Anvil Concert Video Showcase, Part 2!!

As promised, here's the second half of our video coverage of last week's Anvil-headlined concert at Soo Blaster, this time focusing on Christopher Paci's footage from the concert, with videos uploaded to his excellent YouTube channel shortly thereafter! Compared to Re:Born's six posted videos from this night, Chris uploaded fourteen videos, so there's a lot more to take in here, but give both sources a look for different and very valid looks at the old school metal action on offer! Starting with the headlining Toronto metal legends, Chris filmed five videos from their set, including their songs "Metal on Metal", "Bitch In The Box", "Badass Rock N' Roll", and one video featuring their opening songs "March of the Crabs" & "666". Embedded below is their song "Mothra", complete with extended instrumental jam in the middle of the performance. Compared to Re:Born's videos, these are closer to the "Soo Lounge" stage, and allow for some nice angles of frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow playing to the crowd.

The audio quality comes through well enough on these videos, if harbouring some muffled moments, but fans of Anvil's classic attack should be right at home here. Give these videos a look above & below!



Next up, Chris also filmed five videos of Edmonton classic metal quintet Striker's co-headlining set, including their songs "Fight For Your Life", "Former Glory", "Head First", "Heart of Lies", and as embedded below, both "Out For Blood" & "Full Speed or No Speed". Chris is a little further back here, but Striker's impressive and proficient original onslaught is captured nicely on these videos, and fans of their throwback sound will definitely appreciate the ample Striker footage above and below!



Chris also filmed three videos of local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades' set, capturing them playing "Rise" and their cover of The Ripcordz' "X", but embedded below is their original "To The Left". I won't fault Chris for the more distant camera angle here as fans weren't really on the floor yet, and I can relate to not wanting to be "that guy" in everyone's road. I just wish the camera wasn't so jittery! That said, Jack Spades are on form despite cramped conditions, so give Chris' videos of them a look above also!



Finally, Chris filmed a single solitary video of opening power rock quintet Re:Born (minus Frank) covering Kissin' Dynamite's "Sex Is War" last week. Filmed at a similar angle to Jack Spades, the cover is well done, if with somewhat inaudible vocals, and luckily there's no heckling this time around! Check out Chris' Re:Born clip below, and see more from the show above!



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

Anvil Concert Video Showcase, Part 1!!

Before we begin this post, I wanted to offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Big Wreck guitarist Brian Doherty, who passed away last Wednesday at the age of 51, following a lengthy battle with cancer. A co-founder of Big Wreck who played on all of their albums and tours (as well as the last Thornley tour that led to Big Wreck's reunion in 2010), local fans will have just seen Brian on stage in February 2018 when Big Wreck headlined at The Machine Shop during their "In Loving Memory Of..." anniversary tour. The guys previously played locally in 2001, though potential 1990s shows here are not well archived online. Big Wreck had just released their new single "Too Far Gone" last month and were scheduled for festival dates this summer, so follow along on band or regional news sources for updates on their near future plans. By all accounts, Brian was a kind and generous person who added a lot of skilled playing & songwriting to Big Wreck, and hopefully fans will hold onto the good memories. R.I.P. Brian!

Now, today's post is entirely devoted to videos from Sunday's Anvil-headlined concert at Soo Blaster, as solid quality videos of each band have turned up on two familiar public sources! We'll start with the videos filmed by one of the local opening acts, namely power rock quintet Re:Born, who posted six videos from every band at this concert onto their Facebook page on Monday. Of course, they filmed one video of headlining Toronto metal legends Anvil playing their song "Badass Rock N' Roll", which was also filmed for Chris Paci's YouTube channel (more on his videos in a couple of days.) Filmed in typically solid quality from the floor, the performance is up to Anvil's lively yet heavy standards, and fans definitely seem receptive to the metal on metal action! See more from Anvil's (and every band's) set on Chris' channel linked above, but give Re:Born's Anvil video a look below!



Possibly a sign of how well Re:Born members liked their set, two videos of co-headlining Edmonton metal band Striker made their page, featuring the NWOBHM-inspired quintet playing their songs "The Front" and, as embedded below, "Born To Lose". Here, the filmer got much closer to the stage, and was way happier to zoom in on their intense throwback attack here. Very strong and melodic performances are on display here, and Striker helped make up for lost time after 6 years, so check out their videos above & below!



One video was uploaded of fellow local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades' set on Sunday, with the video in question featuring J.D., Tiffany, Daniel, Rob, and Johnny playing their original "Fear Corps." The filmer got a wider angle of the band like Anvil, but there were less fans on the floor at this juncture. The guys are definitely cramped on stage due to Anvil's setup, but this fast paced and aggressive original comes through just fine, so give Jack Spades' continued planet-jacking a look below!



Finally, we'll actually look at Re:Born's own videos from their opening set, with one video featuring them covering both Kissin' Dynamite's "Sex Is War" (also filmed by Chris) & Motley Crue's "Live Wire", but embedded below is their own original "Die Another Day." While still sans Frank, these performances showcase Re:Born's increasing confidence and chemistry, and the covers come through really well in their own right, but Elly needs to loosen up a bit still to match her stage presence with her vocal ability more. Give Re:Born's videos a look above and below as well!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews and more next! Thanks everyone!

Oh!No Concert Festival Lineup Information, Plus The Anvil/Striker Concert Preview!!

