Ultraviolence Concert Review & Woods of Ypres Updates!!

Happy August, everyone! If you weren't at Coch's Corner last night, you missed on hell of a concert, and here's my review, with Woods of Ypres updates to follow!

This time, I made sure I was there early, cause the last time Ultraviolence played in town, I was late due to the screening of The Big Four's concert at Galaxy Cinema. Well last night, I was there before the band, so I missed nothing! After a bit of a struggle attempting to get their banner up (they settled for draping it on the merchandise table), Ultraviolence hit the stage and they ruled! In what was the last date of their summer tour, they completely went wild to cap it off, and we loved every minute of it! Took a while to get going though, their first set went off normally, but by the end of the night, frontman Turi Mercuri was walking across tables, hopping into booths, high-fiving and singing along with everyone in sight, and even getting carried on a table by fans while singing away! It was like a drunken magic carpet ride, I'll bet!

And when I say "drunken", I mean it, the alcohol flowed like mad last night! The guys in Ultraviolence had numerous shots of alcohol and partaked in chugging back a pitcher of beer and bottles of Smirnoff Ice as well, though Turi openly admitted hating Smirnoff Ice repeatedly. Hey, it's alcohol, it does wonders! And with songs like "Big Ol' Swig" and "One More Drink" (which fittingly capped the show), you knew damn well what you were in for! Hell, they even broke out SILLY STRING during Phillip Elliott's drum solo and at some other later points in the show! How that fits, I'm not sure, but it was really a big old party, so no one minded.

Ultraviolence broke out a set similar to their show in June, but seeing as this was the exact same tour, I expected that. Luckily they're a great band, so it worked out! Alongside originals like "Hey Lil Mama", "Queen Heartbreaker", and "Devil's Little Girl" (which were available at the concert on their first EP), they broke out tons of covers as well! Turi Mercuri shares a vocal resemblance with Brian Johnson of AC/DC, so naturally, there were a few AC/DC covers, but they also threw in covers of bands like Motley Crue, Guns N' Roses, and Jimi Hendrix (I REALLY like their "Foxy Lady" cover!) On the more offbeat side of things, they covered Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry too, so picture AC/DC covering "Johnny B. Goode", and you'll get a general idea. Like at their last show, bassist Jordan Beard got a moment in the vocal spotlight to sing lead on a cover of Motorhead's "Ace of Spades", which was also really good! The band as a whole sounded really good, Turi's an awesome frontman, Andrew Postelthwaite was solid all night on guitar, Phillip Elliott laid down the skins on every song (his drum solo, especially), and Jordan was great on bass himself!

At the same time, they did miss a couple things here and there, and a few songs sounded a bit off ("Paradise City" in particular sounded slow) but it was the last show of the tour, and they wanted to end it with a party, and they sure did, so that made up for any musical gaffes! And, don't forget, they were quite drunk by night's end too, and after a 40 day long tour, I think they deserved a night to get wasted and party, and we were a part! I don't think a single person there last night had any problems with Ultraviolence's set, they are seriously one of the most fun hard rock bands you're gonna see from out of town in Sault Ste. Marie! They may sound like AC/DC often, but don't go on that basis, go for the whole scope of it! They love their fans, they're nice guys, they include you in the show, and encourage a hard drinking fun night of filthy dirty drunk n' roll! Great concert, one of the best I've seen this year, and hopefully they'll back on their next tour! As usual, I got photos and video, so click here to check out my photos from the concert, or visit our official Facebook page! And here's my video, of Ultraviolence playing their original song "Queen Heartbreaker"! Apologies for the video quality, it was dark in there.



And to cap off today's post, I have some Woods of Ypres updates! Firstly, remember how I told you guys that frontman David Gold was trying to sell his white Gibson SG-3 guitar with the words UNREST! on it that he uses in concert? Well, he's found a buyer for it, so it's off the market! But, David's now selling another guitar, the Yamaha acoustic guitar he's used in the recording of all of Woods of Ypres' albums, and according to the topic on Woods of Ypres' forum about it, he will be using this guitar in the recording of Woods of Ypres' fifth album, "Woods V", next month! Awesome to hear they're recording a new album so soon, but I still wonder why he's selling off his guitars. We know that, though Woods of Ypres aren't imminently ending, he's moving out of Canada next month. The quotes on Woods of Ypres' Facebook page for the guitar sales continually say "I can't take it with me", but why can't he bring his guitars? Where's he going? Why are merchandise sales ending? What will become of Woods of Ypres? He's doing a great job of keeping us guessing, hopefully we'll hear more finite information on what exactly this all means by the time of David's going away party in Toronto on August 25th.

In more positive news, there are new Woods of Ypres concert videos online! YouTube user Sahrroh has uploaded two videos from their July 3rd show in Mesa, Arizona onto his YouTube channel! These will be familiar songs if you've followed the video uploads from the tour, as they're of the songs "Suicide Cargoload (Drag That Weight) & "Halves and Quarters" and "Shams Of Optimism" & "Crossing The 45th Parallel"! Both are of similar quality, from a very good angle in the crowd, but the audio can be a bit scratchy. Because it's the longer video, I've embedded the performance of "Shams Of Optimism" & "Crossing The 45th Parallel" below, so check it out, and also check out Sahrroh's YouTube channel above for clips from his journey to the Mesa Woods show, including some footage from his house after the show for a bit of an afterparty with the Woods of Ypres members!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow cause I have a special post totally dedicated to this question: Where are the new albums? We've heard of plans for a bunch recently from Sault Ontario bands, many have been recorded or are in the process of recording, but none are out yet. We'll explore each one's status tomorrow in a special post, so stay tuned for that! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Gunz N' F'N' Rosez) Weekend Concert Previews, And More!!

Before we get to new stuff, a reminder to check out my review of Bad Side's second album "Bad Side II" immediately below this post! It's a good CD, check it out! Today, we have a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, some shows this weekend to preview, and an upcoming concert afterparty that may interest you guys, so here's what you need to know!

Gunz N' F'N' Rosez are coming back to Sault Ontario on September 23rd! Labelled as "North America's ultimate tribute show to Guns N' Roses", this will be their first local stop since January, though at a different venue. This time, they will be at The Rockstar Bar for a night full of GNR classics from an authentic sounding and looking tribute band! I find it odd they all play band members from the classic era, but utilize Buckethead rather than Izzy Stradlin, but hey, it's all good! They sound like Guns N' Roses and have the look going, so if you're a fan of GNR, you'll wanna be at this show! This is a show on a grander scale than most you get at The Rockstar Bar, so admission prices are higher than normal, going for $7 in advance and $10 at the door. Advance tickets don't appear to be on sale yet, but when they do, they'll be available at The Rad Zone and at The Algonquin Hotel's front desk! It's also a 19+ show, and it all starts at 10:00 PM. Should be a fun concert, I've heard good things about their past local shows, and this should be no different! I'll keep you posted for updates if I hear them!

