YouTube Channel Profile Series: Nathan S

After a mild delay due to family commitments, here is this month's YouTube Channel Profile, as we're again spotlighting a YouTube channel (randomly selected as ever) whose content is at least half devoted to local metal, hard rock, and/or punk bands/concerts, in order to showcase the channel's uploads for current readers! Today's channel takes us back to the mid-2010s for one of the more familiar, if not that long lived, of the timely explosion of 1-2 man bands in Sault Ontario, with a cameo from a timely band reunion, so here's what you should know!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

nathan s (http://youtube.com/channel/UChwG1p_eVz_bQjN2ckXCYVw)

Owner: Former Lion Ride bassist and Fuller/Bad Back drummer Nathan Sauve, a.k.a. "Naythang Sauvege"

Channel Timeline: Launched on September 27th, 2011; Videos uploaded from May 2014 until August 2015

Channel Summary: Despite previously uploading seven videos of his hardcore/grunge duo Bad Back opening for Biipiigwan at The Moose Lodge on his sauvij channel in November 2013, Nathan opted to instead post future Bad Back videos on a separate personal YouTube channel that he created in 2011, which had no videos of its own beforehand. Nathan uploaded 19 videos to this channel, including eleven from live concerts (all but one featuring Bad Back), and seven from jam sessions. Nathan's only upload not related to a local band is a video of his dog.
 
Why You Should Watch: This is a must watch channel if you liked and enjoyed Bad Back during their 2013-2015 local run, and you get a nice cross section of their minimalist punk & grunge originals throughout the different settings! The lone non-Bad Back concert video is also very notable given who's in it, while the video of Nathan's dog will appeal to dog lovers! Remember, this channel doesn't include 2013 content, which was put on Nathan's prior channel before he opted to focus on this one, but new videos continued for about as long as Bad Back was a going concern.

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

bad back uncut jam june 17 2014 official video: Nathan's first five uploads here are all jam session recordings from mid-2014, featuring him and singer/guitarist Jamie Vincent (also formerly of Fuller). Two are of them playing their own original songs "Girl, Do You Wanna?" & "Number One Hit Single", but the other three are all 50+ minute off-the-floor videos of them playing original songs and covers intermixed with amusing camaraderie, start-and-stop performances, and in-the-moment live mishaps. The channel's most viewed video of these is this jam from June 17th, 2014. It'd be a fool's errand to link to every single song attempted in the three longform videos, but Nathan loosely notes the songs and bands tackled, with some tantalizingly irreverent captions in between. Strong recording quality and enthusiasm across the board, these are a fun watch to see the guys letting loose (also, gotta love the band poster wall!)

bad back - two tongues at the new a july 15: Three different Bad Back shows were filmed for Nathan's second channel, including a private house party in their jam space via this 36 minute video, but the other two are from public events at downtown nightclubs. One was when they opened for The Archaics at The New American Pub in July 2014, where they were filmed covering NOFX's "Linoleum" and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' "American Girl", as well as playing their originals "Shirt Tucker", "Drum My Way Home", and as featured here, "Two Tongues". Despite muffled vocals, Jamie & Nathan deliver strongly with nice audio quality on these hard hitting songs, but the overhead camera angle will not be for all tastes. It has grown on me, but be advised that none of Bad Back's videos on this channel go with a straight-ahead view from the floor.

Detroit Reunion Show December 23rd 2014: While two more jam session videos followed in 2015, Bad Back's last filmed public concert here was when they opened for the one-off reunion of local/Toronto hardcore punk quartet Detroit at The Algonquin Pub in December 2014. Six videos were shot for Nathan's channel that night, including four Bad Back originals & a cover of Hole's "Violet", but featured here is 5½ minutes of Detroit playing the last bit of "Blue Collar", "Lord, Beer Me Strength", "Fortress" (with Destroilet bassist Adam Larocque on guest vocals), and the beginning of "Shithouse Ratt". Remember, Detroit originals were very short, hence why so much was crammed in this one video. Featuring Slumshine/These Magnificent Tentacles frontman Brenton Ellis, ex-Maximum RNR guitarist Curtis Faux, Cross Dog bassist Mark Rand, and Inner City Surfers drummer Mikey Hawdon, this side-stage video captures another unique high angle, and they tore through their fast paced originals with ease! Note that the Bad Back videos from this event were shot on the opposite side.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! Next month in this series, we're looking at multiple channels due to our first randomly selected channel only having one SMS-fitting video, As such, we'll be looking at the YouTube channels of Paul Stanghetta (featuring an Apocalypse Afterparty video) and NassieHysteria (featuring a dozen Treble Charger lyric videos). Look for all of this on or around September 26th, and for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Oceania & Nathan Switzer

Here's this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles, our monthly spotlight of one or two inactive or defunct local metal, hard rock, or punk bands, in order to showcase and feature them and their accomplishments for current readers! Our final 2017 installment is on two bands for the first time since March due to the first randomly chosen band not having enough surviving material so sustain a solo profile, so one more was added to fill things out. There's some familiar faces in this month's bands, so here's what you should know!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oceania

Genre: Punk

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Members:

Lawrence "LaR Noxous" Davies (Black Like My Heart), vocals/guitar
Nick "Dilbert" DiLabio, bass
Chris Rancourt (Slow Motion Theater), drums

Info/Analysis: Succeeding LaR and Chris' old band Slow Motion Theater, Oceania were active briefly from 2004-2005 as a jokingly-formed Green Day tribute band, though they would add original material to their set shortly after. The band played live a few times in 2005, primarily at The Oddfellows Hall (opening for Take One For The Team that July), but few surviving updates followed, aside from LaR's reposting of Oceania's acoustic song "Picture, No Sound" on his YouTube channel in the 2013 (plus a posthumous full band cover), while Chris would later find notability as the head of Laris Records and Northern Rocks Magazine. I can't judge Oceania themselves based on surviving media (especially with their PureVolume page's songs still not working), but if the acoustic song below is any indication, they had an accessible punk sound, and LaR's performance is solid, if still a little reserved vocally! Check out more of his later solo music above, and hopefully some more Oceania material turns up at some point!


