It looks to be a relatively quiet concert weekend for hard rock acts in the Twin Saults, but we do have SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS to lead things off with! This is why there was no Defunct Local Band Profile yesterday, I was keeping Thursday open in case any shows were announced in time to get something up the day beforehand, but that feature will hit the site this weekend, guaranteed. Along with the new shows that did come up earlier today, we have some new videos, belated album releases, and more, so here's what you should know!
Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Reggie's Place on Queen Street East for traditional concerts TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! I apologize for the short notice, the band only announced these gigs via their Facebook event page this afternoon, but as fans will know by now, Soundcheck announcing a concert weekend on the Friday of is certainly not uncommon, alas. Fresh off of their regular Thursday open mic night at Reggie's West, TONIGHT & TOMORROW's shows will be Soundcheck's first at the downtown Reggie's in exactly one month, making this their first booking there since vaccine passport requirements were lifted. Mask mandates are still in place for another week and change, but hopefully a good but responsible crowd comes out for Soundcheck's tried-and-tested brand of classic rock, heavier cuts, and select country covers TONIGHT & TOMORROW!
9:00 PM start times, no cover charge, and 19+ age limits are in effect for both nights, and of course, please follow and respect any extant public health guidelines at Reggie's to ensure everyone's safety, and do not forget your face mask, as the mandate won't be lifted until the 21st. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!
Next up, here's the latest from Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Tarnished, who have resumed using their TikTok page after a few months' break! We actually missed this one first, as back in November, the guys posted a video of them covering Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino that month, which was not posted elsewhere. Solid minute-long clip that shows us more of the venue and some nice angles of the guys rocking out & exploring the space, so give that a look on TikTok! Unfortunately, TikTok's video embed code does not work on the SMS, but luckily, I can embed their brand new TikTok video from Tuesday here, as they cross-posted it on their Facebook page. The video features frontman Alex Traynor decreeing that we (though only he is on camera) are going to shovel "an elderly woman's driveway".
Without spoiling the 14 seconds-long video, it is definitely humorous in tone, which Tarnished was specializing in on TikTok when they were more active on that service. No music to be had here, but it did get a lot of attention on TikTok, so watch its Facebook copy below, and see above for more musical and non-musical videos from Alex & crew!
Also, here's the latest from prolific Sault Ontario extreme metal/folk punk musician Chase Wigmore, as he has some more belated album releases on his Bandcamp page! According to an e-mail notification for registered fans, Chase added nine back catalog albums from both his own eponymous project and Awokest on Monday, including last year's "Ruins of Life" and his Awokest effort "Beyonder", The remaining seven are from 2020 or earlier, so while he didn't put 2021's "The Symphonic Organism" or "Living Divisions" for sale in this wave, he has previously pledged to put all of his back catalog albums on Bandcamp, so keep that in mind! At least this way, you can now see the track listings on the albums that were previously YouTube exclusive, and from what I can tell, all cost $7 for a digital download. See above for much more from Chase on Bandcamp, and stay tuned for more recent updates from Chase's projects as they roll in!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual for these short form story blocks, these are in alphabetical order by artist or company name:
I have removed inactive local start-up company Ma Lady Menace from our "Other Sault Ontario Metal Links" section due to the deletion of their Facebook (and last surviving online) page. The Douglas Ewen-led company planned to sell LootCrate-style "crash course crates" for media franchises, and were slated to co-promote the CureCon charity concert festival in August 2017, though neither venture was publically realized and the company quietly shut down. Hopefully Douglas is doing well nowadays!
I have moved local post-punk/rockabilly duo Orange back to our inactive band links, as the band has not issued any public updates since March 9th of last year, ironically in a Facebook page post where they said that Orange "is coming back, baby!" Orange had originally reunited in 2014 with album plans and a series of "Sunday Sessions" audio uploads, but functional updates ended after March 2015, their promoted return last year notwithstanding. Chris & Matt had some interesting music on hand, hopefully they turn back up in some form down the road!
Newer local alt-rock/punk duo These Magnificent Tentacles are looking at expanding to a trio, specifically by adding a bassist (frontman Brenton Ellis had been filling that role in studio). The band rehearses at least once a week, and they have space and gear on hand already. If you're interested in trying out or getting more information, message drummer Steve Edwards at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Tuesday!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on the site next!
I've got another new news post for your guys on this Friday morning, and it's packed with a lot of shorter stories from the last little while, plus a concert preview and related updates, and leading off, a brand new addition to our band links! Here's what you should know!
We have a new local hard rock band to add to our active Sault Ontario band links, and they are named Dealing Without! Details are minimal on this band so far, but they have a promising lineup, including Isolation Sessions/ex-Half Past bandmates Jordan Rains and Arthur Lacasse on vocals & guitar respectively, alongside former Big Mistake guitarist Rick Atkins and ex-Fitswitch drummer Larry Mousseau. A bassist has not been brought on board yet, but Arthur had posted in the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday looking for one (they do have a jam spot.) Message Art at this link or above for details! It's not yet clear if Dealing Without's existence will mean anything negative towards The Isolation Sessions' status, though note that they did post on Facebook as recently as January, and remember that their nature & inception were very tied into the pandemic.
