LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Eclipse & Id Iota), New Sault Michigan Videos, And More!!

With weekend concert previews and our new poll now taken care of, here's a full news post for your Sunday morning delectation! Below, you'll find some assorted recent notes, more videos from a recent Sault Michigan-area benefit concert, and first, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!

Local alternative/hard rock quartet Id Iota will play their first public concert of the year when they open for indie rock quartet K.I.C.K. at LopLops Lounge on Friday, April 14th! Originally planned to be on Saturday the 15th before being pushed back one day, this show will be Id Iota's first appearance on a public stage (last month's garage show doesn't count) since November, and it'll be a good chance to see Christian, Dustin, Dan, and Blair in their element at a familiar downtown venue as they take a brief break from recording sessions for their second CD! Similarly, K.I.C.K. have been in studio lately towards their debut album, and it'll be good to see the Keep It Cool Kids back with their skilled indie rock originals, so don't miss the 2016 VM Radio Battle winners either! A Facebook event page has not been posted (yet?), but a 19+ age limit, $5 cover charge, and 9:00 PM start time are all likely for this event, so check the above links for more details on K.I.C.K. & Id Iota's LopLops return!

Next up, reunited local hard rock quartet Eclipse and funk/experimental quintet Gianni Gagoots will return to The New American Pub on Sunday, April 23rd when they open for Montreal stoner rock trio The Hazytones! Yes, Eclipse are officially back together after a four month breakup, which is very surprising given how public and messy things became at first, but their reunion will surely be welcomed by fans and friends alike, so be there for their return to the stage at The New A next month! No word yet though on the April 1st show that they had teased, which doesn't appear to be an April Fools prank. Gianni Gagoots' creative instrumentals should continue their own upward momentum for their first show since headlining at LopLops last month, so don't be late for their set! As for The Hazytones, this will be deja vu in many respects, as this talented outfit just played at the same venue with Eclipse opening in August, just with K.I.C.K. as the second openers (and more advance notice.)

The Hazytones' psychedlic and deep originals should find another willing audience next month, and while they're not a metal band, they're well worth checking out! Promoted by Six, Two, Oh., though uniquely courtesy of Lion Ride alum/punk rock bingo caller Brenton Ellis rather than the guys in AlgomA, this show has a 19+ age limit and 9:00 PM start time, and while an admission fee hasn't been announced yet, last year's Hazytones show had a $5 cover. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, don't miss out on this near-encore 8 months later, and Eclipse are back in our active band links (no word yet though on Project 421's next moves!)

Also today, here's a new video of Sault Michigan's current masked metal band, Stoned Ape Evolution! Filmed at last month's Bay Mills Bands Together fundraiser at Pickles Bar & Grill in Brimley, this video was uploaded by band member John Napoletano to his personal Facebook page and shared to the B.M.B.T. Facebook page shortly after the concert. The clip features Stoned Ape Evolution covering Metallica's "Seek & Destroy" and Megadeth's "A Tout Le Monde" to close their set, and  this gives us our best look yet at the band (who appear to have expanded to a quintet), so what can I say now? I think the band is largely sound musically, as best seen on "Seek & Destroy", but the vocalist is trying way too hard to sound evil, particularly on "A Tout Le Monde", a classic ballad which the band turns into a groove metal song. I applaud the creativity, but the performance is shaky and I don't find it works well for their style.

John also uploaded four more videos (all from similar corner-stage camera angles) to check out publically, including the Project 906 video we covered on here two weeks ago, and three of the night's cover rock bands, including The Whole Shabang covering Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69", The Brooks Band covering The Eagles' "Love Will Keep Us Alive", and Absolute Magnitude covering James Brown's "I Got You (I Feel Good)", so check out those if you want to hear some other bands from this fundraiser. Stoned Ape Evolution have clear potential and a cool look, so hopefully they continue to progress forward, and give their video a look below!



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

• Local doom metal trio AlgomA finally have physical copies of their new split single with Finland's Hooded Menace available for local fans! The news was revealed on their Facebook page on Friday, though they don't have any copies of the limited-run orange vinyl records. This means that the split should be available (likely for $20) when AlgomA headline at The New A on March 30th, making this the de facto release show, so keep that in mind for month's end if you want the split for your collection!
• In the biography on the aforementioned Eclipse's Facebook page, it notes that drummer Chris Thompson was a former member of Garden of Bedlam. This is not an error, he was briefly the band's drummer in 2007, but Derek Turner replaced him prior to their debut public concerts in 2008. That wasn't really a secret, but I don't think we ever addressed Chris' brief run with them on here before, and I just wanted to give that an overdue public acknowledgement! Also, it does seem odd that Garden of Bedlam are credited for Chris over Fitswitch, Frightlight, or Half Past, all of whom he did far more with.
• Local punk/metal band Jack Spades revealed on their Facebook page this morning that they will soon be unveiling their new lineup and single (maybe "Kingdoms"?), plus announcing their next concert shortly as well! The band hasn't been seen since opening for SNFU in September, after which Jesse Cook & Johnny Belanger departed the band, while frontman J.D. Pearce hasn't promoted a show (with or without Jack Spades) since his annual Halloween party. It's great to see that Jack Spades are still alive and readying their return, so stay tuned for updates!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for lots more news and updates as the week progresses! Thanks everyone!

