Saigon Hookers Concert Review, Plus Info On Late & Loud's EP!!

It's time for our review of yesterday's Saigon Hookers concert at The Rockstar Bar, which had a solid attendance (if somewhat of a late start), and I did pick up a certain band's debut disc which we'll talk about at the end of this post, but first, let's discuss the concert! The opening band was local punk/metal quartet T-Rex Manning in their Rockstar Bar debut, and for the most part, their set was entertaining! The guys tore through a bunch of Misfits covers along with everything from Blink-182 to Judas Priest, and they seemed to have a lot of fun as you'd expect! J.D. Pearce's singing was on form, and in his last concert with T-Rex Manning before moving out west, Daniel MacDonald had one of his better drumming performances that I've seen of him live! However, their set wasn't under ideal sound conditions, ad something happened with guitarist Tiffany Stocco's amplifier (I think a tube broke, I may be wrong though.) As a result, the sound had some technical difficulties, but overall, T-Rex Manning delivered a solid set of metal and punk covers (and their original "She Banged The Mayor"), and hopefully they'll be back soon!

Next up was local classic metal quartet Late & Loud, making their own Rockstar Bar debut in their first concert after their September breakup! Just to get it out of the way now, no on-stage indications were made on if this show was a one-off return or not, but we should find out either in the next few weeks. Despite some self-deprecating stabs at how they sounded, the Sault Humane Society Battle winners tore through most of the originals from their EP and some extra tracks, and aside from guitar sound issues similar to T-Rex Manning's set, they delivered well in their return! Like most of their past concerts, my only steady quibble was in Late & Loud's lack of a formal singer, but the guys know how to control their voices to suit their material best, and no matter what instrument, they were rocking it and driving the energy high! Jon Tiberi and Brendan Christie of course stood out well on lead guitar, and it was nice seeing Josh Hatherley switch to vocals and guitar for "Rock N' Roll" again! Judging by the fans up front last night, I know I'm not alone in hoping they're back for good, but if this was Late & Loud's last show, they went out on a high note!

And finally last night were your headliners, Kitchener hard rockers The Saigon Hookers! Over a year after their last local appearance, the guys were back for another set full of their entertaining original material, including songs from their brand new EP "Feel Like Murder" and numerous other cuts from across their discography, and on the whole, they seemed tighter than they did last summer! On a few songs though, their audio sounded somewhat muffled, and Tommy Smokes was occasionally hard to hear vocally, but you could tell they were on their game! The guys' energy seemed high, especially bassist Lee Brook and guitarist Ron Cybulskie, but I wish they'd played a bit longer or identified some more of their songs live. Very entertaining return set though, as The Saigon Hookers' blend of metal, punk, and classic rock fits very well here in the Soo, and hopefully it won't be more than a year for their next local stop!

Overall, this was a fun concert, if somewhat plagued by audio twinges, but the bands were all on form, and hopefully we'll see them all again soon! I did get photos & videos, so click here to see my photos from last night, or visit our Facebook page! Apologies for the quality, that was the best spot I could get where I wasn't blocking the view of the bands. Before we discuss Late & Loud's EP, here's my videos from the concert, including T-Rex Manning's original "She Banged The Mayor", Late & Loud playing "Heavy or Bust" (including a Josh Hatherley drum solo), and The Saigon Hookers playing 2008's "Grab On/Fall Down"!

And finally for today, here's what you should know about Late & Loud's demo EP that they released last night! We already showed you guys the artwork, but I can now confirm that the title is indeed "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal", as credited on the spine and back of the case. The first 5 tracks ("Fast As A Bitch", "Rock N' Roll", "Machine Gun Maiden", "Heavy Or Bust", and "Whisper of the Damned") were recorded with producer Dave Pihlaja (presumably at what's now the Smoke & Oak Room Studio), while the two bonus tracks ("Love Letter Lockdown" & "Never Again") were self recorded. It'd be nice to have songs like "Live For Excess" included too, but beggars can't be choosers! Though packaged properly (including liner notes, credits, and band photography), song lyrics aren't included, and the CDs themselves feature handwritten art that varies by disc, similarly to Changing Waves' free demo from last year. For example, mine has the band's name and members' individual autographs on the disc.

Copies of this pressing weren't completely sold off last night, so if you still want one, contact the band at this location (or Jon & Josh directly), and while they still cost $6, throw in an extra $4 for a Late & Loud t-shirt, which was also sold yesterday! With that all said, I'll announce right now that "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal" will indeed be our CD review at the SMS for November 2012, with Mike Haggith's "Neighbourhood Watch" now likely for December to avoid any biases (following our review of his band Haggith's first CD last month.) Stay tuned in the coming weeks for our Late & Loud CD review, and for more news tomorrow, including some new concerts and a preview of TOMORROW'S Adelitas Way/Theory of a Deadman show at Kewadin Casino! 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!

Late & Loud's Return & EP Release, Plus New Videos!!

We have some new Sault Ontario news and notes on this Tuesday morning, so what's on deck? We have a new archive album posting, a new video blog from a prominent local metal band, and leading off, plenty of updates from a thought-inactive metal quartet, including their return gig and planned EP release, so here's what you need to know!

The new openers for The Saigon Hookers' headlining concert on The Rockstar Bar have been found, and they are.... Late & Loud?! Yes, the prominent classic metal quartet are back for at least one more concert, as per postings on their Facebook page and this new Facebook event page created by The Rockstar Bar, so check them out for proof of their return! Note that the show's official event page & poster still list Garden of Bedlam as the openers, but as we alluded to this weekend, they had to pull out due to scheduling conflicts. This will be Late & Loud's Rockstar Bar debut, their first concert since they opened for Skull Fist at the end of August (and just their second since their battle victory in April), and it comes barely two months after they went on hiatus or broke up (depending on your source), so hearing that they're back is a nice surprise! However, when I asked guitarist Jonathan Tiberi on Facebook whether this is this is just a one off gig or not, he said he "couldn't confirm or deny that statement", but he did add that Late & Loud "cannot die", so take that for what you will.

Note also that The Rockstar Bar's event page indicates that two opening bands will be present, but if there will indeed be a second opening band, nothing's public about them yet. The good news continues for Late & Loud fans though, as it's been revealed on their Facebook page that their long awaited demo/EP will finally be released at Saturday's concert! This is the cover, as we have previously seen on Facebook in an extended shot, and according to this photo of the album cases, the track listing will include seven tracks: the five previously confirmed songs that were posted for free on Reverbnation this summer, and two self-recorded bonus tracks ("Love Letter Lockdown" & "Never Again".) Apparently self titled (though the spine says "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal" on at least one side), at least 24 copies have been produced for this run of the EP (no word on possible future pressings), and they'll be available for purchase for $6 at Saturday's show, so there's all the more reason to show up!

