Garden Of Bedlam - "Everything Will Die" Review!!

It's time to end 2011 in style with our final CD review of this year, and 30th overall, and as expected, it's our review of Garden of Bedlam's new album "Everything Will Die"! Independently released on Boxing Day at a CD release show at The Canadian Nightclub, this is the popular Sault Ontario metal quartet's first full length album & second CD. Like for their 2009 self-titled EP, "Everything Will Die" was recorded & mixed at Stereo Soul Studios with producer Miguel Gauthier last summer, and was later mastered by Andy Krehm at Silverbirch Productions in Toronto. The album features Garden of Bedlam's current lineup, including Erik "Buzz" Boissineau on lead vocals, Josh Belleau on guitar, his cousin Evan on bass, and Derek Turner on drums. "Everything Will Die" can be purchased at Garden of Bedlam concerts & at The Rad Zone for $10, and though online purchasing details have yet to be publically revealed, I'd assume that a future iTunes release would be in the cards. Some songs are streaming on Garden of Bedlam pages as well, but definitely support the band and buy the whole thing. With 10 songs clocking in at about 45 minutes in length, let's start the review by talking about the first track, "Against The Grain"! (Updated on September 29th, 2012)

Like at many of their live concerts, "Against The Grain" kicks off this album, and after a slow build with each band member joining in, the song starts with a hard charging riff and some nice melodic heavy singing from Buzz that familiarly reminds me of their concerts! That said, the song does sound a bit deeper in tone than I remember from live performances, though that could just be my wrong perception. The song, which seems to talk of revenge and breaking free to stand against opposition, is definitely catchy with a nice sing along chorus, and Buzz's vocals just soar at points, along with some nice drumming and very heavy riffs, especially during the verses. I'd have liked an added guitar solo, but we'll get plenty of those in future tracks on the CD. As a metal song, this is definitely one of the best on "Everything Will Die", balancing entertaining sounds and a heavy aggression very nicely and setting the tone of the rest of the album for what should be a great collection of modern heavy metal!

Second on the album is "Three Days", the song that Garden of Bedlam wrote about their experiences at the Kiss Battle of the Bands in November/December 2009 where they won the right to open for Kiss at The Essar Center the following August. Starting with a nice bass intro from Evan Belleau, the song launches into a heavy but slightly slower riff that has a definite serious deliberation to it, and the follows with Buzz's singing. The pre-chorus vocals are too reserved, but on the chorus itself, Buzz's soaring vocals are great and very easy to sing along with! On the whole, this song is heavier but not as enthusiastic as "Against The Grain", but I find that the lyrics are a bit stronger, and the members of Garden of Bedlam definitely show their talents throughout. The bridge isn't as strong as the preceding portions of the song, seeming repetitive and not as heavy, but it leads into Josh Belleau's first guitar solo which is facemelting, as you'd assume! While I like "Three Days" a lot, and it definitely has some great lyrical significance, I like the energy and speed of "Against The Grain" a bit more. Still, this is quite a good way to kick off this album!

Third is the album's title track, "Everything Will Die", which seems to allude lyrically to the apocalypse and possibly the images in the album booklet. The song has a low sounding opening that doesn't really hook you into the song, but then it gets incredibly fast and heavy out of nowhere! Easily the heaviest song on the album so far, the singing is very determined and forceful, and the guitar work, though low in tone, is relentless with great bass work behind it! This song is very easy to mosh to, especially during the verses and bridge, Josh's guitar solo completely outshines the one on "Three Days" for speed and technicality, and it's good to see Buzz break out a falsetto scream here, even if it's low in the mix. While it's a heavier track, the spark and energy on "Against The Grain" is missing, and it ends very abruptly, but on a heaviness scale, "Everything Will Die" is a great track that gets the job done, and fans will eat it up! It's followed by the album's newest & shortest track "2012", which is a 68 second instrumental that has a slow and dark feel, almost as if the apocalypse did come as predicted on the previous track. Does "2012" imply the Mayan doomsday prophecy? I don't know, but it's an effective transition, even if it's not a real standalone song.

