A "New" Local Band, Lineup Changes, And More Assorted New Items!!

Another week is on, and for today's news post, we're mostly clearing out our news cache, so what's on tap? Along with a pile of assorted random recent news items, we have lineup changes and other updates from two new-ish local metal bands, and first, we have a new local hard rock project to plug, so here's what you need to know!

Haggith drummer/local solo musician Mike Haggith announced a new local band project on Saturday, and they're called Mike Haggith & The Din! Likely a reference to his most recent solo album "The Present Din", this project appears to be an outlet for Mike to play his array of solo original material live in the Sault area, which is something I know he'd tried to get going before in town. With a cited genre of "acid jam", Mike Haggith & The Din's lineup is almost the same as the Haggith band's lineup, albeit with the 3 common members in swapped roles (a'la Lion Ride & Detroit), with Mike on vocals & guitar instead of drums, Curtis McKenzie on bass & keyboard instead of vocals, and Daniel Horton on drums instead of guitar. For the record, I don't know if The Din will get any dedicated online pages or just share Mike's solo pages, but Mike did confirm that this project is the newest band on the Paperclip Productions label (no word though on if this is the same as the never-revealed Cadets project.)

As a first sample, Mike posted an extended jam of him and Daniel (Curtis is absent) playing "Limb Coast" from his "Neighbourhood Watch" album onto his new YouTube channel (along with full postings of that album and "Suspended Animation"), but how does it sound? At 23 minutes in length, it definitely has a loose jam feel, and it puts more of a freewheeling experimental take on this already dark and atmospheric song, but the parts that match the original recording line up well! I'm interested to hear how The Din tackles some other Mike Haggith originals, so check out their jam version of "Limb Coast" below, and stay tuned for updates!



Next up, here's the latest updates from Sault Ontario thrash band Pillory, starting with the addition of Cole Royal to their lineup as their new bassist, replacing Jonathan Tiberi. The news was broken on their Facebook page on Thursday, though from what I can tell, he's been with the band since last month. I'm not familiar with Cole musically, but fingers crossed he has the skills to match up with Robert and Bret in their current lineup! No word yet though on a new guitarist to replace the late Andres Duchesne. In the same Facebook posting, Pillory revealed that the release of their "Cringe at the Cross" EP is "not too far away", with a summer release now being worked on, while they also revealed that they just finished writing a new original song named "Dethrone the Dictator". It sounds like Pillory's hard at work on their next plans, but I'd like to see them back on stage, as their only concert was six months ago. They need to build some momentum, but they're talented and have made a good early impression, so hopefully some more big news is coming! Stay tuned for more!

Also, here's the latest from the newer local classic metal previously known as Hydra, starting with a name change, as they quietly changed their name to The Hydra's Teeth on Saturday. A reason for the name change wasn't announced, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's to avoid conflicts with existing bands with the same name. The lengthened name works though! Also, they've confirmed the addition of veteran local drummer Roy Kreutzberger to their lineup (as per their Reverbnation page), returning them to a trio following guitarist Talon Risto's departure. Roy's well known locally from projects like Leaves Off Trees, Startlefish, Odd Man Out, Iron Lung, and Clockwork, some of which date back to the 1990s, so even with a lack of explicit metal work that I can find, the skill's absolutely there for Roy to match up with Late & Loud's Brendan Christie & Benn Garside in this band! Other news hasn't been posted since the above changes, but check out The Hydra's Teeth's promising (though incomplete) original demos at their Reverbnation page above, and keep an eye out for band updates!

