Rotaryfest Stage 1 Concert Previews!!

It's now time for our second concert preview post of the day, but be sure to check out our previews of non-Rotary shows from tonight through Saturday in Sault Ontario in the post below this one! This post is 100% devoted to our extended preview of this year's Rotaryfest Stage 1 lineup at Clergue Park, as there are three days worth of live music in store once again as part of our annual summer festival, and before we dive into the schedules, remember that the music is FREE and ALL AGES as usual! Of course, visit Rotaryfest's website for full details on the extensive non-musical events this weekend. We'll start at the covers-only main stage TONIGHT, whose lineup is themed "A Musical Journey Through The Years", but it remains hard rock free as usual. Today's headliners are 1960s classic rock cover quartet The Peace Vibe at 10:00 PM, with new classic rock quintet Jukebox Deluxe playing at 9:00 PM, 50s-60s classic rock band Flathead Ford at 8:00 PM, country veterans Crossroad at 7:00 PM, and new jazz/blues collective Lise White & The Sault Crew at 6:00 PM.

Though Flathead Ford & Crossroad are each making their third Rotaryfest appearance, tonight's bands are mostly making their Rotaryfest debuts, so if you like classic rock in particular, be at Stage 1 tonight, and remember, it's FREE & ALL AGES, as is to be expected!

TOMORROW'S Stage 1 lineup (which is themed "Rock the Night Away") will remain at just 5 bands for a third straight year, but a solid lineup is on hand, with local hard rock cover trio Stiffler's Mom rocking the main stage for the second time in three years as the 10:00 PM headliners, and they should be in fine form with their party-inspired covers! R&B cover big band The Reptiles will return to the festival at 9:00 PM in their sixth Stage 1 set since 2009, while classic rock veterans Mustang Heart take the mantle of Rotaryfest's iron men (and woman) by continuing their 12+ year run of main stage sets at 8:00 PM. Newer hard rock quartet The 3 Day Millionaires will make their Rotaryfest debut tomorrow at 7:00 PM (which should pique the interest of fans who ever wanted to see their sister band Havadder on Stage 1), while classic rockers Mid Life Crysis will play their fifth straight Rotaryfest set to open tomorrow's lineup at 6:00 PM.

Though only The 3 Day Millionaires are new to Rotaryfest, just 2 of tomorrow's bands played the festival last year, so there's enough variance from 2015 that skeptical fans should be receptive, especially if you love classic and hard rock! Be there tomorrow for the FREE & ALL AGES action, and here's Stiffler's Mom at Rotaryfest two years ago!

And finally for Stage 1, the covers action concludes on SATURDAY with music all day at Clergue Park for what is called the "Saturday Sound Smorgasbord", and for the third time in four years, two out of town bands are on tap! Pembroke folk/classic rockers The Ghost Town Cryers (featuring veteran local musician Kyle McKey) will headline at 10:15 PM, while his brother Dean and his London-based Beatles/Paul McCartney tribute The McCartney Years are the day's featured band at 8:30 PM. It's great to see the McKey brothers (and former Sailor's Tongue bandmates) back home, so be sure to give them a big welcome back! The highest placed local or hard rock band are classic/hard rock veterans That's Chester at 7:00 PM, in their (at least) seventh Rotaryfest appearance, their first show since the passing of guitarist Eugene Orlando last fall & their preceding stage production of The Who's Tommy, and first traditional concert set since last year's Rotaryfest. I'm sure That's Chester will do Eugene proud in their long awaited return, so rock out with them as well on Saturday!

Note that That's Chester's Facebook page has been strongly hinting that their set will feature guest singers in some fashion, though to what extent (or their identities) have not been publically confirmed. If we hear anything, we'll let you know! Country rock cover favourites Mojo will make their festival debut at 6:00 PM, while hard rock cover quartet Griphook will play Stage 1 for the fourth straight year at 5:00 PM, also marking just their second announced show since last year's main stage. Hopefully the guys have more in the works, they've been missed as of late! Classic rock veterans Obsession will play their eighth Rotaryfest set since 2008 at 4:00 PM, while classic rock quartet RPM (with new bassist Rob Gilmar in tow) will play the main stage for the first time at 3:00 PM. New classic rock/country cover band Indians & Cowboys (not the defunct original indie band Cowboys & Indians) will hit the stage at 2:00 PM, while classic rock veterans Coverfly will open Saturday's lineup at 1:00 PM in their eighth Rotaryfest set in nine years.

Very strong Saturday lineup this year, and while it is familiar from past years, the double whammy of homecoming sets for the McKey brothers, the long awaited return of That's Chester, and three debuting local bands should keep things varied enough! Of course, it's worth noting that recent Rotaryfest regulars like The Bob Jenkins Band, Spyder's Web, Summer Thunder, and Thin Ice are not playing this year, but hopefully they'll be back in the future, as their fans will miss them in 2016! Saturday's Stage 1 lineup is of course FREE & ALL AGES, so check the above links for full details on this year's covers-centric main stage, and here's That's Chester (with Eugene) last year!



That's all for today, but stay tuned next for Sault Michigan concert previews and more! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Rotaryfest Stage 1!!)

Today's post is dedicated to the reveal of this year's Rotaryfest Stage 1 lineup, as our annual summer festival again welcomes plenty of covers-focused bands to the outdoor Clergue Park stage over the July 15th weekend! Though the complete program/schedule is not out yet for the festival proper, the full band lineup for all three nights (and Stage 2, more on that tomorrow) can now be seen on Rotaryfest's website's music page, complete with the requisite biographies for each band, so who can you look for at this year's FREE & ALL AGES lineups? Experimenting with themed daily lineups this year, the Thursday, July 14th lineup is branded "A Musical Journey Through The Years", but like in the past, remains hard rock-free. Bands playing this year include 1960s classic rock cover quartet The Peace Vibe at 10:00 PM, newer classic rock quintet Jukebox Deluxe at 9:00 PM, 50s-60s classic rockers Flathead Ford at 8:00 PM, country veterans Crossroad at 7:00 PM, and new jazz/blues sextet Lise White & The Sault Crew at 6:00 PM.

Aside from Crossroad & Flathead Ford (each two time Rotaryfest veterans in recent years), the Thursday bands are newcomers to the festival, so fans who crave different acts should enjoy the variance and classic rock on the 14th! It's worth noting that this will be the first Thursday lineup in memory without jazz veterans The Bob Jenkins Band, who had played Rotaryfest for (I believe) 16 straight years. I know how respected Bob is in the local scene, especially for still playing live regularly well into his 80s, and hopefully all is well with him and the band!

Moving to the lineup for Friday, July 15th, the theme for that night is "Rock the Night Away", and remains at just 5 bands for a third straight year. Headlining on the 15th are local hard rock cover trio Stiffler's Mom in their second Rotaryfest appearance in the past three years, and they should deliver a fun set to cap the night at 10:00 PM! R&B cover veterans The Reptiles will return after a year's hiatus as co-headliners for their sixth Rotaryfest set since 2009, and you can see them that night at 9:00 PM. Classic rock veterans Mustang Heart will continue their 12+ year run as Rotaryfest mainstays with a set at 8:00 PM, while new hard rock quartet The 3 Day Millionaires will make their festival debut that evening at 7:00 PM. If you ever wanted to see Havadder or Turner Up at Rotaryfest, this may well be the closest thing we'll get, so keep their debut in mind! Friday's lineup will be opened by classic rockers Mid Life Crysis in their fifth straight Rotaryfest set, and you can see them hit the stage at 6:00 PM.