This is awesome news for Late & Loud fans, and hopefully this sparks a big turnout and interest for this return show (possibly their last?) and the EP! I'm glad to see them finally put this out, as they put in enough work on it, and you know I'll be there on Saturday to pick it up and see them and The Saigon Hookers in action! And yes, if I do get the EP, I'll likely review it this month on the SMS (and move Mike Haggith's newest album's review to December to avoid any biases), but stay tuned as the week progresses for more on this show and the EP itself, and for at least the next week, rejoice in Late & Loud's return!

Next up today, here's a neat new video from local horror punk quintet Frightlight! In a similar vein to Woods of Ypres' old tour vlogs, guitarist Rick "Styles" White posted this vlog onto his YouTube channel on Sunday, and it's of random footage before and during their set opening for The Misfits at The Opera House in Toronto on October 25th! I won't spoil the entire contents, but you'll see a vuvuzela, footage of the road trip, what was in Rick's hotel room, The Opera House itself, and yes, some concert footage (including The Misfits themselves), and an oddly named Chinese restaurant, among other random clips! This is a neat look at a local band's tour cycle, despite patchy video quality, and hopefully they have more tour vlogs from future out of town gigs to come! Check it out below, and stay tuned for more Frightlight updates as they roll in!



Finally, Haggith drummer Mike Haggith has uploaded another archive solo album of his onto his YouTube channel! Posted there yesterday, this is of his 40th solo album "Ace", which was released in May 2010, and acted as a compilation release of songs from his three 2009 albums "The Curse Was The Cure", "I Hate My Life & I Want To Die", and "Hotel For Transients", featuring 3, 4, and 6 songs respectively from each (which are all on YouTube already too.) The upload of "Ace" leaves just two of his post-2008 albums unavailable on YouTube ("For My Fallen Angel" and his second "Best of Mike Haggith" release), and it's good to see Mike posting more of his old original material! While you can hear these songs on other albums, "Ace" features some of his best and favourite 2009 work, so give it a look/listen below, and check the above links for more streaming and purchase copies of his solo material!



That's probably all for today, but stay tuned for more news, weekend concert previews, our next Defunct Local Band Profile, and more in the next little while! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Saigon Hookers & The Locals Attack) And Powerslug Concert Previews!!

Happy November everyone! With the Halloween season sadly behind us, we're beginning a new (and hopefully busier) month with this post featuring previews of the only two hard rock concerts I know of this weekend, and leading off, TWO LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS! These new Sault Ontario gigs are pretty notable in their own respective rights, and they'll add well to what I hope is a busier local concert month, so read on below for what you need to know!

Did you miss the Garden of Bedlam-headlined Rad Zone birthday bash on Tuesday night? Well, pray the roads are better on November 10th, as the local metal standouts will be back at The Rockstar Bar that night as openers for The Saigon Hookers' return to Sault Ontario! The Kitchener hard rock quartet (and good friends with the former members of Lion Ride) will be back at The Rockstar Bar one week from Saturday for their third ever local concert (and first in over 16 months), and it'll be great to see them back in town! Their mix of classic rock, metal, and punk has attracted a solid local following and a few entertaining albums, and they should be welcomed back up north next weekend! However, rather than the inactive Brad Example & The Role Models, the openers will be the aforementioned Garden of Bedlam, and their metal fury will be welcomed on the 10th, in what might be the first time they've played with another band at The Rockstar Bar! A 9:00 PM start time is advertised for this show, you must be 19 to attend, and I imagine a cover charge of around $5 is in order. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

This should be quite an intense concert, and it's great to see both of these bands back upstairs at The Algonquin for differing (yet similar) reasons! I absolutely 110% plan to be there, so keep an eye out for any possible updates as they roll in, and just in a final Garden of Bedlam note, their album "Everything Will Die" is finally available on iTunes! You can pick it up there at this link for $16.90 or $1.69 a song, so if you want an official mp3 copy of it, head there to download it!

Also in new concerts, The Locals Attack once again on November 26th! Taking on the sub-branding of the Dead In The Van all ages concert on March 4th, this will be a very similar concert in many ways, as it's also a J.D. Pearce-promoted ALL AGES concert at The Canadian Nightclub with a wide array of local metal & punk bands, so who's currently confirmed? Four bands so far (none yet from Dead In The Van), including new local thrash band Pillory, local/North Shore death metal trio Crimson Crusade, new local punk band The Northern Tragedy (featuring Changing Waves bassist Terrence Gomes on drums), and "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet Sykotyk Rampage, which adds to a diverse lineup of bands so far! In terms of milestones, this is Pillory's first announced live concert, Crimson Crusade's first public concert since the departure of guitarist Brock Pinder, theirs & The Northern Tragedy's Canadian Nightclub debuts, and Sykotyk Rampage's first Canadian Nightclub appearance since the Kiss Battle of the Bands almost three years ago, and there's a lot of newer & established talent in these bands, so don't miss them all (and more) on the 26th!

More bands are being sought to fill out spots on this lineup, so if you're at all interested, message J.D. on Facebook at this location or via the Facebook event page to see if your band can get on! I know J.D.'s hoping for a few high school age bands (especially given it's all ages status), so if your band is, don't miss out on this opportunity! For reference sake, Dead In The Van: The Locals Attack in March featured Frightlight, As It Stands, Redundant, For All That Is Lost, Inhuman Methods, and "Evil" Greg Callaghan, alongside the former Late & Loud and the now-London based Valentine's Day Massacre, so there's a hint for what we could expect on November 26th. Start times, band order, and cover charges have yet to be announced, but stay tuned to the above links to stay in the loop! It's great to see another all ages multi-band concert like this on the horizon, and kudos to J.D. for getting another one in the works, which will add to an already promising November for local metal concerts! Stay tuned to the SMS for further updates as they come in, and get your bands on this!

And finally for today, here's a preview for a pair of heavier concerts on this quiet concert weekend, as Powerslug are back at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino TOMORROW NIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT! Thanks to Kewadin Casino's entertainment page, their stops there are always welcome for advance coverage (given their lack of an online page to plug them), but regardless of the notice, the two Chris' & Bob should deliver a fun night of heavier covers for their fans at the Soo Kewadin branch this weekend! Admission should be free for tomorrow & Saturday's shows, with 21+ age limits and 10:00 PM-ish start times likely. For more details, check the above links! These should be some solid concerts to help kick off November, so don't miss them if you're craving some hard rock in the Eastern U.P. this weekend! For a preview, I was going to share their only public video here (from a show in Ludington earlier this year), but it was deleted from Facebook for unknown reasons in recent months, but hopefully media of theirs turns up again soon, and trust me, Powerslug have the talent and heaviness to rock Kewadin this weekend, so don't miss out!