Now we'll get to previews of this weekend's metal concerts that I know/have heard about, and I have heard about four concerts to tell you guys about, so here's what you should know! Firstly, local classic hard rock cover band Turner Up return to The Vibe Lounge tomorrow night for their first show at that venue since the addition of new singer Brent Royer! Nothing too different from their other shows, expect some solid covers of some classic songs from a tight-knit group of local music veterans! No announced admission price, you must be 19 to get in, the show starts at 10:00 PM. Once again, this should be a fun show, though I still have no knowledge of how they sound with Brent. No worries though, they're smart guys, and I've heard nothing but good since the singer changeover! For more details, click here and at the above links! For a preview, here's a video of the band from their first long-term incarnation covering Def Leppard's "Hysteria"!



Detour to Sault Michigan now, as Nixxon Dixxon return to The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino for their first concerts since their two sets at the Kewadin Casino 25th Anniversary Summer Festival! Don't be fooled by the fact that this weekend's shows are listed for St. Ignace, they will definitely be in the Soo this weekend! Simple error on their MySpace page, thanks to Ernest Beaumont again for letting me know! These concerts, taking place tomorrow night and Saturday night, will be at 9:00 PM both evenings, with no cover charge, and you must be 21 to enter. Always great to see Nixxon Dixxon live, they'll knock 'em dead this weekend with their great metal covers and originals! Get more information on Nixxon Dixxon at their official MySpace page, and for a preview, here's a live video of Nixxon Dixxon at The Rapids Lounge covering Ozzy Osbourne's "No More Tears"!



And finally for the concerts I know of, Ultraviolence are back! The Toronto-based drunk n' rollers make their FOURTH stop in Sault Ontario for this year (and second in less than a month) on Saturday night at their favourite local stomping grounds, Coch's Corner! This is actually the final stop on their summer tour, and though I know I'm biased for my hometown, but it couldn't end in a better place! If you go out on Saturday to this, expect tons of AC/DC inspired cover songs and originals from one of the most energetic and fun bands you're likely to see come through here! I can vouch for the fun I had last month, believe me! This show starts at 10:00 PM on Saturday night, you must be 19 to enter, and there is no cover! After the good time I had last month, you can bet dollars to donuts that I will be back for more Ultraviolence on Saturday night, and this time, I won't show up late either! I'll bring my iPod for live Twitter updates for anything of note, and I'll have a review, photo album, and video posted on Saturday! I'm going to experiment with higher quality photo and video settings, so we'll have to see how those turn out! For more from Ultraviolence, check the above links, and for a video preview, here's the band playing their song "Queen Heartbreaker"!



And finally, here's a cool note for an event happening next month. You know how, after major concerts in town, you'll frequently hear of afterparties at local bars for concertgoers to hit afterwards? Well, I don't typically mention them here (even after metal shows) because, more often than not, they're just bar nights with alcohol deals or some minor theme related to the concert. But THIS one will be different! On August 10th, right after Kiss wrap up their long awaited show at The Essar Center, head to The Rockstar Bar at 9:30 PM for an afterparty featuring none other than Garden of Bedlam, Kiss' openers for their Sault show! That being said, this is NOT a concert, like some afterparties are. The guys from the band will be mingling and chatting with their friends and fans, so if you wanna head downtown, grab a beer, and chill out with Garden of Bedlam after the biggest show of their career, then this is where you'll wanna be once Kiss wrap up! Note that the Facebook event page is advertising that you can "get a sneak preview of Garden of Bedlam's new CD" at the afterparty, I wonder what exactly that hints towards? Click the above links for more, and I think I may just swing by The Rockstar Bar for this!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news over the next while! I have a notable amount of Sault Michigan updates to get to, so keep an eye out for that if you live across the river! And yes, my latest out of town profiles go up tonight or tomorrow as well! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Who Made Who), And Ultraviolence/The Big Four Reviews!!

So did you remember to check the SMS out at 10:00 PM last night for the all-concerts auto-post? I hope so, cause there was a lot there to get through, and even still, that's not all! Before I review Ultraviolence & The Big Four, we have another LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you need to know!

Just four months after they last came through here, Who Made Who, The Ultimate Tribute To AC/DC will be back in Sault Ontario in exactly ONE WEEK! Sorry for the short notice, I was only alerted to this show today. AC/DC fans sure have had a lot to cheer about locally in 2010, after seeing Who Made who at Nite-Life Dance Club in February and then seeing ANOTHER AC/DC tribute band, Hells Bells, at The Canadian Nightclub just last month! And just like at their May 2009 concert here, Who Made Who will be back at The Canadian themselves! What can you say, Sault Ste. Marie loves AC/DC and AC/DC tributes love coming here! The Ontario-based tribute band will bring their own authentic AC/DC sound and look once again next week that will be sure to impress, just as they did in their last shows here! The show will be on June 30th at 10:00 PM, there is a $5 cover charge, and you must be 19 to get in. You can never get too much AC/DC, so what excuse do you have to NOT go? Confirm your attendance at the Facebook event page, and check out more from Who Made Who by clicking here!

Now, onto reviews of what happened last night! Well, as you guys were probably aware, me and a few dozen other local metalheads found ourselves at Galaxy Cinema in Theater 1 for The Big Four: Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax, live from Bulgaria! Well, it didn't turn out to be completely live, though that was probably to quicken things. Before the bands started, we didn't have to sit through trailers and ads, luckily, we actually got to see Lars Ulrich, Scott Ian, Dave Mustaine, and Kerry King talk about music and their influences and stuff, it has a nice casual interview feel! Anthrax opened to a huge raucous crowd, and I can see why, but I didn't expect them to be so into Anthrax and know all the songs! The band were fantastic and looked to be enjoying every minute of the show, especially singer Joey Belladonna, who went all out with his energy, including running around like a maniac with his Indian headdress during the song "Indians"! The highlight of their set was when they stopped mid-song to cover "Heaven and Hell" in tribute to Ronnie James Dio, that was just awesome! My biggest complaint about Anthrax was the vocals, probably cause I'm a huge fan of John Bush, and I never thought Joey's singing fit a thrash band, though I will say his voice has held out the best of the current Big Four frontmen!

Megadeth were next, and they sadly had to play about half their set during rain. I would have blamed Lars for trying to sabotage Dave and them, but that sounded cruel. Musically, they were on top of their game, with just an onslaught of thrash metal with no chit chat needed between songs! Again, like with Anthrax, my big complaint lied with vocals, it sounded like Dave Mustaine was straining his voice a lot of the time to hit higher and angrier notes. It's also awesome seeing David Ellefson back, and Chris Broderick's guitar work is just awesome, Dave did good to get him! Following them were Slayer, and I have to say, they still sound as good as ever! I was actually going into this thinking Tom Araya's singing would be the worst, cause last I heard, his singing was shot. Not last night, he sounded pretty close to their recent albums! Musically, I can't complain one bit, Kerry King's guitar mastery was obvious, Dave Lombardo laid waste to his drums (for my money, he's the best "Big Four" drummer), and the whole band played with an obvious intensity combined with joy to be playing!

