The Latest Updates & Album News From The Realignment Project!!

Let's talk about local industrial metal solo project The Realignment Project in this single-topic post today, so what have they been up to since we last left off with them in November? Well, on the 7th of that month, project leader Matt Hicks revealed that their fourth EP would be called "Let You Fall", which he had already finished recording at that point (remember, T.R.P. released three EPs last year alone). On November 10th, Matt confirmed both the final album cover and the release date of January 2nd (this past Friday!), with the track listing following on the 16th, notably specifying that "Scatterbrain" was retitled from "Nitwit" for one reason or another. You can see "Scatterbrain", "Where Did You Go?", and "By Myself" from that album being tracked in vertical videos linked here, here, and here from their Facebook page that same month. In a surprise announcement on November 24th, Matt announced that The Realignment Project had signed a label deal!

As teased in this video, he is working with East London Recordings, a British indie label that help independent artists release physical albums, and they have released T.R.P.'s first two 2025 EPs "Afterthought" & "The Frustration Sessions" together on vinyl, one EP on each side! East London uses a print-on-demand method from ElasticStage for making albums, which is also what Mike Haggith's MorningStar Records utilizes for physical album pressings, but I have no idea if Matt was aware of that prior. It does appear that ElasticStage's 12'' vinyl records have a 23 minute limit per side, which affects "The Frustration Sessions". Rather than drop a song, Matt opted to edit down four of its songs to fit ("Minor Outburst" alone is chopped down by 50 seconds). Keep that in mind before buying, but if you want some local industrial rock on vinyl, it costs $43.90 at this link!

This would imply that their third EP ("War Songs") & "Let You Fall" will be similarly combined for a vinyl release, but if East London does release them thusly, note that both EPs exceed 23 minutes, so expect edits on both sides. "Let You Fall" was successfully released on Friday, and if you believe promotional postings, it is "available everywhere". Definitely not true, as it isn't even on Amazon Music at press time, among other services, but you can currently stream it on YouTube (with lyric video postings ongoing), Apple Music, Spotify, Boomplay, and KKBox, and it is buyable on Bandcamp (name your price) and iTunes ($5.94). Given our ongoing album review backlog, The Realignment Project are currently pencilled in for April, as No Arrow, Sykotyk Rampage, and Handsome Sandwich all had albums that beat the yet-to-be-reviewed "War Songs" to market.

In the event that "War Songs" and "Let You Fall" get a joint vinyl release by April 30th, I would review both at once, as that would be a singular local album release, but if this was a one-and-done, we'd just review "War Songs". Either way, I'll be looking at new music from The Realignment Project in the spring, and Matt never stops, as he was already working on his fifth EP as of December 13th! Also last month, Matt was interviewed about The Realignment Project by David Oman of the British blog PlayedByDavid, where David interviews various indie musicians, seemingly all being posed the same questions. In Matt's interview, he outlines his musical background, favourite original songs, his songwriting and recording process, favourite musicians, future plans, and more, and he gives some good detailed thoughts on the topics at hand! In terms of scoops, the biggest one is that he's planning to release T.R.P. CDs.

This would be through ElasticStage (no word on if he'd be combining them like on vinyl), and while Matt is not planning on playing live in this project, he hasn't ruled it out either. It's great to see The Realignment Project staying exceedingly productive, and hopefully 2026 sees more quality music from them, so stay tuned for more from Matt soon, and here's the lyric video for the opening/title track from "Let You Fall"! Thanks everyone!

Mike Haggith - "All The Best In All You Do: Rose Edition" Album Review!!

It's now time for our 174th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, as we're finally taking a look at local/Barrie alternative hard rock musician Mike Haggith's 52nd canon solo album "All The Best In All You Do"! Released through his own MorningStar Records imprint on July 13th in conjunction with his dislocated knee-abbreviated set at Rotaryfest, this is Mike's first album released after moving from Thompson, Manitoba to Barrie in late 2022, though work on the album began beforehand. Like his last two albums since he resumed primary work as a solo artist, this is a concept album with Mike on all instruments except for a guest guitar solo on one track. You can stream "A.T.B.I.A.Y.D" on major streaming services like Spotify, while you can also buy it for $10 on Bandcamp, and physical copies are on sale for $10 on CD and $40 on vinyl at this link. Albums are also available when Mike plays concerts in town, though no word on if The Rad Zone or other retail stores carry copies.

Five bonus songs (four originals and a cover) are also included in the limited-run "Rose Edition" of this album, sold in a DVD case with a pressed rose inside each. If you were unable to buy one of those for $20, fans who buy "All The Best In All You Do" on Bandcamp will also get the bonus songs, but Mike does not plan on posting them for sale with the album on other platforms, so they are not freely streamable at press time. This review will look at the complete "Rose Edition", as bought on Bandcamp. With 15 songs running for 53 minutes (10 songs for 37 minutes if you just have the normal album), let's begin our last album review of 2023!

Conceptually, the 10 base songs of this album outline a personal story of Mike moving from a toxic relationship into happiness and fulfillment in his current one, and in that respect, it feels like a sequel to 2020's "If Ever Comes The Day" even moreso. Bookending the 10 songs are split title tracks in reverse, starting with "All You Do", which leads off the story by outlining relationship issues and trying to make sense of one's partner's increasingly hostile and unfriendly behaviour. A darker and ominous instrumental track here is contrasted with Mike singing in full voice, and he makes good use of duplicated vocal tracks to make it sound like four or five Mikes are singing at once! That said, I do think that the singing and instruments don't mesh terribly well, and I'd have either made this much heavier or had Mike sing in a more reserved tone. Not a bad song to start the story all the same!

"All You Do" directly leads into track #2, "Twist Of Fate", basically serving as its extended introduction. In this song, the tables have seemingly turned as the toxic partner going on the town and engaging in embarrasing behaviour, with the final straw seemingly nearing. This is among the heaviest songs that Mike has released since the end of The Din in 2017, with a steady driving rhythm and good melodic vocals that are on level with the opener but far more suited to this style of song. The symphonic bits at the end of choruses felt thrown in, and the percussion should have been let up a bit on the bridge, but this is a fun track that will definitely be to the liking of Din fans who missed his in-your-face power pop!

