The End Of The Roosevelt Hotel, Plus New Project 421 Videos!!

Today's post has some new videos you guys might wanna see at the end, but the main topic relates to the confirmation of some rumours from recent weeks that we only now have proof on, and it's definitely bad news for local metalheads, so read on below to get caught up.

The Roosevelt Hotel as we currently know it will close tomorrow, as the popular Korah Road bar and concert venue has apparently been purchased by a new owner, and will soon be changing it's name as well. Though rumoured for a few weeks, the news was only just confirmed on The Rosie's Facebook page last night, where they also plugged yesterday's karaoke night prior to the changes. An official statement has not been made to elaborate further, but numerous online reports state that Reggie Daigle (owner of the popular downtown country bar Reggie's Place) is the new owner, and The Rosie will be reverted back to a country-leaning bar upon it's relaunch, though it's not clear whether that will be on Friday or if there will be a period of renovations first. If we get any firm announcements or clarifications, we'll have them here! If true, this will mark the second local bar/concert venue in under 5 months to have a name change and subsequent shift to a country theme after The Nicolet Tavern became the Rednecks Saloon in November.

Assuming the new focus of 306 Korah Road ends all metal and punk shows, it is safe to say that the Heavy Thursday series at The Rosie has ended as well just two months after it's inception. To that effect, promoter J.D. Pearce confirmed in a personal Facebook discussion that the Tribune show on April 17th and the Cross Dog show in July are now off from their originally intended forms, and while he apparently has a new plan for Cross Dog, the Tribune show will depend on a venue being secured in the next few weeks. Until a new venue is announced for either, I'll remove them from our concert listings, but stay tuned for official word on them (also, remember that the Babysitter show on April 3rd had already been cancelled last week.) J.D. was exploring the late notice possibility of hosting one final Heavy Thursday tonight as a send-off & thank you to The Rosie's staff and management for all they've done for these kinds of music in the past 3½ years,  but the venue opted for another karaoke night due to time constraints, leaving Griphook's headlining show on Saturday as the last hard rock concert at The Roosevelt Hotel.

No matter what your views were on The Rosie (location, certain incidents, the on-stage pole, etc.), this will be a huge blow to local metal and punk bands and concerts if the reports of an all-country bar go into effect. Beyond just the Thursday night series', The Rosie became a reliable home for metal and punk shows since the fall of 2010, and while I know Reggie's is a very successful bar with a working formula, I hope they don't completely lock out rock bands and continue to host a mixture of styles and bands once the new look and focus takes effect (though in all fairness, an official statement is hopefully forthcoming to fill in any gaps.) If this is the end though, I'll offer my thanks to Robin Istace and the rest of the staff at The Rosie for their hospitality and support throughout the last 3 years, and to Rich Moreland, Typhoid Meaghan, Stephane Vincent, J.D. Pearce, and Mitch Sirie for their work in promoting the 64 Thursday night metal & punk shows (and more) at The Rosie during that span!

We'll close today's post with some happier news courtesy of one of the last metal bands to play at The Rosie, local classic metal quintet Project 421! Like their Black Sabbath cover that we shared the other day, these come from last weekend's set at the Medifest fundraiser at The Grand Theatre, and were shared via their Facebook page yesterday. One was filmed by (and shared from the account of) attendee Joey Phuckel, and it's of Project 421 covering Kiss' "Cold Gin", which sounds really good and has a nice angle, but with one big problem: the video's sideways for the entire duration! Couldn't he have flipped it to the right angle before uploading? The other video is filmed by the same attendee who shot their Sabbath cover (I think), and it's a cover of Judas Priest's "Living After Midnight"! Solid quality again, but the angle does dip on an angle for much of the early runtime. Check out the new Project 421 videos above and below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews tomorrow morning, if all goes well! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tribune, Jack Spades, And Banned) & The Launch Of Heavy Thursdays!!

We're back with some big LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS today relating to the launch of a new regular concert series that (given it's date and location) will be sure to get your attention if you're in Sault Ontario! We also have some new shows across the river to cap things off, but for now, here's what you need to know!

Have you missed the Roosevelt Hotel metal nights since their last installment in July 2012?  Well, get ready for regular Thursday night action there once again, as local concert promoter J.D. Pearce has launched Heavy Thursdays at The Rosie, a new regular series for Thursday nights there starting next week! Along with numerous other shows, J.D. has put on nine Thursday nighters at this popular Korah Road venue since May 2012, but never on a consistent schedule, so fans of the regularity of the former Rosie metal nights should like this successor series if it takes off! Plans are for Thursday night metal/punk shows at The Rosie on each Thursday next month (except February 20th due to the Late & Loud reunion show at The Rockstar Bar that J.D. is promoting the next day), and bands are currently being sought for both next Thursday and on the 27th, so if you or your band wants to play, message J.D. at this link or above! The plan is to feature up to three bands each night, and out of town headliners are definitely part of the plans for some installments.

This is exciting news, especially for fans and regulars of the old Rosie metal night series, and knowing J.D.'s prolific success as a regional concert promoter, I have faith this will take off similarly to how it's predecessor did in 2011! Expect a very different roster of local performers though, as most of the local bands who played the old metal nights are now defunct. A lineup for February 6th is not out yet, but the second Heavy Thursday at The Rosie is already set, so who's playing then?

On February 13th, all three local openers for the Anvil concert at The Canadian Nightclub on March 15th will (likely) rock The Roosevelt Hotel for the second Heavy Thursday, with local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades featured in their first Rosie appearance of the new year, and just their second live show with new guitarist Jesse Cook! Featuring members of Frightlight, The Bear Hunters, and Winkstinger, their familiar & entertaining blend of covers and originals should be welcomed on Thursday the 13th! Newer local classic metal quintet Project 421 will play just their third live show, second with new singer Curtis McKenzie, and first ever at The Rosie as well that night, and hopefully there's no inclement weather to throw a wrench into their next local date, so prepare for a fun set of metal hits! Local thrash quartet Pillory are also pencilled in for their own Rosie debut (and just their second gig with their current lineup), but the Facebook event page still says their status is to be determined. We'll keep you posted if they're definitely playing or not!

A $5 cover is lined up for this show, but given it's status as a preview of the Anvil concert (and a kick-off for Jack Spades' Northern Ontario tour dates with Anvil), admission is FREE if you present your previously purchased Anvil tickets at the door, or buy one upon entry! A 10:00 PM-ish start time is likely, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit the above links! Sounds like a fun concert so far (especially if Pillory are confirmed), so stay tuned for updates, including on other February installments of Heavy Thursdays!

The only other confirmed Heavy Thursday as of this writing is on April 17th (more proof that the series is in it for the long haul), which will be the 10th installment if no Thursdays beyond February 20th are skipped. That show will be headlined by Vancouver hardcore metal quintet Tribune, who will be making their third local stop that night! You may remember them as the headliners of the 31st Rosie metal night in September 2011, and then from opening for West of Hell at The Canadian in May 2012, so it will be nice to see their diverse metal attack in the Soo again after almost two years! Local opening bands are to be determined, but for reference, Redundant and the now defunct Borderline Divine, Changing Waves, and State of Misery have all opened for Tribune locally, in case that's of note. An admission price is to be announced, but a 10:00 PM-ish start time and 19+ age limit are likely. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for updates on this upcoming Heavy Thursday as they roll in, and kudos to J.D. for bringing aggressive regular music back to The Rosie like this!

