been Love", Supertramp's "Breakfast In America", Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise", and Cutting Crew's "(I Just) Died in Your Arms", before closing with an original instrumental. A little shorter than last week's live-stream, Tym's guitar skills and rangy singing are as solid as ever, and this should nicely help fill time while we wait for Gliss and other venues to re-open! Given Tym's extensive setlist, I am surprised that he performed 12 covers that he already did in last week's video, curiously all from his first 15 songs there, but I'm sure some are regular live staples. Check out Tym's newest live-streamed concert above and below, and might the teased Thursday installment happen tomorrow?



Next up, here's a Facebook cover video from Inner City Surfers bassist Brad "Example" Lacell, as posted on his personal Facebook page last month, then shared on label Tidal Records' Facebook page afterward. This is a vocal/acoustic guitar cover of Steve Earle's "Lonelier Than This", and it has a rough, plainclothes honesty that suits the presentation, and is in line with much of Brad's post-Role Models solo material! He did introduce the video by promising to "play a couple of songs", but the second video wasn't shared publically that I know of. For now, give this cover a watch below!



We'll close today with the newest video from local metal band Chronic Demonic, whose public updates have continued to be sporadic and anti-climactic (their last Facebook page status in November is particularly dour.) That said, this video from last month helps get things on a more positive trajectory, as it features guitarist Kevin Powe playing some "death riffs" that could turn into a Chronic Demonic original song in time. Positive news has been extremely slow from their camp, but these riff are promising, and hopefully we finally hear some more forward momentum from the guys once the pandemic is over! Check this one out below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

Redundant's New EP, Some New Videos, And Much More!!

With weekend concert previews and our latest monthly feature post in the rear view, let's get back into regular news and updates on the SMS with this news post, featuring some assorted updates, new videos, and a long awaited album release! Here's what you should know!

Over three weeks after it's Toronto release at the Vans Warped Tour, local punk trio Redundant have finally released their self-titled debut EP for digital download on Friday! The EP features five songs, namely "By Myself", "Miles Apart", "Should've Known", "That December", and "What Will You Do" (a.k.a. The Scary Uncles' "Labatt 50"), and you can buy it for $4.95 on iTunes, Google Play, and Amazon, while you can stream the EP for free on both Spotify and Apple Music. As far as I can tell, Redundant haven't posted the EP on Bandcamp, for what that's worth. No word yet on physical in-store availability, let alone their next local gigs, but could they be saving that for a proper local release concert? We'll hold our thoughts on "Redundant" for our forthcoming review of the EP, but when can you expect to see that on the SMS? Honestly, I don't know, as we have quite a log jam of new albums to review right now, with Mike McCleary, Sykotyk Rampage, and SweetKenny also waiting in the wings for their newest releases.

If any of the four acts play a public live concert this month, our choice would be easy as a more direct tie-in, but I don't believe any have one scheduled. As the newest of the four, Redundant has more wiggle room, assuming I can review all four this year, but I guarantee we'll review Redudnant's EP on the site soon! This has been a long road to get this released and completed, and the production quality's top notch, so visit the above links to hear/buy Redundant's first EP!

Next up, here's some new videos, starting with two Facebook videos from Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Project 906's headlining concert at The Superior Cafe/Bird's Eye Outfitters on Friday! One video was uploaded via local music store Crooked Music's Facebook page, and it features the guys covering Wolfmother's "The Joker & The Thief". Though it runs for just a minute, the quality's good, and Billy's vocals are a nice fit with this rendition! If you're hoping for a longer video or a less sharp camera angle, this video shared from attendee Cindi Jenkins' personal Facebook page should suffice! This is a cover of AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long", which is similarly well handled and lively, and fans of theirs should be right at home with this performance! Give it a look below, see more above, and don't miss Project 906 in Rudyard on Saturday!



Also today, here's a new solo performance video of Chronic Demonic guitarist Kevin Powe, courtesy of that band's Facebook page, which see him playing the Sault Ontario notable covering what I believe to be Entombed's "Wolverine Blues" (it's "old school Swedish death 'n roll" at any rate!) Solid rhythm track that he has a good handle on, but will this song be in the long awaited live repertoire of Chronic Demonic? Give it a look below!

 

Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band or venue name:

• New local surf rock quartet The Dynowaves (featuring Lion Ride and Bizotic alumni) have been added as the second openers for the Carried Away concert at The Rockstar Bar on August 28th, as per the Facebook event page last week. The Dynowaves have gotten some positive notices since debuting with their locally unique sound, and this should be a nice showcase for their surf rock stylings! Yes, we know they're playing at The Northern Vibe Festival, stay tuned for coverage of that when full daily timeslots are announced!
• As per it's new naming rights agreement, and as a tie to the former Sault Memorial Gardens, The Essar Center formally changed it's name to GFL Memorial Gardens on August 1st, complete with a redesigned website. Physical signage and advertising will be slowly rolled out to reflect the name change, so keep tabs on local news media (or head downtown) for updates. The new name isn't bad, and it's great to see the Memorial Gardens name back in action, but how long before a hard rock or punk concert comes there again?
• In the first formal reveal of their new lineup, Sault Michigan classic/hard rock cover band Highway 63 have added former Absolute, NoXcape, and Exiled drummer Justin Lawless to the band, replacing Ron Suchey, as per a post share on their Facebook page yesterday. A reason for Ron's departure wasn't publically announced, but hopefully nothing bad happened, and don't miss him and fellow (former?) Highway 63 bandmates in Cousin Eddie. Justin's a solid drummer who should fit in fine with Highway 63, so stay tuned for more updates from them as they roll in!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Ride For ARCH & Soundcheck), Plus New Videos!!

