The Soo's Got Talent Finals Recap (Part 2!!)

For our first news post of December 2024, let's finish our recap of the finals of The Soo's Got Talent at Soo Blaster on November 22nd! This post will feature the remaining videos of the finalists' second songs with Mike Haggith & The Big Finish Band from the T.S.G.T. Facebook page, and to see what winner Madii Schomogyi, runner-up Demoy MacSamuels, third place finisher Nicolette Rebello, and fellow finalist Robert Nevitt did with Mike's band, click here. We'll go in upload order here for the other three finalists, starting with Kristina Sagrak, who covered No Doubt's "Don't Speak" for her full band song. Like on Madii's Cher cover that night, the full Big Finish Band played here while Mike himself played tambourine (though he didn't do backing vocals this time). Good rendition that was a solid enough choice for Kristina's range, and everyone handles this early No Doubt ballad well, so check it out below!

Next up, golden buzzer recipient Chloe Tessier was filmed at the finals covering Joan Jett & The Blackhearts' "I Love Rock N' Roll" with The Big Finish Band (accurate description, as Mike didn't play here at all, not even on tambourine). Honestly, I don't think Joan Jett was the best choice to showcase Chloe's vocal range, but she does what she can with this classic rock staple, and the band is solid as you'd expect, so give this performance a watch for yourselves below!

Finally from the finalists this year was Celeste Burton, who put down her guitar to cover Pink's "Sober" for her last song. The band here saw Mike playing bass with Matt Fronzi sitting out (similarly to the Savage Garden cover with Demoy), though in this case, Elly McWatters provided backing vocals and didn't play guitar, like on Nicolette's Halestorm cover. Celeste seemed a little unsteady on stage just singing, but the song suited her vocal abilities well, and the pared down Big Finish Band worked fine on a song like this, so give her full-ish band cover a watch below!

Lastly, videos weren't publically posted from potential guest spots by 2023 champion Storm (Rausch) Dowding or judge Valerie Powley, but Mike Haggith & The Big Finish Band's intermission set was filmed for a 2 minute live-stream clip of most of their opening song "Carousel". It's short and vertical, but it's not a bad watch! Embedded below though is Mike & crew's full set, as live-streamed onto Mike's own YouTube channel! In the 24 minute video, they're seen playing "Carousel" as well as "I Really Hope This Gets To You", "No Love", "Hot & Cold", "All The Best", and "Twist Of Fate". Everyone's instrument roles are largely the same as seen at Northern Vibe, with Mike just singing and not playing guitar, though Elly just does backing vocals on "Twist Of Fate". Filmed from a front row vantage point from slightly below, the live-stream looks better than it sounds, with muffled audio and a slight hiss.

Despite that, Mike, Chris, Elly, Matt, and Brandan have a lively and strong mini-set here that helped set the tone for the competition songs ahead that night, so fans of Mike's will definitely want to check their Soo's Got Talent intermission set out below, and stay tuned for their Toystock set's live-stream from two days later in an upcoming post!

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

The Soo's Got Talent Semifinals Results, Plus A Live-Streamed Video!!

As you may know, the semifinals of this year's The Soo's Got Talent took place at Soo Blaster on Saturday, and while videos are not (yet?) out for the competitors, we now know the six finalists moving forward to the finals on November 4th! In alphabetical order by last name, the finalists are singers Xavier Pelletier LeBouef, Demoy MacSamuels, Greg McLeod, and Elly McWatters, plus singer/guitarist Storm Rausch and dancer Jophin Saju. The four eliminated competitors (all singers) are Arin Karki, Raedyn Matechuck Levesque, Celeste Rector, and Kristina Sagrak, with Kristina being the only Golden Buzzer recipient to not make the finals. Xavier and Greg were competitors in last year's T.S.G.T., with Xavier now making the finals in back-to-back years, while Greg has bettered his placement from 2022. From what I was told, Greg didn't actually perform on Saturday, so how did he advance?

Reportedly, Greg had to miss the semifinals due to a death in his family, so he was given a spot in the finals as a result (this was announced live at the event, but as I wasn't there, I'll refrain from going into extra details just in case). It's impossible to say if he'd have qualified the normal way, but he's a talented singer, and hopefully he has a strong showing next month! Assuming a similar format to 2022, the six finalists will have two performances on November 4th, one standard and one alongside Mike Haggith & his solo band, which poses some interesting challenges. For one, Jophin Saju is a dancer, not a singer, and his T.S.G.T. videos have him dancing to Indian pop/rap songs. Will Mike & crew learn something along these lines, or will Jophin dance to something more rock-based? Also, will Demoy MacSamuels (whose filmed videos have all been of original songs) get the full band treatment for one, or will he try a cover?

