A bunch of notable YouTube videos have turned up in recent days, so let's focus on them and the stories that led to them in today's post, which includes a highlight video of a band's recent tour, a musician search and album uploads, and first, lots of details on a new local punk band! Here's what you should know on this Sunday night!
Remember how the surviving members of Nebraska Arms joined forces with Rising Tide alum Sheldon Jaaskelainen in a new local punk band named Honest Work at last month's Fuller reunion concert? Well, their online presence in their own accord is starting to crop up! The band has launched official pages on both TikTok and Instagram, though note that I've never listed bands in our links solely based on TikTok or Instagram because of how restrictive and photo/shortform video-focused they are. If you want to follow these "four dudes making tunes to beat that Northern Ontario gloom" until(?) they get a Facebook page or more elaborate online presence elsewhere, you know where to go! In his first YouTube channel uploads in 13 years, guitarist Dave Prendergast posted seven videos from their debut gig at LopLops Lounge there, and two of these were cross-posted (in edited & pillarboxed form) to TikTok, but we'll focus on the full YouTube copies here.
During their half-hour-long debut, Honest Work (not to be confused with Honest Job) were filmed by a representative covering Nirvana's "Aneurysm", Alkaline Trio's "Radio", Dead To Me's "Die In Los Angeles", and in a fitting tribute, Nebraska Arms' "Lighthouses" (R.I.P. Guy!). Their own originals were titled "Rock + Paper", "Dead Friends", and as embedded below, "Be Better". It wasn't 100% clear from Jimmy Polnick's live-stream of their set given the distant & vertical camera angle, but Sheldon is Honest Work's lead singer, with bassist Wayne Watkins (also frontman of The Northwest) handling backing vocals. I don't know if they opted to not revive the Nebraska Arms name out of respect to Guy/deference to Sheldon, but it's great seeing Wayne, Dave, and Adam back together on stage again in any form, and Sheldon does have good vocals to show off now that he's up front! Also, kudos to the filmer for shooting these videos horizontally and from a central front row placement for an optimal first look.
Honest Work definitely hew closer to Nebraska Arms than The Northwest, especially in terms of punk influence, which is something that The Northwest have seemingly been phasing out with time, so genre fans won't want to bypass this talented veteran foursome! Give their debut videos a watch above and below, and stay tuned for more from Honest Work!
Next up, let's head to Sault Michigan for our first video look at local classical metal band Theatre of Night's new lineup! Following their Christmas tour last month, the band uploaded the demo video embedded below to their YouTube channel on January 4th, giving fans who missed the live dates their first look at the band since Marquita & Luke Bernard replaced Rachel Mender and Scott Andringa on vocals & bass corurtesy of their Gun Lake Casino show in Wayland. Marquita has the vocal chops to fit right in with their existing metallized carols, and Luke's a solid bassist, so musically, fans don't have much to worry about! The biggest change otherwise is that (at least) this show had a live narrator between songs, namely Sandi Bernard (quite a family affair all of a sudden!), who played the character of "Mother Christmas" and provided backing vocals on some songs. Note that her attire is not unlike the Ghost of Christmas Present from A Christmas Carol.
The idea of Theatre of Night featuring two singers in concert is not new, as their first ever Christmas tour in 2017 had Rachel joined by Stacie McCarthy on co-lead vocals, but this is a distinct touch, and Marquita & Sandi doubled up well on "Silent Night" in the video! If you missed the "Reels" on their Facebook page featuring unembeddable highlights, you'll definitely want to watch this high quality footage from Red Wolf below, and hopefully there's more from last year's tour to come!
We'll close this post with the latest from local progressive metal duo Convergence, who are looking for what appears to be a permanent lead singer! While they did work with State of Misery alum Steve Rhodes as a session vocalist on "Stratus", the band posted this "Shorts" video on their YouTube channel on Friday to plug the search for a vocalist who is capable of fry/false chord screaming, clean vocals, and songwriting. If you're interested in trying out for the former Kraken Mara, message them above and they'll send you a demo instrumental track so you can show what you've got! In the meantime, Convergence have uploaded both of their EPs (last year's "One" and this month's "Dead & Dreaming") to their YouTube channel, as single video uploads and broken up into individual songs, so whatever your preference, you can stream both for free there now. "Dead & Dreaming" is embedded below in full, but see above for more music from Brendan & Jake, and look for our review of the "One" EP in April!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes, plus this month's CD review, in the coming days! Thanks everyone!
With the American Thanksgiving fast approaching, let's devote today's SMS post entirely to Sault Michigan bands, primarily from the latest updates from a very prominent local metal group, but leading off, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!
Local hard rock quartet Tarnished will play a special one-night-only concert TOMORROW NIGHT at The Merchant's Bar! Apologies for the short notice, the band announced this gig via their Facebook event page this past Wednesday, but I held it until closer to the event to avoid redundantly plugging it twice in under a week. For full disclosure, The Merch have not acknowledged this show on their Facebook page at press time, not having posted there since October. The unusual Wednesday night booking is due to the American Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, so most Yoopers are able to come out on the middle of the week TOMORROW and rock out with Tarnished without fear of compromising work/school the next day. Tarnished last played at the 108 West Spruce Street nightclub four months ago, and hopefully the guys deliver another solid night of hard rock and classic metal covers and originals TOMORROW!
Of course, this can also be seen as a warm-up for the Steel Panther concert on Saturday that Tarnished are opening, and our preview of that event hits the site later this week. As for TOMORROW's Thanksgiving Eve show, expect a 21+ age limit, no cover charge, and an early 8:00 PM start time. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tarnished live!
