I hope everyone is staying warm and off the roads on this very snowy Friday! Regarding this weekend's concert previews, the ones covered yesterday appear to be on as scheduled, but we do have a cancellation to note, as local hard rock quartet Half Past are not playing at Shooters Downstairs Lounge tomorrow, as per an update to their Facebook page's post about the concert this morning. A reason for the postponement was not announced, but Shooters itself is opening late today. The weather forecast could be to blame, I don't 100% know, but Half Past have promised that there is a "new date to come". Hopefully all is well with the guys, and we'll let you know when this show is re-booked! While there have been a few other announced concert cancellations (especially tonight), hard rock shows covered in yesterday's weekend concert preview post are not visibly affected. Keep tabs with the bands and venues for clarification on this weekend's shows!
Now, let's dive into a new video and more on this snow day, starting with the long awaited conclusion of local punk supergroup project Mikey & His Uke's 30th anniversary series of covers of Green Day's breakthrough album "Dookie"! It took almost two months after the previous cover to get the final song up, but the series is ending in style by tackling both the final credited song and the bonus track all in one video! For the last credited song, Bookclub frontman Mikey Hawdon (on guitar after dropping the ukelele pretense once again) is joined to play the deep cut "F.O.D." by Flatliners frontman Chris Cresswell, while Buck-O-Nine bassist Andy Plafoot handles bass for the eighth and final time here, and ex-Goldfinger drummer Darren Pfieffer returns to the kit as the house drummer of the "Dookie" series (and wearing a Toronto FC jersey for a change!) How is "F.O.D." filmed this time?
We get a little more variance visually here, as the softer acoustic opening verse is seen in monochrome, before going full colour when the song shifts into punk territory, though Chris continues playing acoustic guitar. Also, while Chris handles the opening, everyone else is seen either waiting patiently or setting up for their parts, which is cute! After "F.O.D." ends, we get to watch a sped up video of Mikey and his family putting together a jigsaw puzzle of the "Dookie" album cover while a caption scrolls across the screen thanking everyone for watching and supporting the series... but we're not done yet! The hidden bonus track on "Dookie" was "All By Myself", an acoustic song performed by drummer Tre Cool, and Mikey & His Uke didn't forget about that one! Here, Mikey takes on lead vocals and plays ukelele straight through for the only time in the "Dookie" series.
Guesting here are Vincent Hidalgo and Brad Magers from the Los Angeles punk band The Bronx and, more notably given how this cover was handled, their mariachi side project Mariachi El Bronx (and to that end, Brad is playing trumpet). No Darren here, nor any prior bassist. Two kids also join in banging pots on their heads, while Vincent plays guitar while lying on the floor. Nice little throwback to the early Mikey & His Uke covers here, with a Mexican twist, while "F.O.D." delivered the punk goods with solid vocals from Chris, so you get a good end to this lengthy series! Check both covers out below, and stay tuned for more from Mikey & His Uke!
Finally for today, I wanted to shine a spotlight on a local musician who needs help at a trying time (normally, I don't talk about musicians' personal lives here but I'll make an exception for stuff like this). As some of you may know, former Destroilet drummer Matt Waples was diagnosed with testicular cancer earlier this year that may have spread to his adrenal gland, and he is having surgery to remove the cancerous testicle next month as well as chemotherapy. He has launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise $8,100 to cover travel expenses to Toronto and back as well as to cover the donation of sperm to be frozen in the event that he decides to become a parent in the future. Matt's fight was covered in this Sault Star article by Jeffrey Ougler earlier this week, where he outlined his goals to start a fully fledged graphic design business (local musicians know Matt's work with Sonigraphix well from posters, logos, and merchandise).
The article has candid remarks about Matt's cancer and what he has been through this year, and he has been similarly open and honest on social media. As of this writing, $2,925 has been raised, and hopefully more comes in soon, especially given how rapidly things are changing with his condition. Matt's a good guy, a strong drummer, and a talented graphic artist, and I hope things work out optimally for his health so he can get back to living how he wants without pain and worry. Click here to read more on Matt's cancer battle and to help him reach his financial goals, and we all hope that he gets well soon! That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!