That's probably all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post, a video-heavy new post in the coming days, and more! Thanks everyone!

Saigon Hookers Concert Review & Half A Man Updates!!

Hey guys, I'm back from last night's Saigon Hookers concert at The Rockstar Bar, so how'd it go! I will tell you in this review, followed by some new updates from Half A Man! I regrettably got to the show late, so I probably missed half of Brad Example & The Role Models' set, but I made a point to rush there when I finally left to see what I could! Fittingly, they were covering Black Sabbath's "The Wizard" when I arrived, which was cool! The band's lineup looked mostly the same as they did in March when I last saw them, although the drummer may have been different (don't quote me though.) Musically, what I saw was about as good as The Role Models' March show, with Brad Example making the most of his grittier punk singing, and Dave Bahun was as good as ever on lead guitar! Again, I wish Marco Pedalino had more lead time, but I'm only judging by what I saw. Decent sized crowd cheering them on, and they deserved it from what I caught! Nice straightforward punk with some metal flourishes here and there, hopefully they play some other shows at some point, cause hopefully I'll see the whole thing next time!

Then were the main attraction, The Saigon Hookers, returning from Kitchener for round 2 in Sault Ste. Marie! Their set was, musically, as good as it was in March, with tons of punk inspired hard rock for their fans, including originals like "Devil To Win", "Stray Dogs", "Ignition", and "Hopeless Case Of A Kid In Denial", and some Hellacopters, Rolling Stones, and Thin Lizzy covers to boot! Their sound is always an energetic blast of alcohol and hard rock, and they shown that again last night, from Tommy Smokes' attitude-infused singing to Ron Cybulskie's fast shredding! (Also, kudos on the retro Lion Ride shirt!) Lee Brook deserves lots of credit too for rocking out awesomely on bass despite a broken ankle, though it did restrict his on stage movements. While musically, everything was on par (save for some too-quiet singing early), the overall atmosphere of the show was lacking compared to the March show. Many fans seemed to leave when The Role Models wrapped up, very few people got on the floor until very late in the set (and only to dance), and there didn't seem to be a large amount of energetic response to the Hookers like the first time around. Many fans who stuck around enjoyed themselves, but I don't know, something seemed off.

I had fun though, and I know many in attendance did too! The Saigon Hookers rock and have lots of great tunes to go around, and Lion Ride fans will sure enjoy them! I also forgot to mention this in March, but The Saigon Hookers don't have a set break, they play all their songs straight through, so you get a non stop relentless attack and lots of time to drink post-show, which I find cool! Hopefully they come back sooner or later, though hopefully with some better advertising and more advance word, the environment will be livelier! I did get a bunch of photos, so click here to check them out, or visit our Facebook page! And yes, I did get a video, so here's The Saigon Hookers playing their original song "Ignition"!



And finally for today, here's some more news from Brimley hard rockers Half A Man, who are still hard at work on their first album! The band has uploaded two new videos from the sessions, likely at McNally Smith Studios in Minnesota, onto their YouTube channel over the past couple of days. One is a video showing various computer screenshots from Mikey Bishop's drum tracking, as overlayed with other song portions from various songs to be featured on the album. Not a lot to say on it, but the song clips sound promising, though obviously incomplete. The other video, which we have embedded below, is of Mikey doing live drum tracking, with him on camera busting out his parts for their song "Bad Way"! If you haven't heard the song before, it will basically just sound like a solo drum piece, but it's very well played and should sound even better with guitars and such wrapped around it! Nice video quality too, if a bit dark. Check out Mikey's drum tracking for "Bad Way" below, and stay tuned for more Half A Man studio updates! Check the above links for more studio stuff too!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for a new news post with a big announcement concerning how YOU can win something related to an upcoming concert! Thanks everyone!

SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Full Circle & Tym Morrison) & Weekend Concert Previews!!

It's time to preview this weekend's slate of local metal concerts, and there's a lot of notable shows this weekend that you should be aware of, including a debuting new local music festival! First though, here's some SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so here's what you need to know!

Local classic hard rockers Full Circle are indeed playing THIS WEEKEND at The Nicolet Tavern! I apologize for the short notice, drummer Scott McClurg only just announced the shows on Tuesday, and they weren't previously listed on the old Turner Up pages (Full Circle don't have a page with their new name yet.) The band's schedule through September (as seen here) listed this weekend as an off weekend, so this appears to be a newer booking. My apologies again! So head out to The Nic TOMORROW NIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT to enjoy some classic hard rock covers from this talented quartet, including talented frontwoman KT Antler and past and present members of Lois Lane & Asylum Country! There is no announced cover charge for either night, you must be 19 to attend, and everything starts at around 10:00 PM! For more details, check out the official Facebook event page! Sounds like fun, make sure to check out their classic hard rocking sounds at The Nic this weekend, and apparently next weekend too if you can't swing the next shows! When videos of the band live surface, I'll have them here!

And now, to the other new show! Last weekend, you may remember that Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison played a solo acoustic show at an unfamiliar venue, that being Service Grill Pizza on Korah Road. Well, the show appears to have been successful enough to warrant a comeback, as Tym's back at the Service Grill THIS SATURDAY! As far as differences between the two shows go, the only thing I can gather is that this show will indeed be an evening concert, starting at 7:00 PM, unlike the afternoon show the last time around. There is no cover charge, and given that this is a pizza joint with an earlier start time, I can't see it being 19+ either. So if you want to enjoy some more intimate takes on metal and hard rock classics, make note of this short notice concert, and apologies for it being late, Tym only just announced it earlier today. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and here's a preview video, of Tym covering Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" at Foggy Notions last year!



Now we come to the previously announced shows, and first, it's the 21st Roosevelt Hotel metal night taking place TONIGHT! For the first time in six months, there will be an all-local lineup with four bands, so here's who to look out for! The advertised headliners are local melodic death metal band The Bear Hunters, who will become the first band to play a Thursday Rosie metal night 10 times when they play tonight! Officially confirmed by Dismembertainment for the show yesterday as a late addition, look for The Bear Hunters to deliver a brutal set of originals and covers at tonight's show, just their second with their current lineup! Shit Liver will bring their grimy blend of crust, death metal, and punk back to the Rosie tonight as well as the co-headliners! I've heard rumours that this could be their last show for a while due to a band member going out of town for a few months, but nothing official has been posted on band pages. Go see them tomorrow just in case this is true! Also, Winkstinger will return to the Rosie metal nights for the first time in five months tonight for what should be an intense set of extreme mosh-worthy originals! We've seen them at shows in the interim, but don't you miss them on Thursdays? They should be on fire tonight!