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nathan Switzer

Genre: Progressive Metal/Techno

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan

Members:

Nathan Switzer (Highway 63), all instruments

Info/Analysis: Active only briefly in late 2010 and early 2011, this solo project was the mastermind of former Analog Deficiency & Traces guitarist Nathan Switzer, prior to him joining his father Henry's classic/hard rock cover groups Monkey's Uncle & Highway 63. Nathan was aiming to self-record and release an EP called "Life" in 2011, but no updates followed there, and assorted demo recordings posted to his Soundcloud page through 2013 did not receive any public follow-up elsewhere tying them to his 2010 work. His only current song posted before 2011 ("The Beginning", embedded below) has an aggressive and proficient sound with solid production, as did the now-deleted "The End", while his later postings ranged from brutal metal (as in his "new guitar tone test") to some techno originals that show some good variety, including on the comedic "I'm Cool Too" featuring Half Stupid alum Matt Williams. Nathan's a very talented guitarist, and it's be interesting to see him resurrect his original material at some point in the future!


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles! Next month (and year), we'll kick off 2018 with a randomly selected Sault Ontario band to commence another 2-1-3-1-2-1 cycle between the Twin Saults, and the band in question will be defunct local death metal quartet Crimson Crusade! Watch for that on or around January 10th, and stay tuned for more news and notes this week! Thanks everyone!

Speak Easy Battle Of The Bands Lineup Reveal, Plus New Videos!!

Before we get into the meat of this post, let's frame it with a newly confirmed band for next month's VM Radio Battle of the Bands at The Canadian, as new hard/pop rock quartet Heavy Head are the fifth confirmed band for next month, as per the official Facebook event page! With a lineup full of 1st and 2nd place battle finishers with bands like The Suicide Kings, The Bear Hunters, Winkstinger, and Haggith, can they find similar successes next month so soon after their debut? I say that now because they're also confirmed for another big event next month, which leads off this post, along with some new videos, so here's what you should know!

The full performer lineup for the second annual Speak Easy Battle of the Bands has been announced via the official Facebook event page, so who all is playing on Thursday, March 10th? Joining the previously confirmed modern hard rock band Eclipse are the same three acts that were confirmed last fall for the original date, so alternative hard rock trio The Din, returning thrash metal band Pillory, and indie solo musician Jesse Merineau are all still in! They will be joined by punk/metal quintet Jack Spades, the aforementioned Heavy Head (fresh off of their debut show this Friday), indie/electronic rock project Aldous, and former Coverfly bassist Bryan Brown in a rare solo set. Of note, this will be the battle of the bands (and Speak Easy) debut for Aldous, Bryan Brown, Jack Spades, and Pillory, unless any of them are joining The Din, Eclipse, & Heavy Head at next month's VM Radio Battle of the Bands, of which this battle takes place in the midst of.

The Din and Jesse Merineau are the only returning bands from last year, and with none of last year's top 3 in the field next month, this is a wide open contest! It may be surprising to note that this is Jack Spades' first battle of the bands appearance (and first announced concert since October), but members have ample battle experience with bands like The Bear Hunters & T-Rex Manning, and frontman J.D. Pearce has promoted or played at all but one local battle of the bands since 2012. This will also be Pillory's first concert since their 2014 breakup, and their first with new bassist Jordan Leach, but how will they sound come March 10th? As for Bryan Brown, I'm unfamiliar with his solo music, but he played for Coverfly for three years before departing that veteran cover band earlier this year. He's got the skills, but how will he handle the solo spotlight, and what exactly does he play in that regard? Find out on March 10th at Algoma University's campus bar!

Also, three Heavy Head members are pulling double duty on March 10th (Jesse Cook & Johnny Belanger with Jack Spades, and Daniel Horton with Eclipse), but will those bands snag multiple podium slots? $400, $200, $100 prizes await the 1st-3rd place bands, who each have 15 minute sets to impress the fans (no judges, it's a fan voted event again), and for attendees, admission is $5, it starts at 8:00 PM, and it's 19+ for all but Algoma students with student ID cards. This hould be another entertaining battle, so for more details, visit the above links, and stay tuned for more on both of next month's battles of the bands!

We'll close today with new videos, including the latest YouTube upload from Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night! Keyboardist Craig Harrison posted this on his YouTube channel yesterday, and it's of him playing his part of a new original song called "I Guess This Is Goodbye". Though obviously still in the works, Craig lays down a solid and pretty sounding keyboard track here, and it should accent the full metal song well when complete! Give it a look below!



Finally for today, here's a pair of new solo drumming videos from Bad Back's Nathan Sauve, as uploaded to his YouTube channel yesterday! His first uploads there in about six months, these are "post-music" performances, with him taking on the handle "DJ Nato" on one, and the songs themselves are called "Haunted Head" and, as embedded below, "Spew on the Motorway". A bit of a diversion from his usual solo performances, Nathan drums here to electronic-influenced music that feels a bit trance-like at times, but his drumming is as sound as ever, so give them a look above & below, and hopefully we hear more from Bad Back soon!



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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Danger Cats), Haggith's New CD, And New Videos!!

Before we get into this post, I wanted to apologize for not getting official plugs of last night's two Mourning Wood concerts (a matinee at The New American Pub and a normally timed Rednecks Saloon show) on the site yesterday. Both only recieved short notice plugs on personal Facebook accounts a few hours before showtime at The New A, and as we couldn't rush a new news post in time to plug both, we covered them on our Facebook page. Had we recieved more advance word on both, we'd have definitely plugged them here, but our apologies either way! Now, today's post features new videos, a recent album release, and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you should know!