Last Month's Poll Results & Our Newest Poll!!

It's now time to shut down last month's poll and unveil our newest poll, but first, remember that we posed this question to you guys last month: What was your favourite new metal, hard rock, or punk album released in 2016? Though we have clear results, we sadly got only 14 votes in this poll, a sharp drop-off from our poll on your favourite new bands of last year, but thanks to everyone who did vote, and here are the final results! 

Gnaeus - Meditations (5 votes, 36%)

The Din - Give In To The Din (4 votes, 29%)

Id Iota - Maudlin Fair (2 votes, 14%)

AlgomA & Chronobot's split vinyl EP (2 votes, 14%)

Other (1 vote, 7%)

Crucify the Whore - The Beautiful Sounds of Nature (0 votes)

The Inner City Surfers - Time To Travel On (0 votes)

Long Shot's self-titled EP (0 votes)

Malignant Neoplasm - Blast Beats & Bulls**t (0 votes)

The Strange Coyotes - Strange Coyotes III (0 votes)

One of SweetKenny's 2016 albums (0 votes)

Telephone & Address - Are You Now or Have You Ever Been... (0 votes)

What do you guys think? Well, in ascending order, I can see why the zero-voted albums ranked lower, as the were by and large released by solo acts or online only, but in particular, I know that The Inner City Surfers' posthumous album would have received more attention had the band gave it some form of public acknowledgement, even without a reunion. I can't speak for the "Other" voter (maybe they liked a non-metal/punk album?), but the top four albums definitely make sense, given each band's successes and out of town reach last year. If anything, AlgomA and Chronobot's split is an overachiever given the vinyl-only release format, but it was very well received, as was Id Iota's debut EP, both well mixed by Unsalted Audio to boot. Going in, I expected Gnaeus and The Din to compete for first place, and while I'd hoped for more votes all around, the sadly now-defunct Gnaeus delivered an entertaining and proficient album in "Meditations", and while many fans also gave into The Din, I cant dispute the results!

Thanks to everyone for voting! As for this month's poll, we're continuing our "favourite _____ of 2016" polls by posing this question to you guys: What was the biggest local metal, hard rock, or punk news story of 2016? The past year was eventful as usual for bands, events, lineup changes, statuses, and general stories from bands covered on the SMS, and it was very tough to pare things down to 25 stories to pick from in the poll, but hopefully I covered most ground of note! To get into the poll, each story must have had hard rock, metal, or punk involvement in some form, and have primarily took place and been publically announced in the 2016 calendar year, so stories like Gnaeus' breakup, the AlgomA/Hooded Menace split, and the Pop Evil concert are obviously waiting for 2017's poll of this ilk. Similarly, Jack Spades' recent lineup departures weren't considered, as the exits weren't publically stated until 2017, regardless of if they officially left the band last year or not.

Of course, if something you'd rather vote for isn't an included choice, then I have included "Other" as usual. And lastly, remember that this poll is about the biggest news stories of last year, not the happiest or your favourite. We're seeing what you considered newsworthy, not necessarily stories that were positive, so keep that in mind just in case you wonder why certain topics are included. Now, here's what you should know about all 25 choices!

A Dire Setback & Live705 launch in November: Seemingly coming from out of nowhere to become one of the most promising new local punk bands in recent memory, A Dire Setback debuted last fall with a full slate of originals alongside their own concert promotion agency Live705, who have hosted three well recieved concerts already, with more in the pipeline. Does the dual launch earn your vote?

AlgomA release split EP with Chronobot: It was no April Fools joke when local doom metal trio AlgomA's long-awaited vinyl split with Saskatchewan stoner metal band Chronobot finally went on sale on April 1st, earning a positive reception locally and abroad, and helping set the stage for this year's split with Hooded Menace. It's a solid EP, but was this split's release your top news story of last year?

Bay Mills Bands Together holds first fundraiser event: Multi-band concerts don't happen nearly enough in the Sault Michigan area, so it was a bonus back in May when the non-profit group Bay Mills Bands Together held their first ever benefit at Pickles in Brimley to help Marissa Kronemeyer through her car accident recovery. This was a huge show with loads of talented acts, but was it enough to get your vote?

Bret Michaels returns to Kewadin Casino in November: 2016 was a light year for hard rock acts at The Dreammaker's Theater, but things ended with a bang when Poison frontman Bret Michaels returned to our area for the sixth time (at least) in November for this headlining concert with many charitable aims and on-site auctions for said causes. Fans thought it was "nothin' but a good time", but would you agree with that?

Brian Davie returns to Scott & Brian In The Morning: There usually isn't a lot of shocking news to come out of the Sault's rock station, Rock 101, but fans got a nice surprise in December when Brian Davie returned to 101.3 FM's morning show after a nearly 2 year hiatus. It's awesome to hear Brian back with Scott Cook weekday mornings once again from 6:00-10:00 AM, but did his return top everything else in this poll?

Darren Emond's Iron Maiden comic book is released: It's not every day when a comic book release makes local waves, but that changed in May, when local/Wawa artist Darren Emond unveiled the official Iron Maiden comic book that he did all of the artwork for, with the comic receiving an official launch at The Rad Zone. This was a big deal and a fun read for Iron Maiden diehards, but would you vote for it here?