We'll close today with one more LOCAL CONCERT ALERT concerning two shows at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino on April 11th & 12th (I'm not going in chronological order for the show announcements today just to group the Heavy Thursday shows together.) The shows will see Kinross hard/classic rock trio Banned returning to Kewadin Casino for the first time since their Relentless Tour rally appearance last month (though these will be their first Rapids Lounge shows in almost 5 months), and it'll be nice to see the Traynors and Jim back there this spring! Note that Banned have yet to confirm these dates officially, but they are listed on Kewadin Casino's entertainment page, which has always been a reliable source. There shouldn't be a cover charge on April 11th or 12th, you must be 21 to attend, and a 9:00 PM start time is to be expected. Check the above links for more info, and stay tuned for more as we hear it!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for a bunch of videos soon, along with this weekend's concert previews as we wind down the month! Thanks everyone!

The Roosevelt Hotel Metal Nights: A Look Back

Three years ago on Monday was the premiere of the most successful regular metal concert series of recent memory in Sault Ontario, as former local concert promoter Rich Moreland launched the Roosevelt Hotel Thursday metal night series on November 11th, 2010! The series made it to 47 brutal and entertaining installments under three different promoters before quietly falling inactive after it's last installment in July 2012, and though it's faded out, it's still fondly remembered for giving metalheads a regularly scheduled outlet to see live metal, hard rock, and punk bands on a local stage! Coinciding with an increased push into more active concert bookings and renovations, The Roosevelt Hotel soon became a must-attend location for metal concerts in the area, helping promote and give rise to our current wave of death metal bands, and serving as the backdrop for a number of notable concerts, from Woods of Ypres' last local show to the long awaited return of The Dayglo Abortions. Though the last 10 installments were more spread out and not as prominent as during the series' 2011 peak, many fans still miss the metal nights at The Rosie, and I'm among them!

Sure, Thursdays were an adjustment compared to the weekend, but this series made Thursdays the most metal night of the week for 20 months, and I always enjoyed going to The Roosevelt Hotel to see the bands in action! I'd never given The Rosie much thought before Rich began booking concerts at The Rosie, but look at it now, and he deserves a lot of credit for his role in creating and promoting this series' during it's longest and biggest era! That's why today, on the first Thursday after the third anniversary, I thought I'd spotlight some facts, numbers, videos, and memories from the series' run, starting with a listing of all 47 official shows in the series, and note that the lineup order of each show is not guaranteed to be accurate: (Updated at 2:15 PM)
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Rich Moreland/Dismembertainment period (November 2010-October 2011)

November 11th, 2010 (1): Breaking The Fourth Wall (Montreal), As It Stands, Bring The Fallen, and Winkstinger
December 9th, 2010 (2): As It Stands, Bring The Fallen, and State of Misery
December 23rd, 2010 (3): The Bear Hunters, Sativa Rose, Shit Liver, and State of Misery
January 6th, 2011 (4): As It Stands, The Bear Hunters, and Bring The Fallen
January 20th, 2011 (5): Shit Liver, Winkstinger, and State of Misery
February 3rd, 2011 (6): As It Stands, The Bear Hunters, and State of Misery
February 17th, 2011 (7): The Bear Hunters, Shit Liver, and Changing Waves
March 3rd, 2011 (8): As It Stands, For All That Is Lost, and Changing Waves
March 10th, 2011 (9): Woods of Ypres, The Bear Hunters, and State of Misery
March 31st, 2011 (10): As It Stands, Shit Liver, and Skull After Betrayl
April 14th, 2011 (11): Bring The Fallen, For All That Is Lost, and State of Misery
April 21st, 2011 (12): As It Stands, The Bear Hunters, and Shit Liver
April 28th, 2011 (13): Late & Loud, Sativa Rose, and Changing Waves
May 5th, 2011 (14): The Bear Hunters, Sativa Rose, and For All That Is Lost
May 12th, 2011 (15): No Bragging Rights (California), Hallows Die (Toronto), Farewell To Freeway (Guelph), and As It Stands
May 19th, 2011 (16): Shit Liver, Sativa Rose, and Changing Waves
May 26th, 2011 (17): As It Stands, For All That Is Lost, and Changing Waves
June 2nd, 2011 (18): The Bear Hunters, Sykotyk Rampage, and Bring The Misery (later March Into Regression)
June 9th, 2011 (19): The Bear Hunters & Shit Liver
June 16th, 2011 (20): The Dayglo Abortions (Victoria), Frightlight, Shit Liver, Sativa Rose, and Skull After Betrayl
June 23rd, 2011 (21): The Bear Hunters, Shit Liver, Winkstinger, and Bring The Misery (later March Into Regression)
June 30th, 2011 (22): As It Stands & Sativa Rose
July 7th, 2011 (23): As It Stands, For All That Is Lost, and Changing Waves
July 14th, 2011 (24): RedD Monkey & Changing Waves
July 21st, 2011 (25): Garden of Bedlam, The Bear Hunters, and Winkstinger
July 28th, 2011 (26): As It Stands & Redundant
August 4th, 2011 (27): The Bear Hunters & Changing Waves
August 11th, 2011 (28): Black Moor (Halifax), Sanktuary (Halifax), The Bear Hunters, and Shit Liver
August 18th, 2011 (29): Abriosis (Vancouver), Method (Winnipeg), For All That Is Lost, and Changing Waves
August 25th, 2011 (30): Annex Theory (Winnipeg), Laika (Winnipeg), Thekillingfield (North Bay), and Shit Liver
September 1st, 2011 (31): Tribune (Vancouver), Redundant, and Changing Waves
September 8th, 2011 (32): Late and Loud & Shit Liver
September 15th, 2011 (33): Thekillingfield (North Bay), The Bear Hunters, and Shit Liver
September 22nd, 2011 (34): Empyrean Plague (North Bay), The Bear Hunters, and Shit Liver
September 29th, 2011 (35): La Promesse (Rimouski) & Late and Loud
October 6th, 2011 (36): The Nailheads (Montreal), Fifth Column (Espanola), and Redundant
October 13th, 2011 (37): The Dead Peasants Revolt (St. John's) & Shit Liver
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Stephane Vincent period (November 2011-March 2012)

November 10th, 2011 (38): The Bear Hunters, Shit Liver, and Redundant
November 24th, 2011 (39): Late & Loud, For All That Is Lost, and View To A Kill (later The Valentine's Day Massacre)
December 8th, 2011 (40): The Bear Hunters, Shit Liver, and General Striker
January 19th, 2012 (41): As It Stands, The Bear Hunters, and Changing Waves
February 16th, 2012 (42): For All That Is Lost, Winkstinger, and The Valentine's Day Massacre
March 15th, 2012 (43): Waster (Winnipeg), Farewell To Freeway (Guelph), and As It Stands
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Mitch Sirie period (April-July 2012)