Next up, here's the latest from local classical metal band Theatre of Night, who have been very quiet in a Facebook sense since the summer, but they have actually been far more active on their Instagram page in recent months, so what can we learn there? As you can see, the band has finally given their current lineup an official band photo, and via their website's band members page, we can confirm that their new bassist (who replaced Scott Andringa last year) is Luke Bernard. I'm unfamiliar with Luke musically beyond his Theatre of Night work, but he is from the Soo, he has worked with the band already as a guest musician & photographer, and he's actually the head researcher for the Soo Area Ghostbusters! As in, real paranormal investigations, not film cosplay. From what I have seen, Luke holds his own with Theatre of Night, and for the longest, Instagram-unencumbered look at him on bass, check out their music video for "We Three Kings" from last year!
With their non-website updates lately being Instagram exclusive, what else will fans have missed from Theatre of Night as of late? Well, as established fans may know, the band will often post teasers and allusions to new music and/or an album being in the works, but things often aren't finalized publically, though of course, the pandemic is acknowledged. Still, among the last year's posts on Instagram, Theatre of Night teased songs named "Vanquish The Damned" and "Into Darkness" plus a second Christmas album with vocals, plugged their epic instrumental compilation "album" on Spotify, and posted assorted teaser videos, usually involving keyboardist Craig Harrison or guitarist Steve Giles jamming, with Luke also getting some camera time. A music video for their song "The Killing" (with guest singer Ida Elena) is also planned, and a remastered version of that song can also be checked out on major streaming platforms like Apple Music.
Regarding their Christmas tour, it is indeed returning for 2022 after missing the last two years for very obvious reasons, and three stops are listed so far! Unfortunately, all are downstate (in Jackson, Battle Creek, and Wayland), but you can get details on these three dates (all on successive Fridays) at their Reverbnation page. Hopefully they can lock down at least one local stop on the tour, but we'll keep you posted! Anything else new is via the assortment of Instagram videos, all under a minute long as per that site's limits, but the performances and teasers there trend towards slick and professional, and the ones that are rawer jams showcase members' talent well! Would be nice to see Rachel and Erik more in these videos though. Instragram videos are tricky to embed on the SMS, but luckily, the newest one was cross-prosted to their YouTube channel earlier this month, featuring Steve shredding a Pantera-esque riff.
The monochrome clip is solid while it lasts (35 seconds), but will it be part of a song from Theatre of Night, or is this just a studio jam? Time will tell, but definitely visit the above links for much more on Theatre of Night's recent activity and upcoming plans, stay tuned in case they do play in the U.P. for their fourth Christmas tour, and here's that new video of Steve!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site as the week rolls along! Thanks everyone!
Of course, it is Christmas tomorrow, so what better local band to feature on the SMS today than Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night? I have intentionally held our coverage of their out of town concerts and related videos in the past two weeks in order to give them the Christmas Eve spotlight. These videos were all posted on or shared to the band's Facebook page and/or group. One (shared by keyboardist Craig Harrison) is a holdover from their Holland concert at Great Legs Winery on December 8th, and it's of guitarist Steve Giles warming up for their set by playing the opening of "What Child Is This?". Short but well played, so give it a look at the appropriate link! I can't embed videos from the venue's Facebook page here. Despite a teaser on December 14th indicating that they would live-stream their local show at The Dreammakers Theater at the Soo's Kewadin Casino branch, I can't find any evidence of that occurring, at least on a public page.
However, we do have one video to share from the local date, courtesy of Roadhouse/ex-Power Slug guitarist Chris Leask, who shared this clip onto their Facebook page the day afterward. The 47 seconds-long video features Theatre of Night playing "Away In A Manger", and while the short length and over-exposed lighting do it no favours, the performance itself sounds great, and Rachel's vice still hits all of the right notes! Check this video out below, and also check out the post he made above it, where he positively reviewed the concert, which was also his daughter's first concert, and they even got a photo of her with Rachel. Looks like everyone had a good time!
Today's other new videos come from Theatre of Night's return trip to Holland (a half hour southwest of Grand Rapids) on Saturday night to end their third annual Christmas tour, this time at The Park Theater. Unfortunately, these are not from the set proper, and one doesn't even have any musical performances. That video (shared by Craig onto the band's Facebook group) is just 17 seconds of them setting up for the show, and the other, which Craig shared to their Facebook page, is 29 seconds of Steve and bassist Scott Andringa (on drums) jamming Black Sabbath's "Into The Void". Didn't expect that, but they make it sound good while it lasts, so give it a look below!
To end this post on a festive pre-Christmas note, especially as the Kewadin live-stream has not surfaced at press time, here's the 1:46-long live-streamed video from last year's local date, so you can relive Theatre of Night's whole stage show in all of it's glory. I don't think a lot changed year-to-year, for what it's worth, but it's always fun seeing Craig, Steve, Rachel, Scott, and Erik metallize Christmas carols on the big stage like this. Give last year's local date a look below!
That's all for now, but I wish all of our readers a very Merry Christmas, and I will see you guys back here on Boxing Day with weekend concert previews, plus our next YouTube Channel Profile will follow as well. Thanks everyone!
Before we dive into this weekend's concert previews, here's a new news post that is mostly devoted to a pair of big LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the winter at a major local concert venue, but there are some new videos to round things out. Here's what you should know!
Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night will embark on their third Christmas tour over the holidays, with at least one E.U.P. stop on the route once again, as they'll return to The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino on Saturday, December 14th! Apparently entitled the "Dreams of Christmas Tour" this year, fans both in the Soo area, downstate, and even in Illinois have enjoyed Craig, Steve, and company's metallized takes on Christmas carols since 2017, and as you heard in instrumental form on their "Christmas Night" CD, they should deliver more seasonal entertainment for hometown fans in a couple of months time! If you are curious, or live below the bridge, you can also see Theatre of Night in Jackson and Blanchard next month, plus in Holland on December 21st, so click here for information on those gigs. I expect further gigs to be added in due course, and for reference, Theatre of Night also played shows in Grand Rapids, Zeeland, and locally in Pickford last year, and in Midlothian, Illinois in 2017.