Fifth on the album is "Torment", and it imemdiately starts with a high tempo heavy section that immediately grabs you and makes you take notice, and I immediately welcome the positive energy that I'd missed from "Against The Grain"! The guys in Garden of Bedlam are relentless here, though the choruses kill some of the momentum. Evan Belleau's bass work really shines, and the song, which seems to talk about the torment caused by a person's inner demons, nicely mixes an up tempo feel and relentless metal to create a standout track on this album! I liked hearing the return of Buzz's screaming too, but like on "Everything Will Die", the song ended too abruptly afterwards, which is unfortunate, but "Torment" still stands as a highlight of this album! If only the chorus wasn't as reserved. Sixth is "With A Spark", which starts with a great drum-powered intro and some very heavy and charging riffs, and later, Buzz offers some of his best singing on the album so far, ranging from aggressive determined verse singing to some nicely varied and rangy singing in the choruses! Lyrically alluding to perseverance and not giving up, I really enjoy this song's intensity and variance, and Josh Belleau's guitar solo compliments everything well, as does some of Derek Turner's best drumming so far! This is another great track that deserves more attention, and hopefully it gains that at future Garden of Bedlam shows!

That's followed by the CD's longest and softest track, "Around The Bend", which seems to be about saying goodbye to a loved one, and the related pain and feelings surrounding that. Buzz's singing here is really good, and I remember wanting him to sing like this more on their 2009 EP. This proves he can handle softer singing really well, and you can feel the emotion in his voice early on! The choruses are a bit heavier, but for the first 3/4ths of the song, it follows along the same path of soft ballad-like material. I like that they inject some heavier riffs in so it doesn't get too light, but after a while, it did seem to get repetitive, despite the affecting lyrics. After 4:30, a bass solo starts before the song radically changes, getting very heavy to end the last two minutes in grand fashion! We get heavy riffs, a nice guitar solo, and some good energy, with more emotional lyrics, which isn't a bad contrast on the whole. Very nice and well written track, but my metalhead nature does prefer some earlier tracks to this one.

Eighth on "Everything Will Die" is the shortest real "song" on the album, "Your Disgrace", and it's another good & energetic metal number! The intro breaks down into some great chaotic metal, and there's some clear anger in the lyrics from Buzz's early shouting to the content, which relates to anger towards the words that someone said about them. The song has a nice catchy chorus, and a good audience participation quality, but I do find that the lyrics aren't very strong. They're very repetitive late in the song, and I missed more of the anger in the vocals later on. The band are on top form here (missing guitar solo aside), and Evan's bass work shines here, but it's not one of the best or most varied songs on the CD, though I do enjoy it! It's followed by the second to last song on the album, "New Rain", and it's long been one of my personal favourites of Garden of Bedlam's, but how does it sound in studio? Awesome, though a bit deeper than I remember it live. Buzz's singing is at it's best for range and ability here, I find, and it's a great song to sing along with thanks to the soaring catchy verses and memorable choruses! Lyrically alluding to living for reality and not your dreams (I think), the rest of the song lives up to the hype, with heavy guitar work and nicely paced drumming, though the bridge before the guitar solo should only stretch that long live, it's just filler here. This is easily the catchiest song in my opinion on "Everything Will Die", and though there's heavier songs on the disc, this remains on of my personal favourites!

The album closes with "Emptiness Without A Name", which launches with a very fast and heavy intro and building vocals, and it's relentless untilt he chorus, which calms down a bit though remains very heavy. The breakdown midway through feels forced when they were already keeping things brutal early on, and the chorus repeats too much late, which dampens a very heavy and listenable track, but it's a quality closer to "Everything Will Die" that ends everything on a brutal note!

So how do I grade Garden of Bedlam's first full length album? Well, I can say without reservation that it's much better and sounds much heavier than their debut EP, and it's probably the best sounding new local metal album of 2011! They pooled together a ton of well written heavy modern sounding material into this CD and it came out very nicely! The production's better, there's more substance, it's as good of a step up as you'd expect! Buzz's singing shined on almost every track, and his range just gets better, while Josh Belleau's guitar work was awesome with tons of heavy riffs and many great and varied guitar solos! Evan Belleau's bass work was solid as well, and it was a clear and steady presence on each song, as was Derek Turner's proficient and relentless drumming. No song on this album is bad, and I personally enjoyed the heavier and more energetic songs like "Against The Grain", "New Rain", and "With A Spark" the most of the included material, but there's not a dull moment to be had overall. And yes, kudos to the band for including lyrics in the booklet, that's always a plus in my eyes!

For criticisms, I'll say that the mix on some songs could have been better to accentuate the singing, a few songs sound deeper in studio than they do live, a few songs could have used a guitar solo (or a longer one), and a couple tracks needed more energy or a non-abrupt ending, but on the whole, this is a great CD from one of Sault Ontario's most talented metal bands, and hopefully Garden of Bedlam build on this to reach even bigger success in the short & long run! Definitely pick this album up if you get a chance for a great slice of modern heavy metal!