The continuing structure of the album maintains by leading directly into the next song, "Hot & Cold". The longest song on any version of this album, it is basically an extended breakup song where Mike explains why he is dumping the woman in question, and like "Twist Of Fate", it has gotten good mileage in concert this year. Very 1980s feel to the verses with the synth influence and programmed drums, and between that and the twinkling keys on the choruses, this song sounds very different to what you may have seen out of Mike & crew live. Structurally, this song is still a rock number, if not as heavy as "Twist of Fate", but it has a directness and edge to it that I think is somewhat lost with the synths and keys. What does help things are the guest guitar solos by Southern Ontario-based metal guitarist Hetriani, who adds a strong added feature here without feeling too far out of place with the song as is!

Ultimately, I think "Hot & Cold" works better live than it does in studio, as it seems a little overproduced in studio to make a grand epic, and to a point, I think Mike's local-era symphonic material balanced that line a little better. As a composition, its certainly well thought out though! Fourth is "If Only You Could Hear Me", one of Mike's older tracks to finally make a studio album appearance here. Lyrically a reflection about being alone and hoping that his now ex would return in spite of everything, this is basically an acoustic folk rock song, if a little optimistic and upbeat given the lyrics, and with some synth backing coming into focus late. The musical positivity and the prominent drum track present another contrast in styles that I wouldn't have made given the introspective lyrics, but Mike's clean singing gets a good showcase, and this song is easily stripped down to a one-man unplugged setting, as longtime fans know!

The first half (third if you have the Rose Edition) of the album ends with "Carousel", and if you subscribe to the five stages of grief, this would be "acceptance", with the carousel in the title being referenced as both getting off of it (the relationship) and being given the run-around in the first place. Of the opening five tracks, this feels the most like something that could have been on Mike's Thompson-era CDs, with his expressive yet deep vocals carrying the song overtop of soaring yet rock tinged music. While it'd be easily downscaled to acoustic, the music and lyrics click well to better match the storyline compared to some of the earlier cuts, so this is an early highlight for me! Song #6 is "I've Seen It Before", which basically flips things from where "If Only You Could Hear Me" was, now with Mike refusing to take his ex back, no matter what she says, as he has literally seen it all before and doesn't want to go through this again.

This album's second and final 5+ minute track, it again contrasts the lyrical message with the music, this time with another upbeat, optimsitic nature which sounds like a happy indie rock song without the edge of the lyrics. Mike gets good mileage out of the chorus vocal effect again on the choruses, and the symphonics are well layered with the music (if at the expense of the guitar), so it succeeds musically despite the lyrical dissonance! We start the turn towards the brighter, optimistic future next with "Love Will Light The Way", which is the shortest song on any version of this album. Lyrically about depression and sadness always having a light (and love) at the end of the tunnel, this 99 second track just features Mike at a piano with some backing vocals, and feels kinda churchy.

It's not a very substantial track on its own, though it is pretty enough for fans of Mike's more reserved side. Still, it serves a purpose to bridge the album from it's darker lyrical places to the brighter final three songs, which seem to very clearly reflect his relationship with his now-wife Tianna (whose hand is lighting the rose on fire on the album cover). Eighth on the album is "The Start Of Something Real", which seems to be about meeting her and realizing that this is truly the beginning of a positive relationship with long-term prospects. Another very 1980s-inspired song here, especially thanks to its drum intro and plonky keyboard backing that reminded me a bit of Bruce Hornsby's "The Way It Is" (I hope that's a fair comparison)! As such, this song is very laid back and relaxed, if oddly not as happy overall as some of the earlier songs came off (lyrics aside), but it works well enough for what it is!

The "whoas" in the choruses are overdone, but this song does feel sufficiently different from what came before, so keep that in mind! After all, this has a flute solo, how many local musicians can say that? Ninth is "To Be With You", which is an original song and not a Mr. Big cover! It's lyrically about appreciating his new love and their future, and wanting to be with her, and continuing the vibe of the album changing its themes as the lyrical mood changed, this has more of a electronic/synth rock vibe to it that calls to mind a band like Imagine Dragons or Awolnation, and honestly, that's not a good thing for me. However, the song doesn't vocally sound like those type of bands, and still feels very Mike Haggithy, with his direct and passionate clean singing still firmly in the foreground, so fans won't be too far removed from his old material! Still not a favourite track of mine, especially thanks to the repetitive chorus.

We come full circle for the main album with song #10, "All The Best", which is basically about trust in this new relationship as they head into the future together while Mike gives his best and his all. Of the final four songs in this phase of the album, this feels the most traditional for Mike's post-2017 solo material, with a more subtle but still '80s-influenced synthy backing track, soaring vocal melodies (Mike's range is at its height here), and a tighter structure, if still with repetitive chorus vocals. Of the final four "current relationship" songs, this is the best and its a good way to end the album... unless you bought the Rose Edition! Just as a heads up, the four bonus originals don't have lyrics (at least not via Bandcamp), and curiously, their runtime steadily decreases as the track order progresses. First of the bonuses is "Unforgotten", which opens with plonky synths that remind me of Star Light Zone in Sonic the Hedgehog 1!

More of a reserved ballad backed with the '80s sound of multiple tracks on offer, it's not a bad song and has a relatively tight dreamy essence to it without coming off as too repetitive, but if you like Mike's more rocking songs, this may leave you wanting a bit. Next is "Requiem", which is another softer track, reminiscent of "Love Will Light The Way" but longer and without percussion, though sound effects of water are added to bookend the song. I'd have dialed the singing back a bit to better match the mood, and I do prefer more rock-based songs, but Mike sings with passion regardless, and it has the maturity you expect out of his ballad-leaning material! Third of the bonus tracks is Mike's cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Atlantic City", which he has performed live and you can hear thusly at this link even without owning the Rose Edition proper. Shorter than the original, the song is about a couple moving to Atlantic City, albeit with the man joining the Mafia to repay his unspecified debts. 

I'm not a massive fan of Springsteen, but if you've been wanting something more rock-based out of the bonus tracks, this will fill the gap, and while Mike doesn't differ greatly from the original's structure (length aside), it is a good change to hear him sing in a relatively lower register for the bulk of it. Also, Mike didn't add in the synths and keyboard parts to this cover, which are a different kind of '80s than a Bruce Springsteen cover really needs! The penultimate song is "I'd Do It All For You", which immediately begins with Mike singing and has no lead-in. This song feels like it would work well as a campfire jam if stripped down, but it still has some atmospheric backing and a percussion track. Relatively light and sunny track with good melodic vocals, it works for what it is, but it ends way too soon and it fades out too abruptly. The Rose Edition ends with "Horizons", which is the album's only instrumental.