A 7:00 PM start time is expected for this ALL AGES concert, which will presumably be held in The Dreammakers Theater's table seating configuration once again, and note that food, drinks, and a cash bar were on hand here last year. Tickets are not on sale yet, but last year, they went for $15 (table seating) or $25 (theatre seating), with some proceeds going to the local Salvation Army. It's great to see Theatre of Night back for a third go-around of their Christmas tour, but will this be their only Chippewa County stop for 2019,and what other frills might pop up here and elsewhere? Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and before we move on with this post, they have a bunch of videos we have bypassed over the last few months as they've prepared for the tour, which I profusely apologize for missing out on! They are mostly short, and I'll definitely address them all in an upcoming post, but we'll start with a longer one shared from keyboardist Craig Harrison's personal Facebook page back in June.
This is of Craig playing his 2016 original composition "If I Could Just Tear Down These Walls", in a performance he labelled as "early morning piano work." If you missed his original deleted YouTube copy of this song, it's a dark and melancholy song without any Christmas hints, but you can feel the emotion in it, and the sepia filter in this video works to it's advantage! Give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night soon!
Next up, here's the first big hard rock/metal concert announcement for 2020 at the aforementioned Dreammakers Theater, as Mr. Big frontman Eric Martin and Trixter bassist P.J. Farley will join forces for a special acoustic concert there on Saturday, February 15th! Hair metal fans will no doubt recall Eric's work with Mr. Big in the early 1990s, including such hit songs as "To Be With You", "Just Take My Heart", and "Green-Tinted Sixties Mind", and it'll be very interesting to hear him tackle his material in an apparent unplugged setting in four months! P.J. Farley isn't the opening act, as he and Trixter bandmate Steve Brown have routinely backed up Eric in his solo gigs as of late, though venue advertising lists this as a duo performance. We'll let you know if anything changes! Tickets for this all ages show go on sale this Friday at 1-800-KEWADIN, this link, and the in-person box office, and an 8:00 PM start time is advertised. No word on a possible opening act.
Unplugged shows from major touring headliners aren't a foreign concept at the Sault Kewadin (remember when Godsmack played here?), but with a Hair Scare-approved twosome making their way here, it should be an interesting show in many respects, and affordable too! Check the above links for more details as they roll in,and get your tickets on Friday!
Finally for today, here's a new video on Sault Ontario/Manitoba alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith's YouTube channel, featuring the audio from his set at the annual Jamming For Jackets fundraiser concert in his current Thompson, Manitoba homebase this past Saturday! Mike only played an 18 minute set, but he was the event's headliner, and he performed his new originals "The Best You Never Had", "MorningStar", and "Communique" here, plus "The Nature Of The Times" from his delayed "Bridges" album. Nice to hear some new live copies of these songs, and the recording quality's solid overall, so give this a listen below, and keep watch for more from Mike!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!
(Updated at 2:18 PM) Let's get a new news post up on this Saturday morning, with the latest from a prominent Sault Michigan act, a new album of sorts from a talented solo artist, and some long awaited updates from a fan favourite punk band. Thanks to a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT after this post went online, I have opted to move our shorter story block from this original post to our next news post, so that it doesn't become overly long. Don't worry, they will return, but for now, here's that new show!
There will indeed be one hard rock concert this weekend in the Sault area, as local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to The Esquire Club for one night only TONIGHT! Profuse apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced via it's Facebook event page this morning, and I wanted to ensure it was covered here, as we'd otherwise have had no hard rock show previews this weekend. This will be Soundcheck's first concert at The Esquire Club in over 2 months (and since the ace was caught), but the guys will be shorthanded, with bassist Paul Belair and drummer Glen Thomas not able to join Soundcheck TONIGHT. I don't know why Paul's missing out, but this show conflicts with Glen's previously announced Peace Vibe gig tonight at The Water Tower Pub. Mustang Heart's Dama Chindamo will handle bass TONIGHT, while former Soundcheck drummer Scott McLurg (who Glen replaced) will come out of retirement to fill in behind the kit.
Long-time Mustang Heart fans know that they can handle heavier covers, and Dama's a skilled bassist himself, while it's great to see Scott pause his retirement for one more gig! TONIGHT'S show has a 19+ age limit, no announced cover charge, and a 10:00 PM start time. For hard rock fans, this is basically the only show in town this weekend, so keep this one in mind for TONIGHT, and here's Soundcheck (with Scott) live earlier this year!
Next up, here's the latest from local alt-punk trio A Dire Setback, so what have they been up to lately? After a month's hiatus from public updates following their Oh!No set, bass recording teases, and the birth of drummer Nick Kainula's daughter (congratulations!), the guys resurfaced with a few new updates on their Facebook page last week from their ongoing recording sessions towards their long awaited debut CD. One is a link to a Patreon-exclusive video featuring frontman Chris Nielsen tracking guitar parts for the album (back them there for access to that clip and more), but the other is a 9 minute Facebook video available for all to see. In this one, you'll see Chris and sound engineer Dustin Goodall battling with "tone demons" as they search for the right tone for guitar tracking that was continued on the Patreon backer video. This will be of primary interest to fans familiar with studio recording, but the guitar snippets will help tide fans over for the album, so give everything a look!
Also, local experimental/folk/metal solo musician Chase Wigmore has released his new solo album "Seven Curses" as a free stream on his YouTube channel! If you count Coyote Speedfreaks and Black Lodge Masters releases under the same umbrella, this is officially Chase's seventh album and third of 2018, but online availability isn't consistent, with some as free streams only, while he only presses physical CDs based on "quality and level of interest." In this case, he's only referenced "Seven Curses" via this YouTube posting, and it features 10 songs. For his solo efforts under his own name, this is a huge departure, as it's heavily themed around black metal over acoustic folk, but he has the guitar chops to make this work, and his harsh vocals are a nice fit as well! Black metal is still not a common local genre, but the raw aggression, samples, and creativity help this stand out, and hopefully a sale copy turns up! Give "Seven Curses" a listen below!
