We have a new news post on this Monday evening, which is half devoted to a new-ish band who you may remember seeing live last fall, while we also have lots of updates from a solo project, a new live concert video, and an apology for missing a show for previewing on the site last week. Here's what you should know!
We have a new local band to add to our Sault Ontario band links, and they are noise punk duo No Funeral! You may recall seeing this band at a Dryer Fire-promoted event at Outspoken Brewing in October, and they were scheduled for last month's cancelled Matthew Nadon memorial concert, but aside from being described as an "indie noise" act, little was public about them unless you saw their October set. I knew from personal Facebook postings that former AlgomA drummer Jamie Vincent was one half of this band, but No Funeral shares far more in common musically with his mid-2010s grunge/punk duo Bad Back, but with two key differences: More of a chaotic post-hardcore bent, and that Jamie isn't the frontman here. Rather, their singer/guitarist is Connor O'Brien, who played guitar in the defunct Edmonton noise punk band Flint, of which Jamie was a member on bass from 2009 until he moved back to the Soo in 2012.
The fact that Connor isn't local may explain why we've only seen No Funeral in concert once, but this project's existence is definitely more on the local side of things than Edmonton, especially given the credits for... their debut album!? Yes, No Funeral's self-titled debut album (and if you believe Jamie's personal Facebook page, their "only" album) was released to their new Bandcamp page yesterday, and the description there says in more graphic terms that the band has been in the works for two years, with the album coming together within a two week span before coming out. The album was produced by Dustin Goodall at Unsalted Audio last fall, with Dustin supplying backing vocals, additional bass, and "musical saw", while Saultite author Mat Laporte guests on saxophone on the two closing tracks and also provided the album artwork. Much like Bad Back's Bandcamp albums, "No Funeral" is on sale on a "name your price" model.
I'll hold comment on the album pending our eventual review of it (I currently have it pencilled in for June given our current backlog), but if you miss Bad Back in particular, don't bypass No Funeral! Of course, connections to Flint will be obvious if you're familiar with that band from before Jamie moved back home (or if you've lived in Edmonton), so if you want to hear Connor & Jamie's prior output, do check out Flint's Bandcamp page, as I believe Jamie factors on all but their newest two songs posted there. As best as I can tell, No Funeral's only public online page is on Bandcamp, but give it a look to see what they bring to the table, and consider paying something for the album to support their work!
Next up, I want to apologize for a concert that we missed in this past weekend's concert previews, as local funk/hard rock cover band The Wyld Stallyns returned to The Kiln at Searchmont Resort for a matinee concert on Saturday. The band did not announce this show on their Facebook page in advance, and I only learned that it was a thing when a video from attendee TerriDollie Williams' personal Facebook page was shared to the band's seldom updated Facebook group yesterday. Sensing that this likely wasn't from their Searchmont gig in January, I learned belatedly that the resort's Facebook page plugged it on Friday. Still on short notice, but at least someone got the word out. I have to do better re: Searchmont concerts, especially with The Stallyns not always plugging their own shows on Facebook, so my apologies again, I'd have plugged it had I known! That said, how about that video?
TerriDollie filmed the band (minus saxophonist Josh Norling, who apparently missed the January Kiln show too) covering The Outfield's "Your Love" with Christina Speers on lead vocals. Not a supremely heavy choice, but everyone handles it well, and I'd hope most attendees were familiar with the original song! The video is vertically shot, but as the video is as much to highlight a young relative getting into the song as it is the band proper, I won't nitpick the angle. Cute watch in that respect too, so check it out below, and apologies again for missing The Stallyns at The Kiln... again!
Finally, here's the latest from newer local rap rock solo project Less Than Zero, so what have they been up to since the fall? First off, in November, project leader/ex-Winkstinger guitarist Jason Ladouceur changed the band's name in In The Sun. According to their Bandlab page on December 6th, the new name is intended to make the project "more inspirational", though their sound and even their existing logo remain unchanged. If you're Facebook friends with Jason, you'll know very well that he is always posting material for In The Sun, and at the moment, fifteen unique songs can be heard on Bandlab, many being tweaked as time goes on, so you can tell that this is a labour of love for him. In fact, under the name "In The Sun1", three songs are now up on Spotify, while a couple dozen videos can be seen on their YouTube channel, and Jason did tease late last year that he wants to release an In The Sun album in the near future.