A soft folk/indie rock song with atmospheric elements, it's basically a coda to the preceding album that perhaps was intended as Mike's flight into the future, and given his day job, I can totally picture that being intentional music to fly to. Not much of a standalone track for rock fans, but it serves a clear purpose to cap off the complete album!

So, after 5½ months, what are my final thoughts on "All The Best In All You Do"? Overall, while it's not the heaviest album in Mike's back catalog, it continues his storytelling and personal slant very well, and it succeeds as an artistic statement with quality songs to match! As his last album "Bridges" was postponed to make way for the more recently recorded "If Ever Comes The Day", that album (largely about a failing relationship) definitely feels like the spiritual predecessor to "All The Best...", but with the key addition of the symphonic and keyboard backing that was heard on "Bridges" and his late-era local material in the mid-2010s. That gave much of the album a very 1980s feel, which was neat to hear at times! On the reverse, this won't be the cup of tea for fans who got into Mike based on his local band work, as aside from "Twist Of Fate" and "Hot & Cold", the songs on offer wouldn't overtly fit in Din setlists.

My big issue with this album is that, given the arc of the songs from a relationship at its end stages to a happier new one, the songs didn't really fit musically as much as they did lyrically. Many of the songs where Mike is outlining how bad things are are sung at a contrastingly happy and upbeat tone, and while the album does shift for the last few songs, it's mostly towards experimental styles. Some songs played live also get more of a synth/key backing than fans may be used to from Mike's local gigs last year, and given how I'm not a fan of Imagine Dragons-type bands, the backing on "To Be With You" wasn't my thing. Still, this album delivers for fans of Mike's wide ranging music abilities, with "Carousel", "Twist Of Fate", and "All You Do" being my favouites! The Rose Edition tracks are welcome inclusions, if not 100% essential for casual fans, with my favourite being the "Atlantic City" cover.

"All The Best In All You Do" is a strong album where Mike pours his heart out for good and for bad, but it ends on the right note to go along with his happy marriage, and fans of his should find multiple songs to like on this album! Be sure to give it a listen (or buy it on Bandcamp for all 15 tracks) at the above links, and I hope you guys liked our last CD review of the year! To start 2024, we'll continue our now 15 month string of new album reviews by looking at local rapper Tristan "Bold Noize" Goslow's debut punk album "God Save Me", which was released back in August! Look for that next month, and for our 2023 year-in-review post next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Ripcordz) & Details On Mike Haggith's New Studio Album!!

Breaking again from our Rotaryfest fallout today for a post devoted to two big topics: a recent album release, and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT at the tail end of the summer season, so here's what you should know!

Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz will return to Sault Ste. Marie when they headline at The Loft at The Algoma Conservatory of Music on Friday, September 1st! Local punk fans will recall seeing the Paul Gott-fronted group in city limits seven times between 2013 and 2019 (and multiple times prior), most recently rocking The Rockstar Bar in November 2019, with the pandemic and their usual local promoter J.D. Pearce's move to Barrie helping delay a return engagement. Hopefully the anticipation after a nearly 4 year wait proves advantageous for The Ripcordz' blistering and fast paced brand of hardcore punk as they help kick off the Labour Day long weekend! Fresh off of their sets at the Northern Vibe Festival the previous weekend, alt-punk trio A Dire Setback (who opened for The Ripcordz here in 2019) and newer local punk/hard rock quartet Far From Fine will open this show, and hopefully they deliver the goods in their Loft debuts!

Picking up the promotional duties for this show is former Destroilet drummer Matt Waples, who opened for The Ripcordz with that band in the early-mid 2010s (both bands were on 2015's "Fed Up!" split too), and kudos to him for taking a swing on promoting a big show like this, let alone at a very fancy and unique venue like The Loft! Unfortunately, this is a 19+ event, while doors open at 8:00 PM on September 1st, and tickets will run for $25 (up from a $15 door charge in 2019), but have not yet went on sale (check here for the link when it goes live). Given all of the changes since the last local Ripcordz date, it will be interesting to see how this goes over, but visit the Facebook event page for full details!

Next up, let's finally talk about local/Barrie alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith's new album "All The Best In All You Do", which was released on Thursday as scheduled in advance of his dislocated knee-abbreviated set at Rotaryfest! Not an ideal way to promote a new album, but certainly unique! You can now buy/stream the album on major streaming services like Spotify, and it is on sale digitally for $10 on Bandcamp, and physical copies are on sale through his label MorningStar Records at this link for the same price on CD and $40 on vinyl. They were also available at Rotaryfest, no word on if copies were brought to sell at The Rad Zone when he was up. As previously teased, Bandcamp sale copies do indeed have bonus songs that, if you believe the e-mail sent to Bandcamp followers, "Spotify and iTunes will never hear", so if you want the complete experience, you have to pay $10 there!

The only physical copies of the album with these songs are the "rose edition" copies sold in DVD cases at Rotaryfest, so if you bought one of those, you're good to go! In order, the extra five tracks are "Unforgotten", "Requiem", a cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Atlantic City", "I'd Do It For You", and "Horizons", and yes, all five will be reviewed when we look at the album on the site later this year. Mike went into detail on the album and its inspiration in this lengthy article from the Morningstar website, which doesn't cover any new ground aside from hyping up the themes, but it does lay the groundwork. Adding to the recent promotion, Mike launched his own mailing list (distinct from what Bandcamp fans get) where subscribers are named "Frequent Flyers", jokingly referencing his day job there. Exclusive offers and freebies are promised, which get better the longer you're signed up!

Mike posted one more lyric video for an "All The Best In All You Do" song onto his YouTube channel on July 8th, this time for "To Be With You", though the aesthetic choices (flower petals, hand-written lyrics, VCR filter) are identical to his prior "Carousel" lyric video. There is a reason for that though, as every (non-Bandcamp bonus) song got the lyric video treatment likewise, but where are the other eight lyric videos? As it turns out, they're all featured in Mike's "album release celebration" video that went live as a scheduled post on YouTube on Thursday! I wasn't sure what this would entail, but the 77 minute video features all of the 10 primary songs with corresponding lyric video in chronological order, plus 40 minutes of album-related banter and context from Mike. Everything is time-stamped in the video description, but note that Mike outlines all the ways to buy "A.T.B.I.A.Y.D." in the introduction, including where to save some cash.

