Kingston Rocks!

Kingston Rocks!

Kingston is not a huge city like Toronto or New York, but it has a reputation for producing iconic music artists. Internationally acclaimed acts such as The Tragically Hip, and Bryan Adams originated here in the Limestone City.

That reputation is fortunately being continued through the tutelage of greats such as Paul Langlois, as well as a crop of newer bands playing the cities local venues.

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The Glorious Sons have been getting some excellent press due to their newest album, The Union. It has even been nominated for a Juno for the best Rock album of the year for 2015. 

Just off of the strength of their singles "Heavy," "White Noise," and "Mama" you can hear how they were chosen for the honor of being nominated. Their good old Rock and Roll sound is becoming more and more popular.

CBC says of them "They are the everyman band, with a passion for portraying the lost romance of liquor, women and rock and roll." 

So if you want to hear some great Rock and Roll with a blue collar working class feel than pick up The Glorious Sons The Union.  

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In 2006 Paul Saulnier and Benjamin Nelson decided to take their love of Indie Rock and go on the road as PS I Love You. At that point Kingston gained a great edition to it's Rock and Roll legacy. Still keeping the dream alive these rockers are touring with the reunited Death From Above 1979.

Their third album For Those Who Stay was recorded at the famous Bathouse Studio, The Tragically Hip's very own studio.  This marks the band's first time in a "proper studio."

If you are in Kingston on the 4th of Feb than go on down to the Ale House and check out how good live "Heavy Pop" can be.

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The Kingston singer/songwriter Greg Ball has  given us a some small breadcrumbs from his anticipated new release Alter Ego in two videos. The tracks "Hatchet" and "Not Cool" from the videos sound great. Paul Langlois must be proud of his protege because Greg seems to be getting better and better with each release.

I am sure that I am not the only one who is anxious to get their hands on Greg's new CD. 

If you find yourself in Kingston on this Thursday night (29 Jan) - Um that's tomorrow I think. Find your way down to Dianne's downtown on Ontario Street at 10 pm, so you can enjoy some good music by Greg Ball. 

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Can I really not mention The Tragically Hip when writing about great Rock and Roll originating out of Kingston, especially since they are touring right now for their remastered release of the Canadian classic Fully Completely?

 They are unrivaled when it comes to live shows. A true fan favorite, this Kingston Ontario band never fails to put on an exciting and many times surprising hit filled show. 

Together these musicians have created some of the best authentically Canadian Rock tunes ever played.

Apart these men have proven to have a real drive for guiding beginning Canadian musicians. I have had the pleasure of meeting with Gord Sinclair, bassist for The Hip, due to his willingness to aid Canadian Forces members that dabble in music.  

Paul Langlois is a regular face on stage for local community benefits and has become a big proponent for Greg Ball.

I think I will end this with a video for an amazing live song from The Hip, "New Orleans Is Sinking Killer Whale Tank."

Thank You for reading and all you people from Kingston Ontario Canada keep the Rock and Roll coming!

Kevin Sweeney

Keeping That Old Time Blues Alive

Keeping That Old Time Blues Alive

It is always important to remember and give credit to the styles of music that have paved the way for these modern styles of Rock and Roll we enjoy today. That is why great Metal groups such as Megadeth, Motörhead, and Metallica have covered songs that have influenced them in their music careers. It is also why I love to hear bands that play straight forward blues and other southern styles of music. 

This all brings me to Sheesham and Lotus, because they are not only doing what they can to keep an older style of music alive but they are also breathing new life into it. Their repository of songs dips back into the 1920's. In fact several of the old blues and hillbilly tunes are extremely hard to find written music for, still somehow they not only find them but play them with all the honesty and feeling that they were penned to deliver.

Groups like this are gems that unfortunately get buried many times in the crap and dirt that we call the music industry. All it takes is for you to hear these guys once and you can attest to the fact that they shine bright. 

My twelve year old daughter was the one who told me of this great band. Her class was fortunate enough to recieve a visit from Teilhard Frost. Teilhard and Sam Allison, Sheesham and Lotus, have a long tradition of inspiring and helping youth develop a love of music. They have even been given the Jack Hayes award for keeping traditional music and dance alive.

After Teilhard played for and instructed her class my daughter and him struck up a conversation. From that meeting my daughter informed me that there was a band from Wolfe Island that I had to check out, and passed me Teilhard's business card. It turned out to be a small piece of card stock that said "Old Time Rag Time Mountain High Steppin Music. 

 From the moment I found myself on their site I knew I was going to like this group. Sure enough, the more I read about and listened to Sheesham and Lotus the more I fell in love with their quirky and down home style. 

From the reviews of their albums and shows I am not the only one who finds their old time rag time mountain high steppin music infectious. Hopefully you will too. 

Thanks for reading, and keep that Good Old Time Blues A Rollin'.