It also remains to be seen how they'll handle guitars with Storm Rausch also playing guitar (note that, when singer/guitarist Colin Gasparelli took part in last year's finals, Handsome Sandwich guitarist Jesse Cook sat out the group's song with him). I will note that finalist Elly McWatters is well acquainted with Mike Haggith & his band, having guested on vocals with them live, let alone being a bandmate of drummer Brandan Glew's in Re:Born, but as far as I can tell, Mike signed on to perform at The Soo's Got Talent well before Elly decided to audition. Will that familiarity give her a leg up on the 4th? Come to Soo Blaster that day to find out! As per event advertising, admission for the finals will still be $22 for adults and $12 for kids, and a start time is to be announced (the semifinals began at 6:30 PM but last year's finals were earlier in the day due to Soo Blaster double booking Afroman that night.)

Between Elly's Re:Born work, Greg's classic rock base, and Xavier's past metal/rock covers in this event, there will be performers who fit Mike Haggith & his band better on paper, but how about them on their own? While the wait continues for official video from The Soo's Got Talent post-round 1, Mike live-streamed his half-hour long set (which was an intermission set between the semifinalists) to his YouTube channel. Oddly, he hasn't posted a description there, and this is regrettably shot vertically, but it's nice to see any video from the last two rounds! On Saturday, Mike's usual local bassist Jacob Quarrell was booked for a separate event, so he was replaced by Far From Fine bassist Matt Fronzi for the evening. In order, their set included "Hot & Cold", "If Ever Comes The Day", "MorningStar", "I've Seen It Before", a cover of Matt's old band Gnaeus' song "Lovers", and "Twist Of Fate".

Part of why only six songs were played is that Mike broke out his storytellers hat to promote his albums, explain his freak knee dislocation at Rotaryfest & recovery from it, and introduce the band/credit Matt & Gnaeus (this was apparently the first time Matt has played "Lovers" on stage in seven years!). Everyone performed strongly, and Mike was more animated than he was at the Northern Vibe Festival in August, including his intense vocals-only work on the closer! I do wish that this video was filmed horizontally, if not closer to the stage, but kudos to Mike for getting this at all, so check it out for yourselves below!

That's all for today, but look for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

The 2016 VM Radio Battle Of The Bands Finals Recap!!

At last, here's our recap of Wednesday night's VM Radio Battle of the Bands final round, and apologies again for the delay, our K.I.C.K. video upload failed twice before finally making it onto Facebook. After two weeks of intense action from 5 local bands (plus a fun guest set from Jack Spades), the contest came to a head at The Canadian Nightclub on Wednesday, and aside from the obvious high stakes, the only differences from the semifinals were in the presence of more sponsor prizes and promotional papers from The Din and K.I.C.K. on tables at the venue. Also, Tidal Records' Dustin Jones was back behind the judges table on Wednesday after being absent from last week's semifinal due to personal commitments, but as both of last week's bands advanced to the finals, he still got to see everyone compete! Wednesday also saw the best turnout of the month for attending fans, but what did everyone see? Here's what you should know!

After a random drawing coincidentally gave us all 3 bands in alphabetical order (all playing 9 songs, no less), local alternative hard rock trio and week #1 winners The Din opened the finals with a set of mostly originals like "We Met As Surrogates" and the debuting "Differences", plus covers of The Barenaked Ladies and The Beatles, with only 4 songs repeating from their semifinal set. The Din received another good reception, with Mike Haggith & Tammy Hill exploring their surroundings well during their set, but did they do enough to win their first battle of the bands? Next was local hard rock quartet (and week #2 wild cards) Eclipse, who played 5 originals like "Crywolf" and "Rebel From Above" (a renamed revival of Curtis & Daniel's old band Punch's eponymous song, and also played by Haggith), which were bookended with four covers from bands like Genesis and System of a Down. Breaking out their smoke machine once again, Eclipse had a strong set, including 4 songs not played last week, and they too had a good reception!

Indie/acoustic rock quartet (and week #2 winners) K.I.C.K. closed the night with a set that didn't stray too far from last week's song selection, with only 2 songs replaced, but they won over attendees with originals like "Silently Screaming" and "HWY 17" (which even got a few slow-dancing couples!), plus many fan favourite returning originals and their OneRepublic and The Weeknd renditions. The Keep It Cool Kids got a strong response and seemed to be having fun, complete with a surprise introduction by last year's winners in Gnaeus, but did K.I.C.K. win it all this year? After their set, judges Rob Speers, Dustin Jones, and myself convened to add up scores and determine individual award winners, and while I again won't publically reveal the final tallies, I will say that we didn't universally agree on our first place picks, though one judge had two of the bands tied.

And also, I'll confirm that the winning band edged out second place by just three points, making this (at least) the fourth judged local battle since 2009 where the winning band won by 3 points or less. If you ever wanted a sign as to how talented and competitive local artists can be, this is it! Now, here are the final results, courtesy of MC/promoter J.D. Pearce, plus the winners of this year's individual awards:

1st Place: K.I.C.K.

2nd Place: The Din

3rd Place: Eclipse

Best Vocal Performance: Curtis McKenzie (Eclipse)

Best Guitar Player: Tammy Hill (The Din)

Best Bass Player: Fred Dunn (Eclipse)

Best Drummer: Aaron Dunn (K.I.C.K.)