Local all-female hard rock/punk quartet The Danger Cats will rock The Rankin Arena at 17 Batchewana Street on Saturday, June 13th during... a roller derby event?! Yes, the girls' second announced show of the summer will come during Border Brawl, a Sault Roller Derby event that will see two games between Ontario and Michigan teams (with game 1 featuring Northern Ontario's own NORD Starz.) If you're not familiar with roller derby, it's a fun and physical game that the whole family can enjoy, so give it a look online to see if this is up your alley! Danger Cats frontwoman Kate Kougar confirmed in personal e-mails that they'll be playing during halftime of both games, so with each starting at 6:00 & 8:00 PM, their mini-sets will presumably be at around 7:00 & 9:00 PM. This may seem like an odd show for a local band to play, but some of the members are involved in local roller derby events, hence the connection. (Calico Katie even designed the poster!)

Admission is $10 at the door or via advance ticket sales through derby players,  while kids under 12 get in FREE! Also, note that there's an afterparty at The Rockstar Bar too, but if The Danger Cats (or any other band) are playing it, nothing has been publically stated yet. For more details on this unique concert event, check the above links, and don't bypass roller derby, give it a look and see if you'd want to check out Border Brawl!

Next up, here's some overdue notes on a recent album release, as local hard rock/grunge quartet Haggith released their newest CD "Apocalypse II" on May 9th prior to their set at that night's Swampstravaganza V! Apologies for the delay in getting this on the site, it fell through the cracks way too much. Released a day earlier than anticipated, "Apocalypse II" is the band's fourth full length studio album and second in their "Apocalypse" concept series, as recorded over the past year+ at PaperClip Productions. The album features (in various lineup arrangements and instrument roles) the band's late 2014-early 2015 lineup, including singer/guitarist Curtis McKenzie, ex-guitarist Daniel Horton, bassist Jordan Leach, and drummer/vocalist Mike Haggith, though only Daniel is credited on all 10 songs, and his Project 421 bandmate Frank McGillivray is credited with playing guest guitar on the three "Home" tracks.

"Apocalypse II" was on sale for $5, and likely will be at the band's upcoming concerts as well. You can stream all 10 songs ("Apocalypse", "Hands of Death", "Immunity", "Spreading The Disease", parts 5, 6, and 7 of "Home", "Tribute to Mike Haggith", "We Are The Damned", and the title track) at Haggith's YouTube channel for free as well, but will we be reviewing the album on the site this month? No, because it only makes sense to go in chronological order for the "Apocalypse" series, so look for our review of 2012's "Apocalypse" (at last) by month's end! Check out both above!

We'll close today with new videos, including this clip of Bad Back drummer Nathan Sauve tracking drums for a guest spot he's doing for an upcoming Rotopsy track! As uploaded to his YouTube channel on Monday, the overhead video features him tracking his part in a speedo (as he pointed out), and it sounds good to add to a Rotopsy song! While a little monotonous, live drums top a drum machine and help give more of the full band feel to their goregrind intensity, and it'll be interesting to hear the final product! Give Nathan's new video a look below!



Finally, here's a new solo instrumental recording by prolific Sault native and Alberta metal guitarist Paul Melanson! The first upload to his YouTube channel in 5 months, the song is called "Split the Sphere", and it's a well recorded and performed original song with a nice solo and strong songwriting! His recent hard rock and cover work in Lethbridge is solid, but it would be interesting to see him tackle a full metal project like this again. Give his new video a look below, and see more above!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for last month's poll results and our new poll tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Mourning Wood), Sault Ontario Concert Previews, And More!!

Night #2 of the VM Radio Battle of the Bands should be wrapping up around now (our recap post and videos from the event are coming soon!), but for now, here's our first of two weekend concert preview posts for this weekend! We'll touch on Sault Michigan concert previews and potential late notice announcements tomorrow. In this post, we have a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for TONIGHT and a new drum video as well as the previews, so here's what you need to know!

Sault Ontario classic/hard rock trio Mourning Wood have a new regular gig lined up, as they'll be headlining and hosting a weekly jam/open mic night starting TONIGHT at The Rednecks Saloon! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced the series on the Facebook event page on Monday, so we held it for our weekend concert previews. This is somewhat uncharted territory for a hard rock band to host in the area (Tym Morrison's acoustic jam nights at The Harp aside), but Mourning Wood will essentially be the house band on this weekly experiment at the former Nicolet Tavern, and while it will generally be a concert of theirs, an open invitation is out for any attendee with vocal or instrumental ability to join them and jam on stage! Amplifiers and microphones are provided, but you otherwise must bring your own gear.

As Mourning Wood's weekly jam nights are hyped for "every Thursday", and to avoid a glut of repetitve, increasingly distant concerts in our schedule, we'll add them monthly to the SMS listings unless something changes (so Thursday, March 19th & 26th are both now listed as well.) Like Mourning Wood's usual solo gigs, there's a 9:00 PM-ish start time, 19+ age limit, and no announced cover charge. For more details, visit the above links! It will be interesting to see if this Thursday jam night takes hold, but either way, fans of Mourning Wood have a nice regular slate of Thursday shows to enjoy whether they're interested in jamming with them or not, so keep TONIGHT'S show in mind to start off, and here's Mourning Wood live last year!

Moving to previously announced concerts, we're sticking with Thursday events, as Chris Shoust's punk/grunge solo project Telephone & Address will officially launch their new studio album "Rust Orchid" TONIGHT at The Gore Street Cafe! After launching his last two albums in support of heavy electric bands, Chris will mellow things down as headliner for tonight's show, which will launch physical copies of their new ambient instrumental CD for a special $10 price (they'll jump to $15 after that), though remember that digital copies of the album were released on Bandcamp last month. Chris will be joined by Boxes of Boom leader and recent Speak Easy Battle co-promoter Sam Decter for a supporting set, and his own music has merit and creativity, so be there early to check him out! If you're not familiar with The Gore Street Cafe, it's located at 164 Gore Street (naturally), and it's just down the road from 180 Projects. Though infrequently used for concerts (usually acoustic when they occur), it's great to see another concert on Gore Street!

Admission is on a "pay what you can" model, this is presumably all ages, and everything will start at 7:30 PM tomorrow night. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see Telephone & Address back on stage for the first time in 2015, and hopefully this release show is a big hit! And yes, "Rust Orchid" remains likely for this month's CD review. Don't bypass this show, and here's Telephone & Address live last year!