Kevin Sweeney

Great Music on Twitter

Great Music on Twitter

I fortunately have been able to listen to quite a few bands that I have never heard of before thanks to their advertising on twitter. This is a small list of several of the great acts that I have been able to enjoy recently thanks to the little blue bird. These are all groups that have messaged me about checking out their music.

Remanon is an exceptional progressive band, that combine intelligent lyrics with complex music styling. They have an excellent sounding frontman and a wonderfully free floating style that combines elements of jazz, rock, and metal. It is something that is refreshing and definitely worthwhile hearing.

If you follow the link that I provided to their ReverbNation site you can download a free mp3 of the track "Justice Paige," which is a great tune.

If you prefer your music Metalcore than you should check out Dissident By Birth. This Italian band loves to Thrash and it can be heard and felt at full volume. They charge out the gate combining growling vocals, catchy heavy riffs, and a great groove.

You can download music by this beautiful metal monstrosity from their ReverbNation page. I encourage you to do just that, crank it up and Rock Out!

   If you are more into some good old hard rockin' blues than you have to check out The Harpoonist and The Axe Murderer. A Vancouver outfit that is known for their raw and thrilling live shows. Praise for this group has gone as high as stating that they play blues like it needs to be heard. 

I have not even mentioned their cool retro styled posters. Just goes to show you what kind of amazing talent you can find if you keep your ears and eyes open.

Never mind the song Royals, if you need some beautifully smooth rock and roll you need to hear the band Royale. They have even coined a new phrase for their sweet combination of prog, modern indie, and big sound; they call it Yacht Metal.  

If this is Yacht Metal then give me the captain's cap, my glass of whiskey, and let me sail away into Royale's amazing sonic ocean!  This is one band you will not want to miss.

You can find these Chicago boys and their music on their web page, which I have linked above.  Go there and give them a listen.

Kaveat is a melodic metal band out of Los Angeles California.  They are a great addition to the present upsurge in female fronted Metal bands.  They mix the guttural hardcore metal screams with lovely haunting vocals.

If you check out their website you can listen to a couple tracks and download the single "Bloodline."  It is a really good track and gives you a good idea what the band is about.

It will be quite interesting what Kaveat delivers this year.        

As someone who holds an industrial slant to their love of metal I can't help but love the Long Island band Bile. They are loud, raw, and uncompromisingly heavy.  

After I heard about Bile from @kaveatofficial I was surprised I had not heard about this great Industrial Metal powerhouse.  Their song, "I Reject" even appeared on the Mortal Kombat soundtrack. 

On 8 January they began recording a new album, and they are looking at booking a tour; both are more than worth looking into.   

Well, that is it for now.  I will continue to search the dark alleyways of Twitter for more good music and great bands. So if you think you have heard something I haven't or you think your band is the next best thing contact me or leave a comment. Until then...

Thanks for reading and keep on Rocking.

Kevin Sweeney

Better Than Metallica?

Better Than Metallica?

St. Anger 2015

A couple of Metallica fans have re-recorded the infamous album St. Anger.  St. Anger was not a favorite of many of the hardcore fans of the American Thrash band. There were complaints about it sounding garage band-ish and that it was too long.  Not to mention that the album had no signature Kirk Hammett guitar solos.

This new imagining of the album was recorded with better production by Daryl Gardner and Chris Dando of the band Grace the Skies and Dave Cox of Adust.  They have been getting a lot of praise, some going as far as to say that they made the album better than the original.  

If you would like to check it out follow the attached link or check it out on youtube. 

Grace The Skies

In listening to St. Anger 2015 it peeked my intrest into finding out what bands were these guys from so, here is the first: Grace the Skies. 

These metalheads hail from Birmingham UK. Jazz, post-hardcore, and pop are listed as their influences.  I have always enjoyed groups that mix more technical styles of music like Jazz into their mix.  Grace the Skies manage to do this flawlessly while still delivering that Metal crunch that we fans demand.

If you like bands like the phenomenal Breaking Benjamin then you will absolutely love Grace the Skies.  Check them out on Facebook or you can listen to them on their website.

Adust

Just in case Grace the Skies is not heavy enough for you, there is Adust.  Also out of Birmingham, these boys are all out machine gun riffs and full the fuck forward.  

Their first mini album Through Anothers Eyes has garnered them a lot of praise and has spread their fan base across the UK.  You can hear it on their Facebook page.  In my humble opinion they sound pretty damn good! 

I have attached a video from their second release titled Question the Illogical below, so if this small review has got you intrigued give it a look. 

In summation I am quite pleased that I checked out Metal Insider's newsletter because it has led me to not only a great new album to listen to, but also two new bands to follow.  Metal Insider thanks for the great article and to all you who have taken the time to read this...

Thanks for reading and Rock On.