The Din release their debut CD "Give In To The Din": One of last year's biggest and most anticipated album releases was the first studio album from The Din, whose alternative/hard rock originals and carry-overs from frontman Mike Haggith's solo discography earned a warm reception from fans before and after last summer's high-profile release concert at The Tech. Is this your choice?

The Fishbowl Festival debuts at The Gore Street Cafe: Amidst a tumultuous year for The Gore Street Cafe, ownership held the ambitious but successful month-long Fishbowl Festival in February & March featuring many arts, culture, and awareness events at the laundromat, plus concerts from bands like The Din and The Pixo Control. It's bigger & better this year, but did year #1 do enough?

Gnaeus release their only CD "Meditations": Just a week prior to The Din's CD release show (which Gnaeus opened), the two bands switched places when the post-punk quartet launched "Meditations" at The Rockstar Bar to a positive reception of their own! It's a shame that they broke up 7 months later without their planned follow-up CD "E La Vita", but have you meditated enough to vote for Gnaeus here?

Guy Thiffault's passing & tribute concert: The local punk community was rocked in December when former Hangdowns/Nebraska Arms frontman Guy Thiffault suddenly passed away at the age of 36, but his friends & fans came together less than two weeks later for a stacked and emotional tribute to him at The Rockstar Bar, headlined by a Bin Hawdon reunion. Was this last year's biggest story?

Hedley returns to Sault Ontario in July at The Yard: As part of new downtown outdoor venue The Yard's Canada Day Kicker, we saw the return of Abbotsford, B.C. pop punk quartet Hedley to the Soo for the first time in over 5 years last summer at this highly attended concert! Also featuring Toronto's The Beaches and the most recent local gig from Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide, does this show get your vote?

Id Iota release their debut EP "Maudlin Fair": Though it went on sale in Toronto a week prior to it's local launch, local alternative rock quartet Id Iota unveiled their first CD to a solid reception last April when they headlined at LopLops Lounge, and ended their 10 month hiatus from the local stage. This EP got positive notices locally and out of town, but did you like it enough to vote for it?

Jay Perron's sudden passing: A regular staple as a DJ and former concert promoter at The Canadian Nightclub, fans and colleagues were shocked when Jay Perron suddenly passed away in October at the age of 43, with fans gathering for karaoke and pool at a fundraiser for his family the following week. DJ Reverend J has been missed at the controls, but was this last year's biggest news item?

Jesse Merineau & Caroline Divine win the Speak Easy Battle: The first of last year's two battles of the bands saw indie rock musician Jesse Merineau (with backing from the now-inactive Caroline Divine) edge out a stacked field including The Din, Eclipse, and Jack Spades to claim the $400 top prize. Fan-voted or not, this was a huge victory for Jesse & crew, but would you vote for it here?

K.I.C.K. win the VM Radio Battle of the Bands: Taking place before and after the Speak Easy Battle, five local bands competed in the second multi-night VM Radio Battle of the Bands at The Canadian last March, where indie rock quartet K.I.C.K. defeated The Din and Eclipse to claim top honours in the finals. This wasn't as big of a battle as in 2015, but did you find that it still delivered the goods?

Pillory play their first live concerts since 2014: The aforementioned Speak Easy Battle saw the long awaited return to the stage of local death/thrash metal band Pillory, after an almost 2 year hiatus from the stage. Now with new bassist Jordan Leach, a smaller 3 piece lineup, and a much heavier and aggressive sound, Pillory have been melting faces ever since, but does their return top 2016 to you?

The Pixo Control disbands: Last year saw more bands quietly fade away than publically announce a breakup, but the biggest of the latter in 2016 was alternative/grunge trio The Pixo Control, who broke up over the summer and were succeeded by frontman Mike Mikus' new solo pop rock project, emphatically tearing off a Pixo Control t-shirt in his first music video. Does this get your vote?

Project 421 & Eclipse part with singer Curtis McKenzie: Though Curt has since reunited with the latter group (more on that soon), his departure from the two linked metal bands in November created a wave of discussion & debate from all sides, not to mention that a loss of a singer of his vocal talent would be hard for any band. Things are seemingly being patched up for one group, but would you vote for this story?

The Ripcordz headline an all-ages show at The Canadian: Plans were teased for months regarding an all ages local concert with Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz, and that was realized last August when they rocked The Canadian Nightclub alongside Jack Spades, Project 421, and Eclipse. The Ripcordz always get a huge reception locally, but were you among the horde?

Shit Liver go on their second Canadian tour: After a successful first tour run in 2015, local/St. Catharine's grindcore trio Shit Liver had an encore from April-June of last year, heading from out to British Columbia and back, plus a tour-capping stretch in Quebec. Also featuring a local return opening for The Motherfuckers early on in the tour cycle, this was another hit run of shows, but do you concur with that?

Sky's The Limit fundraiser held at The Tech in May: Algoma Family Services hosted this well recieved concert event for mental health awareness at the former St. Mary's College last spring, which was headlined by The Pixo Control in their final concert, alongside acts like The Din and the non-White Pines debut of Electric Church. Were you there to vouch for this concert in this poll?