Lastly for today's previews, the aforementioned Tym Morrison will continue his long weekly run at The Harp Bar & Grill with announced shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! I will give the caveat that The Harp usually shows UFC PPVs when they occur, and one (UFC 185) takes place this Saturday, but both the Facebook event page and Tym's website still list a Saturday show. Whether The Harp is skipping UFC 185 or not isn't clear yet, but if you're a Tym Morrison fan, keep Saturday night in mind too... just with a grain of salt! In any event, Tym's entertaining and prolific hard rock covers should keep fans in the groove tomorrow (and Saturday?), so get ready for his unplugged action at The Harp! There's a 10:00 PM start time in effect, there's no announced cover charge, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit the above links, and here's Tym live at The Harp early in his run there!



Finally for today, here's a new video from Bad Back drummer Nathan Sauve's YouTube channel, as uploaded on Friday! This is partially both a drum cover video and an outtake reel, as Nathan was filming a cover of The Dillinger Escape Plan's "When I Lost My Bet" on different days, and he emphasizes the faces he makes when drumming in the clips (especially referencing one 4 minutes in.) The drumming is solid as usual, but having the original song synched alongside would help, and the faces would be more effective if the camera was mounted in front of him. Amusing and entertaining though, so check it out below, and stay tuned for more from Bad Back!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for more weekend concert previews and our recap of night #2 of the VM Radio Battle of the Bands! Thanks everyone!

YouTube Channel Profile Series: suavij's Channel

It's now time for this month's YouTube Channel Profile, our monthly feature post to take a look at 1-3 YouTube channels with at least a 50% concentration of metal, hard rock, and now, punk videos! Thanks to our full punk integration that began last month, we now have our biggest selection pool yet for YouTube channels to randomly select from (219 as of today, and counting!), and hopefully we'll have much more on the punk side of things to come as we close in on 2015! This month's random selection comes from a recently prominent drummer and his local music work both recent and dating back to the mid-2000s, so read on below for this month's profile!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
suavij's channel (http://www.youtube.com/suavij)

Owner: Bad Back drummer Nathan Sauve, also known from previous work with bands like Fuller and as Lion Ride's original bassist (under the stage name "Lionel Itchy")

Channel Timeline: Launched on July 16th, 2007; Videos posted from that week through November 2013

Channel Summary: Coinciding with the early days of Lion Ride's run, Nathan's original YouTube channel covered his late 2000s local band work originally, including 6 early Lion Ride videos, 3 live Fuller concert clips from their earlier run, and 7 solo drum performance videos, with his early content rounded out by this solo audio track from 2009, a live video of a Sexual Vigilantes concert in the Soo the previous year, and two jam videos from a short lived band named "Loud Shirt Aaron & The Plain Looking Crew". After a 4 year hiatus from new video postings, Nathan uploaded 7 videos of his current band Bad Back live in November of last year, though he's since focused newer uploads towards his new solo YouTube channel.

Why Should You Watch: You should check out Nathan's original channel as it covers a lot of diverse ground relating to his local music work since the mid-2000s, and the videos are all generally well recorded also! It's better than it was too, as Nathan un-privatized his Lion Ride videos (plus the Sexual Vigilantes clip) in 2012 after a stretch where they were unavailable for unannounced reasons. His drumming and bass skills are present throughout, and there's a fun carefree spirit on most of these as well, so don't bypass his old channel (though remember, he's focused on his new channel linked above for newer Bad Back footage.)

Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

Fuller - Love Is Always: Uploaded at least a year after their breakup, Nathan posted three videos of his older alternative/punk trio Fuller onto his channel in September 2007 from an undated concert at The Oddfellows Hall. Then also featuring Bad Back bandmate Jamie Vincent on vocals & guitar alongside Nathan's then-Lion Ride bandmate Mark Rand on bass, the uploaded videos include Fuller playing their songs "Batteries", "Dance Jamie Dance", and below, "Love Is Always". Though far lighter in sound than Nathan & Jamie's more recent work, Fuller's energetic indie punk sound had a solid audience in their heyday, and you get a good sense of that on these videos, albeit with muffled sound and somewhat washed out colour. Nice glimpses at Fuller in their heyday though, and worth checking out to see the guys' older material!



Cocaine Crazy - Lion Ride: Courtesy of his tenure as Lion Ride's original bassist alongside singer Mikey Hawdon, guitarist Mark Rand & Marco Pedalino, and drummer Marc Muto (a.k.a. Mikey Lion, Marky Lion, Marco Lion, and The Italian Stallion.) Nathan's videos come from shows at the former Foggy Notions in late 2007, including videos from their live debut that July of "My Baby's Bad", "Lazer Lover", and "Cocaine Crazy" (this channel's most viewed video), and of "Cocaine Crazy", "Sneak Attack", and "Slapdance" from their show there that December. The latter three are all full concert videos with the actual audio, with dark lighting and mixed audio quality, but the first three are edited as music videos from The 705 Video Magazine using audio from Lion Ride's early studio demos, which are notable in part because "My Baby's Bad" & "Lazer Lover" didn't make it to the "Awesome" EP the next year, which "Lionel Itchy" did play on. Well put together, and a great early glimpse at Lion Ride's excellent live concert experience, though click here to see Nathan play "Slapdance" in a solo video too!



bad back - drum my way home (live): Nathan's last videos on this channel come from their all ages show at The Moose Lodge last fall where his current band Bad Back opened for Biipiigwan. Capturing most (if not all) of their set that night, the videos include their songs "Party Bus", "Two Tongues", "#1 Hit Single", "Lung Bucket", "Breeding Weak", "Oh (Nothin' In My Pocket)", and (as embedded below) "Drum My Way Home". Presumably as an attempt to lighten the videos, the colours are incredibly washed out, but Jamie & Nathan are up to their usual recent tricks with an aggressive minimalist set that alternative and hardcore fans should take to (but Fuller fans should tread with caution, Bad Back are very different.) Remember, for newer videos of Bad Back in concert, visit Nathan's new channel linked above!


