Project 421 & Bon Soo Updates, Plus More Updates & Notes!!

We're back with a new news post to kick off this last full week of January, so what's on tap? Some updates to one of our battle of the bands profiles, some assorted recent notes, and the latest from a new local arts podcast, but let's start with some new concert videos!

Local classic metal quintet Project 421 are the subject of some new videos that were uploaded to their Facebook page yesterday, all courtesy of their Rednecks Saloon concert on Friday! Attendee Chris Weber shot three videos at the show (and got lots of photos, albeit made black & white after the fact), and they include renditions of Black Sabbath's "N.I.B.", Kiss' "Cold Gin", and as embedded below, their first original "No One Rides For Free". Shot on a cell phone camera, the audio is scratchy, and the camera angle can be jittery, but these videos are our best look yet at the current Project 421 lineup, and you can definitely sense that they have a good grasp on these songs! The lighting isn't great though, only drummer Chris Thompson is well lit on stage. Give these a look above and below, and don't miss Project 421 at The Rockstar Bar next month!



Next up, the newest episode of the new local music/arts podcast 7L is now online via their Soundcloud page, so what should you know from it? The episode features host Teddy Syrette interviewing Bon Soo general manager Kerrie De Poli about next month's installment of our annual winter carnival, where Kerrie talks about the inception of Bon Soo, the extended 12-day lineup for this year, events to look for, how long Kerrie's been working with the festival, her background before joining Bon Soo, the merger with Passport To Unity, where to get Bon Soo buttons, and more. The episode closes with Kerrie reading a poem about Bon Soo, and Teddy singing likewise, which is a fun way to close the episode! It's good and fun promotion for this year's festival, but what do we learn about Bon Soo's concerts for this year? Only bare basics, with no visible lineup information confirmed for either The Marquee or Passport to Unity, but The Marquee will apparently be a one-night outdoor event again on Friday, February 5th at Mill Market.

The Passport To Unity multicultural festival will be at The Essar Center as usual, but now on Sunday, February 14th rather than May to fit the Bon Soo schedule. We have yet to find lineup information for either event, but when updates come out on both/either, we'll let you know! Give the new 7L episode a listen above, it's informative and worth checking out, but note that the teased acoustic punk segment is not featured, no word on if it's coming for episode #4. Stay tuned though!

Also today, here's three assorted shorter items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphbetical order by artist name:

• If you've seen recent personal Facebook pictures of Havadder playing a recent gig without bassist Travis Sharpe, we can confirm that the show was a private event at The Rankin Arena, and with Travis unable to make the gig, local musician Brett Gottwald filled in for him. There are some videos from the event on Facebook, but unless the band shares them publically, we won't post them here. Brett filled in well though from what I saw, and give them a watch if they pop up on your news feed!
• Local musician Lee Catling is looking for a drummer for a Slayer tribute band that he's working on. He didn't offer any more details, but Slayer fans should be intrigued by this, so message Lee at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from yesterday if you're interested! 
• Honest Job bassist Drew Armstrong has been added as a performer with Like a Pisces during the Nirvana tribute concert at The Gore Street Cafe on February 20th during The Fishbowl Festival's opening night, as per the Facebook event page last week. However, it should be noted that the current wording of the performers lumps The Pixo Control in as one of the main acts, rather than as defined openers, so is this going to be a collaborative show with guests coming & going between songs? We'll let you know if there's clarification!

Finally for today, here's some big updates to one of our past Battle of the Bands Rewind Profiles (which return in March!) In our profile of December 2009's Algoma University Battle of the Bands, we noted The Fury's brief 2014 reunion and RedD Monkey's hiatus & posthumous activity in the section on competitors' later work, while we replaced Keep It Lit and Giwakwa with The Apocalypse Afterparty, Infinity Grinder, and Kaepora Gaebora in the section on performers' later bands to keep that more current. Finally, the trivia section now features notes on planned judges Anthony Fabiano & Dustin Jones' later work in battles of the bands (as Griphook's drummer in Spanish and as a VM Radio Battle judge/sponsor respectively), info on how The Apocalypse Afterparty & Infinity Grinder did at the battles in March 2015, and a note on Fury frontman Paul Stanghetta's debuting band Keep It Lit, who never played after dropping out of 2013's Viva La Battle. Hopefully that's up to date now, and stay tuned for updates of battles from the early 2010s soon!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Gnaeus), The Return Of SNFU, And AlgomA Updates!!

With a lot of extant backlogged stories still waiting to get on the site, here's an extra new post on this Sunday morning, but be sure to check out this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post below this one! Today, we have all the latest from a popular local metal band, and the identity of mystery headliners for an upcoming concert, but first, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for TODAY!!