We'll close today with six assorted recent news items (as they've been piling up), and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• Though not a direct local metal story, Ashes To Dust frontman Noah Morden will take the stage in Superior Heights Collegiate & Vocational School's production of Evita this weekend, where he'll play Che, the narrator. Big opportunity, hopefully all goes well this weekend! As for the band, while we've heard very little from them in recent months,Noah did inquire about returning to this year's Sewer Swampstravaganza, so keep an eye out if they're confirmed!
• On May 10th, Eckerman, Michigan metal band Life's Eclipse posted an unembeddable video sample of a new track named "Aphelion" onto their Facebook page! It sounds very heavy and promising, if incomplete, so check it out at the above links, and fingers crossed we hear more from them soon!
• Bear Hunters/Suicide Kings guitarist/bassist Mitch Sirie is looking for a bassist and drummer for a new progressive metal project that he's working on, though no word on if this is an expansion of his Sorrow Fields solo act or something completely different. If you're interested in trying out, message Mitch at this location or through his post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on Wednesday!
• Local punk trio Redundant were added as a third opening band for the Sleep When You're Dead-headlined all ages concert at The Oddfellows Hall on May 29th, as confirmed on the Facebook event page on Saturday. Unexpected choice, given that the other three bands are all forms of extreme metal, but Redundant's members all have metal experience, and they should set the tone well with their entertaining originals & covers!
• Ex-Swayze Train/Insipid Brutality guitarist Scott Savoie has uploaded three new solo original songs onto his Soundcloud page in the past month, including a Jeff Hanneman tribute named "Forever Reign", and there's vocals on these new tracks! If that's Scott on the thrashier ones, he could front a band if he wanted! Check out his new songs (one of which has female vocals) at the above links!
• I forgot to mention this when we plugged Winkstinger's addition of Jason Bourcier as their new bassist on here, but his enlistment is sort of a return too, as he fronted Winkstinger's predecessors Operation: Killdozer during their brief mid-2009 run! Fans may remember that at least one Killdozer song ("Pieces of You") was adapted by Winkstinger as "Where'd We Go Wrong" after their debut. It's good to see Jason, Jesse, and Jonas back together, and don't miss the band's return on the 29th!

That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for my review of The Crusade! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Telephone & Address), J.P. Fecteau Benefit Updates, And Much More!!

Keeping with our recent cleaning up of our news cache, we have some assorted recent Sault Ontario news items to get to, but what's in store on this cold Saturday morning? Today, we have a bunch of recent shorter news items, another new video from a prominent local drummer, and news on a special benefit show coming up, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month, so here's what you need to know!

An upcoming ALL AGES concert does include an acoustic grunge/alternative project on it's lineup, so here's what you need to know! Taking place on May 10th at The Oddfellows Hall, it's the third all ages show (and first at this venue) to be promoted by AlgomA drummer Jamie Vincent since starting local concert promotion, and though mostly a punk show, it does feature local musician Chris Shoust's Telephone & Address lo-fi/grunge project as one of the opening bands! Two weeks after Chris headlines another all ages gig at the Royal Canadian Legion, his creative unplugged material should serve as a heavier, yet still more reserved contrast from the other scheduled acts, as even though it's an acoustic solo project, the seeds are there for very heavy alt-rock songs! The show itself will be headlined by Regina punk rock quartet The Royal Red Brigade (who opened for Weak Ends at The Oddfellows Hall show last summer), with Edmonton surf punk trio The Rhubarbs also tagging along during the Canadian leg of their spring tour. Both out of town headliners have their own energetic takes on the genre, and I especially like The Rhubarbs, so keep both bands in mind if you're up for an all ages punk show!

The other local openers will be a new local pop punk band named Crawfather, and though they don't have an online page yet, their lineup includes Nebraska Arms singer/bassist Guy Thiffault, Terminal frontman Mike Yakasovich, Downshift guitarist Steve Zuppa, and Small Town Rivals drummer Clint Wilson. Very talented lineup, I'm curious to hear how they sound! This ALL AGES show will be on Friday, May 10th at 8:00 PM, and there's a $5 cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Granted, this is more of a punk show, but there's nuggets of heaviness scattered about, and Telephone & Address give the show a heavier styled act, albeit unplugged, so keep it in mind for next month!