Best Song: K.I.C.K. - "Wanted"

After three weeks of hard fought battling, K.I.C.K. edged out The Din to claim their first battle of the bands victory in their first try, so congratulations to Simon, Tyson, Kevin, and Aaron are absolutely in order for their strong and fan pleasing performances this year! It is a coincidence that K.I.C.K. were, like Gnaeus last year, the last band in both of their battle sets, and narrowly defeated a heavier band by a small margin to win the battle? If anything, it shows how talented each band is, and how much potential the scene has! Like they did at the Speak Easy Battle earlier this month, The Din and Eclipse both finished in second & third place, but considering that The Din and 3/4ths of Eclipse (in Project 421) didn't place or make the finals in either of last year's battles, they won big from their huge turn-arounds this year alone, and Eclipse were competitive in the totals too! There's absolutely nothing to be ashamed of! As for Stereo North and Heavy Head, the fourth & fifth place finishers from week #1, I do want to thank them for their entertaining sets too, they showed a lot of talent and promise!

As for the awards won last night, K.I.C.K. picked up $500 for their victory (if they won anything else for first place, it wasn't announced), while there was again no announced prize for second or third place. Curtis McKenzie overcame his cold to receive a $100 Rad Zone gift card for his second straight Best Vocal Performance award (he won with Haggith last year), while The Din's Tammy Hill & Eclipse's Fred Dunn each received a Case's Music prize package for their Best Guitar & Bass Player awards. K.I.C.K.'s Aaron Dunn matched his brother Fred with a Best Drummer award, winning a custom drum skin from Maxx Graphix, while K.I.C.K. won recording time at Tidal Records for "Wanted" as the Best Song. The Most Energetic Band and Best Fan awards didn't return from last year's battle, while the Fan Favourite Band award was apparently scuttled due to a virtual tie among the fan vote, as per J.D. in a personal conversation on Wednesday.

Overall, this year's VM Radio Battle of the Bands was a great time, both for the fun of this style of event, and for my return to local concerts after 6 months away due to (ongoing) family health matters, and hopefully it won't be another 6 months before I see another live concert! Huge thanks go out to J.D. for inviting me to be a judge at this year's battle once again, it's a privilege that I was more than happy to accept, and if the call comes for next year, I'll be ready to serve if at all possible! Thanks as well to Dustin, Rob, and last week's guest judge Christian Lemay for their input, support, and professionalism this month, you were great judges once again, and I'd be happy to work with you guys again if the situation arises! Of course, thanks to all of the aforementioned sponsors who put this year's battle on (including Village Media and Labatt Breweries), and to The Canadian Nightclub proper for being a great host venue once again!

As for our videos from the battle finals, I kept up my tradition dating back to 2013's Rockstar Bar Battle by filming each finalist band's first two songs (it's the finals of a multi-night battle, they deserve the extra song!), and after some unforeseen delays, each track is now online on our Facebook page! There will be more media coming from Village Media's local news sites (SooToday and Local2), but in the meantime, here's The Din playing "In Search of the Perfect Moment" & "Cowardly Hearts Beneath The Stars", Eclipse covering System of a Down's "Hypnotize" & Billy Talent's "Fallen Leaves", and K.I.C.K. playing "Burning Desire" & "Stranded"!







That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile, more news, and this month's CD review in short order! Thanks everyone!

The 2016 VM Radio Battle Of The Bands Finals Preview!!

After two weeks of intense action from five talented local bands, this year's VM Radio Battle of the Bands at The Canadian Nightclub will conclude TOMORROW NIGHT with the final round, where this year's remaining three bands will collide for their first battle of the bands title, so here's our extended finals preview! Like in the semifinal rounds, the finalist bands will play half hour-ish sets for attending fans, with judges Dustin Jones, Rob Speers, and myself scoring them on the same criteria as in past weeks, but the stakes are ever higher! Not only will the grand prize winners be announced tomorrow, but individual awards will again be given out in varying categories, with Village Media, Tidal Records, Case's Music, The Rad Zone, Maxx Graphics, and Labatt Breweries among the presenting sponsors to look out for. Given how well the semifinals went, tomorrow's finals should end things with a bang, so here's some info on this year's three finalists!

The Din: After defeating Stereo North & Heavy Head in March 9th's semifinals (and finishing in second place during the next day's Speak Easy Battle), local alternative/hard rock trio The Din will look to claim their first battle of the bands victory tomorrow in their fourth try. Their new lineup has steadily impressed fans so far in 2016, but can Mike, Tammy, and Brandan claim first place tomorrow night, and make everyone give into The Din?

Eclipse: Less than a week removed from their third place run at the Speak Easy Battle, newer local hard rock quartet overcame frontman Curtis McKenzie's cold by punching their finals ticket as the wild cards after a strong performance last week. With the battle title, and a possible repeat Best Vocalist Award on the line for Curt, can he, Daniel, Fred, and Chris "eclipse" their other bands' past battle runs with their first battle victory tomorrow?

K.I.C.K.: Making their local battle of the bands debut in style last week, the Keep it Cool Kids defeated Eclipse to move on to tomorrow's finals, impressing fans with their acoustic-tinged indie rock sound and surprise covers. A rematch with Eclipse awaits tomorrow night, but The Din are also in the mix, and it's anyone's guess who will win out tomorrow, but can Simon, Tyson, Kevin, and Aaron kick their way to the VM Radio Battle crown?

