LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Throwbacks & Banned) And The First Of This Weekend's Concert Previews!!

Today's post tackles most of the local metal/hard rock concert previews for this weekend that I currently know about, but we'll touch on the X-Mess acoustic show featuring The Danger Cats TOMORROW, along with any potential late notice gigs I may be alerted to. Two of the shows are SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, and along with said previews, we have extra news on each, including a new show for New Year's Eve, our first video of one of them, and first, a new local band, so here's what you need to know!

A new local rock trio named The Throwbacks will make their live concert debut TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT at The Roosevelt Hotel! Apologies for the short notice, I only just heard about these the other day. No online pages for them yet, but they apparently play a variety of classic/modern rock, and their lineup includes Lucky 13's Jeremey Salatuk & Jeff Gray alongside 2 Buck Beers' Brent Royer on drums (and probably lead vocals.) Brent previously played with Jeremey in Wishbone & with Jeff in the original Turner Up, so there's history all around for these three! I don't know exactly what The Throwbacks will play in concert, but given all three members work in a hard rock-leaning band in the early 2010s, I'm inclined to believe they'll be similar to a Turner Up-ish band. Both tomorrow & Saturday night's concerts have 10:30 PM start times, no announced cover charges, and 19+ age limits. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! I'm curious to hear more about The Throwbacks, and hopefully their debut this weekend goes off without a hitch, so check them out at The Rosie, and when I hear more on this band, I'll let you guys know!

(Note as well that I have no idea if Jeremey & Jeff's presence in this new band means anything negative for Lucky 13's status, but keep in mind that they last played live two weeks ago, and they're not an overly frequent live band as it is. Just in case though, I'll keep you guys posted when we hear new stuff on Lucky 13!)

Also in new concerts (and linking to a show TONIGHT), Kinross, Michigan classic hard rockers Banned will rock The Cozy Corners Tavern & Grill in nearby Barbeau on Tuesday, December 31st as part of their New Year's Eve festivities! This will be their first show at this venue in almost 5 months, and it keeps with their usual trend of playing a concert on New Year's Eve (you may remember them in at The Bird in 2011 and at Todd's Tavern last year), so hopefully they send off 2013 with a bang in just under two weeks! There's no announced cover charge for this 21+ show, and a 9:00 PM start time is likely. This show joins a private wedding that they're playing next weekend, and of course, a rare Thursday night set TONIGHT at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, where they're the musical entertainment for The Autism Alliance of Michigan's Relentless Tour stop in the Soo! This event is headlined by a speech by Michigan State Spartans basketball star Anthony Ianni about his battle with autism and how he overcame it to find success and purpose in life, so if you go, definitely consider checking that out!

Tonight's event (which also has a resource fair, prizes, face painting, bouncy castles, and other family entertainment) starts at 6:00 PM, it's definitely ALL AGES, and there's no admission fee! For more details, visit the above links & the event poster! This is a very unique but important event that should hopefully raise a lot of awareness for this important cause, so don't bypass it if you're across the river TONIGHT, and Banned should rock  themselves! For a preview, here are the guys playing their song "Plaid Girl"!

Finally for today, Sault Ontario classic/hard rock quintet The Thrill Junkies will return to Docks Riverfront Grill for two more concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Likely their last concerts of 2013, this talented veteran outfit should have another hard hitting weekend of covers and familiar hits in store for fans in Docks' Playroom (the name for the main area for bands), so don't miss this union of Carbon Black, Lois Lane, Full Circle, Havadder, and Scary Uncles alumni down at Docks this weekend! A $4-ish cover is likely for these 10:30 PM concerts, and you must be 19 to attend either tomorrow or Saturday night. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! It's nice to see The Thrill Junkies back at Docks so soon after their November shows there, and hopefully it truly is a Thrill Junkies Christmas this time around, so keep them in mind for your weekend plans! For a preview, we finally have a video glimpse of the band in action, so what should you know on that front?

Filmed by bassist Justin Langlois' dad Michel and uploaded to his YouTube channel two weeks ago, this comes from The Thrill Junkies' set at The Canadian at Toystock on Decmember 1st. The video features the band covering The Foo Fighters' "Times Like These" and Volbeat's "Heaven Nor Hell", and the guys sound pretty good here! Travis Sharpe's vocals are strong, and the guys know the songs well, though their stage presences are somewhat stiff. The camera angle's nice too, if a bit far, but the lighting's inconsistent, with Travis lit up way more than everyone else. Nice to finally see a video of The Thrill Junkies, so check it out below, and don't miss them at Docks this weekend!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our X-Mess preview and more tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Heavy Winter), Pillory EP Release Updates, And More!!