And finally, new local death metal band Bring The Misery will also hit the stage tonight for their second ever show, and first without Dan Souliere on guitar. I have not heard word on a replacement, so I'd expect them to be a quartet for at least this show. The band said on their Facebook page that nothing new is planned for their set, but it's tightened up, so hopefully they improve on their debut! This concert, which is also Dismembertainment owner Rich Moreland's fiancee April Fogal's birthday show, is 19+, with a 9:30 PM-ish start time and no cover charge. Check the above links for more details! Sounds like a good and brutal night of metal, maybe I can make it out if I'm not too busy! For a preview, here's The Bear Hunters playing "Casualties Of War" earlier this month!



Now we'll move to Sault Michigan, and first, a local hard rock quintet returns to the stage this weekend to rock The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino! The band in question is River Witch, who are fresh off a show this past Saturday at The Merchant's Bar! This time around, they're back at Kewadin Casino's bar/concert spot once again, and though the band hasn't officially announced the shows (they haven't posted anything on their Facebook page in over two months), Kewadin confirms the shows on their entertainment page, and that is definitely a reliable source! I'd expect the concerts, which are tomorrow and Saturday night, to have 9:00 PM start times, no cover charge, and 21+ age limits. For more details, check the above links! Sounds like good times, though I really wish River Witch would update their page more often and/or post videos or audio of their concerts. Then we could really get a taste of their talents! Still, go see them this weekend, and if you don't go Saturday, there is another chance to check them out that afternoon! What do I mean? Read on to find out!

Then on Saturday, it's the first annual LemmaFest, a local music and family festival at Dondee Lanes from 12:00 PM to 2:00 AM! The festival is in honour of the late Michael Lemma, a beloved Dondee employee who suddenly passed away last summer, and activities are planned all day at the Dondee, including a barbeque, bowling and drink specials, raffles and prize draws, and even horseshoes and beach volleyball! Event glasses and t-shirts will also be sold on a limited basis for this special event, click here (and the link above) for all current details! But I bet you guys wanna hear about the bands, so here's the lineup from start to finish! Each band has one hour slots for their sets, and local southern/party rockers The Hixx will open the festivities at 12:00 PM sharp, followed by local acoustic rock duo Fallen Heroes at 1:00 PM! The band at 2:00 PM isn't currently known, but I wouldn't be surprised if local comedy acoustic rock duo 2PumpChump are playing in this slot, due to their displacement from a later timeslot. I will keep you guys posted on that! Petoskey solo rock project Minus Everyone will replace the dropped-out local metal band Hammerspace at 3:00 PM, and the aforementioned River Witch will rock the outdoor Dondee stage at 4:00 PM before heading back to Kewadin Casino that night!

Local metal trio Scofflaw will reunite for a rare publically announced set at 5:00 PM, and will be followed by the local band Bucksaw at 6:00 PM. Aside from the names of two members (Jason VanLuven & Mark Bowen), I can't tell you a thing about them cause they have no pages or material that I've seen online, so if you can shed any light on Bucksaw, let me know! Munising hardcore metal band Infathom (pictured) are next at 7:00 PM, and though not locally based, they have a nice brutal sound, so click here for samples! Local metal supergroup Great Bodily Harm (featuring past & present members of Hammerspace, I.S.O.M., Half A Man, and River Witch) are now on at 8:00 PM, and though I don't know of a page or media from them (any help?), there is definitely talent there! The outdoor festivities wrap up with local acoustic quartet Electric Motor Fish at 9:00 PM, though I'm hearing conflicting things about their set regarding a possible different band with similar members. Again, I'll keep you posted if I hear more! Though not officially a LemmaFest set, The Hixx will close the night out inside the Dondee for a normal 10:00 PM-2:00 AM set of their party classic sounds, so if you're in the mood for more music after 10:00, head inside and enjoy yourselves!

Admission is $10 for this ALL AGES festival, with all proceeds (tickets and otherwise) going to Michael Lemma's dad to help cover his final expenses. Lawn chairs are recommended as this is an all day outdoor festival, and there's a ton of things going on, so definitely check out all of the above links for details as they come in! This is a huge event with a lot of careful effort and planning, and I give huge kudos to Scott Green and everyone else behind LemmaFest for all their work in Michael's honour! I never knew him, but I bet you he'd be proud! Now I'm still uncertain on some details on the lineup (specifically, when 2PumpChump are playing, whether Electric Motor Fish are on or not, and info/media from Great Bodily Harm & Bucksaw), but if and when I hear news on these details, I will update this post and let you guys know as soon as I find out! I don't have vehicle insurance yet to drive across for LemmaFest (hopefully soon), but I give my best wishes that this will be a huge success that leads to many more LemmaFests to come! For a preview, here's Infathom covering Atreyu's "The Crimson" in 2009!



And finally, we head back to Sault Ontario for a prominent Ontario band's return to Sault Ontario! Fresh off their well recieved local debut in March, Kitchener hard rockers The Saigon Hookers are returning to The Rockstar Bar for another night of mayhem and entertaining originals! Like their show in the spring, this well traveled band (who are good friends of Lion Ride) will be sure to rock the stage with songs like "Stray Dogs", "She Blows My Mind", and "Devil To Win", among many others! Like in March, local punk supergroup Brad Example & The Role Models will open for them with a set of punk rock covers! I know that the band will feature veteran local singer/bassist Brad "Example" Lacell and Lion Ride guitarist Marco Pedalino, though whether Brad's longtime bandmate Dave Bahun and veteran local drummer Phil Greco will be back or not isn't currently known, especially when The Role Models' new MySpace page implies that their "cast of characters is always changing". We'll find out for sure on Saturday! This show will have a 10:00 PM-ish start time, a 19+ age limit, and my money's on a $5 cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

This should be an awesome show, I will absolutely be there! The Saigon Hookers were great in March and well worth seeing again, so hopefully you guys come out too! For a preview, here's The Saigon Hookers playing their song "She Blows My Mind" in a 2007 music video!



That's all for now, but I have a new news post coming either tonight or early tomorrow, so stay tuned for that! Thanks everyone!

Concert Lineup Updates For The Next Two Weeks, Including Lemmafest!!