Tomorrow's action also sees a rematch between K.I.C.K. drummer Aaron Dunn and his brother, Eclipse bassist Fred Dunn, while the dynamic between Din frontman Mike Haggith and Eclipse's Curt McKenzie and Daniel Horton is well known locally, as they were all in The Din's original lineup, and most notably, were bandmates in the band Haggith. The guys are on good terms, but keep that matchup in mind, especially if you miss Haggith! Of course, this year's winning band will receive a large cash prize and other prizes to be announced tomorrow, and while the rest of the individual prizes (and potential 2nd/3rd place awards) aren't announced online, you can see some of the individual awards laid out at the venue tomorrow night. As I said last year, I hope all 11 performers tomorrow will bring their A-game, leave it all on the stage, and deliver the best performance possible to win over fans and judges alike! You all worked hard to make the podium, now do what you can to reach the top of it and seize the day tomorrow night!

For attendees, tomorrow's finals have a special cover charge of $10, unless you previously bought tickets for the finals/full battle. Everything starts at 9:00 PM, and there's no announced cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be an awesome final round, especially given the talents they have and the performances they put on in the semifinals, so don't miss out on the action! For a preview, here's our videos of each of this year's finalists, and we'll see you guys at The Canadian TOMORROW NIGHT! Thanks everyone!

VM Radio Battle Of The Bands Recap, Fallout, And Final Results!!

Hey guys, sorry for the delay in this getting on the site, but videos took extra long (we'll elaborate on why in a bit.) Wednesday night saw the final round in the month-long VM Radio Battle of the Bands at The Canadian Nightclub, as the final four bands gathered one last time to compete for the top prize, though remember that due to my judging commitments and to avoid any bias accusations, I will not critique or review the bands' sets here, just recap what we all saw. After a random drawing, the first band on Wednesday was local genre-hating quartet The Apocalypse Afterparty (who won last week's semifinal), and they played largely the same set as before to another solid reception, but partly due to their night-opening placement, their fan response was far lower than before. RedD Monkey fans were pleased to see them cover "Fo' Dozen Cookies" at set's end, complete with Z & X swapping frontman and drum roles to facilitate that, and if you know X's alter ego, this will make complete sense!

They even sold bandanas at the battle, and gave the judges chocolate chip cookies, but did that help in the final total? Next up were week 1 winners The Bear Hunters, who broke out the extra camouflage for their set, as well as a new song named "The Dying Den" to join existing originals like "I Fear No God", but one lasting image will be the slaughter of assorted teddy bears during their set, with stuffing littering the floor! The name's not just a name, bears are indeed the enemy! The Bear Hunters also had the best fan response of the night, with one attendee even bringing a sign, but did that all help push them over the edge? Third up on Wednesday night were week 2 winners Mannapool, who had an improved placement to benefit their well recieved originals like "Beckoning" and "Way Home" that had arguably more of a presence of softer and slower songs than in the semifinals. Did Mannapool turn out the top scores in the final round?

For a second straight week, wild card finalists Gnaeus played last (lucky draw!), and they brought their garage/punk sound to the finals for a set of mostly originals like "The Curse" and the fan-requested "Numbers", plus covers of The Cold War Kids & Daniel Lioneye (fans of Viva La Bam loved that), and while they had a good reception and fan turnout, was that enough to tip them over the edge? After their set were most of the prize announcements, but we'll start by addressing the eight individual awards, which were partially announced between sets as well, and with all performers winning a certificate to go along with the main prize. The Bear Hunters were the only band to pick up two of these awards, with Mitch Sirie winning a Case's Music gear package for Best Guitar Player and drummer Johnny Belanger picking up a custom drum skin from Maxx Graphix for winning Best Drummer!

As for other performer awards, they went to non-finalists, with Haggith frontman Curtis McKenzie winning a new microphone from Right Hook Mics for Best Vocal Performance, while Honest Job bassist Jared Fridy won a Case's Music gear package for Best Bass Player (not bad for his first show with them!) He was the only award winner who couldn't attend the finals, so his bandmates accepted on his behalf. In terms of the separate awards for bands, Gnaeus won recording time with Tidal Records for Best Overall Song ("Circles" from their semifinal set), The Apocalypse Afterparty won a case of Bomb Energy Drinks and a Bomb t-shirt for Most Energetic Band, and in a bit of a surprise, classic metal quartet Project 421 won the coveted Budweiser/Marshall amplifier beer fridge for Fan Favourite Band! Even I wanted that one! As for the Most Enthusiastic Fan award, even that went to a competitor, with Danger Cats drummer "Calico" Katie Maskell winning the $100 Rad Zone gift certificate, as she was always at the finals cheering on the bands!

And now, to the grand prize winners, so who won this huge battle of the bands? I will say beforehand that first and second place were only separated by 2 POINTS, and like in Mannapool's second night victory, any little thing might have shifted the results in the other direction! It was razor close, but who took first place? Here's the final placements!