Also in the intro, Mike pre-emptively hypes up how great his Rotaryfest set was, including teasing a planned official live-stream (little did any of us know!), and he shows off the "rose edition" copies for those who didn't attend Rotaryfest. Mike's cat Viking cameos in the introduction for tracks 6-7, while Mike explains what the cover artwork represents & how he became involved with his wife Tianna in the introduction for tracks 8-10. The closing thoughts are just plugs and summative remarks, but note that the "rose edition" copies have fancier lyric booklets and a whole pressed rose! Fun watch to help commemorate a highly anticipated album release, so give it a look below, and look for our review in December!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Recent News & Updates From Spades GT & Mike Haggith!

Today's post is designed to cover some recent notes and content from two different local acts that eventually moved to Barrie, Ontario, as both have new albums, videos, and other news to touch on that have fell by the wayside in recent weeks. Here's what you should know!

We're definitely behind on recent updates from local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT, so what's new to report from their camp? Firstly, we do have more Josey Scott's Saliva videos coming, but there's stuff before and since that we haven't even hinted at from the former Jack Spades yet! One year to the day after playing Spiderfest in Meyersburg on the same weekend as Random Killing, the two bands (both fronted by Saultite vocalists) joined forces at The Atria in Oshawa last night, so how's that for another hardcore homecoming from afar? Following their already announced gigs in Cambridge and Toronto, the band (minus Jay) made their way home to the Soo for the Josey Scott's Saliva concert on June 24th, and while that was the de facto release party for us, the actual release party will take place tonight at The Queens Nightclub in Barrie, over a month after "Sewer City Radio" came out!

No idea why they didn't time a release party with the actual on-sale date of June 2nd, but better late than never! Spades GT, guitarist Daniel Horton's other band The Fast Life, and fellow Barrie punk band Kill/Death Radio are playing this event, which also coincides with the release of their "Final Girl" music video, details forthcoming. Good luck tonight, of course! In another new GTA concert announcement, Spades GT will open for No Signal at Inside Skatepark in St. Catharines on Saturday, July 22nd (details here), while they & The Fast Life will both be opening for Hamilton death metal band Death Perception on Saturday, July 29th at The Killroom in Hamilton. Should be good shows if you're in the area! All other updates since have been in the form of *sigh* "Reels", including two teaser clips of the "Final Girl" music video (linked here and here), with the latter edited more like a horror movie trailer, which is very fitting.

The letterboxing of the widescreen music video is not ideal whatsoever in the vertical "Reels" format, but the wait is almost over! As of this writing, the video is not live yet but we'll give that its own feature in an upcoming post. The last "Reel" was to promote yesterday's Random Killing show, featuring drummer Tyler Reiner and singer J.D. Pearce plugging it from a pool, if you can believe it. Can't embed them externally, so give them a watch above, and stay tuned for more from Spades GT in the near future!

Next up, here's some recent updates from local/Barrie alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith, starting with a video interview with him that I've put off for way too long! On June 8th, Mike was one of the remote guests on the first episode of The S.W.A. Happy Hour (S.W.A. stands for Songwriters Anonymous), an interview series hosted out of New York by musicians Dominick Torregrossa and Chris Lane Sr. that you can see episodes of at this link. Mike is not the only guest, but he is an S.W.A. member, so there was familiarity with him & his music from the hosts. Mike's segment begins about 26 minutes into the 2+ hour livestream, and includes a full airing of his "Carousel" lyric video, which more or less premiered here before it went public. At 31 minutes or so, Mike pops in for a 45 minute interview, where he discusses the lyric video & song, his involvement with Songwriters Anonymous, his own songwriting process, ...

... the lyrical choices & thematic sensibilities in "Carousel" and other songs, his upcoming album "All The Best In All You Do", guest guitarist Hetriani's appearance on it, Mike's musical journey from Windsor to the Soo to Thompson, his musical influences, whether he listens to stuff like he actually plays, and his recording process, before playing "Carousel" again so they can re-analyze the song again with the benefit of what Mike has said. The interview ends with some summative and fan-submitted questions, plus plugs for Mike's current and upcoming music links. Not a bad interview at all, and the ultra-focus on songwriting will be appealing to some, especially compared to some of his other interview/guest appearances on similar webshows! That interview is embedded below, but just to get some other recent notes covered on here, this image is in fact the "All The Best In All You Do" album cover, despite the lack of any credits.

This is something that wasn't immediately clear when it first popped up on Mike's social media channels, but this means it will be his first album since he moved from Windsor to not have his name or the album name on the front. You can now pre-order "A.T.B.I.A.Y.D." for $10 on Bandcamp (no sign yet of the teased bonus songs for Bandcamp buyers only), but if you'd rather wait for the official on-sale date, that is Thursday, coinciding with his opening set at Rotaryfest Stage 1! Stay tuned for more from Mike soon, and here's his S.W.A. Happy Hour interview!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next! Thanks everyone!

Mike Haggith & Spades GT Updates, Plus More Recent Notes!!

New news post for you guys on this late Tuesday night, as we continue clearing out our news backlog, if slowly! Assorted shorter topics round things out, but let's first look at some recent updates from two local acts who coincidentally both relocated to Barrie!

Local/Barrie alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith is definitely staying busy as of late, and while we do have both his Face To Face concert live-stream and a recent video interview to look at (hopefully) soon, let's lead off with the big news, as Mike's new studio album "All The Best In All You Do" has an official release date of Thursday, July 13th! You can pre-save it on Spotify at this link, though remember that he plans to include Bandcamp-exclusive bonus tracks for the paid release there. An offical lyric video for "Carousel" from the new album went up as a scheduled upload earlier today on Mike's YouTube channel, which features Mike (one assumes) writing out the song lyrics with a Sharpie on pieces of paper, with late input from rose petals. Is the destruction of flowers an intentional visual motif for the album? Note the film grain and the VCR graphics too, albeit in widescreen.