I hope you guys liked this month's CD review and last post of 2011! So, which CD review will kick off 2012 at The Sault Metal Scene? Barring a release delay or another notable local metal CD review to complicate choosing, I hope to review local solo hard rock artist Mike Haggith's new CD "Neighbourhood Watch", which is slated for release on January 25th. If all goes according to plan, it'll be the second straight year where we're reviewing a solo album of his first to kick off the year, so this should be interesting! For reference sake, if it's delayed or a new album release muddies things, and no other new CDs come out, I'll say that we will not review a Sykotyk Rampage album or (if I had it) Amethyst's debut cassette, as it's too soon since we last reviewed albums of theirs, but I tentatively have plans to review a Sykotyk Rampage review next month if nothing new is released. Also, while I know there'll be sentiment for a review of "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light" next , it's honestly too soon from our last review of a Woods of Ypres CD & from David Gold's passing to provide an objective review, but I have "W5" pencilled in for early March, mark my words! So whether our next review is of Mike's new album, another new release, or something from the archives, look out for our next CD review in late January!

That's all for this year, but in case you're not around for tomorrow's 2012 preview post, I'll wish you guys a Happy New Year, and stay tuned for much more news, previews, reviews, features, and more in the coming year! Thanks everyone!

Holiday Season Concert Previews, Including The Bret Michaels Concert!!

It's time to preview a small but notable stretch of metal concerts taking place over the next little while, so after you guys open your Christmas presents and spend time with the family, there's some shows to hit that you guys should definitely know about! They're the sole focus of this post, but rest assured, there's a lot more on the David Gold front to report that I hope to get to over the next while, among other stories. Stay tuned, but for this Christmas Eve, let's stay positive and focus on these upcoming concerts, so here's what you need to know!

First for this batch of post-Christmas metal/hard rock shows is the long awaited Garden of Bedlam CD release show! Over a year after recording sessions at Stereo Soul Studios wrapped up, the prominent local metal quartet will hit the stage for the first time in 5 months when they rock The Canadian Nightclub on Monday night with their new album "Everything Will Die" in tow! Fans have been anticipating this album's release for months, and now, fans can officially buy it Monday night at the site of some of Garden of Bedlam's biggest shows, themselves returning to The Canadian 21 months after last playing there! I can attest to the quality of this new album, but if you want to be the first to buy it, and check out a full set of Garden of Bedlam mayhem, be at The Canadian on Monday night at 10:00 PM! There will be a $5 cover charge (I'm unsure what the CD will cost, but I'd bring at least $10), there is no opening band for this show, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be an awesome night of metal from one of the area's biggest bands, and you know that they'll be pumped up to finally unveil the fruits of their labour on their fans this coming Monday!

Though I don't know release details for the album beyond this show, you'll absolutely wanna be there for all that will be going on! I wish I could be there to rock out with you guys, but I'm in Detroit through Wednesday. Best of luck, stay tuned for my review of "Everything Will Die" before New Years Day, and for a preview of this huge CD release show, here's Garden of Bedlam playing the CD's opening song "Against The Grain" at Rotaryfest last year!



Now to a pair of entertaining hard rock concerts taking place on Tuesday, starting with the last major headlining concert at The Dreammakers Theater at Kewadin Casino of 2011, and it features the return to Sault Ste. Marie of Poison frontman Bret Michaels! A hair metal legend and a recent star of a few reality television series, this talented singer will make his (at least) fourth appearance in the Sault area on Tuesday night, following successful Kewadin appearances in 2008 & 2010 (the latter as part of Kewadin's 25th Anniversary Summer Festival), and an earlier solo gig at the former Eastgate Hotel in Sault Ontario in 2005. This time, Bret's sure to have loads of great solo and Poison material ready to rock out with, ranging from classics like "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" and "Talk Dirty To Me" to newer solo tracks like "Go That Far" and "Wasted Time", so there's no shortage of quality material in store for Poison & Bret Michaels fans on Tuesday night! Unlike his last couple of area stops, there is no announced opening band. Tickets ARE still available (though only standing room tickets for general seating), and they are still $42.50 American, so click here to buy them online, or you can presumably visit the Kewadin box office in person or call 1-800-KEWADIN to get hooked up while you still have time.