Finally, here's some more updates from Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night, starting with some apparent clarification to dates of this year's Christmas tour. According to a comment reply by keyboardist Craig Harrison on their Facebook group last week, they're apparently only playing November 30th in Zeeland, with December 1st (and 2nd) gigs planned for Grand Rapids, plus a December 8th show in Holland, and a Sunday, December 16th show in Sault Michigan. None of these dates have Facebook event pages, and I don't know if that apparent Soo gig on the 16th is also at Kewadin Casino or not, but if we get clarification, we'll let you know! Their website also includes this poster for the Blanchard shows, which confirms their lineup for this year's tour, and while it's mostly identical to last year's, there is one absence, namely singer Stacie McCarthy. Hopefully nothing bad happened, as her vocal harmonies with Rachel were effective, but don't miss Theatre of Night's five-piece 2018 lineup over the holidays!
Audio recordings and Patreon teasers aside (more on those soon), Theatre of Night have one more proper video to acknowledge here, as live streamed to their Facebook page on October 7th, and it features Craig tracking an ominous instrumental piece on his keyboard. Not bad for what it is, especially given it's short length, so give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night (in studio and on stage) soon!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next week! Thanks everyone!
Today's post is full of the Christmas spirit, though out of early necessity, as we have some big LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS to touch on on this snowy Wednesday evening! We also have some videos to address regarding one half of these concert announcements, so here's what you should know!
The lineup for the seventh annual Toystock charity concert has been unveiled via promoters (Choose) Maxx Entertainment's Facebook page earlier today, so what should you know? Returning to the Grand Gardens North for it's fourth straight year on Sunday, November 25th, the format is very similar to past years, with 10 bands in 10 hours playing for the Christmas Cheer cause, and with admission via new/gently used toy, non-perishable food, or money donations, hopefully lots of good will come of Toystock VII next month! One assumes that the Stuff-A-Bus, family vendors, and Santa & Mrs. Claus will be back too, but the poster doesn't go into those specifics. Unusually for Toystock, this year's event primarily features returning bands from past years, where prior installments mostly had newcomers, so who all can you see this year? Two hard rock bands are on the bill, namely local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck (who also played last year) and acoustic hard rock/jam trio The Wyld Stallyns in their Toystock debut, though Rob & Jesse played with The Elements 2 years ago.
If the order on the poster is accurate, local country cover quartet Bone Yard will headline at 9:00 PM on November 25th, in their fifth straight Toystock set and sixth overall (each event records.) Soundcheck appear to be at 8:00 PM, while classic rock veterans Obsession will play Toystock for the third time and first since 2013 at 7:00 PM. New local acoustic quartet Chunks of Manh will being their tuba-infused sound to Toystock for the first time at 6:00 PM, with local country musician Brendan Hodgson also debuting at this event at 5:00 PM. Classic rock fan favourites The Algo Rhythms will make their third Toystock appearance in four years at 4:00 PM, while a Case's Music student group will play Toystock for a third straight year at 3:00 PM. The Wyld Stallyns are at 2:00 PM, and "Jeff & Friends" are advertised for 1:00 PM, and while I am not 100% positive, I believe this refers to country artist/local radio DJ Jeff McNeice, who also played last year in Jeff & Jeff.
Finally, the 12:00 PM opening set belongs to Bone Yard's acoustic country duo side project The Bearded Lounge, who also played last year. Though 2018's bill is more centered around returning bands than ever before, it's great to see so many performers jumping on board to help Christmas Cheer, and might Soundcheck drummer Glen Thomas donate another drumkit to a lucky young attendee? This is an ALL AGES event that will surely help kick off the holiday season in fine form, so visit the above links for more details!
Next up, the dates for Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night's second Christmas tour have been announced, so where can you see them over the holidays? Locally speaking, they will end the tour in the E.U.P., including a return to the Pickford United Methodist Church on Friday, December 14th, where they ended last year's tour at. This still may seem like an atypical venue, but remember that Theatre of Night specialize in metal versions of Christmas carols, more often biblical/nativity ones, so they fit that way. This year's tour will end on Saturday, December 15th in Sault Ste. Marie, but they're moving on up from The Soo Theater last year to The Dreammaker's Theater at Kewadin Casino in two months! It's rare when a local band headlines at this venue (as opposed to The Rapids Lounge), so expect a grand orchestral night there for your holiday entertainment! The tour will begin with four shows in the Lower Peninsula next month, similarly to their tour kickoff dates last year.
Those dates include two at the Blanchard Wesleyan Church (a half hour west of Mount Pleasant) from November 9th-10th, and two at The Foundry in Zeeland (just outside of Holland) from November 30th-December 1st, so keep those in mind if you'll be in Central Michigan then. The local dates in December are ALL AGES events with 6:00 & 7:00 PM start times respectively, and while the Pickford church show has no advertised admission fee, stay tuned for word on the Kewadin gig. It's great to see another run of Christmas concerts from this talented local outfit, so visit the Facebook event pages linked here for more details! We'll close today's post with some new videos from Theatre of Night, starting with this live video filmed by keyboardist Craig Harrison for their Facebook group on October 6th, where guitarist Steve Giles is playing guitar alongside an uncredited performer playing "drums" on an iPad application. Nice and heavy, if brief and not seasonal, but worth a watch for fans!