Today's post features a preview of a big Sunday night concert, but first, here's the full lineup for the third annual Oh!No festival is now out! Returning to Robbie Adamson's church in nearby Leeburn, this year's installment is the biggest yet, as Oh!No III will be a two night event on Friday, September 6th and Saturday, September 7th! As such, we're not calling this as a proper local concert alert until daily schedules are revealed, but the odds that there will be a day without heavier acts are basically nil. After having an 18 act marathon last year, the two night structure will allow promoters Six, Two, Oh. to spread this year's 25 acts out, but who all is scheduled for this fall? Eleven of the scheduled performers are from out of town, including 6 returnees from past Oh!No festivals. Sudbury punk quartet Lightmares and Thunder Bay desert rock quintet The Franquilizers will return to Leeburn for a third straight year each, while Peterborough hardcore punk trio Cross Dog (featuring the Soo's own Mark Rand) is among the returning performers from last year.

The other touring attractions back from 2018 include Sudbury "party violence" quintet The Therapists, Peterborough doom rapper Garbageface, and Toronto indie rock quartet Forest City Aurora. No Beaver Slap this year, but the five Oh!No (and Sault Ste. Marie-area) newcomers from afar will include Thunder Bay hardcore-influenced bands Femur & Lord Hidetora, St. Catharine's crossover thrash quintet Pisser, Barrie punk quartet The Speed Humps, and Montreal classic rock solo project Wrecker. Lots of old and new talent here, be sure to check all of these bands out before September! The local performing roster will feature punk/metal quintet Jack Spades and funk/hard rock quartet The Elements back for their own third straight appearances, while surf rock quartet The Dynowaves, hip-hop duo Planet Rock, and indie/folk musician Shae Tull will all return from last year, and Dynowaves bassist Brenton Ellis will bring his online page-less solo project Slumshine back to Oh!No after last playing there in 2017.

Locally based newcomers to Oh!No this fall will include punk trio Stegadeth, cybergrind solo project Malignant Neoplasm, rappers Conika and Kodex, and new pop rock band Dusty Hazelwood (featuring co-promoter Jamie Vincent & Dynowaves members.) A new & yet online page-less punk trio named The Angry Spells are also advertised, though we await information on them beyond a description of their sound. We'll let you know when/if anything is said! Treble Charger guitarist Bill Priddle is advertised with a solo set this year after playing in his drone/noise band Pointless in the past two Oh!No festivals, though note that Oh!No's own 2019 artist bio on him credits him jointly as Pointless. Finally, local lo-fi acoustic punk solo project Telephone & Address are advertised to play this fall, marking their first live appearance since 2017 after being on public hiatus for well over a year. This is very encouraging news, and hopefully Chris has more in the pipeline, so Telephone & Address are back in our active band links!

No sign of A Dire Setback or Winkstinger this year, but still, how's all this for a stacked and nicely varied lineup? Tickets will go on sale for a flat $40 at Case's Music, The Rad Zone, and Dryer Fire's pop-up location on Bruce Street, while camping will be available on site as usual, and while there's no stated age limit, a "B.Y.O.B." policy remains in effect. Doors open at 8:00 AM on Friday and 11:00 AM on Saturday, with daily schedules to be revealed. This should be another excellent time for concert goers able to make the trip an hour east to Leeburn, but there's still a lot to learn, so visit the above links for complete and ongoing details on Oh!No III!

Finally for today, here's our preview of a special Sunday night concert TOMORROW at Soo Blaster, as Toronto metal legends Anvil will return to Sault Ste. Marie for their fourth local show in the 2010s! It's been a long four year wait since we last saw Lips, Robb, and Chris deliver their requisite "metal on metal" to a local audience, and with the momentum of their newest CD "Pounding the Pavement" still ongoing, they should deliver another heavy set of classic hits and newer originals tomorrow night! Co-headlining tomorrow are Edmonton metal quintet Striker in their first local concert appearance since headlining at The Rosie six years ago, and with their finely tuned NWOBHM throwback sound, they should melt many faces in their own right at Soo Blaster! Remember, this was originally advertised as a Striker headlining show before Anvil were confirmed. The aforementioned Jack Spades will join power rock quintet Re:Born as openers, who should set the tone well with their own diverse takes on their genres!

Advance tickets are on sale for $20 at Soo Blaster (or $25 at the door), this is a 19+ event, and a somewhat early 7:30 PM start time is advertised. Also, note the $200 VIP booth option for a party of 6, if you are so inclined for that experience. It's great to have Anvil and Striker back for a night full of old school metal intensity, with Re:Born more than up to the task on another big stage for them, and don't forget about Jack Spades' punk-influenced attack either! Don't miss out on all of tomorrow's action if you can swing it, visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Anvil live!



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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Striker & Dustin Jones And The Rising Tide), Plus New Videos!!

Today's news post ont he SMS is half devoted to some new video postings from earlier this month, but let's lead off with two LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the coming months that are both notable in very different ways!

Local Celtic punk quintet Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide will be among the performers at a special benefit concert at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion on Saturday, May 25th! The event is to raise funds for Kayge Fowler, a 6 year old boy from Sault Ste. Marie who has been battling for the past year with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), an aggressive form of brain cancer. This story has been frequently covered on local news and social media, including this Facebook group, as you may recall. Medical treatments, including experimental ones in Mexico, have led to many fundraising efforts, and this concert (entitled "Music 4 Kayge") is the latest, with four acts joining forces to raise money for the Kayge Fighters Against DIPG Foundation. The Rising Tide are the advertised co-headliners at 5:30 PM in their second show of 2019, while promoter Mark Tarantini will headline at 7:00 PM with a John Denver tribute set, notably featuring That's Chester alums Aubrey Falls & Ric Datson in his backing band.