Embedded below is a recent take of their song "Factory Reset" (all of their songs except a cover of Megadeth's "Sweating Bullets" are original). Jason's method of frequently posting these songs and then adding to/editing them over time is helping the songs sound heavier and more fully realized, so if you do check out In The Sun's songs, definitely listen to the newest instance of each song on Bandlab or YouTube, not the oldest ones unless you want to see the journey. Vocals can still come off as unnatural and not as aggressive as the music calls for, but again, Jason's always working on these songs, so I doubt he's done yet. Check out much more from Less Than Zero In The Sun above & below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!
Today's SMS post is an all-video one, including footage from two prominent artists in a solo setting, and the latest from a Sault Michigan act, but let's start with the latest from local alt-punk trio A Dire Setback's debut album sessions! On Saturday, the guys announced on their Facebook page that they have finished recording the album's ghost/click tracks, and will be practicing to get tempos right before recording final copies. Though Bill Priddle is producing, the guys were working with his Pointless bandmate Dustin Goodall over at Unsalted Audio on this stage of the album process, and posted this video to their YouTube channel yesterday featuring frontman Chris Nielsen tracking a song with Dustin at the controls. The tight shots don't show a lot (perhaps intentionally), but things sound like they're shaping up well! Give this video a look below, and learn more above, and more still if you become a backer of A Dire Setback on Patreon for $1+ a month!
Next up, here's some new videos from local solo hard rock artist Mike McCleary's Facebook page, and apologies for the delay in these making the site! One video is a cryptic 50 second video featuring white noise, clips of his music, and footage of a fire, later saying "Coming Soon" in the top right. Embedded below though is a music video for his song "Lost", the opening track from his newly re-released album "In Ruins", which features lots of varied imagery and stock footage, from television static and monochrome stairways to a woman trying to untangle an enormous knot. I believe the cryptic teaser clip was referencing the "Lost" video more than the album, as both videos end with the same burning fire, for what it's worth. Mike does a good job putting together his music videos, they're well edited too, but I wonder if we'll get one with him performing at some point? Give Mike McCleary's new videos a look above & below!
Also today, here's the latest video from Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night's Facebook page, as shared from keyboardist Craig Harrison's personal Facebook page on Saturday! The video features guitarist Steve Giles (I think) playing an ethereal sounding musical section with an effects application on an iPad, as he has been known to do in select Theatre of Night songs in the past. The close up angle and lack of vocals add to the mood, and while it's not a complete song, this would add a nice background ambiance, so give it a look below!
Finally, here's a new jam session video from Redundant/Elements bassist James White's YouTube channel featuring him and three unidentified musicians (only one of which being visible on camera) playing an instrumental song. I don't know if this is just a recorded jam among friends, or if this is a new/revived band project, but the song has a harder essence to it, and a very solid guitar solo! If only the camera wasn't on a vertical angle. Give James and company a look below, and if this ends up being a SMS-fitting band, we'll let you know about them!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and weekend concert previews on the site this week Thanks everyone!
Let's round out this weekend's hard rock concert previews today, but also, we have some more recent updates to touch on, including some assorted recent updates from a few different sources, a new hype video for a big upcoming concert, and some news and notes regarding a fast-rising local recording studio. Now, here's what you should know!
Firstly, we'll close this weekend's announced hard rock concert previews with the return of Sault Michigan hard rock quartet 415E to The Northern Pines Lounge at the Kewadin Shores Casino in nearby St. Ignace TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Last seen during the Pop Evil concert weekend in the Soo last month, tonight's concert will of course give you a chance to partake in St. Patrick's Day potent potables tonight, so keep that and potential holiday promotions in mind if you're not planning to go elsewhere! As for tomorrow's show, 415E have hyped on their Facebook page that "a very special wedding anniversary" will be celebrated that night, so keep that angle in mind if you plan on coming Saturday (congratulations to the couple!) 415E aren't advertised to play anywhere next month, so if you can't wait until their May weekend in Sault Ste. Marie, prepare for 21+ age limits, no cover charge, and 9:00 PM start times tonight & tomorrow, as usual for their Kewadin gigs.
Check the above links for more details, don't miss 415E's hard rocking & Van Halen inspired covers tonight & tomorrow, and here they are live!