Sonic inspirations with Half Past's final lineups will be easy to make re: Dealing Without, but time will tell how they truly look and sound. Will they jump in on the social distance-regulated concert scene where available, or will their live debut wait until things are more opened up? Time will tell, but this lineup has the chops! Stay tuned to their Facebook page for more updates on Dealing Without when they rolls in!
Next up, here's a rare weekend concert preview, as Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished (minus Nathan) will perform publically in Hulbert Township for the first time TOMORROW NIGHT at The Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast! A new venue for us, this bed & breakfast at 9920 South North Hulbert Road has hosted a few live bands in recent months, and hopefully will serve to be a solid venue for Alex & Josh's unplugged cover attack! If you're up for the hour-long drive west to Hulbert, this show has no announced age limit or cover charge, and a 9:00 PM start time. While we're on the subject, Tarnished will also be taking a rare road trip outside of our coverage range to Traverse City today for a show at The Workshop Brewing Company (details here), and will be appearing again on The Eagle 95.1 with Tim Ellis again at 9:10 AM today for the exclusive public debut of their new single "SDR&R"!
Pre-orders for the single will proceed after the interview, though availability of it beyond the FM dial is to be confirmed. Tarnished are definitely staying busy this weekend, so follow along with all of their upcoming activities on their Facebook page or above, and to preview tomorrow's Hulbert Happy Hour gig, here's Alex & Josh live!
Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:
I have removed Sault Ontario death/trance metal solo project Black Cloud from
our band links again due to the unfortunate deletion of their known online
pages & media for unannounced reasons at some point in the last couple of
months. Black Cloud had previously done this in late 2019, before
returning with new pages that were updated from February-July of last year. Peytan has definite potential
in extreme metal, and hopefully we see Black Cloud return (again) in some form
again down the road!
I have replaced the link for local goregrind solo project Crucify The Whore from their surprisingly deleted Facebook page to their Bandcamp page. As far as I can tell, C.T.W. are still active, as their
other social media accounts are still up, and have been updated as
recently as January, though it's worth noting that C.T.W.'s deleted page
was previously Tyler's cybergrind project Malignant Neoplasm's page
after the closure of their original page. Maybe it was taken down due to
content flags, given their very polarizing imagery & subject matter? In
any event, we'll let you know when Tyler has new music updates from any of his projects!
Hard rock musician Mike McCleary has been moved to our inactive
band links due to a year's inactivity, last being seen posting a single on Bandcamp in February
2020. A quickly prolific addition to our coverage, Mike released a
number of digital albums to Bandcamp in the late 2010s, often dealing
lyrically in his own mental health battles & national politics, but
his public profile sharply decreased in 2019 due to personal
concerns, including the deletion of his Facebook page & two of his
more political albums.
Mike's a talented guy, and hopefully he resumes his original music again in the future!
Local post-punk duo Orange are "coming back, baby!", as per their Facebook page on Tuesday. Featuring Telephone & Address' Christopher Shoust on drums alongside Ohio-based guitarist Matt Zook, Orange initially reunited in 2014 for studio work and album plans, but aside from some Soundcloud postings, nothing came of it until their last proper public update in March 2015. Good to see Orange back after six years, and they are back in our active links!
Last week, The Soo's Got Talent posted on their Facebook page to say that they're "looking into going virtual", and asked fans what they thought about the idea. We all know why the multi-week local talent competition didn't take place last fall, and with lingering uncertainty even with vaccines beginning to roll out, hosting the 2021 installment online may make sense to bring The Soo's Got Talent back in the near term. Stay tuned for updates!
Veteran ska/hard rock trio Tripod The Dog have been moved to our inactive
band links due to a year's inactivity. The fan favourite band has not
been seen since rocking The Esquire Club on February 9th of
last year, though the pandemic & their lack of a recent online
page are both acknowledged. After a successful reunion set at Rotaryfest
in 2018, frontman Mark Oliverio brought Tripod The Dog back full-time
in 2019 on the local bar cover circuit, though gigs
were spaced out moreso than other contemporaries. Hopefully we'll see
Mark and the Amendolas back at it when concerts as normal can return!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
With news very slow as of late, here's this month's Defunct Local Band Profile a couple of days early to keep things rolling on the site! This monthly feature post looks at 1 or 2 defunct or inactive local metal, hard rock, or punk bands, as randomly selected from our band links, in order to spotlight them and their run for current readers! As the first band chosen for this month didn't quiet have enough material to warrant a solo profile, we have added a second band to fill things out, and ironically, both are duos with brief run in the mid-2010s. Here's what you should know! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Info/Analysis: A mystery debuting band at March 2015's Speak Easy Battle of the Bands (where they did not place), Infinity Grinder were spiritual successors to Brad Griffith's 2010-2011 two man band Sounds From The Green Room, just with a larger online presence. Brad & Terrence would only play two more announced concerts (the final Swampstravaganza & Ballot Burner's New A show that August), though 18 mostly instrumental song postings (some with guest "R.P.") made their way to their Soundcloud page, the last of which coming in March 2016, before they quietly dissolved. Harbouring an experimental sound with punk, grunge, and indie influences, Infinity Grinder had solid chemistry and an often heavy range of tracks like "A Few Weeks" and "Last Call", and it's a shame they didn't play live more often! Here's Infinity Grinder playing "Modern World" at The Canadian, but also see them live at The Speak Easy at this link, and don't miss Brad with Bizotic!