No word on the album cover, but note the release date of July 13th coincides with his Rotaryfest Stage 1 set that same day, so we get the de facto release concert! Mike should have physical copies in tow that weekend. While the lyric video is embedded below, Mike also uploaded this "Shorts" video to YouTube as well to hype the album, which includes an audio sample and recommendations to fans of Tears For Fears, Louis Tomlinson, U2, Coldplay, and Train. In other words, don't expect The Din III here, but the jury's out on the full product yet! Assuming this date holds, and nothing new from metal or hard rock acts beats it to market beforehand, "All The Best In All You Do" is currently slated for an SMS review in... November, alas. We have quite a backlog of new albums to look at, and I don't want to usurp anyone in line from release date, but Mike is absolutely in line, and I know that fans are highly anticipating this one!

Of course, I will hold comment on "Carousel" pending our eventual review of the album, but you know that Mike is moving up in the world when he's putting out a proper lyric video with production values like this for one of his singles! Visit his official website for much more on "All The Best In All You Do", stay tuned for more from him soon, and here's "Carousel"!

Next up, here's some recent non-"Reel" updates from local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT's Facebook page! In terms of concerts, their Toronto gigs at Beer Bash VI on June 3rd and Indie Night In Canada last week (allegedly their last Toronto show "for some time") both went really well according to the band, and you can see lots of photos (and, yes, "Reels") from them on Facebook! Apparently, live clips from their Indie Night In Canada set were played on Wallygator's Rock & Roll Swamp on CGCM Rock Radio this past Saturday, continuing their positive relationship with that internet station, so consider giving them a listen, as you never know if you'll hear some "Sewer City Radio" there! Spades GT's next show will see them and guitarist Daniel Horton's other band The Fast Life join forces at Rhythm & Brews (no relation) in Cambridge on Friday, so click here for details!

Note that none of these shows were branded as a release party for "Sewer City Radio", though I guess Beer Bash VI was the de facto one, as it was a day after the album came out. There are some new "Reels" too, but rather than nitpick the enterprise again, let's hold those for a future post and feature a Spades GT video that I can embed on the SMS! This was filmed by attendee Amanda Schilz and publically shared to the former Jack Spades' Facebook page on June 3rd as part of a batch post of Beer Bash photos. It runs for just 17 seconds, it is sadly vertical, and it mostly focuses on fans before slowly panning to the stage, but it sounds good while it lasts, so Spades GT fans can check it out below!

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

• Local hard rock quartet Half Past announced the addition of guitarist Al Fletcher's old Skeyes of Seven bandmate Johnny Amendola to their lineup on their Facebook page on Saturday, replacing Jamie Labreche. A reason for Jamie's departure was not announced, but they have yet to play a live concert since their fall 2021 reunion despite him coming on board at the time. Hopefully nothing bad happened with Jamie, but it's good to see Johnny (also of Cherry Crush and Tripod The Dog fame) back out there, and hopefully we hear more from Half Past soon!
• New and online page-less local classic metal/hard rock trio Nostalgia have slightly amended their name to Nostalgic, as per this Facebook event page for their Reggie's shows this past weekend. A reason for the name change wasn't announced, but it's one letter (the last letter, at that), so I can see it blowing right by some fans. Stay tuned for more from Nostalgic when it comes in!
• SaultOnline's Heidi Ivany covered the Queen: It's A Kinda Magic concert at The Sault Community Theatre Centre last month for this article, where she highly praised the band, stage show, and overall attention to detail for recreating Queen's 1986 world tour. 23 pictures from the concert were also featured, as well as a note that the band promises to return to the Soo on their Canadian tour next year. Good read, so give it a look above! As best as I can tell, there were no Facebook videos on SaultOnline's end here.
   

 

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Soundcheck), More Local Artists On You Rock!, And Other Updates!!

In this final weekend with vaccine passports in the province, the hard rock concert calendar is very slim, but some SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS have hit my news desk in time to give them some coverage before it is too late! Rounding things out, we do have some assorted notes from a popular Facebook group, and some local content on a popular indie music showcase series, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Reggie's West for traditional concerts TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only confirmed these dates via their official Facebook page yesterday, but this is relatively common for their gig announcements, alas. TONIGHT & TOMORROW'S shows do follow their regular Thursday night role as open mic night hosts at the Reggievelt, but traditionally, we don't cover open mic nights as "concerts" on the SMS due to their unpredictable nature and variable performance length of the hosts. Open mic nights aside, this is Soundcheck's second normal concert weekend of 2022 and their first at Reggie's West in almost three months (largely thanks to the re-imposed pandemic restrictions), but with those lifted, hopefully a sizeable crowd turns out to safely rock out with their diverse but often heavy covers!

You can see Soundcheck TONIGHT & TOMORROW at 9:00 PM with no cover charge and a 19+ age limit, but be advised that this is the last concert weekend where vaccine passports are mandatory to enter nightclubs in Ontario, so do not forget yours if you come out! Starting March 1st, they're no longer required, but regardless, please use common sense regarding any posted public health measures to keep everyone safe. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!

Next up, here's some more local representation in a recent episode of Thomas Christ's independent music showcase webseries You Rock!, starting with episode #20 from January 19th! The mid-point of that episode is very locally friendly, as Thomas checks out three songs from local acts in a six song, hour+ long span (the episode runs for just over 3 hours). First up is inactive grunge trio No Arrow's song "Sikkha" (1:17:20), preceded by context about how the track came to be, and I won't get into the specifics here, especially with how they deal with band disagreements. Thomas complimented the song's raw grunge/metal hybrid feeling and how it really evokes a live performance, and it's great to see that No Arrow are still finding a strong audience so many years removed from their dissolution! Local indie rockers Man Feelings also get good praise at the 1:57:00 mark for their song "When You Win (You Win Ugly)".

That episode's local contingent ends with regularly featured You Rock! contributor Mike Haggith, specifically here via his old power pop/hard rock trio The Din's song "Missing" (2:04:05) from their last album "Suburban Dream". Thomas called this song "fantastic" and complimented it's straightforward indie vibe, live readiness, and Mike's overall professionalism. Solid thoughts as always, so give all of the local and international talent a listen above! Embedded below is episode #21 from January 26th, which features songs from both Mike Haggith and No Arrow, so what should you know there? Mike's up first at 1:54:55 when Thomas played his song "MorningStar" from 2020's "If Ever Comes The Day", and he praised the track as an "epic song", hyping up its orchestral elements and rocking vibe, especially so given that this was allegedly Mike's first song made solely on GarageBand for iOS!