Embedded below is another live video, this time posted on their Facebook page the previous day, which features Steve and Craig playing what they called a "random ambient jam". Filmed similarly to the other clip in a vertical angle, this doesn't have the same heavy qualities, but it's effectively done and shows Steve & Craig's skill nicely! Give these videos a look above and below, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night soon!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site soon, including weekend concert previews if any hard rock shows surface! Thanks everyone!
I hope everyone's having a great Victoria Day/May 2-4 weekend! News remains at a slow pace this month, so today's post is largely comprised of assorted shorter stories, but we are leading off with some big updates from bands on each side of the border, starting with the latest from Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night! Yesterday, the group revealed on their Facebook page that they are indeed planning their second Christmas tour run for the end of the year, and had recently conducted "late night sessions" towards the tour. After the positive response to their gigs last year from here to Illinois and points in between, hopefully the encore is bigger and better for them! While not seasonally timed, this preview video was posted to their YouTube channel yesterday, which is ostensibly of their November 2011 debut CD "Christmas Night", but actually features newer recordings featuring their recent touring band members (as distinguished particularly by the inclusion of vocals.)
The video proper combines live concert footage from the tour with some in-studio performances, as well as some scattered photos. It's well put together and a nice sampling of what to expect this winter, so if you can get past the seasonal content in late May, give Theatre of Night's new video a look below, and stay tuned for more from them soon!
Next up, here's some new updates related to the upcoming June Jam concert at The Rockstar Bar in Sault Ontario on June 1st, starting with a lineup withdrawal, as local hard rock quintet Skeyes of Seven have dropped out of this concert, as per their Facebook page. A reason was not publically stated for their exit, but hopefully nothing bad happened, and that we see them back on stage sooner or later! At press time, they have not been replaced on the bill, we will let you know if they are. Ticket details have also been confirmed for the June Jam, with prices at $8 in advance online (details on that front are not public yet) or $10 at the door, so keep those in mind. Of course, this Live705-promoted show will feature Timmins punk quartet All The Wasted Years alongside locals A Dire Setback and Sault Ontario heavy/power rock quintet Re:Born, who posted four new jam session videos onto their Facebook page last week, so what can be said on those?
The videos include Re:Born covering The Scorpions' "Rock You Like A Hurricane", Saxon's "Denim & Leather", and their precedessors Project 421's original song "Into The Darkness", but embedded below is their new cover of "Lavatory Love Machine" by the German power metal band Edguy. That's gotta be a first from a local band! Though we don't get an optimal look at the band on these clips (we only tend to see singer Robert Nevitt from behind), these performances are solid given the setting, and it'll be cool to see them back on stage next month, especially after their spring break! Give Re:Born's new videos a look above and below!
Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual for these short-form items, these are in alphabetical order by artist, event, or program name:
Local punk trio A Dire Setback (of the aforementioned June Jam) will hit the road for a second out of town show this summer, as they'll be featured on a rock/rap hybrid event at The Asylum in Sudbury on Saturday, July 28th! Full details are not out yet, beyond the involvement of an act named Mooch, but this should be another big chance for A.D.S. to make new fans outside of the Soo, so hopefully this show goes as well as their Timmins trip next month!
I have deleted the former WLSO radio show CRaMPS from our "Other Sault Michigan Metal Links" section due to the quiet deletion of it's Facebook page for unannounced reasons in recent months. Airing on Friday mornings on Lake Superior State University's campus radio station in late 2010, the student-hosted program hadn't visibly on the air since then, though to be fair, I don't even know if 90.1 FM still broadcasts on terrestrial radio at all. Hopefully Pat and Seth have found success in more recent endeavours!
Former Din bandmates Mike Haggith and Tammy Hill reunited in Windsor on Saturday when they travelled from Manitoba and Sault Ontario respectively to attend the long awaited Canadian premiere of the movie Ashes of K, whose soundtrack is entirely comprised of songs from The Din and Mike's solo project. It's great to see this movie finally released and distributed, and you can see photos of Mike, Tammy, and Din producer Daniel Schmidt on the red carpet at their Facebook page! (Yes, a review of Ashes of K could make the SMS if we can find a way to see it.)
I have also deleted former local concert venue Docks Riverfront Grill from our inactive concert venue listings, due to the deletion of it's Facebook (and last surviving online) page in recent months. The Foster Drive nightclub and restaurant had initially been sold to new ownership in 2014, and after brief stints as Waterfront Legend and The River Cookhouse, it became The HD Sports Grill in 2016, and has sporadically hosted live music since Docks itself ended. Hopefully more is on the horizon there down the road!
The Indie Spring concert at LopLops Lounge on Saturday had a late lineup withdrawal, as Sudbury garage rock headliners The Almighty Rhombus were forced to drop out after bassist Laura Willett badly cut her finger in an accident. That's definitely a bummer, hopefully Laura gets well soon! In their place, local indie/hard rock quartet Id Iota played an extended headlining set.
A local musician named Jay Daug is looking for a "heavily influenced (John) Bonham drummer" between 20 and 40 years of age, as per a post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on May 9th. Jay didn't specify if this was for a band he's working on, for informal jamming, or something else, but message him at this link or above if you fit the bill and need more details!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the SMS later this week! Thanks everyone!
Here's our final news post of the year, so what will you find here? Big updates from a local punk band, some assorted recent news and notes, and a preview of the final hard rock show in the Soo this year, but first, here's LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for next month!
Marquette hard rock cover quartet Spun will make their way to Sault Michigan for the first times in 2018 when they hit The Satisfied Frog again on Friday, January 26th & Saturday, January 27th! After a busy first year for the Nudge. successors both here and out west, Spun will be making their first Soo stops since rocking the same venue two weeks ago. This talented outfit have already became fast favourites for Frog patrons in the past year, and hopefully next month's shows are the first of many there for Spun in the new year! As usual for their local gigs, these concerts will take place at 9:00 PM both nights, you must be at least 21 years old to attend, and there are no announced cover charges. Spun' hard rock covers should be a great way to warm up next month, so keep these in mind for in four weeks' time, and visit the official Facebook event page for more details!