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! Next month, through 100% random selection, we'll be looking at multiple channels for the first time since March (2 in fact, for just the second time in 2014), so what's coming next? Sault Ontario punk trio The Northern Tragedy's channel (featuring videos from two of their shows), and to fill things out, we're adding YouTube user filghtmaster's channel, which features one Bring The Fallen concert video! Watch out for all of this on or around September 22nd, and stay tuned for more news and notes shortly! Thanks everyone!

Another Local Metal Video Showcase!!

While videos upload from last night's Sewer Swampstravaganza, I've got a local metal video showcase to touch on today! Gotta keep the news rolling, after all. This post features new songs from two very different local acts, some old drumming videos that now have a direct connection to a heavier band, and leading off, a new "album" of sorts, so here's what you need to know!

Local alternative/grunge quartet Haggith have posted a new live "album" onto their YouTube channel on Wednesday! Intended to be YouTube exclusive with no purchase options (at least right now), it's called "In Sesh" (short for "In Session"), and it's their first live in-studio recording in an album format. Recorded during practice at PaperClip Productions the day of it's upload, the performance lasted 33 minutes, and included (in order) covers of The Stone Temple Pilots' "Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart" and Don Felder's "Heavy Metal", a "new" track named "This Is A Song Called Tuning" (which is exactly what you think it is), their originals "Leon The Janitor" and "Public Enemy", their cover of Jimi Hendrix's version of "All Along The Watchtower", and both versions of their original "Wanko", so click each link to hear each song! Note as well that frontman Curtis McKenzie doesn't play guitar at all on "In Sesh", focusing only on vocals.

The recording quality is good, and it's nice to hear some quality versions of some of their covers and "Public Enemy" finally, so give this "album" a listen below, and stay tuned either tonight or tomorrow for our review of their Swampstravaganza set!



Next up, here's the newest original song upload from Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison! Uploaded on Friday to his YouTube channel, it's entitled "More Love In The World", the song's about how Tym wants the title to happen, without judging people for their differences, which is a good message! The song itself (his first original posting in 3 months) is well played with a nice vocal range and very truthful lyrics, but the song feels unfinished and repetitive, almost like there's a missing chorus. Still, this is a nice lighter display of his talent and a good message to take to heart, so give Tym's newest original song a listen below!



Also in new song postings is a new original song from local grindcore project Crucify The Whore (featuring Austin McRae of Blood Shed Productions labelmates Brutaly Fatal), and it's entitled "Discipline Through Dismemberment". Coming from their joint "Brutaly Crucified" demo, this was uploaded to their label's YouTube channel on Monday, and it's (more or less) a combination of techno effects and grindcore, with a nicely fuller sound, and think Austin's growls fit better than Ringsnaps Gibson's pig squeals, but it's all a subjective matter of opinion. Check out the new "Brutaly Crucified" song below!

Finally for today, you know how former Lion Ride/Fuller bassist Nathan Sauve recently reemerged in the local scene as drummer for the grunge band Bad Back? If you're familiar with him personally or via his YouTube channel, his drum skills won't be news, but now we have a great reason to give mention to his "Nathan Sucks" series of drum performance videos from 2008. The common name is self-deprecating, but he really doesn't suck, as he has a lot of talent as a drummer, and they're definitely worth looking at! He posted 7 videos on YouTube in mid-late 2008, mostly of drum solos and improvisation, and he keeps things varied, fast paced, and well timed in each! The video I'll embed here is of Nathan playing the drum track of Lion Ride's "Slapdance" (well, for most of it), and even though Marc "The Italian Stallion" Muto was their drummer at the time, "Lionel Itchy" does a very solid job in this role too on one of Lion Ride's best originals! Check out Nathan not sucking on drums below, and see more at the above links!



That's all for now, but stay tuned either tonight or tomorrow for my Swampstravaganza review! Thanks everyone!

Local Band Lineup Changes, Another Band's Demise, And More Updates!!

Before we post our review from last night's Roberta Bondar Pavilion metal concert, here's one more news post, and it's got sort of a negative bent. I say that because most of the stories relate to band member departures, with one leading to a band breakup, but we do end happily with some updates to some of our feature posts on the site! Read on below for this latest news post!

First today, I can now confirm that Brimley metal band Half A Man have officially parted ways with singer Dillion Semasky. A public statement about the move hasn't been made, but frontman Erik Rintamaki confirmed that Dillion did indeed leave the band via e-mail with me yesterday. A full reason for his exit wasn't given, but the tone of what I've heard is not negative, and Half A Man do hope to possibly jam with Dillion at LemmaFest, seeing as he's playing there that night with Munising metal quintet Infathom already. Dillion had joined Half A Man in December, but was only featured in one rehearsal video before questions of his band status arose in the spring, thanks to statements about Half A Man's next projects as a trio. I figured that Dillion would add an interesting dimension to their sound with his extreme style of vocals, but this move is probably the best for all parties, and hopefully Dillion continues to rock the U.P. with Infathom! As recent postings have indicated, Half A Man are reverting to a trio for their upcoming album & LemmaFest set, with Erik back on vocals, but it's not uncharted waters for them. Remember, their first gig in the summer of 2010 was as a trio due to then-drummer Doug Reed's absence, so they should do just fine as a three-piece! Stay tuned for more Half A Man news as it rolls in!

Next up, here's the latest updates from Skeyes of Seven, the new local hard rock band featuring Sense of Truth, Half Past, and Tripod the Dog alumni! Updates have been quiet from them since their March inception, but in one recent development, it looks like they've parted ways with drummer Chris Thompson. A reason for his departure has not been announced, but Chris was quietly removed from their lineup on their Facebook page in recent weeks. As a result, the band is currently looking for a new drummer, as per a post by frontman Cory Murchison on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday. They're looking for an "experienced & dedicated" drummer, and to message either Cory or guitarist Alain Fletcher on Facebook if you're interested. Cory also added that Skeyes of Seven are hoping to become an all original band and release an album, but they are planning on doing some covers initially, with Avenged Sevenfold, Stone Sour, Tool, and Deftones covers in the works. Hopefully they get a new drummer soon, as we've missed them all on stage, and hopefully they find a perfect fit! And though I don't know why Chris left, he's still got Frightlight and Half Past (if they're even still alive) to fall back on, so best of luck to him for sure! Stay tuned for more Skeyes of Seven news as I hear it!