1st Place: Gnaeus

2nd Place: The Bear Hunters

3rd Place: Mannapool

4th Place: The Apocalypse Afterparty

For the second time in three weeks, GNAEUS have came out on top in a local battle of the bands, becoming the first band since Bring The Fallen in 2009 & 2010 to win two battles in Sault Ontario! It's not easy to out-place 13 different bands at two consecutive events, but in this hot streak, that's exactly what they've did! This talented young quartet won $1,000, a professionally produced electronic press kit and video from VM Radio, and a huge framed plaque to commemorate their victory, and if this doesn't help jumpstart their local run, nothing will! It's worth noting that they did win the battle after being the wild card last week, but as we saw with Haggith & the former Pesto Shirts' podium finishes two years ago, being the wild card is not a handicap, and it can be a motivating factor for a band in that spot to bring their A-game and show that they deserve to be there, which Gnaeus certainly did! Congratulations to Aaron, Brad, Matt, and Brendan on their battle victories!

The Bear Hunters' close loss may be disappointing, but again, they came within 2 points of their own second battle of the bands win, and this is far & away their best ever finish at a judged battle of the bands, so congratulations to them on that level (and I did save one of the poor slaughtered teddy bears so it wouldn't die in vain!) Mannapool surprisingly didn't win any announced awards, but with a strong third place finish and a huge impression left on many new fans, this can only help their exposure as they continue their local growth in 2015 and beyond! And The Apocalypse Afterparty's entertaining sets definitely gave a lot of fans something to talk about, no matter how familiar you were with them before, and even though they couldn't reach The Fury's old battle heights, they've made their mark! Overall, this was a great battle of the bands, and I was honoured to bear witness to this collection of talent this month! If I ever get the call to judge another battle, I'd be more than happy to sign on!

I want to thank J.D. Pearce (a.k.a. Johnny Pints) for having me on to judge this month, Dustin Jones & Rob Speers for their friendliness and insight as we judged the event, Donna Hopper for all of her excellent photos, Dan Nystedt for having me in for this month's Tuned episodes, everyone at Tidal Records and Village Media for their hospitality this month, and all of the above sponsors for making this event possible! And of course, thanks to all 11 of this month's bands for putting on such a great event, and to The Pixo Control for a great guest set during week #1, you guys would have been strong contenders had you been competing! I just hope I added something to the process, and if the opportunity arises to work with the organizers of this battle again, I'm all for it!

As seen above, Donna Hopper was on hand to take photos during the finals for this SooToday recap article, which includes an awards breakdown and remarks from Gnaeus members on their win, so be sure to give it a look! Her photos include 4 each from The Apocalypse Afterparty & The Bear Hunters' sets, 3 each from Mannapool & Gnaeus' sets, and 2 of The Bear Hunters' fans, with the rest coming from and during the awarding of prizes to winning bands and artists. All are great as usual, so be sure to check them out above! The new Tuned episode is online as well, but we'll hold that for an upcoming news post to give it proper emphasis, especially given the length of this recap post. As for our videos, I decided to film the first two songs of each band, as I did at the 2013 Rockstar Bar Battle finals, just to do a little something extra for each band to mark their finals run, so what did we film from each band?

In chronological order by set, here's The Apocalypse Afterparty covering Saul Williams' "List of Demands (Reparations)" and The Fury's "Rebel Scum", The Bear Hunters playing their songs "Dominate" & "Deception", Mannapool playing their songs "Mayday" & "Controlled Chaos", and Gnaeus playing their songs "Lacking" & "Walls"! That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile either tonight or tomorrow morning! Thanks everyone, and congratulations again to Gnaeus!

VM Radio Battle Of The Bands Finals Preview!!

The end is coming ever closer for the biggest local battle of the bands of the 2010s so far, as the finals of the VM Radio Battle of the Bands at The Canadian Nightclub take place TOMORROW NIGHT! After three weeks of exciting action featuring 11 talented local rock bands and a quality guest set from The Pixo Control, the field has been narrowed down to the final four (fitting amidst March Madness), with each semifinal's winner and the highest scoring wild card back one last time tomorrow to compete for huge prizes, with numerous individual prizes awaiting bands and band members alike, so we'll known in short order all of this month's lucky winners! Like in past weeks, band order will be randomly determined, and the judges (Tidal Records' Dustin Jones, VM Radio's Rob Speers, and myself) will judge all four bands on numerous categories relating to their musicianship, stage presence, crowd reaction, and professionalism, but the stakes are ever higher, so who will come out on top? Here's some info on the final four bands in alphabetical order!

The Apocalypse Afterparty: In just their second ever announced public concert in the Soo, this local rap/metal/party rock quartet overcame stiff competition from Gnaeus, Mike Haggith & The Din, and Project 421 last week to advance to tomorrow's finals. Teasing an even crazier show built around the same setlist from night #3, can The Apocalypse Afterparty better "songwriter" Paul Stanghetta's two prior runner-up finishes with The Fury by winning this battle?