Veteran local jazz/blues musician Jay Case will also play on the 25th at 4:30 PM, with new blues/country quintet Johnny & The Revelators (also featuring The Tide's Marshall Jaasekelainen) opening at 3:00 PM. This outdoor concert will have $10 adult tickets available at Northland Music and by phone at the number listed on the Facebook event page, while kids 10 & under get in FREE, and Mike Blair's 705Live Sound Company will handle sound on this day. It's great to see such a diverse roster of familiar local musicians join forces to help Kayge and his family in this time of need, and our best goes out to the Fowlers! Visit the above links for more on this benefit concert!

Next up, Edmonton heavy metal quintet Striker will make their long awaited return to Sault Ste. Marie on Sunday, June 9th when they hit Soo Blaster! This will be Striker's first local concert in almost 6 years, last seen melting faces at the former Roosevelt Hotel in June 2013, and their old school NWOBHM-inspired sound will surely be welcomed back by fans this summer with more hard rocking originals from their newest album "Head First"! Local openers will include power rock band Re:Born in their third announced show of 2019, all at Soo Blaster, so they'll be on familiar ground for their complimentary old school attack on June 9th! No word yet on if Frank will be back in the fold by this point. A second opening band is to be announced, but for reference, Striker's local openers in 2013 were Frightlight, The Bear Hunters, and Giwakwa, so a perfect sub-genre match isn't a requirement.

Notably, this is the first concert at Soo Blaster from promoter J.D. Pearce, following the quiet move of his Halloween Party concerts last year from the Queen Street nightclub/arcade to The Rockstar Bar. How will his entertaining live concert slate manage at the former Woolco building? Find out in seven weeks! This 19+ concert has a $10 cover charge and a likely 9:00 PM start time. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and hopefully Striker draws a big crowd in June as they give Soo Blaster a blast of metal!

We'll close today with new videos, starting with the latest from prolific local experimental musician Chase Wigmore's metal solo project Awokest, who posted their new album "Solving The Human Condition" in full onto Chase's YouTube channel last week! This was followed by a live version of "Rites of the Wendigo" from the album that Chase hinted may only be up "for a limited time", so give that a look just in case. The YouTube copy does not include individual track listings, so you'll have to go based on prior song postings and familiarity, or listen to the whole 54 minute album as one piece. As of right now, the album is not on sale, but physical pressings have been teased, and in case this gets reviewed on the site, I'll hold fuller comment for now. That said, if you like your extreme metal to have lots of samples, effects, bizarre soundscapes, and experimentation, give Awokest's new "album" a listen!



Finally for today, here's a new cover song from Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night, courtesy of their YouTube channel two weeks ago! Christmas materials aside, Theatre of Night's studio output is sporadic at best, unless you follow their Reverbnation page with any regularity, and this YouTube video is their first that isn't overtly season in almost a year. This is their rendition of the theme song from Game of Thrones, fittingly uploaded on the same day that the final season premiered (April 14th), and it seems like a strong cover from what I know of the original! Check it out below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

Striker & Locals Concert Review, Plus Bear Hunters & Frightlight Lineup Notes!!

In our second post of the day, we have our review of last night's Striker-headlined metal concert at The Roosevelt Hotel on the site, but of course, check out our LemmaFest recap/videos post immediately below! Medium attendance at best yesterday, sad to say, but it was a Tuesday night, and I know many people have to work. As for the 1980s costume contest, the winner (as chosen by Striker themselves during their set) was April Fogal, who won a signed show poster and some extra Striker merchandise, so congratulations to April for her win! Now, let's touch on each band!

Opening last night's concert was local stoner/death metal quartet Giwakwa in their fourth local concert appearance, and they put in another solid effort with their hard hitting original sound! Their set included their original songs "Stoned To Death", "Winter's Hunger", "Endless Bummer", and "Iron Lung", and an opening instrumental, and the guys handled each well, though the abbreviated set length and lack of covers does hurt compared to other bands they share the stage with, and I think they could be helped by filling out their set. Musically, the guys sounded as solid as ever, with singer Josh Stephney's vocal brutality on full display, and Chris Page's riffs powerful as ever, but Nolan Rainville really seemed restricted in movement due to last night's stage setup. I'd still like to see some more melodic touches with Giwakwa's live show, but they have a good thing going, and hopefully despite a major imminent change (more in a second), they'll get bigger and bigger in the coming months!

Before I talk about local death metal quintet The Bear Hunters' set, I wanted to note that during it last night, singer Nik Deubel revealed that Bear Hunters rhythm guitarist/Giwakwa frontman Josh Stephney is moving out of town later this summer. While Nik announced that last night's set was their "last official show" with him, that was a premature announcement, as I'll touch on in a post tomorrow. This definitely was an "endless bummer" to hear, as Josh is a talented singer & guitarist, but hopefully Josh succeeds at whatever's next for him, and we'll cover his actual last concert with his local bands in our next post!

As for The Bear Hunters' set, it was great to see them back in familiar ground at The Rosie, and their set attracted a large crowd (compared to the other local bands) with a lot of good responses! They played seven original songs (including "Bloodthirst", "Succumb To Eternity", and "Collapse The Sun"), along with their set-opening rendition of "Teddy Bear's Picnic" and a surprise return of the crowd favourite "Squirrel Buddy", and they seemed to be on form from their most recent live gigs! Nik Deubel's growling was as brutal as ever, Mitch Sirie & Josh laid it down hard on guitar, and Justin Lam's bass work was as skilled as ever! I'd still like to see them severely cut down the end of "Render This Void" (it's way too drawn out), and I think Mitch's guitar in particular was a bit low, but The Bear Hunters were as good as ever, and stay tuned tomorrow for news on their last concert with Josh next month!