Info/Analysis: Also known as Orange: The Band, this project surfaced on social media in late 2014, though Chris & Matt had previously manned Orange in an oddly undisclosed prior period. Orange never played live in their return, but posted many old instrumental tracks to their Soundcloud page that winter as part of "Sunday Sessions" that were reportedly conducted locally at St. Andrew's Church. Plans were announced on their Facebook page in early 2015 to record an album and/or a split with Chris' other active duo The Red & Black, but neither occurred, and the band fell inactive after that March, aside for apologizing for not posting anything lately in September 2016. Orange harboured an minimalist sound taking influence from punk, rockabilly, and alternative styles, and while the lo-fi nature and lack of vocals won't be for everyone, fans of Chris' recent projects (primarily Telephone & Address) will be right at home! Here's the first "Sunday Session", and hear more above!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles! This series returns on or around June 10th, and we'll be spotlighting a randomly selected Sault Michigan band next in our rotation. As such, we'll be looking at inactive local metal band Tantrym Tyme next, so look for that profile next month, and stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
Before we get into today's post, we have an apology for a missed concert, as local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements played a special acoustic set at The Sault Theater Workshopthis past Friday as part of a fundraiser to help get the cast & crew of the live stage play Frozen (featuring frontman Rob Speers' wife Christina in a lead role) to the annual Quonta Drama Festival in Sudbury later this week. Though promoted publically in advance, Rob only confirmed The Elements' involvement in a personal Facebook posting on Wednesday that we regrettably missed. Our apologies, we'd have plugged it had we known, and good luck in Sudbury! Now, we have lots of assorted notes and new videos today, so here's what you should know! Remember how defunct local horror punk/metal band Frightlight released their only CD "It's A...Live!" in October 2010? Well, the whole thing is now on YouTube to stream for free! Bassist Mike Gingras (a.k.a. Eddie Fright) posted it on his YouTube channel in May of last year, and it compiles all 6 songs from the live EP, which was recorded at Coch's Corner that July and produced by Nick Jackson at Spacehouse Studios in England. Featuring their then-quartet lineup of Mike/Eddie alongside current Jack Spades frontman J.D. Pearce (or Johnny Pints), guitarist/current Redundant drummer Rick "Styles" White, and ex-Caveman Morrison drummer Jeff "Shrek Ogre" Richards, the EP features the songs "Fright Night", "Rust Angel" (a re-appropriated Fitswitch song), "She Screams", "Dead Town Anywhere", "They All Float", and "C.H.U.D." Frightlight's only album still holds up for fans of their horror punk hybrid, with crisp production and familiar fan favourites!
Also, Mike added some band logos and post-effects to give the songs some visual pop (though curiously, no photos of the band themselves.) Frightlight had a good 5 year run, so relive that by streaming "It's A...Live!" in full below, and apologies for the delay in getting this on the site!
Next up, prolific local drummer Glen Thomas (Mourning Wood, Flat Stanley, The Peace Vibe) posted two metal cover videos onto his YouTube channel last week! Presumably learning these songs for Mourning Wood concerts (though he didn't specifically confirm that), his new covers are of System of a Down's "Chop Suey" and, as embedded below, Metallica's "My Friend of Misery". Glen noted that both aren't perfect, which does show (especially on the S.O.A.D. cover), but it's nice to see him tackle some heavier songs than we tend to see from his solo performance postings, and he's having fun and tackling these with clear skill, so give them a look above & below!
Finally
for today, here's six assorted shorter items from the last while, and as usual, they are in
alphabetical order by band name:
Local death metal duo Brutally Fatal have released the cover art and track listing for their newest planned demo CD, and second with the current lineup, to their Facebook page last month! It will be called "Blood of the Devil", and will feature 18 songs, but due to potentially offensive artwork and song titles, we won't embed either here (though some song names include "Belly of the Beast", "Offensive Track", and "Luck of the Irish".) Good to hear they're still active, so see above for more info if you want!
We have moved local grindcore duo Das Skalpell Kampf to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity, not having made a band-related posting on their Facebook page
since March 2nd of last year. The mysterious union of Fonzy and Chachi
Grozny notably appeared on Blood Shed Productons' 11-way split CD from
early last year, but that marked the former Scalpel Fight's only major
public activity. Hopefully they turn up again down the road, their songs
were solid for the genre!