Next up, we can add Id Iota guitarist/Mike Mikus bassist Dustin Goodall's recording studio Unsalted Audio to our "Other Local Metal Links" section, as he's finally launched a website for the company! Ambitiously calling the studio "the future of music production in Northern Ontario", the website extensively lists the production equipment he uses for recordings, and outlines his goals and ambitions to provide artists (local or otherwise) with "world-class audio quality at affordable rates", while emphasizing that "mediocrity is the enemy" and aiming to establish emotional connections between artists and their intended audiences. So far, you'll have heard Dustin's production for Id Iota's debut EP, The Pixo Control's only CD, and Mike Mikus' debut single, while he also mixed and mastered AlgomA's half of their split with Chronobot, Inner City Surfers bassist Brad Example's 2015 solo single, and Jack Spades' third of their "Fed Up!" split CD.
In terms of upcoming projects, he has finished producing Mike's yet-released solo CD, while the website finally confirms that Id Iota are indeed recording their second CD currently and first full length album, and he's currently in pre-production for local death/thrash metal trio Pillory's second CD and a solo EP from Winkstinger frontman Keith Gagnon (though I have no idea what his solo music will sound like.) The website's a little wordy, but Dustin talks a big game and backs it up with his production quality so far, so be sure to contact him at goodalldustin@gmail.com or via the above links for quotes or information if you want to work with him on some studio music!
Also, here's a new YouTube video from this past Monday where Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali hypes up their show at The Machine Shop on Thursday, March 30th! This is a short video that does feel slightly rushed, but it's good promotion straight from Quiet Riot's longest serving member, and he's right, tickets are going fast, with half of available seats now sold out. Give it a look below, and click here to get your tickets A.S.A.P.!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or promoter name:
Rising Tide frontman and Tidal Records head Dustin Jones is featured in the cover photo of this week's issue of Sault This Week, where he's seen entertaining his son Jaycee through a puppet theatre at the Best Start Hub program at Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School last week. Cute photo, and it's nice to see Dustin back on a local stage of sorts, so look for the photo in the latest issue of the weekly free newspaper!
Are local hard rock quartet Eclipse reuniting? Four months after their very messy breakup in early November, the band noted on their Facebook page that "we will be performing April 1st", while prior past tenses regarding their status have quietly been removed as well. I'm not going to jump to conclusions just yet, as this is April Fool's Day after all, but in case this is a legitimate reunion, stay tuned for updates!
Local concert promoters Live705 have revealed on their Facebook page on Wednesday that their next concert will be an Easter holiday weekend event on Saturday, April 15th, breaking their pattern of one show every two months. A Facebook event page is forthcoming, alongside games and giveaways of some description, so be sure to stay tuned for details on those, not to mention the concert's venue, bands, and more!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for last month's poll results and our new poll tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
Here's another post to start your Wednesday off right with, and it's a mix of news and a Christmas surprise, including today's new holiday song upload, some updates to links featured on the SMS, details on a local photographer with some metal ties, and leading things off, details on an upcoming local metal CD release, so here's what you need to know!
I'd like to officially announce that our final CD review of 2011 at The Sault Metal Scene will indeed be of Garden of Bedlam's upcoming full length album "Everything Will Die"! There was a chance it'd have to wait until January due to my being out of town when the CD release show at The Canadian takes place on Monday, but drummer Derek Turner was kind enough to drop an advance copy off for me yesterday, so by New Year's Eve, there will definitely be a review of the CD on the SMS! That said, while I'll hold from commenting formally on the music yet (wait for the review), I'll tell you guys a few things to look for concerning the album. This preview image floating around on band pages is indeed the cover of "Everything Will Die" (sans the release date) while the album features 10 tracks clocking in at around 45 minutes in total length. We've heard almost all of them live before, ranging from "Against The Grain" to "Your Disgrace", but there is one new track entitled "2012" as well. I won't spoil anything, but I'll say it's unlike the rest of the featured songs. And yes, lyrics are present for each song in the "Everything Will Die" booklet, along with some nice photography throughout by Andrea Gosselin, so definitely check all of that out when you get your copy of the CD!