Not a bad lineup for Friday, and while all of the bands (save for The Millionaires) are Rotaryfest veterans, only two of them played last year, so things are varied a bit for fans of classic & hard rock! As usual, this is FREE & ALL AGES, so keep this lineup in mind for Friday the 15th at Clergue Park!

As for the main Saturday lineup on July 16th at Stage 1 (which is themed as "Saturday Sound Smorgasbord"), nine bands are scheduled, including for the third time in four years, two out of town bands, so who can you expect? Playing last that night are The Ghost Town Cryers, a folk/classic rock band from Pembroke who some may recognize as the current band from prolific local musician Kyle McKey, so keep his long awaited return home in mind for the 16th! They're on at 10:15 PM, while the previously advertised headline act, London-based Beatles/Paul McCartney tribute The McCartney Years (who feature Kyle's brother/Sailor's Tongue bandmate Dean on drums), will take the stage at 8:30 pm. The highest slotted local band will be classic/hard rock quartet That's Chester in what will be their first concert appearance since the passing of guitarist Eugene Orlando last fall, last playing publically during their live production of The Who's Tommy in November.

It's great to see That's Chester back after their recent hiatus, so be at Stage 1 at 7:00 PM for their (at least) seventh Rotaryfest appearance! I'm sure Eugene will be with the guys in spirit for their grand return, also notable as their first traditional concert set since last year's Rotaryfest. While the band has not visibly replaced Eugene in their lineup, note that this teaser photo appears to show an unidentified female singer making a guest appearance during a jam session, so read into that however you choose.

Country rock cover trio Mojo (featuring That's Chester's Ric Datson on drums) will make their Rotaryfest debut at 6:00 PM, with hard rock cover quartet Griphook rocking the main stage for the fourth straight year at 5:00 PM, in just their second announced show of any kind since last year's festival. No idea why they've been so quiet lately, but it's great to see them back out there! Classic rock veterans Obsession will hit the Rotaryfest stage for the eighth time in nine years at 4:00 PM, while sporadically seen classic/hard rock quartet RPM will make their Rotaryfest debut at 3:00 PM, albeit with a lineup change, as Rotaryfest's website credits veteran local bassist Rob Gilmar in place of Lindsay Pugh. Without an online page, I can't confirm why Lindsay left, especially with RPM founding via his adult music camp, but hopefully things were amicable, and it's great to see Rob back in a new band!

A newer local band named Indians & Cowboys (not to be confused with the defunct indie rockers Cowboys & Indians) will play classic rock, blues, and country favourites at 2:00 PM, and have a lot of familiar veterans to enjoy! The Saturday lineup will be opened by veteran classic rockers Coverfly for their eighth Rotaryfest set since 2008, so come early for their set at 1:00 PM! The Saturday lineup shakes things up a bit with the McKey brothers' homecoming, That's Chester's big return, and some new bands with familiar faces, and this ALL AGES & FREE entertainment should win over the crowd on Saturday the 16th! It is worth noting that this year's lineup features some notable absences, like the aforementioned Bob Jenkins Band, country favourites Thin Ice (who last missed Rotaryfest in 2008) and Summer Thunder (who played each of the last four years), and one-time festival mainstays Spyder's Web (who haven't played Rotaryfest since 2014.)

This year's main stage at Rotaryfest is shaping up well, especially if you like classic rock, with dashes of hard rock in store also for fans on Friday & Saturday, so check the above links for full details on this year's main stage, and stay tuned for full schedule details for the Second Stage TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Rotaryfest's Main Stage!!)

The full music lineups for this year's Rotaryfest summer festival have been revealed! As per the official program (as posted online yesterday, which you can read at this link), there are once again 3 days worth of music at the outdoor Clergue Park stage from Thursday, July 16th through Saturday July 18th, while the Second Stage does indeed return after a year's hiatus in a new location, which we'll outline in an upcoming post, so stay tuned! The main stage lineup (again all-cover bands) will be very familiar for recent Rotaryfest attendees, as only five of the 18 local bands are new to the Clergue Park stage (though some performers in them have played there in other projects), but who all will we see this year? The Thursday lineup for Clergue Park's Stage 1, as usual, doesn't have any hard rock bands, but the headliners will be classic rock veterans Coverfly at 10:00 PM, with fellow classic rockers Flathead Ford (who played Rotaryfest in 2013) at 9:00 PM, local Elvis Presley tribute artist Larry Tschekalin (Thursday's only newcomer) at 8:00 PM, country quartet Crossroad (in their second straight Rotaryfest set) at 7:00 PM, and veteran festival favourites The Bob Jenkins Band leading off with easy jazz at 6:00 PM.

Solid lineup for classic rock fans, so keep that in mind for Thursday! The Friday, July 17th lineup is again retracted in length like last year, but there will be hard rock bands on the lineup, including the return of local classic/hard rock quintet That's Chester as headliners at 10:00 PM! Last seen at Rotaryfest in 2013, this will be That's Chester's first announced public concert of the year, and given their recent focus, they will be playing songs from their upcoming stage production of The Who's Tommy this fall, so keep that in mind if you've missed the guys or love The Who! Local hard rock cover quartet Griphook will also play their third straight Rotaryfest set at 7:00 PM, which will also be their first announced show in three months, and it's great to see them back at it during the summer! Other performers (all veterans of the last two Rotaryfests, if not more) include country quartet Summer Thunder at 9:00 PM, and classic rock favourites Mid Lyfe Crisis at 8:00 PM and Obsession opening at 6:00 PM, so come early for their talented covers!

The Friday lineup is quality for longtime fans of Rotaryfest's main stage, with all veterans of the event, and hopefully there's a great turnout come the 17th! Both Thursday & Friday's lineups are FREE & ALL AGES, so be sure to check the above links for more details!

As for the Saturday lineup (which is the longest, most varied in sound, and has the most new bands), the announced main attractions are still the joint Toronto-based Fleetwood Mac & Tom Petty tributes Fleetwood Nicks & Practically Petty, but they are not last on July 18th, with local country rock quintet and festival mainstays Thin Ice getting the closing 10:45 PM slot for unannounced reasons. The Tom Petty & Fleetwood Mac tributes are on at 9:30 & 8:30 PM each, with local classic rock veterans Mustang Heart keeping their long Rotaryfest streak alive at 7:00 PM (for 90 minutes?), all-female classic rockers Domina playing their second main stage set at 6:00 PM, and The Big Waltz (a one-off local tribute to The Band featuring four of the same musicians from, ironically, last year's Tom Petty/Stevie Nicks one-off Free Falling) at 5:00 PM.

The hard rock action is all in the afternoon on Saturday, with Beaumont Avenue closing out their successful local run with their third & final Rotaryfest set at 4:00 PM, so be sure to send out the former Suicide Kings in style on the 18th! The remaining acts are all Rotaryfest newcomers, including local blues rock solo musician Paul DellaVedova (who played the second stage in 2012 with Paul D & The Double Down) at 3:00 PM, local hard rock quartet Long Shot at 2:00 PM, and local classic/hard rock cover trio Mourning Wood opening the day at 1:00 PM alongside two advertised guest musicians: local country singer Mark Tarantini and Q104's Jeff McNiece, which are clear signs of their country ties. The Saturday lineup is pretty good as well, and the newest for fan craving some different bands, so keep that in mind, especially for the hard rock action in the afternoon!