Hey guys, I'm back with some more local metal news, and the topic of today's post is concert lineups! We have new bands and lineup news for a bunch of upcoming concerts, so let's get straight to that, going in chronological order, starting with TOMORROW'S 21st Roosevelt Hotel metal night! The Bear Hunters are in fact playing tomorrow night in their record 10th appearance at a Thursday night Rosie metal show! Dismembertainment confirmed the addition on their Facebook page earlier today, in what is also just the second all-local Rosie metal night with 4 bands. This confirms The Bear Hunters' earlier Facebook postings that they'd be playing tomorrow, though they weren't initially confirmed for the show when announced. Sounds good to me, this show should be awesome! Check the above links for more details on this show (also featuring Shit Liver, Winkstinger, and Bring The Misery), and stay tuned tomorrow for our preview of this show!

Next, we transition to LemmaFest at Dondee Lanes on Saturday, which is the first annual music festival in honour of the late Michael Lemma. Firstly, to the band changes, as local metal band Hammerspace have apparently dropped out of their planned 3:00 PM set. I haven't heard why, but note that their Facebook page hasn't been updated in a month, and they were recently coming off of a short breakup when they were initially announced for LemmaFest. Hopefully they haven't re-broken up, they're too promising to go away! Replacing them at 3:00 is Minus Everyone, a Petoskey-based solo project from musician Kenneth Harris, who plays solid rock music on guitar and bass accompanied by backing tracks. It's better than it may sound, he has talent, and he should leave a good impression on Saturday afternoon! The rest of the changes are all to performance order, so here's what we know. Local acoustic duo Fallen Heroes were moved from 8:00 PM to 1:00 PM (a previously vacant slot), and as such, night-capping acoustic bands 2PumpChump & Electric Motor Fish were bumped back an hour to 8:00 & 9:00 PM respectively. However, a recent update on the LemmaFest page indicated that local metal supergroup Great Bodily Harm are now playing at 8:00 PM instead, though whether 2PumpChump will replace them at 2:00 PM isn't currently known.

The rest of the night's bands (The Hixx, River Witch, Scofflaw, Bucksaw, and Infathom) are still on for their original set times, so click here for all current lineup details! Other notes: Great Bodily Harm are gonna cover some Pro-Pain songs (that's awesome), folding chairs are recommended for attendees (it is outdoors), and it is an all ages event for sure as well! Also, make sure you're at the Dondee at noon sharp if you want official LemmaFest t-shirts! And apologies for missing this, but the organizer of LemmaFest was apparently interviewed on Rock 101 on Monday, I hope it went well! The more press, the better! Stay tuned for updates over the next few days!

Next up, here's some more details on a concert taking place THIS SATURDAY in Sault Ontario! As you may remember, Kitchener hard rockers The Saigon Hookers are coming back to The Rockstar Bar once again on Saturday night, and if you missed their last local show in March, then definitely come on out! Details appear to be mostly the same as the March show though, which is good news if you missed them then, and that even includes the openers, as local punk supergroup Brad Example & The Role Models will indeed be back supporting at this show! This band, led by Brad "Example" Lacell of Inner City Surfers & Room 206 fame, featured longtime bandmate Dave Bahun, Lion Ride's Marco Pedalino, and veteran local drummer Phil Greco in their lineup in March, but according to their new MySpace page, "the cast of characters is always changing". Will we see a different lineup on Saturday? Time will tell! I imagine this show will have a 19+ age limit, 10:00 PM start time, and $5 cover, similar to their last show, but some new Saigon Hookers songs and older classics may find their way into the setlist! I'll absolutely be there, and hopefully you guys will be there too! For more details, check the Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more in our concert preview post tomorrow!

And finally, we come to lineup news for July 2nd's return of Lion Ride to Sault Ontario! Convenient, isn't it? Some more details have been released for this show, which is part of a short "Summer Kick-Off Tour" starting on June 30th in Peterborough and ending at The Rockstar Bar next Saturday for their first local show in almost three months! The band launched a general event page for the three shows at this location, featuring a short comical "interview" with frequently asked questions about the tour, band, and shows. Nice sense of humour! A second event page was launched by The Rockstar Bar's Hayley Warnock, which confirms a 10:30 PM start time and the second band on the bill, that being local folk/roots duo The Boot Hill Crooners, featuring the Jaaskelainen brothers (of Wild Turkeys fame.) Another interesting choice to open the show, but it's clear that with Lion Ride, they pick openers based on talent and friendship, not the best musical match, which is cool in itself! I should note that The Rockstar Bar's event page lists The Boot Hill Crooners first, not Lion Ride, but I can't see them being the headliners, given Lion Ride's prominence. Sounds like a great time, stay tuned for updates as they come in, and check the above links for more on this show!

That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for weekend concert previews, and we have more news to come from Rotaryfest, Half A Man, and more very soon, so stay tuned for all of that! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Saigon Hookers) & New Videos!!

The holiday weekend is on, the Rapture is avoided, and The Sault Metal Scene keeps rolling on! Today's post is mostly video-related, as we have a new rehearsal video from a local band, a new demo from another band, and a recent TV appearance that you may have seen, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!

Kitchener hard rockers The Saigon Hookers are coming back to Sault Ontario! Last seen on March 4th, the good friends of Lion Ride will play in town for just the second time when they return to The Rockstar Bar on June 25th! The news was broken on the band's Facebook page on Thursday, with the show also listed on the band's itinerary on Reverbnation. Doors are listed to open at 9:00 PM, but further details aren't given on the concert. For what it's worth, The Saigon Hookers' March show didn't have an announced cover charge and it was 19+, so I'd assume these would be similar the second time around. I also figure there will be an opening band, which hasn't been announced yet, but for reference sake, punk supergroup Brad Example & The Role Models filled that role in March. Check the above links for all current details! The Saigon Hookers were really fun to see live when they played here the first time around, and here's hoping I can check them out next month too! Stay tuned to The Sault Metal Scene for updates as they come in!

Now we have a three way dance of new local videos, and first, here's a brand new Life's Eclipse demo! The Eckerman, Michigan quartet uploaded this track onto the Werehold Records YouTube channel yesterday, and it's the full version of their song "Out Of The Cold" from their "Deeper In The Woods" album! This was previously posted as a one minute instrumental demo, but was deleted and replaced with this longer version! It;s actually just the second full song with vocals that we've heard from the band (following the demo of "Red Dawn" from their MySpace page), and how do they sound? Very good, harsh and suited to the song, but unique at the same time! Very heavy track, and it's nice to hear a lot more of this song compared to the original upload! It ends abruptly, but it's well played and you can hear the talent readily! So here's the new version of Life's Eclipse's "Out Of The Cold", with vocals!