May 31st, 2012 (44): As It Stands, The Bear Hunters, and Shit Liver
June 7th, 2012 (45): Winkstinger, Changing Waves, and Borderline Divine
June 21st, 2012 (46): The Bear Hunters, Shit Liver, and Inhuman Methods
July 5th, 2012 (47): The Valentine's Day Massacre, Changing Waves, and March Into Regression
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Rosie Metal Night Trivia, Facts, And Other Notes

By The Numbers: 22 different local bands played at Rosie metal nights, with The Bear Hunters playing a record 20 times, followed by Shit Liver (19), As It Stands (15), Changing Waves (13), and For All That Is Lost (8). Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie holds the solo appearance record, playing at 21 metal nights as an official band member (the 20 Bear Hunters sets, plus once with Borderline Divine), making him extra fitting to be the series' final promoter! The Bear Hunters & Shit Liver shared the stage at Rosie metal nights 12 times, more than any other combination, none of which occurred more than 5 times. Aside from members of the above bands, local death metal singer Steve Rhodes fronted bands at 11 metal nights, including 6 with State of Misery, 3 with The Valentine's Day Massacre, and 2 with Bring The Misery. Shit Liver were arguably the iron men of the series, playing 3 straight metal nights twice in June & September 2011. Somewhat surprisingly, despite playing at a combined 27 metal nights, none ever took place featuring Shit Liver and For All That Is Lost on the same night.

Firsts & Lasts: Five local bands made their live concert debuts at a Thursday Rosie metal night, including The Bear Hunters & Skull After Betrayl (both then featuring guitarist Mike Vincent), State of Misery & Bring the Misery (each featuring Steve Rhodes & Ray Cowan at the time), and the one-off classic metal band General Striker, who were essentially Late & Loud minus singer/guitarist Brendan Christie, as they didn't want to play under the Late & Loud name without a full lineup present. General Striker aside, bands that played their last concert ever at a Rosie metal night included Changing Waves, Inhuman Methods, and March Into Regression, notably all during the Mitch Sirie era. As well, Woods of Ypres' last local show was in this series (preceding a number of out of town gigs), and Bring The Fallen's last gig during their active run was a Rosie metal night (though they returned for a one-off farewell concert in July 2013.)

Promoter Changes: An active promoter in the Sault area since the mid-2000s, Rich Moreland launched Dismembertainment in March 2012 to fully focus on regional metal & punk concert promoting. His exit from the metal nights and promotion at The Rosie was at least partly due to his purchase of Foggy Notions (renamed Feedback under his tenure) in the fall of 2011, though the series outlived Feedback, which is now the current location of Coch's Corner. Rich continued to promote concerts under the Dismembertainment banner at Feedback and The Canadian through May 2012 (including the Ypres Metal Fest that April) before moving to Alberta, though he hasn't closed the door on promoting shows there. The Rosie's then-kitchen manager Stephane Vincent took over the series in November 2011, running 6 installments through the spring of 2012 before handing the series over to Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie that April in advance of his move to Toronto. Mitch's four Rosie metal nights joined a slate of other early-mid 2012 concerts that he promoted, but he stopped actively promoting concerts (including this series) in late 2012 so he could focus on his music projects.

Out Of Town Bands: In both size (5 bands) and scope, the 20th Rosie metal night on June 16th, 2011 was arguably the biggest, thanks in large part to the short notice return of The Dayglo Abortions to Sault Ontario, attracting close to 200 raucus fans, and instant talk of a return engagement, though they didn't return until October 2013. 9 of the last 10 Dismembertainment-promoted metal nights featured one or more out of town headlining bands, after having only 3 shows with out of town headliners in the preceding months. By contrast, only 1 of the last 10 metal nights had out of town bands (Stephane Vincent's last one on March 15th, 2012, which was also the only metal night to experiment with an all ages model.) In all, 19 out of town bands (not counting the regional For All That Is Lost & Inhuman Methods) played at official Rosie metal nights, including such local favourites as Thekillingfield, Empyrean Plague, and Hallows Die, though you could arguably include Woods of Ypres too given their mostly non-local membership at the time of their appearance.

Press Coverage: The 21st Rosie metal night on June 23rd, 2011 was spotlighted by ex-Free Beer singer Christian Lemay in a news piece for Shaw TV Sault Ste. Marie, featuring interview segments with two attendees & then-promoter Rich Moreland on the event, venue, future plans, and his concert promoting in general. The full video (which aired on TV for a week that summer) features clips of Winkstinger & Bring The Misery from that night, including the only known footage of Bring The Misery with Daeson Lesage on rhythm guitar before their hiatus & lineup/name changes. The November 10th, 2011 relaunch of the series was covered in two separate Sault Star articles by Jeffery Ougler (links here & here), complete with a video from the event, though the articles incorrectly noted the length of the series' hiatus, and generalized some aspects of the series' past promotion & bands. The video features clips of The Bear Hunters & Shit Liver's sets & interview clips with Stephane Vincent & Bear Hunters members Justin Lam & Johnny Belanger.

Rosie Punk Nights: The Roosevelt Hotel tried a punk night series alternating with the metal nights for 5 installments from February 10th to April 7th, 2011, as promoted by Typhoid Meaghan. Regular performers included RedD Monkey (4 times), Sykotyk Rampage and Shit Liver (twice each), along with attracting one out of town band (Skepsis) for the March 17th installment. However, the series failed to take off at the same success level, with some fans noticing that the punk nights usually had at least one band who couldn't be classified as punk (like The Bear Hunters.) After the punk nights ended, Dismembertainment started running the metal nights weekly in their place in April, and slowly began adding some punk-influenced bands to the metal nights that summer (including Redundant, Frightlight, RedD Monkey, and select out of town bands) until they cut ties with the series that fall. Under later promoters, Redundant played the return show on November 10th, 2011, but no full punk bands followed before the series' demise.

Spiritual Successor:  Following his role in securing The Dayglo Abortions as headliners for the 20th metal night, local metal/punk singer and concert promoter J.D. Pearce has booked occasional metal & punk concerts on Thursday at The Rosie since May 17th, 2012 under his "Johnny Pints Presents" banner, among other shows on other days at this and other venues. All of his Thursday shows featured out of town bands on their originally announced lineups, though they're not part of a distinct revival of the metal night series. 7 have been held since, with regular bands in his Thursday night shows including Sykotyk Rampage (4 times), Redundant (3 times), Frightlight, and Haggith (twice each.) The February 21st, 2013 show (a.k.a. Axed Theory Night) was promoted as the return of the Rosie metal nights on their Facebook page, but it was likely an in-name return only due to their last promoter Mitch Sirie's performing involvement with The Bear Hunters, and their page has not been used to market future Thursday shows at The Rosie. Keep an eye out via the above links for the next Johnny Pints Presents concerts, as he's got a lot of great stuff in the works!
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Sample Videos From The Series

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Last Month's Poll Results & This Month's Latest Poll!!