Also in new events next month, this isn't so much a concert as it is a special benefit event, as friends of late J.A.B. guitarist Jean-Paul Fecteau will be joining forces for a benefit in his name on May 13th at The Canadian Nightclub! The aim is to raise money for his family in this time of need, and it will feature local musicians that knew and miss him jamming in his memory. One will likely be Asylum Country guitarist/former local metal musician Terry Eaton (who's co-promoting the benefit), though a fuller list of confirmed artists has yet to come out. The event will also feature prize draws, food, and more to partake in, though I'm sure more info is forthcoming. This benefit will start at 6:00 PM on May 13th, tickets are $20 (which can be obtained through Terry's phone numbers listed at the Facebook event page), and there's not an announced age limit. No matter what goes down next month, this is a great idea to help support Jean-Paul's family at this time of need, and hopefully many of his friends, family, and ex-bandmates will turn out to pay tribute to him next month! If more big details come out on it, I'll be sure to let you guys know!

Next up, here's another new video from As It Stands drummer John Mignacca! Along with a blocked Swedish Mafia House cover (for copyright reasons, no word on if it works for American users), John also posted a second take of his electric drumkit cover of Avicii's "Levels" onto the band's YouTube channel on Wednesday, though his original cover of this song is still posted. This video is shot from above, which gives a neat angle that you don't often see from local metal drummer cover clips (Jake LaLonde aside), so check out John's newest drum cover below, and yes, that's his As It Stands bandmate Albert Bourrier manning the computer!



We'll close today with six recent shorter news stories from the Sault Ontario area (as they've piled on lately), and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band or artist name:

• Former Skull After Betrayl bassist Adam Brett is again looking to get back into local music, though this time on guitar. He'll jam anything from hard rock to death metal, but if you're interested in jamming or working with him musically, message him on Facebook at this location, or see his post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group from this past Tuesday!
• New local sludge/doom metal trio AlgomA launched their own Twitter page last month, so follow them there as another source of band updates! The biggest news item there so far is a plug for their local gig opening for The Golers on June 20th, but that has still not been officially announced by any other sources. When something more official comes out, we'll have it here!
• Local musician Chris Raginskis is looking for a drummer for his new band, who appear to be punk leaning, but would cover some heavier bands like The Misfits & The Bronx. No word on anything else, but if you're interested in trying out, message Chris on Facebook at this location, or check out his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from this past Sunday!
• Fred Kember from The 705 Video Magazine recently reviewed Destroilet's full length debut album,  giving it very positive praise, including calling it an "amazing album", and giving lots of plaudits for the recording quality and cover song choices. I won't spoil it, but give the full review a look at this link, and don't miss Destroilet's first show in two years TONIGHT when they open for The Ripcordz at The Algonquin Pub!
• Newer local metal project The Hydra (featuring half of Late & Loud) apparently parted ways with guitarist Talon Risto earlier this year, as per his quiet removal from their Reverbnation page's lineup. A reason wasn't announced, but he recently moved to Alberta from his prior Deep River homebase, so that could be related. Hopefully we'll hear more from The Hydra soon, so keep an eye out, and best of luck to Talon in the future!
• Demo recordings of Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands finalists The Suicide Kings' original songs "King of the World" and "Into The Fray" have been posted onto their Reverbnation page in the last week or so! I won't give any major thoughts (as I hope to review their EP upon it's release), but fans shouldn't be disappointed, so give them a listen if you want!

That's all for today, but I'll see you guys TONIGHT at The Algonquin Pub for The Ripcordz, Destroilet, and T-Rex Manning! This will be a huge show, so don't miss out! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Caveman Morrison), Weekend Concert Previews, And More News!!

I've been a bit busy with some college work this week, so I apologize for the lack of news yesterday. We're a bit behind, but we'll start making up ground today with this weekend's metal and hard rock concert previews! Well, the ones I can 100% confirm at least. I know of 5 metal-leaning shows (including LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for two newly announced ones), so read on below for what you need to know, and stay tuned at the end of this post for a few assorted other recent stories!

Local cover metal trio Caveman Morrison have announced a pair of new concerts for TOMORROW NIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT! I apologize for the short notice, but the Facebook event page was only launched on Tuesday, and I held off plugging it then to avoid redundantly covering it twice in three days. Following a month off of the local stage, the popular hard rock and metal band will return to The Roosevelt Hotel once again in what should be an entertaining pair of concerts! Admission should be free for both nights, 10:00 PM start times have been announced, and I expect 19+ age limits to be in effect, so check the above links for more details! It's always good to see Caveman Morrison back on stage, so hopefully their prolific and hard hitting metal classics go over well from Tym, Dutch, and Johnny at The Rosie tomorrow & Saturday! For a preview, here's Caveman Morrison covering an Ozzy Osbourne classic at The Rosie last year!