Next up, here's (surprisingly) our only hard rock concert preview for New Year's Eve, making this our last preview of 2017, as Sault Ontario classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will cap the year by headlining at The Esquire Club for their New Year's Party TONIGHT! This will be the Mourning Wood successors' first show at this west end venue in about a month and a half, and will also be the second time that they've played a New Year's Eve bash, doing the same at The Rednecks Saloon last year under their original moniker Nameus. (FYI, Obsession played The Esquire Club last year.) Given that this is a New Year's bash, expect frills like extra food and drink items and party favours and the like, as bars often go all out to ring in a new year, so mind that when you notice that the admission fee is $20. However, Soundcheck noted on their Facebook event page that admission includes your ride back home, and while I don't know specifics of that promotion, it's nice for those that need it after a night of partying!
As you might expect, this is a 19+ concert and a 9:30 PM start time is advertised. This should be a fun concert to end the year with, especially as it's your best bet for a hard rock show tonight in the area, so check the above links for more details, and hopefully some public videos of theirs turn up!
Also today, here's the latest from local punk rockers Redundant, who have been very quiet since their set-turned-solo performance at Rock 4 Autism in May, so what's new to report from their camp? First, they're expanding to a quartet, as they announced the addition of guitarist Yannick Casavant to their lineup via their Facebook page on Christmas Eve. I'm not overly familiar with Yannick musically, but I believe that he has band experience going way back, and hopefully he fits in nicely with Justin and the White brothers going forward! His local debut with Redundant is to be confirmed, but the guys made a huge announcement on Facebook the next day, as they've apparently been added to the lineup for the Vans Warped Tour's final stop in Toronto on July 17th! If The Rising Tide can play the long running punk festival tour, why not Redundant? I haven't seen a formal lineup announcement yet, but this will be a huge opportunity for the guys, and hopefully we hear much more from Redundant in 2018!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist, benefactor, or company name:
I have unfortunately deleted Eclipse frontman Curtis McKenzie's solo project from our active band links due to it's Facebook page being taken down at some point in the past few months, and I don't believe there is an alternate page elsewhere. This seems to imply that Curt has shuttered his 2017 solo activity, which is very disappointing, as his shows at The Vape Escape and elsewhere seemed to be going well! Hopefully we see him back out there (with or without Eclipse) in the near future!
A benefit concert has been announced to help local resident Joni Radford's battle with breast cancer, which will take place on Saturday, January 13th at The Canadian Nightclub. While a performer lineup hasn't been announced at press time, Jack Spades frontman J.D. Pearce commented on the Facebook event page that they have a "couple (of) rad bands so far." Stay tuned for updates on this benefit when bands are publically confirmed for it, and our best wishes are with Joni at this difficult time!
In an addendum to the drumkit dive incident during Stegadeth's set at the Guy Thiffault Memorial Concert on Wednesday, Live705's Facebook page has shared the multi-camera video of what happened, as filmed by Id Iota's Christian Lemay, presumably for future Shaw TV content. I won't embed the video here out of respect to the nature of what happened and to not single out anyone publically any more than social media already has, but Live705 have indicated that Case's Music and the person responsible have stepped up to help reimburse or replace broken gear. Hopefully things will move forward and upward into 2018!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for our retrospective post on everything that went down in the local metal, hard rock, and punk scenes in 2017 later today! Thanks everyone!
Today's post does indeed feature our previews of this weekend's Theatre of Night shows, but with a lot to say and unpack for their Christmas tour finale, we have extended our previews to cover most of this post, as rounded out with some assorted Sault Ontario news and notes. Without any further adieu, here's what you should know for this weekend!
After months of anticipation and teasers, Sault Michigan classical/metal project Theatre of Night will finally hit the local stage this weekend with the final announced stops of their Christmas tour! These include their well-hyped Soo Theatre debut TOMORROW NIGHT, while they'll bring the live experience out to Pickford THIS SUNDAY for a special matinee show at the Pickford United Methodist Church, so fans have two options to see them this weekend! Though the tour has commenced in Jackson and in Illinois, these will be Theatre of Night's first public concerts in the E.U.P. in four and a half years, and first here to be explicitly themed around their "Christmas Night" album and related material. With live shows requiring a full band, these will see Craig & Steve joined by five touring(?) band members, primarily from the Grand Rapids/Muskegon area, including singers Rachel Mender (their former I.S.O.M. bandmate) and Stacie McCarthy, bassist Scott Andringa, and drummer Erik Sales. It will be very interesting to see the full sextet on a local stage this weekend, so keep everyone in mind!
Tomorrow's Soo Theatre show is the bigger production, given it's location in the historic downtown theatre, with proceeds from the concert going to the Soo Theatre's Raise the Roof Project and recovery efforts following the fire back in October, so this show will help restore the venue in two different ways! There will be a meet & greet of some kind after the show, while The Soo Cello Crew (a chamber-style group conducted by Maggie Twining formed through recent classes there) will open the proceedings with their own classical renditions. As for Sunday's show at the Pickford United Methodist Church, this will be a more intimate show preceded by a Christmas potluck dinner at 4:00 PM, and this should provide a fitting atmosphere for their live show, especially as most of their songs come from religious/nativity-based carols. A Christmas program featuring Sunday school class performances will precede Theatre of Night during their regular service, click here for details if you are so inclined.