I believe this show is all ages, and there is a 7:00 PM start time. For more details, check the above links! It's great to see Bret back in action for another local stop, especially after all of his health issues last year, and hopefully he'll prove once again why he's one of the area's favourite major touring acts! I'm admittedly not a huge fan, but Bret's work with Poison speaks for itself in hair metal circles, so definitely consider snagging some tickets if you haven't already! For a preview, here's SooToday's recap video from his stop at The Dreammaker's Theater on his birthday in 2008!



Finally for concerts over the next couple of post-Christmas days, it's the Green Christmas Bash at Coch's Corner on Tuesday! This is the second straight "Green Christmas" show promoted by local cello punk trio RedD Monkey, following one on Boxing Day 2010, and though this year's variation has had a lot of changes since being originally announced, there's still fun to be had! Only two bands are now scheduled for this concert, including headliners RedD Monkey and local blue Chinese metal crash punk quartet Sykotyk Rampage, making their Coch's Corner debut (I think), their first local concert appearance since October's Soo Zombie Walk afterparty, and they'll have bassist Brian Cattapan joining them for the first time on-stage since June! Now, this concert has had a lot of alterations since it was announced in September, including a move from Feedback (who hosted last year's Green Christmas show as Foggy Notions) to Coch's Corner and a date change from today to the 27th, both for unexplained reasons. With the date change, the previously announced View To A Kill and Ye Olde Mold Pickers both dropped out of this concert, with Sativa Rose pulling out earlier this month due to family commitments for singer Marisa Valois. That said, the two bands we still have will deliver a unique night of punk and crash for fans at Coch's Corner, so definitely consider attending this show on Tuesday night!

There is no cover charge for this concert, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is listed. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Regardless of the changes and band dropouts, this will be a unique seasonal concert for your holiday concertgoing needs, and you know that both RedD Monkey's classical infused punk rock and Sykotyk Rampage's harsh and very original jam music will entertain all night! For a preview, here's RedD Monkey covering Motorhead's "Ace of Spades" last December at what's now Feedback!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news (David Gold or otherwise), our Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile on Repetitions, our final Christmas surprise post, and more as the holiday season continues! Stay tuned, and if you're not around the computer over the next few days, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

News On Garden Of Bedlam's New CD And More, Plus Another Christmas Suprise!!

Here's another post to start your Wednesday off right with, and it's a mix of news and a Christmas surprise, including today's new holiday song upload, some updates to links featured on the SMS, details on a local photographer with some metal ties, and leading things off, details on an upcoming local metal CD release, so here's what you need to know!

I'd like to officially announce that our final CD review of 2011 at The Sault Metal Scene will indeed be of Garden of Bedlam's upcoming full length album "Everything Will Die"! There was a chance it'd have to wait until January due to my being out of town when the CD release show at The Canadian takes place on Monday, but drummer Derek Turner was kind enough to drop an advance copy off for me yesterday, so by New Year's Eve, there will definitely be a review of the CD on the SMS! That said, while I'll hold from commenting formally on the music yet (wait for the review), I'll tell you guys a few things to look for concerning the album. This preview image floating around on band pages is indeed the cover of "Everything Will Die" (sans the release date) while the album features 10 tracks clocking in at around 45 minutes in total length. We've heard almost all of them live before, ranging from "Against The Grain" to "Your Disgrace", but there is one new track entitled "2012" as well. I won't spoil anything, but I'll say it's unlike the rest of the featured songs. And yes, lyrics are present for each song in the "Everything Will Die" booklet, along with some nice photography throughout by Andrea Gosselin, so definitely check all of that out when you get your copy of the CD!

The album booklet also confirms that the CD was mastered at Silverbirch Productions in Toronto by Andy Krehm (same as on their debut EP) with artwork supplied by Derek's old Papa Fogals Chair bandmate Adam Chillman. I'll say right now that everything looks and is presented nicely, and the quality of the recording is top notch, but for anything else, you'll wanna stay tuned for my review of "Everything Will Die", which is coming next week! Stay tuned, and be at The Canadian on Monday night to get your copies of the album when they go on sale!

While we're on the subject, let's talk about Andrea Gosselin, the local photographer who took the shots of Garden of Bedlam for their new album's booklet. Her work is awesome, but I wasn't aware of her work before recently, and now, she deserves some long overdue exposure! Her website features a nice portfolio of her photograph work ranging from maternity photos to nature photography, but she has two sections in her gallery with a musical slant. One is of band promo shots, and in that gallery, there's 5 photos from the "Everything Will Die" photo shoot (one of each band member & one full band shot.) Very nice work, and I like the fire elements, so if you want to see them, click here, highlight "Gallery", click "Band Promo Shots", and check out the last 5 photos there! Aside from those (and there's much more from the shoot in the booklet), Andrea has a lot of other local metal photos in the "Live Shows" section, including shots from the Motley Crue & Heaven and Hell/Megadeth concerts at The Essar Center, and from a number of Sense of Truth concerts in 2008 & 2009, among others, so check the above links to give these photos a look! I wish we could see these photos bigger, but overall, Andrea's work is excellent, and hopefully she keeps up her great photography talents in music areas & beyond! Check everything out, and Andrea's website is now in our Other Local Metal Links on your left!