SNFU headline at The Rockstar Bar in September: Whenever a local stage sees the return of Mr. Chi Pig, you know that there will be many fans opening up wide to say "SNFU!", and that was the case in September, with diehards singing along with ease all set long! Also featuring opening sets by The Elements and the most recent live appearance of Jack Spades, does SNFU's return get your vote?

Stegadeth make their local concert debut: Also debuting at Live705's inaugural concert, Stegadeth surely pleased fans of T-Rex Manning, with 3/4ths of that band returning with their classic original song in tow, though with more of a Ramones and overall punk influence than before. They've been regaining their profile fairly steadily since the fall, but was Stegadeth's debut 2016's top story?

Tidal Records acts tour Ontario in April: The aforementioned Pixo Control, Gnaeus (with new drummer Alex Proulx), and Id Iota (with the newly released "Maudlin Fair") hit the road for a run of Ontario tour dates in April alongside rapper Conika and Tidal Records-affiliated skateboarders for their popular Skate By Day, Rock By Night tour. Would you vote for it over the other choices?

Winkstinger reunite after a three year hiatus: After playing just one public show since mid-2012, local extreme metal band Winkstinger returned after a lengthy break with a new lineup when they opened for The Motherfuckers at The Oddfellows Hall in April. New members Keith Gagnon & Andrew MacDonald fit in fine with Jesse & Jonas, even if they've been fairly quiet since last summer, but would you vote for them?

Other: Did we miss your preferred choice? Perhaps you'd rather vote for last year's K-Man & The 45s or Gorod concerts? Maybe you thought the debut of Project 906 or Electric Church warranted a vote more than the rest? Did a band's descent into inactivity rate higher, like with Gates of Winter or Caroline Divine? If, for whatever reason, the biggest story of 2016 isn't listed above, vote for "Other"!

VOTE TODAY!! You guys have until April 18th to cast your ballots, and it will be very interesting to see who or what wins out, so cast your votes A.S.A.P. in the red voting field on the left of the page! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates this week! Thanks everyone!

415E Concert Previews, Unsalted Audio Updates, And Much More!!

Let's round out this weekend's hard rock concert previews today, but also, we have some more recent updates to touch on, including some assorted recent updates from a few different sources, a new hype video for a big upcoming concert, and some news and notes regarding a fast-rising local recording studio. Now, here's what you should know!

Firstly, we'll close this weekend's announced hard rock concert previews with the return of Sault Michigan hard rock quartet 415E to The Northern Pines Lounge at the Kewadin Shores Casino in nearby St. Ignace TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Last seen during the Pop Evil concert weekend in the Soo last month, tonight's concert will of course give you a chance to partake in St. Patrick's Day potent potables tonight, so keep that and potential holiday promotions in mind if you're not planning to go elsewhere! As for tomorrow's show, 415E have hyped on their Facebook page that "a very special wedding anniversary" will be celebrated that night, so keep that angle in mind if you plan on coming Saturday (congratulations to the couple!) 415E aren't advertised to play anywhere next month, so if you can't wait until their May weekend in Sault Ste. Marie, prepare for 21+ age limits, no cover charge, and 9:00 PM start times tonight & tomorrow, as usual for their Kewadin gigs.

Check the above links for more details, don't miss 415E's hard rocking & Van Halen inspired covers tonight & tomorrow, and here they are live!



Next up, we can add Id Iota guitarist/Mike Mikus bassist Dustin Goodall's recording studio Unsalted Audio to our "Other Local Metal Links" section, as he's finally launched a website for the company! Ambitiously calling the studio "the future of music production in Northern Ontario", the website extensively lists the production equipment he uses for recordings, and outlines his goals and ambitions to provide artists (local or otherwise) with "world-class audio quality at affordable rates", while emphasizing that "mediocrity is the enemy" and aiming to establish emotional connections between artists and their intended audiences. So far, you'll have heard Dustin's production for Id Iota's debut EP, The Pixo Control's only CD, and Mike Mikus' debut single, while he also mixed and mastered AlgomA's half of their split with Chronobot, Inner City Surfers bassist Brad Example's 2015 solo single, and Jack Spades' third of their "Fed Up!" split CD.

In terms of upcoming projects, he has finished producing Mike's yet-released solo CD, while the website finally confirms that Id Iota are indeed recording their second CD currently and first full length album, and he's currently in pre-production for local death/thrash metal trio Pillory's second CD and a solo EP from Winkstinger frontman Keith Gagnon (though I have no idea what his solo music will sound like.) The website's a little wordy, but Dustin talks a big game and backs it up with his production quality so far, so be sure to contact him at goodalldustin@gmail.com or via the above links for quotes or information if you want to work with him on some studio music!

Also, here's a new YouTube video from this past Monday where Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali hypes up their show at The Machine Shop on Thursday, March 30th! This is a short video that does feel slightly rushed, but it's good promotion straight from Quiet Riot's longest serving member, and he's right, tickets are going fast, with half of available seats now sold out. Give it a look below, and click here to get your tickets A.S.A.P.!