Before we preview TOMORROW NIGHT'S Airbourne concert (and cover some more recent updates), here's the results of last month's poll at the SMS, with our newest poll to follow! A month hit today for the voting period, in which we posed this question to you guys: What was your favourite Sault Ontario metal concert in the first half of 2013? Only 14 votes, which is lower than I'd have hoped (especially compared to some past years), but admittedly, the big July-August concerts weren't covered in it. The results are clear though, so here's the full breakdown!

What was your favourite Sault Ontario metal concert in the first half of 2013? - See more at: http://poll.pollcode.com/gy8q5_result?v#sthash.DjjOczir.dpuf

The Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands from April 3rd-24th (4 votes, 29%)

Striker at The Roosevelt Hotel on June 25th (2 votes, 14.333...%)

Skeletonwitch at The Canadian Nightclub on June 3rd (2 votes, 14.333...%)

The Ripcordz at The Algonquin Pub on April 13th (2 votes, 14.333...%)

The Golers at The Roosevelt Hotel on June 20th (1 vote, 7%)

The Crusade at The Canadian Nightclub on May 20th (1 vote, 7%)

40 Sons at The Rockstar Bar on February 28th (1 vote, 7%)

Other (1 vote, 7%)

The Suicide Kings at The Nicolet Tavern on January 25th (0 votes)

Axed Theory Night at The Rosie on February 21st (0 votes)

Apocalypse: The Musical at The Canadian on March 1st (0 votes)

Lucky 13 at The Rockstar Bar on March 17th (0 votes)

Soul Killing Female at 180 Projects on March 24th (0 votes)

40 Sons at The Rockstar Bar on April 5th (0 votes)

The Rabid Whole at The Roosevelt Hotel on April 11th (0 votes)

Garden of Bedlam at The Rockstar Bar on April 26th (0 votes)

Royal Red Brigade at The Oddfellows Hall on May 10th (0 votes)

The Suicide Kings at The Roosevelt Hotel on May 17th (0 votes)

Greber at The Roosevelt Hotel on May 18th (0 votes)

Sleep When You're Dead at Oddfellows Hall on May 29th (0 votes)

For Those About To Rock at Rockstar Bar on June 21st (0 votes)

What do you guys think? In ascending order, I am somewhat surprised that of the 20 included concerts, only 7 got a vote in the poll, though some of the included shows weren't as high profile as others. I'm most surprised that Garden of Bedlam's April show and Apocalypse: The Musical didn't get any attention, but as I've said before, it's all in who votes. The first 40 Sons and Golers shows of the year, The Crusade cancer fundraiser, and "Other" tied for fifth with a vote each, all about where I expected given their respective successes compared to some other choices. A three-way tie for second went to the Striker, Skeletonwitch, and Ripcordz concerts this year, all of which I was in attendance for and can attest to their high entertainment and success levels, so it's good to see them get multiple votes! However, the winner (with 4 votes and 29% of the total) was the Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands in April, which definitely was a hit event that got the attention of local music lovers, and I was there to witness the rising local talent in action each week to know it was a success (especially for The Suicide Kings!)

Also to note, all shows that got a vote in the poll were at least co-organized by local musician/promoter J.D. "Johnny Pints" Pearce, which is a testament to his hard work getting big shows to the Soo this year, so thanks to him for sure for what he's been doing, and support one of his biggest shows yet by going to see Airbourne TOMORROW NIGHT! Thanks to everyone for voting, and stay tuned early next year for our poll on favourite metal/hard rock shows from July-December of this year!

With that poll now closed, we open another one, this time focusing on the topic of concert series (more specifically, a constant scheduled run of concerts from the same promoters at the same venue on a reliable schedule.) The biggest recent of these for metal/hard rock fans were the Roosevelt Hotel metal nights, which ran on Thursdays (usually weekly) for 47 official installments from November 2010 to July 2012. There are other citeable examples, like the short lived early-2011 Rosie punk nights and The Rockstar Bar's one-off attempt at Wednesday metal nights in 2009, but the Rosie metal nights got the most recent attention thanks to their lengthy run, big name bands, and local media coverage. Usually, local concert bookings happen whenever a workable day can be scheduled, but I know many people miss the reliable scheduling & focus on heavier genres that the Rosie metal nights got. With that said, this month's poll question is: "Would you like to see a regularly scheduled metal/hard rock concert series like the Roosevelt Hotel metal nights again at a local concert venue?"

I've picked seven choices to cover hopefully all ground for this poll, which I have a feeling will get some good responses from fans, so read on below for more info on each choice, s we flesh out whether a regular run of metal/hard rock shows like the Rosie metal nights would be welcomed again locally!

Absolutely, I miss them!: Some fans lamented the slowdown of Rosie metal nights under later promoters after Dismembertainment left the series in October 2011, but the series' descent into inactivity in late 2012 happened without much fanfare. Are you among the fans who wish there was a regular and reliable series of concert at a local venue to attend again, or perhaps want more than just one?

Depends on the included bands/genres: Not everyone will agree on their preferred metal/hard rock subgenres, but death metal fans sure enjoyed the Rosie metal nights during their run, especially if you liked regularly appearing bands like The Bear Hunters & Shit Liver! Would your enthusiasm and attendance of a new regular metal concert series depend on the variance and genres of involved bands?

Depends on the venue/location: The Rosie metal nights helped make The Roosevelt Hotel a top destination for heavier original concerts, but everyone has their preferred venues (even The Rockstar Bar briefly tried a Wednesday metal night series in 2009), while some prefer all ages venues, or just prefer to stray close to home/work. Would a new metal night series only pique your interest based on location?

Depends on the scheduling: Sure, Thursday nights became an important date on local metalheads' calendars for over a year & a half, but Thursday is still a school/work night, with many local bars reserving weekends for cover bands, karaoke, and dance parties. Is a new regular heavier concert series only something you'd sign off on if they were booked on a day that worked with your personal schedule?

Depends on the promoter: With Rich Moreland, Stephane Vincent, and Mitch Sirie successively promoting the metal nights, things were in good hands for that series, but be it for musical or personal preferences, some people have local concert promoters that they prefer over others. Would the identity of a hypothetical metal series' promoters increase your regular attendance odds?

I just want more concerts in general: Thanks to Johnny Pints and Jamie Vincent (among others), we've had a solid amount of high profile metal/punk concerts in recent months in Sault Ontario, and though the only regular scheduling has been with Tym Morrison's current Road House arrangement, many recent concerts have been well promoted and recieved regardless of day. Do you just want more shows overall?

No, rigid scheduling can hurt shows: Though reliable at it's peak, some could argue that a regularly scheduled run of concerts like the Rosie metal nights would feel watered down, too restrictive, or too predictable. Admittedly, some were prone to repetitive lineups, late notice announcements, and minimal promotion, though there were peaks and valleys within. Do you want your concerts to not fall into a firm schedule?

VOTE TODAY!! You guys have until September 18th to cast your votes, so hopefully we'll get a firm grasp on what SMS readers are thinking! I will say that this poll is NOT to directly assist a local promoter to gauge interest in a new metal concert series, I'm just curious to see what people think over a year after the Rosie metal nights ended in terms of if such a concept should be done again by any promoter. That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Airbourne concert preview and more later today! Thanks everyone!