Tomorrow's Soo Theater show features $15 adult admission, $10 for students with valid student ID, and $5 for Soo Theatre Arts Resource Studios (STARS) members, with tickets available online at this link, at the venue's in-person box office, and presumably at the door, while the Pickford show has no advertised admission fee. The shows start at 7:00 PM tomorrow and 5:00 PM on Sunday, and both are ALL AGES. For more details, visit the official Facebook event pages linked here and here! This is all shaping up to be a huge weekend for Theatre of Night and company, especially as the first band to play The Soo Theatre since the fire in October, , and hopefully both of these shows are a huge hit so that we see some permutation of Theatre of Night on stage again in the future! There are more new videos to touch on of theirs, but for a preview, here's some videos from their show at Cheers Live Music Venue in Midlothian, Illinois (outside of Chicago) last week! These were uploaded to the band's YouTube channel yesterday, but what should you know on these?
These feature Theatre of Night performing their renditions of "Carol of the Bells" and, as embedded below, "O Holy Night", and while the stationary angle could be a little more centered, the band sounds solid, and Rachel & Stacie's vocals add a nice dimension to the carols! It should be noted that ex-Elipzis guitarist Chris Webster is not seen here or in any recent media, though I can't confirm if he's out of the whole tour, or just had prior scheduling conflicts. Hopefully nothing bad happened, he would have been a solid component for the tour! Still, you couldn't ask for a more seasonal show for the holidays, so give these a look below, and don't miss out this weekend!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or event name:
I have moved Sault Ontario hard/pop rock quartet Heavy Head to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity. This union of Suicide Kings, Jack Spades, Winkstinger, and Bear Hunters alumni will be best remembered from a smattering of early 2016 shows, including a set in last year's VM Radio Battle of the Bands semifinals, but updates quietly ended last summer, save for an impromptu return during a November open jam session. Heavy Head had a lot of talent and promise, and hopefully we see Mike, Jesse, Daniel, and Johnny out there again at some point!
The annual Hempfest concert/marijuana culture festival was permanently cancelled this spring. Organizer Robert Neron announced the news on the Hempfest website in May, citing a "lack of money" and sponsorship for his reasons, as complicated by his own health concerns, though he thanked fans, performers, and sponsors for their support, and left open the possibility of passing the event on to new organizers. Hempfest had permanently moved from nearby Ophir to Moonbeam in 2014, so it's no longer directly relevant to the site, but I thought it was worth mentioning. Best of luck to Robert in his future endeavours!
In a change to one of links of local concert/musician photographers, I've replaced Jeff McKersie Photography's website (which is currently down) with his still-active Facebook page. Minor update, but now that's accurate again, and check Jeff's page out to see his pictures or inquire about shoots of your own!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site as the month rolls along! Thanks everyone!
Here's another new news post for your Wednesday, so what's on tap? Some overdue videos to share, the latest from a prominent local metal band, and a surprising EP release to take note of, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this year!
Montreal alternative metal quartet Special Ops will make their local concert debut when they headline at The Rockstar Bar on Friday, November 3rd! One of the last stops as they return home from their Take It All Tour (in support of their "Baby Take It All" EP), this hard rocking outfit has been making waves out east for the better part of a decade, and their sound is heavy yet accessible enough to appeal to many listeners, so don't bypass them early next month! New local indie/hard rock trio Vol. will open the proceedings in what should be another high impact set from this union of Pixo Control and Aldous alumni, and for what it's worth, they indicated on their Facebook page that they're currently "finish(ing) up our first album." News to me, but are they still just writing songs, or are they actually recording? Stay tuned for updates!
Yes, we are aware of another show that Vol. is opening next month at The Algonquin Hotel, but with ambiguity about which floor it's being held on, we're waiting for confirmation therein. Tickets for this 19+ show are $10 and will presumably be available at the hotel's front desk, though I cannot confirm a potential jump in price at the door. Bands start at 9:30 PM on November 30th, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for more on what should be a fun night of hard rock action!
Next up, we have a surprise new album release, as local black metal solo project Abhorrent Forest released their second EP on Monday! Like their debut "The End of Life" from January, this EP (entitled "Ethereal") was an abrupt release on the project's Bandcamp page, though unlike it's predecessor, it has a minimum asking price of $10, rather than a "name your price" model. I would assume "Thorn of Torment" was left off of "Ethereal" due to the EP's theme, which eschews black metal for dark ambient instrumentals, so don't go into this expecting the same sound as earlier Abhorrent Forest material. As this is a new release, might we see a review of "Ethereal" on the SMS? Yes, possibly as soon as next month, as our review of the AlgomA/Shit Liver split is likely coming next week, and because I don't review albums from the same band twice in a 6 month span, I have to hold our review of The Din's final album (coming next month) until December.
That all said, it's a nice surprise to see Wyrn back in action with new Abhorrent Forest material, and if you like ambient music, this will be worth a listen especially, so give it a listen and/or buy it at the above links, and keep watch in case we review "Ethereal" later this fall!
Also today, here's the latest from local doom metal trio AlgomA, who apparently intend to remain on the bill for the local finale of the "Trading Faces" split release tour with Shit Liver on October 2nd (one week from Monday) at The New American Pub! Though the band had to pull out of the tour proper due to guitarist Boyd Rendell's health problems, he confirmed on the Facebook event page yesterday that "I'm gonna do my best to play this one", so at least we'll see both halves of the tape rocking out in their hometown! If anything changes in regards to AlgomA's set, we'll let you know, but hopefully Boyd rests up and gets well soon either way! FYI, Shit Liver kick off the tour proper in Toronto on Friday, and I have no new updates on the "Trading Faces" cassette tapes beyond what we already know from it's Bandcamp release. However, AlgomA are keeping busy with uploads of their contributions from their prior splits with Chronobot and Hooded Menace on their YouTube channel, complete with lyrics!
Uploaded yesterday for their first postings there in a year, both of their songs from the former vinyl record release are now officially available on YouTube ("Electric Fence" & "Phthisis") but embedded below is their half of the split single with Hooded Menace, namely "Failed Stunt Fatality". No word yet on when we might see their contributions to "Trading Faces" on their channel, but it's nice to have more studio quality AlgomA aggression available on YouTube, so check them out above and below, buy "Trading Faces" above, and stay tuned for the local release party on October 2nd!