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

• Rising Tide frontman and Tidal Records head Dustin Jones is featured in the cover photo of this week's issue of Sault This Week, where he's seen entertaining his son Jaycee through a puppet theatre at the Best Start Hub program at Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School last week. Cute photo, and it's nice to see Dustin back on a local stage of sorts, so look for the photo in the latest issue of the weekly free newspaper!
• Are local hard rock quartet Eclipse reuniting? Four months after their very messy breakup in early November, the band noted on their Facebook page that "we will be performing April 1st", while prior past tenses regarding their status have quietly been removed as well. I'm not going to jump to conclusions just yet, as this is April Fool's Day after all, but in case this is a legitimate reunion, stay tuned for updates!
• Local concert promoters Live705 have revealed on their Facebook page on Wednesday that their next concert will be an Easter holiday weekend event on Saturday, April 15th, breaking their pattern of one show every two months. A Facebook event page is forthcoming, alongside games and giveaways of some description, so be sure to stay tuned for details on those, not to mention the concert's venue, bands, and more!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for last month's poll results and our new poll tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Highway 63) & St. Patrick's Day Weekend Concert Previews!!

As is usually the case, the St. Patrick's Day weekend is yielding a solid batch of local concert action this year, so that's the entirety of this post, alongside a new video from one of the bands in question! Due to the amount, we'll touch on the 415E shows in St. Ignace in tomorrow's post, alongside potential late notice announcements, so don't worry, they're coming! Now, let's begin our weekend previews with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Sault Michigan classic/hard rock cover quartet Highway 63 will return to Dondee Lanes TOMORROW NIGHT for one apparent night only! Apologies for the short notice, the venue only confirmed the show via their Facebook page on Monday, and like with Highway 63's concert there last week, the band themselves haven't announced it publically. Rocking out at the local bowling alley for the third weekend out of four, the Dondee isn't indicating (yet?) if there will be any St. Patrick's Day accoutrements TOMORROW, but definitely have some green stuff ready just in case for if you head down to check out Highway 63's entertaining hard and classic rock hits! I wonder if their teased "travelling" will take them beyond the Dondee or the St. Ignace Kewadin in the near future? TOMORROW'S show has a 21+ age limit, no announced cover charge, and an 8:00 PM start time, rather than the 7:00 PM kick-off last week. Check the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's a new video of Highway 63 in action!

Shared to the band's Facebook page on Monday by attendee Sara Gordon, this comes from last week's Dondee show, and it features Highway 63 covering Poison's "Nothin' but a Good Time" alongside a special guest singer: Rock 101's own Scott Cook, under the very Hair Scare-esque guise of "Chet Michaels"! He apparently sang a second song (not filmed here) with Highway 63 that night also, and he held his own on vocals alongside Henry and crew, but the video can be fairly dark, and the camera is sometimes flipped sideways. Fun video with a neat yet unexpected guest spot, so give it a look below, and don't miss Highway 63 at the Dondee TOMORROW NIGHT!



Next up, we'll move to previously announced concerts with the return of local hard rock cover quartet Project 906 to Pickles Bar & Grill in Brimley TOMORROW NIGHT, as they honour St. Patrick's Day and the one year anniversary of their live concert debut! Project 906 (who no longer list blues as a performed genre on Facebook) have had a great debut year in the E.U.P. scene, easily outstripping the success levels of Joe & Will's prior bands like Ten Kings and The Bottom Line, and it's only fitting that they return to Brimley to celebrate their anniversary and partake in the usual drunken celebrations and food specials that St. Patrick's Day entails, so don't miss it if you're in the Sault Michigan or Brimley area! I wonder if this will become a yearly tradition for Project 906? No word though on who's playing at Pickles on Saturday, if anyone. Also, keep in mind the $50 contest for best green attire & pool tournament if you are so inclined.

As usual for Project 906's Pickles gigs, there is a 10:00 PM start time, no announced cover charge, and a 21+ age limit. For more details, visit the band's and venue's respective Facebook event pages (linked here & here), and here's Project 906 live in their debut gig last year!

Closing this preview post in Sault Ontario, we'll start with newer local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck (formerly Nameus), who will topline their own St. Patrick's Day party TOMORROW NIGHT at The Rockstar Bar! This online page-less side project of Mourning Wood gave this show unusually early notice, presumably due to the holiday themes, and you can expect drink specials, green-dyed beer, and even some tailgate action with hot dogs available, so if you're looking for a huge shindig in honor of St. Patrick's Day, this would be a good bet! Note that Soundcheck still haven't publically confirmed the identity of their new band member, but for what it's worth, Lucky 13 guitarist Robin "Bones" Lee (who has guested with Mourning Wood in the past) is a confirmed attendee on the Facebook event page. We'll let you know when the new addition is announced online, whether it's him or not!

And no, I have not heard who's playing at The Rockstar Bar on Saturday, if anyone. Tomorrow's Soundcheck concert has a 10:00 PM start time, no announced cover charge, and a 19+ age limit. Check the above links for more details, and hopefully Soundcheck finally post a video and/or online page at some point so we can better preview them!