Local post-punk/gararge rock quartet Gnaeus will return to the stage TODAY when they rock out at The Essar Centre during the grand finale of this year's Passport To Unity multicultural festival! Apologies for the short notice, the band announced the show via their Facebook page on Thursday, but it slipped us by until now. The VM Radio Battle winners will be among a very diverse lineup of performers that you can check out at this link, and while most are cultural bands and groups, local garage/folk band Honest Job are among the scheduled acts, so keep them in mind as well (they're on at 3:30 PM.) Fans may remember seeing The Pixo Control at last year's Passport To Unity finale after their Downtown Diversity set was rained out, and it will likely be similar circumstances for their friends in Gnaeus this year, so be sure to check them out TODAY during all of the entertainment and events!

Gnaeus are on at 4:25 PM amidst the ALL AGES activities taking place at The Essar Centre, which will also be hosting numerous arts, culture, and food vendors for the occasion of this great and diverse annual event, and while there's no announced admission fee, bring cash just in case. Check the above links for more details! Passport To Unity is a great event, and hopefully Gnaeus' entertaining music adds to that today, so don't miss them at 4:25 PM, and here they are live in March!

Next up, remember how one of the upcoming Gonqshow concerts at The Algonquin Pub on Friday, July 24th has headliners "to be announced" yet had a $20 admission fee? Well, we now know why, as none other than SNFU are coming back to Sault Ste. Marie! Yes, the Vancouver hardcore punk legends are returning to our neck of the woods this summer for the first time in over six years, so if you've missed Mr. Chi Pig and company, here's your chance! As previously announced, this show will be opened by local punk/metal bands (and upcoming split CD-mates) Destroilet & Jack Spades, the latter of whom were scheduled to open for both SNFU and Death By Stereo in July 2013 back when they were brand new, but that planned concert was indefinitely postponed & later cancelled. Both are fitting choices to be sure, so don't miss them either on July 24th!

In the midst of the Gonqshow concert series from J.D. Pearce & Tidal Records, admission will again be $20, a 10:00 PM start time is likely, and you must be 19 to attend. For more details, visit the above links! Now that we know the headliners, we can get ready for SNFU's intense and chaotic hardcore punk in the midst of the summer, so be sure to stay tuned as updates roll in over the next few months!

We'll close today with some overdue notes from local doom metal trio AlgomA, so what have they been up to lately? Aside from their set opening for Biipiigwan at 180 Projects last week (more on that in a bit), the guys have produced some new t-shirts and stickers featuring their new "Circle of Willis" logo that you can now buy at shows and sample via photos on their Facebook page. Their exposure continues to grow, with their song "Go On, Git!" from last year's debut album "Reclaimed By The Forest" included on a new compilation CD from metal promotion agency Grand Sounds Promotions, joining 17 other bands from around the world. Nice score getting on that, so see above for info on that too, and stream it all at this link! Also, singer/guitarist Boyd Rendell appears to have completely dropped the Darby Wigwaus stage name according to their Facebook page, so now all three members are billed as themselves.

AlgomA have also alerted fans on Facebook to a number of recent CD reviews that we hope to touch on in the near future as well, but we'll close today with a video of them at the aforementioned Biipiigwan concert last week, courtesy of the band's YouTube channel on Friday! Filmed with a far stationary camera, this is of AlgomA's full 8 song set last Thursday, and in order, the songs they played include "Failed Stunt Fatality", "Tertiary Syphillis", "Phthisis", "Electric Fence", "Fell Down A Well", "Canis Rabidus", a cover (their first ever) of The Kittens' "Great Dane", and "Go On, Git!", so visit each song name for the individual track. Despite being their first public show since it's release, only three of the six songs from "Reclaimed By The Forest" made this set, but the new songs live up to their usual crushing doom standards!

Adding to the far distance, the video is dark and grainy, and it's hard to make out the projected video behind the band, but it does give the overall video an aged look that helps the effect. Nice to see AlgomA back, and hopefully they have a lot more in the tank as 2015 rolls on, so give their new full concert video a look below!


That's all for today, but stay tuned for much more this coming week! Thanks everyone!

Tym Morrison Concert Previews, Jack Spades EP Release Show Updates, And More!!

Despite a slow weekend for verifiable hard rock/metal concerts coming up, we're dividing them into two posts due to the immense scope of Saturday night's fourth annual Sewer Swampstravaganza at The Oddfellows Hall, so look for our extended preview of that (possibly in it's own single post) tomorrow! Today, we have previews of the other known heavier shows this weekend, but we also have updates on an upcoming CD release show, info on another recent album release, and a new recent concert video, so here's what you need to know!