The album booklet also confirms that the CD was mastered at Silverbirch Productions in Toronto by Andy Krehm (same as on their debut EP) with artwork supplied by Derek's old Papa Fogals Chair bandmate Adam Chillman. I'll say right now that everything looks and is presented nicely, and the quality of the recording is top notch, but for anything else, you'll wanna stay tuned for my review of "Everything Will Die", which is coming next week! Stay tuned, and be at The Canadian on Monday night to get your copies of the album when they go on sale!
While we're on the subject, let's talk about Andrea Gosselin, the local photographer who took the shots of Garden of Bedlam for their new album's booklet. Her work is awesome, but I wasn't aware of her work before recently, and now, she deserves some long overdue exposure! Her website features a nice portfolio of her photograph work ranging from maternity photos to nature photography, but she has two sections in her gallery with a musical slant. One is of band promo shots, and in that gallery, there's 5 photos from the "Everything Will Die" photo shoot (one of each band member & one full band shot.) Very nice work, and I like the fire elements, so if you want to see them, click here, highlight "Gallery", click "Band Promo Shots", and check out the last 5 photos there! Aside from those (and there's much more from the shoot in the booklet), Andrea has a lot of other local metal photos in the "Live Shows" section, including shots from the Motley Crue & Heaven and Hell/Megadeth concerts at The Essar Center, and from a number of Sense of Truth concerts in 2008 & 2009, among others, so check the above links to give these photos a look! I wish we could see these photos bigger, but overall, Andrea's work is excellent, and hopefully she keeps up her great photography talents in music areas & beyond! Check everything out, and Andrea's website is now in our Other Local Metal Links on your left!
Now, before we get to our next Christmas song uploads, here's three assorted stories related to links featured on the SMS, specifically changes and additions concerning them. As usual, these are in alphabetical order by band, studio, or company name:
I've added the defunct local recording studio Lucky Limb Studio to our Other Local Metal Links on your left. This is the studio where local hardcore quintet As It Stands recorded their second EP "Kill The Music, Save The Children" in 2007, but I know little else about this studio, which didn't appear to last too long. Check their MySpace page out above, which also features "Bush Raids" from that As It Stands EP!
I've moved Sault Michigan metal project Traces to our inactive band links due to their likely breakup. Featuring Swayze Train & Hoist The Sails members in their lineup, Traces were last visibly active on December 23rd, 2010, when they last logged into their MySpace page, and their Facebook page was also deleted this year, so I assume they've disbanded. Disappointing news, but the members are sure to have great stuff in the works!
I've removed local concert booking agency Unsalted Records from our Other Local Metal Links due to the closure of their website (likely from an expired domain name) and a lack of alternate links. Ran by Free Beer guitarist Dustin Goodall, they booked a couple concerts with metal supporting acts in 2009, but I haven't heard much from Unsalted Records specifically in years. Disappointing, but hopefully Dustin returns to booking at some point!
And finally, here's today's Christmas surprise for you guys as we inch closer to December 25th, and it's a song I'm returning to the internet from defunct Sault Michigan metal quartet Nixxon Dixxon! During their local run from 2006-2010, you're bound to remember Nixxon Dixxon's proficient covers and originals at concerts big and small alike, and around 2008 & 2009, they posted some clearer recordings of a few songs they played live onto their MySpace page. I remember that they uploaded covers of Black Sabbath's "Paranoid" and Kiss' "Rock & Roll All Nite" at one point, then pulled both in lieu of a recording of their original "High Life", which itself was later deleted without explanation. Now, my foresight is admittedly bad, so I didn't get all of these songs before they were taken down, and I'd love to get copies of them down the road (any help?), but I did snag one when I had the chance! I do have Nixxon Dixxon's cover of "Paranoid", which I uploaded onto our YouTube channel earlier today, and it definitely shows the band's talents well! Brandon Carr's singing fits nicely, and the rest of the band (now of Trail's End & Splitshot) are on fire as I'd expect, especially Chris Hubbard on guitar!
NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED WITH THIS UPLOAD!!! All credit for this song goes to the former members of Nixxon Dixxon, I'm just trying to spread the posthumous word and restore this song to the internet for fans to enjoy! Remember, this song has been deleted from the internet for possibly 2 years, you can't hear their cover of "Paranoid" anywhere else! It's a solid cover, so definitely check it out below, and stay tuned for updates on the members' next musical moves!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more Christmas surprises, news and notes, and concert previews over the next while, along with our next YouTube Channel Profiles on Thursday! Thanks everyone!