Note however that some recent Rotaryfest regulars aren't on the bill for this year, like KT, Kyle, and The Pocket, The Reptiles, and Spyder's Web, each of whom played the last 3 years or longer. Saturday's lineup, like the rest, is FREE & ALL AGES, and there's lots of entertaiment for every taste, so check the above links for full details on who to expect at the Clergue Park stage for this year's Rotaryfest, and stay tuned for weekend concert previews and our full breakdown on who's playing the returning Second Stage and where in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

Most Of Local2's Rotaryfest Main Stage Hard Rock Cover Videos!!

With some Tesla videos likely forthcoming (and who knows if more Shinedown videos turned up), let's keep things rolling with a showcase of videos from Rotaryfest's main stage at Clergue Park last weekend! As has become a recent trend, Local2's Mike Caruso was on hand to film almost all of the bands for Local2's YouTube channel, exploiting some multiple camera angles and good weather for some great clips! Posted last week, Mike filmed all of the bands from all three days except Coverfly (though they're featured on non-Rotaryfest videos on the channel), and the odd absence of Fusion videos didn't maintain, as I believe Fusion broke up in the past year. Note as well that Mike also filmed a handful of Second Stage bands (though not Sailor's Tongue), and each video features 15 second opening and closing titles crediting the videos as part of a series named "Everything Sault with Mike Caruso", although there's no host segments or features connecting them as such. The videos are also all letterboxed, yet the post-effects aren't, so why is there a letterbox at all?

By my count, Mike filmed 6 hard rock covers at this year's Stage by local bands, and I've saved two for another post to both keep this one from getting too long (conveniently, both videos features a cover of the same band, hence why I'm holding those ones.) Now, let's look at the first 4 hard rock/metal covers from this year's First Stage at Rotaryfest, and check the above links for the non-metal/hard rock covers filmed for Local2, and check out our Oddzfest 2013 Metal Mash-Up review in the post below this one!

We'll go in chronological order starting on Friday, July 19th with local party/cover rock quartet Obsession, as their filmed video was a cover of Heart's "Barracuda"! Mike credited this as their first Rotaryfest appearance "in their present form", and like the past videos of Obsession that I've seen, they have a lot of talent , and Valerie Powley's vocals are impressive and rangy as ever! I've never seen Obsession live, but I remember regretting not coming early for their Toystock set, and I'll have to make a point of seeing them one of these days, as they can definitely pull off some entertaining hard rock renditions when the time calls for it! Note as well that Mike added some post-effects to this video, including some kind of sparkle/brighness effect on the members from the closer camera, and the video fades out before the song fully ends. Check out Obsession rocking "Barracuda" at Rotaryfest below!



Also on the Saturday night was co-headlining local hard rock band The Suicide Kings, whose Local2 video features them covering Three Days Grace's "Animal I Have Become"! This is one of the songs that they played with guest bassist Brandon Uhl (ex-Limelight), so how did he fit in? Pretty well, and I like the fuller sound with Steven Flint & Mitch Sirie sharing guitar duties, but this song isn't a great fit for Mike Gaetano's vocal range, which is odd considering how good his higher register singing usually is. Solid stuff all around though, and this is a good preview of The Suicide Kings' planned quintet expansion and full-time bassist search, so check out The Suicide Kings & Brandon Uhl covering "Animal I Have Become" below!



We'll close this post with the Saturday, July 20th lineup, starting with this video of local classic/hard rock quartet Griphook covering Billy Squier's "Lonely Is The Night"! Featuring guitarist Brian Oja on lead vocals, his range suits the track well, and the guys all seem to have this cover down pat with a good energy and rock sensibility, and hopefully there's more video floating around from their shows last weekend (including 3/4ths of Griphook's turn as The 7 Year Itch later that night.) Note as well that this video also cuts off slightly before the song's actual end. Check out Griphook's "Lonely Is The Night" cover below!

The last video for today comes immediately after Griphook's set, and it's of local classic rock cover quintet Mustang Heart covering Bon Jovi's ballad "Thank You For Loving Me"! (You may remember that their Local2 video last year was a cover of Van Halen's "Jump", so a hard rock cover isn't unheard of for them.) Interspersed with images of happy couples and weddings, and some crowd waving action, it's a solid rendition of the original, and Lorenzo Fabbri's deep clean vocals work well, but fans of Bon Jovi's old hair metal stuff probably won't take to it as much. Check out Mustang Heart's Bon Jovi cover below, stay tuned for another Mustang Heart hard rock cover in an upcoming post, and click here to see Mike Case's Rockers covering another Bon Jovi song ("Who Says You Can't Go Home") on the Friday lineup! Even if it's a country track, the students did a good job!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes this week, including hopefully some Tesla fallout, more Rotaryfest videos, and much more! Thanks everyone!

Rotaryfest 2013 Main & Second Stage Concert Previews!!

In our third of four concert preview posts on this busy weekend, we're taking a look at this year's music stages for Sault Ontario's annual summer festival Rotaryfest! Of course, you can get details on this year's non-musical events, click here, but as this is a music site, let's focus on the live stages, which will welcome four hard rock-leaning bands to it's downtown outdoor stages TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! As usual, both stages are FREE for the public of ALL AGES to attend, and times will be mentioned as we go. To start, we'll outline the main stage at Clergue Park, which is of course where (generally) covers-only bands play, and just for reference, the action began last night with local blues band Goodtime Charlie, jazz quartet The Bob Jenkins Band, and the classic/oldies cover bands Flathead Ford and Coverfly, though none would fit for SMS coverage. Hopefully last night's abbreviated lineup knocked it out of the park though, and hopefully Goodtime Charlie & Flathead Ford made a great impression in their Rotaryfest debuts!

TONIGHT's main stage lineup features just one hard rock band, as Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands winners The Suicide Kings will make their Rotaryfest debut with a co-headlining set at 9:00 PM! Odd to see them on the main stage as they have many original songs, when Rotaryfest usually discourages bands who don't play exclusively covers, but maybe they'll only be doing covers tonight. Regardless, the guys should do great in one of their last shows as a quartet before beginning bassist auditions, so be there at 9:00 TONIGHT for their diverse hard rock sound! Tonight's headliners are local country band Thin Ice at 10:15 PM, with pop rockers K.T., Kyle, and the Pocket at 8:00 PM, country rock trio Summer Thunder at 7:00 PM, classic rockers Mid Life Crysis at 6:00 PM, dance/classic rock quartet Obsession at 5:00 PM, the Sault's first salsa/Latin band Orangatango at 4:00 PM, and Mike Case's Rock School and Junior All Star (country) Band at 3:10 PM & 2:30 PM respectively.

Though their addition is still a bit of a head-scratcher with the originals-friendly Second Stage just around the corner, The Suicide Kings should leave a big impression at Rotaryfest tonight, and note that their own Facebook event page for their set hypes "a huge surprise" that will be revealed tomorrow, which "could be the only time this is happening." What are they getting at? Be there to find out at 9:00 PM TONIGHT, and for a preview, here's The Suicide Kings covering Our Lady Peace & Weezer at Toystock last fall!