Just as a clarification, we can now confirm the full identity of local modern hard rock quartet Eclipse's bassist, as new Facebook postings confirm that his full name is Fred Dunn. The Speak Easy Battle 3rd place finishers had previously credited him as just Fred or Freddy, though either way, I can't find finite info on any past band work. Don't miss Eclipse at the VM Radio Battle of the Bands semifinal on Wednesday!
Prolific local rock/punk bassist James White (Redundant, The Elements, Nikkfitt) is looking for drummers willing to jam with a musical project of his, and to private message him for further details. No word on if this relates to a replacement in one of his active bands, or something new entirely, but message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from March 4th for more info!
We have also moved local post-punk/rockabilly duo Orange to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity, as they haven't posted a public update since a status on their Facebook page on March 9th of last year. The revived project from Telephone & Address' Chris Shoust had planned to release a split album with his other band The Red & Black last year, but aside from song postings on Soundcloud, the band didn't unveil a lot publically otherwise. Chris is talented, and hopefully he and Matt bring Orange back again in the future!
Would you be interested in seeing an all ages Random Killing concert in the Soo this summer? Frontman/Saultite Andrew Kiteley (Dutch Angus on Facebook) was weighing interest in the idea on this local concert Facebook group on Monday, and while there have been affirmative replies since, weigh in above if you want the Toronto hardcore punk veterans to roll back north for another Hardcore Homecoming this summer!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes as this week rolls along! Thanks everyone!
I hope everyone's having a great Tuesday! Keeping with our recent steady output, today's news post includes new material from two linked projects, the latest from a promising young band, and more assorted updates, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for March! (Edited on Wednesday at 2:05 AM)
A long teased death metal concert is now official, as French death/grind quintet Benighted will headline at The Oddfellows Hall on Saturday, March 7th (and by French, I mean from France, which is very cool in and of itself!) A favourite of promoter Tyler St. Amour, Benighted's brutal and intense death metal sound should be more than welcomed to Sault Ontario in the midst of their first Canadian tour, so be sure not to miss this show if you live death metal & grindcore! They'll be joined by Montreal theatrical death metal quintet Bookakee, who are known for wearing costumes, using props, and enacting sketches during their sets of technical & progressive death metal, and they have to be seen to be believed, so make sure to see them in March! They're scheduled for 11:00 & 10:00 PM respectively, while the top local support slot will go to local death metal favourites The Bear Hunters in their first announced show since November's CD release party, and they'll be on at 9:00 PM.
Very fitting choice, and they should brutalize on March 7th! The only other currently announced local band will be goregrind solo project Crucify The Whore (in their second announced show of 2015) at 6:30 PM, and while The Revolution have expressed interest in playing, the other three local band slots have yet to be confirmed. The first concert from Heavy North Entertainment in over 4 months, admission will be $7 in advance (starting on February 1st) or $12 at the door, the first band will be on at 5:30 PM, and this is ALL AGES! For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This sounds like it will be a great concert for death metal fans, so be sure to stay tuned for updates as they come in!
Next up, here's the latest from young local alternative/hard rock trio The Pixo Control, who will be making a big appearance on a new local webseries soon! The show is called Bare, and it's a VM Radio-produced series where local musicians will perform in a stripped down acoustic fashion (a'la MTV Unplugged), with multiple cameras filming all of the action. A preview photo is shared of the set on VM Radio's Facebook page, but it's not from The Pixo Control's episode. Other details on Bare are forthcoming (including on what sites to watch it on), but we'll let you know when more comes out. Either way, it sounds like a fun series, and I'm curious to see who else plays on Bare! Also, a review of their most recent concert (at Cafe Natura on December 30th) is now online via the local music & arts website Ears & Eyes, as written by contributor Shane Erickson (a.k.a. DJ Seith), and it's fairly in depth on all of the bands that night, so what should you know?
Along with remarks on the reunited Frasiers and Great Chamberlain (who featured The Pixo Control's Michael Mikus and The Fever Tops' Mitch Harris), he praised local post punk quartet Gnaeus' energy, openness, and their "hard-charging alternative rock sound", while enthusiastically praising Michael's stage presence and intensity when discussing The Pixo Control, who debuted a new song named "Alphabetical Order" that night. I won't spoil the rest, but Shane is well spoken in the interview, so give it a look at this link or above, and read more from Ears & Eyes too, it's a great site!
Also today, here's the latest from Telephone & Address frontman Chris Shoust's other two active bands, those being his duo projects The Red & Black and Orange! They both now have new media on their respective Soundcloud pages, with Orange's page now featuring 10 new "Sunday Sessions" recordings posted last week (bringing them to 14 total), all continuing their diverse punk/rockabilly instrumental sound! The Red & Black's new Soundcloud page features 7 original songs, including 4 previously heard on their Bandcamp page, and three new songs named "Sing or Move On", "Stay at Home in Bed", and "This is All That Matters". Their new songs are effective yet lo-fi like before, and fans of Chris & Damian's past collective work should enjoy the songs! It should be noted that The Red & Black's Soundcloud page implies that their 7 songs will comprise their portion of the hinted split album with Orange, but it's not clear yet which Orange songs will be included, or if this album will get a paid public release in some form.