This Weekend's Local Metal/Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

I might as well get these up while I'm thinking about them, so for today's news post, we have previews for this weekend's slate of metal & hard rock concerts! Busier weekend than we've tended to see in recent weeks, with 7 total concerts on the heavier side of the spectrum (barring any late notice ones in Sault Michigan), and we'll go in rough chronological order while working our way north with these shows, so read on below for what you need to know before scheduling your weekend concert hopping! (Updated at 12:28 PM)

We'll start at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino, where Charlevoix metal trio Peril will return TOMORROW NIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT! No strangers to the area following many regular appearances in the Eastern U.P., this talented and hard working Northern Michigan band should have a ton of great classic metal and hard rock covers in store for their fans in St. Ignace this weekend, so don't miss a second if you're in the area or miss Peril! Admission should be free for these 21+ concerts, a start time of 10:00 PM is likely, and check the above links for more details! It's great to see Peril back after over two months since their last St. Ignace stops, and hopefully Jeff, James, and Brooks deliver lots of entertaining hard rocking tunes all weekend long! For a preview, here's Peril covering Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train" a few years back!



Also going down tomorrow & Saturday night is the return of Marquette/Ishpeming hard rockers Nudge! Last seen in the area three months ago (planned concerts in September were cancelled), these local favourites will return to The Satisfied Frog over the next two nights for their own brand of modern hard rock renditions, and if past shows are any indication, these should be hits! Note as well that this will be Nudge's second local concert weekend with current drummer Scott Kusmirek, who joined frontman Danzo McCracken for his traditional acoustic sets at The Frog yesterday and TONIGHT, so if you want a mellower take on Nudge's sound, head down to The Frog tonight! Admission for the full Nudge concerts tomorrow & Saturday night will likely be free, with 21+ age limits and 10:00 PM start times likely. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! These should be some more great concerts from Nudge, so if you're in the Sault Michigan area, keep them in mind for your weekend plans! For a preview, here's Nudge covering Godsmack's "Whatever" in Skanee last year!

We'll close this post in Sault Ontario, starting with the last double concert set of the weekend, that being from local metal cover trio Caveman Morrison! Tym and company will be rocking The Roosevelt Hotel all weekend long for the first time in over a month, and you know from experience that their long sets of classic and newer metal/hard rock covers should go over very well, so keep both of these shows in mind for this weekend! Especially since these are the last announced gigs from Tym's recent batch of solo/Caveman concerts, so who knows when and where he'll be back. Admission should be free, as is usual for their Rosie stops, while a 19+ age limit and 10:00 PM start time are to be expected. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Caveman Morrison should have some great hard rocking times at The Rosie this weekend, so don't miss them if you can help it, and for a preview, here's their current lineup in 2010 covering Ozzy Osbourne's "I Don't Know"!



Finally for this weekend is the return of The Saigon Hookers to Sault Ontario on Saturday night! The Kitchener hard rock notables will make their third ever stop in the north this weekend (following their first two local gigs last year), and their energetic mix of classic rock, punk, and heavy metal should deliver a sizeable crowd to The Rockstar Bar on Saturday, as they did last year! In case you forgot, The Saigon Hookers have extra local familiarity from their associations with Lion Ride members (including final bassist Carmine Romano being a Saigon Hookers alum) but their music stands on it's own, and they should rock the house on Saturday night! Despite what the poster says, the local openers will not be Garden of Bedlam (due to scheduling conflicts), but instead, fans will be treated to two opening acts, including the return (for at least one night) of local classic metal quartet Late & Loud! Over two months after their breakup/hiatus began, this talented local band will make their Rockstar Bar debut for what might be their last show, but if it is, they're going out in style with the release of their debut EP on Saturday night!

This self recorded demo will be available in limited quantities for $6 on Saturday, so if you want a copy, be there early to ensure you have one, and if I get one, I'll review it on the site for sure! The other openers (who were just confirmed on Facebook this morning) will be local metal/punk quartet T-Rex Manning, in what (I think) is their own Rockstar Bar debut! According to guitarist Tiffany Stocco's personal Facebook page, this will be their last show for a while (possibly ever?) with drummer Daniel McDonald due to his imminent move out west, so hopefully their originals and hard hitting covers go over well on Saturday night! Admission should be around $5 for this 19+ event, and the Facebook event page lists a 9:00 PM start time (though I imagine it'll actually start later.) For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see The Saigon Hookers back in the Soo to deliver their fun and heavy blend of genres once again, and if you saw them here last year, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about!

Plus, it'll be good to see the band on all 8 legs again, as bassist Lee Brook played with a broken ankle here last summer, as you may recall. Late & Loud's return (one-off or full time) is also welcome, and if this is their last show, hopefully it's an awesome encore, while T-Rex Manning should rock hard as well for Dan's last show! I'll be sure to see you guys there on Saturday, and for a preview, here's The Saigon Hookers playing their new song "We Are The Girls" in Toronto in March!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and this month's Defunct Local Band Profile over the next few days! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Banned), The Rosie Metal Nights' Future, And Much More!!

Before we get to the meat of this post, I just wanted to send my condolences to everyone up in Wawa following the major flooding and highway closure and everything else that's been going on there over the last few days. Hopefully everyone's OK and I hope you guys can bounce back from this and emerge stronger and closer than ever! Today at the SMS, we have more updates to our monthly CD reviews, clarification on a local solo project, the whereabouts of a popular concert series, and more, but first, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!

Were you Sault Michigan-area fans hoping for a heavier Halloween weekend concert? Well, good news, as Banned are back TONIGHT for a Halloween show in Moran! Almost two months after their last announced concert, the Traynors and company will return to Todd's Tavern (the former Bullwinkle's) this evening, and it'll be great to see them back on stage a few weeks of quiet updates! Apologies for the short notice, it was only just announced last night on Banned's Facebook page. Halloween costumes are encouraged, as you might expect, and like their other recent concerts, I expect they'll be without guitarist Alex Schrʚvenwever due to him being out of town for college. There is no announced cover charge for tonight's concert, which goes down at 8:00 PM, and a 21+ age limit is likely. Check the above links for more details! It's great to see Banned back on stage this weekend, and there's no better weekend to break out their entertaining hard rock originals and covers, so if you're up for the drive, don't miss them tomorrow night in Moran! For a preview, here's Banned playing their song "Cocaine Riot" last month in Sault Michigan!



Next up, have you been curious as to the status of the Roosevelt Hotel metal nights? The Thursday concert series has been dormant since the 47th installment on July 5th, but yesterday, I heard some information on it's future from Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie, who was the metal nights' latest promoter. Mitch told me through Facebook conversations that he's no longer booking the Rosie metal nights so he can focus on other musical projects right now, including The Bear Hunters' demo & some solo work. However, Mitch did tell me that the series will likely be handed over to a new promoter to relaunch it in the near future, although I'll wait until official details are announced before mentioning future prospects. Mitch promoted the last four Rosie metal nights after picking up main promotion duties from Stephane Vincent in April, and he also holds the record for most appearances as a performer, playing at 21 Rosie metal nights to date as a member of The Bear Hunters & Borderline Divine.