Before Metallica played, we got a surprise tribute segment to Ronnie James Dio, who was supposed to play this festival with Heaven and Hell as well before he died. Lars, Scott, Dave, and Kerry reminisced about Ronnie and their memories meeting him and playing with him, which was really cool! Everyone at the theater responded to that nicely! When Metallica hit the stage, they had an awesome stage setup with a huge video screen and pyro and all kinds of bells and whistles, and luckily, their music lived up to the presentation! They played many of their greatest hits, and they sounded very tight, though I do have complaints. The fire in James Hetfield's voice isn't there as much, and it sounded like he tried too hard at various parts. Also, the downtuning was really evident on a number of songs. Still, they were awesome, and thankfully didn't play anything from their mid-90s albums or "St. Anger"! There was a moment where we could see what was on James' guitar pick, which I won't spoil, but everyone loved that! And then, to kick off the encore, Metallica were joined on stage by Megadeth, Anthrax, and Dave from Slayer (where were the rest of them?) to play Diamond Head's "Am I Evil?", and that was a surreally awesome moment! Never would I have thought I'd see James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine share the stage again, I think Hell froze over!

Overall, that was a fun way to see the four kings of thrash, and I definitely think Galaxy should show more metal concerts there, cause if something else huge is there, it'll be worth seeing too, I think! There were some general camera issues, a glitch during Slayer, and it ran long, but no worries! Hopefully The Big Four tour together in North America in the future! Can you imagine if they all played HERE? One can dream!

However, because "The Big Four" ran long (it ended around quarter to 11), I actually missed the first half of Ultraviolence's first set at Coch's Corner, but that wasn't going to stop me from going! I've missed seeing them too often already as it was! I made it there mid-song and settled into the closest booth possible and got ready for some filthy dirty drunk n' roll! Now you know how I've said that Ultraviolence have an AC/DC-ish sound? Well, guess what the first full song they played when I got there was? "For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)"! And I have got to say, frontman Turi Mercuri has a great Brian Johnson-esque voice, I can see him fronting an AC/DC cover band if he wanted to go that route! But good thing they don't, cause they have some great originals and covers of other bands to go around! Their set had a number of covers from many different bands, ranging from Twisted Sister and Motley Crue to Led Zeppelin and Motorhead (bassist Jordan Beer'd handled vocals there) to even some Elvis Presley! Plus, they threw in their originals like "Hey Li'l Mama", "Queen Heartbreaker", and "Devil's Little Girl", that are full of raw hard drinking energy that the crowd ate up!

Turi Mercuri's a great frontman, and not just vocally, he was all over the place, jumping on tables, singing to and with the fans there (I got to sing along with the chorus of "Rock N' Roll"), and engaging in some funny on-stage banter! Actually, he and the rest of the band are all very nice guys, they're class acts and I got to chat with them during their first break, which was really awesome! I even got my CD autographed, thanks guys! Andrew Postlethwaite was great all night on guitar, though it seemed like he was hidden a lot of the time, maybe it was just my angle of the stage. Jordan Beer'd ruled on bass, he's gonna go far himself, and Phil Elliot kept the beat nicely on drums, he had some great licks! The crowd, thought not humongous, were great considering this was a Tuesday night concert, and everyone there was getting into it and having a good time, singing along and talking with the band, it was a great environment!

I'm dead honest when I say this: I haven't had this much fun at an out-of-town-headlined bar concert since Ministry of Zen were here last, and even then, there might be some dispute! Ultraviolence are entertaining, they have a great sound, they're nice guys, and they'll get you moving and grooving! The horns and beers were flying, and rightfully so! At points, it didn't even feel like some Tuesday concert! If you weren't there last night, you missed out big time! But keep in mind that Ultraviolence end their summer tour here on July 31st, so go to that concert, you'll thank me later! As you can tell, I took lots of photos, though excuse the quality, the lighting in Coch's Corner wasn't great for photo taking, so the setting made them grainier than I'd like. Click here to check them out, and yes, I got a video too! Here's what I got, Ultraviolence playing their original song "Devil's Little Girl"!



I'll leave this post there for today, but here's what to look out for on the SMS! Tomorrow's post is solely dedicated to previewing this weekend's local metal concerts, including the big Tesla show at Kewadin Casino on Saturday! Friday will have a news post with lots of updates that I need to get through, and also, keep an eye out for my newest profiles of out-of-town bands with local members (this month: The Disciples of Rock & Violet Fuse) between Saturday and Wednesday! And remember, the SMS' 3rd anniversary is ONE WEEK FROM SUNDAY! Stay tuned for more news and updates as they come in!

FOUR LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Turner Up, Phatstick, Tym Morrison, & Ultraviolence!!)

Hey guys, I wasn't planning to have a new post tonight, but with FOUR LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, I knew I couldn't let them slide! Now seeing as I wanted to give my Tym Morrison CD review lots of time as the top story (check it out below), I've made this an auto-post to go up at 10:00 PM tonight, so when this goes up, I'll actually still be at Galaxy Cinema watching The Big Four LIVE! Tomorrow's post will mostly be recaps from Ultraviolence (also TONIGHT) and The Big Four, so I have to get these new concerts in today, just not too early. So here's what you need to know!

Firstly, Turner Up are back at The Canadian Nightclub THIS WEEKEND! Seeing as Led Zeppelin tribute band Black Dog are booked for this Saturday, Turner Up are just playing there on Friday night. Sorry about the short notice of this concert, it was only just announced today. The popular local hard rock cover band will hit the stage at 10:00 PM on Friday, there is no announced cover charge (bring cash just in case), and you must be 19 to get in. It's been a couple of weeks since Turner Up last played live, so if you've missed them and their party/hard rock atmosphere, you will definitely want to be at The Canadian on Friday, especially with no other announced concerts this weekend! For more on Turner Up, visit their official Facebook group, and if I hear any updates, I'll certainly have them for you guys! Check out more on this show at the Facebook event page!

Next up, if you were disappointed that St. Catharines hard rockers Phatstick (featuring Saultites Jason Taillefer and Joe LaVergne) had their May 28th concert at Foggy Notions cancelled due to the renovations there, then you'll wanna know about this! Phatstick will finally come back to Sault Ontario at Foggy's on July 3rd, for their first local show in at least a couple of years! Sure, the postponement sucks, but 5 weeks late is better than not at all! There is an announced start time of 10:00 PM, expect a cover charge of around $3, and you must be 19 to get in. Nothing else has been announced about the concert, but stay tuned to the official Facebook event page for updates! With a few albums and tons of live experience to their name, Phatstick are sure to impress on July 3rd, and I will absolutely be there! I was hoping to see them on my 21st birthday weekend, but this time, I'll get to see them on the SMS' 3rd anniversary weekend, so that's convenient in itself! More on this show as it comes in, check out Phatstick at their official website!

The third new concert I have comes courtesy of the very artist whose CD I reviewed this morning! Tym Morrison himself is returning to The Bottoms Up Lounge on July 17th for another set of great acoustic rock covers! There is no cover charge, the show starts at 10:00 PM that night, and you must be 19 to get in. Though his acoustic solo shows are known pretty much for his proficient cover songs (metal and non-metal alike), you could always request an original song from "Solo Project", cause you never know until you try! Still, if you wanna enjoy some cold drinks and some hot music, The Bottoms Up Lounge is the place to be on July 17th! Check out more from Tym Morrison at his official website, check out my review of his CD below, and for more information on this concert, click here! I'll keep you posted with more Tym and Caveman Morrison updates!