Kevin Sweeney

Some Great News

Some Great News And Great Tunes

Picture from Gigantour 2012, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

The Thrash Originators Megadeth have gone through a lot as of late.  With the loss of two members: drummer, Shawn Drover; and guitarist, Chris Broderick.  Not to mention the personal loss that founding member Dave Mustaine has had to deal with.

Out of those traumas it looks like something great is developing, at least according to Mustaine.  Just last month he tweeted, "I wish @Megadeth fans could know what is going on right now…you would be very happy!" 

Hopefully it means that we are going to get a new album.

If your taste in metal is anything like mine you have been lamenting the hiatus of Disturbed, and keep a watchful eye for news of their return. On Dec 30th David Draiman tweeted that they will reunite but unfortunately gave no date.

In the meantime Draiman has an album out with the band Device, and Disturbed guitarist Dan Donegan has a new project out called Fight or Flight. If you are interested in hearing what either sound like you can check out their sites.  Both have videos and tracks that may sedate you enough until they join each other on stage with the Disturbed banner flying high again.

Thanks to Loudwire for the info!

Device - "Vilify"

Fight or Flight - "First Of The Last"

Being a child of the seventies I have always had an affinity for Psychedelic Rock, everything from Pink Floyd to Iron Butterfly.  Hence when I found out about The Budos Band I was ecstatic to find a modern group that reveled in the pure essence of that genre.

This New York band is releasing beautiful magical mixes that transport the listener into a supernatural and heady world that needs to be felt as well as heard.  From the haunting organ to the majestic horns their sound envelops you in a fuzz filled bass laden ecstasy that can only be summoned by good Psychedelic Rock or good drugs (or the combination of the two.)

The Budos Band is a trip that is definitely worth taking.

Diffuser FM thanks for highlighting such a great band!  

Budos Band - "Burnt Offering"

Thanks for reading and Rock On!

Kevin Sweeney

What To Look Forward To In 2015

What To Look Forward To In 2015

Here are a list of the performers that I am looking forward to seeing and hearing more from in 2015.

 Return For Refund who had just released their first EP last year is set to play in Kingston this February. I really enjoyed the video of their Horseshoe Tavern gig and the EP so I am looking forward to the show at the Clark Hall Pub. 

If you are in the Toronto Area you can catch them live at the Bovine Sex Club and other establishments around the greater metro area. Their EP is available on iTunes for a great price. They are definitely worth watching in this year.

Another great act that will be returning to K-Town is Will Black. I really have nothing but great things to say about Will. He puts on a lively and fan centered entertaining show.

He has two releases available on his web site as well as iTunes. Personally I keep my autographed copy of his Dangerously Close CD tucked away and listen to my digital copy; I am listening to it right now as I type this.

I am really looking forward to see his audience increasing with him spending all of 2015 touring.

Greg Ball is an artist that I have been wanting to see live for a while now.  I know I have no good reason for not seeing him due to us both living and working in the same city. This year I have decided I will end this Greg Ball drought in my life.

His new album that he recorded at the famous Bathouse Studio, owned by the Tragically Hip, is due out soon. I am looking forward to buying it and hearing what he has cooked up. His last release was quite good and Greg has said this one has more BALLS.

Hopefully he is going to tour with this new album. Maybe he will join Paul Langlois and canvas the Canadian countryside again like they did for Paul's Not Guilty album.  

Alek Darson is definitely one artist to follow this year. If you enjoy prog or just amazing guitar work then you should make sure to check out the videos he posts on youtube.

Last year he combined his talents with those of prominent Emerson Grads to create an excellent music video of his piece "Sprockets." There is talk about a second album from this future guitar god, and I am very interested in hearing what he creates next.

You can catch him live if you are in the Boston area. I may just have to see if I can make up some reason to visit beantown and see him live myself this year; if for no other reason than to be able to say that I saw him before he became super famous.

For those of you who want Thrash, you have to follow the South American modern day Metal Heads KRAPTOR. Felipe, Angel, Edward, and Jessy are rocking the hell out of the whole southern hemisphere. All classically trained musicians these guys are all about their mantra "Metal is music and music is art."

Kraptor's fan base on twitter is immense and rabid. In order to keep the masses of hungry metal fans appeased they regularly keep in touch with fans. I am hoping for a new CD from these thrashers to add to their other two releases. In the meantime I will have to stay content with great KRAPTOR hits like "Keep It Thrashing Or Die!"  





OK, now that I have given you my list of the five music acts to watch this year, I'm asking you to tell me who you think I should follow this year. Leave the names of the artists in the comments and I will look into them, and may just highlight them in a blog in the future. I am always looking for new rock or metal acts to spread the news about, so if you think they are worth advertising then let me know.


Thanks for reading, and Rock On!

Kevin Sweeney