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Wacken Metal Battle Canada - National Final Joins Forces w/ Boonsdale Fest June 9th - Toronto @ Opera House

4/26/2018

From 2013 to 2016, Wacken Metal Battle Canada has crowned previous winners Hamilton's Profaner (2016), Oshawa's Vesperia (2015), Montreal's Mutank (2014) and Toronto's Crimson Shadows (2013) to play Wacken Open Air.
Full List of 2018 battles and participating bands in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City can be found here.

One Independent Canadian Band To Play At Wacken Open Air (Germany) World's Largest Metal Festival

It's coming down to the wire for this year's 2018 Wacken Metal Battle Canada national final, where one band will be crowned Canadian champion and represent the nation at the international metal battle at the world's largest metal festival Wacken Open Air in Germany. For this year's 5th national final, WMBC organizer JJ Tartaglia, whom also runs Boonsdale Records is bringing together two passions as one at the 2nd annual Boonsdale Fest.

Tartaglia comments:

"This is all part of the new strategy to minimize travel for the Metal Battle finalists and to have them play to a packed venue. I'm happy to say that Boonsdale Fest 2018 is looking very promising. The idea is to keep growing it year after year and eventually move it to an outdoor location. We want to fill the gap of an open air metal festival in Toronto and we want it to have some of that spirit of Wacken!"

This year's 2018 Boonsdale Fest will be held on June 9th at the Opera House in Toronto, ON and will feature bands Borealis, Operus, Mokomokai, Hammerdrone (WMBC Western finalist) and the soon to be announced WMBC Eastern finalist.

Event Details:
Boonsdale Fest 2018
Saturday, June 9th @ Opera House, Toronto

Featuring:
Borealis
Operus
Mokomokai
Hammerdrone (Metal Battle Western Finalist)
+ Metal Battle Eastern Finalist TBA
Event Link:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1635420189827650/

Remaining Battle Rounds:

Eastern Final
Date: Saturday, May 12
Venue: Piranha Bar (680 Saint-Catherine St W.)
Event Link: TBA
Bands:
Lutharö http://www.facebook.com/Lutharoband
Centuries of Decay http://www.centuriesofdecay.com

About:

Quebec Final
Date: Friday, April 27
Venue: Piranha Bar (680 Saint-Catherine St W.)
Event Link: https://www.facebook.com/events/236223013621597/
Bands:
Dumpster Mummy http://dumpstermummy.bandcamp.com
- MTL Round 1 WINNER
Sovereign Council http://sovereigncouncil.bandcamp.com
- Ottawa WINNER
Skullmace http://skullmace.bandcamp.com - MTL Round 2 Winner
Nordheim http://www.facebook.com/nordheimofficial
- Quebec City Winner

Wacken Metal Battle Canada is part of an international competition where over a hundred band's from across the country battle each other for one to be selected and join over 20 other countries for an international battle of the bands at the world's largest outdoor metal festival Wacken Open Air, which has been taking place in Wacken , Germany for the last 28 years.

Wacken Metal Battle 2014 Canada Finals by Ondeschocs.com: http://youtu.be/RrOGyBtqwaQ
For more info on Metal Battle Canada, please visit these links:
Official Website: http://www.metalbattle.ca
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MetalBattleCanada
Twitter: @MetalBattleCAN
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/WackenMetalBattleCAN
For more info on Wacken Open Air, please visit http://www.wacken.co

Sponsors:
Rehearsal Factory – http://rehearsalfactory.com
FACTOR – http://www.factor.ca/ (“We acknowledge the financial support of Canada’s Private Radio Broadcasters”)
Pearl Drums – http://pearldrum.com
Boonsdale Records – http://www.boonsdalerecords.com
TicketFly – http://www.ticketfly.com
Los Cabos Drumsticks – http://www.loscabosdrumsticks.com
Dungeonworks http://www.facebook.com/dungeonworksprods
The Invisible Orange – http://www.theinvisibleorange.com
Concertworks – http://www.concertworks.ca
Big Nate Productions – http://www.bignateproductions.com
Rose Management http://www.facebook.com/RoseManagement
Indie Week – http://canada.indieweek.com
Ibanez – http://www.ibanez.com
Band-Brand – http://www.band-brand.ca
Axe Music – http://axemusic.com
Sunrise Records - http://www.sunriserecords.com

Media Sponsors:
Absolute Underground
http://www.facebook.com/groups/10034445807
Asher Media Relations – http://www.ashermediarelations.com
Beatroute Magazine – http://www.beatroute.ca
Bravewords – http://www.bravewords.com
Broken Neck Radio – http://www.BrokenNeckRadio.com
Bucketlist Music Review
http://www.bucketlistmusicreviews.com
CJLO – http://www.cjlo.com
Hellbound – http://www.Hellbound.ca
Metal Master Kingdom –http://www.metalmasterkingdom.com
Metal Nation Radio – http://www.metalnationradio.com
Metal-Rules – http://www.metal-rules.com
Ondes Chocs – http://www.facebook.com/OndesChocs
Pure Grain Audio – http://www.puregrainaudio.com
Pure Rock Radio - http://www.purerockradio.net
Quebec-Metal- http://www.quebec-metal-archives.blogspot.ca
Zombitrol – http://zombitrol.com