Co-headlining last night was the return of Frightlight after an 8 month concert hiatus, and it was good to see their horror punk/metal hybrid back after so long! However, their lineup looked slightly different, as Redundant/Caveman Morrison bassist James White (a.k.a. Slim Cadaver) filled in for the absent Eddie Fright (no word on where he was, though he has attended college out of town in recemt months.) Aside from his lack of backing vocals, James/Slim filled in well on bass, and don't miss him with Frightlight when they open for The Creepshow in August either! Frightlight played six originals last night along with covers of Misfits, G.G. Allin, and Fitswitch songs, and they generally haven't lost a step musically, but they weren't as lively as they were at some 2012 dates, and Johnny Pints' vocals did tire a bit later in the set. As Frightlight play more shows again, things will get back to normal, but it's just good to see them rocking the local scene again, and don't miss them at The Algonquin Pub next month!

And finally, your headliners were Edmonton heavy metal quintet Striker, and just to pit mildly: they were awesome! They brought a blistering traditional heavy metal assault to a very lively crowd that was go from note one, and while I'm not one to rank and rate musicians compared to one another, frontman Dan Cleary is by far one of the best singers I've ever heard at a local metal concert! Just soaring, and with great falsettos and a heavy edge, his singing was a perfect compliment to Striker's very fast and heavy sound, which saw them play original songs like "Full Speed or No Speed", "Feed My Fire", and "Can't Stop The Rush" among numerous others! Despite the lower than hoped attendance, fans ate up every song, and with awesome riffs and solos from Tim Brown and Chris Segger all night, you can see why! I would have liked maybe some more crowd interaction, but other than that, I can't complain, as Striker put in an awesome set last night that was metal to the core and back, and hopefully they'll turn up in the Soo again down the road!

Overall, this was another home run of a concert from Johnny Pints, and kudos to Bear Hunters drummer Johnny Belanger for providing great sound throughout the night! Of course, I did get a bunch of photos of each band, so click here to check them our or visit our Facebook page, and as for videos, I got one original song from each band, so here's Giwakwa playing "Endless Bummer", The Bear Hunters playing "Deception", Frightlight playing "Dead Town Anywhere", and Striker playing "Terrorizer"!









That's all for today, but stay tuned for two news posts tomorrow, including new concert announcements & Sault Ontario weekend concert previews in one, and this month's Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile on Caste of Shadows in the other! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Frightlight), Striker Concert Preview, And Much More!!

Today's post at the SMS is focused mostly on Sault Ontario news and notes, including the complete schedule for a massive upcoming metal/punk show, and a preview for a special Tuesday night concert going down tomorrow, but we also have the last of our MySpace link changes & deletions to cover, mostly relating to Sault Michigan companies and venues. However, we're leading off with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month featuring two bands playing tomorrow night, so here's what you need to know!

Local horror punk/metal quintet Frightlight will play their second concert of 2013 on Saturday, July 27th at The Algonquin Pub! Barring any interim announcements, this will be their first Algonquin stop since October, and first headlining gig since then, and it'll be great to see the guys again following their return to the stage tomorrow (more on that in a bit.) This show will serve as a benefit to (I assume) raise money for the short film "The Kid Who Made The Face", which is being produced by bassist Mike Gingras (a.k.a. Eddie Fright), and all attendees of the show will be credited in it as a result. Mike's been taking college courses in filmmaking in Toronto in the past year, and hopefully this film will show the fruits of his labour, so come on out to support this movie! Two local opening bands have been signed on as well for July 27th, including local melodic death metal quintet The Bear Hunters (in their Algonquin Pub debut) and local punk trio Redundant, who should both add nicely to the metal and punk sides of the audience next month, so don't miss them!

Doors open at 9:00 PM for this 19+ concert, and there's an admission price of $5. For more details, check the above links, and the commercial below that Mike posted on his YouTube channel on Saturday, which combines advertising for the show with clips from the movie "The Warriors". Nice little ad, and hopefully it hypes you up for the concert, so check it out below, and stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's a preview for a special and very intriguing metal concert going down TOMORROW NIGHT at The Roosevelt Hotel, as Edmonton classic heavy metal quintet Striker will make their local debut with a hard hitting faced paced set of original songs! Comparable in sound to recent local favourites like Skull Fist and 3 Inches of Blood, Striker have an exciting and energetic sound that fans of early 1980s speed metal should eat up, so definitely don't miss this stop on their Heavy Metal Rampage Tour!! Three local opening bands will also be on board, and though none are perfect genre matches, there's a nice diverse mix of sounds to enjoy, including the long awaited return of Frightlight after an 8 month stage hiatus, the aforementioned Bear Hunters, and local sludge/death metal quartet Giwakwa in just their fourth live concert, so heavy metal fans will almost certainly find something to like, and Frightlight's return is extra notable in itself! Admission will be $5 at the door for this 19+ concert, with doors opening at 9:00 PM. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

Also, promoter/Frightlight frontman Johnny Pints is also hosting a contest for the best 1980s metal costume tomorrow night, so get in on that to compete for a prize! This should be an awesome concert full of different and very intense heavy metal, so don't miss it, and I hope to see you guys there TOMORROW! For a preview, here's 14 minutes of Striker playing live in Edmonton in April!