Chris' projects have been very prolific in terms of media in the last few months, so we'll have to see what comes next from them! Stay tuned for more updates, and yes, we have more from Telephone & Address themselves as well, so keep an eye out!
Finally for today, here's three shorter assorted items from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band or event name:
Apolcaypse Afterparty
"songwriter" Paul Stanghetta (a.k.a. Puablos Stancu) is looking for
"chicks with bass & an amp", presumably to join the band, which does
follow earlier hints that they were looking to expand their lineup with
female members. If you're a female bassist and are interested in
joining this unique rap/metal project, message Paul at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Tuesday!
We've moved local death metal band Social Suicide to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity, having not posted on their Facebook page since January 5th, 2014. Active since 2011, this band was led by the aforementioned Tyler St. Amour, and underwent many member & sound changes, but house parties aside, never played a public show or released any media. Best of luck to surviving members in the future, and don't miss Tyler & fellow Social Suicide alum Anthony Boudreau in the newer metal band Them!
Only 5 registration forms for the VM Radio Battle of The Bands at The Canadian Nightclub in March are available to whoever wants to pick them up and enter, rather than just bands who reserved spots, so if you want in and/or had a reserved spot, head down to The Rad Zone A.S.A.P. to get your forms! Once completed and sent in with your $100 entry fee (which you get back by selling your ticket packages), you're in for the battle! Our source is promoter J.D. Pearce on the Facebook event page today.
That's all for today, but stay tuned for much more in the coming days, including this weekend's concert previews & more! Thanks everyone!
After our first off day of the year, we're back in swing of things with a packed news post, and yes, this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles are coming either tonight or tomorrow! For now, we have plenty of assorted news items and not one, but two new local bands, so here's what you should know!
One new-ish band to add to our band links are Orange, a post-punk/rockabilly duo featuring Telephone & Address frontman Chris Shoust! Also referred to as Orange: The Band in some instances, this project appears to be a revival of an earlier run at an undisclosed time, with a posting on Chris' other two man band The Red & Black's Facebook page last month implying that they're "now defunct." Orange united Chris on drums with guitarist Matt Zook (now living in Toledo, Ohio), who jammed in a series of "Sunday sessions" that took place in a local church "at the end of East Street" (do they mean St. Andrew's?) Orange's Facebook page was launched on December 29th, where they revealed that they will have an album released this year, though it's not established there whether it will be the split album with The Red & Black that they teased last month, or if Orange's album plans have drifted away from the split concept. In any event, four "Sunday sessions" tracks can now be streamed on Orange's Soundcloud page, so how does everything sound?
Very lo-fi like Chris' other recent bands, this music is reminiscent of some Telephone & Address work, but it's all instrumental. His drumming fits Matt's guitar playing, which has raw qualities and some melody, as well as a punk bite, and while it looks like Orange's revival is mainly to put out old material, at least they're getting more of a profile! I don't have a clue on when they were first together. Give Orange a listen above!
The other new band to add to our links today is Ten Kings, a new Sault Michigan hard rock quartet with some familiar faces! Just launching their Facebook page on Thursday, this new band (whose name is inspired by conspiracy theories involving a "New World Order") haven't done much publically yet, but Nixxon Dixxon fans may want to pay attention, as their singer Brandon Carr is making his long awaited return to a local band with Ten Kings! We haven't heard much from Brandon since Nixxon Dixxon broke up in 2010, so it's great to see him back in the saddle! Their lineup is rounded out by former Bottom Line bandmates Joe Jenkins (also of Exiled) and Will Storey on guitar and drums respectively, while ex-Scofflaw bassist Barney Gravelle is also on board. Very solid lineup so far, but what will Ten Kings play? All that they've said so far is that they'll play modern & classic rock covers, so if you recall what Nixxon Dixxon & Exiled have played, Ten Kings shouldn't stray too far.
It's obviously too early to comment on how Ten Kings sound, but hopefully they establish a local foothold, as the talent is obviously there! Stay tuned for more as we hear it, and like Orange, they're now in our active band links!
Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news items from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist, show, or company name:
This is overdue, but I've moved Sault Michigan bar and occasional concert venue The Back Door to our "Other Sault Michigan Links" section due to their recent closure after their final New Year's party. Facebook postings have indicated that The Back Door was bought by new owners, but it's not yet publically known if the venue will remain as a nightclub or not, let alone any other changes. For now at least, we won't consider it as an active concert venue, but if the new owners keep things going there, we'll let you guys know!