Finally, we'll close with the usual weekly matinee concerts from longtime Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison, to be held as expected at Gliss Steak & Seafood TOMORROW & SATURDAY! Fans of his acoustic hard rock covers should be right at home this weekend, especially if you're familiar with his ongoing matinee arrangement at The Quality Inn's house restaurant, so don't bypass these for a more reserved and minimalist blend of hard rock favourites this weekend! Note that while Tym does acknowledge the holiday weekend on the Facebook event page, he doesn't indicate there if there will be any specific promotions, deals, or green coloured paraphernalia for the occasion. In any event, tomorrow & Saturday's shows are both 6:00 PM affairs with no announced cover or age limits, but remember where these are being held. See above for more details, and here's Tym live!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our 415E preview and more tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Return For Refund), More March Mash-Up Videos, And More!!

Before we tackle this weekend's concert previews, here's a new news post for you guys to check out, if you are so inclined! This post contains some new videos from a recent concert, and some assorted recent updates, but let's kick things off with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month!

Toronto hard rock quartet Return For Refund will make their local concert debut on Thursday, April 6th when they headline at The New American Pub! Harbouring a 1990s-feeling blend of genres like grunge and alternative, with even some bluesy touches, Return For Refund are touring in support of their new CD "Lift You Up", and they should prove to be a well-recieved and entertaining attraction at The New A in three weeks! Local support will come via newer local pop punk quartet A Dire Setback and former Pixo Control frontman Mike Mikus (in his solo debut at this venue), and while neither are a "hard rock" act, their talents speak for themselves, and they should prove a nice compliment on the 6th! Note that I'm unclear who's promoting this show, as Live705 nor Mike are claiming it, so it may have been through the venue. In any event, this is a 19+ show with a $5 cover charge and 9:00 PM start time. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for more on this intriguing concert!

Next up, here's a pair of new videos posted to the aforementioned Live705's Facebook page during this past Saturday's March Mash-Up at The Canadian Nightclub, showcasing two bands from that day's events. One is of local death/thrash metal trio Pillory, as uploaded during their set, albeit posted twice when promoters weren't sure if the first copy went through. This was one of the band's first songs during their set, though I'm not 100% certain of the title, partly as this is is just 41 seconds long and doesn't feature a part with vocals. Still, this is some quality side-stage devastation from Robert, Jordan, and Bret, so give it a look below!



Live705's other video is of new local alternative hard rock quartet Bizotic playing a song during soundcheck before the concert proper actually began, though given my still light knowledge of their songs by name, I can't title this one. Given that this is from soundcheck, Bizotic are lacking the spontaneity and atmosphere of their actual set (not to mention, their plasma clock), but they sound good here, and the trumpet is largely audible! Check it out below!

 

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

• Project 421 frontman Blair Burch is "looking for an outlet" where he can play guitar in a hard rock or metal setting, though he doesn't want to play in a band with death metal growling vocals, and he has lots of available time and a jam space. What this posting means for the future of Project 421 (who indicated that "we aren't going anywhere" on their Facebook page three weeks ago) isn't clear, but he's a talented guitarist, so message Blair at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Sunday if you're interested in jamming with him!
• I have deleted former Gore Street concert venue GLOW (a.k.a. The Other Place, Nite-Life Dance Club, etc.) from our inactive concert venue links due to the deletion of it's last known surviving Facebook group at some point in recent years. Also, it's old FreeWebs page has since been "frozen" itself too, and I doubt Mike would revive it at this point, so there goes the backup plan. The GLOW location always felt like a quality locale for concerts prior to it's ultimate closure in 2010, and hopefully it finds a new long-term purpose!
• It's official: Sunrise Records is taking over HMV's spot in Station Mall later this year! The Soo location was among the first 29 new branches announced for the Ancaster-based record store chain's takeover of at least 70 HMV stores, and this has since been confirmed via local news media. I hope Sunrise Records does well in the Soo, and can at least match the decade-long runs that Music World and HMV had in this location of the mall, so stay tuned for when they open hopefully later in the spring! For reference, HMV liquidation sales are now at least 40-60% off everything in store, and they must close by the end of next month.

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

March Mash-Up Concert Review!!

After a day's delay so we could get news about Gnaeus' breakup on the site while that shocking reveal was still fresh, here's our review of Saturday night's March Mash-Up concert at The Canadian Nightclub! The show's set-up was very similar to Live705's January Jam, but merchandise sales were definitely upped, with all bands except Electric Church and Pillory selling at least buttons (notably, The Din sold their first ever t-shirts prior to their set.) Despite weather warnings, the show had a solid turnout, especially for bands in the middle of the night, and I'm pleased to add that promoters kept the show rolling without any major scheduling delays!

Despite the event poster advertising Bizotic as the opening band, they switched places with Shane "DJ Seith" Erickson for unannounced reasons, placing the popular local turntablist as the first act of the night. After encouraging fans to rub their hands together and send the heat energy to the stage, he commenced with a set full of his usual vinyl record mixes that entertained early fans! I admittedly didn't recognize many of the songs he had spinning, but I did detect ZZ Top and Rob Base among the tracks, not to mention, DJ Seith even played a kazoo at one point. It is still hard in ways to compare Seith to full bands, but he's very good at what he does, has a nice way of amping up the crowd and getting them to interact with the set, and at least he's not playing pre-recorded songs on a laptop like some DJs do. Hopefully we hear much more from DJ Seith in the coming months!