As for Saturday night, hard rock seekers should hit up the First Stage from 4:00 PM-7:00 PM, as two classic hard rock bands will be rocking Clergue Park during that stretch, including Griphook (featuring Flat Stanley, Bigsuit, Hollow, and Fusion alumni) at 4:00 PM, and the recently reunited That's Chester in just their second public concert set since last summer at 6:00 PM! Both have their own unique takes on their genres to deliver, with Griphook becoming increasingly prominent, and That's Chester being missed since their breakup last fall, so don't miss out on some hard rocking covers in the early evening! Griphook & That's Chester are sandwiching classic rock duo Spyder's Web in the 5:00 PM timeslot, while the headlining bands are out-of-town Rolling Stones tribute band The Blushing Brides at 10:15 PM and Toronto jam rock trio Ground Zero (featuring Sault natives Frank Fazi & Shane McConnell) at 9:00 PM. The other bands ahead of That's Chester incluce classic rockers Mustang Heart at 8:00 PM and country rock quartet Bone Yard at 7:00 PM, while the afternoon bands include blues rockers Five Below Zero at 3:00 PM, indie/jazz quartet The Pesto Shirts at 2:00 PM, and R&B big band The Repitles opening at 1:00 PM.

Though the increase in out of town bands and heavy concentration of bands from past main stage lineups could be seen badly by some, there's a lot of talent and veteran experience present on the main stage no matter what day, and many of these bands can be seen on weekends at local bars, so if you like what you hear, follow which bands are playing where in the future! It's great to see a couple of heavier bands in Griphook & That's Chester, so don't miss them at 4:00 and 6:00 PM, and for a preview, here's That's Chester covering Deep Purple's "Highway Star" at their last Rotaryfest appearance in 2011!



As for the Tenaris Second Stage, this year's all-original lineup of bands will entertain attendees today and tomorrow on Queen Street East outside of Case's Music and The Grand Theater! Like the main stage (which is not a far walk if you wanna jump to see different bands), it's FREE AND ALL AGES, so keep that in mind! Now, this year's Second Stage lineup has slightly less metal than last year, with only one heavier band, but just for reference, TODAY's abbreviated lineup features Milwaukee indie/pop trio Jaill headlining at 9:30 PM, and they'll be preceded by four local acts, including popular blues rockers Blues Harvest at 8:30 PM, local/North Bay folk band The Faraway Neighbours at 7:30 PM, solo folk musician M.D. Dunn at 6:30 PM, and folk/country rockers The Porter Band opening at 5:30 PM. Solid lineup for fans of folk rock especially, and though it's sort of weird seeing an American band at Rotaryfest, Jaill have the talent and the right sound to fit in with the general sound of the Second Stage, so keep this lineup in mind!

TOMORROW'S Second Stage lineup is much longer and contains this year's only hard rock band on the Queen Street stage, that being the returning Sailor's Tongue in their first show since last year's Rotaryfest! This will also mark Sailor's Tongue's first show since guitarist Blake Jackson returned to the band, though not as a replacement, so they'll be playing as a quintet! Notably, frontman Kyle McKey revealed on his personal Facebook page earlier this week that they'll be releasing a CD of some kind tomorrow in conjunction with their set, though as of this writing, I don't know anything on it's cost or format, though the included songs will likely include tracks posted on drummer Dean McKey's SoundCloud page earlier this year. This is intriguing news on it's own, especially given how minimal news has been on an album (save for indications in February), but keep this in mind if you're at the Second Stage tomorrow! Sailor's Tongue are the highest slotted local band tomorrow night at 8:00 PM, with Toronto reggae band The House of David Gang & Guelph "indie-afrobeat" band The Minotaurs headlining at 10:00 PM & 9:00 PM respectively.

The remaining acts tomorrow include Sudbury blues artist and Soo native Sean Poluk at 7:00 PM (though local news media credits him as a "surprise guest"), local folk musician (and upcoming Swampstravaganza performer) Guy Smith at 6:00 PM, jazz/blues artist Rusty McCarthy at 5:00 PM, progressive rockers Machines Dream at 4:00 PM, folk quintet The Mulch & The Mire at 3:00 PM, and returning indie rockers Cowboys & Indians opening the stage at 2:00 PM. For more details on the bands on the two official Rotaryfest stages, check the above links! Though this year's Second Stage is heavy on indie & roots bands, only three acts (The Faraway Neighbours, The Porter Band, and Sailor's Tongue) are returnees from last year, so there's a diverse and shook-up lineup for fans this year, even if there's only one heavier band! My weekend schedule will likely be focused around Bushplane Musical Madness II on Saturday (which hard rock fans could consider the unofficial "third stage"), but given Sailor's Tongue's CD plans, I may try and slip out briefly to at least pick one up depending on the weather and timing!

I don't have a preview video of Sailor's Tongue, but check out their new and old material at the above links, and keep in mind that members Kyle McKey & Liam Seymour will both be playing with KT, Kyle, and The Pocket on the main stage TONIGHT at 8:00 PM, while Saturday main stage performers Griphook will be at The New A tonight and The Rockstar Bar tomorrow (minus Brian Oja as The 7 Year Itch), so those could fill any scheduling voids! That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Shinedown preview TOMORROW, along with more recent news and notes! Thanks everyone, and don't miss The Suicide Kings on the main stage tonight at 9:00 PM!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Powerslug & Rotaryfest's Main Stage), Including The Return Of That's Chester!!

A bit of a change of plans for today, as while I'd intended for this post to 100% focus on Rotaryfest's music lineups, we have a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT to cover, so I reluctantly decided to postpone the Second Stage info to tomorrow so we could fit these late notice shows in, but I promise, they'll headline our very next post tomorrow! Read on below for what you need to know, and check out our all-Sault Michigan post (featuring a new show, 415E previews, and LemmaFest videos) in the post below this one!

As is often the culprit for our late notice Sault Michigan concert announcements, local hard rock trio Powerslug will return to The Corner Pub Bar & Grill's outdoor stage TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, drummer Bob Helsten only just announced these shows a few hours ago on his personal Facebook page. Powerslug should have a pair of fun covers-heavy sets of hard rock songs to chug your mug along with, so keep these shows in mind, especially as they're the first shows that Powerslug have played at The Corner Pub since last year, barring any that I may have missed. There's no announced cover charge for these 9:00 PM-ish shows, and I'd assume a 21+ age limit is in effect. Despite their odd continuing lack of online pages or media to promote shows, Chris, Bob, and Chris should entertain all weekend long outside of The Corner Pub, so keep these shows in mind, and hopefully their next local dates have more advance word!

Now, let's discuss Sault Ontario's annual summer music festival Rotaryfest, as organizers finally confirmed the performer lineups for both the covers-centric main stage at Clergue Park and the original-friendly Tenaris Second Stage outside of Case's Music & The Grand Theatre on Queen Street East earlier today! My sources are SooToday's article on the lineup, and the official schedule on our local summer festival's website, though other local news sources have the schedule online as well. As expected, the music will go down from Thursday, July 18th-Saturday, July 20th, though like past years, there's no bands on the Thursday for the Second Stage, and each stage's first night has an abbreviated length. There's a hard rock leaning band on each full night of the main stage, and one on the Saturday for the second stage, and we'll of course talk about the second stage TOMORROW, so for now, read on below for our rundown of the musical lineup for this year's main stage at Clergue Park in three weeks!