Now, before we get to our next Christmas song uploads, here's three assorted stories related to links featured on the SMS, specifically changes and additions concerning them. As usual, these are in alphabetical order by band, studio, or company name:

• I've added the defunct local recording studio Lucky Limb Studio to our Other Local Metal Links on your left. This is the studio where local hardcore quintet As It Stands recorded their second EP "Kill The Music, Save The Children" in 2007, but I know little else about this studio, which didn't appear to last too long. Check their MySpace page out above, which also features "Bush Raids" from that As It Stands EP!
  
• I've moved Sault Michigan metal project Traces to our inactive band links due to their likely breakup. Featuring Swayze Train & Hoist The Sails members in their lineup, Traces were last visibly active on December 23rd, 2010, when they last logged into their MySpace page, and their Facebook page was also deleted this year, so I assume they've disbanded. Disappointing news, but the members are sure to have great stuff in the works!
• I've removed local concert booking agency Unsalted Records from our Other Local Metal Links due to the closure of their website (likely from an expired domain name) and a lack of alternate links. Ran by Free Beer guitarist Dustin Goodall, they booked a couple concerts with metal supporting acts in 2009, but I haven't heard much from Unsalted Records specifically in years. Disappointing, but hopefully Dustin returns to booking at some point!

And finally, here's today's Christmas surprise for you guys as we inch closer to December 25th, and it's a song I'm returning to the internet from defunct Sault Michigan metal quartet Nixxon Dixxon! During their local run from 2006-2010, you're bound to remember Nixxon Dixxon's proficient covers and originals at concerts big and small alike, and around 2008 & 2009, they posted some clearer recordings of a few songs they played live onto their MySpace page. I remember that they uploaded covers of Black Sabbath's "Paranoid" and Kiss' "Rock & Roll All Nite" at one point, then pulled both in lieu of a recording of their original "High Life", which itself was later deleted without explanation. Now, my foresight is admittedly bad, so I didn't get all of these songs before they were taken down, and I'd love to get copies of them down the road (any help?), but I did snag one when I had the chance! I do have Nixxon Dixxon's cover of "Paranoid", which I uploaded onto our YouTube channel earlier today, and it definitely shows the band's talents well! Brandon Carr's singing fits nicely, and the rest of the band (now of Trail's End & Splitshot) are on fire as I'd expect, especially Chris Hubbard on guitar!

NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED WITH THIS UPLOAD!!! All credit for this song goes to the former members of Nixxon Dixxon, I'm just trying to spread the posthumous word and restore this song to the internet for fans to enjoy! Remember, this song has been deleted from the internet for possibly 2 years, you can't hear their cover of "Paranoid" anywhere else! It's a solid cover, so definitely check it out below, and stay tuned for updates on the members' next musical moves!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more Christmas surprises, news and notes, and concert previews over the next while, along with our next YouTube Channel Profiles on Thursday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Garden Of Bedlam), Two New Local Bands, And More!!

Here's a new news post for your Sunday evening needs, and there's a lot to say for tonight, including two brand new local bands, a new video from a prominent local band, and leading things off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT with a big tie-in release you guys should be excited for, so here's what you need to know!

Garden of Bedlam are returning to the stage for the holiday season with their new album in tow! As previously hinted at on their Facebook page, their first full length album "Everything Will Die" is indeed coming out on Boxing Day, but it's now official that the album will be released on December 26th at a CD release concert, which will be their first local concert in 5 months! For the occasion, the prominent local metal band will return to The Canadian Nightclub for the first time in almost 21 months to launch this CD in style, and knowing the significance of The Canadian to some of their bigger moments as a band, it's a fitting place to release the new album! Full details on this concert (including admission prices, times, CD price details, and potential opening bands) are not known yet, but this concert is official, as cited at the above links. I'd assume that this is a 19+ event though, and I'd expect a cover charge of at least $2. Until an event page is launched, check the above links for more details! This should be a huge event, and hopefully tons of fans turn out to reap the rewards of this new album! It's been over a year in the making, and you know it'll be worth the wait, so be sure to head to The Canadian on Boxing Day for Garden of Bedlam's CD release party!