And finally for this new concerts-only auto-post, Toronto drunk n' rollers Ultraviolence are coming back here, again! We all know they're playing at Coch's Corner tonight (I'll see you guys there!) but the band are swinging back through at the end of their Western Canada tour on July 31st! The band updated their MySpace page today with their full NeverEnderBender tour listings and the tour actually in many ways has a mirrored effect, as many early stops will be repeated near the end of the tour, and Sault Ste. Marie both kicks it off and ends it! So if you miss Ultraviolence tonight, no worries, they'll be back at the end of next month! Just like tonight's show, there is a 10:00 PM start time with no cover charge, and like any other Sault Ontario bar show, there is a 19+ age limit. If you wanna party and have a few drinks with a band that loves playing here and rocking out to the limit, Ultraviolence are just the band! Of course go see them tonight, but if you can't go, or you want to see them again, circle July 31st on your calendar! Check out more from Ultraviolence at their official MySpace page!

So there's four new concerts for you guys tonight! If you're visiting here tonight, I'll still be downtown at either Galaxy Cinema or Coch's Corner, and if you don't read this til tomorrow, I hope you guys were with me to see The Big Four and/or Ultraviolence! Review of both coming tomorrow, with lots more news on the horizon, including the Kiss show and more! Stay tuned!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Kiss & The Darwin Project), Ultraviolence Preview, And More!!

Well guys, today's the day of the big Rock 101 concert announcement, so let's not waste any time! If you weren't listening to 101.3 FM at the top of the hour, here's what you need to know! Stay tuned after for another LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, a preview of tomorrow's Ultraviolence concert, and more!

You wanted the best, you've waited patiently (or impatiently) for the best, and now, we're getting the best! Kiss are coming to The Essar Centre on AUGUST 10TH!!! The news was broken on SooToday just minutes ago by SooToday's David Helwig, the article of which you can read at this location! Rock 101's Alli J also announced the show on-air at 5:10 PM to listeners, and conducted an interview with Buzz and Derek Turner from Garden of Bedlam (who are STILL OPENING THE SHOW) on the air talking about the Kiss Battle of the Bands, the upcoming concert, and their new studio album, after which they played "The Truth Shall Set You Free"! Great interview, awesome to see Garden of Bedlam getting this kind of on-air recognition! Originally scheduled for December 15th of last year, the Kiss/Garden of Bedlam concert was postponed due to inclement weather on the way to Sault Ste. Marie from Pittsburgh, and like many of us anticipated, they have indeed rescheduled and are coming here much sooner than we were thinking, falling between the Indianapolis and Buffalo shows of their tour! The show is not listed on Kiss' tour page on their site, but the concert is definitely on for August 10th, the press release is official, THEY ARE COMING!!! Sorry, skeptics, I told you they'd honour their word!

Now, how about ticket details? Well, if you still have your tickets from the December show, they are still good and you can still use them on August 10th! That being said, if you can't or don't want to be at the rescheduled August 10th date, refunds are still being offered at the point of purchase. A limited number of new tickets will be released on Friday to purchase at either The Essar Center box office or online at http://www.essarcenter.ca! I believe the cost is no different from in December, $99.50 would be the price. Rock 101 are also holding a ticket giveaway offer on Thursday to win your own ticket before they go on sale! For more info on tickets in general, call (705) 759-5251 during the week! Full details can be checked out at this location, and as more comes in, I'll have it for you guys! Remember, KISS AND GARDEN OF BEDLAM IN SAULT ONTARIO ON AUGUST 10TH!!!

That's not all for concert news, as there's another new concert in Sault Michigan to announce too, as Cheboygan hard rockers The Darwin Project will be returning to the area for a show next month! The band will be rocking The Corner Pub Bar & Grill on July 9th at 9:00 PM! No cover charge has been announced, I imagine you must be 21 to get in. The Darwin Project are a band that I'm surprised I haven't covered properly on here before, cause they are just hard rock enough for SMS attention! They're influenced by bands like Seether, Three Days Grace, and Shinedown, they've played here a few times in the past, notably at the July 2008 "Rock Starz" show at The Soo Theater with area metal bands like B3nt Rollercoaster and Scofflaw! They have a good sound, sounds like a lot of the radio hard rock bands nowadays, but they're definitely good musicians and they hold their own! Just a familiar sound, but it's a sound that has lots of fans, so they're likely to go over very well! Check out more from The Darwin Project at their official MySpace page!

Next up, seeing as there's a mid-week concert tomorrow, we have a local concert preview today! And yes, I can 100% confirm this is on, despite the band's lack of listed tour dates on their MySpace page. Ultraviolence, Toronto's resident filthy dirty drunk n' roll band, are once again returning to Coch's Corner tomorrow night! My initial source was the ad in last week's issue of Sault This Week in the Hot Spots section, but there's since been further confirmation on Ultraviolence's Facebook page. The band confirmed there in a reply to a fan inquiry on Friday that they'll be in town tomorrow to kick off their "NeverEnderBender Summer 2010 Tour"! So the show's on, and what else should you know? Don't expect a cover charge, the typical Coch's Corner concert doesn't have one, it should start between 10:00 and 11:00 PM, and you must be 19 to get in.

If you wanna hear some great AC/DC-inspired hard rock to have a few beers to and rock out at the same time, Ultraviolence are exactly the band you're looking for! I've been hoping to see them live for months now, and tomorrow, I will FINALLY get the chance! I'll be at Coch's tomorrow night, and expect a review with photos and video on Wednesday! Mark my words, if you go, you'll have an awesome time! For more from Ultraviolence, check them out on MySpace, and here's a video preview of the band playing the song "One More Drink" from a May concert in Waterloo!



Now this isn't a local concert, but this is getting a huge buzz locally and it's taking place tomorrow night as well, so I would be remiss to not mention this here either! Tomorrow night at 7:00 PM eastern time, The Big Four: Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax will share the stage for just the third time ever when they headline night one of The Sonisphere Festival in Sofia, Bulgaria! And us Saultites can see it LIVE as it happens from Galaxy Cinema at The Station Mall! Cineplex & Galaxy theaters across Canada are all showing this historic concert, which is so big, even The Sault Star has an article about it! So how would you guys like to see the biggest thrash bands of all time 2 stories high right here in the Soo? If you want tickets, it's not sold out yet! They cost $18 (believe me, it's worth the price), and they can be bought at Galaxy itself or online by clicking here! Trust me, this will be awesome, you'll want to get a tickets and head to Galaxy tomorrow night! I'll be there, I'm heading to Coch's for Ultraviolence once The Big Four wraps up! I hope to see you guys at the theater too, and remember to bring your most metal movie snacks for this thrash onslaught!