As promised, we have a news post today as well, and it mostly focuses on a planned EP release TOMORROW, but we also have related notes on a recent collaborator of theirs, and first, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT! Check it all out below, and give a look at our post from this morning for last month's poll results and info on our newest poll on your favourite new local metal/hard rock bands of 2013!

Local/Toronto hardcore punk trio RedD Monkey will return home for the first time since August when they headline Heavy Winter, a Boxing Day concert at The Roosevelt Hotel on Thursday, December 26th! Their first appearance at The Rosie in well over a year, it'll be great to have this talented and creative band back up north to rock the Soo with their cello-infused originals! They'll be joined on Boxing Day by local power/classic metal quartet The Hydra's Teeth in just their second live concert appearance & their first ever stop at The Rosie, prominent local hard rock quartet The Suicide Kings in their first Rosie appearance since May, and local punk/metal quartet T-Rex Manning (in just their second concert in the last 7 months)! Nice selection of bands we haven't seen as much of lately, and there's a little something for most metal tastes, so certainly keep it in mind for Boxing Day! Promoter J.D. Pearce is seeking more bands, so if you're interested in playing at Heavy Winter, message him at this link.

Note as well that this is the ninth Thursday night concert at The Rosie that J.D. has promoted (and first in almost 5 months), so fans of the former Rosie metal nights may want to take note of that connection! Heavy Winter has a $5 cover charge, 19+ age limit, and 10:00 PM start time, and for more details, visit the official Facebook event page! The holiday season is usually very good for metal/hard rock shows, and this will be no exception, so stay tuned as more bands get added to Heavy Winter!

Next up, here's the latest on local thrash band Pillory's upcoming demo EP release and plans! TOMORROW'S planned release date for "Cringe at the Cross" is still a go, and to that effect, the band has released a photo showing a bunch of physical copies! This is roughly the official artwork (same as on the streaming YouTube copies), so plans for an out of town-commissioned cover must not have went through. According to recent indications, the EP will be on sale directly through Pillory via their Facebook page or through individual band members (likely for $5), so if you want one of the first copies, message the guys starting on Thursday! No word on if it will be sold on a digital format yet, and as for in-concert availability, posts from Sabrina Strange Productions have been fairly exciting! The former Chronic Demonic singer has begun collaborating with Pillory in the past week, and according to her production company's Facebook page, she's helping design t-shirts for the band, she hinted at a DVD and band stickers, and she also indicated that Pillory hope to be on 2014 concerts put on by Blood Shed Productions!

It's nice to hear about plans ramping up from Pillory (especially having only played 1 and a half concerts since their inception), and hopefully tomorrow's release is a great to way to honour the memory of founding guitarist Andres Duchesne one year after we lost him! In case there's nothing new to report on Thursday in terms of the release, I'll confirm right now that if it's not delayed, "Cringe at the Cross" will be our first CD review of 2014! We have this month still dedicated to The Strange Coyotes' digital album, hence why they're next month, but it should be very interesting, so watch out for our review of Pillory's EP next month! Lastly for Pillory updates, Sabrina also posted this jam session video onto her production company's Facebook page last week of members Robert Sartini & Bret Shuttleworth playing their song "Dethrone the Dictator", though it's instrumental, in black and white, only 51 seconds long, and doesn't feature Josh Amendola or Tyler St. Amour. It's still a solid quality video with the guys sounding great, so check it out below!



Finally for today, here's the latest relating to the aforementioned Sabrina "Strange" Lavoie! Since leaving Project Legion, we haven't heard a whole lot for firm musical plans from her, but she's recently been working on drumming under the tutelage of Pillory as a way to be more diverse for future band opportunities, with videos of her playing with Robert Sartini now on Facebook themselves! Joining a well done and short metal cover of Britney Spears' "Toxic" with her on vocals and guitar, the new drum videos are of her and Robert covering Avenged Sevenfold's "Unholy Confessions" and a longer clip embedded below! There's work to be done, but she's showing positive signs, and hopefully she keeps at it in the coming months, so check out her drumming work below, and stay tuned soon for another video she uploaded of Robert playing a solo cover!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Last Month's Poll Results & Our Poll On Your Favourite New Bands Of 2013!!