We'll start by mentioning that the Thursday, July 18th lineup at the main stage has just four scheduled acts for 2013, including a local blues band named Goodtime Charlie at 6:00 PM, jazz quartet The Bob Jenkins Band at 7:15 PM, and the classic/oldies rock cover bands Flathead Ford and Coverfly at 8:30 & 9:45 PM each. Note that both The Bob Jenkins Band & Coverfly are returning from last year, while past themes of the Thursday being jazz/blues centric don't appear to be in play this time around.

The Friday, July 19th main stage lineup at Clergue Park features just one hard rock band, that being the previously announced Suicide Kings! The local hard rock quartet will make their Rotaryfest debut as the co-headliners at 9:00 PM that night, despite being a band that plays originals on a stage that doesn't allow them. Whether they got an exception or are playing only covers, it's great to see The Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands winners expanding to larger opportunities, so don't miss their modern hard/alternative rock sound in 3 weeks! The Friday lineup will be headlined by local country quartet Thin Ice, and the bands preceding The Suicide Kings include Full Circle successors K.T., Kyle, and the Pocket at 8:00 PM, country rockers Summer Thunder at 7:00 PM, classic rock quartet Mid Life Crysis at 6:00 PM, dance rockers Obsession at 5:00 PM, a local salsa orchestra band named Orangatango at 4:00 PM, and two Mike Case junior student bands opening the day, including his Junior All Star Band at 2:30 PM and the his Rock School band at 3:10 PM.

Note that all of the Friday bands except The Suicide Kings, Obsession, and Orangatango played at Rotaryfest's main stage last year, adding to a familiar and varied lineup of local talent, so keep Friday's schedule in mind for your Rotaryfest concert planning!

As for the Saturday, July 20th lineup, the featured hard rock-leaning band will be the returning That's Chester, who will take the stage at 6:00 PM this year! The veteran cover band had amicably broken up in October after a successful 8 year run, but they hinted at a couple of new gigs this summer (their first in over a year) on their Facebook page two weeks ago, so it looks like they're back for more than just a one off. I'm very happy to see That's Chester back at it, even if it's a temporary return, and hopefully their hard-edged cover selections bring back some good memories on the 20th! The Saturday lineup will be headlined by Canadian Rolling Stones tribute band The Blushing Brides at 10:15 PM, while unlike past years, two out of town bands will play the main stage, with noted Toronto jam rock band Ground Zero preceding them at 9:00 PM, as they've done at many other recent Blushing Brides gigs. The other bands in front of That's Chester will be classic rock veterans Mustang Heart at 8:00 PM and country rockers Bone Yard at 7:00 PM.

The Saturday lineup is rounded out by classic rock duo Spyder's Web at 5:00 PM, newer local rock cover quartet Griphook at 4:00 PM, local blues rockers Five Below Zero at 3:00 PM, soft/progressive rock quartet The Pesto Shirts at 2:00 PM, and R&B big band veterans The Repitles opening at 1:00 PM. Another familiar lineup, with only That's Chester, Griphook, and the out of town bands not returning from last year, but like on the 19th, there's plenty of diverse sounds for the fans in attendance, so don't miss out! Each night is FREE & ALL AGES, so check the above links for more on the musical and other entertainment, and stay tuned tomorrow for the Second Stage schedule, and more! Thanks everyone!

More Rotaryfest Fallout, Including Lots Of Videos!!

Hey guys, it's time to take a look at some new videos, as ever since we reviewed some of the Second Stage activities last weekend, a pile of videos have popped up online, including some of a metal/hard rock relevance! We'll look at those today, so read on below for all you should know & watch! First, here's some new videos from Second Stage headliners Garden of Bedlam's set on Saturday night! Another new YouTube channel has been launched for this successful local metal band, adding to the GardenofBedlamBand and GardenofBedlam channels that were launched in 2008, and while I have no idea why they can't just add these to one of the older channels, they have uploaded two nice quality videos from Rotaryfest there a couple of days ago! They are of Garden of Bedlam playing their songs "Everything Will Die" and "Your Disgrace", and the filmer's iPhone got some solid quality footage, though the lighting really looks painted on through this camera. Pretty good videos here, so check out "Your Disgrace" below, and stay tuned later in the post for another Garden of Bedlam/Rotaryfest-related video!



Next up is a hard rock cover from the main stage at Clergue Park, which is one of numerous videos from the main stage that local news website Local2 shot for their YouTube channel (which still has the old SooNews name.) All more or less uploaded yesterday, these were uploaded individually and as one 86 minute long video, so choose your fancy, though note that only the 86 minute video has any footage of the 1812 historical moments, which look to have been short War of 1812 reenactments. Almost every band was filmed for Local2's coverage, aside from the out of town historical bands from Friday afternoon, the non-Katy Perry Pop Idol tributes, Mike Case's Jr. Rock All Star Tribute Band (though the junior country one was filmed), and local classic rock band Fusion, who were strangely not filmed last year either. Do the guys at Local2 have a grudge with Fusion, or is this just a coincidence? Sticking more or less to one cover for each act, I just have one major gripe with the videos, that being the editing. I like the multiple camera angles, but many of the transitions from camera to camera aren't fluid and cut off parts of the songs, and at times, it sounded like they only shot portions of different songs & strung them together. That aside, I'm glad to see them upload these videos, complete with on screen performer credits, and on YouTube, they're easier to spread!

That said, the only hard rock cover of the 24 main stage videos is surprisingly of local cover rock quintet Mustang Heart, who covered Van Halen's "Jump" on Friday night at the main stage! Consisting of singer Marci Chindamo, her husband Dama on bass, Lorenzo Fabbri on guitar (and lead vocals on this cover), John Muise on drums, and Vito Tassone on the keyboard, Mustang Heart are a frequent sight at local bars and shows, and though their general setlist doesn't skew heavier, they do a good job with this cover! I prefer Van Halen's heavier material generally, but they know the track, and Lorenzo's vocals fit well! Also of note for the Main Stage videos: new local indie rock band The Pesto Shirts didn't play on the main stage itself in their video (I have no idea why, but they did play first on the day they played), YouTube user dtwalker79 uploaded Mike Case's Jr. Country All-Star Band's entire set onto his YouTube channel if you're interested, and fellow YouTube user marnac filmed Coverfly's cover of Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild" as well, so give those and the rest of the links above a look for Rotaryfest Main Stage videos, but below, check out Mustang Heart's cover of Van Halen's biggest hit!



We'll close with short video footage of the two hard rock bands from the Second Stage, starting with some short clips of reunited local hard rock quartet Sailor's Tongue's set! These are part of a Rotaryfest compilation video that local news website SooToday posted onto their YouTube channel last Friday after that day's entertainment wrapped up, and though it mostly concerns the activities and buskers that local attendees saw, there is 36 seconds of Sailor's Tongue cobbled from (I believe) two of their original songs, one of which featured new guitarist Liam Seymour on vocals, which is good to see knowing how strong his singing was with his Superior Heights cover band! It's not a long glimpse at Sailor's Tongue's return, but it'll do for now, so check it out below! (Their part begins about 3:52 in, and part of headliners Hollerado's set caps everything off)



Finally, here's an amusing little video from Garden of Bedlam's set, and though you can hear them in the background, they're not entirely the focus. On Sunday, bassist Evan Belleau's wife Kerry uploaded a video onto her YouTube channel of their son Damien dancing to Garden of Bedlam playing "Around The Bend" during their Second Stage set on Saturday! I say this is a good sign to help him get into metal in the future, and hopefully more kids in the area get some metal 101 at an early age! Cute enough little video, so check it out below!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news shortly, along with our review of Theatre of Night's second album! Thanks everyone!