As for No Arrow, their song "Genocyde Revealing Part 2" is played at 2:27:00, with frontman Dann Pichette giving some interesting thoughts on the song's origins and the band (if that explains anything!) Thomas said that the song sounded great, that it reminded him of a Nirvana b-side, and he liked the chaotic ending as well. Always solid insights from Thomas Christ (a strong musician in his own right beyond this series), and the breadth of talent from afar is always welcome in this series, so give everything a watch above & below! We'll look at more from You Rock! next week!

Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items, all related to posts on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group from the last few weeks! As usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

 

• Former Haggith/Eclipse singer Curtis McKenzie is looking for a drummer that would be interested in jamming with his current project, who cover bands like Nirvana, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Stone Temple Pilots, and Soundgarden. A bassist is already enlisted, and Curt made it sound like he was on guitar. It'd be great to see Curtis back out there with a full band, but message him here or via his group post from two weeks ago for more details!
• In his latest Musicians Wanted post, former Bear Hunters/Skull After Betrayl guitarist Mike Vincent posted about wanting to jam in a band again, naming "rock and roll, classic rock, hard rock, and maybe some country" as preferred genres. Mike can also play drums if needed. Maybe not a return to his best known metal work is in the cards, but if you want to jam with Mike, message him at this link or via his group post on Monday!
• Mustang Sally alum Nicholas Gingras is looking for a bassist (ideally aged 17-22) who would be interested in joining his current band The Floor Between Us, who play original "experimental comedy rock", and hope to play songs that, while "straightforward harmonically", can also have simple chord progressions churned out "on the fly". The brief musical samples on their Instagram page don't tell us a ton about their sound, but just in case they could get heavy, message Nicholas at this link or via his group post on Sunday for more info!

 

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile this weekend! Thanks everyone!

A New EP Release, New Videos, And A Local Musician's New Website!!

Before everyone settles in for the Super and/or Puppy Bowl, here's a new news post on this Sunday morning! Along with belated details about a local musician's new website, a new cover performance, and more local musicians on a popular music review series, let's lead off with a surprise new album from a talented newer band, so here's what you should know!

After scattered studio work teasers in mid-2021 and over four months of public silence, new local alt-hardcore duo These Magnificent Tentacles released their debut EP "Surfacing..." onto their Bandcamp page this past Monday! The band never 100% confirmed they were working on an album, just new songs, so this was a nice surprise during a quiet stretch! Featuring their current two-man lineup of Slumshine's Brenton Ellis and ex-Pixo Control bassist Steve Edwards, "Surfacing..." was recorded at Mission Control Studios with producer/Tidal Records head Dustin Jones, and it is a short release, only containing three songs. One is "The Abyss", which was their debut single when the band launched, while the other two are titled "Sewer Sailor" & "The Sea Serpent & The Rainbow". The cover artwork appears to be a painting of Brent's, going along with his prolific visual art work.

Despite being a three song EP, "Surfacing..." costs $10 on Bandcamp, though you can stream the songs free there, and teasers of availability on other digital platforms have not come to fruition yet. No word either on a possible physical release, but for reference, Slumshine have put out CDs, and These Magnificent Tentacles have played one live concert, so the possibility is there. I won't comment on the songs yet, as it's looking very likely that "Surfacing..." will be this month's CD review on the SMS. Stay tuned for that, and check out T.M.T.'s debut EP above! 

Next up, here's a new video from prolific local metal/folk punk solo musician Chase Wigmore's Facebook page, where he covered Steve Vai's instrumental "For The Love Of God"! The video is heavily filtered with Chase's performance mirrored and de-colourized in very Rorschach test-y fashion, which is a neat look! Chase plays along to the original song very well, even if this isn't an optimal way to actually see his playing of the song given the filter, but check out this solid cover below, and stay tuned for more from him!

Also today, let's look at some more local representation on the popular indie music review series You Rock! with Thomas Christ! In the 3+ hour episode #19 from January 12th, two local acts made the cut for live reviews, including Inner City Surfers bassist Brad Example's solo song "The Queen's Secrets" (2:01:50), which Thomas positively reviewed, while we dip more into hard rock when Thomas checked out defunct local grunge trio No Arrow's song "Genocyde Revealing Part 1" (2:32:15), and he praised the song for its mix, Nirvana vibes, and it's raw, live essence. Always good thoughts from Thomas about bands here and abroad, so check out all of the talent below!

Finally, while the ever-prolific local/Thompson, Manitoba alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith wasn't in episode #19 of You Rock!, I do have stuff to talk about from him today, via his new website, which I've put off discussing for way too long. Perhaps a very belated successor to his once exceptionally detailed Facebook page biography and discography, his cleanly laid out website gives a massive updated biography, running down Mike's career as a musician from Windsor to the Soo to Thompson. Mike's major bands (from S.C.A.R. to Between The Ditches) also get subpages outlining their runs and highlights, even considering The Din to be distinct from the acid jam era of Mike Haggith & The Din, though the articles do leave out some very minor details. Curiously, James White is not credited as a former bassist with the band Haggith, though he never performed on an album with them, so that may explain his omission.

The discography on the website only reflects The Din and solo albums Mike put out since moving to the Soo, though way back when, I did save a text document listing every album by Mike's old Rotten Records catalogue numbers, which is good for reference! You can also order Thompson-era albums through the website. Very professional looking site with great insight into Mike's career, especially in a local sense, so fans of Mike's extensive career will definitely want to check out his website above! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news on the site this week. Thanks everyone!

A New Treble Charger Video Discovery & Much More News & Notes From The Last While!!

Let's get a new news post on the site on this Sunday morning, including some assorted shorter items, local musician appearances on two indie artist spotlight YouTube series, and leading off, a flashback 15 years back of a big local band in a somewhat unexepected setting. Here's what you should know!

Here's a neat find, a VHS recording of inactive local/Toronto indie/punk band Treble Charger playing a live acoustic concert in a record store back on June 14th, 1997! Recorded at the time by Brennan Manoakeesick and uploaded to YouTube user LaFarm's channel last week, this (as best as I can tell) was recorded at the old Musiplex store in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and presumably comes from Treble Charger's tour cycle in support of their then-new third album "Maybe It's Me". Bill noted that they were playing before a set by "The Amazing Transistor", which I believe referenced the Winnipeg indie rock band Transistor Sound & Lighting Co., who were labelmates of theirs. The 26 minute video features Treble Charger (minus Rosie) playing "10th Grade Love", "Friend of Mine", "Ever She Flows", "Fade", and "Morale", and it's definitely interesting hearing Treble Charger unplugged at this stage of their career!