With the 18th of the month now upon us, it's now time to close last month's poll and launch our newest poll at The Sault Metal Scene! Before we get to the new poll, you may remember that we posed this question to you guys last month: "How significant are battle of the bands finishes to you in terms of a local band's recognition & success?" We got 20 votes, which is a good total that gave us some good results, so thanks to those of you who voted, and now, here are the final results!

Little to no significance (13 votes, 65%)
Depends what the band does afterwards (4 votes, 20%)
Depends on the judges/judging method (2 votes, 10%)
Depends on the prizes/stakes (1 vote, 5%)
Very significant (0 votes)
Depends where the band placed (0 votes)

What do you guys think? I will say that is seems obvious what won the poll, as almost 2/3rds of voters replied that how well a local band does in a battle of the bands has little to no bearing on their opinions of them. Of people who were open to battle finishes playing a part in a band's success, none saw the idea as very significant, with most of them only weighing battle success on what the band does afterwards, which makes sense, as a high battle placement is somewhat negated if the band breaks up shortly after. Knowing the runaway winners of the poll, it seems clear that most voters like and support bands based on their talents, genre, personal connections, and so on, and don't put high weight into battles of the bands in their calculations. Bands like Frightlight got big locally without competing in even one, and for bands like The Bear Hunters (our most recent local battle winners), they were successful and well liked for years before winning one. I think battles of the bands are fun events that help bring the scene together, and high finishes are usually great feathers in the cap, but they shouldn't be a huge influence on if you must like a band or not.

Thanks to everyone for voting! As for this month's poll, we're kicking off our usual "favourite _____ of the year" polls with one focusing on new bands! Unless there's a major surprise for a new concert coming up, we've likely seen every new debuting metal/hard rock bands in the region for 2013, and I'm glad to say, things have really picked up for new bands and new blood in the area! We haven't seen a bumper crop like this since (at least) 2010, which is awesome to see, but like before, I'm curious to see what new bands you guys enjoyed the most in 2013! Like in past instances of this poll, included bands must have both launched to the public AND played a public live concert set in 2013, so new live bands who launched in 2012 or earlier (like The Hydra's Teeth, Giwakwa and Crucify The Whore) are not included, but you can vote for them by clicking "Other" if you want! We're also not including bands who've only played one song live this year (like Chronic Demonic), one-off bands (like Loud Lazer), bands who've only played private events (like Train Wreck & the Haggith members' tribute acts), and bands who reunited/changed their name from an earlier form.

With that said, I have 20 different bands for this month's poll, including "Other" to cover anyone absent, so without any further adieu, what was your favourite new metal/hard rock band of 2013? Here are the choices!

AlgomA: Though their live appearances haven't been plentiful, this local sludge/doom metal trio (featuring BeeFMouTH & Fuller alumni) have made a big impression this year, including opening for the likes of The Golers and Soul Killing Female, headlining their own huge event in Echo Bay, and beginning work on their first EP! Their unique local sound and veteran presence have carried them well after their launch, but is AlgomA your favourite new local metal band?

Bad Back: AlgomA drummer Jamie Vincent joined forces with fellow Fuller alum (and original Lion Ride bassist) Nathan Sauve in this new extreme/grunge duo, who've opened for the likes of Biipiigwan and Catgut since their summer debut! Delivering a big sound in a minimal size, Bad Back's hardcore/noise sound has been making fans fast, and 2014's looking really good for them, but do Jamie & Nathan have your vote as your top new heavier band of 2013?

Brutaly Fatal: One of the numerous newer grindcore/death metal projects through upstart independent label Blood Shed Productions, the Austin McCrea-lead project has supplied some solid bass work and brutality through the year, even if somewhat minimal, but their live debut in October went well, and their new two man lineup looks to deliver an even bigger sound in the coming months! Did Brutaly Fatal impress you the most in the past year?

The Danger Cats: A rare all-female hard rock band in the region, this new quintet (featuring former Lazer Queen frontwoman Kate "Kougar" Drew) have gained a nice reception and following in their late-2013 concerts, including very well received sets at Haggith's last two Algonquin Pub concerts, and two intriguing LopLops appearances this month! Have you been feeling the The Danger Cats' sound more than other new bands this year?

Glitch: Debuting on the same September night at The Danger Cats (albeit a floor up at The Rockstar Bar), this new cover quartet have entertained to big audiences there and at Toystock throughout late 2013 with their party & hard rock classics! Featuring Sneaky Pete, Lion Ride, and Tripod the Dog alumni, they have the skill and experience to become local mainstays going into the mid-2010s, but did you enjoy them the most in the past 12 months?