Finally for lineup changes, newer Sault Michigan metal band Hoist The Sails have apparently parted ways with guitarist Nathan Switzer, just weeks after we found out that bassist Joe Niemi had also left. Again, no public reason for Nathan's departure has been announced, but he's no longer listed on their Facebook lineup. I figure it has to have been a recent move though, as he's featured in the band's latest video from April 18th. This is really disappointing if true, especially knowing Nathan's talents as a guitarist, but hopefully he pops up in a new band soon, and in case there's an active search, message Hoist The Sails at the above links if you're interested in playing guitar or bass for them!

Now originally, we also had another lineup change, in that Kincheloe metal band Chained Memories had parted ways with singer Sean Roush on Sunday for personal reasons. However, the band confirmed on their Facebook page last night that "until further notice, we no longer exist. The band is disbanded." I assume this is partly due to Sean's departure, but no official reasoning beyond that was given. I'll note that their brief statement does leave open the possibility of a return ("Until further notice..."), but it may have needed better wording. I know that drummer Mike Rynberg has worked really hard to get Chained Memories off the ground since their late 2009 inception, and they've had promising lineups since then, but things have been visibly unstable for band membership and positions, and I don't believe they ever posted audio material. I personally don't know why things haven't moved forward much, but hopefully the guys stay active in area bands, and hopefully their next projects can succeed where Chained Memories couldn't if this is indeed their end. Best of luck to Mike, Sean, Ryan, and Mikaela in the future, and I've moved Chained Memories to our inactive Sault Michigan band links!

Let's end this post on a positive note, so here's some recent updates to some of our monthly feature posts! First, I've updated all of the entries in our Battle of the Bands Rewind Mini-Series to reflect the results and finishes of the Humane Society Battle on April 20th, including the withdrawls of Cowboys & Indians and The Moves, both of which had alumni from many of the battles we covered in the series. In our Defunct Local Band Profile Series, I've added a minor reference to the Death Rise profile to note guitarist Johnny Belanger's current work as Caveman Morrison's drummer, while for the Life's Eclipse profile, I added a brief note that guitarist David Mills is also a member of the Eckerman metal band Moss, which is now linked there. I restored a photo to the Out Of The Mouth Of Babes profile, while the State of Misery profile has saw numerous changes to reflect their latest reunion, including a new photo of their current/original lineup, notes on their current status, and the departure of bassist Devon Overman. Because they're re-activated, their profile's title once again has an asterisk (*) at the end. Finally, I added a brief mention to the From The Ashes Of Angels profile about frontman David Waite's current Colorado-based acoustic solo project Jibber N' The Beanie. There's more updates to come, but check the above links to get caught up on these newly updated SMS feature posts!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for my review from last night's Roberta Bondar Pavilion all ages metal show later tonight! Thanks everyone!

The End Of Hammerspace, New Videos, And Lots More!!

Here's another news post to kick off this Thursday with, and it has a lot of assorted stuff from the last while that we're finally getting on the site for you guys to check out! Today, we have a band breakup to mention, along with this week's classic video, a handful of assorted shorter stories from the last little while, and a new video discovery of a metal performance from a few years back, so here's what you need to know!

It looks like Sault Michigan metal quintet Hammerspace have disbanded again. An official statement hasn't been made to that effect, but posts are made by band members in a thread on the band's Facebook page last month that say things like "the band is broken, time to start anew" and "I had fun while it lasted." That comment thread got very personal & detailed, and I don't wanna bring anything bad to light, but a partial reason for Hammerspace's demise appears to be band members moving out of town, with only John Bergeron & Tim Podoba not mentioned as leaving by the spring. This appears to end Hammerspace's second local run, which didn't amount to much beyond some song postings, though fans are sure to remember their 2010-early 2011 run best of all, which featured a number of notable local concert dates. I enjoyed Hammerspace and thought they'd make it further than they did locally, but hopefully the guys stay active in music in the coming years, as there's a lot of talent there! Best of luck to John, Justin, Denny, Paul, Tim, and the other former members in the future, and if anything new comes out on Hammerspace or their members, I'll try to have it here!

Next up, here's an interesting find of a local band playing something heavier from a few years back! While doing research for an upcoming feature post, I came across a video of a Sault Michigan band named The Right Reverends playing two songs at a 2007 Battle of the Bands at Sault Area High School! The band featured singer/guitarists Robert Quinn & Tim Hall and drummer Mitchell Leon, who I believe was in the short lived death metal band Hands of Betrayal the following year. In this video, which YouTube user fishstix7711 posted online in February 2008, The Right Reverends covered Bob Dylan's "The Man In Me" before playing what sounds like an original song named "Puppies" that definitely leans in a metal direction! It doesn't start until 4:52 into the video, and it's not too long, but it has a good sense of humour about it, even if it's nothing too technically amazing! I'm not sure whatever happened to The Right Reverends, but this is an interesting video from 5 years ago, so give it a look below if you wanna!



Thirdly for today, here's three more assorted shorter stories from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band, musician, or post name:

• I've updated our 2008 Case's Music Battle of the Bands Profile to note that "Best Bassist" winner Nathan Bouliane (then of the high school division champions Stillbroke) will also be at next month's Humane Society Battle with his new band The Moves, along with putting more emphasis on Behind Society drummer Josh Hatherley's later battle experience with The Glass Statues and Late & Loud. Nothing major, but I thought I'd mention them!
• Ex-Bring The Fallen guitarist Dan Souliere is looking for musicians for a new local metal project he's hoping to launch in the fall when he moves back to town. He has a drummer already for the project, and he sounds like he's already taking this new band very seriously. If you're at all interested in possibly trying out come this fall, then get more details via Dan's post on Friday at the Musicians Wanted Facebook group!
• The fourth band for March 30th's Lust Boys concert at The Canadian Nightclub has been confirmed, and it's a new band named Pools of Booze! More specifically, they're local punk band T. Rex Manning in a one-off set without frontman J.D. Pearce (likely similar to Late & Loud's turn as General Striker last year), though a reason for J.D.'s absence isn't known. My source for the addition is this show's Facebook event page, and don't miss out!

