Re:Born's New Singer, New Videos, And Much More Recent News & Updates!!

With Halloween proper fast approaching, here's a new news post for your Monday afternoon delectation, and it includes lots of shorter recent updates, and a new video from a concert this past weekend, but let's lead off with the reveal of a newer local band's new frontwoman!

Local power rock quintet Re:Born have announced the addition of Elly McWatters as their new lead singer, replacing Robert Nevitt. Fans will recognize Elly from her guest backing vocal appearances at Re:Born's last two shows (and once with The Band Camp Rejects), and as it turns out, she's already a close friend of Re:Born and a frequent presence at their jam sessions already. As revealed on their Facebook page yesterday, the band "weren't afraid to be a little experimental" with their singer choice, and by all accounts there, they are very happy with how she's performed so far! We don't have to wait for their next concert to hear Elly in action with Re:Born though, as seven videos from her formal audition were posted to their Facebook page yesterday, so what can you see there? The 7 videos include their version of Kissin Dynamite's "Sex Is War" (which is one of the songs Elly guested on already), plus the originals/421 carryovers "No One Rides For Free" & "Running Away", and four additional covers.

Those other videos are of Thin Lizzy's "The Boys Are Back In Town", Diamond Head's "Am I Evil", Iron Maiden's "Wasted Years", and as embedded below, Dio's "Rainbow In The Dark". While the covers overall aren't as fine tuned as they are in concert, Elly's lead singing debut is the focus, and she holds her own nicely here! She had a good range that fits melodic 1980s metal well, and while her stage presence is a little stiff yet, she has a lot of promise, and it'll be very interesting to hear her in a live concert setting! See for yourself above and below, and stay tuned for much more on Re:Born!



Next up, here's a new video from this year's Halloween Party at The Rockstar Bar, specifically Saturday night's second half, and it's of the one-off Tool tribute band playing the second half of "The Pot"! This comes from Live705's Facebook page yesterday (as filmed by co-owner/A Dire Setback bassist Matt Quinn, I believe), and he wasn't afraid to move around the floor and get some close angles of John, Steve, Al, and Anthony in action. Of course, the guys put on a great performance and had Tool's sound down pat on Saturday, so give their set another look below!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or venue name:

• I have finally added Albert Street West nightclub Room 21 to our active venue links on the SMS, belatedly acknowledging their recent busy schedule. Likewise, I have moved 180 Projects, The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Center, and (very reluctantly) The Oddfellows Hall to our inactive venue links, as none have hosted a verified public metal, hard rock, or punk concert in the past year. Hopefully this helps keep things updated there now!
• In a belated clarification on the makeup of the tribute bands at Friday's opening night of "The Howling" at The Rockstar Bar, the H.I.M. tribute (named Poison Girl) comprised of local punk trio Stegadeth alongside ex-Gates of Winter keyboardist Brian Holmes, while the Red Hot Chili Peppers tribute was local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, with the previously announced Tiffany/Chris/Adam/Johnny one-off covering The Distillers only. Apologies for any confusion from our preview of that show, coverage of the bands' identities was personal and vague until on the days prior to showtime. Hopefully everyone had a great night!
• Following the success of Soo Blaster's first Indie Music Showcase on October 5th (which featured new indie rockers Man Feelings & solo artist Wes Armstrong), organizer/veteran local drummer Anthony Fabiano is looking for two more original musical acts for the second in this burgeoning concert series, though a date wasn't specified. If you're interested in playing at the second Indie Music Showcase, message Tony at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Thursday!
• The Soo's Got Talent wrapped up at The Tech on Friday, with singer Daniella Brewer being chosen by judges as the inaugural competition's winner, earning $450 for first place. Congratulations to Daniella, she is definitely a talented young artist, and it'll be interesting to see where he goes from here in music! You can see videos of her Sia and Snow Patrol covers from the final round at the above link. No word on where the other acts finished, but organizers have only shared videos of the acts who advanced out of each round. We'll let you know if this event comes back in 2019!
• Former Soundcheck drummer Steven Flint filled in for absent bassist Paul Belair at his old band's Halloween weekend concerts at Reggie's West, as per his personal Facebook page. Different instrument, but Steven knows the band well, and hopefully things went smoothly this past weekend! No word on why Paul missed the shows, but he didn't play at the previous week's Esquire Club gigs either.
• Presumably in conjunction with the ongoing drummer search for his newest band project, former Vol. frontman Steve Edwards is now looking for a bassist, or at least wondering "where all the bassists at", as per the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on Wednesday. It'd be great to see Steve finally find some like-minded and similarly aged (i.e. 18-late 20s) musicians for this new project, so if you're a bassist looking to jam, contact him above or at this link!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and noes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 906), More Weekend Concert Previews, And Much More!!