It's disappointing to see Mitch no longer book the Rosie metal nights, but he's making the best choice for himself as a musician right now, and everything will pay off the way it's meant to, I'm sure! Hopefully the promoter he has in mind will be able to sustain the series for the long term as well, and when/if updates roll in, I'll have them here! On a related note, Mitch also told me that his newest solo project The Sorrow Fields (who have been alluded to online recently) is actually one and the same as his April Eyes/Animas project & not something separate like Eden Plague was. The name change is due to him finally finding a solo project name that he liked, referring to the earlier names as placeholders until he found something better. However, public updates specifically referring to The Sorrow Fields have been scattered and minimal to date, and their Facebook page that was launched in June was later deleted, so while the project is alive and being worked on, not a lot is public about it under it's new name yet. Still, I've restored this project to our active Sault Ontario metal band links with the new name, and stay tuned for Sorrow Fields updates as I hear them!

Fourthly today, here's three assorted shorter news stories from the last little while, and as always, these are in alphabetical order by artist or website name:

• Pillory bassist/Late & Loud alum Jonathan Tiberi posted on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on Thursday to extend an open offer for local bands to message him if they want to play a show in "late November". No word what type of concert is in the works (Pillory's live debut, maybe?), but if you're interested in playing live next fall for this concert, message Jon at this location or visit the above links!
• The aforementioned Mitch Sirie is also apparently looking to work on another local band project, as per his own Musicians Wanted group posting yesterday. He doesn't wanna play anything country or pop, and is open to covers, jamming, and songwriting anything from soft rock to metal. We know he's got the talent, but if you wanna do anything musically with Mitch, message him at this location or the above links!
• Keeping with the Musicians Wanted theme, this topic is now the basis of it's own section on SooToday's classified page! It remains to be seen how often this is used, but hopefully it picks up steam, so keep it mind for your band member searches! I've added it (and the Facebook group) to our "Other Sault Ontario Metal Links" section on the page's left, and kudos to local drummer Steve Porco for suggesting it to SooToday!

Finally for today, here's some more updates and edits to our monthly CD reviews! As previously stated, these generally have all had photo restorations due to dead links, and don't have actual content edits to the review portion of the post out of respect to their original intent.  In our review of Mike Haggith's 43rd solo album "Suspended Animation", I've updated references to his label Rotten Records' renaming to Galactic Records, and added links to the album's free YouTube posting, with each song linked in the review itself now as well, while I also edited our review of Destroilet's debut EP to note it's likely out of print status, given their newer album plans, including re-recordings of the EP's tracks. Finally, I also edited the reviews of Foothill Road's self-titled EP and their first disc "Seventy" to note guitarist Mario Carlucci's later departure from his most recent band Sneaky Pete. Keep an eye out for updates to our 2012 and Sault Michigan CD reviews hopefully soon, and check the above links for the updated reviews!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news next week, and I'll see you guys TONIGHT at The Algonquin Pub for the 7th annual Halloween Party! Thanks everyone!

Rosie Metal Night #47 Review!!

It's time for my review of last night's 47th Rosie metal night, which got me thinking: We're nearing the 50th, which would be on August 16th if the current schedule holds up. Will anything special happen on that date? I have no idea, but it'd be a fitting day for something big! For now though, what happened at last night's show? Read on to find out, and check our our first of four CASS Cafe video showcases from this morning in the post below this one!

First, let's talk about March Into Regression, who were playing their second live concert since their name changes from Bring The Misery & Unleash The Blackened Sky, and their first Sault Ontario show since June of last year! Believe it or not, there was even more lineup ambiguity last night, so I'll address everything I noticed as we go. First, their bassist last night was Tyler St. Amour, who quietly returned to his former band to replace Dan Souliere at some point after their return gig in Laird. Not sure why Dan left, but it's odd that in both of M.I.R.'s incarnations, he left after their first gig. Either way, it was good to see Tyler on stage again with his brother and old bandmates, even if he only played three songs. For reasons unclear to me, he didn't play on two songs with the rest of the band, or their set-ending jam covers, but when he was playing, he sounded good! As for the vocalist position, singers Josh Stephney & Jeremy Hannah actually traded lead vocals for the first six songs of their set, each doing three songs, rather than performing together. That's not something you see every day, but it gave the band distinct flavours! With Josh singing, it reminded me of an old Bring The Fallen set, which included two BTF covers as well as Black Dahlia Murder & Lamb of God renditions, and his growling was nice to hear again over a year after Bring The Fallen's last show!

When Jeremy sang, their set included some newer original material and more of a hardcore sound, with Jeremy breaking out some higher pitched clean singing and effective harsh vocals that contrasted well with Josh's songs. Years after I last saw Jeremy do metal live, it was nice to see him front a heavy band again, and hopefully I'll get a video the next time around! The rest of the members were effective, with Christopher Neveau fitting in well on rhythm guitar, Ray Cowan's lead guitar work standing out as usual, and Travis St. Amour returning to the Rosie stage with lots of fast and dynamic drumming! In fact, he was the only person to play on every song last night, including the last three covers, which took on an informal jam session feel, with him & Josh joined by former guitarist Daeson Lesage for some loose & incomplete covers of Bring The Fallen, Metallica, and Megadeth material (Josh's Bear Hunters bandmate Nik Deubel even joined in for the Metallica cover!) On the whole, March Into Regression's set was a mixed bag, with the music quality & chemistry improved from last year's Bring The Misery sets, but the informality & minimal fuller lineup performances dragged down the quality a bit. Hopefully for their next concert, things will be tightened up to compliment the members' musical talents!

Next up last night were local hardcore quartet Changing Waves, who delivered a much better set than the disappointingly small crowd number on the floor would indicate! Where'd everyone go? Though their set was abbreviated due to a broken guitar string, they pumped through some heavy originals like "Kiss My Ass Again", "Tital", and my new favourite "Scum City", along with some well recieved Austrian Death Machine and System of a Down covers, and they sounded about as good as they ever do! Benjamin Kallonen's yelling and developing clean vocals meshed well on their varied original material, and I'm liking the increased inclusion of backing vocals from Mike Hagerman and Terrence Gomes, which helped add a new layer on the vocals, especially on Mike's part! Changing Waves' development and heaviness is definitely helping them make more of a local name, and I enjoyed their set before it was abbreviated, but aside from the exclusion of "Jung Jung", I can't complain too much. Hopefully next time, there's more people up front though!

Finally last night was local death metal/hardcore quartet The Valentine's Day Massacre, in the first time I've seen them in 2 months, and though Kyle Umgeher's beard was absent, their deathcore onslaught was not! The guys busted out an energetic set of original material and select covers for their fans, who thankfully added some life to the floor, and they rocked the Rosie with songs like "Make Death Wait", "Vampiric", and "Let It All Bleed Out" in their headlining set! The talent was there, as Andrew Angelic ripped some nice shredding riffs & solos (when they weren't looking for his pick), and Adam Veale's bass work stood out once again, but Steve Rhodes didn't really show as much stage presence as I'm used to, mostly pacing left to right on the stage. Also, and this is a point I've never really thought about before, but I'd like to see the guys play a bit less breakdowns. I'm not against them, but I wouldn't say they're always needed for a band of their intensity. Still, they had a great and very heavy set that ended the night well without too many caveats, and don't miss them next week at the second Sewer Swampstravaganza at The Oddfellows Hall!