Rotaryfest Main Stage & Tym Morrison Concert Previews!!

In our second concert preview post of the weekend, we're tackling the Rotaryfest main stage at Clergue Park shortly, and though the main stage is focusing on local cover bands and scattered out of town cover acts as usual, there is one band that will satisfy some hair metal needs! First though, we have previews for a couple of hard rock concerts unrelated to Rotaryfest this weekend, as Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison is bringing his solo acoustic concerts back to The Service Grill on Korah Road TODAY & TOMORROW! Similarly to his other recent Service Grill stops, he'll be breaking out his unplugged hard rock covers for sets at 3:00 PM and 8:00 PM on both days, and from what I understand, it's Tym's birthday today, so go out and wish him a happy birthday at The Service Grill as he rocks out for his fans! Admission should be free, and as the shows are in a restaurant, I'd expect no age limits. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see Tym back for some more acoustic hard rock concert sets this weekend, and though he'd seemingly fit well at Rotaryfest as well, these shows should work well for his fans! For a preview, here's one of Tym's newly uploaded original recordings "Someday", and happy birthday, Tym!



Now to the rest of the Rotaryfest previews, as the main stage is on TODAY at Clergue Park! In the second of three days of entertainment, today's lineup is country-leaning, but there's no shortage of talent, so here's who to look out for! In order from 10:00 PM down, the bands include local country acts Mustang Heart, Thin Ice, Spyder's Web, Bone Yard, and Summer Thunder, psychedelic retro rock band The Trippy Hippies, local country notables Asylum Country, big band Brass Taxx, a pair of out of town historical music acts (The Plymouth Fife & Drum Corps & the comedy trio The Zoom Daddys, who are on RIGHT NOW), while new alternative rock trio The Pesto Shirts opened the Friday festivities at 11:30 AM. As well, another "1812 Historical Moment" will take place after The Trippy Hippies' set, but what that entails isn't entirely clear. No metal to speak of (though I think The Trippy Hippies cover some late 60s hard rock occasionally), but local music fans should appreciate the talent here, especially if you love country music! Also, aside from the main four bands, none of today's acts played last year, so the variety is welcome! Also of note: Kyle McKey from Sailor's Tongue & KT, Kyle, and The Pocket is co-MCing today's main stage with James Warner-Smith, which is cool to see! Keep today's bands in mind, and click here for the full schedule!

Now to TOMORROW'S Rotaryfest main stage lineup, which is headlined by the only hard rock band of this stage this year, that being the Ontario-based Bon Jovi/Journey tribute band Bon Journey Canada! Yes, this tribute band covers both Bon Jovi AND Journey, and they handle both very well, doing only the biggest hits of both, so expect lots of 1980s hair metal goodness when they tackle Bon Jovi classics! Plus, even Journey have the occasional hard rock-tinged track, so if you love 1980s rock, don't miss them tomorrow! They'll headline tomorrow's main stage entertainment at 10:15 PM, with a full day of bands preceding them, so here's who else to look out for: Classic rock band Fusion (one of two bands tomorrow that are returning from last year) will co-headline tomorrow at 9:00 PM, and they'll be joined by new local rock band KT, Kyle, and The Pocket (featuring tomorrow's co-MC K.T. Antler on vocals) at 8:00 PM, blues sextet The Bebop Blues Band at 7:00 PM, pop rockers Cherry Crush at 6:00 PM, another "1812 Historical Moment" at 5:50 PM, local cover rock band Coverfly at 5:00 PM, and returning R&B big band The Reptiles at 4:00 PM.

Tomorrow's main stage opens with Pop Idols tributes of Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Rihanna, and Taylor Swift at 2:00 PM, while the first bands will be Mike Case's Junior All Star Bands (country & rock) at 1:00 PM (any possible connection to the Case's Music rock camps there?) Check the above links for all details on the main stage entertainment tomorrow! Tomorrow definitely has the most varied lineup, and there's a little something for everyone amongst the scheduled bands, so don't sleep on anyone playing tomorrow, especially with the amount of new bands compared to last year! For a preview, here's an assortment of Bon Jovi & Journey cover clips from Bon Journey Canada, as though the look may not always be there, they have the sound down well on both sides, so don't miss them!



That's probably all for today, but stay tuned for more news and an all video post of some type (likely our last CASS Cafe metal video showcase) tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Rotaryfest Main Stage), This Year's Schedule, And Searchmont Music Festival Updates!!

Today's second news post is dedicated to one central topic: local music festivals! It is the summer, after all, and with the full schedule for two notable festivals announced, it makes sense to combine them here, but is there metal? In one case, yes, so we have a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this month, so read on below for all of the details, and check out this morning's news post featuring the next hard rock show at Kewadin Casino, a new band, and some very interesting new videos below this post!

The full lineup for this year's Rotaryfest main stage at Clergue Park has been announced, and like previous years, it's keeping with the theme of mostly all-cover local bands and an out of town tribute band headliner. However, unlike last year, only one hard rock band is on the lineup, but it's not who you're thinking. Bon Jovi/Journey tribute band Bon Journey Canada are the headlining band at our local summer festival's main stage on Saturday, July 21st, and with half their set mainly devoted to Bon Jovi at their hair metal peak, and Journey having a couple harder edged songs, they'll definitely fit on the SMS for coverage! If you like either Bon Jovi or Journey, you'll get a kick out of Bon Journey Canada, as they handle both styles really well, so check out videos of them online to hear them in action! Bon Journey Canada headline the last day of the first stage at 10:15 PM with a full day of music before them, and though there's no hard rock bands preceding them, there's a lot of talent present, including a number of new bands compared to last year! In fact, only 7 of the over 2 dozen bands this year are returning from 2011's main stage, which is encouraging, but who else is playing at this year's FREE & ALL AGES festivities?

In descending order, the other July 21st bands will be classic rockers Fusion (returning from last year) at 9:00 PM, local rock band KT, Kyle, and The Pocket (featuring Turner Up/Full Circle alumni) at 8:00 PM, local sextet The Bebop Blues Band at 7:00 PM, pop rock quartet Cherry Crush (featuring Skeyes of Seven's Jonny Amendola) at 6:00 PM, local cover rockers Coverfly at 5:00 PM, returning ten-piece R&B band The Reptiles at 4:00 PM, Pop Idols tributes of Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Beyonce, and Rihanna at 2:00 PM, and Mike Case's Junior All Star Bands (junior country & junior rock) at 1:00 PM. Sounds like an entertaining day of local music that should appeal to all ages and groups, and Bon Journey should pique many hair metal and 1980s rock fans' interest! Of the opening bands, Fusion will likely have the closest to heavier material, but don't sleep on any of these bands, and I'm curious to see what talent lies in Mike Case's junior bands, especially the rock one. Remember, the Saturday, July 21st entertainment is FREE & ALL AGES, and the times are above, so keep these bands in mind! That said, how about the other two days of the main stage?