And finally, here's this week's classic video! With them playing two different concerts this weekend, it made perfect sense to focus this week's classic video around local hardcore quintet As It Stands, and with it almost being a year since this video's filming, it's as good a time as any to put this on YouTube! This comes from one of As It Stands' out of town concerts last year, when they headlined a hardcore concert at The Coach & Horses in Windsor on March 26th, 2011. Attendee Jo-Ann Chayka filmed this video of the band playing their song "Conception" that night, and posted it onto Facebook the next day. It's a solid performance with good audio quality (Justin Pregent's very quiet clean singing aside), but the lighting is very dark and red, almost like it's in Virtual Boy-vision. It's a nice video though, and it's nice to see local bands making waves in Southern Ontario like this! This video was originally posted onto Facebook at http://facebook.com/photo.php?v=10150174364083274 and NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED!!! All credit for this video goes to As It Stands and Jo-Ann, I'm just trying to share this performance with a wider audience like it deserves! It's a solid video of As It Stands, so give it a look below, and go see them at The Rosie & Speak Easy this weekend!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news, hopefully some concert reviews, and my "Woods V" review shortly! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Palms To The Sky), Plus Additions & Removals To Our Band Links

Happy Saturday, metalheads! We have another big post today, including three three bands removed from our band listings and three brand new additions, but kicking things off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!! Here's what you need to know!

Two weeks ago, I first alerted you guys to a potential upcoming hardcore concert featuring Saskatoon metalcore band Palms To The Sky and Ottawa breakcore rockers The Breathing Apparatus. They needed a booking then for this show, part of their "WinTour Sucks" tour, and now they have it! On December 17th (one week from Friday), both of these talented hardcore bands will make their way to Foggy Notions for this hard hitting concert! A 10:00 PM start time is listed on the Facebook event page, there's no announced cover charge, and you must be 19 to attend this show. It's also interesting to note that Mike Gaetano, a former concert booker from The Other Place (now GLOW) is putting this show on! Nice to see him booking again, I remember him bringing some great bands to town a few years back! It's great to see these bands get a finalized concert in town, their hardcore sound will be sure to attract many fans to Foggy's on the 17th! Check out both bands and more concert details at the above links, and thanks to Mike for alerting me to this confirmed concert! Also note that on the event page, Mike alludes to a Garden of Bedlam concert at Foggy's on December 18th. I won't report this as confirmed until either the band or the venue do, but let me just say that there is something to that statement. I'll keep you posted!

Now, we'll discuss three newly found local bands! All are from Sault Michigan, two are older, one is new, and the new one links with an older one! Here's what you should know!

Firstly, it's the new solo project from Sault Michigan metal guitarist Nathan Switzer! You may recognize him from his work in the local metal bands Analog Deficiency, Traces, and Deprecor (more on them in a second), along with the fact that he's the son of Monkey's Uncle frontman Henry Switzer. Well, with updates on his bands slowing in recent months, it's nice to know he's still active in the local scene, thanks to this very new project of his! Nathan's playing instrumental progressive metal in his solo work, and is apparently hoping to release a solo album entitled "Life" in the future. He's currently writing original material towards that goal, with current song titles including "The Beginning", "First Breath", and "The End". Might this be a concept album detailing the progression of a person's life? Time will tell! We haven't heard much on the project since mid-November, but Nathan has uploaded two solo originals onto his official SoundCloud page! I have to say, I'm impressed so far! He's got a firm grasp of his instruments, he's playing at a very proficient level, and the production is surprisingly good! "The End" is especially heavy and technical, while "The Beginning" shows a nice melody and it's own heaviness! I can't wait to hear more, Nathan's solo work is very promising! Check out the above links for more!

While we're on the subject of Nathan Switzer, I came across another old band of his on MySpace! Entitled Deprecor, they only appeared to be active in February 2008, but played a style of industrial death metal. Nathan covered guitars while "T.J." played bass and drums. I'm not entirely sure who T.J. is, so if you can fill me in, e-mail me! Apparently, Deprecor formed out of boredom, and the band hoped to write heavy and melodic metal from varying influences. Honestly, their profile is pretty sparse (can't say if it's their fault or the new MySpace layout's), but one thing makes it worth posting on the SMS: A song! Entitled "Break", you can stream it on their MySpace page, and it has promise itself! It's slightly repetitive, but the riffing's solid and if expanded on, it could be a great base for a metal song! Quality's good too, Nathan has a good ear for home recording quality! Check the above links for more on Deprecor, who are now in our SMS band links as well!

The final new band that we have to share today is BlisteringBane, a solo death metal project out of nearby Kincheloe, Michigan! Active since August, the sole member of BlisteringBane is local musician Jordon Jones, who supplies all instruments on his original material. He's influenced by everyone from Slipknot to The Smashing Pumpkins, and has 10 original songs uploaded on this project's MySpace page! The recording quality isn't sparkling, but Jordon has talent! He has some good riffing talent, and the addition of keyboards on some songs is interesting, but a lot of the BlisteringBane songs sound very similar, and have a few too many sections where it feels very empty except for the guitar playing. His singing, what little of it we get, needs work too, though I think on songs like "Look Into My Eyes", he does succeed at a more experimental sound! I think Jordon does have promise, and it'd be interesting to hear these songs with better production and a fuller more fleshed out sound! Check out BlisteringBane at the above links!