Frasiers frontman Charlie Derrer is once again looking to start a new band, this time confirming an intended genre of pop punk, as per his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post on Tuesday. It'd be great to have more punk bands in the Soo, so message Charlie above or at this link for more info!
New local goregrind duo Das Skalpell Kampf posted a new song named "Handing Out Headshots" onto their Bandcamp page on Tuesday! Sludgy and lo-fi, it sounds like it should be a lot longer than it's 52 second runtime, but if you love similar Blood Shed acts, give the song a listen above, especially as it may be on the upcoming 11-way split!
Sault Ontario cannabis culture store Planetary Pride have put feelers out on their Facebook page regarding a possible new summer music festival (more or less, a spiritual successor to Hempfest, which moved 8 hours away to Moonbeam last year.) If they were to put on such an event, tickets would be $150 for the weekend, though other details are to be confirmed. There's some positive feedback already, but comment on Planetary Pride's Facebook post A.S.A.P. to voice your opinion!
Local doom/punk band The Revolution have announced the addition of Haggith bassist Jordan Leach to their lineup, replacing the already departed Rainey Vincent. The news was announced on their Facebook page on Tuesday. Slightly surprising given how recently he joined Haggith, but this is great news for Jordan, and hopefully he contributes well with both bands!
Long running Rock 101 morning show Scott & Brian In The Morningfinally has it's own official Facebook page! As you may know, Scott Cook & Brian Davie play rock hits, discuss the news and "infotainment", and keep fans entertained on the morning drive from 6:00-9:00 AM weekdays on 101.3 FM, and it's great to see them get their own Facebook page! Become a fan above, and the show's now in our "Other Sault Michigan Links"!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes soon, and this month's Defunct Local Band Profile later today, if all goes well! Thanks everyone!
Hey there, metalheads, today's post is devoted to the topic of previewing this weekend's metal concerts! Five, to be exact, three in Sault Ontario, two in Sault Michigan, and all have a certain appeal higher than normal! There's a major tribute band, a battle of the bands at a popular underused concert venue, a long awaited return to the area, and a hyped debut performance at a venue finally taking notice of "rock music"! So here are your local concert previews for this weekend, but first, a cancellation.
The planned Phatstick concert for tomorrow night at Foggy Notions has been cancelled. This has been confirmed by bassist Keith Gillam in a status update on his Facebook page. I was first alerted to this by a wall posting on the Facebook event page by Kelly Taillefer (a relative of frontman Jason Taillefer), but I wanted to wait for additional confirmation, which I now have. No reason has been publicly advertised, though it should be noted that Foggy's recently closed temporarily for some pre-summer fix-ups (as posted in a status update on their Facebook page), so that could be the reason. Either way, it doesn't appear to be the fault of the band itself, nothing I've read has pointed to them calling it off themselves. I bet a number of you are disappointed, as am I, cause this would have been my first chance to see them live! No worries though, there's another metal band at a local bar tomorrow night at the same time, details of which are coming after our first concert we're previewing below!
First off, it's the second battle of the bands of 2010, as The Sault Youth Association presents Downtown Showdown tomorrow night! Four young local bands will hit The Oddfellows Hall to compete for "mad prizes", and this includes two metal/hard rock bands! Local death metal quintet Bring The Fallen hit the stage for their first performance since backing up Doom Cannon last Tuesday, and their first show at The Oddfellows Hall since October! Can Bring The Fallen continue their battle of the bands success and win their third battle in four tries? The other SMS-covered band on the lineup is local experimental hard rockers SBD, featuring two thirds of No Arrow and Shane Triplett from The Chintzy Slicks! In just their second live performance ever, how will they do in this battle? Though they're the newest of the four competing bands, don't count them out! The lineup is rounded out by The Fury, the local guitar and genre-less rock band featuring ex-members of Out Of The Mouth Of Babes and Devastation Of The Heavens, and local indie rockers The Tenagens! Both bands are quite popular and should have lots of their devoted fans out tomorrow for the battle! Click on all of the above links to check out the involved bands!
"Downtown Showdown" will take place at The Oddfellows Hall, which (believe it or not) hasn't hosted a metal/hard rock show since October's Upheaval of an Exorcist/Garden of Bedlam concert! I wonder why concerts are getting so rare there lately? Well, take notice of Downtown Showdown, cause who knows when good bands will be back. Oh, did I mention admission is FREE?! AND, it's ALL AGES! Yes, The Sault Youth Association is doing some awfully generous things to get people to come out, and they'll also be selling refreshments (chips, pizza, pop, et cetera) for $1 each, and there will be a free draw for a $100 Future Shop gift certificate! And all of this begins at 7:00 PM tomorrow night, so make sure you're there early! A battle of the bands featuring four talented young bands at The Oddfellows Hall, all ages AND free, what more do you guys want? Confirm your attendance at the Facebook event page, and I will see you guys there! A review, photo album, and videos of SBD and Bring The Fallen will be posted Saturday afternoon! And for a video preview, here's one of Bring The Fallen, their performance of "Defiling Despondence" from Algoma Hope4Haiti!