And finally for today, three more assorted stories in alphabetical order by band name:

• Local hard rockers Browbeat have uploaded another song to their Reverbnation page named "Narrow Mind"! It's not a new song, Browbeat fans may remember hearing this at live concerts, I definitely remember it from the last show when they were named Social Play. Still, it's a pretty good song and it's nice to hear in clearer audio! It keeps a quick pace while also keeping things kinda deep soundwise, it actually blends well! Click the above links for more!
• We know that Finding Clyde, StilrizE, and Dannison will be playing support on night two of the Kewadin Casino 25th Anniversary Summer Festival, and now we know another support band that night! Electric Motor Fish, a Sault Michigan acoustic rock band featuring Shift drummer Tony Rogers, will also be one of the support bands for Three Doors Down that night, as confirmed on their MySpace page! Strange that we haven't heard any openers for the other nights yet, or any metal bands, isn't it? More lineup news as it comes in!
  
• Local experimental hard rock trio SBD have uploaded two new songs onto their SoundClick page! One is a new version of their song "Pow! Right In The Kisser" which is clearer and faster than the original, while the other is a slower laid back little tune named "It's For The Money". The chorus speeds up but still has the same feel throughout, oddly. Check out the new songs by clicking the above links!

Alright, so how's that for a post? Tomorrow, stay tuned for my review of Tym Morrison's solo CD, and I'll see you tomorrow night at Galaxy Cinema for The Big Four and Coch's Corner for Ultraviolence, and of course, at The Essar Centre for Kiss! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tym Morrison, Ultraviolence, & Frightlight), And More!!

Big post today, and before we get to news as scheduled, are you wondering what went down at the "secret concert" last night? I will tell you this much that I have heard: Local horror-themed punk/metal band Frightlight made their long awaited return to the stage last night, in their first Coch's Corner show since October! It was also their first live performance with Caveman Morrison's Jeff "Shrek Ogre" Richards on drums, replacing Larry Mousseau, who appears to have left Frightlight earlier this year. That sounds awesome in itself, hearing those guys play lots of horror movie-themed originals, but why was it so secretive? Probably because THE MISFITS were there, signing autographs and mingling with the fans! That's not a typo either. I wasn't there, so I don't know all that went on, but that's what I've heard. Out of respect for the intentional low-key nature of this show and the secrecy that was maintained, I won't post a photo or link from or related to it from any Facebook sources. But for those of you who don't believe this story, let me say this: I have never spread rumours on here, every story I report is through research and verified sources. If I had just heard word of mouth without proof, I would NEVER report it here. So yeah, that's the secret show for you, and if you were in attendance, consider yourself VERY lucky!

Now, onto some more exciting news, starting with not one, not two, but THREE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!! And after that, stay tuned for some updates from The Barking Eye, and if you look close, maybe you'll find out which album I'm reviewing in the next few days somewhere in this post!

Let's go in chronological order for the new concerts, and kicking things off is the long awaited publicly advertised return of Tym Morrison's solo show! After weeks without a new acoustic set from the Caveman Morrison mastermind, he played a private birthday party on Wednesday at The Gliss Rest-O-Bar on Great Northern Road, which is on the same corner as Lucky 7 Mini Mart. The concert went over so well, he's back for a publicly open set there on Saturday evening! Consider this a preview for the show too, as it is this weekend. Compared to most of Tym's solo shows, this has an early start time of 6:00 PM, but the music's good no matter how early, so don't stop yourself! There's no cover charge, but seeing as this is a restaurant/bar, you'll wanna bring money to buy something lest you get kicked out. Should be fun as always, Tym puts in a great show each time he plays, and his acoustic stuff can both rock hard and hit a soft spot depending on your mood! Remember, he also takes requests! Confirm your attendance at the Facebook event page, and remember to check out some of his great Caveman and solo material at his official website! Sorry for the short notice too, it was only announced yesterday.

...speaking of Tym's solo material, this month's CD review on The Sault Metal Scene will be of Tym Morrison's "Solo Project" CD!! I wanted to link my next review with an upcoming local concert, and this fits the bill very nicely! Look out for my review of it by Tuesday, possibly earlier!

Next is a show that I think takes place on Tuesday, but I want you guys to take this concert with a grain of salt. According to the Hot Spots section of the newest issue of Sault This Week, Toronto "drunk n' roll" band Ultraviolence will be back at Coch's Corner for the first time in a few months! Knowing Coch's Corner shows, there would be no cover charge with a 10-11:00 PM start time. If you wanna hear some great AC/DC-ish hard rock that's perfect to drink to, this is your band! Now I feel mostly comfortable with covering this show on here for a few reasons, including their past history here (Coch's likes booking Ultraviolence), the fact that it's in the paper at all (the ad for Coch's Corner is rarely wrong), and the fact that J.D. Pearce from Coch's Corner said he was pretty sure they were playing when I asked him about it yesterday. That being said, the band have not plugged this show on their MySpace page, and they recently announced the departure of drummer Alexis Von Kraven, so I had doubts for the show being on. So I will list this show in the concert listings on your left, BUT keep in mind that for all I know, it may have been cancelled, but there's enough to go on to confirm it as being on. Stay tuned!

Finally for new shows, we go back to the band we kicked off today's post with: Frightlight! If you missed the "secret show" and are hoping for an openly advertised show of theirs to hit, this will definitely interest you! On July 10th, Frightlight will play their first publicly open concert since Halloween when they rock Coch's Corner once again, this time as the openers for Toronto surf garage punk rockers The von Drats! Their MySpace page lists no venue, but bassist DanO von Drat confirmed that they're playing at Coch's Corner in a posting on the SMS' Facebook page. The von Drats play a unique combination of 1960s-ish surf rock and goth-influenced punk, which makes for some strangely listenable tunes! Not "metal" by any stretch, but you gotta check them out, click here to do so! Of course, if you want heaviness, Frightlight will bring an awesome horror themed punk/metal attack to start off the night! Featuring J.D. and Rick from Fitswitch, Shrek from Caveman Morrison, and Mike Gingras on bass, these guys definitely bring the goods, and will have lots of great originals in store on July 10th! The show will likely start between 10:00 and 11:00 PM on that night, and has no announced cover. More details will be posted as I hear them!

And finally for today, prolific local rock drummer Glen Thomas has posted some intriguing new stories onto his local music news site, The Barking Eye, which I recommend you guys read more often! The biggest new story he posted concerns how local bands get studio recordings made and released, which actually outlines the self-recording process pretty nicely if you want to self-record material rather than enter a professional studio! Glen refers to Sykotyk Rampage in the piece as one of many examples of local bands who record their songs themselves at home. If you're in a band and want to record good sounding original material, read Glen's article at this location, which could help you take the next step without forking out too much cash! Apparently, Glen will be profiling bands who self-record in an upcoming series called "Attack of the Garage Bands", so stay tuned for that as well! Also now on The Barking Eye: Updates on the in-progress local recording studio named Basswerx, and a small update on a music school opening near Bawating Collegiate that will be run by Stiffler's Mom/Sin Stereo guitarist Mike Davies! Check out The Barking Eye today, there's lots of great local music talk from a guy who definitely knows what he's talking about!