The Bear Hunters: The winners of 2013's Viva La Battle, five time battle veterans The Bear Hunters defeated Honest Job and Infamous three weeks ago to become the first band to make the finals this time around. Their death & groove metal originals have helped make them arguably the most familiar of this week's finalists, but can they come out on top in a judged battle of the bands for the first time tomorrow, and what kind of surprises might they have in store?

Gnaeus: Despite being the very last band to play in the semifinal rounds, local post-punk/garage wave quartet Gnaeus came within 4 points of winning last week, and earned enough points to claim the coveted wild card slot for tomorrow's finals. Three weeks after winning the fan voted Speak Easy Battle, Gnaeus will also be rematching The Bear Hunters from that same event, but will results repeat themselves in time for Gnaeus to win their second battle of the bands?

Mannapool: After an incredibly close round two weeks ago that saw 1st & 4th place separated by 8.5 points, local progressive rock quartet Mannapool edged out a victory over The Danger Cats, Haggith, and Stereo North to qualify for tomorrow's final round. Despite no recent local battle of the bands experience on their resume, Mannapool have impressed many in the past year, but can their technical rock originals carry them to first place by the end of tomorrow?

As previously announced via the official Facebook event page & this SooToday press release, there are plenty of prizes awaiting the top 3 bands plus in other individual categories, so what can be expected on that front? The first place band will receive $1,000 and more, while other great prizes to be announced await the bands on the podium. Individual prizes will include recording time with Tidal Records for the best original song, a Bomb Energy Drink package for the most energetic band, individual instrument packages from Case's Music for the best guitarist, bassist, and drummer, a brand new microphone from Right Hook Mics for best vocal performance, and a Budweiser Marshall amplifier beer fridge for the fan favourite band, while the most enthusiastic fan will win a $100 Rad Zone gift certificate. These and more will be handed out TOMORROW, with each prize winner also getting a formal certificate for their win (as seen here), so keep this all in mind!

Also, don't discount the possibility of a tie, given what all four bands bring to the table, and that we have seen ties in the final results of local battles before, most recently at The Grand Theatre in 2012. The chances are unlikely, but if we see a deadlock, the tied bands will play for an extra 10 minutes and be re-scored by the judges, so there would be a resolution!

It should also be noted that if The Bear Hunters or Gnaeus win tomorrow's final round, they'll become the first band to win 2 local battles of the bands since Bring The Fallen (who won 3 of 4 entered in 2009 & 2010), but they have very tough competition ahead, and nothing is certain. As this is the final round, admission will be $10 for general attendees ($5 for semifinal competitors that aren't in the finals), but if you already have a $15 pass for the whole month and attended at least two of the semifinals, you've saved money! Like in past weeks, everything will start at 8:00 PM tomorrow, and yes, this is ALL AGES! For all public and current details on the finals, visit the above links! I have been priviliged to take part in this month's battle of the bands, and I can't wait for tomorrow's final round, especially as I have no idea who will win and I'm very curious to find out! Me, Rob, and Dustin have had a blast this month with such quality music, and things will end with a bang, I'm sure!

Will The Apocalypse Afterparty's creativity and stage presence carry them to the top prize? Can The Bear Hunters lock up their second battle of the bands win with their ferocious death metal? Will Gnaeus overcome their wild card placement to claim their second battle victory in three weeks? Or can Mannapool's talented progressive rock originals conquer the competition tomorrow night? We'll find out TOMORROW, but as one last message to all 16 of the finalists: Bring your A-game! Leave it all on the stage, and come ready to rock, impress, and stake your claim! Best of luck to all of you, and may the best band win! Thanks everyone, and we'll see you there!

Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands Finals Recap!!

Hey guys, it's finally time for our recap of last night's final round of The Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands, and after three weeks of exciting semifinal action, each winning band (plus two wild cards) convened one last time at The Rockstar Bar for all of the marbles! Like the past three weeks, I will NOT be giving the full scores of the bands, nor will I personally critique or review the performances, as I was judging. Instead, like before, I'll just recap the performances and results, out of respect to all involved. Aside from Craig West returning from week 2 to do sound yesterday, and the increased number of bands, the setup was about the same, so check out our recaps of the past weeks for additional details. After a random drawing, the first finalist band to take the stage was week 3 winners The Bear Hunters, who increased their camouflage hunter look for their 5 song set of melodic death metal, including tracks like "Karma", "Render This Void", and the amusing return of guitarist Mitch Sirie's solo track "Squirrel Buddy"! However, the crowd for their set was clearly not as good as last week, which I chalk up as a combination of them going on first, and the crowd not being there for a ⅔rds death metal lineup like last week.

Second up was local folk/progressive quartet (and week 2's wild card) The Pesto Shirts, who played a 5 song mix of covers and originals, including songs like "Secret" and "Gypsy", and covers of Muse & Eurythmics tracks. Without giving away their score or placement, they clearly seemed to amp up their set for the finals, complete with a sizeable core of fans and a more determined presence (it was also fun seeing Steve Myers assist Alisa Borland on keyboard for part of a song!) Third last night was week 1 winners Late & Loud, and they clearly won the visual score with a nice big Japanese Rising Sun flag banner, a solid classic metal look (with departing guitarist Jon Tiberi channeling his Xanadu getup as well), the end-set smashing of Benn Garside's bass, and of course, their "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal" re-release! Their abbreviated set included a Judas Priest cover and originals like "Never Again" and "Fast As A Bitch", and fans ate up their energy, interactions, and enthusiasm!