Jack Spades: The newest punk/metal project from prolific singer/promoter J.D. Pearce, Jack Spades have opened for The Dayglo Abortions, The Ripcordz, and Bam Margera in just a 4 month span, and they're just getting started! Also featuring T-Rex Manning, Bear Hunters, and Winkstinger members in their lineup, there's a familiarity to J.D.'s other bands, but with some different covers and new entertaining originals, do they have your support among the new crop of bands?

Late Shift: The new local alternative/hard rock band from alumni of Redefined, North West, and The Groove Committee, Late Shift debuted at last month's Amy Ellis Benefit at The Canadian with a fun cover sound that effectively hardened up some softer/overplayed covers and rocked expectedly hard on others, and the wigs & sunglasses helped the theme! We haven't heard much from them since, but was Late Shift's first appearance enough to win it for you?

Mike Haggith & The Din: A short lived jam rock project from 3/4ths of the also-defunct Haggith in swapped roles, Mike and The Din only played a handful of live concerts in mid-2013 (most prominently at Bushplane Musical Madness II), but they provided a fun, loose, and improvised take on Mike's solo originals, along with a number of high quality recordings of their material! Did Mike & The Din leave the best first impression on you this year?

Plastic: One of the newer hard rock bands to launch this year in Sault Michigan, this new alternative rock trio (featuring Half Stupid & Cherubic Red alumni) debuted at this year's LemmaFest and kept going strong through the departure of drummer Paul Burns in September, though they played a number of solo headlining dates in the area this summer. Very intriguing band, and hopefully they get a new drummer soon, but did Plastic impress you the most in 2013?

Project 421: The surprise band that debuted at Haggith's farewell concert earlier this month, Project 421 unites alumni of old local bands like Fitswitch & Broken with Haggith's Daniel Horton on bass, and they tore through a very cool set of older metal classics for the gathered fans! Details on future dates (which will feature a full time singer) aren't out yet, but did Project 421's first show earlier this month endear themselves to you more than the rest?

Project Legion: This funk/experimental metal band only saw the stage twice in October before their surviving members disbanded them to form their successors The Strange Coyotes, but fans who saw either of their dates may think highly of them on their own merits, possibly as their first show featured Sabrina Strange in their ranks! The Strange Coyotes have already done more collectively, but did you prefer the brief run of Project Legion?

Punch: A new supergroup formed by 2 members each of Haggith and The Suicide Kings, Punch debuted with a third place run at last month's Viva La Battle before opening for Diemonds earlier this month at The Algonquin, and the next year's looking bright for them to be sure! Essentially the main successors to Haggith following their dissolution, Punch have the chemistry and talent to take them far, but did you like them the most of all of the recent new hard rock bands?

RamWagon: Another new band in Sault Michigan, RamWagon was formed after a split in the members of fellow regional hard rock cover band Full Throttle, but the new band has been far more active in recent months, including a number of Kewadin Casino stops and a debut set at LemmaFest! Also featuring alumni of The Highest of Fives and Monkey's Uncle in their lineup, did RamWagon make it to #1 in your opinion for new regional groups?

Rotopsy: Another newer goregrind duo from Blood Shed Productions, the former Spitneck have also had a fast rise this year with demo CD releases and a live debut at The Oddfellows Hall in October! Though they have a somewhat polarizing sound like with their sister band Crucify The Whore, they have loyal fans and a lot of fun with what they do, and hopefully Ringsnaps & Dylan keep it up into 2014! Were Rotopsy your favourite new heavier band?

Saints & Serpents: Essentially the successors to the now-defunct Valentine's Day Massacre, this partly-local death metal quartet debuted on stage this past Friday... albeit in London, where the band's 3 local members have been based since last year. V.D.M. fans should be overjoyed that they're still hard at work, but if you've seen Saints & Serpents live, did they top the fully local bands that also launched and played live in 2013?

The Side FX: Inactive for almost 4 months following the departure of guitarist Alex Walls, this new local hard rock band (featuring Papa Fogals Chair alumni Mike Bird & Derek Turner) debuted at The Roosevelt Hotel in July, but have not played live since. The Side FX had a lot of promise based on members' past work and their own public postings, and hopefully they turn up again, but did their July show give you the most enjoyment of this year's new bands?