Week #23 of Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison's current weekly concert arrangement at The Harp Bar & Grill will go down TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Though yet to be advertised on Facebook, Tym's website confirms that he'll be back at the former Madison's Pub on Pine Street for solo acoustic shows this weekend, with tomorrow's show being his usual gig/hosted jam night, while he doubles up for the fourth time with a pure solo concert on Saturday, so pick your fancy (or both) for Tym's entertaining unplugged hard rock covers and more this weekend! There's no announced cover charge for either night, you must be 19 to attend, and each event should start at around 10:00 PM. Check the above links for more details, and don't miss Tym's experienced veteran sound and talents this weekend! For a preview, here's Tym live at The Harp in December!



Next up, here's the latest on the Jack Spades' EP release show at The Rockstar Bar on Friday, May 16th, including the news that local classic metal band Project 421 have been confirmed as the third and final band on the lineup! This will be their first ever show at The Algonquin Hotel's upstairs bar, and they should be a solid fit for this event, but there will be one difference, as frontman Curtis McKenzie will not be present for the set due to out of town work commitments, as revealed on their Facebook page on Tuesday. Though they played their first show with guitarist Blair Burch on lead vocals, the band is hoping to secure a temporary singer to do this gig in just over a week, so if you're interested, message bassist Daniel Horton on Facebook A.S.A.P.! The Facebook event page has also been updated to reflect the lineup and the solid new event poster by Destroilet drummer Matt Waples, while the show is getting some advance press via this SooToday article with some band member quotes and some extra confirmations about Jack Spades' EP "The First", so what's new to add there?

The booklet that comes with physical copies of "The First" will feature photos from Jack Spades' set opening for Anvil at The Canadian in March, while logos and art in the booklet are done by frontman J.D. Pearce's Frightlight bandmate Kevin Powe. Be sure to get your copies on May 16th, which are $5 plus your $5 door charge for the release show, and stay tuned for more details, including the identity of Project 421's fill-in vocalist!

Also in the world of local metal CD releases, I obtained a copy of local/St. Catharine's grimecore trio Shit Liver's self-titled debut CD at the Fuck The Facts show this past Saturday, so I thought I'd fill you guys in on it's contents! Sold for $10, the CD's booklet features the lyrics to all 16 songs on the disc (which also came with digital copies), while the back cover of it features a wide-ranging thank you to fans and friends, website links, and the confirmation that the album was recorded and mixed by "Jesse Cooke" (misspelling of Jesse Cook from Jack Spades?) and mastered by Steve Rickard (alias for John Conway, who was credited as mastering the album in Facebook photos?) The cover artwork (which was designed by bassist Mike Kyle) is also included with physical copies in a minature poster, with the layout of the booklet by Suck It Stickers, and the album is dedicated to the memory of late Bear Hunters/Pillory guitarist Andres Duchesne. It's great to finally have this CD out after a few years of work, so pick it up at this link!

Finally for today, local alternative/hard rock trio The Pixo Control shared a new video of their set at The Essar Center on Sunday as part of last weekend's Passport To Unity festivities! Courtesy of what I believe was an indoor rescheduling of their Downtown Diversity set (which even had Crank Sound Distribution doing sound), this was filmed by attendee Taylor Leadbeater and both posted & shared on the band's Facebook page that day. It's of The Pixo Control playing their teased new song "60 Extra Chances Called Minutes", and while the video is regrettably filmed in the vertical cell phone camera angle, the band sounds good, and it has an early-1990s grunge vibe like many of their other songs! I like the choruses especially,  though Taylor's camera angle is a bit far, and the lack of fans in the stands reminds me of events like the New Year's community event at the arena that Intrepid played (but the flags behind the stage are a nice touch!)

In terms of the band's next moves, their Facebook share of this video confirmed that they're going to slow down shows for a bit as "there's something real great coming up right around the corner", but the video will keep us on our toes, and they closed with "see you babes soon", but didn't elaborate. Perhaps are they recording some originals? Too early to say yet, but check out the full video below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for our extended preview of Saturday night's fourth annual Sewer Swampstravaganza! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Stiffler's Mom & The Pixo Control) And Most Of The Weekend Concert Previews!!