Alright, so here's where today's post ends. But are you wondering why there's nothing about last month or this month's poll? Simple, I'm posting about that tonight! I don't like doing two posts in a day, but I got piled with news in the last couple of days, so I can't let things slide. In the meantime, you can vote on the new poll already, it's up on the left of the page, but we'll wait til tonight to discuss it. Stay tuned for that and much more, including my review of Tym Morrison's solo album by Tuesday, and lots of other stuff you'll wanna check out!

Sykotyk Rampage/Scotties Battle Review And Weekend Concert Previews

The posts just keep piling on to kick off February, and we have a packed one today! We have previews for all SEVEN metal shows in the Sault area this weekend, but first, it's time to review/recap what happened at last night's Sault College/Scotties Tournament of Hearts Battle of the Bands! (Remember to check out my out of town bands with Saultites profile from yesterday, featuring Papa Fogals Chair and The Sexual Vigilantes, which is immediately below this post!)

Firstly, I should comment on the venue and atmosphere of the battle, seeing as this is a venue that isn't used often for concerts. I hadn't been to the Soo Curlers Association Rink since 2003 for a class field trip, so I had no idea what to expect. Once inside, The HeartStop Lounge was straightforward to get to, which is nice! The lounge has a clear divide in sections, the left area had the stage and general concertgoers, the right side had tables and was mostly populated by curlers and curling fans rather than those there specifically for the battle.

The Scotties Tournament people sure got everything spiced up inside, with food and beer tokens for sale, a beer cart with draws, a HUGE blow-up Alexander Keith's can, and other curling/alcohol related things to draw people's attention! But what struck me most from the concert-goers perspective was the fact that A. They were filming the bands, and B. We saw the results of said filming in real-time on VIDEO SCREENS on each side of the stage! There was even video effects to boot! I don't know if the videos will be used for anything else, or if the screens are a permanent feature at the lounge, but it was awesome and gave everything a professional feel! (The picture has Sykotyk Rampage singer/drummer Paul Becker on the big screen.) I wonder if The HeartStop Lounge will start booking some heavier bands again in the future?

Even though the battle supposedly started at 10:00, the first band, Blackwater, had already begun. Just a touch early, no worries! Of the four competing bands, Blackwater were the only ones I had never seen live before, mostly because they were out of my genre range. But for what they play, they were quite good! Of course, it's not my cup of tea, but they are quite talented! They have kind of a folk/blues rock style, which doesn't seem to fit guys of their younger age, but they pulled it off! Is Neil Young accurate to give a sound comparison to? I didn't recognize anyone in Blackwater from other groups I know, but then again, it's not something I listen to every day either. Nice on-stage banter, good musical quality for their style, they definitely looked like possible favourites to win!

They were followed by Middle of Nowhere, who weren't bad! Solid classic rock sound, though the reception from the crowd wasn't as good as it was at the Kiss battle. Sergio Palumbo sang pretty good, the band were probably better to me than the crowd thought! However, their set was underwhelming, and I'll tell you why: They only played 3 songs, when they had a 30 minute time limit. They could have played another 20 minutes or so, but nope, 3 and done. I found that odd, but hey, what can you do? Not bad regardless! Nebraska Arms (pictured) followed them and played a very energetic set of their brand of indie rock! This if the fourth or fifth time I've seen them live, and their on-stage activity and energy still impresses me! Lots of good dynamics in their songs, and Guy Thiffault continued with some amusing on-stage banter! Yet, like Blackwater, their style isn't something I listen to a lot. But they were as impressive as ever for their style, their live shows are quite entertaining, so check them out if you're an indie rock fan!

Fittingly capping the night was the only competing metal band, the original crash band themselves, Sykotyk Rampage! And in terms of entertainment, they deserved to win! They reeled off lots of classics like "Treating You Bad", "Called In Dead", and "Drinking On The Weekend", as well as some newer material like "Lit'le Crocochild" and more! Paul Becker sang in his own entertaingly unique way (while drumming good simultaneously), while the guys up front were also quite good! Shane Kokis and Dirk Becker played very nicely on guitar, Dirk had a lot of energy to boot! Same for Brian Cattapan, his basslines was quite clear and well performed! From a musical standpoint, they were great to get the crowd going, with some girls and guys alike dancing! Heavy but danceable, it works! I may be biased as a metalhead, but I'm a big fan, but I admit they will be polarizing to some. Just have a drink, let loose, and have a good time with these guys!

Aside from the musical aspect, Sykotyk Rampage were pulling out all the stops to win the fan interaction vote and be as entertaining as possible, and it worked very well! The band had paper bags to throw the crowd, each of which had a band t-shirt! Dirk channeled Jeremy Salatuk from the Kiss battle and SMASHED HIS GUITAR, then sang one song sans guitar while almost going nuts on stage with his antics, which was cool! The band interacted with us a lot, joking around and dancing and having fun, and the crowd responded properly! In fact, many of us had Sykotyk Rampage posters to show our support with, thanks to Jen Crouthers for making them! I'm putting my "Self Indulgent Nympho" one in my room! Fans even ran to the front of the stage to show their signs! If the battle was by fan support, Sykotyk Rampage would have won hands down, and I'm not being facetious in saying that! On sheer entertainment value, they were my pick to win it all!

After Sykotyk Rampage wrapped up their set, we waited to see who'd leave with the big money. When the MC came up to the stage to announce the top 3, we were all ears! So, here are the results!

1st place: Blackwater
2nd place: Nebraska Arms
3rd place: Sykotyk Rampage
4th place: Middle of Nowhere

Although I'd have loved to have seen Sykotyk Rampage pull off the upset, I figured Blackwater or Nebraska Arms would be more likely to win the judges over. No worries though, all bands did good, even Middle of Nowhere, who might have gotten a lesser result than I would have thought. Blackwater left with the $750 top prize and got to play an encore set at the end of the night! Nebraska Arms won $500, and Sykotyk Rampage left with the $150 third prize! Overall, it was a fun concert, not the heaviest show I've ever been to, but musically it was top notch! Sykotyk Rampage stole the show, and I'm not just being metal-biased, they really did! Check out my photos of Sykotyk Rampage's set at this location, or visit the SMS Facebook page to see them there too! Here's the video I filmed at the show, Sykotyk Rampage playing their song "Treating You Bad"!



Now, it's Thursday, as we're anticipating the weekend's slate of concerts! Seven on tap this weekend, unusually busy but hey, it's all good! Let's start in Sault Michigan where a band plays three times this weekend!

Marquette Michigan hard rockers Nudge return to The Satisfied Frog TONIGHT, tomorrow night, and Saturday night for a triple-header of great music! As has been the standard for recent Nudge shows in Sault Michigan, Nudge's Thursday show (that's tonight) will be a "Nudge-coustic" set, so prepare to mellow out to some unplugged rock n' roll! If you're looking for electric instruments and heaviness, head to The Frog tomorrow or Saturday! All three shows are pegged to start at 10:00 PM, there has been no announced cover charge. These are Nudge's only scheduled dates for Sault Michigan in 2010, with bookings at various other places scheduled for much of the year. I don't know when they'll be back, so if you want to hear some solid hard rock, go to The Frog this weekend! Should be some great shows, too bad I'm not of age to see them yet at American bars though. Confirm your attendance at the Facebook event page! No audio on their MySpace, but I have video of these guys finally to share, so check out this live clip of Nudge covering the Ozzy Osbourne classic "Bark At The Moon"!