The Strange Coyotes: Evolving from their predecessors Project Legion at their October show at The Oddfellows Hall, The Strange Coyotes followed up on that with a surprise digital album release and a well recieved opening set at Haggith's final show earlier this month! Featuring Haggith, Blackwater, and Smiling Giraffes alumni, this new trio has a lot of explosive and creative originals to show, but have they impressed the most so far?

The Thrill Junkies: More or less the successors to both Turner Up & Havadder's 2012 lineup, The Thrill Junkies first brought their classic/hard rock sound to the stage in Spanish as part of the Rock N' Roar festival & battle, before rocking the Soo a number of times this fall at numerous venues (including at Toystock!) The Thrill Junkies are quickly making a new name for themselves in this new band, but are they your top new local hard rock band?

The Throwbacks: Debuting this weekend at The Roosevelt Hotel (more on that soon), this new trio plays classic & modern rock covers, and they unite Lucky 13's Jeremey Salatuk & Jeff Gray with Jeff's former Turner Up bandmate Brent Royer (presumably on vocals & drums.) Their lineup and past band experience hint that they'll cover a good selection of hard rock songs, but once you see them, will they be your favourite new band of 2013?

Unbound: Most recently seen re-using the With Blood Build Character name, local hard rock band Unbound's public launch in January sadly came after the sudden passing of singer Justin Fratpietro. With tributes to him in mind, Unbound's concerts all took place in his hometown of Thunder Bay this spring, though a local debut under either name hasn't taken place, and there's been no public updates in 9 months. Still, did you like Unbound/W.B.B.C. the most among new acts?

Other: Did you prefer a new local band that wasn't listed above? Did I miss your preferred choice, or does your top "new" band happen to be one that was alive before this year, only played privately, hasn't played a full live show yet, or wasn't even metal or hard rock? Some examples that could fit are elaborated on above, but if your preferred "new" band isn't listed, vote for "Other"!

VOTE TODAY!! You have until January 18th to cast your ballots, and hopefully we'll get a good turnout of votes and responses to this year's crop of heavier new bands! There was definitely a unique and talented mix of bands this year to launch and debut, and I'm very curious to see the final results, so vote A.S.A.P. in the form on the right, and stay tuned for more news and concert previews soon! Thanks everyone!

Another Local Metal Video Showcase!!

Before we get into the meat of today's post, I wanted to apologize for an error in our reporting of Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison's show at The Harp last week. The Facebook event page for it said it took place on Thursday, but despite the date never being corrected there, it was indeed on Friday as usual, as confirmed through personal Facebook posts and on SooToday. I did note at the time that the date seemed unusual and I'd correct it if possible, but I didn't hear confirmation until after the fact, so I apologize for the error, and hopefully there was a good turnout on Friday! Now, today's post is an all-video spree, including recent concert footage, a commercial, a new cover, and first, a video from a new band's first show!

New local/London death metal quartet Saints & Serpents played their first concert on Friday the 13th at The Richmond Tavern in London, and the first video from their set is now online! As uploaded to singer Steve Rhodes' YouTube channel on Saturday, this is of the new band playing "Vampiric", which you may recognize as an early 2012 original from Saints & Serpents' more familiar predecessors The Valentine's Day Massacre! Remember, all V.D.M. members except drummer Kyle Umgeher are in this new band, so there are natural similarities. Filmed by a front row attendee, it's great to see Steve, Andrew, and Adam playing together for the first time in 9 months, and the audio quality's very good too! The lighting isn't hot, but it actually helps the mood and drapes the band in shadow. My only issue is it's cut short, missing the last minute+ of the song, but this is a nice sample of this new partly local metal band, so give their first live concert video a look below!



Next up, here's a new commercial for the upcoming Bret Michaels/Firehouse concert at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino on January 18th! Uploaded to the Kewadin YouTube channel on December 5th, this 30 second spot (which might be airing on local TV) features just still photos of the performers, with no video footage, but the presentation is about standard and does it's job! Backing audio of Firehouse's "Don't Treat Me Bad" is sandwiched between snippets of Poison's "Nothin' But A Good Time" and "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" in the ad, but I have to ask, why not use audio of Bret's solo originals, or at least of his solo band playing those songs? Yes, his Poison work is better known, but Poison aren't playing the show, only Bret is. Effective commercial though, so give it a look, and get your tickets A.S.A.P.!