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Wacken Metal Battle Canada - Western Final - Metal Master Kingdom Show Review

4/14/2018

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Blackened death metal overlords Apollyon delivered the darkest, most oppressive set of the night. Ripping through gut-churning numbers found on their EP, Immolation (2017), the group also presented new material from their upcoming release. Resisting the urge to headbang to their compelling riffs was an exercise in futility. While there is no question that the lads in Apollyon are gifted musicians, the British Columbians were plagued by a succession of gear-related difficulties throughout their set, ranging from instruments going out of tune, strings breaking, cords getting yanked out of jacks, and so on, all of which took a cumulative toll on the band’s performance. Two songs from the end, guitarist Braden Farr left the stage, having insufficient time to get his axe back into working order given the tightly scheduled event. I’d never seen a band struck by so much bad luck in so little time. Perhaps their blood sacrifices were found wanting by their infernal masters? Jesse Hett pulled double guitar duty for the rest of the set, and the remaining band members did an admirable job fighting on with grit and determination. Technical troubles notwithstanding, the audience was clearly impressed by Apollyon. There’s no doubt that many look forward to seeing them play in Calgary again, hopefully under more favourable circumstances.

Hometown boys Hammerdrone had the privilege of closing out the night. This was the third time I had seen them play live over the past three months, and no lie, these adepts of melodic death metal never fail to awe. Their unofficial motto: “No clean singing, no symphonics.” Hammerdrone kicked off their set with “Karakoram” from Dark Harvest (2017), which always takes me to that remote corner of the world I had once yearned to explore, where Pakistan, India, and China meet. Lead vocalist Graham Harris stormed the stage like a man possessed, and made me feel so much smaller than my already diminutive 5’7 stature whenever my gaze happened to lock with his. I was sure that his stare would shatter my camera lens. Rick Cardellini deftly guided the audience to the heights of epic soundscapes with his soaring leads, while rhythm guitarist Curtis Beardy, bassist Teran Wyer, and drummer Vinnie Cardellini provided the bedrock for Hammerdrone’s atmospheric compositions. Playing an incredibly tight set throughout, the lads concluded the show with the title track off their debut EP, A Demon Rising (2012), and left the audience on a high.

Written by: Xavier Cattarinich
Photography: Xavier Cattarinich (Ravenkin Photography)
for www.metalmasterkingdom.com

@ Dickens Pub
Calgary, AB, Canada
April 6, 2018

Western Final band line-up:
Protosequence (Edmonton, AB)
Apollyon (Kelowna, BC)
Wasted Heretics (Saskatoon, SK)
Hammerdrone* (Calgary, AB)

* winner

Guest Judges:
Joshua Wood - Managing Editor/Writer at Metal-Rules.com, DJ and programmer on Megawatt Mayhem at CJSW 90.9FM
Wally Laurier - DJ and programmer on Rock Bottom at
CJSW 90.9FM
Laura Vezer - DJ and programmer on Rock Bottom at
CJSW 90.9FM
Chad Persley - Business Development Executive at
Absolute Underground Magazine
Geoff Bourie - Head Promoter at Loud as Hell Festival
Jesse Valstar - Co-Founder at Armstrong MetalFest

Having defeated several of their brethren in fierce, juried competitions, four bands that had achieved the status of newly minted metal gods in their respective regions now vied for the Western Canadian metal crown. Hundreds of miles three of them drove through an April snowstorm to converge on Calgary for the Wacken Metal Battle Canada 2018 Western Final. The victors would then be one step away from representing the nation at the world’s most prestigious metal festival, Germany’s Wacken Open Air, in August.

The contenders? Protosequence, from Edmonton (AB); Apollyon, from Kelowna (BC); Wasted Heretics, from Saskatoon (SK); and Hammerdrone, from Calgary (AB). Nary a note of clean singing would be heard all night between these four bands, which roared their collective message loud and clear to their eastern adversaries: western Canada’s chosen are deadly, and unapologetic in their brutality. Prepare to die.

The order in which the groups would play determined at random, Protosequence were first to sunder the blast doors with technical deathcore drawn from their first two EPs, Schizophrene (2016) and Biophagous (2017). Dynamic song structures, djent riffs, melodic shredding, grinding machine gun drums, heavy grooves, and exquisitely subtle instrumental passages, Protosequence had it all. Their virtuoso performance and boundless energy set a high bar for the acts that would follow.

Saskatoon’s Wasted Heretics followed with their own brand of blackened death influenced by the likes of Cattle Decapitation, Suffocation, and Archspire, among others. Vocalist Michael Pichula grunted, gurgled and shrieked his way through the set. His features were constantly veiled, both by a mop of hair and the microphone he held vertically and upside down before his face. For much of the show, Pichula looked as though he intended to swallow the mic whole. Skin pounder Carly Brown blew the audience away as she brought down the thunder, and hair-whipping bassist Nolan Ochitwa gave Protosequence’s Kyle Hunter a run for the title of happiest ray of sunshine at a death fest. The guy was clearly having the time of his life.