Overall, last night's show was pretty good, though maybe not as long or tight as some Thursday nighters I've seen. I took a bunch of photos, so click here to check them out or visit our Facebook page! As for videos, here's March Into Regression (with Josh Stephney on vocals) covering The Black Dahlia Murder's "Deathmask Divine", Changing Waves playing their song "Distance", and finally, The Valentine's Day Massacre's original "Vampiric"!







That's all for today, but stay tuned for some overdue news stories tomorrow, including some major new shows! Thanks everyone!

Battle For The Blood & Weak Ends Concert Previews!!

We're entering an interesting stretch for concerts in Sault Ontario, as we've got four straight days of metal/hard rock shows starting tonight, and none of them grace the two official days of the weekend. As such, I've decided to break up the inevitable concert previews into two separate posts to spread things out and give appropriate emphasis to certain shows. With that said, this post has previews of events taking place tonight & tomorrow, so here's what you need to know before you head to either concert!

Our first concert preview today is for the Battle For The Blood, going down TONIGHT at The Roosevelt Hotel! Due to high advance demand for a second local opening act at the 3 Inches of Blood-headlined show at The Rosie on July 9th, promoter J.D. Pearce has organized a special battle of the bands for tonight (after a week's postponement) to find a 4th band to join the Vancouver-based power metal notables, fellow touring metal act Wretched, and locals The Bear Hunters on the lineup for this killer concert next month. As such, this is the second Sault Ontario battle of the bands of 2012, and it's nice to see another one so soon! 4 bands are competing tonight, and in alphabetical order, they are local hardcore quartet Changing Waves (replacing Shit Liver), Desbarats death metal standouts For All That Is Lost, local deathcore rockers The Valentine's Day Massacre, and extreme quintet Winkstinger, who should deliver some great and brutal competition tonight! Of the bands, only F.A.T.I.L. and The Valentine's Day Massacre have full battle experience, as they were a part of the three-way tie for third place at the Humane Society Battle in April, which alone indicates a likely close finish this time around!

Winkstinger's Jesse Cook & Jonas Gasperas are no strangers to battle success either, including at least one victory with Soldiers of Misfortune back in the day, and a 4th place finish with Winkstinger-predecessors Operation: Killdozer in March 2009. Changing Waves bassist Terrence Gomes is also a battle veteran, competing with his old punk band Creedon & The Animal Detectives at the Algoma University battle in December 2009, so there's plenty of battle-tested veterans among tonight's lineup! As well, fellow Humane Society battle competitors T-Rex Manning will play a special set out of competition tonight, though where they will be placed in the performance order isn't public at the moment. Not entirely metal, but hopefully J.D. and company entertain all in attendance with their covers & original punk material! As for the battle itself tonight, here's what I know so far. For the four competing bands, performance order will be drawn randomly before the bands begin, and each band will have 30 minute sets to perform (I don't think there's any song limits or cover restrictions, at least not publically.) Judging will be done by YOU, the fans, which is different from most recent battles, but hopefully you guys pick the most deserving winner, instead of turning this into a popularity contest.

Admission is $3 for tonight's Battle For The Blood, which also essentially gives you a voting ballot as well. You must be 19 to attend, the first band is on at 9:30 PM, and for the record, no prizes have been publically announced beyond the 3IOB opening slot. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be an awesome battle, and I'm just disappointed that I can't be there for it! Even still, I know it'll be very difficult and close to pick a winning band (personally, I can't predict the result), and I hope that the bands tonight give it their all and are judged fairly by those in attendance at The Rosie! Can F.A.T.I.L. or The V.D.M. build on their strong battle performances in April? Can Jesse & Jonas return to the top with Winkstinger's extreme sounds? Can Changing Waves make the most of their late addition to the lineup? We'll find out tonight, and you guys know I'll have as much fallout from the event as I can scrape together, so keep your eyes peeled! For the sake of fairness and impartiality, I won't post a preview video here for any of the competing bands, but here's tonight's special performers T-Rex Manning covering a Misfits classic at the last local battle in April!

The other heavier local concert going down before Thursday is a punk & metal ALL AGES show TOMORROW NIGHT at The Oddfellows Hall, featuring three heavier acts! The show itself is being headlined by Saskatoon hardcore punk quartet Weak Ends, who'll bring a nice old school flavour and attitude to Sault Ontario tomorrow night that punk fans of all ages should appreciate! Very entertaining, and their stuff harkens back to the good old days! The heavier bands on the lineup include co-headliners (and local horror punk/metal favourites) Frightlight, Winnipeg cyber-sludge metal trio Soul Killing Female, and local melodic death metallers The Bear Hunters (guitarist Mitch Sirie is promoting this show), so they'll definitely be worth checking out! While you're likely aware of the two local metal bands, Soul Killing Female's genre-blending brand of doom metal and electronic influences will bring a unique flavour to this show, so definitely check them out, especially their older albums! The lineup is rounded out by Regina garage punk outfit The Royal Red Brigade (a very solid band with a nice raw essence and punk intensity), who are third between Frightlight & S.K.F., and local punk trio Redundant, whose amusing banter and talented punk material will come between S.K.F. and The Bear Hunters at tomorrow's show.

Admission is $10 at the door for this ALL AGES show, doors open at 4:30 PM, and the bands begin at 5:00 PM. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Though I'll still be out of town until Thursday, I know there's much quality to be had with this show tomorrow night, and though there are some outlying bands, there will be lots of aggressive punk for you punk lovers to take in at The Oddfellows Hall tomorrow (with enough metal to satisfy that end of the spectrum as well!) Definitely keep this concert in mind for tomorrow, and best of luck to all six bands! For a preview, here's Soul Killing Female playing their song "Isolationism" at a 2011 concert!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes shortly, including more weekend concert previews! Thanks everyone!

Rosie Metal Night #45 Review!!

Finally, here's my review of Thursday's 45th Roosevelt Hotel metal night! It was delayed for two reasons: I had to get a new news post up thanks to the late notice for the Turner Up shows this weekend (I don't like combining concert reviews with unrelated stories in most cases), and the Changing Waves video had out of sync audio that I had to fix. Now that both of those are cleared out of the way, check out our review from Thursday's metal fesitivies below!

First up was local metal quartet Borderline Divine in their Rosie debut and in their second concert with their current name and lineup! Their set on Thursday was more or less unchanged from their return set last month, playing half new originals and half Stillbroke holdovers & covers, and though the crowd wasn't at it's peak for their opening slot, they delivered another very good and highly promising series of songs! If anything, the biggest difference was in the lighting, which they had noticeably darkened by request, but their own on stage effects are getting bigger and more custom! Soundwise, they sounded about as good as they did last month at the West of Hell show, and Jesse Frigault's vocals remain impressive and a nice heavier extension on his older repertoire, but I do think that some of Mitch Sirie's backing vocals were a bit overdone, especially the higher pitched backing singing he did early on "Burn The World". Still, Borderline Divine have a bright future ahead if they keep on the path they've carved out this year, and their mix of melodic and death sounds can take them places for sure! Just make sure Sam doesn't get too lost in the smoke from the machine, you need his talented drumming!