Also today, Ashes To Dust guitarist Alex Hemy's newest solo performance clip was uploaded to his YouTube channel on Sunday, and it introduces some different wrinkles to his cover videos! Along with his recent usual trends of singing and playing guitar, he plays bass and includes talkbox effects and keyboard backing work on this cover of Bon Jovi's "It's My Life", but if you're gonna go this far, why not at least have programmed drums to completely fill it out? Well done again though, albeit with somewhat more reserved vocals, but Alex is definitely a talent to watch, so check out his new cover below!



To close today, here's a new video covering this year's Soo Zombie Walk that features some brief clips of the musical entertainment before this annual brain-eating late October rampage! Uploaded to the YouTube channel of Sault College's digital film production wing on Thiursday, it features a bunch of assorted clips both at the starting location of The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Center, the end location of The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, and the walk itself, as laid over Black Sabbath's "Electric Funeral", but local music fans might be curious to see the brief snippets of the bands early on at the museum! Strange Coyotes bassist James Watterworth's solo set is caught in the video for three separate 5 second segments (at 20, 31, and 42 seconds in), though at least for this portion of the night, he wasn't alone, being joined by bandmate Chase Wigmore and Punch/Project 421's Daniel Horton on guest drums (a role he filled as a guest with their old band Project Legion.) I think members of Haggith appear briefly during the brain eating contests, but they're not playing when seen.

Though James & company didn't appear to wear zombie makeup, at least 2 members of Sykotyk Rampage did (those being Shane Kokis and Paul Becker), as you can see in their close up shots at 1:03 and 1:23 of the video during their set! We don't see a lot (or hear a thing) from their sets, and nothing from Haggith or Greg Callaghan's sets was included either, but this is a well put together video, and I like the rotating camera angles used for a lot of it! Check out this Zombie Walk compilation video below, and keep an eye out early for the band clips!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for last month's poll results and our first "Favourite _____ of 2013" poll! What are we touching on this month as we begin our looks back at the past year? We'll soon find out! Thanks everyone!

Bam Margera/Fuckface Unstoppable Video Showcase!!

For today's post, we're focusing 100% on videos from Saturday night's Fuckface Unstoppable concert at The Canadian Nightclub, as attendee Christopher Paci (a frequent filmer of Kewadin Casino concert footage) was there and shot videos of 4 of the 5 bands, as posted onto his YouTube channel yesterday! Only openers The Bear Hunters were left out (unless their video's coming late), but what we do have is more than worth checking out today, so let's begin this showcase! We'll start with Bam Margera himself and his band Fuckface Unstoppable, who were the subject of two videos that Chris shot, including their cover of The Bloodhound Gang's "The Ballad of Chasey Lain" (complete with female attendees dancing on stage), and as embedded below, their original rap/rock song "Bend My Dick" (they titled it, not me!) Chris shot these from behind many people on the floor, and the angle is a bit shaky, so the view's not as great as it could be, but we get a good view of the chaos and very fun crowd reaction!

I will say that like on F.F.U.'s other originals, this song comes across better and heavier live than it does in studio, and it's a nice alternate look at this very fun set, so check out Bam and company live in the Soo below and at the above links!



Also in new videos, Detroit hard rock quintet Wilson were filmed by Chris on Saturday night, and their video is of their fan favourite cover of AC/DC's "Back In Black"! Despite being slightly cut off at the beginning, the fun chaos and crowd engagement comes through well, and I like that Chad Nicefield's vocals are easier to hear! Must have been easier to hear if you weren't close. The camera angle is the same as on the Bam videos though, so it will look similar aside from the band on stage. Still, great video, so check out this new Wilson clip below!



For the local bands, Christopher also filmed the new quintet lineup of Jack Spades covering The Misfits' "We Are 138" at the show as well! Despite being a very short original (and extra familiar from frequent live versions with Frightlight), the performance works well, and the lesser amount of fans on the floor helps the video quality and shakiness somewhat! If you recognize two singers here, you're not wrong, as Destroilet guitarist Christian Foisy joined in on impromptu guest vocals mid-song (he's on the far right), and he added to the intensity, as you can see below!



Finally for today, Christian and Destroilet's original "Eternal Fire" was also filmed by Chris Paci at the show! The lighting's darker than on the later bands, but the closest angle yet of these videos is here, so you take the good with the bad. Destroilet's old school hardcore punk intensity comes through well (though Mike Hull's vocals still come across quietly), so check out their clip below, and see much more from this concert at the above links!



If any more videos pop up from Saturday night's awesome show, we'll have them here, but regardless, tomorrow's post will also be all-videos, so watch out for it then! Thanks everyone!