Also new for videos is that first Gates of Winter rehearsal video! It was only hinted due to the "rehearsal 002" video that guitarist Bryan Belleau posted on Tuesday, which implied there'd be a "001", and it's now up on frontman Lee Maines' own YouTube channel! Like the second rehearsal video (which Lee also uploaded), this is under a minute long, but this just features Lee playing new riffs by his desk. Nice and brutal, as I'd expect, with the technical flourish we've came to expect! Not a whole lot to say on it, but if you want 58 seconds of preview metal from 1/5th of Gates of Winter, check the video out below!



And finally, as you may have heard, local hardcore quintet As It Stands were recently on Shaw TV! The band were featured in a interview/performance on Channel 10 (if you have Shaw) once every half hour on rotation all this past week, as conducted with Shaw TV's Christian Lemay. The interview features all 5 members of As It Stands discussing their musical influences, the band's history, their songwriting process, their touring and recording plans, and much more! As for the performance, clips of the band playing their original "Conception" at The Roosevelt Hotel were specially filmed for the piece, and were shown between the interview portions. With rotation of the interview likely to cease tomorrow with the beginning of a new week, I figured I should save the piece as best as I could, so last week, I propped my camera in front of my TV and filmed it for perseverance! I apologize for the quality, I don't have proper capturing equipment or programs for television broadcasts. I have no clue if any sites or pages would have this video posted in it's original quality after the fact, so I figured I should upload it just in case. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED!! All credit goes to As It Stands, Christian Lemay, Shaw TV, and Shaw Cable, they did all the hard work and deserve the attention!

Good video, overall! The performance clips are as good as you'd expect, and it's nice to see high quality video at The Rosie! The interview is different in that Christian Lemay isn't shown on camera asking the band questions, with the band passing the microphone between them to narrate the video themselves, which works well enough! It's always good to see some TV exposure for any local band, and in case you missed As It Stands on Shaw TV this week, you can check out the video below!



That's all for now, but stay tuned tomorrow for a new news post featuring a bunch of new songs, a preview of Monday's Isosceles Project concert, and more! Thanks everyone!

Saigon Hookers Concert Review & Lion Ride Updates!!

Hey guys, it's time for my first concert review in way too long! Last night, I returned to The Rockstar Bar for The Saigon Hookers' first ever local concert, and that's the bulk of this post, though I have some assorted Lion Ride-related news at the end. So let's kick off the review!

The openers last night were essentially a local supergroup, even if they didn't have a lot of time to sink into the public conciousness beforehand. They are Brad Example & The Role Models, a punk rock quartet fronted (obviously) by Inner City Surfers & Room 206 bassist Brad "Example" Lacell! Brad was joined by fellow Surfers/Room 206 bandmate Dave Bahun and Lion Ride's own Marco Pedalino on guitar, and drummer Phil Greco, who's sure to be familiar from numerous local bands. Their set comprised mostly of punk covers, including a couple Surfers tunes (I think) and yes, even some heavier tracks! Nice surprise to hear some Motorhead and Spinal Tap in there, too bad my timing sucked to get either on video! Brad's singing was gritty and not very rangy, but it suited the style they were going for, so don't judge too harshly if you're more used to Dustin Jones' singing with the Surfers. Dave Bahun impressed me the most of the band last night, to be honest. He's always had a clear metal edge, and his solos were always welcome in his older bands, and they shined last night for sure!

I do think Marco could have had some lead time as well, he's a skilled lead guitarist himself! The band didn't seem to have a lot of preparation for this show, especially given the large stack of lyrics on stage, but Brad and company pulled it off well, and their punk sounds seemed to win over the fans in attendance!

Headlining were The Saigon Hookers, of course, in their first ever local concert! First off, thanks to frontman Tommy Smokes for being so gracious to me and for giving me a free CD. He's a nice guy! With The Saigon Hookers' closeness to Lion Ride members from past concerts and so forth, it's surprising that they haven't played in town before, but they seemed like they fit right in last night! If you're familiar with Lion Ride's brand of punk influenced metal, The Saigon Hookers should be up your alley, but they seem to take more influence from classic rock and alcohol than Lion Ride typically do. Amongst a set of mostly originals like "Let It Slide", "Stray Dogs", and "Tell It Like It Is", they rocked hard and long last night with lots of energy, and even threw in some Thin Lizzy and Rolling Stones covers for good measure! Tommy Smokes stood out in height and talent, with an effective punk influenced rock voice and some solid guitar playing backed up well by fellow axeman Ron Cybulskie and (surprisingly) Marco Pedalino on one track! Lee Brook proved to be more than up to the task of replacing Carmine Romano (now in Lion Ride) on bass, and Tommy Guns was good on drums all night! The Saigon Hookers delivered a good fun night of hard rocking music, and though the crowd shoulda got closer, there was a good environment!

Overall, this was a fun and entertaining concert, and hopefully The Saigon Hookers come back to town one of these days! If you missed it, you missed out! Check out my photos from last night at this location or at the SMS' Facebook page! And yes, I did get a video, and luckily, this one involves members of both bands from last night, in a bit of a makeup for missing a Brad Example video from one of their metal covers! So here's The Saigon Hookers playing their song "Stray Dogs" featuring Marco Pedalino on guest guitar!



We'll close this post with some Lion Ride updates, fittingly so, given the links they share with last night's bands! Firstly, they've launched a new page on RoadRunner Records' popular music discovery website SignMeTo, which has attracted some local band attention in the past. The page features a basic band biography, their latest two studio songs ("Stick It In" & "Snail Trail"), one of their more recent videos, and an interesting show note that I'll elaborate more on in the near future. Kinda sparse at present, but check the above links to check out this new band page! Also, if you've been wondering what's been up with their upcoming full length album lately, their Facebook page has a couple updates! At present, it looks like they're in writing mode for new material, and have wrote at least two new songs. One written mid-February was apparently so good, you'll "poop your pants" when you hear it, while later last month, they created another one that will apparently "impregnate you". Interesting choices of words, hopefully the songs deliver a knockout punch when we hear them! Stay tuned to the above links for more on Lion Ride, and I'll have more on them to come very soon!

That's all for now, but stay tuned probably later tonight for weekend concert previews and more! I'm contemplating going to Docks to see That's Chester tonight as well, so look out for me tonight in case I do! Thanks everyone!

SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Late & Loud) And Concert Previews Through Saturday!!

Hey guys, it's time once again to preview the latest slate of concerts taking place for you metal and hard rock fans! Because there's shows stretching through to Monday without a break, and due to the high volume of them, I'm going to segment the previews a tiny bit. All known metal/hard rock shows through Saturday will be previewed tonight. Sunday's We, The Undersigned concert and Monday's Rebel Spell show (featuring Shit Liver) will be previewed either Saturday or early Sunday as part of a normal news post, so look out for that later this weekend! For now, let's stick to the shows I know of through Saturday, beginning with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!