So when you consider that the battle starts at 7:00 and features just four bands, you'd be under the impression that it will end early, right? Well, if you need something to do with your evening, and you have nothing to do thanks to Phatstick's cancellation, here's something that just might work! Hells Bells, Canada's #1 Tribute To AC/DC will be at The Canadian Nightclub tomorrow night at 10:00 PM! The acclaimed Barrie-based group will bring another authentic AC/DC sound to Sault Ontario, just months after Who Made Who rocked Nite-Life Dance Club in February! Don't expect this to be "just another tribute band" though, Hells Bells bring an extremely authentic AC/DC sound to their live show, with over 2,000 concerts on their resume, and an extensive playlist of AC/DC classics new and old! From what I've heard, I'm impressed! They have loads of information, photos, samples, and more at their official website, so check it out! The show is at 10:00 PM tomorrow at The Canadian with a $5 cover, you must be 19 to get in, and there will be some new specials on bomb shots and alcohol tomorrow as well! Confirm your attendance by clicking here!
I'm glad I found out about this show, as now, I have a backup plan thanks to the Phatstick cancellation! I will be at The Canadian tomorrow night, and will have a review, photo album, and video on Saturday along with the ones I take/write up from Downtown Showdown! Yes, two concert reviews, two photo albums, and three new videos on Saturday, you'll wanna be here for all that! For a video preview, here's a live performance of Hells Bells playing the AC/DC song they're named after in Orillia!
Quick detour to Sault Michigan for the next two shows, as Muskegon hard rockers Orange October make their long awaited return to the area! I don't think they've been here since late last year, so it's been a long time coming! They're back at The Satisfied Frog tomorrow night & Saturday night at 10:00 PM both nights, there is no advertised cover charge, and you must be 21 to get in! Should be fun to see Orange October, they have a nice heavy radio hard rock sound, accessible but it has some bite! This is actually the last weekend where I can't go to Sault Michigan shows on account of age, so in the future, if I can't make a Sault Michigan show, it will likely be because of failure to get a ride there! Back to Orange October, they're a pretty good band, and if you want some heavy live music this weekend, you can't go wrong! Check them out on MySpace, and for a preview, here's a video of the band opening for Poison at a show in August 2007!
Finally for concerts this weekend, local hard rock cover band Turner Up return to the stage for their first ever show at a venue not previously known for rock bands of any type! The band will play just one concert there this weekend too, unlike most weekends when they pull double duty. They'll be at The Royal Canadian Legion on Saturday night for the first time for them, and the first time that I can remember that they're hosting a hard rock band (not counting the seemingly-permanent postponing of last year's all ages Garden of Bedlam show.) There's an 8:30 PM start time on Saturday with no announced cover, I don't know if the show is all ages. No Facebook event page, the band haven't made any since the shows at the beginning of the month. Should be a good show, nice to see The Legion booking something heavier for a change, hopefully this isn't the last we'll see! I'd like to go, but the early start time makes it conflict with Sault Area Wrestling: Rise To The Top, so I can't make it, but hopefully you guys can! Got nothing else to do on Saturday, do you? For a video preview, here's a clip of Turner Up covering Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music", and remember, they have heavier metal stuff in their last set!
So those are your weekend previews! I might have a post tomorrow before I head downtown for my double concert Friday, and believe it or not, this will be the first time I've ever attended two separate concerts at two different venues in the same day! It won't be the most time I've ever spent at local concerts in one day (the Rock 2 Roll skatepark fundraiser has tomorrow topped), but this will be a fun concert marathon, and I hope to see you guys at either The Oddfellows Hall or The Canadian tomorrow night, or both! Reviews on Saturday too, so keep an eye out!
It's news time! I've missed a lot over the past week, but now we can work towards getting you all caught up once again, and kicking things off today are some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!! And if you notice something missing, no worries, that's coming in an upcoming post too!
Firstly, this should interest fans of a major band that's been here before! Crued, The World's Number One Tribute To Motley Crue are coming here in a couple weeks! Based out of Toronto, Crued have a really cool stage setup and costumes identical to most eras of Motley Crue's storied history (They'll be rocking 2006 "Saints of Los Angeles"-era gear for this show), and they have the sound to back it up! So if you wanna rock out to some live Crue hits, you'll wanna be where? The Canadian Nightclub! When? May 1st, and I apologize for the short notice of the show, it's not well advertised locally. A start time of 10:30 PM is listed, and bring cash too for a cover, cause I doubt it's free! And yes, it's 19+. For more details, visit this location to confirm your attendance! They definitely have the goods, I'll sadly be out of town when they're playing this show, but hopefully there's a good turnout! For more information on Crued, and to check out some of their versions of Motley Crue classics, check out their official MySpace page!