Here's a new news post for your Saturday morning, featuring some new videos, and to lead off, some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, one on SHORT NOTICE with attached apology, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to The Esquire Club TONIGHT, after previously playing there last night! Profuse apologies for the short notice and for missing last night's concert on here, they were only announced last night on their Facebook page, less than two hours before showtime, and we didn't hear about them until it was too late for a second post. That said, the late public announcement mirrors the online promotion of their last shows at The Esquire Club three weeks ago, so this isn't shocking. Regardless, Soundcheck's hard hitting and fan favourite covers have proven to be a fun attraction locally, and hopefully lots of west end fans can pause their ace-catching TONIGHT for some live music, as they hopefully did last night too! Soundcheck's plug of this weekend's shows mentions that drummer Steven Flint will be on bass in place of an absent Paul Belair for unannounced reasons, though they didn't indicate who'd be behind the kit.

For what it's worth, Soundcheck featured ex-Turner Up/3 Day Millionaires drummer Scott McLurg on guest drums at The Water Tower Pub in June (as seen in the preview video below), but I can't confirm if he's filling in again. TONIGHT's (and last night's) Soundcheck concert is a 9:30 PM affair with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, here's Soundcheck live, and apologies again for missing yesterday's show, we'd have covered it here had it received more notice!



Next up, here's a Soundcheck show in the west end with plenty of advance notice, as they'll be among the performers at a Korah Road street party outside of Reggie's West as part of the Ride For ARCH charity motorcycle rally on Saturday, August 18th! Though similar in format and aims as the Rides for Autism & Sight, live music hasn't crossed our radar the same for this Algoma Residential Community Hospice fundraiser since it's 2015 debut, with only The Band Camp Rejects (featuring Soundcheck's Steven Flint) playing there in 2016 among heavier bands in the past. Well, as part of this special outdoor street concert, Soundcheck will rock out for a great cause at 8:00 PM in two weeks time! Headlining that night are country rockers Bone Yard at 9:30 PM, while remaining bands include their acoustic sister band The Bearded Lounge at 5:00 PM (with prize announcements following), Wild Iris side project Stone Orchid at 3:30 PM, and classic rockers The Algo Rhythms opening at 2:00 PM.

Also, Amanda Jeffreys is credited a "special guest" at 3:15 PM, and as far as I can tell, she's a teenage singer who recently performed in Korah Collegiate's Grease production. Hopefully she impresses with her short set! Given the outdoor street party nature, I imagine this concert is FREE & ALL AGES, but regarding the actual rally and fundraising for it, visit the official Facebook event page for complete details on the Ride for ARCH. This is a great event for a great local estalishment that does needed and compassionate work in the area, so whether you're a biker or music fan (or both), visit the above links for complete details on this year's rally!

We'll close with some videos, starting with a rarity: The first new video upload from Chronic Demonic in almost four years! The long gestating death metal quartet featuring Gates of Winter, Fitswitch, Bear Hunters, and Time of Ruin alumni only tend to post son their Facebook page to reassure fans that they are still a thing, acknowledge their slow pace, and plug members' other projects, but this video of guitarist Kevin Powe should give fans some extra hope! It's of Kevin playing a familiar (but uncredited) cover song that is reportedly in Chronic Demonic's repetoire, and while there's not much else to say on it, the performance sounds good, so give it a look below!



Finally for today, here's a new solo cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" by Highway 63 frontman Henry Switzer, as shared to their Facebook page via his personal Facebook page this morning! Henry has been working to relaunch the Sault Michigan classic/hard rock band with an apparent new lineup (we await details on the new members), and even showcased new stage lighting that he bought in a separate video, but this cover is an apparent teaser to how "the new Highway 63 project" will sound. It's a solid rendition that puts Henry's vocal range to good use, so if you like Journey and miss Highway 63, give his newest cover video a look below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Jack Spades & Northwest), A "New" Live @ Six, Two, Oh. Episode, And More!!

Before we begin this post, I wanted to acknowledge a short notice show that, while publically announced, is not being covered here due to the nature of the event. Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Project 906 are playing tonight at Moloney's Alley as part of the Sault Area High School class of 1997 reunion, but according to the Facebook event page, this is "an outdoor private party" intended for 1997 graduates and guests brought with them. It's great to see Project 906 back after a month off, private event or not, so keep this in mind for tonight if you're in the 1997 grad class of Sault High! Now, here's a new video, some assorted updates, and some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!

At least five local music acts will join forces on Saturday, July 1st (one week from today) for a special Canada Day bash at The Rockstar Bar! Unlike recent years at this venue, the Canada Day event won't feature a single cover band, with Paperclip Productions' Daniel Horton booking this showcase of local talent next week, so who can you look for on Canada Day? In apparent performance order, the last listed band are indie rock quartet K.I.C.K., with hard rock populating the rest of the bill, including punk/metal quintet Jack Spades in their new lineup's third show (including Daniel on guitar), funk/hard rock veterans The Elements (in their second show of the year), Daniel's other hard rock band Eclipse, and that band's frontman Curtis McKenzie in his revived solo project's Rockstar Bar debut. Solid lineup overall, and the Facebook event page implies that more is coming, so stay tuned?