Well, there's no hard rock on either night, which indicates that That's Chester aren't back this year, but here's the Thursday and Friday performers for reference. The Friday, July 20th schedule is headlined by four returning country bands from last year, including local country veterans Mustang Heart at 10:00 PM, as preceded in descending order by fellow country bands Thin Ice (featuring Garage Inc.'s Josh Donofrio), Spyder's Web, and Bone Yard (featuring members of That's Chester.) The rest of the lineup includes newer local country band Summer Thunder, psychedelic retro rockers The Trippy Hippies, fellow locals Asylum Country (featuring Hollow's Terry Eaton), local big band Brass Taxx, a pair of historical music acts from out of town (The Plymouth Fife & Drum Corps & the comedy trio The Zoom Daddys), and new alternative rock trio The Pesto Shirts (featuring Sense of Truth's Steve Myers) opening the Friday festivities at 11:30 AM. Very country-heavy on Friday, but there's lots of talent present, and probably the most familiar lineup compared to last year! For reference, The Trippy Hippies probably have the most heavier material.

The Thursday, July 19th lineup, which has generally had the "Jazz in the Park" theme in recent years, is a bit more diverse this year, with local blues quartet Five Below Zero headlining at 10:25 PM, and preceded by nine-piece jazz band James Case & The Aces, classic rockers Midlife Crisis (probably the closest to hard rock on Thursday), returning jazz quintet The Bob Jenkins Band, and 1960s cover band Route 66 opening at 6:00 PM. Also of note: Every day of the Rotaryfest main stage will have a War of 1812 "historical moment" at 5:50 PM, though what that entails isn't clear yet. Click here and check the above links for all of the complete details on this year's Rotaryfest main stage! Sounds like a lot of very talented music is in store for fans at this year's Rotaryfest, so don't miss out if there's anything up your alley! It'd be nice to get some more heavier bands, but Bon Journey will help fill that void, and there's a little something for everyone split between the three days, so stay tuned for more on this year's main stage, especially concerning the Saturday lineup! One more note on Rotaryfest: Remember that Second Stage band Paul D & The Double Down that we knew nothing on? I believe they're more or less a successor to The Southern Fried Band, so now we know! My source is this link.

Finally for this all-festival post, remember last year when the Searchmont Ski Resort (45 minutes northeast of the Soo) had the first annual Searchmont Music Festival last September? Well, it's back this year on September 8th, and while it's bigger with more events and family entertainment, there's no metal this time around. Last year, the lineup included The Bear Hunters and Tym Morrison, but this year, the closest to metal is bands with metal musician alumni. I'll note that the headlining acts at this year's Searchmont Music Festival include the aforementioned Asylum Country and local country act The Dirty River Band, with the lineup also including Rotaryfest participants The Trippy Hippies, The Reptiles, Cody McMillan, Kelly McGillivray, Joseph Kargiannakis, and Ed Young, among many other performers. It looks like the organizers have worked out a lot of the kinks and upped the ante for this to be another successful installment for all ages, so if you dig any of the above bands, or a more folk/country inspired lineup of bands, check the above links for more details! (Am I the only one who finds it a bit disappointing that there's no metal bands at either Hempfest or the Searchmont Festival this year?)

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and a preview of Monday's 3 Inches of Blood show tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

A New Local Band, The Quest For Metal At Rotaryfest, And More!!

Our busiest month since August continues today with this latest post at The Sault Metal Scene, and for this latest batch of news, we have a brand new local band, news on a recent campaign towards a local festival that's gaining a lot of steam, and some more assorted stories, so here's what you need to know!

We've got a new local hard rock band to talk about today at the SMS, and their name is Acention! Their online pages were only started this month, but they're already showing some promise thanks to their lineup and sound descriptions. Acention's current lineup includes singer Danielle Wierzbicki, guitarists Dalton Boissineau (formerly of These Sins of Time) and Josh Willet, former Suffacation bassist Konar Zayet, and Cherry Crush drummer Johnny Amendola, who you may remember from a campaign earlier this year to see him join a local metal band. Notably, Acention's Facebook page still lists an earlier lineup for the band, which featured Dalton & Josh alongside Caleb, Mikey, and Cayne Cachagee (I think they're brothers), and though I know Mikey was once on bass in 20 Pack of Marshmallows, full older lineup positions weren't listed. Acention has been together since October 2011, and their Facebook group says that their current lineup does covers from bands like Papa Roach, Evanescence, and Three Days Grace, with plans to write originals and start gigging this summer. Become a fan or group member at the above links for current updates!

I don't know a whole lot on Acention, but there's promise there! Johnny's a very talented young drummer, I know Danielle from high school and she has a good singing voice, and I haven't heard anything negative about the members of this new band! It'll also be nice to see another heavier local band with a female singer, which is scarce on the Sault Ontario side of things right now (aside from Turner Up & the increasingly inactive Sativa Rose.) Stay tuned for more from Acention as it rolls in, and they're now in our band listings on your left!

Next up, this is related to a campaign that has been all over many local metalheads' Facebook news feeds in the last while. On Thursday, Bear Hunters/Borderline Divine guitarist Mitch Sirie launched a Facebook group named "Bring Metal to the Rotary Fest Main Stage 2012!", which is about what the title implies. Mitch was hoping to instigate an effort to add metal bands to our local summer festival's main concert stage at Clergue Park over the July 19th weekend, which generally features mostly local cover bands, typically ones who frequent local bars on weekends. While bands like Turner Up & That's Chester have been seen in recent years, the aim was to get even heavier bands with original material to be featured equally with those of other genres, especially with the progression of the local metal scene in recent years. Mitch has since heard back from Rotaryfest higher-ups that the main stage is for cover bands only, but his influence and efforts may help lead to a metal element on the Tenaris Second Stage outside of The Grand Theater on Queen Street East. Though that stage has generally been focused around local & out of town indie rock bands, they're more open to original material and metal genres, and despite no heavier acts last year, bands like Garden of Bedlam, Gates of Winter, and Stillbroke have rocked the Second Stage in the past, so it's certainly not taboo there.

If all goes according to current plan, Mitch is hoping to get some booking control over a proposed third day of the Tenaris Second Stage at Rotaryfest this year, which would see bands who apply for consideration this year (applications should start on Monday) be considered on a more metal-friendly basis. If this doesn't fly, Mitch and related contributors would be looking into hosting some type of outdoor metal event concurrently with Rotaryfest, but nothing is final at present. Check the above links for the recent discussions! I'm all for increased metal integration this year, as compared to other local music festivals, metal and hard rock is definitely a lesser focus at Rotaryfest. If I booked the main stage, I'd integrate all genres and try and focus on original material, but I understand why they have the bands they do each year. The bands they get are unoffensive, family friendly, and play familiar music that a diverse local audience can enjoy. Plus, Rotaryfest is a family festival in many respects, and some people won't want to hear death growling or expose their young children to it. I'd still prefer a wider range of bands for genres, ages, and levels of original material, but what Rotaryfest is doing at Clergue Park works for what they do, and I'm sure they feel that if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Maybe we'll at least get Caveman Morrison this year though?