Also today, the complete schedule has been announced for the third annual Sewer Swampstravaganza all ages show on August 10th at The Oddfellows Hall! Note that the lineup has changed at least once since today, but as best as I can tell, it was a minor change. As you might expect, Montreal thrash trio Warsenal will headline the event at 11:00 PM, with local punk/classical trio RedD Monkey (also the event's hosts/promoters) taking the stage at 10:00 PM. Melodic death metal standouts The Bear Hunters will play at 9:00 PM, to be preceded by local grunge/alternative band Haggith at 8:00 PM, local punk trio The Northern Tragedy at 7:00 PM, stoner/death metal quartet Giwakwa at 6:00 PM, "blue Chinese metal crash punk" notables Sykotyk Rampage at 5:00 PM, extreme metal quartet Winkstinger at 4:00 PM, rising death metallers Crimson Crusade at 3:00 PM, and young local hard rock quartet Ashes To Dust opening the show at 2:00 PM.

Definitely a return to the metal-heavy lineup of the 2011 installment, but with seven new bands (to the series), and at least 22 performers who haven't played in past years, there'll be tons of recent talent to enjoy, and for just $5! Check the above links for more details, and stay tuned for updates!

Finally for today, here's the remainder of our recent MySpace page deletions and changes in our link & venue listings, due to the recent design overhaul and information removals. Firstly, I moved a bunch of Sault Michigan & area links from MySpace to Facebook, including for local concert venues The Corner Pub Bar & Grill, Golanka's Bar (The Bird), The Savoy Bar & Nightclub, and Zim's, local music store Steve's Music Center, and local label/studio Werehold Records. I also moved local lessons/rock camp The Guitar Studio from MySpace to their official website, while the rest of the changes were page deletions, as the other links were for companies & venues that didn't have other known online pages. The deletions included inactive Sault Ontario concert promotion agencies Adamantium Productions, Big Voiced Records, Hitman Productions, and Infamous Productions, inactive regional recording studios idioRECORDS, Klusterfunk Studios, and Lucky Limb Studios, former local concert festival Bell Border Jam, defunct radio show The Mistresses of Metal, and Sault Michigan venue The Satisfied Frog (though I left it in the venue links as it still actively hosts shows.)

I think that's the last of our changes related to MySpace's new direction, but I still wish they'd restore at least profile information, photos, and videos to at least the band pages, as they would further their aims of it being music-centric, but I'm not assuming that they ever will. I just want to keep you guys abreast of the changes, and hopefully next time a popular site for local band pages decides to delete/overhaul things like this, we'll know ahead of time. That's all for today, but stay tuned for some major Sault Michigan news that I know some of you are waiting for very soon. Thanks everyone!

Concert Lineup Additions, Bands Looking To Play Here, And New Videos!!

In our second post of the day, we're covering some big recent news, including new videos from two very different local bands, two out of town bands looking to play here, and first up, new bands on two very promising upcoming concerts! Read on below for what you need to know, and check out this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on Insipid Brutality in the post below this one!

First up, here's some new lineup additions for a couple of upcoming metal concerts in Sault Ontario, as per each one's Facebook event page! Firstly, both local opening bands have been confirmed for the Striker-headlined show at The Roosevelt Hotel on June 25th, as local death metal quintet The Bear Hunters and returning local horror punk/metal quintet Frightlight will open this concert! While The Bear Hunters are no strangers to recent live events, this will be Frightlight's first live appearance in 8 months, so take note of their long awaited return set in two weeks! Though not an exact match for Striker's entertaining old school metal sound, there's a lot of clear talent and heaviness to be had, so click here for full details! The other new addition is to the 3rd annual Sewer Swampstravaganza on August 10th, as local/North Shore death metal quartet Crimson Crusade are the ninth confirmed band for this massive all ages show! I believe this will be their first ever Oddfellows Hall appearance, though drummer Robert Crossley almost played at last summer's Swampstravaganza with Inhuman Methods before they dropped out.

Nice to see the guys gaining momentum and playing more venues, so keep them in mind come August, stay tuned for updates on the final band to complete the 10 band lineup, and message promoters at this link if your band is interested in playing!

Also, can you help a couple of bands get concerts here? One is Vernon, British Columbia blackened death metal quintet Xul, who are hoping to get a concert booked for Sault early next week (on either the 17th or 18th), as per recent e-mail correspondence with their publicist Jon Asher. I forwarded him some contacts, but can you help in case those don't work out? Xul have a very brutal sound full of dark influences and lyrics, and some intense themes and riffs, and they'd be more than welcome here, so if you can help out, message the band at this location! The other band searching for a local date that I know if is Hamilton metalcore quartet Deterrence, as per recent contact with bassist Yannos Pigadas. Though a preferred date wasn't mentioned, I gave him some contacts too, but just in case, can you help? Their hardcore hybrid sound has a lot of intensity and moshing promise, but if you can help Deterrence get a local show, message Yannos at this link, and stay tuned in case either band come through the Soo this year!

We'll close today with new videos, starting with the long awaited upload of young local hard rock band Ashes To Dust's first studio original track "Forgotten Lives"! Uploaded to their YouTube channel as expected on Saturday, it's a well played hard rock original with nice lyrics, but the verses seem very simple, and I'd like to hear louder guitars and quieter vocals in the mix. Noah Morden's singing is on good display though, and the choruses are highlights, so give Ashes To Dust's new song a listen below, and don't miss the guys at the Swampstravaganza on August 10th!