Note that a set by death metal standouts The Bear Hunters was originally listed for this event, but it was quietly removed for unannounced reasons. Hopefully nothing bad happened, they'd have added a brutal component next week! An 8:00 PM start time is listed for this Canada Day concert, which has a 19+ age limit and a $5 cover. Everything is adding up well for this holiday weekend concert, with a nice selection of familiar faces joining forces next week, so visit the above links for current and upcoming updates!

Next up, the aforementioned K.I.C.K. will join indie/punk quintet Northwest for a joint concert at LopLops Lounge on Friday, July 14th! Possibly timed on purpose to coincide with Rotaryfest weekend (stay tuned for the lineup reveals on both stages) and the previous day's Downtown Street Party that K.I.C.K. are also playing, this is part of a busy month for the Keep It Cool Kids, but it will be just the second show of 2017 (and first in almost 2 months) for Northwest. If you haven't seen much of them live in the past year, keep this double bill in mind for LopLops in three weeks time, and hopefully both bands have some material from their recent studio sessions in store! A 9:00 PM start time is in effect for next month's show, and as usual for LopLops, this is a 19+ event with a $5 cover charge. This should be a fun concert for indie and punk fans, so keep it in mind for Rotaryfest weekend, and visit the Facebook event page for more details!

Also today, here's a "new" video of local doom/sludge metal trio AlgomA, and in particular, it's the first episode of their studio's YouTube performance series Live @ Six, Two, Oh. to be unveiled on their YouTube channel in six months (and first with a local artist in ten months!) Now, this isn't brand new, as it's actually episode #0 of the webseries, originally filmed in May 2015 for a private upload, presumably as a test or proof of concept before the series proper launched that August. With Live @ Six, Two, Oh. planned to return in full force in December via Six, Two, Oh.'s planned online battle of the bands, this is a nice way to re-introduce fans to the dormant series, even if two years late, so keep it in mind! The episode features AlgomA playing their original songs "Failed Stunt Fatality" (released on their split with Hooded Menace this year) and "Fell Down A Well" from their debut EP, so click each song name to go to that particular track.

Given that this is a 2 year old performance, I'll say that AlgomA sounded brutal and heavy as usual in this video, and I like the multiple camera angles to give an overhead angle of Jamie's drumming to shake things up! The mirror behind him is oddly placed though. Prospective bands interested in Six, Two, Oh.'s online battle may want to watch this episode too so they can get a sense of what to expect if they sign up later this year, so give everything a look for both Live @ Six, Two, Oh. and the battle above & below!



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

• Chronic Demonic are alive! After last posting a public update referencing band activity in 2014, guitarist Kevin Powe updated fans on their Facebook page on Friday that they are still a band, are slowly learning songs, and hope to jam next week with the full band for the first time in over a year. Kevin also left the door open for the death metal quartet to play live for the first time in four years later this summer, and jam photos of Chronic Demonic (sans drummer Jonathan Harvey) were also posted last month. It's very encouraging to hear that Chronic Demonic are still alive & kicking, so see above for more info, and they're back in our active band links!
• Local concert promoters Live705 have announced that both of their Canadian Nightclub concerts next month (Vaultry in two weeks & Project 421 in four weeks) are now ALL AGES! No word on if they're permanently scrapping their brief experiment with 18+ shows as a result, or if this is an experiment of it's own, but it sounds like a positive move to me, as The Canadian has proven to be a solid venue for Live705 and for all ages events from other promoters, so keep the lack of age restrictions in mind for next month! As with the 18+ Live705 events, bracelets will be issued to 19+ attendees.
• A woman named Tiffany Cuthbertson is looking for country or rock bands to play an event of some kind on Sunday, August 6th in nearby Goulais River, Ontario, possibly stemming from her Musicians Wanted group search in May for a then-unidentified event, though I can't confirm if this is it. There's already a fair amount of interest, but if you want more details, read her post from that group last week or message her at this link for more details!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site next week! Thanks everyone!

415E Concert Previews, Apocalypse Afterparty Updates, And More Recent Notes!!

Before we get this month's Defunct Local Band Profile up here, let's cap off the weekend's concert previews, as well as touch on some recent updates on an upcoming album, a pair of bands that we have moved to our inactive band links, and more, so here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan hard rock quartet 415E will return to the local stage for two shows at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Back on stage for the first time in over a month, this will be the former Hubbard-Menard Band's first concert weekend in St. Ignace since the summer, and unless there's an interim announcement, their second-last concert weekend of 2016 (they'll be back at the same venue next month.) Dave, Chris, Mitch, and Tony deliver a solid night of hard rocking action whenever they take the local stage, and hopefully their Van Halen-inspired sets get another solid turnout at The Northern Pines Lounge over the next two nights! As usual, tonight & tomorrow's shows are 9:00 PM affairs with 21+ age limits and no announced cover charges. See above for more details, and here's 415E live!