That said, will "Everything Will Die" be our next CD review on the SMS? Maybe. I'm actually gonna be out of town for family Christmas commitments from Christmas Eve through the 27th or 28th, so I regrettably can't make this show. If I can get an advance copy of the CD, or get it before New Years' Eve, I'll definitely try and review it this month, but time will tell. If I don't get it until next month, then I WILL 100% review "Everything Will Die" in early January, so a review is coming, but when is up in the air at the moment. I'll keep you guys posted, but in the meantime, click here for studio previews of two songs from the CD!

Next up, we have two new local bands that recently came to my attention, both of which are from Sault Michigan, so here's what you need to know! The first one I've found is named Hoist The Sails, a new local metal sextet (yes, 6 members) that seemed to form earlier this month, though they do feature a few familiar faces in their lineup. The band includes singers Travis Theel & Lucas Falkowski, guitarists Nathan Switzer (Traces) and Mitch Goetz (Seeking Reverence, The Highest of Fives), and Nathan's old Analog Deficiency bandmates Joe Niemi on bass & Marcel Grengs (also from Mitch's old pop rock band Focus) on drums, so there's a lot of young local talent in this band! Hoist The Sails describe their genre as "an undefined form of metal", though they list influences ranging from Protest The Hero & The Devil Wears Prada to Lamb of God and Meshuggah, so there's definitely a lot of sound possibilities for this new group. There isn't a lot of updates to their Facebook page yet, so a lot is unknown about them at the moment, like how Lucas sounds as a singer, but we'll find out more as time goes on, I'm sure!

There's promise in Hoist The Sails, as Nathan and Mitch have solid guitar skill (though I thought Mitch moved out of town for college?), Analog Deficiency seemed to have a bright future when they were together, and Travis has a good singing voice judging by the acoustic videos he's posted on his YouTube channel, but time will tell how Hoist The Sails develop, so become a fan at the above links and stay tuned for band updates at the SMS as they roll in!

The other new band I've recently came across is a hard rock quartet named Elements of Madness, so here's what you need to know on them! Based out of Sault Michigan and Newberry, the band has been active since roughly June of this year, and their lineup features singer/guitarist Cody Rosebohm, singer/bassist Tyler Fox, guitarist Joe Pine, and drummer Kyle Hummelgard. I'm not familiar with any of them musically, and I believe they're younger on the whole, so that could be why. Initially known as ThatOneBand, their Facebook page heavily hypes the members, and though a specific genre beyond "rock" isn't listed, the descriptions and influences hint towards at least a hard rock sound. Updates on their page are sporadic, with nothing new posted since last month, but we do have a slight glimpse of their sound thanks to Cody Rosebohm's YouTube channel, which has three solo acoustic riff videos towards Elements of Madness originals named "Falling" and "The Beast Inside"! The videos don't amount to a lot yet, just some short riffs, but there's some heaviness present, and hopefully these are built into fullet tracks sooner or later! Check out more from Elements of Madness at the above links, Cody's new version of "Falling" below, and both Elements of Madness & Hoist The Sails are now in our active Sault Michigan band links on your right!


And finally for today, Sault Michigan/Grand Rapids epic metal quintet End of Existence have posted a new 15 minute video onto their YouTube channel called "The Making Of 'End Of Existence' (Part 1)" featuring a lot of random band goings on from the last while! Uploaded earlier today, the video features everything from frontman Bob Helsten reading various radio voiceovers to a number of radio stations to band rehearsal footage to just random conversations and joking between the band members, and if you're a fan of tour vlogs or "making of" videos, this should be an entertaining glimpse into End of Existence's rehearsals and time together as a band! A "Part 2" is hyped to follow this video soon, so if you enjoyed this video, there's definitely more to come! Give End of Existence's new video a look below, and stay tuned for more news and material from them very soon!



That's all for today, but hopefully there'll be some more news on the site by Wednesday! Things might slow down this week due to my exam week, but I'll try to stay on top of things! Thanks everyone, stay tuned for more!!

Garden Of Bedlam Updates, Shaw TV News, And Much More!!

Let's get some more news going on the site today, and it's a mix of things from changes to band links and profiles on the SMS to a new video from a local project to two very cool Garden of Bedlam-releated stories from the last little while, so let's get this post going!