Despite persistent "snow" on the video proper and some noisy static at times, the video and audio quality of this is really solid, and you do get some nice views of Musiplex, which looks like it was a huge record store with a great selection of albums! Fans were receptive to this short set, especially the kid taking pictures, and it's neat seeing a band as big as Treble Charger telling the sound guy what to fix with the levels, almost like they were back on the local circuit. If you love Treble Charger's Bill-led indie rock material, don't bypass this classic unplugged set below!

Next up, here's some more episodes of the YouTube series You Rock! with Thomas Christ, which is slowly getting more and more of a local flavour as Saultite musicians discover the series! In episode #18 from January 5th, Thomas heard and reviewed at least three songs by local artists live during the three & a half hours long episode, including Inner City Surfers bassist Brad Example's solo song "Someday" (46:28), marking his return to the series after appearing in earlier installments. While not a hard rock song (more of a bluesy folk number), Thomas praises his passion and songwriting! The ever-prolific Mike Haggith continues his regular run of You Rock! appearances later with "2145" (1:07:36) from his 2020 album "If Ever Comes The Day", and Thomas also gave it a strong recommendation for its beautiful vocals and melody, and how it would translate well to just a piano.

The local contingent of that episode ends with defunct local grunge/psychedelic rock trio SBD (both Brad & Dann have submitted material for You Rock! before, so it's only natural) via a demo of their original song "Ess" (1:39:00), preceded by info about how SBD formed. Thomas complimented how fun the song sounded like it must have been to record and called it "very fun". Nice to see more local talent getting widespread exposure like this from a dedicated community of independent musicians, so give episode #17 of You Rock! a watch below!

As for the other YouTube series where a host checks out independently recorded original songs live with a dedicated community including Saultites (Your Music Live by Studio Live Today's Pete Johns), there's definitely been less of a local element in their last five episodes, though a Brad Example song does end episode #83. The aforementioned Mike Haggith did finally return to the series in episode #86  from Friday, with Pete checking out the title track from "If Ever Comes The Day" at the 44 minute mark. Pete praised the song's arrangement and melody, calling both it and Mike himself "very cool", so give all of that and loads more indie musician reviews a watch below!

Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

 

• In a mild & locally unique variant of a name change, local indie/punk quintet Northwest have tacked "The" to the start of their name on their Facebook and Bandcamp pages, complete with a new band logo calling them The Northwest. A reason for the alteration wasn't publically announced, but it could be related to the commonality of Northwest as a band name (three other bands on Bandcamp are named that) or just signifying a fresh start after largely being dormant during the pandemic. We'll let you guys know when The Northwest announce their next plans!
• Relaunched local/Barrie punk/metal band Spades GT (née Jack Spades) will play in their new hometown on April 14th when they're among the openers for both The Dayglo Abortions and Random Killing at The Queens Nightclub! 2019 Oh!No festival performers The Speed Humps are also on the bill, FYI. This could be the first chance Greater Toronto has to see the new look Spades in action, so keep it in mind if you're in the area, and click here for more details!
• Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Tarnished will play their first publically advertised show of 2022 when they hit the road for frontman Alex Traynor's old Mount Pleasant home base on February 26th! The show will see them open for Mount Pleasant rock bands Venom of Virtue and Bang Up Tape Job at Rubble's Bar, and hopefully this Lower Peninsula gig goes well to help kick off a hopefully busy year! Visit the Facebook event page for more info!
  

 

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

More New Videos, Plus An Inactive Band Note!!

Hopefully everyone survived that cold snap in the Soo area over the last few days! Hopefully this will help warm everyone up, as we have another SMS post to check out today as this month moves along at a glacial pace. We mostly have some new videos to put the spotlight on, but there is a band moved to our inactive band links within, so here's what you should know!

Here's an interesting find, namely a clip of inactive local/Toronto indie/punk band Treble Charger playing "Sick Friend Called" on the CBC variety show Rita & Friends circa 1996! This was uploaded in October by YouTube user Uncool Dispatch, who previously posted this video of Greig & Trevor being interviewed on MuchMusic in 1997. If you're too young to remember it, Rita & Friends was hosted by the late country singer Rita MacNeil from 1994-1997, and while it is odd to see her introducing Treble Charger, it does show that she wanted to spotlight a wide array of music! The video quality is very rough (was this making the tape trading rounds?), but the audio's alright, and it's neat seeing an early video like this, especially given that Greig's on lead vocals for an indie-era song.

If you can get past the visual quality, this is a prime early performance from Treble Charger that surely gave them some much needed exposure to a national TV audience! Give it a look below, and do check out Uncool Dispatch's channel for much more videos of Canadian TV appearances from 1990s rock and alternative musicians, as there's a lot to see there!

Next up, I have moved local hardcore punk quintet Destroilet to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity. The band's last public update (a picture on their Facebook page) went up one year ago yesterday, and while the pandemic is acknowledged, Destroilet updates had dramatically slowed down in the late 2010s, with the band playing just two public sets in the past six years, most recently at the Joni Radford memorial concert in March 2019. One of the most enduring original local punk bands of the new millennium, Destroilet launched in 2009, uniting five scene veterans into a fast & blistering old school package that fans will have seen open for the likes of Random Killing, The Rebel Spell, and The Dayglo Abortions at concerts through 2015, as well as releasing a self-titled EP in 2011, expanded into a full length CD in 2012, and participating in 2015's "Fed Up!" split alongside The Ripcordz and Jack Spades.

Jam space renovations, members' personal lives, and the pandemic haven't helped Destroilet's concert frequency since the mid-2010s, but given their sporadic usage of social media to post band photos and sell t-shirts, hopefully they're not 100% done and that we'll see the guys tear up the stage once again when things return to normal! Best of luck to Mike, John, Christian, Adam, Matt, and Brent in the interim, they've all been missed!