Next on Saturday was new local alternative/hard rock quartet Bizotic in their Canadian debut, and the first time that I've had the chance to see them live, so what can I say? Well, they played a short 6 song set (visibly all original) with intriguing track names like "Psychic Vampire" and "Dirty Time Machine", and musically... well, having a keytar and trumpet in your repertoire helps you stand out on those merits alone! Compared to frontman Brad Griffith's prior band Infinity Grinder, Bizotic aren't as aggressive, but there's enough hard-edged creativity to go around, and at times, his vocals sounded a little like Chris Shoust from Telephone & Address. B.J. Swire handled the keytar well, and new drummer Travis St. Amour was reliably good as ever, even if I'm still more used to his work in death metal. However, trumpet player Louise Lamothe was often inaudible, especially on Bizotic's heavier tracks, and they should really turn her up or everyone else down to help correct that, as she lends a unique element!

For a first time seeing them, Bizotic had a nice free-form chemistry and energy, and I like the visualizations of that plasma clock (is there a better name for it?), so hopefully they continue fine-tuning things, as they're definitely a band to watch in 2017!

Third up was local death/thrash metal trio Pillory, who brutalized fans with a set full of newer death metal original songs, which definitely got a great crowd reception! Why else would Jack Spades frontman J.D. Pearce lead a chant of their name post-set? Their set included such songs as "Sculptor of Cadavers", "The Passing", and "Angst of Existence", as nicely realized with Robert Sartini's fast-improving harsh vocals, and a masquerade raven mask-clad Jordan Leach kept the rhythm steady on bass. However, the MVP of the set may be Bret Shuttleworth, whose forceful blast beats on the drums felt like I had a rapid heartbeat! If I was deaf, I'd have been concerned for my health! If there was an issue, it's that Robert really needs to work on his on-stage confidence regarding banter between songs, as he still comes across as too shy, especially between such ferocious songs. All in all though, Pillory were on fire, and don't miss them at month's end at The New A!

The next band was young local blues/hard rock trio Electric Church, the second of two bands I was seeing for the first time on Saturday, so what should you know on them? Well, if you missed their recent belated launch of their Facebook page, you may have been expecting them to stick to Jimi Hendrix and blues covers, but their set was actually all original, as far as I could tell, with songs like "Ain't Got None", "Take Me Away" (I believe), and an untitled instrumental jam among their setlist. The best crowd levels of the night to that point gathered to witness a very promising, talented, and well-dressed young band, and if you were only hearing the audio, you'd never guess that these guys were current White Pines students. Spencer Pine plays the guitar well beyond his years, Elijah Nielsen was a solid compliment on his unusually minimalist bass, and Beau "The Beast" Whitfield was aptly named on drums, and I like how deftly and effortlessly they meld blues & hard rock.

That all said, Electric Church need to be more lively and animated on stage, and it came across as slightly odd that Spencer introduced the band during their first song (albeit during the instrumental), but these guys are well on their way, and getting the blues from a younger original band will immediately set them apart as they move forward! The future definitely looks bright for them, so don't miss them when they play next!

Co-headlining was local alternative/hard rock trio The Din in their last announced show before opening for Quiet Riot, and they delivered another fun and well received set of originals and select covers, which their fans gave in to! Playing originals like "Alleyways & Apartments", "High Park", and their newest original "35's The Limit", The Din also broke out a few covers of frontman Mike Haggith's old solo tracks like "75" and an unannounced rendition of "Leon the Janitor" during their surprise extension of their set at night's end, which saw "Out Of My League" dropped, but other songs gained, like their cover of "Blow At High Dough". Aside from the absence of Mike's glasses, their set went about normal other than the extended set, with his singing and bass playing on point, and Tammy Hill was a standout on guitar as usual, while Mike and drummer Brandan Glew kept up their fun banter between songs. Solid set as usual from The Din, and good luck later this month!

And finally, the last band on Saturday was newer local alternative punk quartet A Dire Setback in what may have been their first ever headlining set, though it was preceded by frontman Larry Babic receiving a birthday card signed by many of the performers and attendees that night (happy belated birthday!) Their eight song set, not counting the intro, included such increasingly familiar originals as "Wasting Away", "Catastrophe", and "Kicking & Screaming", as well as the debut of a new song named "Everlasting Despair", and their cover of OneRepublic's "Counting Stars". Remaining fans definitely ate up their energetic set, with Chris Nielsen a spark plug on guitar as usual, and Larry delivering some solid and well suited vocals, even if his jacket implied that he was looking for a way out of here!  Everyone held up their own ends of the bargain, playing to the crowd and delivering a solid wallop of original punk rock, and I know they have lots more in the pipeline for 2017!

Overall, this was another entertaining concert from Live705, who have quickly established themselves among local concert promoters (and with good reason), and I know everyone found at least one band to enjoy on Saturday! You can check out our photos at this link and via our Facebook page, but I do apologize for the quality again, as between the reflective paint on the road signs on the stage and Shaw TV's cameras (yes, they were filming for OnStage again!), it was tough to get good photos without getting in everyone's road. I did get videos of each act too, but due to Facebook flagging the DJ Seith video for copyrighted material (as he was mixing other artists' music), I am hosting it muted with no audio there, until I can think of a different solution. Dailymotion also flagged it, and I wouldn't even bother trying YouTube. However, I'll list sampled songs in the title on Facebook if you're curious, especially if I can never think of an option that doesn't involve changing the pitch to an unnatural level.