Bam Margera/Fuckface Unstoppable Concert Review!!

Hey guys, it's time for my review of last night's Bam Margera/Fuckface Unstoppable concert at The Canadian Nightclub! Great turnout for this show, which as you may remember, had what was basically an all ages timeframe for the bands' sets. but that didn't affect the environment at all! Oddly, the restricted stage movements thanks to Bam's drumkits (plus their banner) actually helped for photo-taking, as they minimized the effect of the stage signs on the back wall, so hopefully these turned out better! Let's begin our review with the first band!

Opening last night's show was local death metal standouts The Bear Hunters, who won Viva La Battle last month to earn the right to play at the event! They didn't come with the usual set though, debuting two brand new songs to open the night (a sequel to "Render This Void" named "The Void", and a song based on the movie "The Omen") which sounded very brutal and fit their more technical vibe on recent originals! Also helping was the surprise return of rhythm guitarist Josh Stephney for the set, marking the first time he's played with The Bear Hunters in almost 5 months! That was a nice surprise, and his guitar work really helped fill out newer songs like "I Fear No God" that we haven't heard with a quintet lineup yet. In fact, the whole set was almost completely comprised of newer songs, and the guys were up to their usual tricks and talent levels, with Nik Deubel and Mitch Sirie really impressing in their own rights! Look for big things from The Bear Hunters in 2014, if their tight and focused set last night was any indication!

Second on the bill was local hardcore punk veterans Destroilet, who tore through 13 songs in their abbreviated set, though despite guitarist Christian Foisy's amusing words to the contrary, the songs all had different names! All but 3 songs from Destroilet's album joined covers of everyone from The Screeching Weasels to Fear, which a growing amount of fans on the floor really took to, and while I enjoyed the music and intensity, their stage presences were restricted and not as energetic as usual, especially on Mike Hull's part. I enjoyed the sense of humour and aggression throughout, and musically, they blistered through their set, with John Conway's lead guitar work seeming especially sharp, but vocals could have been louder on the whole. Destroilet have been on fire (an eternal fire, if you will) since their concert return this spring, and here's hoping they keep it up!

The middle band last night was local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades, who debuted new second guitarist Jesse Cook (Winkstiner, Soldiers of Misfortune, etc.) during their set, so how'd he fit in? Very well, he seemed like a natural (if stiffer in on stage activity than I'm used to), and I'm curious to see how he mixes into things going into next year!  Their 9 song set mixed originals like "Breakneck Speed" and the debuting "To The Left" with covers of everyone from SNFU to Judas Priest, though their planned unveiling of a new song named "Frederick" was called off. Decked out in his best Santa outfit, J.D. Pearce's vocals were aggressice and soared over the music, and Justin Lam was fantastic on bass as well throughout! Aside from a brief guitar mishap on "To The Left", Jack Spades put in another enjoyable set that fans of J.D.'s other bands definitely should have enjoyed, and they're definitely developing their own identity in the process!

Co-headlining last night's concert was Detroit hard rock quintet Wilson, and if there was a word to describe their set, it'd be "wild"! Any descriptions of them being a fun or party band were certainly not inaccurate, as they took The Canadian by storm with their high energy and non-stop set! A lot of the props should go to singer Chad Nicefield, whose energy, presence, aggression, and crowd engagement were off the hinges, and we responded in kind! I just wish he was easier to hear, I couldn't make out his vocals very well for most of their set. I also liked the extra frills like drumming beer bottles and breaking out the giant marching band drum to cap off their set, and the rest of the band was up to the standard as well, with Jason Spencer & Kyle Landry driving a wall of awesome guitar work throughout! One of the most fun live bands I've seen locally in quite a while, Wilson made a lot of new fans last night, and fingers crossed they roll back through the Soo at some point!

And of course, the main event was West Chester, Pennsylvania's own Fuckface Unstoppable, featuring the one and only Bam Margera on lead vocals! A lot of people I knew weren't sure how the band would look or what they'd play, but it was a long chaotic party from wall to wall, including two drummers, lots of crowd interaction from co-singer Brandon Novak, and just a lot of action packed & rowdy entertainment! Bam's vocals fit the aggressive material, be it pseudo-rapping or full hardcore punk vocals, and the full band kept things rolling, including some very solid guitar work from Matty Janaitis and a fun double drum assault from Jess Margera & Alex Flamsteed that never came across as overkill! Their set was heavy on covers (including Turbonegro, Bloodhound Gang, and GG Allin) along with originals like "Moonshine" and '''Till The Wheels Fall Alf"), and the crowd ate it up, including the dancers during "The Ballad of Chasey Lain"!