Next up, here's the latest from Sault Ontario rap/metal quartet The Apocalypse Afterparty! The eclectic masked outfit resurfaced after a two month break to reveal some more detailed plans regarding the release of their debut EP "Bufflesnort" via their Facebook page, so what should you know on that front? According to a schedule posting there, the band made a timeline for the public release of the EP's remaining 2 songs (one is out, one is forthcoming), to be followed by the commencement of album pre-orders via Facebook and their "house website", of which I don't have the URL. The rough plan is to have early bird orders fulfilled on December 8th, while the official public release is planned for February 1st with a CD release party, which would be their first public concert since last year's VM Radio Battle of the Bands. Again, the band indicated that "Bufflesnort" will not be released on CD, but they've tracked down the right release format, and it will still be "premium" (for reference, the band had teased USB thumb drives as a possible storage format in the past.)

Also, no word on if their newest status (which appears to imply that ex-Haggith singer Curtis McKenzie is their new drummer) is in jest or not, but Curt can drum, and The Apocalypse Afterparty were looking for a drummer. We'll keep you posted! As for the teased song releases, the third song from"Bufflesnort" was posted to "songwriter" Paul Stanghetta's YouTube channel earlier this week, and it's entitled "Stanley Cup (Top Dogs)", maintaining the EP's hockey theme. I'll hold full thoughts until the EP's release, but check out The Apocalypse Afterparty's newest studio track below, and stay tuned for more from "Bufflesnort" in short order!



Also today, we have a band to move to our inactive band links, that being local grunge/hardcore duo Bad Back. Though they haven't announced anything public regarding their status, they haven't posted an online update since releasing their digital album (entitled "ALbums") in September of last year. A fan favourite sight at local concerts from 2013-2015, and often under the Six, Two, Oh. banner, this union of ex-Fuller bandmates Jamie Vincent and Nathan Sauve opened for bands like The Archaics, Biipiigwan, and Like Animals during their heyday, as well as releasing two demo "VOLumes" in 2014, and even playing live with Jamie's other band AlgomA in Toronto. However, the guys haven't played an announced live concert since opening for Benighted in March of last year, later dropping out of last summer's SNFU and Ballot Burner shows. Bad Back's minimalist blend of hardcore punk and alternative styles made them a fun addition to many concerts in the mid 2000s, and while I don't know where they've been, hopefully we hear from Jamie and Nathan again in the future!

Finally for today, here's three more shorter items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• We have also moved local metal quartet Chronic Demonic to our inactive band links, as they haven't posted anything directly referencing their own music or recording plans since 2014, only posting about members' other bands or general topics on their Facebook page since, and only once of that kind in the past year anyway. Aside from a surprise Misfits cover at The Rosie in 2013, Chronic Demonic have only unveiled sporadic studio updates, despite continually impressive band lineups. Hopefully Chronic Demonic can finally have a full launch at some point, and best of luck to Nik, Kevin, Ryan, and Jonathan in the interim!
• Local experimental metal solo project The Coyote Speedfreaks launched their own website via Webs in April, which features links to the project's free "albums", but also gives fans in-depth write-ups on the meanings behind both albums and the project's name's meaning, with another new album apparently in the works. Chase's creativity shines through here, so give everything a read above if you want, and stay tuned for more!
• Amidst various teasers and references to recording sessions, newer local progressive metal band Kraken Mara revealed on their Facebook page last month that they've sent a track off to be mastered, and to "stay tuned for the finished product." Nothing has been elaborated on since, but it's great to see that the Late & Loud successors are staying busy, so keep watch for more updates!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next, I promise! Thanks everyone!

R.I.P. Sabrina Pelchat

The Sault Metal Scene sends it's deepest condolences to the family and friends of former Chronic Demonic/Project Legion singer and Shadowthrone guitarist Sabrina Pelchat (a.k.a. Sabrina Strange, Ririe Lavoie, Isla Encanto, and Riina Rampage), who reportedly passed away yesterday, as per numerous personal Facebook postings. Details on services have yet to be publicized as of this writing, and we will let you know if we hear anything on that front, but you can offer condolences on this memorial Facebook page launched by her friend April Fogal. Sabrina had been a talented, albeit sporadic sight in local metal bands since 2013, and was a skilled singer & karaoke/open mic fan that was also very artistic, parlaying her metal fandom into a brief stint as a YouTube interviewer with 62nd Chamber Productions. In recent years, she had been more enigmatic in her online presence, most recently performing in Shadowthrone with her partner, Pillory frontman Robert Sartini, and she had been aiming to launch a new black metal band this summer.

We had our differences from how she viewed some of our coverage, but I always respected her work, and in recent months, she had e-mailed me private videos of her practicing black metal vocals towards future band projects so she could get input on them. Though she never fronted a band that made a prolonged live impression, those that know her definitely knew her talents. Sadly, most videos of her band work are either private or were deleted as she retreated from social media in the past year, but here's her interview with 4/5ths of The Bear Hunters from October 2013, which is a fun and loose interview, and it's a shame she didn't do more of these. R.I.P. Sabrina, you will be missed!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Lucky 13), A New Album Release, And Much More!!

Nice to have a steady stream of news and updates with October in progress, so what's in store for today? A new cover video, a disappointing concert & CD delay, and a brand new album release, but first, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!