As promised, let's round out this weekend's concert previews today, but to complete a full post, we also have some assorted recent notes, and to lead off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you need to know!

Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Project 906 will return to The Strongs Tavern in Eckerman for one night only on Saturday, April 15th! Announced with just enough notice for us to plug this before next week's concert previews, this will mark this talented band's first show out in the Strongs area of 2017, and will see the guys return to the stage after taking this weekend off. Project 906 have been a steady sight in the past year+, and it's nice to see them bring some familiar hard rock out to Eckerman again next week, so don't miss out on this show if you're in that area! A 9:00 PM start time is advertised for this 21+ concert, and there are no announced cover charges. For more details in advance of next weekend's concert previews, visit the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more from Project 906 soon!

Next up, let's finish this weekend's publically known hard rock concert previews, starting with the return of Toronto-based AC/DC tribute band Who Made Who to The Rockstar Bar for one night only TONIGHT! After over 2 years away from the local stage, this veteran tribute act will deliver some high voltage rock 'n roll for the first time in the Soo since November 2014, so if you've missed Who Made Who's faithful looking and sounding take on AC/DC, don't miss out tonight at The Rockstar Bar! Note that Who Made Who are not the AC/DC tribute band that dropped out of two Rockstar Bar dates last year, that band is Hells Bells, who have yet to reschedule from their most recent postponement. Tickets are reportedly almost sold out for tonight's concert, but as of this writing, you can still get them for $10 at The Algonquin Hotel's front desk, and no word on if door admission (if possible) would be higher. This is a 19+ event starting at 9:00 PM, so visit the Facebook event page for more details, and here's Who Made Who live!

Lastly for this weekend's concert previews, we'll head back to Michigan for the return of Traverse City classic metal trio Peril to The Northern Pines Lounge at The Kewadin Shores Casino in St. Ignace TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Continuing their more selective concert schedule of recent years (sticking primarily to Kewadin branches and The Sportsman Bar in Boyne City), these will be Jeff, Adam, and Brooks' first gigs under the Peril banner since rocking St. Ignace two months ago, as part of what's largely been a bi-monthly schedule of late. Scarkazm has been much of the focus lately, but don't miss out on Peril's hard hitting and fan favourite covers tonight or tomorrow either, especially if you want some live hard rock action in the E.U.P. this weekend! As usual, you can catch Peril's Northern Pines Lounge gigs at 9:00 PM both nights, these are 21+ events, and neither has an announced cover charge. Check the above links for more details, and here's Peril live!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band, event, or company name:

• We have added Mike McWatters Photography to our listings of local band and concert photographers in the Sault Ste. Marie area, as Mike has uploaded a number of photos from The Din's CD release concert last summer to his new Facebook page, and had been plugging The Din's involvement in the postponed Quiet Riot show (would he have been on hand?) Mike got some very nice shots at The Tech in August, so give them a look at the above links, and hopefully we'll see him back at more concerts!
• A Facebook page has been launched that hints at plans to host a concert festival at The Machine Shop on Sunday, June 18th named the Rock The Border Music Fest, with the announcement of "a music lineup like no other" scheduled for April 18th. Though not explicitly stated there, the festival's listed phone number is also given on pages for Sudbury promoters CSA International, so is this an expanded rescheduling of the Quiet Riot concert, or something completely different? Stay tuned for updates when they come in!
• Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will take a road trip east to Spanish TOMORROW to compete at this year's Rock 'N Roar Battle of the Bands, joining 9 other bands competing for 4 spots at the annual concert festival in August, where they would open for either The Killer Dwarfs or Triumph guitarist Rik Emmett. Soundcheck are the first local band to compete in this battle since The Elements in 2015, and this will give drummer Steven Flint another chance at advancing to the festival proper, having placed with The Suicide Kings in 2014. Best of luck in Spanish tomorrow!

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