Also in the heavier concert previews is the latest show from new Sault Ontario hard rock quartet The Suicide Kings, who are returning to the site of their debut concerts (The Nicolet Tavern) for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! If memory serves me correctly, this is the band's only scheduled Friday night show through March, so if Fridays work better than Saturdays on your schedule, then don't miss tomorrow's concert! The quick rise of this talented local band continues, and with two originals and plenty of diverse covers in their setlists, they should easily be welcomed back to The Nic tomorrow for what could possibly be their last show of 2012! Admission should also be free for tomorrow's concert, with a 10:00 PM start time and 19+ age limit to be expected. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! I'd expect The Suicide Kings to be on their game in their sixth show tomorrow, so don't miss their wide ranging hard rock sound at The Nic, and for a preview, here they are playing three songs at Toystock last month! (Also, if you can help book some Southern Ontario dates in June towards The Suicide Kings' proposed first tour run, message them at this location!)

Finally for the heavier concert schedule this weekend are the only Sault Michigan-area hard rock shows that I currently know about, as Cheboygan hard rock trio Driven are returning to St. Ignace TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! This frequently seen Northern Michigan band will be back at the Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino this weekend for what will be their last U.P. shows of 2012, and they should bring an entertaining blend of hard and classic rock covers to the stage tomorrow & Saturday! Admission should be free for these 21+ concerts, and a 9:00 PM start time is advertised. Check the above links for more details! Though Banned are lacking for live videos, they have a lot of talent and fun times, so don't miss their hard rock covers all weekend in St. Ignace, and stay tuned for more Kewadin Casino concert updates hopefully this month!

And lastly for today, here's three assorted shorter news stories from the last little while! As usual, these are in alphabetical order by band or artist name:

• Brimley metal trio Half A Man recently addressed their current status on their Facebook page, where it was revealed that they're soon recording their first non-demo CD, and will have media samples online soon from them. The band was last seen at LemmaFest in June, but have long been planning and slowly working on original recordings that have slowed much activity over the past year. Hopefully we hear more from them soon, so keep an eye out for updates!
• New local metal project Hydra (featuring Late & Loud and Torture For Pleasure alumni) have posted a new demo song named "The Circle" onto their Reverbnation page, which is solidly heavy (though incomplete for vocals and drums like their others), so give it a look at the above links for another preview of what's to come from them!
• Are you guys interested in having ex-Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach come to the Soo area for more than just a film shoot? Allstar Promotions is exploring the possibility of booking him for a concert at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino next month with tickets in the $27 range. There's already wide support for the idea (Newberry hard rock band Smashcan want to open for the possible show as well), but if you want to throw your two cents into the idea, click here, and fingers crossed!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

A New Local Metal Band, Gates Of Winter News, And Much More!!

After a couple of days off from new news posts, we've got some big new stories to address on this Monday morning, so what's on tap? We have a prominent singer addition for a newer local band, the latest news from one of the biggest local metal bands of recent years, and more assorted notes, but first, here's a new local metal outfit you should take note of!

First up today, we have a brand new local metal band to add to our Sault Ontario band links, that being Hydra! (Or is it "The Hydra"?) Though active for a few weeks via their Reverbnation page, activity only just picked up today there and on their new Facebook page yesterday. This new band's lineup features Late & Loud guitarist Brendan Christie and bassist Benn Garside alongside guitarist Talon Risto, a former St. Joseph Island resident and good friend of the L&L members. You may recognize him as the guitarist in the Deep River metal band Torture For Pleasure, who have some great classic metal material of their own, so click here to stream some Torture For Pleasure songs! No drummer or singer is secured yet, but I believe Hydra is the same band that Brendan was looking for members for on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group, so if you can sing power metal or drum, give them a shout! As of right now, the only real Hydra updates come from instrumental demo uploads on their Reverbnation page, including tracks named "The Hydra", "Bombs Away", and "Into The Hollow", so click here to check them out!