Now we'll head back to Sault Ontario for the other four concerts this weekend, and kicking things off tomorrow night, in the first of a two night stint at Foggy Notions, is Half Past! The local hard rock quartet will play their first concerts since the Frightlight Halloween show at Coch's Corner! There will be a cover charge of $2, they should be starting at around 10:30 PM! Confirm your attendance at the official Facebook event page! I'll tell you this much, I will be at Foggy's tomorrow for the Friday portion of their weekend double shot! I haven't seen what is now Half Past since 2008, having been out of town over Halloween. Hopefully I'm not cursed out of seeing them like I have been lately for Sense of Truth shows, but I digress. This should be a fun show, for a preview, here's a video of Half Past playing their original song "Dead Again" at a 2009 jam session! And check out more from Half Past on their Facebook page!



So we have Half Past Saturday at Foggy's, but if you're looking for a band to go see that night, you have choices! Two other metal bands are rocking local bars on Saturday night, and we'll start with Caveman Morrison! Yes, the local metal cover band are back at The Rockstar Bar on February 6th for another good long night of your favourite songs by one of the Sault's most frequently seen bands of recent months! They're also on at 10:00, and there is no cover charge! Confirm your attendance at the Facebook event page! Caveman Morrison put on a great show every time they play, and they're bound to know songs you really like, so throw out a request! Hopefully Tym and company get a good crowd! For a preview of what to expect, check out some audio and video at their official website, and this video of Caveman Morrison covering the Metallica classic "Seek and Destroy"!



And finally for this weekend, Ultraviolence are BACK! Not even a month after they rocked Coch's Corner at a show I'm STILL bitter about missing, they will be headlining a Scotties Tournament of Hearts wrap party at Coch's Corner! A start time of 10:25 PM is listed for this show, which will also be Saturday night. No cover charge is listed. I never expected to see Ultraviolence back so soon, but the Sault could always use more filthy drunk n' roll, so it's just fine by me! If you like AC/DC, this is up your alley! If it wasn't for UFC 109 (Go Mark Coleman!), I'd be there, but regardless, it will be an awesome concert! Hopefully you guys spread out equally to the three Saturday shows and make them all successful! Confirm your attendance for the show at the Facebook event page, check out UV on MySpace, and for a preview, here's Ultraviolence playing "Big Ol' Swig" at a show last year!



I know I promised to talk about Quite Frankly's new singer, but it would get lost in the shuffle of this post if I did now, so I'm gonna hold off on that until my next post, which will likely be tomorrow. Stay tuned for that, news on the other band on the Pop Evil show later this month, and more at some point tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Bring The Fallen), An Original Fitswitch Reunion, And Bad Side Opening For Bon Jovi?

Very short notice LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for you guys, let's get to this right away! The urgency is here because the show is TONIGHT! Local death/thrash metal band Bring The Fallen are playing at Foggy Notions TONIGHT! I apologize for the short notice of this, but it was only announced by guitarist Dan Souliere on Facebook a little after 3:00 PM. Foggy's was having a bit of a late crunch to get a band to play tonight, but they have a band, and a great one at that! This will be their first live appearances since their double shot of battles of the bands on December 1st, one of which they won! Rich Moreland has confirmed to me that the show will have a $2 cover and they will take the stage between 10:30 and 11:00 PM! I know this is short notice, but if you can make it to Foggy's tonight, do it! It will be a great concert! Not sure if I'll be there, but if you go, you'll have a headbanging good time! As I suppose this is a preview too, I'll show you guys a video, so here's a video of Bring The Fallen from the Necropolis days, performing their song "Night Riders" at The Oddfellows Hall!



While we're on the subject of shows at Foggy's, I can confirm that the Half Past shows next weekend will also have a $2 cover. This wasn't put on the event page initially, so I didn't know there was one. Well, there you go, bring your toonies AND your beer money then too! Thanks to Luke LeBlanc for the info!

Now we come to something that, though not really a new concert, will interest Fitswitch fans! According to J.D. Pearce and Rick White, the original lineup of Fitswitch are reuniting for a one-off set at original guitarist Kevin Powe's stag and doe! Yes, J.D., Rick, Kevin, Andrew MacDonald, and Larry Mousseau will be back together once again to rock some punk/metal, if only for one night! It will be at The Elks Hall on March 20th, tickets are $25 each or $40 for two. E-mail Rick White on Facebook if you're interested in attending! There will also be dinner, a D.J., door prizes, and other typical stag and doe things! I'm not gonna call this as a concert because really, it isn't, and attendance is probably only encouraged for those close to Kevin and family, but it's cool to hear! But if you are interested in attending Kevin's stag and doe, contact Rick to get a ticket, but bear in mind, it's a stag and doe first and foremost, the Fitswitch reunion is a bonus!

To my knowledge, this would be the first Fitswitch performance with the original lineup since (I think) 2006? I'm not sure on my dates. This would also be the first show of any Fitswitch lineup since March, when the J.D./Rick/Jason Bourcier/Jeff Goertzen lineup reunited at Coch's Corner for another one-off!

Next up, Bad Side are alive! No they haven't booked new local concerts, but they haven't broken up, I'm glad to say! I know this because of this announcement on Facebook: They want our help. The Sault Michigan hard rockers have entered the "Fox Rocks" contest ran by Detroit TV station WJBK, where bands will be voted on for a chance to open for Bon Jovi! The 5 highest vote getters will play live on WJBK's morning show, and the sets will be posted online for another voting period. The winners will open for Bon Jovi with a 15 minute set prior to their show at The Palace of Auburn Hills on March 17th! You can vote once an hour, but there's no cap on the total votes you can cast! CLICK HERE TO VOTE FOR BAD SIDE! There you'll be taken to the voting page, with a short band bio and an audio stream of the song "Run Home" from their most recent album, "Bad Things Come In Threes"! VOTE TODAY, the deadline is February 18th!!! Click the banner underneath the band photo to cast your vote!

I've already voted once, though 15 minutes is kinda skimpy compared to the half hour Garden of Bedlam will get opening for Kiss. Still, it's a great opportunity, I hope they get it, they deserve it! And above all else, I'm glad to see Bad Side are still active, hopefully they'll be back playing shows around here soon!

And finally, that Ultraviolence show taking place in exactly ONE WEEK at Coch's Corner is officially a go! A Facebook event page has been posted for it, where it confirms that this concert will be a wrap party for the Scotties Tournament of Hearts! So that makes two hard rock shows connected to this huge curling tournament, the other being Sykotyk Rampage at the Battle of the Bands on Wednesday! No announced openers, it starts at 10:25 PM, and there's no announced cover charge! Should be a good concert, great to see Ultraviolence back so soon!

That's all for now, if I don't have anything tomorrow, my next post will feature my review of Detroit's new album "Brace For Impact", and that will be MONDAY! Stay tuned everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Ultraviolence & Caveman/Tym Morrison), And More!!!