Fourth on the bill was grunge rockers (and week 1's wild card) Haggith, who played a 6 song set featuring originals like "If You Get Out Alive" and "Wanko", including covers of Stone Temple Pilots and a throwback to the "Heavy Metal" movie soundtrack! Like The Pesto Shirts, they also turned in an amped up set of varied originals & covers that got their own fans going, and they seemed to prove themselves amongst the other competitors (also, kudos to them and their crew for singing along with "Chop Suey" between sets, that was pretty cool!) Capping off last night's lineup was week 2 winners The Suicide Kings, who played four newer originals for their very vocal fanbase (complete with signs), along with covers of Velvet Revolver, System of a Down, and Rage Against The Machine songs, and they put in a determined effort with some good hard rocking energy! I do think they could have been more interactive with their fans, but honestly, they were sparked the whole way through, so maybe it wasn't needed.

After The Suicide Kings wrapped up, the judges (Case's Music's Jay Case, The Rad Zone's Len Ward, and myself) tabulated the scores, and I'll emphasize right now that unlike the semifinals, the scores were NOT clear cut, and we all had wildly different scores and rankings for the 5 finalist bands. Without giving away individual scores, what I will say is that every band scored in the 70s or higher on the judges' individual scorecards, each band finished at least second on a judge's individual rankings, and while there were thankfully no ties like last year, 4 of the 5 bands were separated by just 10 points. With bands of this calibre and talent, there really was no losers, but who claimed first, second, and third place? Here are the winners from last night!

1st place: The Suicide Kings

2nd place: Haggith

3rd place: The Pesto Shirts

Congratulations to The Suicide Kings on securing their first ever battle of the bands win, and as a result of their victory, they won $1,000, 5 hours of recording time at Case's Music, and a guaranteed opening slot at one of J.D. Pearce's upcoming concerts (to be determined.) They also won a trophy each for their victory, and this has to be a huge boost for this still new local band! For taking second place, Haggith claimed $200, medals for their finish, a $50 Rad Zone gift card, and another guaranteed concert opening slot, while The Pesto Shirts won $100 and, a concert slot, and medals. Late & Loud and The Bear Hunters walked out with framed certificates for their participation, which double as 20%-off coupons for Case's Music purchases, which the top 3 bands also won. I'll admit that the final results were a big surprise from how I assumed they would go, but while I won't reveal my predictions or full thoughts on last night's bands, I will single out Haggith & The Pesto Shirts for not just being happy to be there as wild cards. Both bands came prepared with better overall sets, they didn't rest on their laurels, and they made things very interesting and stomped on any predictions that might have been made pre-battle!

And for Late & Loud and The Bear Hunters, you guys played great sets too, no one scored you low at all, and you both put in winning efforts! The Bear Hunters still secured their best ever battle finish (and will be quite visible this summer), and Late & Loud's set was still a triumph for their fans and a fitting send-off for Jon Tiberi! I don't know what their future holds, but I hope this won't be the last time we'll see them together on stage! And for the The Suicide Kings, the guys put in two consistent and very tight efforts this month to claim first place, and they have quite a following, so I see big things for them in the local scene going forward, and hopefully this is just the next step in their local ascension! Congratulations again to Mike, Steven, Mitch, and Ben for their win, and just on a personal note, huge thanks to Jay, Len, J.D., Carrie, Hayley, and Martin for all of their hospitality, assistance, and kind words over the past month! It was honour to judge a local battle of the bands again, and I hope to get the call to judge again in the future! Also, thanks to Giwakwa, The Northern Tragedy, Sarah's Valley, and Sykotyk Rampage for their strong efforts in the semifinals, you all have big things ahead as well!

As this was the finals, and a bigger night, I decided to go above & beyond for my videos, so I filmed the first TWO of each band! To close our recap, here's (in chronological order) The Bear Hunters playing "Dominate" & "Succumb To Eternity" (complete with and introductory cover of "Teddy Bear's Picnic"), The Pesto Shirts playing Muse's "Sing For Absolution" & their song "Secrets", Late & Loud playing "Trouble" & "Machine Gun Maiden", Haggith playing The Stone Temple Pilots' "Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart" & their song "Rage Train", and The Suicide Kings playing their songs "Way Out Of Hell" & "Take Me Away"! (Apologies to them for the visibility, fans on the floor often got in the way.)











That's all for today, but stay tuned TOMORROW for weekend concert previews, and hopefully this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile as well! Thanks everyone! (And yes, I'll have some more in depth thoughts on the re-released Late & Loud EP soon as well!)