The Second Stage is definitely an easier nut to crack, as they generally have supported original & heavier material more, but the dependence on indie rock & numerous out of town bands has turned off some metalheads that I know. I find that the organizers of the Second Stage do a great job for talent that they book (local or otherwise), but even if a full day can't be secured for metal/punk, just seeing more than just one heavier band on a day's lineup would be welcome. I'm certainly not the type to try and force metal on the unwilling, but if we could get a cross section of the best of every genre, everyone would be happy, and hopefully some steps can be taken down that road! Stay tuned on Monday (if all goes according to plan) for applications to play at this year's Rotaryfest, as the odds may be better than ever that your band gets on the bill!

And finally, here's three assorted shorter stories from the last little while, and as always, these are in alphabetical order by event or artist name:

• A review of April 5th's David Gold memorial concert/"Woods V" CD release party in Toronto has been posted online by Jonathan Millard-Smith of Hellbound.ca, so click here to check it out! Though I don't agree with his questioning of Kittie justifying why they were there (it may be how they grieved and got through it all), it's a nice and concise review of the night's proceedings, with solid photos by Adam Wills, so give it a read!
  
• I've moved Skull After Betrayal frontman Mike Vincent's solo project to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity. Mike last updated his solo Reverbnation page last April with some original song postings, but I think he's mostly been focusing on band work since. Hopefully he revisits his solo work down the road, but stay tuned for updates from Mike's band projects!
• The Posted Around concert poster exhibition at the Circle of Creative Arts building near The Grand Theater has been extended until May 7th (one week from Monday) due to public interest, which is awesome to hear! Go check it out A.S.A.P. to see some awesome local concert posters and buy prints of them for as low as $5!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and videos soon, plus our review of End of Existence's debut album! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Rotaryfest Main Stage), LemmaFest Updates, And More!!

Well, the news keeps rolling in, and in tonight's post, we focus on a number of topics we touched on in recent posts, including more LemmaFest updates & more on Bring The Misery's new guitarist's old local work, but first, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS relating to an upcoming local festival!

The official lineup for this year's Rotaryfest main stage (or simply "The Stage") at Clergue Park has been announced, and luckily for you hard rock fans, there's a couple bands up your alley for the Rotaryfest main stage schedule! We'll start on Friday, July 15th, as local classic hard rock cover quintet That's Chester will take the stage once again after rocking the Friday of Rotaryfest weekend last year as well! They headlined that night last year, but they year, they'll be at 8:00 PM on the 15th, but either way, they'll have lots of great classic hard rock covers in store at Clergue Park, in a rare non-Docks appearance! Actually, the top 3 headlining bands from the Friday last year are the same this year, just in reverse order, so here's the full lineup for Friday! The headliners for this night in 2011 are local country rockers Thin Ice, with local veterans Mustang Heart keeping the country going as the co-headliners! The Friday lineup is rounded out by veteran local bar band Fusion, blues band Lady Sings The Blues, and local bluegrass quintet Tyler Marshall, Brandon Ladd, and Tradition Continued opening at 4:15 PM on the 15th. Remember, this is FREE & ALL AGES, so head out for this varied lineup of talented local bands on July 15th! And now, to the Saturday lineup, also with a hard rock band!

On Saturday, July 16th, fellow classic hard rockers Full Circle will rock Rotaryfest for the first time when they play at 9:00 PM as the highest slotted local band! It's awesome to see them get such a high placement, they'll deliver a great set of classic hard rock covers for the Rotaryfest attendees on that night! Also note that, according to Rotaryfest's website, Full Circle frontwoman KT Antler will be co-master of ceremonies on the Saturday, which is cool to hear! For the remainder of the lineup, the headlining band will be Eagles tribute band Hotel California, with Full Circle co-headlining, and from the top down, the bands include local dance rockers Boogie Fever, country rockers Bone Yard (also featuring That's Chester members), veteran folk rock cover band Spyder's Web, local rock band Moneypenny (anyone have details on them?), veteran classic band Hat Trik, local cover party band Obsession, and ten-piece local band The Reptiles opening the festivities at 2:00 PM. Of the bands playing before Full Circle, only Moneypenny, Hat Trik, and The Reptiles were not among last year's main stage lineups, so everything should be familiar! Again, this is free and all ages, and check the above links for all current details!

As for the Thursday the 14th, it will be Jazz/Blues in the Park again, with headliners Matt Storch & The Usual Suspects from Cambridge, Ontario, and opening local bands Enviro Gyro, The Bob Jenkins Band, and The Sault Swing Band (the latter two are also returning from last year.) Not metal, but entertaining if you like those genres! Sounds like a great lineup of bands, check out all of the above links for details on these free outdoor shows for what should be another awesome Rotaryfest weekend! I'll keep you posted on the hard rock bands scheduled!

Now to some updates for TOMORROW'S LemmaFest at The Dondee Lanes in Sault Michigan! Firstly, I can confirm that local metal band Great Bodily Harm & local comedy acoustic duo 2PumpChump did indeed swap spots on the lineup, so 2PumpChump were bumped back to 2:00 PM tomorrow and Great Bodily Harm are officially the highest slotted metal band at 8:00 PM, adding to a very heavy stretch of bands from 4:00-9:00 PM! The lineup is now completely official, click here to see the full times! Also, I wanted to go over the uncertainty I had concerning local acoustic band Electric Motor Fish's set at 9:00 PM. While LemmaFest's pages still list them for the lineup, everywhere else (even their own page) implies that a new local band named Swayze Train (get the Trailer Park Boys reference?) will play at 9:00 PM instead. Swayze Train feature half of Electric Motor Fish's lineup, including singer Melissa Strand and drummer Tony Rogers back on bass, with the lineup rounded out by guitarists Mike Libertoski (of Galactic Alignment & The Slackjawed Rats) and Scott Savoie (ex-Insipid Brutality), with Traces frontman Tyler Tidwell on drums. Apparently they play "rock and stuff", but not a lot is divulged. Check the above links for more on Swayze Train!

I still have no clue why Electric Motor Fish are apparently not playing (I assume Fran and/or Mark Blackwood are unavailable), but I have to ask, why aren't LemmaFest promoting Swayze Train as performing? You think a band switch would be addressed if they knew about it. Is it a surprise switch that even promoters don't know about, or is there something none of us knows? I have no clue, but as I hear more, including if I can prove the "metal-ness" of Swayze Train, I will keep you all posted! Remember, LemmaFest starts TOMORROW at noon, admission is $15, click here and here for all current details before you head out!

And finally for today, remember earlier today when I mentioned new Bring The Misery guitarist Daeson Lesage? Well, as I alluded to then, he has a bit of a past in local metal bands, and here's what you should know! For at least five months in 2009, Daeson was the guitarist in a local metal band named The Shit along with fellow guitarist Austin Pine and drummer Jordan Dubois. I may be wrong, but I can't recall these guys playing any major concerts outside of high school functions. Austin posted two live videos of The Shit in action onto his YouTube channel, including a jam session cover of Metallica's "The Day That Never Comes" & a live cover of Iron Maiden's "Phantom of the Opera" from what looks like a high school performance (White Pines, maybe?) The Iron Maiden cover sounds better than the Metallica one, which sounds off in quality and timing. There's talent there, but they needed more preparation, an actual singer (and a bassist too). I don't know what you guys will think, but I wonder what happened to them? Check out the two Shit videos at the above links, and here's their "Phantom of the Opera" cover from June 2009!



That's all for tonight, but stay tuned for new Shit Liver videos, my Saigon Hookers review, and much more this weekend! Thanks everyone, and I'll see you guys tomorrow night at The Rockstar Bar!