Also, let's belatedly cover some more of local/Thompson, Manitoba alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith's recent appearances/reviews in Thomas Christ's YouTube series You Rock!, where the host reviews songs by independent musicians in a 2+ hour live stream, Studio Live Today style! Mike debuted in the series with song reviews in episodes #11, #12, and #13 late last year, but he also popped up in episode #14 at the 57:44 mark, with Thomas checking out "Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost" from "Bridges", positively complimenting the song for it's professionalism, slow burn, and overall talent, even plugging Mike's interview with Pete Johns. As it turns out, former Bizotic frontman Brad Griffith (a.k.a. Gortium85) recommended Mike submit songs for Thomas to feature on air, which seems to have worked out! Embedded below is episode #15 from last month. 

In Mike's fifth straight appearance, his song reviewed was "The Best You Never Had", this time from 2020's "If Ever Comes The Day", and you can check that out 1:16:07 into the lengthy video. Thomas also liked this song for it's 1980s/modern hybrid sound and production, though you can tell that Thomas has his limits as a critic, as he didn't know who Michael Hutchence (INXS' late frontman) was when a viewer complimented Mike's vocals. Solid work all around, so give both episodes a watch, and look for local indie band Man Feelings in episode #15 as well! We'll have more from Mike soon!

Finally, here's a surprise upload of an old song by former No Arrow frontman Dann Pichette's inactive solo project! Posted to his YouTube channel last month, this is The Dann Pichette Multi-Track Recording Extravaganza's song "Swass", which has been up on their Soundclick page since 2012 or so (given that this isn't a new recording, I won't move the Extravaganza to our active links unless we hear that Dann's working on new material). As I thought last year when Dann first linked me to these songs, "Swass" reminds me of a Primus demo, albeit one that cascades into chaos, and it's a silly but well performed number for what it is! Give it a listen below!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Pantychrist & Mike Haggith), Another Cancellation, And More Updates!!

We have a pair of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the ensuing months, plus some shorter assorted updates in today's post, but before then, we have another COVID-19 coronavirus cancellation to note on here, as local Celtic punk quintet Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide's planned St. Patrick's Day concert at LopLops Lounge has been postponed, as per the band's Facebook page. However, LopLops proper will remain open if you want to visit as a regular patron, and it is still owner Stephen Alexander's birthday, so hopefully he gets lots of relevant greetings in that regard! I had figured that if any more dominoes would fall this weekend, this would be the one given the holiday ties and The Tide's name recognition, but I didn't want to stir negative rumours about it beforehand. Now, with that said, The Wyld Stallyns have confirmed that they are still playing at The Whiskey Barrel tonight, and they are planning to take fan requests for live video streams if you don't want to attend.

As well, I have not seen any announcements regarding calling off Tym Morrison's slate of acoustic matinee concerts at Northern Superior Brewing & Gliss today and The Kiln tomorrow, though given their more intimate settings and the lack of any touring headliners, they are less susceptible to a coronavirus-related cancellation, in theory. Of course, we will keep you posted with updates on show postponements and cancellations when & if they roll in. Stay safe out there!

Now, let's kick off those new concert announcements, and both happen to be at LopLops too, starting with local/Thompson, Manitoba indie/hard rock musician Mike Haggith's return home for the official CD release concert for his new album "If Ever Comes The Day" on Friday, May 15th! This will be Mike's first local concert appearance since his acoustic Outspoken Brewing gig in August, but this looks to be formatted way more similarly to his last solo CD launch show here (in July 2015 at Rednecks for "The Warinside"), complete with a live backing band to be announced. For reference, he played alongside his then-Din bandmates Curtis McKenzie and Brandan Glew at that event. Much of the online materials for this show reflect "If Ever Comes The Day" proper, including information on it's lyrical inspiration & themes, the amount of songs and run time (12 songs, 47 minutes), and a few new-to-us song names like "Back Away Slowly" & "Into The Setting Sun". The full cover artwork is also now up on Facebook.

No word on potential opening bands, but 2015's release concert also featured the now-inactive Wild Iris and solo artist Micheal Husband. The "If Ever Comes The Day" release concert will have a $5 cover charge with a 19+ age limit and a 10:00 PM start time, and CDs will be on sale for $10, which does include a digital download card. When Mike announced that this album was coming out on a Friday, I had a hunch he would have a CD release party for it, and we're lucky enough to have it on local soil! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details on the show & CD as they roll in, and I think we know what album we're reviewing on the site in May!

Today's other new concert announcement will see all-female Hamilton hardcore punk quartet Pantychrist make their Sault Ste. Marie debut at LopLops on Monday, June 1st! Long-time readers may actually recognize Pantychrist from being scheduled for the cancelled Das Bunkerfest II in Garden River back in 2015, so it's great to see the ladies finally playing a local date five years later! Pantychrist's rough-edged, aggressive brand of hardcore punk should be more than welcomed on a local stage in June, and while LopLops may be a somewhat surprising venue, they should own that stage on this night! At least one opening band is to be announced. Promoted by the Oh!No Collective (who would have held Das Bunkerfest II under their old name Six, Two, Oh.), this 19+ show has a 9:00 PM start time, and while a cover charge has not been announced at press time, bring at least $5. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for updates!

Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or event name:

• A Facebook event page has finally surfaced for the Alienator-headlined concert at Soo Blaster on June 4th, which confirms that this will be an ALL AGES event. Tickets are also now on sale via Soo Blaster, The Rad Zone, and through promoter Mathieu Villebrun, though a promised online sale point on the event page is not immediately visible. Visit the above links for more details!
• SooToday contributor Chris Belsito posted this interview article with Matthew Good on Thursday, a day before he postponed his entire Moving Walls Tour, local date on March 26th included. How's that for unfortunate timing! The article proper features Matthew talking about his recent touring, songs he likes playing live, his new album, and some recollections on coming through or staying in Sault Ste. Marie on prior tours (his divisive 2007 show here was not brought up directly.) Very informative article, so give it a look above, and hopefully we hear about the rescheduled Soo event soon!
• Apologies for the delay in acknowledging these on the site, but a couple of local news outlets were in attendance for and got photos from the We Will Rock You musical production at GFL Memorial Gardens in January! SooToday's Donna Hopper & SaultOnline's Megan Pounder both snapped lots of photos, with Donna's being higher quality, but Megan got far more pictures total. The context may be lost if you don't know the story, but it seems to have been well received by attending Queen fans! Give them a look above!

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