The other new shows I have are courtesy of a Michigan band that are finally coming back up here for shows! Muskegon hard rockers Orange October are finally back in Sault Michigan for a pair of weekend shows next month! I don't think they've been here since, at the latest, early last year, so it's been a long time coming! They'll be playing at The Satisfied Frog on the last weekend of the month, playing there on Friday, May 28th and Saturday, May 29th! Start times of 10:00 PM are given on their MySpace page, and knowing shows at The Frog, there shouldn't be a cover. These should be fun shows, especially for those of you that miss Orange October! Solid accessible hard rock, really catchy too, I like Brian Swisher's vocals! Click on the above links for more info on Orange October, hopefully some of you can make it out!
On a personal note, that weekend with the Orange October shows is the last weekend where I'll be under American drinking age. So close and yet so far!
Now for a handful more news stories (And don't you worry, there's more later this weekend!) Starting things off is more info on Sault Ontario's longest running music festival, Rotaryfest! No word on metal bands on the main stage, but here's something that could apply to the metalheads of the area! For a sixth straight year, Rotaryfest is putting on The Tenaris Second Stage as part of this year's music festivities, where Square 1 of Queen Street East will once again be shut down, and local acts will hit the stage there to rock downtown! This year, the Second Stage will be on July 1st from 1:00 PM until midnight, and who's playing? We don't know, and that's where you guys come in! As always, the open call's out for bands of any genre to send in entries to possibly be added to this year's Rotaryfest lineup, and maybe YOU will be on the Second Stage this year!
If you'd like to play in this year's Rotaryfest, here's what you need: You need a professionally released CD (or mp3 files of it if you're submitting online), with at least three good quality original songs that you own the copyright for. You also need a press packet with a band biography, a good quality photograph of the band, links to internet websites/pages/videos, and optional press clippings. Preference will be given to bands with released or planned pro-quality material. If you are interested in compiling all this to submit to Rotaryfest for consideration for a spot on the Second Stage, you can submit it two ways: Online by clicking here (might be easier, if you want my advice), or by mailing it all to this address:
Tenaris Second Stage selection committee c/o The Rotary Club of Sault Ste. Marie 364 Queen Street East Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 1Z1
Keep in mind that any CDs, photos, press clippings, or papers that you send to Rotaryfest will NOT be returned to you, for whatever reason, so keep that in mind. The deadline to submit your entries is MAY 7TH, so get on that if you want to play at Rotaryfest! More info can be found at SooToday's article on the Second Stage, and if you have questions, e-mail ken.desaulnier@shaw.ca with them! Hopefully this year's Rotaryfest is a blast, though I was curious as to the lack of metal last year. Rotaryfest has hosted prominent metal bands in the past, like Gates of Winter and Stillbroke (you can see pics of them on the Second Stage front page) yet last year we were completely dry for it. So come on metalheads, send entries in! And even if there's no metal, it should be a fun festival, it always is, bring the family out and enjoy yourselves!
And finally for today, I can scratch a local metal CD off of my wish list, as I am now in the possession of The Harsh Heads' lone disc, "First Hated Then Forgotten"! Recorded as cassette demos way back in 1994, the songs never found an actual release until 2005 when copies were made into CDs and distributed locally! Prominently featuring Destroilet/Billy Bastards mainman John Conway and his Billys bandmate Aaron Gibbs on drums, they were a prominent fixture in the local punk/metal scene in the early-mid 1990s as teenagers, and their album is pretty good stuff, nice punk/thrash sound, fast and unrelentless! And I give HUGE thanks to John's Destroilet bandmate Christian Foisy for helping hook me up with the mp3s from the album, and I was able to get the liner notes from The Harsh Heads' MySpace page, so all is well on that front! Thanks Chris!
So now that I have the album, I'll tell you guys this much: There WILL be a review of "First Hated But Forgotten" in the coming months, and I have uploaded the whole album to YouTube! All 13 songs are now streamable on The Sault Metal Scene's YouTube channel, along with a little bonus: The early '90s public access TV interview with guitarists Hugh Merz & Bob Bromley Jr. that was only previously available on Photobucket! NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT OR ILL WILL IS MEANT IN UPLOADING THE ALBUM OR THE INTERVIEW ONTO YOUTUBE! This is great stuff that the world should see, because the more exposure it gets, the better! I'll link you guys to the first track on "First Hated Then Forgotten", entitled "Violence", but click here to check out the rest of this album that shouldn't be forgotten!
That's all for now, but here's what's coming up on The Sault Metal Scene! Tomorrow, there will be my profiles of two more out of town bands with local members (Levitate and Necramyth), while Sunday will have both my review of the Garden of Bedlam fundraiser tomorrow night (I AM GOING!) and all kinds of stuff pertaining to the SMS poll! And yes, somewhere in there, there will be a news post with some more exciting news! Stay tuned everyone, there's much more coming!
(P.S. Does ANYONE have the As It Stands, Foothill Road, or Infrastrate albums?! How hard is it to find them? I am willing to reasonably pay for copies, and will take mp3s and album scans if need be!!!)