Finally for today, here's some long overdue acknowledgement of some video shares to Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night's Facebook page! Apologies for the delay in these making the site, Facebook videos can fall through the cracks very easily. All shared from keyboardist Craig Harrison's personal Facebook page prior to any talk of a Christmas tour became public, they include this video was uploaded with the caption "Studio time..." but it's just a silent slideshow of Craig, a studio computer, and a skull. No doubt we've heard some of the material from said studio time, but the video doesn't stand up well on it's own, especially without backing audio. Also, this video from February captures 10 seconds of a dark orchestral instrumental which sounds very promising, and it'd be cool to hear that one in full! A Facebook copy of the now deleted YouTube upload of the piano ballad "If I Could Just Tear Down These Walls" also still exists via a Facebook share in January. We'll touch on more if found, but what's embedded here on the SMS?
In fact, it's the newest of these clips from June 29th, featuring Craig manipulating an
iPad for effects while guitarist Steve Giles and uncredited guests play
on in the background. Not bad for what it is, and it has a somewhat
eerie feel! Give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night as we hear it!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews next! Thanks everyone!
Before we kick off our April Fools prank-free news post, just a heads up that the postponed Quiet Riot concert at The Machine Shop is not taking place on May 25th as originally stated yesterday. SooToday and varying social media postings now state that the show is postponed "until a later date", complete with the deletion of the show's Facebook event page, and refunds are available at point of purchase. I know that a lot of pessimism and sarcasm floating around online either regarding the promoters or Quiet Riot themselves, but hopefully things work themselves out so this concert gets rescheduled in some form down the road!
Now, we have some new concert videos, recent assorted updates, and first, a delayed LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as local alternative hard rock quartet Id Iota will rock The New American Pub on Monday, April 17th for an Easter Monday concert where they'll open for Calgary psychedelic pop band Windigo & New Jersey surf rock quartet Dentist!
Just a few days removed from opening for K.I.C.K. at LopLops on Good
Friday, this talented quartet will continue their upward momentum with
another set where you're sure to hear some material from their
forthcoming second CD, so keep them in mind! Though the touring acts
don't largely fall into our general coverage range, Windigo's alt-pop
originals should appeal to genre fans, and Dentist harbour some punk
influences on some of their own surf rock material, so don't bypass
either on this late stop on their spring tour of Canada! Note that
Windigo's concert calendar says this show is being held at The Gore
Street Cafe, but I never saw reference to the laundromat elsewhere, so it likely
changed before it's local advertising began.
Though the Facebook event page was launched by Id Iota, seemingly implying it's self-promoted, they give "special thanks" to Six, Two, Oh. & Ears and Eyes,
so there is at least some assistance from those two agencies. This 19+
concert has a $5 cover charge and a 9:00 PM start time, so check the
above links for more details, and if you love indie rock with some
heavier tinges, be at The New A on Easter Monday!
Next up, we have some new videos from Thursday night's AlgomA-headlined concert at The New American Pub, courtesy of Christopher Paci's YouTube channel once again, in his first concert video postings since the Pop Evil show in February. Kudos to him for getting some more solid footage, it's always welcomed when he breaks out his camera! Before we touch on AlgomA's video, just a note that the band has finally unveiled their tour schedule for their European debut, which will see them play largely in Germany over a two week span starting on Tuesday, all alongside German sludge punk duo WeedWolf, though Swiss and Dutch gigs are also listed. Obviously, this is a huge opportunity to spread the Northern Ontario doom metal gospel overseas, so hopefully things work our well this month! Chris' video of AlgomA's New A set from Thursday is of their song "Phthisis" from last year's split with Chronobot, and it's a suitably ferocious rendition of one of their shorter songs, so give it a look below, and good luck on tour, show Europe what the Soo can do!
Chris didn't film late-added opener Chase Wigmore, but he did film local death metal trio Pillory playing their original "Wasting" on Thursday night, and while it captures the guys in suitably brutal form, the camera angle is worse. On the AlgomA video, Chris was more or less front & center to film them, but I think he remained at a table for Pillory, and the angle made it so the far left of the video is obscured by a wall, partially cutting frontman Robert Sartini from view early on. Still a quality look at this resurgent local metal band, so give their clip a look below as well!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:
I have moved local metal cover trio Caveman Morrison back to our inactive band links, as they have not made a public update since their return show at The Rednecks Saloon's relaunch party one year ago tomorrow. It was great to see the guys back after a 2+ year hiatus, but that now appears to have been a one-off set, especially thanks to frontman Tym Morrison's busy weekly schedule of solo concerts. Don't miss Tym at Gliss and/or the Barrelhouse this year, or James White & Johnny Belanger with Handsome Sandwich and their other separate projects!
Local punk/metal band Jack Spades' new lineup will hit the road for a return to the annual Spiderfest in Meyersburg on Friday, July 14th, where they'll open for 2013 local concert headliners The Bunchofuckingoofs. Hopefully this continues the band's momentum following June's CKY show, and good luck on the road this summer! For reference, the band teased a staggered reveal of their new lineup on their Facebook page starting last week, but nothing has been posted to confirm new or returning members since then.
New local power pop/hard rock band The Noochy Lanterns have added Crucify the Whore's Tyler "Ringsnaps" Gibson to their lineup on guitar, making them a quartet (for now), as per their Facebook page last week. This is a departure from Tyler's usual grindcore & death metal base, but the band indicated that they may be even heavier with him enlisted, and they've also teased a planned addition of a female synth player to their lineup, identity not publically known yet. Don't miss The Noochy Lanterns' public concert debut at The Rockstar Bar on April 15th for Live705's Easter Bash!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