Local metal quartet Late & Loud have announced another relatively short notice concert for TOMORROW NIGHT at Foggy Notions! Last seen on stage at Foggy's on February 21st, the band officially announced this show yesterday morning on their official Facebook page. Details are lacking, but their word is good that they're playing, they've never lied or jumped the gun before, that I know of! Their Facebook page even says they'll be playing new material tomorrow night, so that'll be cool in itself! I would expect a 10:00 PM-ish start time tomorrow, no cover charge, and a 19+ age limit. I like their sound from the few videos I've seen of Late & Loud in action, and it'll sure be interesting to see what comes of their recent demo recordings, but I can't form a full opinion until I see them live. I already have plans to see another concert tomorrow, but I'll make it out one of these days, I'm overdue! If you guys need something to check out tomorrow, give Late & Loud a shot, they should impress! Check the above links for more, including some video footage of Late & Loud in action at recent sets, which I can't embed here. Stay tuned for updates on Late & Loud as I hear them, and go check them out tomorrow!

Now to shows we had some advance warning on, and we'll start with TONIGHT'S latest Roosevelt Hotel metal night! Three more metal bands descend upon The Rosie at 9:30 PM tonight to deliver their own brands of hard hitting music, so here's who to look out for! I'm honestly not 100% sure as to the lineup order, as I've seen the first and third bands swapped in different promotions of the concert in the past few days, but I'll go with the order posted on the Rosie metal nights' Facebook page, and note that promoter Rich Moreland tends to list bands in order of performance, not from headliners down. Firstly, there's As It Stands, the local hardcore quintet who are fresh off of recent recording sessions in Stoney Creek. What came of those? Stay tuned tonight to the SMS to find out! With loads of aggressive metalcore ready to go, look for another impressive set from them tonight! In the middle of the lineup tonight is Desbarats death metal quintet For All That Is Lost, exactly one month to the day after As It Stands replaced them on hours notice at the Rosie show that night! In their first ever local concert, will F.A.T.I.L. leave a deep impression with their brutal death metal stylings? Time will tell! Rounding out tonight's lineup is local hardcore quartet Changing Waves, in their third consecutive Thursday nighter at The Rosie! They've really been making "waves" locally since their debut in November, so expect another solid set of moshworthy metalcore from them tomorrow as well!

As usual, tonight's show will have a 9:30 PM start time, no cover charge, and a 19+ age limit. For more details, check out the above links! I should be out for this one, I really wanna check out For All That Is Lost, and who doesn't love a good double shot of local hardcore? Check out the above links for all of the above bands, and I hope to see you guys at The Rosie tonight! For a preview, here's As It Stands playing their original song "One Last Chance"!



Next, we'll head to The Rockstar Bar for a notable concert tomorrow night that Lion Ride fans should definitely take notice of! This show will be headlined by Kitchener hard rockers The Saigon Hookers, who you may recognize as the band that Lion Ride bassist Carmine Romano was originally a member of through January, as well as a frequent sight at Lion Ride's concerts in Southern Ontario. With a hard hitting brand of unfiltered rock n' roll in store, look for an impressive set tomorrow night that might make you want a drink or two! Joining them are Brad Example & The Role Models, in their first show that I've heard of in over four years! This is the punk quartet fronted by Inner City Surfers bassist Brad Lacell (a.k.a. Brad Example), along with his Surfers bandmate Dave Bahun and Lion Ride's own Marco Pedalino on guitar, and veteran local drummer Phil Greco, who you may recognize from bands like Tripod The Dog. Thanks to Marco for the lineup details! What will we get out of Brad and company tomorrow, a Surfers-inspired sound or something different? We'll find out at after 9:00 PM tomorrow night! There is no announced cover charge, and you must be 19 to attend. For full details, visit the official Facebook event page and the above links!

I'll be there for The Saigon Hookers' local debut! I've liked their sound for a while now and figured they'd come to town eventually, and here they are! Brad Example & The Role Models should be good too, I've liked the Surfers for years, so they can't be bad! Check the above links for more, and I hope to see you guys at The Rockstar Bar tomorrow night! For a preview, here's a compilation video from Carmine's run with the band, of their song "Devil To Win"!



Meanwhile, The Big Cheese in Heyden will enjoy some hard rocking music in a more intimate setting tomorrow night, as Tym Morrison returns there in the latest concert for his bi-weekly arrangement there! As the Caveman Morrison inactive period continues, you can enjoy similar tunes (just unplugged) by heading to The Big Cheese tomorrow night, for what should be another entertaining night of songs! There's no announced cover charge, it all starts at 10:00 PM, and you must be 19 to enter. For full details, visit the Facebook event page! Sounds like a fun night of music, and Tym should be in good form to deliver songs of any genre to the fans in attendance! Head out for this one if you can, and for a video preview, here's Tym covering Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" last year at Foggy Notions!



Our last six shows for today's preview post are courtesy of three bands playing two nights this weekend, and we'll start at The Nicolet Tavern, where local classic hard rockers Turner Up will return to the stage for another fun weekend of covers and classics! The hard working quintet will surely be ready to rock tomorrow night and Saturday night in their latest weekend on the local stage, so if you wanna rock out with some classic hard rock, The Nic looks like a good spot to be at this weekend! There's no announced cover charge for either show, you must be 19 to attend, and both nights have 10:00 PM start times. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! So if you want to rock the winter blues away, either of these shows should work! Check the above links for more, and for a preview, here's Turner Up covering Guns N' Roses' "Mr. Brownstone"!



If you're looking for a different brand of classic hard rock for this weekend, then maybe That's Chester will fit the bill! In their first advertised concerts in almost a month, That's Chester return to Docks Riverfront Grill tomorrow night and Saturday night to deliver their own takes on classic and modern hard rock tunes! Featuring five prominent (and very talented) local music veterans, they'll surely be all set for a great weekend of music in their own right! They'll be on both nights at around 11:00 PM, there's no announced cover charge, and as usual, you must be 19 to enter Docks for either show. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see That's Chester back out there, though I hope the bookings pick back up for them, as a weekend at Docks a month has to be a bit of an anomaly. Still, check them out this weekend if you can, there's lots of talent to go around! For a preview, here's That's Chester covering "Highway Star" by Deep Purple last year at Docks!