After a three month hiatus, local alternative/hard rock cover quartet Lucky 13 will return to the stage for a headlining concert at The Rockstar Bar TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band just announced this event yesterday. Known for generally taking the summer months off since launching, this should be the first of a solid amount of concerts for this veteran band to end 2014 with, and if you like the members' old bands like Aftersight, Turner Up, Wishbone, and The Gully Yodellers, you'd be well served to keep Lucky 13's return in mind for TONIGHT! Note that I don't know why Lucky 13 weren't playing yesterday, though it's likely that a separate artist was playing at The Rockstar Bar last night. There will be NO COVER CHARGE tonight, you must be 19 to attend, and there's a 10:30 PM start time in effect. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and for a preview, here's Lucky 13 live at the first Toystock!

Next up, we have a brand new album release to take note of, as Dafter, Michigan solo hard rock artist Kenneth Sutton (a.k.a. SweetKenny) released his 10th solo studio album "Amazonian" on Halloween! Self-recorded and released through Waterfall Records, this is Ken's third album of 2014 (following "Ink!" and "This End Up"), and he describes it as "a heavy rock, vocal, instrumental, high energy, fun album" that mixes instrumentals and songs with vocals once again. Like on other recent releases, Ken plays or programs all instruments on the album's 11 songs. You can buy copies of "Amazonian" on Bandcamp for $12, while a CDBaby release (presumably for $9.99) is planned for the near future, and streaming copies of each song on "Amazonian" are also available via SweetKenny's website. The above links also indicate that Ken's still working on forming a live band, and he's already working on an 11th studio album to be named "Slobber", tentatively planned for January 2015 (if you know his prolific nature, that's not farfetched!)

With all of that said, when can you expect a review of "Amazonian" on the site? Given that we just reviewed "Ink!" in July, and that we don't review the same artist's albums within a six month span to avoid biases or favoritism, a new SweetKenny album won't be eligible until January, the same month as the aimed release for "Slobber", so one of the two is very likely then! I'll hold comment on "Amazonian" for the time being, but fans of his older studio recordings should be right at home, so buy or stream it and other older albums at the above links!

Also, here's some disappointing news for you Bear Hunters fans, as the local death metal band have announced that their planned CD release concert at The Algonquin Pub on October 18th will have to be postponed. Guitarist Mitch Sirie revealed the news on the Facebook event page on Wednesday citing "circumstances beyond our control", though singer Nik Deubel confirmed that it's due to his work commitments. Though their debut album "Eternal Hibernation" isn't behind schedule, the guys are holding it's release until the rescheduled date, likely over a weekend in late November, in order to give it the proper launch and attention. The rescheduling might force a change in venue, and it's unclear yet whether Brampton's Livid & The Bloodthirsty will be able to play the new date, but the band will accept refunds of previously bought tickets if need be. However, Mitch did indicate that a limited run single EP will be available for $2 this month that will feature a studio track to-be-announced and some live extras, and we'll keep you guys posted on that!

This is bound to be disappointing for many fans, especially ones who were counting on that weekend for their own schedules, but at least the guys were open and forthcoming concerning what happened, and hopefully there's a big crowd next month! Admittedly, the postponement is good news for myself, as I was going to be out of town over the weekend of the 18th, so I can likely go to the release party now! In any event, stay tuned for updates on any upcoming CDs and the rescheduled date for the party!

Finally for today, here's a brand new jam session video from local death metal/punk quartet Chronic Demonic! Though we still await their full concert debut, this video of them covering Lamb of God's "Omerta" is now on their Facebook page, and though we haven't seen a new clip of them in almost four months, this should keep fans more than interested! Complete with a loose variant of the spoken word intro by bassist Ryan Gratton (I think), it's a solid rendition, but the sound levels are inconsistent, with Nik Deubel's growling too muted. Give it a look below though!




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

Great Sabatini Concert Updates And Much More Recent News!!

Keeping the recent spread of news going, we have a lot of assorted news and notes from recent days to touch on, and it's mostly Sault Ontario news for the first time since Friday! Along with a new preview video from a talented quartet, but first, we have some short notice changes and promotion for an all ages concert tomorrow night that we first previews yesterday, so read on below to get caught up!

We'll start today with some late stuff to address concerning TOMORROW'S Great Sabatini concert at The Moose Lodge, including the identity of the new opening band, as local all female hard rock quartet The Danger Cats will fill in for the departed Habitat Shuffle tomorrow night, as per the Facebook event page this morning! This will mark the girls' Moose Lodge debut, their first public concert since Dank Fest in April, and their first with a full lineup since March (though they did play a private outdoor event on Saturday, as per their Facebook page.) Solid addition, and a closer genre fit to the other bands than Habitat Shuffle likely would have been, so don't miss The Danger Cats opening tomorrow's show at 7:00 PM or later! Also new to plug this event is a new preview video from fellow openers AlgomA, as uploaded to frontman Boyd Rendell's film production company 62nd Chamber Productions' YouTube channel yesterday, so what should you know from this?

Promoting "show VII" (the first six being the Soul Killing Female, Golers, and Skynet shows, plus Dank Fest, The Big Loonie Bus Show, and the private Tacofest), the video features cryptic live concert audio, spoken recitations, and intentionally blurred concert photos from Dank Fest. It keeps the mystique about them and definitely leaves you wanting more, so give it a look below, and don't miss these local standouts with The Great Sabatini TOMORROW NIGHT for just $8! ALL AGES!



Next up, here's another new preview video from local punk/death metal quartet Chronic Demonic! Posted to the band's YouTube channel on Friday, this video (which has no colour filters like last time) surprisingly features the band covering Sepultura's "Chaos A.D.", and what little we hear of it in the 30 second segment sounds very promising! Of course, that could just be the surprise of seeing a local Sepultura cover, but these guys have the talent, so give it a look below!



Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter stories from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or series name:

• Add one more local band to the lineup for this year's Touch of Death Metal & Punk Fest in Cochrane, as local death metal standouts The Bear Hunters will also be taking the trip to play there on Saturday, June 28th! Awesome news, hopefully the guys make some new fans and connections along with AlgomA, Bad Back, Crucify The Whore, and Shit Liver! Note as well that London's own D3athcharg3r (featuring two Saultites) appear to have dropped out. Click here for full schedule details!
• Prolific local bassist Nathan Bouliane (most recently of Like Father Like Son) has recently moved back to the Soo and is working with Shaw TV Sault Ste. Marie on a new weekly feature segment called "The Boardwalk Sessions", where he would interview bands who actively play live in the area, with the feature later airing on channel 10 on Shaw Cable. If you're interested or want more details, message Nathan at this link!
• Though not publically confirmed elsewhere yet, local concert promoter J.D. Pearce's promotional Facebook group currently lists tentative dates for a return of both Montreal ska-punk band K-Man & The 45s and, most notably for metalheads, a show on August 8th to be headlined by Montreal thrash/extreme metal quintet Endast, who haven't been seen locally since September 2010. Awesome news if confirmed, so stay tuned for updates!
• According to the official press release for the show (as seen on SooToday), the Jackyl/Winger concert at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino on August 21st will have ticket prices of $38.50 and $48.50, which is definitely lower than at Jackyl's Essar Center show in 2008, so take note if you're thinking about attending! Tickets go on sale on Saturday morning at the in-person box office, at this link, or at 1-800-KEWADIN!
• Dafter, Michigan solo artist Ken "SweetKenny" Sutton has completed recording sessions for his upcoming solo album "This End Up!" and has already began writing for his 10th solo album "Amazonian", as per this link, even revealing the "Amazonian" cover art on his Facebook page last week! Great news, and it's nice to see Kenny staying busy! Stay tuned for more on both albums, and hear the newest songs from "This End Up!" (including his new song "Time To Let Go!")
• Local grunge/lo-fi solo project Telephone & Address have posted three new songs onto their Soundcloud page in the past couple of months, those being songs named "Anthem To The Queen", "Perfect Circle", and "Army of Losers". It's unknown yet if these will make it to a new CD, but they keep with Chris Shoust's past musical themes, coming across as songs heavier than the style they're played in, if that makes sense. Check them out above!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Jackyl), Jack Spades On Tuned, And More!!

It's been a few days since we've had a proper news post at the SMS, so let's rectify that this afternoon! Today, we have a new preview video of a local band, a bunch of updates and changes concerning a newer project, and the latest episode of Local2's Tuned webseries, but first, here's a huge LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this summer!

Georgia heavy metal quartet Jackyl will return to our area for a headlining concert at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino on Thursday, August 21st! Best known for songs like "Down On Me" and "Push Comes To Shove", this will be their first local stop since headlining at The Essar Centre in May 2008, and their southern rock & AC/DC influenced sound will be great to see again in a couple of months, especially with some expected chainsaw action! Opening for them at this show will be New York glam metal notables Winger, who (I think) will be making their first regional concert appearance at this show. Best known for hits like "Headed For A Heartbreak" and "Seventeen", late 1980s hair metal fans should be right at home with Winger's energetic and talented originals in August! This show has a 7:00 PM start time and no age limit, but tickets don't go on sale until June 14th, and I haven't seen a price confirmation yet. In any event, you can buy them then at this link, 1-800-KEWADIN, or at the in-person box office.

Click here for more details! This should be an entertaining concert, especially if you loved Jackyl's 2008 Sault Ontario gig, which was a very fun show! I just hope this current one has lower ticket prices, as that was a factor in the low turnout in 2008. Stay tuned for updates on the ticket release and show in general as they come in!

Next up, the newest episode of Local2's music video profile series Tuned with Donna Hopper went up on Saturday, so what should you know for it's newest episode? This installment is focused around local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades' EP release show at The Rockstar Bar from May 16th, with the first two minutes showcasing concert footage of opening bands Project 421 and The Elements (though Johnny Belanger & Jesse Cook's acoustic opening set isn't featured.) After that, we get most of an interview that host Donna Hopper hosted outside of the venue with the members of Jack Spades and producer Jamie Vincent, so what's discussed? After introductions, we hear about topics like frontman J.D. Pearce's draw into punk music and initial plans for forming Jack Spades, the individual members' musical talents and styles, Jamie's recording process for the EP sessions, the album's packaging and release plans, and more, so definitely give that 6 minute segment a look! It's a fun interview, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves!

The concert calendar segment after the interview plugs the Heart/Jason Bonham show at The Essar Center on June 20th, and that's followed by a couple minutes of concert footage from Jack Spades' set at the release show, and then some bloopers. Awesome footage as usual, and everything's covered in solid detail, so Jack Spades fans will want to check the new Tuned episode out for sure! As Local2's video host doesn't allow external embedding, give it a look at this link and above!