Rockstar Bar Battle Of The Bands Semifinals Recap (Night 3)

As promised, here's my recap of last night's last semifinal of The Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands, but be sure to check out last month's poll results in the post below, and VOTE TODAY in our current poll on your favourite concerts from 2012 in full on your right! Also, like the last two weeks, remember that I will NOT be giving in-depth reviews or critiques of last night's bands, or revealing scores beyond bands' placement each day, out of respect to all bands, organizers, and my judging position. Like the past two semifinal nights, three more local bands gathered at The Rockstar Bar to compete for one (or two) spots in next week's finals, with the only major differences from past weeks being a 10:15 PM start time (not 10:30 as was previously announced), less band introductions, and Boot Hill Crooners singer/guitarist Sheldon Jaaskelainen helping out on sound in place of Craig West. For details on each night not covered above, check out our last two battle recaps on the site!

After a random drawing, last night's first band was local "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet Sykotyk Rampage in their first battle of the bands with their current lineup, and they played a selection of more recent original songs like "Hay Zeus" and "Bucket of Ham", along with a medley of their drinking songs (as seen at The Locals Attack in November.) Though they had some loyal fans out, their crowd response wasn't fantastic, and the free-flowing banter and casual energy of their usual sets wasn't as visible. Second last night was Giwakwa (pronounced with a hard G, as in "Gates"), the new local death/sludge metal quartet featuring Bring The Fallen alumni Josh Stephney & Nolan Rainville, veteran local guitarist Chris Page, and Frightlight drummer Chris Thompson. They played an abbreviated set of just 4 songs (including "Winter's Hunger", "Endless Bummer", and "Iron Lung") which attracted a solid crowd response on the floor! Soundwise, they're reminiscent of Bring The Fallen, if a bit doomier and with no guitar solos (which Chris Page told me is on purpose.)

Last up last night was local melodic death metal quintet The Bear Hunters (in their Rockstar Bar debut), and they won immediate points visually for both their new banner and their bear hunter costumes (complete with camouflage garb & "bear blood"!) Their set attracted the biggest crowd and cheers of the night, which saw them play 5 original songs including "Servitude", "Collapse The Sun", and "Deception". After their set, judges Len Ward, Jay Case, and myself deliberated on the results, and while I won't reveal the final scores, I will say that once again, we all agreed who finished first, second, and third. With that said, your third semifinal winners & battle finalists are.... THE BEAR HUNTERS! As a result, the guys have secured their best ever battle of the bands finish (following last year's narrow 6th place run at the Humane Society Battle), and it could mark another prize winning run for members who took awards in bands like Bring The Fallen & Operation: Killdozer in recent years! And yes, guitarist Mitch Sirie will compete twice in the finals following his other band's victory last week, so we'll have to see how that goes! That said, who got the wild card?

Well, last night's second place band (who I'll confirm were Giwakwa) didn't quite break the tie going into last night, but rather than make a tough decision, organizers and judges mutually decided to give BOTH of the tied wild card bands a spot in the finals, and with that said, the wild card finalists are.... HAGGITH & THE PESTO SHIRTS! For The Pesto Shirts, this marks members Steve Myers & Jacob Rendell's first upper level run at a local battle since Sense of Truth & Blues Harvest made the Kiss Battle Finals in December 2009, while Haggith will get a second chance to make a huge impression in their first collective local battle next week! So for next week, The Bear Hunters, Haggith, and The Pesto Shirts will join the first two week's winners (Late & Loud and The Suicide Kings) in a massive 5 band final round, and there's a little something for everyone at next week's finals, with death metal, grunge, hair metal, indie rock, and hard rock all represented by the different bands, and there's interesting notes throughout the finals to take note of!

Will The Bear Hunters lock up their first local battle win and give guitarist Josh Stephney his fourth battle victory in the past 4 years? Can Haggith prove themselves to be above the wild card with a first place run in their battle debut? Will Late & Loud give Jonathan Tiberi a huge local send-off with their second local battle win in just over a year? Can The Pesto Shirts knock off their heavier competitors with their talented indie/jazz blend and professionalism come next week? And will The Suicide Kings keep up their prolific recent successes with a victory in the finals? This is gonna be a huge night of finals action THIS WEDNESDAY, and as a note to all 20 competitors next week: Bring your A-games! Leave it all on the stage, don't just play the same set with the same effort. Prove you deserve the victory, bring your fans, and leave everyone in attendance next week wanting more! You've made it this far, now turn it up to 11 and make the most of this opportunity! No word yet on a start time, but I imagine it'll be similar to past weeks, while the 19+ age limit remains in effect, and admission will cost $10 (but believe me, it's worth it, more bands and only the top bands!)

Which band will claim the $1,000 grand prize, the recording time at Case's Music, the opening slot at an upcoming Johnny Pints concert, and maybe more? Who will claim the other podium spots? Be at The Rockstar Bar NEXT WEEK to find out, and I know I'll see you guys there! Congratulations to the finalists for making it this far, and here's my videos from last night, of Sykotyk Rampage playing their newer song "Disbeliever", Giwakwa playing their song "Stoned To Death", and The Bear Hunters playing "Bloodthirst"!







That's all for today, but stay tuned for previews of both this weekend's metal/hard rock concerts and Woods of Ypres' Juno nomination tomorrow morning or afternoon! Thanks everyone!