Finally for today, we close our Thursday-Saturday previews in Sault Michigan, where at least two shows are taking place this weekend (If I'm missing any, let me know!) So we head to The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino, where local hard rock trio Monkey's Uncle return to the Kewadin stage for the first time in two months for shows tomorrow night and Saturday night! Note that these were among the eighteen hard rock concerts that disappeared from Kewadin Casino's entertainment page in January or earlier, but Monkey's Uncle do list these shows on their MySpace page, so I'd expect they're still on! It looks like both of these shows will have 9:00 PM start times, no cover charge, and 21+ age limits. For more details, check the above links! Sounds good to me, hopefully good crowds turn out across the river for Monkey's Uncle this weekend! They're an entertaining hard rock band with some very good originals and covers, take my word for it! Check the above links for more details and info on Monkey's Uncle, and for a preview, here's Monkey's Uncle covering Nazareth's "Hair of the Dog"!



That's all for now, but I hope to have a new news post up later tonight before I head to The Rosie! Remember, the previews of the We, The Undersigned and Rebel Spell concerts will be posted on Saturday or Sunday, and there's more news aside from that to come as well, so stay tuned! Thanks everyone!

Hempfest & Woods Of Ypres Updates, And More!!

Hey everyone, I'm still in Detroit, but I do have some more local metal news to share today! This is mostly a compliation of recent stories that I haven't reported on lately, but some newer stories are in the queue for at least one more post before I return home, hopefully. So for today, we have the latest news from Woods of Ypres and an upcoming hard rock concert, and some more assorted stories, but first, here's the latest updates on a major upcoming concert festival!

This year's edition of Hempfest has a new timeframe for when it will take place. The bad news is it was pushed back two weeks, but the good news is it's now gonna be A FULL WEEK long! The festival will now take place from August 8th to 15th at it's familiar location in nearby Ophir, Ontario. The reason for the change is due to issues securing a sound man for the original dates. Hopefully the lengthening of the festival will counteract that! According to the e-mail that organizer Robert Neron sent to Facebook attendees on Wednesday night, the festival will now consist of 3 ½ days of camping, and 3 ½ days of partying, which likely implies that entertainment will take place from 12:00 PM on August 11th through the end of Hempfest this year. As such, the new ticket price for the festival will be $15 a day or $100 for the full week, which will be a $5 savings from buying 7 individual tickets. The on-sale date of June 3rd doesn't appear to have changed. As for the scheduled bands and performers, as of right now, their schedules and days to perform are unchanged save for being moved two weeks earlier. I imagine alterations could be made if the new dates conflict with prior engagements, but we'll likely hear about this as it comes. In the off chance a performer sees this and didn't hear the news, contact Robert Neron at this location to confirm what you need to confirm!

For full current details, visit the official Facebook event page. Hopefully this date change doesn't throw too many people off, but hey, it had to be if they wanted a good sound guy! At least now, it's a longer festival, and I can safely say that Robert's putting a ton of work into this, so you know it will come together well! Stay tuned for Hempfest updates as I hear them, especially concerning the metal and hard rock bands announced for this year!

Secondly today, here's the latest news on a notable hard rock band's local debut next month! Once only advertised on Reverbnation with information to be announced, the March 4th concert headlined by Kitchener hard rockers The Saigon Hookers now has full details to share! For one, the opening band has been announced, and it is Brad Example & The Role Models! This is the band fronted by Inner City Surfers bassist Brad Lacell (a.k.a. Brad Example), and I assume they play punk, I'm not entirely sure. Though the Facebook event page says that this is their first show, I have located evidence that a band of the exact same name played at Foggy Notions on December 30th, 2006 (source here), so if nothing else, they haven't played a show recently! The house rules that I previously assumed appear to be the same, so expect a 19+ age limit, no cover charge, and a 9:00 PM start time (likely later though). And yes, this is the show poster on your left, not too bad! Sounds like a fun time, hopefully I can make it out! Also, notice all the Lion Ride connections with this show? Lion Ride bassist Carmine Romano was a long time member of The Saigon Hookers before leaving last month, and frontman Mikey Hawdon drums for The Inner City Surfers with Brad Example, so this show should feel familiar in a few ways! Stay tuned for updates if they come in!

Thirdly today, here's some new Woods of Ypres news! Firstly, the band's Facebook page now features some new t-shirt designs to soon be sold, including a girl's baby doll t-shirt and a normal style shirt, both of which are indeed black! These aren't available to order or pre-order yet, but if you want to pre-order anything from Woods of Ypres' new merchandise, click here! Secondly, the band have announced five new out of town concert dates for shows in Ottawa, Fredericton, Kelowna, San Antonio, and Seattle! Check out their official forum for details, and yes, these shows are now in our out of town concert listings on your right! Also on the Woods of Ypres docket for tonight, here's some of the latest reviews of the "Woods IV: The Green Album" re-issue! Dejon Turner from The Aquarian Weekly gave the album a B, describing it in one word: Arboreal. He praised it's beauty but found it hard to get into, which I can agree with. Click here to see the full review! New York-based music blog Brooklyn Rocks gave "W4" an overall positive review, but it seems to be more of a description of it's sound than a critique of what the author thought. Still, he sums it up well, check it out at this location!

Finally, though not a full review, Vince Neilstein from the amusing metal blog Metal Sucks posted a short article about Woods of Ypres on there on February 9th! Despite an uncertainty of how to pronounce Ypres (it's ee-pray, but he settled with "Woods of Awesome"), Vince highly praises Woods of Ypres, referring to their sound as "Type O Negative at their darkest, doomiest, slowest, and saddest". I'd agree for "W4", but I don't think he's heard their earlier albums much. Still, it's great press, so check it out (and more from this awesome site) at this location!

Let's close today's post with three shorter stories, in alphabetical order by name:

• Local hardcore quintet As It Stands will headline a metal concert in Windsor, Ontario on March 26th! They'll be back at The Coach & Horses with area metal and punk bands, and you can get full details on this show at this location! Sounds good, nice to see them spread their sound further, but remember to check them out at The Rosie on March 3rd as well!
• Metallurgy, the solo metal project from local guitarist Neno Jovanovich, has posted a new 20 second clip of some riffs he wrote onto his Reverbnation page! I have to say, it sounds really promising in a groove metal sort of way, but I'd like to see it expanded on for more of a song! Still, click the above links for that and more!
• I've added the inactive local recording studio Swallows Nest Productions to the "Other Local Metal Links" at the bottom left. Active in the spring of 2010, it was a home-based record studio that would have brought "professionalism to the working musician". Local concert promoter & bassist Nathan Bouliane worked as a production designer with Swallows Nest during their brief run, which seemed to dry up in May. It'd have been interesting to see this succeed! Still, if you wanna check it out, the link's above!

That's all for today, in all likelihood, but I should have more news by Tuesday, so stay tuned! Thanks everyone, and go to some concerts tonight!