Hey guys, it's time to spread the updates around once again! And today, I have a triple shot of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so here's what you need to know! (And afterwards, a Woods of Ypres story!)

The Ultraviolence related news continues, as it looks like they are indeed coming back to Coch's Corner, just a month sooner than I was thinking! J.D. Pearce from Coch's Corner has confirmed to me in an e-mail that Ultraviolence are apparently playing there on February 6th, which is just one week from Saturday! He also said a local band was asked about opening, but I'll hold from mentioning that until something official comes out. Seeing as this is a Coch's Corner show, don't expect a cover charge, start time of around 11:00 PM seems likely. Now I've only heard of this show from one e-mail, so there's more gaps to fill in, but as I hear more, you'll be sure to find out along with me! Who knows, if they're coming on March 6th like drummer Alexis Von Kraven's MySpace page implies, we could get UV for the third time in three months!

Meanwhile, two local hard rock acts have scheduled a concert each in the next few months, both of which involve Tym Morrison in some fashion! Firstly, local metal cover band Caveman Morrison will be back at The Rockstar Bar on, coincidentally, February 6th! (Ultraviolence or Caveman Morrison...tough call!) Expect 4 more hours of great covers of your favourite songs from all over the hard rock spectrum! There is no cover charge announced, you must be 19 to get in. Nothing radically different from past Caveman shows, but it should be a great time! It might be tough for me to hit either of the February 6th shows (what can I say, it's UFC 109 that night!), but it sure would be fun to make it to either or both! Hopefully they both draw great crowds! Confirm your attendance for this concert at the Facebook event page!

Then on March 13th, Tym Morrison will pick up his acoustic guitar once again and head to The Bottoms Up Lounge for another acoustic solo show! 4 more hours of more intimate rock and other genres, this will start at 10:00 PM that night (as does next month's Caveman show), and there will be no cover charge! Never hurts to cool down every now and then, and what bettwer way then to hear to The Bottoms Up Lounge for some acoustic hard rock? Might hit this, it was fun seeing Tym's acoustic set the last time, I'll have to check it out again, might be a good time! Once again, confirm your attendance at the official Facebook event page! If I hear any updates on the shows I just talked about today, I'll be sure to tell you guys!

Next up, remember on Friday when I mentioned that Woods of Ypres would be profiled in the next issue of Exclaim! Magazine? Good news for those of us that can't track down the February issue: The article is online for free! It features a short review of Woods IV: The Green Album by Exclaim!'s Laura Taylor, as well as an interview with Woods frontman David Gold, in which he discusses what makes "The Green Album" so green, David's year living in South Korea, sound influences on the CD, and the challenges of releasing albums independent of major labels. Nice interview with long well detailed answers, though it'd have been nice to see Laura ask more questions! Check out the full article at this location, or if you know of somewhere that carries Exclaim! Magazine, read it in the brand new issue!

And finally for today, I just got word from Social Play drummer Chris Smith that the band have decided to look for an official singer! They're looking to drop covers entirely and get a full-time frontman to sing with them, so he asked if I could help out at all! I do like Dutch Vanderploeg's singing, but if this is something they really want, all power to them! They're not looking for anyone underage, female, or with "screaming vocals", so keep that in mind if you're interested. Click here to check out one of their originals! If you're interested in singing lead vocals for Social Play, message Chris Smith on Facebook by clicking here!

That's all for now, more news and updates are coming very soon, including my review of TONIGHT'S Stillbroke concert at The Speakeasy (hope to see you guys there!), and my review of Detroit's "Brace To Impact" on Monday! Stay tuned!

A Short Random News Post!!

First off, I wanna apologize for the lack of news the last couple of days, the early months of a year are often the slowest for new local metal updates. Things will pick up very soon, I assure you all! So I have four news stories and updates to share, I don't like leaving three day gaps between posts, so it's best to fill you guys in now before you think I abandoned the SMS! Let's start with what could be a return for a band that just played here this month!

As you may remember, Toronto drunk n' rollers Ultraviolence hit Coch's Corner on January 12th, two weeks ago today, which is a show I'm still ticked about missing (especially after missing Sense of Truth AGAIN!) Well, if you missed Ultraviolence too and want a chance to see them, an opportunity may be closer than we think! In my internet searching, I came across the MySpace page for Ultraviolence drummer Alexis Von Kraven. There, he lists his own tour dates for the bands he's in (Ultraviolence and Inner Turbulence.) No bands are specifically mentioned for each show on his tour listings, but Alexis does list a date for March 6th at Coch's Corner! On MySpace, Ultraviolence have no completely confirmed dates past next month, and Inner Turbulence have none at all, so I don't know if this is a planned show or one that's been called off already. I thought it was worth mentioning, cause it could be another new local metal concert, and who wouldn't wanna see Ultraviolence back so soon? I'll keep you posted if anything comes of my hunch! To see what I saw, click here!

Next up, we have a new local music forum that's worth discussing! This time, it's an official forum for a local band, Caveman Morrison to be precise! Tym & company have been updating their internet presence a lot in recent weeks, and this appears to be the next step! Hosted on Forumup, this message board includes topics and boards to discuss Caveman Morrison shows, setlists, and general band information, as well as to post pictures, mingle with fans, and talk about anything! Caveman Morrison aren't the first local band with their own forum (Woods of Ypres being the most notable example), but the track record for the survival of local metal-ish forums of any type isn't great, only around four others are currently active. Remember, the first step in establishing the success of a message board is to attract members, so if you wanna contribute to the Caveman Morrison forum's success, click here to read what's there and sign up!

Now we'll discuss Woods of Ypres once again, for the praise and reception of their newest album continues! Jordan Campbell from MetalReview has posted his top 20 albums of 2009 in an editorial column, and guess what placed high on his list? Woods IV: The Green Album! Jordan gives it high praise, giving it a large preference to Woods III (which he found "clunky"), and says that it's a "brutally honest and individualistic achievement of heavy metal songcraft." He also makes lots of comparisons to other bands, which is cool! It placed only behind albums from Solstafir & Blut Aus Nord, and ahead of albums from bands like Anaal Nakrath, Immortal, and Hypocrisy! Great to see "Woods IV" continuing to be such a success, here's to lots more in the coming months! Read Jordan's complete top 20 at this location!

And finally for today, thanks to Papa Fogals Chair percussionist Adam Chillman for this: A new updated poster has been unveiled for the February 27th concert featuring them and Garden of Bedlam at Foggy Notions! The only real update to it is the addition of a sponsor, Forsaken Tattoo Studio, who are prominently featuring the new poster as their Facebook group's profile image! FYI, Forsaken Tattoo Studio is on Wellington Street West, and is owned by PFC guitarist Joey Grisdale! So check out the poster to your left, this concert is gonna kick ass! I hope I'm in town for it! Remember, doors open at 9:00 PM with an 11:00 start time for this special show on February 27th, there will be a small cover charge, you must be 19 to get in.

That's all for now, I promise more news is coming very soon! We still need word on the Kiss concert, Algoma Hope4Haiti, and much more! Oh, and on Monday, my review of "Brace For Impact" by Detroit will be posted on the SMS, so stay tuned for that, and much more! Thanks everyone!