Following them were local hardcore quartet Changing Waves, and though they were the advertised headliners, it was just good to see them back after a five month break from the stage! I have no idea where they've been, but if there was any rust, it was quickly shook off with their high impact set of originals and select covers! Along with established favourites like "Jung Jung", "Lockdown", and "Tital", the guys played some newer originals like "Go", "Kiss My Ass Again", and "Distance" that showed some hardcore fury and some nice variances into other sounds and styles, and the crowd ate it up! I don't remember if I mentioned this at all last year, but Benjamin Kallonen's stage presence has improved drastically since their 2010 debut, and that goes well with his increasingly diverse singing and the other band members' talents! Mike & Alex Hagerman continue to have good chemistry (as you'd expect), and Terrence Gomes' bass work was solid as well, adding up to a successful return for Changing Waves on Thursday night! Remember to go see both them and Borderline Divine at the F.A.T.I.L. Gathering in Laird on June 22nd!

Finally on Thursday was extreme metal notables Winkstinger.... or, most of them, as for a second straight week, one of the bands at a Rosie metal night was down a member. Guitarist Jason Ladouceur was absent for unannounced reasons, reducing Winkstinger to a "fourtet" on Thursday night, but how'd they manage without him? Honestly, compared to other local bands I've seen shorthanded, the absence of a second guitarist was more noticeable than I assumed, but the guys managed well enough to entertain the crowd with brutal originals like "Stop! You Can't Interrogate Someone With Brain Damage" and much more! Nothing else was really shockingly different compared to other recent Winkstinger sets, but Alan Wells' creatively aggressive vocals melted many a face, and Jesse Cook's guitar work was as fast and blistering as you'd expect, so we ate everything up! Even shorthanded, Winkstinger delivered a brutal set on Thursday, and hopefully they're back on the local stage soon!

Overall, this was another fun night of local metal, and a welcome selection of different bands than we've tended to see at The Rosie lately! The metal nights have now reverted to a bi-weekly schedule, so the 46th installment won't be until June 21st when The Bear Hunters & two Desbarats bands bring an all death metal set to The Rosie! Stay tuned for more on that as we inch closer to the show, but for now, check out my photos from this past Thursday at this location or at our Facebook page! Apologies for the Borderline Divine photo quality, but smoke machines and my camera don't agree, despite their coolness. As for videos, so here's Borderline Divine's 10 minute long original "Burn The World", Changing Waves' newer original "Drop Smack" (with the audio now re-synced), and 4/5ths of Winkstinger playing "From Bullshit To Buzz (Lies=Weed)"!







That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news over the weekend and a pair of feature posts on Sunday: This month's Defunct Local Band Profile on Eckerman, Michigan hard rockers Bent Rollercoaster, and the second archive Woods of Ypres/David Gold interview I recently rediscovered! Thanks everyone!

Rosie Metal Night #44 Review!!

Happy June, everyone! To help begin the last month of 2012's first half, we have a review of last night's 44th Roosevelt Hotel metal night, the first in over two months, and the first since the series' second relaunch! The experience and quality was on par with the late 2011-early 2012 Thursday nighters, though I wish the attendance was higher. For the series' return, you'd expect a larger constant crowd, but what can you do? Now, to the bands!

Opening last night was local death metal standouts The Bear Hunters... well most of them, as guitarist Josh Stephney had work commitments, so they played as a quartet. Even still, the audio quality was better than their last show, as I could actually hear Mitch Sirie's guitar, so things still sounded good! Their set was chock full of their brutal originals like "Overthrown", "Succumb To Eternity", and "Dominate", and the guys played them with their trademark intensity! Though Mitch traded his hair for Hello Kitty sunglasses, his solos were blistering and his shredding guitar work led the way, while Justin Lam's bass work continues to impress, and Nik sounded as brutal as ever on vocals! It was also nice to see them bring back their cover of Trivium's "Down From The Sky" last night, though like the song it replaced in their setlist ("Condemned"), I would like to see Nik do clean chorus vocals again. Even shorthanded, The Bear Hunters delivered a great set of brutal death metal last night, and hopefully I'll be seeing them again soon!

Second last night was fellow local death metal outfit Shit Liver, and their grimy and crusty take on the genre was in full force last night! Their set was full of fast and brutal death metal originals like "Hateroleum", "Shit Liver", and "Sewer Livin'" along with some surprising covers (including GG Allin's "Bite It You Scum"), and though not a lot has changed for their sound or on stage presence since the Fuck The Facts show, they delivered a solid set! The three guys unleashed some heavy and assaulting growls and screams, and Josh Penno's guitar work is definitely improving, but it would be nice to have seen more people at their set last night. Their brand of death metal may not be everyone's cup of tea, but they've put in a lot of time and work, and it's showing musically for both their live shows and original material, and I enjoyed their set last night as much as I have from their other recent gigs!

Last up for bands last night was local hardcore quintet As It Stands in their first show in over a month, and they haven't lost a step musically since their razor thin finish at the Humane Society Battle of the Bands! They knocked out a set full of originals like "Embay The Terrible", "Rise Above", and "Big Problem, Little Lock City" along with their cover of Blink 182's "Stay Together For The Kids", and luckily, the crowd numbers were at their peak to witness their set! Justin Pregent's singing was on form from other 2012 gigs, Angelo Huckson's bass playing also sounded really good, and John Mignacca also impressed a lot on drums, from what I saw! If anything, the band's collective energy seemed to be lower than I'm used to (Angelo wasn't nearly as active and lively from the last few times I've seen them), but as long as they deliver the same quality music we've come to expect from them, it'll all work out! It was good to see A.I.S. back, and hopefully they've got lots more in the pipeline for their next gigs!

Overall, this was a great concert in more ways than one, and a nice return for the Rosie metal night series, and of course, what better way to celebrate your 23rd birthday than with 3 talented and hard working local metal bands? I didn't overly promote my birthday on here as, honestly, the blog's not about me, and I'm not a bragger, but I appreciate all the birthday wishes and shoutouts! Special kudos to J.D. Pearce from Frightlight & T. Rex Manning for making me this wicked birthday cake as a surprise last night! The SMS logo has never been tastier, and I can't thank J.D. enough for what he did last night (and yes, I did kiss the moose!) I did get photos and videos last night too, so click here or visit our Facebook page to check out my pictures! As for videos, they're embedded below, so here's 4/5ths of The Bear Hunters playing "Casualties of War", Shit Liver playing "Shift Liver", and As It Stands playing their new song (possibly "David & Goliath" from the battle of the bands?)







That's all for today, but stay tuned for our next "Where Are The New Albums?" post and more news tomorrow! Thanks everyone!