If you remember the Kittie set at the Ypres Metal Fest last year, imagine being in that congested crowd, only to have everyone push and elbow each other. That's how it felt, and my back paid for it, but it was a great environment to be in! I had a pile of fun at this concert, and it's just a shame it wasn't the very last metal show of 2013, as it'd be quite a bang to go out on! Huge kudos to J.D. Pearce for booking this, all of the bands for playing, and to George Ravlich at Crank Sound Distribution for his great sound work all night! I did get photos & videos of each band, so click here to check them out, or visit our Facebook page to see them and a "Tag Yourself!" shot of the crowd! And for my videos, here's The Bear Hunters playing their brand new song "The Void", Destroilet playing three short covers (of Gang Green's "Let's Drink Some Beer", The Screeching Weasels' "I Don't Give A Fuck", and Fistmagnet's "Evil God Hater"), Jack Spades covering The Ripcordz' "X", Wilson playing their song "College Gangbang", and Fuckface Unstoppable covering Turbonegro's "All My Friends Are Dead"!











That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow, along with fallout from the Bam Margera concert as I get it! Thanks everyone!

Friday The 13th New Music On Werehold Records (Part 5)

As you should remember, yesterday was Friday the 13th, and to mark the occasion, Eckerman, Michigan metal label/studio Werehold Records went on another song uploading spree on their YouTube channel! Last seen in July, this is the fourth time that Werehold Records dedicated this "unlucky" day to new music from their talented artist roster, so I found it appropriate to spotlight the material once again for you guys! In terms of exclusions, there's no new tracks from The 1,000,000,000s Who Died, Awaken Eidolon, East Branch, or Moss, nor did we get any from some of the featured artists from the September 13th installment, such as local guitarists Mike Libertoski & Scott Savoie. Actually, only 4 artists were featured yesterday, including Brimley techno project Palaver, whose new track is entitled "Jotunn" (Icelandic for "giant"), and it's a chaotic (if short) electronic number that keeps with their dark techno sound nicely, so give it a look at this link! Now, to the new songs from Werehold metal projects, and as before, they're in alphabetical order by band name!

One of the songs is from Swampghas drummer Doug Reed's solo project Drayton Fever, and while it's not a new track, it is an unreleased instrumental demo from his planned debut CD "The Longest Summer", as originally recorded way back in 2005. Entitled "Fleshwork", it's a solid and hard-charging metal number that would be cool to see with a higher recording quality and with vocals, and I really like the guitar work on this one especially! Hopefully we get some more news from Drayton Fever in 2014, and check out "Fleshwork" below!



Also among the "new tracks" is "Dreams & Nightmares" by Werehold's flagship band Life' Eclipse! From their album "Shadow Over Superior" (and one of the first 5 songs that guitarist Jason Mills wrote way back in 1995), "Dreams & Nightmares" stacks up with Life's Eclipse's other studio work with great instrumentation and a catchy groove, but it comes across as short to me, and like "Fleshwork", this version's an instrumental. I like where it's going for sure, so check out this "new" Life's Eclipse demo below!



Finally for this newest Friday the 13th, Strongs "backwoods metal" trio Swampghas (featuring the aforementioned Jason Mills & Doug Reed) were the main focus yesterday, as four instrumentals from a 2006 demo were posted onto YouTube as well! Entitled "Bog", "Eckerman", "Struggle", and "Killbilly", these were recorded solely by Doug and guitarist/East Branch mainman J.R. Johnson with the intent of reforming the then-defunct Swampghas, though Jason noted that these songs were recorded in 2 hours while "whiskey drunk". Compared to newer Swampghas material, the production quality and songwriting isn't as refined as we've been accustomed to, but it's a nice look at some early work from this talented regional metal band, and hopefully their still-forthcoming "Raco Tower Incident" CD delivers even harder! Check out the first song "Bog" below, and hear more at the above links!



The next Friday the 13th comes our way in June, so keep an eye out then for more original U.P. metal from Werehold Records, unless some more stuff makes it's way to the public in the interim! That's all for today, but I'll see you guys at The Canadian Nightclub in Sault Ontario TONIGHT for Bam Margera as Fuckface Unstoppable! $25 at the door, 19+, 7:00 PM! Thanks everyone!