Today at the SMS, we're kicking off the month of May with most of the weekend's hard rock concert previews, including SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the next two nights, but with two caveats. One is that we're covering Sunday night's Fuck The Facts show on Saturday to give it proper emphasis closer to showtime, so look for it then. Also, Garden of Bedlam & a one-off Papa Fogals Chair reunion (and "more") are playing at PFC bassist Mike Bird's stag & doe at The Moose Lodge on Saturday night, but given the nature of stags & does, we don't traditionally call them as full public concerts on here. Click here for more details though, as the lineup is solid, and who knows when you'll see PFC again! Now, let's get to the rest of the weekend previews! (Updated on Friday at 5:34 PM)

Local alternative/hard rock trio The Pixo Control will be playing a special outdoor concert set TOMORROW MORNING as part of this year's Passport To Unity multicultural festival in the Soo! Apologies for the short notice, we only just heard about this event earlier this week. We haven't touched on Passport to Unity on here before as it doesn't usually feature bands we cover, but this annual festival has grown greatly and seen a rightful positive response for it's diversity and awareness, so click here for full event details! The Pixo Control's set will be at the closed off block from Spring Street to March Street for a mid-day event known as Downtown Diversity, which will feature local arts and music performers alongside cultural food sales and other diverse events. They'll be playing at the 11:45 AM start time for Downtown Diversity, though aside from local pop rock quartet The Frasiers, I'm unsure of any other performers. Admission is FREE, and this is definitely an all ages event. For more details, check the above links!

The late-morning/early afternoon timing might be rough for attendees who have work & school commitments, but it should be an interesting change of this pace for this rising young trio, so if you're in the area or are off, go check out The Pixo Control's set around lunch time, and enjoy the start of this year's Passport to Unity festival! Besides, I hear they'll have a couple new songs to debut (one called "60 Extra Chances Called Minutes"), so keep it in mind, and for a preview, here's The Pixo Control live at Dank Fest!



The other late notice hard rock gigs that we have this weekend are from local party rock veterans Stiffler's Mom, who have two concerts at two separate venues TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies again for the short notice, I only heard about both shows earlier this week. Tomorrow's event will be a one nighter at The Rockstar Bar, which fans should be familiar with given that many of Greg, Mike, and Jon's recent gigs have been there! Like usual, their entertaining and decades-spanning covers can be seen tomorrow at 10:30 PM, you must be 19 to attend, and there's a likely $5 cover charge, so click here for more details! There's no Stiffler's Mom gig at The Rockstar Bar on Saturday due to the Crued show we'll touch on in a bit, but never fear, as they'll still be rocking a live stage that night when they headline the Ride For Sight Vegas Night, a spring fundraiser for the annual motorcycle rally in support of blindness and vision loss, so what should you know on that front?

Held at the Garden River Community Centre at the corner of Shingwauk & Shannon Road, this event will raise money for this year's Ride For Sight in June via a poker tournament, other games, and a fish & pasta dinner, with Stiffler's Mom's set concluding the night. Tickets are $20, this is likely all ages, and while this event starts Saturday at 1:00 PM, Stiffler's Mom's set will begin at 9:00 PM. Click here for more details! It's great to see Stiffler's Mom supporting this great cause, so if you're up for a drive to Garden River on Saturday, help join in the fun, or go see them at The Rockstar Bar tomorrow! For a preview, here's Stiffler's Mom live at The Essar Centre!



Moving to previously announced shows, Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will continue his weekly concert arrangement at The Harp Bar & Grill with (and we're positive on this) shows TOMORROW AND SATURDAY NIGHT! After two consecutive weeks of late word concerning the cancellation of his new Saturday half of his Harp run (following a Jay Case show and their UFC pay-per-view broadcast), Tym is definitely playing twice this weekend for the third time at the former Madison's Pub! Entering the 22nd week of this relationship, Tym's usual hosted open mic night is tomorrow, while Tym plays his usual acoustic unplugged gig on Saturday, so while you'll get his diverse hard rock covers either night, Saturday's will be most similar to his past solo gigs at other venues. Admission either night will probably be free, you must be 19 to attend, and there's a 10:00 PM start time in effect for each show. Click here for more details, and for a preview, here's Tym covering Metallica at the former Smack Daddy's!



Finally for today, Toronto-based Motley Crue tribute band Crued will return to the Soo THIS SATURDAY for a headlining gig at The Rockstar Bar! After returning north in November for the first time since 2011, it only took 5 months for a return date for this notorious tribute band, whose faithful and explosive tribute to Motley Crue has always been well received when they've came to our area, so hopefully the same is the case on Saturday night! Like their November show at the same venue, there are not any announced opening bands, and admission is $8 via an advance ticket purchase at The Algonquin Hotel's front desk, while the door price will jump to $12 (up from $10 in November.) You must be 19 to attend, and there is a 10:30 PM start time in effect. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Hair metal fans would be well served to check out Crued for a great tribute to Motley Crue this weekend, so don't miss it, and for a preview, here they are playing "Shout At The Devil"!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post tomorrow, plus our Fuck The Facts preview and more on Saturday! Thanks everyone!