Finally for today, here's our first visual glimpse of Sault Ontario grind project Crucify The Whore in a live setting! Among three other recent song postings in the past week (all of which have possibly disturbing imagery and/or offensive song titles) that you can stream at the band's label Blood Shed Productions' YouTube channel, this video was just posted yesterday, and it features project mainman Ringsnaps Gibson pig squealing and playing guitar with what I assume is a backing track. The sound quality's alright, but the cell phone dimensions of the video are somewhat restrictive. It's nice to put a face to the project, and you can see more talent than some of the songs may have indicated based on their general length and themes, but I'm still hoping that he expands to a full band and plays live at some point, as I think they'd gain a local foothold faster that way. At least things are expanding slowly, so check out the first live Crucify The Whore video below, and stay tuned for more recent uploads from other Blood Shed Productions acts!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news shortly, including (if all goes well), our review of Haggith's newest CD! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Striker & The Suicide Kings), Plus Many More Recent News Items!!

We're clearing most of our recent news items in this post, and there's some big stuff to get to in it, so what's in store? We have lots of recent news from The Suicide Kings, and a pile of other shorter recent news stories from the area, but leading off, we have some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for big summer shows in Sault Ontario, so read on below for what you need to know!

Edmonton heavy metal quintet Striker will hit The Roosevelt Hotel for a headlining concert on Tuesday, June 25th! Presented by local concert promoter J.D. "Johnny Pints" Pearce, this show should appeal to fans of classic metal and NWOBHM bands, and if you enjoyed recent local shows with bands like 3 Inches of Blood & Skull Fist, Striker and their tour-tested, very heavy sound will be completely up your alley, so check them out at this location! Two local opening bands are being sought, but no one has been publically confirmed as of this writing, but message J.D. at this location if your band is interested in opening. There will also be an attached costume contest for the best 1980s metal outfit worn by attendees, with prizes for the winner(s?), so keep that in mind for the 25th as well! Admission will be $5 for this 9:00 PM concert, and I'd assume this is a 19+ event unless indicated otherwise. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be an awesome concert, and I'm really digging Striker's sound, so stay tuned for updates!

Also, our first public indications of metal or hard rock at Rotaryfest are now in, as Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands winners The Suicide Kings have revealed that they will be performing on the main stage at Clergue Park on Friday, July 19th! This really caught me off guard, as they play original material, whereas the edict from Rotaryfest organizers is that the main stage bands have to be covers-only, but maybe they're only playing covers for their set? Time will tell, I suppose, but this is a big opportunity all the same! The posting on The Suicide Kings' Facebook page from yesterday indicates that they'll be on at 9:00 PM on July 19th, which is one of the top timeslots, so absolutely keep that in mind during Sault Ontario's annual summer festival next month! The full schedule has not yet been officially unveiled, but Rotaryfest's website indicates that the headliners on Saturday, July 20th will be Rolling Stones tribute band The Blushing Brides (keeping with the recent trend of an out of town tribute band headlining the main stage on the Saturday), while I assume the jazz/blues theme for Thursday the 18th would still be in effect.

Also to note, The Suicide Kings' Facebook posting indicated that they'd be "the only band in the genre" on the main stage, though we won't know if that's definitely the case until an official lineup is posted. Admission should be free, and this is ALL AGES as usual. Check the above links for more details! The Suicide Kings should leave a good impression for their Rotaryfest debut, even if they're not on the more original-friendly Second Stage, but best of luck come July, and stay tuned for updates on the full entertainment lineup as we hear it! In other Suicide Kings news, the same posting above indicated that their forthcoming debut EP "King of the World" is in the mixing process, and they'll be using the recording time won at the Rockstar Bar Battle to record drum tracks towards it. Good art takes time, so hopefully everything turns out awesome when finished! Finally, have you seen postings on Facebook relating to a Suicide Kings/Haggith concert TONIGHT that we haven't covered on here?

Well, that's an invitation-only gig at Haggith's label/studio PaperClip Productions' headquarters, so because it's not publically attendable, we didn't call it on here. If you're invited, go check out the Rockstar Bar Battle's top 2 bands tonight, and hopefully there will be some shareable fallout to come out of it!

Finally for today, here's six assorted recent shorter news stories (mostly from across the river), and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist, company, or venue name:

• On May 20th, Mackinac City classic rock station The Bear (which picks up here on better radios) finally changed it's FM frequency & call sign to 97.7 WOEZ out of Cheboygan (not 106.3 out of Onaway as was previously indicated) via recent station trades. The new position is just one notch off of it's old regional home, 97.9 WIHC (now Strong Tower Radio) out of Newberry, but I assume any interference will depend on where you're located. Make note of the change though!
• Barring a return to activity by Wednesday, we'll soon be moving mid-2000s Sault Michigan-area hair/classic metal band Dust N' Bones to our inactive band links. Led by Theatre of Night's Craig Harrison (and later becoming a T.O.N. side project upon their early 2012 reunion), Dust N' Bones have offered no public updates since June 12th of last year, but hopefully Craig and company revisit this entertaining material down the road!
• In case you weren't sure, LemmaFest (the annual Mike Lemma tribute concert outside of Dondee Lanes) is returning for a third installment on Saturday, June 22nd! Early plans & information have been made public at their official Facebook page from May 30th onward, which is oddly late compared to the past 2 years, especially with no bands confirmed yet that I know of. Stay tuned for updates though, and hopefully this year's a hit like the others!
• As best as I can tell, former local concert venue Madison's Pub (in the Food Basics plaza on Pine Street) is undergoing renovations this month for it to become an Irish themed bar named The Harp Pub & Grill, as per postings on this event page for an upcoming local musician showcase event being held there. Madison's hadn't been a visible metal venue since the end of 2009, but maybe things might pick up with it becoming The Harp? You never know!
• A local singer named Marika Suha is looking to join a local band, and though she didn't give a genre indication, she's hoping to join a "very very cool kick ass band", so that could mean metal for all we know. If you're interested in seeing if she'd be the right fit, message her at this location or check out her post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group from Wednesday morning!
• Half A Man frontman Erik Rintamaki has started his own concert sound company & recording studio named Superior Sound Company to provide live event sound & professional song recordings in the Eastern Upper Peninsula. No indications as of yet of metal/hard rock work, but we all know Erik's local music background is a good sign for that, so message Superior Sound at the above links for more info, and they're now in our Other Sault Michigan Links section!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news as it comes in, along with our Defunct Local Band Profile on Insipid Brutality on Monday! Thanks everyone!