And finally for today, I have deleted a handful of bands from our band links. Do you remember late last month when I mentioned that MySpace had converted all profiles on the site to the new layout, regardless of existing themes or preference for the old style? Well, for the most part, this didn't affect band specific materials beyond custom themes, but some bands have seen their profile hit harder than others. In the past, I've only added bands to our links that had were currently active, had audio/video material, sufficient bio information, and/or professional-looking page design elements. That being said, after looking at older MySpace pages of defunct local bands recently, I've found a few defunct/inactive band profiles that are just too bare and lacking compared to the vast majority of other bands we list on the SMS. This is partly because of their old profiles being crippled by the new MySpace layout, but their sound descriptions and lack of qualitative information were major too. With that said, I have removed these three defunct local bands from our listings: the local hardcore bands 9MM of Hate and Bloodshed At Dawn, and local metal trio Eyes Set Fire. No offense is meant to the members or fans of these three bands, there just isn't enough information or material there for them to be worth keeping on the SMS. There might be more coming, so keep an eye out!

That's all for tonight, but I will have more news and notes very soon, and yes, our next CD review will be over the coming week at some point! Stay tuned for more!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Sativa Rose), Stillbroke & Elipzis News, And More!!

Now, we get back to local metal news, and we have some good stories today to keep you guys in the know for the Labour Day weekend, and before we get that going, I wanted to let you guys know that today's LOCAL CONCERT ALERT will NOT be the lead story because I have three threaded stories, with that a part of the thread, so if I mentioned it first, everything would be out of whack. You'll see in a second, so first, we have a lineup change in a notable local band, and we'll go from there!

Sault Ontario hard rockers Stillbroke have announced the return of former bassist Nathan Bouliane to the band, replacing the departed Kyle McKey. Nathan was Stillbroke's original bassist upon their local debut in 2008, notably playing with them at that year's Case's Music Battle of the Bands, where they won first place in the high school division! Nathan will likely be a very familiar sight to local music fans, from his past bass and guitar work in bands like Lorax, The Outside Lights, Moncton, The Crossed, As It Stands, and in the pre-Stillbroke group known as The Jesters! The news was broken on the band's Facebook page, but their MySpace page and band photos have not been changed to reflect this yet. Nice to see Nathan back in a local band, especially a heavy and talented one like Stillbroke! He's a very good bassist, and here's hoping that Stillbroke are back on stage very soon, cause it's been almost six months since we've last seen them live! I've also heard an intriguing bit of news about Stillbroke as a band, but I'll wait for word from them before saying something here.

Now we thread the stories, as we discuss some big news from a local concert venue! You may know that Nathan Bouliane has a lot more under his belt in the local scene besides being a band member, as he's the owner of concert promotion group Bonology Lights & Sounds, and now, the event manager and P.R. man at GLOW Nightclub! Wait a minute, didn't GLOW become The Other Place, and then become Nite-Life Dance Club? Yes it did, but now, they're reverting back to the GLOW name, or "GLOW Re-Invented" as they've been referring to it! Looks like there's some dislike for the old names of this long running Gore Street bar and concert spot on the Facebook group, but if I remember correctly, the original GLOW period saw more success than the later names did. The bar's currently closed, presumably for renovations, with a September 17th re-opening under the GLOW name being hyped. So to get ready for the re-opening and to get details on goings on there for when it re-opens, click here!

Remember, this venue has a good recent history for bands and concerts, no matter the name, and though bookings weren't as frequent for heavier shows under the Nite-Life name, we did get Bring The Fallen and Out Of The Mouth Of Babes for Algoma Hope4Haiti there, and AC/DC tribute band Who Made Who, not to mention the bands who played there before under it's old names! So don't let appearances fool you, metal will be back...

... no sooner than September 18th, a day after the re-opening, as here is that LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!! New local hard rock trio Sativa Rose will play outside of Foggy Notions for the first time when they take the stage at GLOW on September 18th for a night of metal covers! You can tell by this poster that the booking was made before the name change announcement. The Facebook event page hypes a 10:00 PM start time, you must be 19 to enter, and there will be a $3 cover charge. Should be fun, I've enjoyed the YouTube videos I've seen so far, maybe I can squeeze in to see them that weekend! Depends what night I see Caveman Morrison. For more from Sativa Rose, check out their live jam night videos at this location, and I'll have more on them as I hear it!

There, those three threaded stories are now out for you guys to check out, now for something completely different, courtesy of Sault Michigan hard rockers Elipzis! While in Grand Rapids this weekend for shows in the area, they appeared on the TV show EightWest on area TV station WOOD TV 8, and the video is now online! It features hostesses Rachael Ruiz and Terri DeBoer talking with Elipzis frontwoman Rachel Kiger about the band, how they formed, and what they've done so far as a band! Aside from accidentally getting Chris Webster's name wrong (they said "Chris Weber"), it's a good interview, nothing mindblowingly shocking, but well handled! Afterwards, Elipzis played their original song "6 Shots", in what could be the first video footage of Elipzis online! Good stuff, I like this song and it's heavier qualities1 Great on them getting this exposure, and I like how they actually plugged their concerts on-air too! Check out Elipzis' appearance on EightWest immediately below!



And finally, I wanted to alert you guys to a local music forum that just launched this year, but isn't getting a lot of attention. Local news website SooNews.ca launched a local music scene section onto their official forum in February of this year, and I can see why it's flown under the radar compared to other local music forums and message boards. In the last 6 months or so that it's been active, it has only managed to gather 12 threads with 4 total replies. I know it can take time to get a solid userbase on a message board, but this could really stand to be punched up, don't you think? Getting a following like the 705 Video Magazine doesn't happen overnight, so I recommend registering and keeping this active! Forums are useful and can create some nice discussion if well handled, so if you want to help the SooNews.ca Local Music Scene forum, click here and post something! Note that you'll need an account to post, but it's free and asks nothing strange in order to get one.

That's all for today, but be on the lookout for more local metal news and updates very soon! Oh, and stay tuned by Tuesday for our latest local metal CD review, as we take a look at Sykotyk Rampage's newest album, "Bella Disgusta"! Thanks everyone!