There's still a lot of unknowns for Hydra (i.e. who'll finish their lineup, live concert statuses with Talon out of town, what their existence means for Late & Loud's future), but I like what I'm hearing from them so far! Their songs show classic heavy metal promise, but these demos would sound more complete if they had even placeholder singing from Brendan and some computer drum tracks. I'll keep my eye out for more Hydra news, so become a fan above, and I've added them to our Sault Ontario band links!

Next up, here's the latest updates from local progressive death metal standouts Gates of Winter! Updates from their camp have been slower than recently usual over the fall, but on Saturday, frontman Lee Maines posted a status onto the band's Facebook page which noted recent & new stuff relating to their future. Lee addressed the status of their planned third CD, saying that it won't be coming out in December as was previously announced, but he did confirm that progress is ongoing for it, while also adding that it will now have just 6 tracks and be of EP length (like their original demo), and will likely be renamed from the previously announced title "Perihelion". He explained the delays were due to personal commitments (i.e. family, education, and work) and the members' distance from each other (only Lee currently lives in the Soo), but he did note that the three current members still hope to finish this album A.S.A.P., as well as calling a return to the stage "an inevitability." Lee closed by saying that when the EP is finished, it will be "much more heavy, fast, and sophisticated", and will be "perpendicular" to their 2000s output. Check the above links for the full statement!

It's great to see Gates of Winter still slowly plugging away at this CD, and this has to be some cautiously good news for fans, especially given their four year stage hiatus & recent slow activity! A lesser band may have thrown in the towel already, but you know as well as I that Gates of Winter have the necessary talent & drive (even if the time & proximity isn't currently there), so hopefully we see the new disc at some point in 2013! I just wish they didn't discredit their earlier originals so much, as they're still well received by fans to this day, even if they're not as heavy & technical as what's to come. Stay tuned for more Gates of Winter news when it all rolls in!

Thirdly today, here's the latest news from newer local sludge metal band Giwakwa! Yesterday, they confirmed on their Facebook page that they've added Bear Hunters guitarist Josh Stephney to their lineup as their new singer, replacing the already-departed Jason Bourcier. In their most recent Facebook status, the band confirmed that they'd been jamming with Josh for a few weeks, and they plan to begin playing live in the new year. Though best known recently as a guitarist, Josh was well known as the singer for defunct local death metal band Bring The Fallen (who Giwakwa bassist Nolan Rainville was also a member of), as well as a brief vocalist stint with the recently-inactive March Into Regression this summer (are they still together?) It's great to see Josh back as singer in another death metal band, as he was definitely very good at it with his older bands! It's also good to see much of The Bear Hunters staying busy with other live bands while their demo is in progress (such as The Suicide Kings & Caveman Morrison), but hopefully we hear some death/sludge metal from Giwakwa on the local stage shortly, and check the above links for more details!

And finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news stories from the last little while! As usual, these are in alphabetical order by band, promoter, or venue name:

• If you're wondering what ever became of the old Coch's Corner location (under the Days Inn at 320 Bay Street), the whole building was converted into a Holiday Inn Express over the summer, which likely explains the construction there mid-year & Coch's Corner's move to the old Foggy Notions building. The move must still be disappointing to some, but at least Coch's Corner has a new home!
• Local death metal quartet Crimson Crusade have launched their own Twitter page, so follow them at the above link for band updates! Note however that there's no tweets yet, but hopefully soon! (Also, for the record, the band has yet to confirm the full identity of their new guitarist, "Rob #2", but we'll know by Sunday if nothing else!)
• Frightlight/T-Rex Manning frontman J.D. Pearce is apparently now doing some concert bookings for The Algonquin Hotel's two bars (The Algonquin Pub & The Rockstar Bar), as per postings on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group recently! Bookings through December at The Rockstar Bar are being offered (preferably to classic rock bands), but bands downstairs will be more diverse from what I can tell. If you're interested in playing any weekends at the Algonquin, message J.D. at this location!

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