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

It's time to preview this weekend's metal and hard rock concerts in the Sault Ste. Marie area, and the next three days are notable for a number of beginnings, debuts, and ends for local bands in the area, including a new band's debut, another band's rebirth, a new lineup's first shows, and a local band's last shows in the Sault area. What all should you know for your weekend concert plans? Read on for all the details!

Firstly is TONIGHT'S 40th Roosevelt Hotel metal night, which is also the third under booker Stephane Vincent and (reportedly) the final one of 2011. Once again, three local metal bands are lined up with a mix of new and old to be seen, including headliners The Bear Hunters & Shit Liver in their record 17th respective appearances at Rosie metal nights! Be it a melodic death metal onslaught or a grimy and crusty brand of death metal, these two talented local bands will be sure to deliver some moshing good times tonight once again! Also joining them tonight is a brand new local band (the first to debut at a Rosie metal night in six months) and they are General Striker, a possibly one-off metal trio made up of the members of Late & Loud (minus Brendan Christie.) How will they sound? What's their setlist like? There's only one way to find out, and that's to head to The Rosie TONIGHT! As usual, there is a 19+ age limit tonight, there's no cover charge, and everything should start at around 10:00 PM. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! And remember, there will not be a Rosie metal night on the current bi-weekly schedule on December 22nd for unknown reasons, so if you love this Thursday metal tradition, be at The Rosie TONIGHT!

This should be a very good concert with lots of heaviness in store for fans, and it will sure be interesting to hear General Striker in their debut as well, so definitely keep TONIGHT's show in mind! Be it death metal or some more classic old school metal, you'll find something to enjoy for sure! For a preview, here's The Bear Hunters playing their song "Karma" at The Rosie earlier this summer!



Also in concert previews, while we have a band debuting tonight, another local band makes their long awaited return to the local stage this weekend, as Caveman Morrison will rock The Roosevelt Hotel TOMORROW NIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT! After a 5 month hiatus & a concert cancellation two weeks ago, this talented local metal cover trio will play their first concerts since July in Goulais River this weekend, in what will also be the debuts of their current lineup! Since their last shows in the summer, bassist Jacques Marceau has been replaced by James White of Redundant, while drummer Willie Bellerose was replaced by James' brother Rick, who himself returns to Caveman Morrison over a year & a half after leaving the band's bass position. How will the new Caveman Morrison lineup sound this weekend? I've heard positive things, but the only sure way to find out is to head to The Roosevelt Hotel tomorrow or Saturday night! There's is no announced cover charge for either stop this weekend, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is announced. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

It's about time that Caveman Morrison returned to the stage, and I know that their new lineup has a lot of promise for their fans, so definitely consider heading to The Rosie this weekend to take the new lineup in! Besides, if you're used to frontman Tym Morrison's solo shows, The Rosie isn't far from The Service Grill, so it's no issue for location either! Best of luck this weekend for sure, and for a preview, here's an older Caveman Morrison lineup featuring Tym and Rick covering Metallica's "Seek & Destroy" in 2009!



Amidst all the lineup debuts this weekend, there is a notable end in the area as well, as Sault Michigan hard rock quintet Splitshot will make their final local concert appearances tomorrow & Saturday night at The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino. As previously reported on November 23rd, bassist Kyle Beaumont had told me that Splitshot were disbanding at the end of the year for unannounced reasons, with most of their lineup (save for Dave Menard & Gary Beaumont) moving on to Trail's End full time next year, leaving just their previously announced dates in the U.P. on their schedule, with their last shows in Sault Michigan lined up for this weekend. Note that these are not the last Splitshot concerts, as they'll be rocking the Kewadin Casino in St. Ignace over New Years' Weekend, but St. Ignace is just out of our "local" range. Still, keep those dates in mind as well! Details are mostly scant for this weekend's shows, however, but I'd assume a 10:00 PM start time, a 21+ age limit, and no cover charge will be in effect as usual. Check the above links for more details! Though the end of Splitshot isn't here yet, it is disappointing to know that these are their last local concerts after over a year of successful and well recieved shows in the Upper Peninsula.

Despite never having media to share from their concerts, I know that the members of Splitshot have carried the torch from Nixxon Dixxon well over the past year, and we'll be sure to follow Trail's End next year as most of the band continues their musical journey! For one last chance to see Splitshot live in Sault Michigan, head to Kewadin Casino THIS WEEKEND, and also keep their New Years' Weekend shows in St. Ignace in mind as well, and if I hear anything more, I'll definitely let you guys know!

And finally for this weekend, it's the rebirth of Turner Up this Saturday night at Feedback! Nine months after the original Turner Up morphed into what is now Full Circle, the classic hard rock quintet has been reborn as a new band separate from Full Circle, and that means that for the first time since May, a band named Turner Up will grace a local concert marquee this Saturday! Their new lineup includes founding guitarist Robert Brown, longtime drummer Scott McLurg, and returning frontwoman Krista Marshall alongside new guitarist Jason Roy & bassist Travis Sharpe, and you know they'll have a great setlist of classic hard rock covers for fans at the former Foggy Notions on Saturday night! This is a one night only show this weekend, so don't miss the rebirth of Turner Up on Saturday, where there will likely be a 10:00 PM start time, a 19+ age limit, and probably no cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's great to see Turner Up back, and even if they're not as frequent of a sight as Full Circle, the talent will surely be there when they do take the stage, so don't miss their return this weekend! For a preview, here's the old Turner Up covering Guns N' Roses' "Mr. Brownstone" in January!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news by the weekend, along with this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles on Garage Inc. & Savage Roar on Saturday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Bear Hunters & Turner Up), A New Local Band, And New Videos!!