If you're still anxiously awaiting the release of Garden of Bedlam's full length album "Everything Will Die", maybe this image will build some more anticipation! It was posted onto their Facebook page last night, and though not a lot is said, it seems self-explanatory. I'd assume that the image either is the album's cover or contains elements of it, and the date of December 26th seems to imply what you're probably thinking it implies. That said, if "Everything Will Die" does indeed come out on Boxing Day, what are the specifics? That, I don't know. I'd assume that the album will come out on CD format with a likely mp3 release on iTunes or similar stores around the same time, and it should have at least 9 songs. The Rad Zone would be a likely local retail outlet to sell it, and a CD release show tied in would make sense, but all we have publically available is this image and the date upon it as of right now. I'm definitely excited to finally have Garden of Bedlam's first full length album in my possession after over a year of waiting, but there's still details to come, so stay tuned for the SMS as soon as more official word on it's release comes out, but circle Boxing Day on your calendars!

Also in Garden of Bedlam related news, the band (save for Josh Belleau) are featured in a new Shaw TV interview piece by Christian Lemay (who previously did pieces on As It Stands & Dismembertainment), and this time, it focuses on local music/collectibles store The Rad Zone in the Wellington Square Mall! The bulk of the interview focuses on Rad Zone owner Paul Muncaster, who talked in detail about The Rad Zone's beginnings, it's connections with the local community, and yes, their support of local music and what they do and offer to local bands, and it's great to see him show this much support so well over the years! He seemed friendly and humble, and the Shaw TV crew got some great interior shots of The Rad Zone, along with comments from local photographer Rob Majury (who's done photography work for them) and members of Garden of Bedlam (including bassist & Rad Zone employee Evan Belleau.) They outlined their support and praise of Paul and The Rad Zone for what they've done for the band and the local music scene, along with some news relating to what Garden of Bedlam merchandise you can buy in-store. It's a very nice and complementary interview with all parties, so definitely check it out wherever you can!

So when can you see this interview? As of today, it's running about once every 24 minutes, so it's not rigidly placed enough to give a real time to see it. For reference, it comes on after a piece on a local 102 year old woman and a Shaw TV commercial, and it's about 5 minutes long. Apparently, it's been running on channel 10 (Shaw cable users only) since Monday, but I only just heard about the interview the other day, and I sincerely apologize for being late to get the word out on the SMS. It's a great video on an awesome store that gives 110% to the local music community, and definitely check it out while it's still on rotation! I believe it will be off air by Monday, but it should be posted on Shaw TV's website early next week for about a week, and hopefully for the Christmas season, I'll have a copy to post on YouTube for a present! Stay tuned, and check out the Rad Zone/Garden of Bedlam interview video on channel 10 A.S.A.P., and kudos to Christian for another quality piece!

Next up, ApocalyptiCDistroyeR frontman Jesse Middaugh uploaded another solo performance video onto the band's YouTube channel yesterday, and it's basically a more refined version of his acoustic song "You Mean The World To Me" that he posted last month. The lyrics are still a bit repetitive, and Jesse's tone is grittier than the song probably needs, but it's not a bad softer track, if atypical from much of ApocalyptiCDistroyeR's past output. Give it a look below, along with much more solo and band material at the above links!



And finally for today, here's three assorted shorter stories related to site changes and band link adjustments, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band name:

• I've removed the defunct Sault Ontario hardcore band BeeFMoutH from our Inactive Local Band Links because the page I linked them with (a YouTube channel under the BeeFMoutH name) isn't really a "band page", so to speak. They were entertaining with a unique edge though, so check out some of their posted videos at the above link!
• I'll likely be moving Sault Michigan solo metal project BlisteringBane to our Inactive Local Band Links tomorrow due to a year's inactivity. Bandleader Jordon Jones hasn't updated the project's MySpace page since a year ago tomorrow, when he implied a hiatus for the project anyway due to losing "the stuff" to make more music. Disappointing, but hopefully Jordon reemerges musically down the road!
• I've edited our Defunct Local Band Profile on local hardcore quartet Detroit to reflect the fact that guitarist Curtis Faux has since joined frontman Brenton Ellis in the active Toronto hardcore punk band Maximum RNR, a fact I alluded to on the site last month as well. Not a huge change, but I thought I'd mention it, and check out Maximum RNR at the above links for an extension of the Detroit sound!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our next Defunct Local Band Profiles on Garage Inc. & Savage Roar tomorrow, and more news this weekend hopefully! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Caveman Morrison), Plus More Assorted News!!

Hey guys, I'm back with some more local metal news and updates, so get yourselves ready! We have an upcoming concert looking for acts, and updates from two prominent local bands, but first, here's a long awaited LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!!