Also today, here's the latest updates from local doom/punk trio The Revolution (formerly the second Brutaly Fatal), so what's going on in their camp? Apparently, the band has left Blood Shed Productions to sign with Haggith's label PaperClip Productions, which is surprising given that frontman Austin McRae co-founded Blood Shed, but their new sound is a better fit on the PaperClip roster, for what it's worth.  I'll note that Blood Shed Productions' statement on the matter didn't sound too amicable, but hopefully things aren't that bad. A photo confirming the new deal is up on the PaperClip Facebook page, and if anything, it's really surprising how detailed and official their label contract is! Leading from that, The Revolution's first concert under their new name will come on June 24th, as they've replaced the departed Pillory as the local openers for the Anciients/Havok show at The Canadian that night! Very interesting choice, hopefully they've shored up their sound and are ready to rock, so don't miss The Revolution at this huge ALL AGES metal show in 3 weeks, and click here for further updates!

Finally for today, local punk/metal quartet Chronic Demonic launched their own YouTube channel last week, and there is some new sneak peak footage at their current sound there! While we wait for their full live debut, the new-ish band featuring Gates of Winter, Bear Hunters, Fitswitch, and Faithless Sin alumni have posted both a YouTube copy of their latest preview clip and this new sample, which is shot in the same location as before, albeit in a sepia tone filter. Like before, this reminds me of one of Kevin's punk-influenced bands, but with death metal vocals, which is an interesting hybrid, but at just 49 seconds, there's still many unanswered questions. Check it out below though, and see more of Chronic Demonic above!



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

Chronic Demonic Updates, New Videos, And Much More!!

For our second post of the month, we're dipping into our recent cache of news stories for the most part, but we also have new videos from two local bands, and first, big lineup updates from a somewhat newer local metal band, so here's what you need to know!

We'll start with some big news out of the Chronic Demonic camp, courtesy of their Facebook page yesterday, as the local punk/metal band has announced the addition of ex-Gates of Winter drummer Jonathan Harvey to their current lineup, replacing Mike Vincent. All the band said regarding Mike's departure is "just that sometimes things weren't meant to be", though they guaranteed there was no bad blood. Disappointing to see Mike out, as he is a talented musician that hasn't been on stage in far too long, but hopefully he turns up in a new band soon! Jon's addition is very surprising, though not bad news at all, as Gates of Winter fans will surely remember his excellent drum skill from the "Lux Aeterna" album and preceding shows! The move also reunites Jon with his former Faithless Sin bandmate Ryan Gratton, as the two played together during that band's brief 2010 comeback. In case some readers see this as an April Fools joke, this should fan those flames, as Chronic Demonic also posted this jam session video on their Facebook page!

Our first video glimpse at Chronic Demonic since their one song preview at The Rosie last summer (back when Sabrina Strange & Rick White were still members), it's just 35 seconds long, and at least on a first listen, this reminds me of a Frightlight-esque band with death growling. Of course, it's too early to know whether Chronic Demonic will vary their sound or stray close to this preview video, but fans should be excited, so check it out below, and get more updates at the above links!



Next up, we have new live video footage of local/St. Catharines death metal trio Shit Liver in concert! (Recent page updates indicate that they're now based out of St. Catharines rather than Toronto.) Filmed at a  hardcore show there on March 20th (likely by attendee Hayley Smash again), this is of the guys playing their originals "Pennotration" and "Shift Liver", and it was just uploaded to their YouTube channel on Sunday, marking their first concert video upload there in 3 years. Their brutality and usual mayhem are on display here from a solid close camera angle, but the audio is somewhat scratchy. Definitely worth checking out though, so give it a look below, and stay tuned for updates as we approach their album release on the 20th!



Finally for this post, here's six assorted shorter news stories from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or station name:

• Former Bring The Fallen guitarist Dan Souliere is looking to play in a local death metal band again, as per his post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on Monday. No other details were specified, though there is already demand on the post, including a post from B.T.F. bandmate Travis St. Amour saying "May 20". Speculate away if you want on that date, but if you're interested in joining or jamming with Dan in a new project, message him at this link!
• If you've noticed a new Danger Cats video on their YouTube channel recently, that's not entirely new, as it's a re-post from footage I shot at the Late & Loud reunion show in February. Frontwoman Kate Kougar had asked if I could send her videos I took of their sets for their channel, and I was happy to oblige, so keep that in mind before wondering why we didn't plug the "new" videos. Look for more I shot of them there soon!
• Local cover rock veterans Havadder will join The Suicide Kings and the reunited Wishbone among the local contingent at this year's Rock N' Roar Battle of the Bands in Spanish on Saturday, as per their Facebook page last weekend! Havadder's 2012 lineup finished fifth in that year's battle, so can frontman Jason Roy and the new lineup find the same success, or greater? Click here for the full schedule & prize details, and best of luck to the local bands, as all 3 could open for Randy Bachman in August!
• Recent posts on their Facebook page indicate that local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades will indeed be hosting an EP release party for their debut disc in the coming weeks, possibly this month. One would assume it'd be tied to a concert, but further details (including the venue) are not out yet, while they've also hinted that they may be playing the upcoming Spiderfest concert event in Meyersburg, Ontario in July. Big news abounds as they continue to jack the planet, so stay tuned for more!
• Sault Michigan rock radio station Rock 101 is finally revamping their official website, according to the current page's title, and that it only links to online streams at present. Rock 101's website had the same look and layout since at least 2004, and it was honestly really showing it's age (especially in terms of updating it), but stay tuned for when the new Rock 101 website debuts, and listen in at 101.3 FM!
• I have again deleted Sabrina Strange Productions from our Other Sault Ontario Metal Links section due to it's removal from Facebook, though this time, it's not tied to her personal channel's deactiviation. Disappointing, but she has talent and ambition, and hopefully she keeps at her music goals!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post tonight! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Viva La Battle), New Concert Recordings, And Oh! Right Arm! Show Updates!!