Let's get back to some big news today, and we're loaded with some cool stories tonight, including LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the next few days, including the continuation of a local concert series and another band's rise from the ashes, plus some new videos, details on a new local band, and more, so here's what you need to know!

There will indeed be a Roosevelt Hotel metal night THIS THURSDAY, continuing the bi-weekly schedule under new promoter Stephane Vincent, making this the 40th Rosie metal night overall and third under it's current form! Three local bands are signed for this week, including metal night mainstays The Bear Hunters & Shit Liver in their 10th appearance together at a Thursday metal concert at The Roosevelt Hotel! It's always good to see them share the stage again, and you know their proficient yet different takes on the genre of death metal will always be welcome to mosh to, so don't miss them! However, the opening band is a debuting local metal trio of sorts (the first band to debut at a Rosie metal night since Bring The Misery), and they're named General Striker, but what should you know about them? From what I understand, they're essentially Late & Loud minus singer/guitarist Brendan Christie (I take it he's unavailable on Thursday), so the other three members have formed this potentially one-off band to play this week. They have no band pages yet, so thanks to guitarist Jonathan Tiberi for the General Striker details! Will they have different material or a different sound than Late & Loud? There's only one way to find out, and that's to head to The Rosie in two nights! There's no cover charge, you must be 19 to attend, and it all starts at around 10:00 PM. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

Sounds like a solid night of metal as we've come to expect from the Rosie metal nights, so for some melodic & grimy death metal, plus your first (and only?) glimpse of General Striker, be at The Rosie THIS THURSDAY! Also for motivation to go: This is apparently the last Rosie metal night until 2012, as indicated on the Facebook event page linked above, meaning that the next Thursday of the bi-weekly schedule (December 22nd) is off. A reason for that isn't known, but I assume it's related to holiday commitments of some type, though I'll note that Christmas week is usually quite busy for concerts, so it strikes me as sort of odd. Stay tuned for more on this Thursday's metal night when we preview this weekend's metal/hard rock concerts!

Also for new concerts, it's the rebirth of Turner Up, whose new formation will debut THIS SATURDAY NIGHT at Feedback! As you may remember, the original Turner Up morphed into what is now Full Circle in March, officially changing their name in May, but longtime members Robert Brown & Scott McLurg have relaunched a new version of Turner Up with a much heavier sound than Full Circle currently employ, and they'll make their debut/return after seven months on Saturday night! Along with Robert on guitar and Scott on drums, the new Turner Up will see the return of frontwoman Krista Marshall (who last sang with the old Turner Up in February), along with new additions Jason Roy (Havadder) on second guitar and Travis Sharpe (Carbon Black) on bass, which should make for a very talented new lineup! A 9:00 PM start time is listed for their return (they'll likely start later than that though), you must be 19 to attend, and there's no announced cover charge. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and thanks to Scott for details on the new lineup!

It's great to finally see Turner Up back on an event marquee for a concert, and I know fans of their 2009-2011 run will be happy to see a return to heavier fare, so get ready to "turn 'er up" on Saturday night at Feedback! If I hear of any changes or updates, I'll let you guys know when we preview this weekend's metal and hard rock concerts on Thursday!

Next up, here's another new video of Sault Ontario deathcore band View To A Kill from bassist Adam Veale's dad John, who posted this video onto his YouTube channel yesterday. Also filmed at their headlining show at Feedback this past Saturday, it's of View To A Kill covering the Lamb of God song "Black Label", and they sound fairly good here, just like on the video of their Parkway Drive cover, but the lighting still seems off. Not a whole lot to add different, it's a solid cover and I prefer Lamb of God, so I approve! Check out the new video below, and stay tuned for more from View To A Kill as it all comes in!



And finally, here's this week's classic video! This week's notable for a lot of beginnings & ends in the local scene (the debuts of the new Turner Up & General Striker, and the final local shows from Splitshot, for example), but also new this weekend is the debut of Caveman Morrison's new lineup after a five month hiatus! I decided to focus this week's classic video on them this week, more specifically on new members, Redundant bandmates, and brothers James & Rick White. Before James re-entered the local music scene last year, he & Rick (along with his former Disciples of Rock bandmate Jamie Labreche) took part in a jam at a birthday party at The Sinton Tavern in Thessalon circa June 2009. The song they're jamming here was later named "Thin Air", as that's where the song came from that night, but it has a nice groove and great bass work from James! Rick's guitar playing flows nicely too, and Jamie shows his drum chops well, so it's a solid jam that would be interesting to see morphed into a fuller song! This video was uploaded onto Facebook by Jamie Labreche on June 22nd, 2009, and you can view the original video at http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=136058755760, though I did make some minor colour saturation edits after uploading the video to YouTube.

NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED!! All credit for this video goes to the White brothers and Jamie Labreche, as they did all the work with this video, I'm just sharing it with a wider audience like it deserves! It's a solid performance, so definitely give it a look below, and stay tuned for more on the return of Caveman Morrison this weekend!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on Thursday, our next Defunct Local Band Profiles on Saturday, and much more news and notes to come! Thanks everyone!