Caveman Morrison are back! After a three month break and a band member changeover, the local metal cover trio will hit the stage for the first time since the spring on August 13th at The Vibe Lounge! This will be the band's first official concert featuring Browbeat frontman Dutch Vanderploeg on bass, replacing the departed Rick White. A start time of 10:00 PM is listed on the official Facebook event page, and according to one of Dutch's statuses on Facebook, there will be a $2 cover charge. I almost guarantee this is a 19+ show as well. Click here to confirm your attendance! It's great to see Caveman Morrison back, I'm really looking forward to seeing the new lineup in action, and hopefully you guys are too! If you wanna hear some great metal covers from one of the Sault's better known metal bands, The Vibe Lounge is the place to be on August 13th! And yes, the show's on a Friday, but don't be scared off by the whole "Friday The 13th" connection! Click the above links for more info and details!

Next up, I got an e-mail recently from Steven Dahlke, a Sault Michigan concert promoter and the event manager at The Big Bear Arena near Kewadin Casino, which has held a few notable hard rock concerts, including one of Half Stupid's final shows from last August. Steven's planning to hold a concert full of young local bands at The Big Bear Arena near the end of next month in cooperation with Steve's Music, and he's on the lookout for bands! I won't spill details on the early tentative lineup yet, the show hasn't been offically announced to the best of my knowledge, but there's some very intriguing names that he shared with me! He asked me for help in promoting the show, so that's exactly what I'm doing! I don't know 100% details, but know this: If you want to play in an all-locals concert in late-August in Sault Michigan, contact Steven at this location! This may sound geared towards Sault Michigan acts, but if you're in Sault Ontario and are interested, go for it! And as I hear more finite details on this show, especially concerning metal and hard rock acts, I'll be sure to let you guys know!

Thirdly today, some assorted Garden of Bedlam updates that, in hindsight, I should have featured with my Rotaryfest review. Firstly, Garden of Bedlam recently announced that their upcoming full length album will tentatively be titled "Everything Will Die"! This was first announced in a Facebook group e-mail, and was later mentioned on stage by Buzz while introducing the song of the same name at Rotaryfest (source here!) Now, that could change (remember, it's the TENTATIVE title), but if it sticks, I approve! As for recording of the CD, all that's left for in-studio are vocals and some of Josh Belleau's guitar solos, according to the band's Facebook group! Buzz mentioned on his Facebook page yesterday that all he has left is one song, harmonies, and some "gut wrenching screams"! Sounds good to me, I can't wait to hear the finished product! Hopefully the illnesses that Buzz was battling were killed in a metal fashion so as not to affect the album! Also keep an eye out on producer Miguel Gauthier's Facebook page for studio updates too! I'll keep you guys posted as I hear more on the new album, and, of course, your next chance to see them live is on August 10th, when they open for Kiss at The Essar Center! You won't want to miss that!

Finally for today, we have new Woods of Ypres-related videos to share! But first, here's an article from Hellbound.ca where columnist Gruesome Greg reminisces about his lost Woods of Ypres t-shirt that was styled in a Batman logo-esque fashion. Only 25 are in existence, and it sucks that he can't find his! Interesting topic, I've never seen a metal column article around a band t-shirt, but it's actually a good read, especially for those of you who have a t-shirt or two that you hold dearly! Check it out here! Now, video time! The first video I'm showing also comes from Hellbound.ca's Vimeo channel, and it's outtakes from Woods of Ypres' recent music video shoot! It's basically 73 seconds of slow motion clips of frontman David Gold leaping off of a cliff into a river below with a handheld camera and, in one instance, a female co-star! No indications of which song the video is for though, but it's cool to get a glimpse of what to expect in the video! The second video is one of two new concert videos uploaded onto YouTube by user Ishadowseek from their show in Santa Clara, California! These are definitely not the best clips we've seen from the tour, especially not this clip, which has very muddled audio and shaky camera work. The one I'm embedding below, of the songs "Suicide Cargoload (Drag That Weight)" & "Halves and Quarters", is longer and better, but not high quality for the video. Still worth checking out though! I'll keep you posted with more Woods of Ypres news and updates!





That's all for today, but stay tuned to The Sault Metal Scene for more news and updates in the coming days, plus some special feature posts as well! And just for reference, the next concert I hit will likely be Ultraviolence at Coch's Corner on Saturday night, so I hope to see you guys there! Thanks everyone, I'll be back with more news and updates tomorrow!