Below, you can check out our videos, and they include DJ Seith's "Quick Mix" (primarily of Lyn Collins & Rob Base songs, apologies again for the audio issues), Bizotic playing "Record Light", Pillory playing "Abhorred Apprehension", Electric Church playing "Muddy Waters", The Din playing "35's The Limit", and A Dire Setback playing "Forget This Memory"!













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

The End Of Gnaeus, The Return Of Ashoka At The Show, And Much More!!

My original plan was to review last night's March Mash-Up today on the SMS, but in the wake of a major band dissolution that hit our newswire earlier today, I found it necessary to get that on the site A.S.A.P., and hold our review for tomorrow. This news also joins another likely inactive band note, a reunited band to also acknowledge, and yes, some videos from last night's concert, so here's what you need to know!

Local post-punk/garage rock quartet Gnaeus have surprisingly announced they they have disbanded, as per their Facebook page earlier today. Other than to say that "it's time we move onto different chapters in our lives", a reason for their breakup was not given publically, though they did thank fans for their support over their run, and admitted that they wished that this wasn't such an abrupt announcement. This is extra surprising, as Gnaeus were just storyboarding a music video, and bassist Matt Fronzi had indicated in private conversations that a 4 song EP (to be called "E La Vita") was in the works, so this definitely came out of left field. After launching publically in 2014, Gnaeus quickly became one of the most promising young bands in the Sault area, with the guys winning both of March 2015's local battles of the bands, as well as opening for the likes of The Sunparlour Players & The Archaics, touring Ontario with The Pixo Control, releasing their only CD "Meditations" last summer, and last playing live in Searchmont last month.

This is very disappointing news, especially given how quickly Gnaeus rose to prominence in the mid-2010s, which is all the more impressive when you consider that the guys weren't known commodities in bands prior to their formation. I hope there was no bad blood, as their talent and creativity speaks for itself, though it is a shame that the 2014-2015 core of young local indie/alternative bands (alongside bands like The Pixo Control, Stereo North, and Caroline Divine) is already fading out. Best of luck to Aaron, Matt, Brad, Alex, and Brendan in the future, they'll be assets wherever they play!

Next up, let's break up the inactive band notes with a band reunion, as we can move local/Elliot Lake punk project Ashoka At The Show (formerly Mayadevi) up to our active band links! In preparing for this weekend's intended Defunct Local Band Profile on Mayadevi, I quickly discovered that they offically renamed to Ashoka At The Show in 2008, and are officially considered a punk project like under their old name, with frontman Darren MacDonald turning his solo Facebook page into an A.A.T.S. page last month. Actually, Ashoka At The Show has been used by Darren for a few years prior starting in 2013, now as a solo project, rather than their older full-band incarnations (alongside OBCD and Undead Warriors alumni.) That year, Darren (now long-based in Elliot Lake) released a free "album" called "Eponymous", and plans to follow it up with albums called "Selfish Boy" and "Full Coverage" this year, while he also has two solo albums under his own name that can also be streamed online.

Darren has posted a number of Ashoka At The Show and solo performance videos, song recordings, Tony Sly covers, and even video game footage to his YouTube channel, and hile it'd be nice to see him launch a full band again, he is a talented singer and guitarist, and you do often get a sense that his acoustic guitar performances would be great fits as full punk songs! If only he was based out of the Soo again, he'd have no trouble finding a full band here. Give one of his newer songs "Flowers/Broken Fingers" a look below, and hopefully Ashoka At The Show keeps at it!

Also, we have another band to likely move to our inactive band links, they being local alternative hard rock duo Infinity Grinder. While they haven't posted a public update on their status, the band hasn't made any public updates since their most recent song upload on their their Soundcloud page one year ago this Wednesday, and they haven't played a live gig since August 2015 anyway. A union of ex-No Arrow/SBD bassist Brad Griffith and former Northern Tragedy/Good Morning Gorilla drummer Terrence Gomes, Infinity Grinder were the mystery debuting band at March 2015's Speak Easy Battle of the Bands, and followed that up with sets at the final Swampstravaganza and that summer's Ballot Burner show, but all further updates were posted material from studio and jam sessions. Though we haven't heard from Terrence musically since, Brad has been focusing on his new band Bizotic in recent months.

Infinity Grinder debuted on big stages with a lot of promise, and Brad & Terrence played off of each other well, helping bring back the aggressive duo sound that we saw in Brad's prior two man band Sounds From The Green Room (which he also fronted), and it's a shame that they didn't play more than they did! Hopefully the guys pick things back up in the future, but don't miss Bizotic at upcoming gigs!

Finally today, here's a teaser for our review of last night's March Mash-Up concert at The Canadian Nightclub, courtesy of headlining alt-punk quartet A Dire Setback's Facebook page! An uncredited attendee filmed A.D.S. playing at least 5 original songs from this show, including their originals "Wasting Away", "Faded", "Nightmares", "Kicking & Screaming", and as embedded below, their newest original "Everlasting Despair". All filmed from the floor in front of the stage (as opposed to their side-stage clips from the January Jam), the quality is solid for this lively newer band, but we'll elaborate further on their set in our full review coming next. Check everything out!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our March Mash-Up review next! Thanks everyone!