Before we preview the Halloween weekend metal/hard rock concerts in the region, we have another news post today, including a bunch of assorted updates from upcoming AlgomA-related concerts, some very cool new live concert clips from a new local studio/sound company, and first, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT concerning a previously announced event that now has an official date, so here's what you need to know!

A final date is set for next month's battle of the bands Viva La Battle at The Canadian Nightclub, where the fan-voted winners will open for Bam Margera's Fuckface Unstoppable at The Canadian Nightclub on December 14th! The battle will now take place on Wednesday, November 13th (almost a month before the show itself), and while the mid-week setting might be unfortunate to some, I'm just glad to see that The Canadian's back up and running to host everything! As previously announced, the battle will have ballots given to attendees at the door to vote on after the bands wrap up (similarly to last year's Battle For The Blood), and I assume it's a 19+ event, but details on admission costs, a start time, and any possible non-competitive performers have yet to be announced. A fourth band has been confirmed for the lineup though (joining Rockstar Bar Battle winners The Suicide Kings, fellow finalists The Bear Hunters, and new local band North West), and they are a new local band named Keep It Lit! From what I've been told, they're a "secret band" (similarly to Sarah's Valley from the Rockstar Bar Battle), but like them, I do know that they have battle experienced membership.

If anything public comes out on their lineup, sound, or anything else before November 13th, we'll have it here! It looks like promoter J.D. Pearce is hoping for more than 4 bands for the battle, and registration ends on November 1st (next Friday), so if your band is interested in competing to open for Fuckface Unstoppable at The Canadian in December, apply A.S.A.P. at the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more updates!

Next up, we have a new recording studio and live concert sound company that you guys might be interested in! As some of you may know, Caveman Morrison/Redundant bassist James White (a.k.a. Yimmy Blanco) has been providing sound at concerts and doing some recording sessions with local bands in recent months, but only last Friday did he launch a Facebook group for his work in this area, under the alliterative moniker White Wreckords. Full details on his work in this area isn't too elaborated on yet, but feel free to message James on Facebook or on the group's wall if you'd like to have White Wreckords to provide sound or recordings for your events! His work is good, as some mp3 samples there will indicate, given that James posted a pair of live concert recordings to the group as Facebook videos in the past week! These both come from the benefit concert at The Roosevelt Hotel on August 1st for Frightlight bassist Mike "Eddie Fright" Gingras' upcoming short film "The Kid Who Made The Face", one of which being a high quality audio clip of the original Chronic Demonic lineup's only live appearance!

A cover of The Misfits' "London Dungeon" (as previously seen here), this featured current guitarist Kevin "St. Mayhem" Powe & bassist Ryan Gratton alongside ex-singer Sabrina "Strange" Lavoie and then-drummer Rick "Styles" White. The only song they played during their surprise appearance that night, the quality's really good, and Sabrina's vocals are a nice change of pace with a solid tone, which is another positive sign for her current band Project Legion! Of course, the new lineup (featuring Bear Hunters alumni Nik Deubel & Mike Vincent) will likely sound very different at least vocally, but give the first Chronic Demonic live performance a listen below!



The other concert audio posting comes from Kevin & Rick's headlining set that night with their main horror punk/metal band Frightlight, featuring their performances of their original songs "Dead Town Anywhere" and "She Screams"! Their only concert since last fall featuring Eddie Fright on bass (and their last to date with this lineup), the songs are a bit messier than on some earlier dates, but their usual punk attitude and horror influences are clear as day, and they have been missed this fall! Check out the full video below, stay tuned for announced Bear Hunters studio clips from White Wreckords, and they're now in our Other Sault Ontario Metal Links!



Finally for today, here's assorted shorter notes relating to three upcoming concerts promoted by AlgomA frontman Darby Wigwaus' Oh! Right Arms! Promotions in a collective with/or drummer Jamie Vincent, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by the name of the highest slotted hard rock/metal band:

• The announced concert on Tuesday, November 12th featuring local grunge duo Bad Back opening for Calgary experimental punk band If I Look Strong, You Look Strong has been cancelled, as per the deletion of it's Facebook event page on Monday. A reason hasn't been announced, but the show never had a confirmed venue publically, which is why we didn't officially call it on here when still scheduled. Disappointing, but hopefully I.I.L.S.Y.L.S. try again for a local date!
• The Biipiigwan-headlined concert at The Moose Lodge on November 24th is indeed licensed for alcohol sale, so you don't have to worry about the all ages nature of it impeding any desire for a few drinks! My source is the show's Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more updates!
• If you're wondering why we haven't plugged the upcoming Halloween night concert featuring local grunge/acoustic project Telephone & Address (joining the aforementioned North West as openers for Winnipeg punk quartet Clipwing), it's because the show is taking place at Jamie Vincent's home, with the address only being given out on request. As a rule, we don't plug house parties on here unless they're treated as a publically available concert with a public address, but if you want more information, click here!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for Halloween weekend concert previews TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!