The show over, Dickens Pub remained abuzz with people speculating as to who would stand victorious after such hard-hitting performances from all contenders. Subsequent to careful deliberations that lasted nearly a half hour, guest judges Jesse Valstar and Geoff Bourie—co-founder of B.C.’s Armstrong Metal Festival and head promoter of Alberta’s Louder Than Hell festival, respectively—delivered the jury’s verdict. To the delight of their local supporters, Hammerdrone were hailed Wacken Metal Battle Canada 2018 western champions, and now had the honour of bearing the regional standard to the national final, which will be held in Toronto in June.

Throughout the WMBC 2018 events held in Calgary, a spirit of camaraderie between bands has been evident, and this night was no exception. Above all, the performers were all stoked to be on stage playing metal and sharing their passion with an appreciative audience. Given the caliber of the acts that spectators had the privilege of seeing, it’s clear that the scene across western Canada is healthy and strong, and that we can expect many great things—if not legendary figures—to emerge from it in the coming months and years.

A tip of the hat to Hammerdrone, Wasted Heretics, Apollyon, Protosequence, and all the other bands that dared step in the ring this year; to all the guest judges for giving so generously of their time; to Dickens Pub (and Distortion) for hosting the event; to Nancy Barnes and Nate Reno at Big Nate Productions, for making it all happen, and for making everything run like clockwork; to Casey Rogers and the others who also helped with sound and technical stuff; and last but certainly not least, to those who came out to support the bands, especially when the neverending winter weather might have made them want to stay home.

Will Hammerdrone end western Canada’s drought at the Wacken Metal Battle Canada national finals? Sadly, we’ll have to wait until June 9 to find out. While I, for one, am disappointed that I won’t be able to witness that grand showdown in person, you’ll go with the goodwill of a united western Canadian metal community, Hammerdrone. We know that you’ll make us proud.

Protosequence
Joseph McKee - Vocals
Kyle Hunter - Guitar
Dylan Parker - Guitar/
Backing Vox
Jacob Teeple - Bass
Logan Vars - Drums

Apollyon
Matt Depper - Vocals
Braden Farr - Guitar
Jesse Hett - Guitar/Vocals
Nic Depper -Drums
Milan Bertucci - Bass/Vocals

Wasted Heretics
Michael Picula - Vocals
Skylar Tizzard - Guitar
Reid Paraszczynek - Guitar
Carly Brown - Drums
Nolan Ochtiwa - Bass

Hammerdrone
Curtis Beardy (Guitar/Vox), Rick Cardellini (Lead Guitar), Vinnie Cardellini (Drums), Graham Harris (Vox),
Teran Wyer (Bass).

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Wacken Metal Battle Canada - Southern Ontario Final - Metal Master Kingdom Show Review

4/3/2018

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Up next were hometown favourites Astaroth Incarnate. By this time, the amount of people in the venue doubled as a huge crowd of their dedicated followers gathered at the front to witness their performance. It was my third time seeing the band. They were the most theatrical band of the night with frontman Sam Astaroth being the center of the attention with his sinister Darth Maul style makeup and red and black leather outfit. The first time I saw the band in the 2016 battle, the energy was there, but one of the criticisms I had about their performance at that time, was the inconsistency in the lead guitar performance. The execution of notes was a little sloppy, but they managed to fix that and their performance was a lot more solid and tighter during the two times I saw them in this year's battle. Great job, dudes!

The fourth and final competitors were hometown favourites Centuries Of Decay, and for me personally, my favourite band of the night, with all respect to the other bands. For anyone that has seen my previous reviews of their performances, you already know that they always manage to impress. Their set was the same as last time, so there wasn't anything different added. Like last time, they saved their 13-minute epic song for last. They were well rehearsed and the musicianship was top notch, and that's one of the key elements that always attracts me to a band when seeing them play live, no matter whether it's my first time or hundredth time seeing them live. The energy is secondary for me, but you don't want them standing their stoically, so energy is an element just as important due to the fact that it generates excitement for everyone in the band and the crowd. While there was headbanging and the energy certainly was exuding on stage during their set, Centuries Of Decay seemed more focused on the musicianship, and that's excellent. Some bands can learn from Centuries Of Decay.

Written by Alex Stojanovic
Photographed by Navneet Johal

@ Hard Luck Bar
Toronto, ON Canada
March 24, 2018

Battling bands:
Wind Cries Mary (London)
Astaroth Incarnate (Toronto)
Lutharö *(Hamilton)
Centuries of Decay *(Toronto)
with
Old James (Guest Headliner)

Guest judges:
Daniel DeKay (Banger)
Dean Arnold (Vital Remains Official)
Mishelle Pack (Sony/ATV Music Publishing)
Max Morin (Bucketlist Music Reviews)

Wacken Metal Battle Canada 2018 continues as the qualifying rounds are now over, and we are now into the semi-final rounds. The Southern Ontario finals took places on Saturday, March 24th at the Hard Luck Bar where the four bands chosen in the qualifying rounds competed for the chance to move on to the eastern Canada finals taking place in May in Montreal. A large crowd of devoted headbangers packed the Hard Luck to witness the battle and cheer the bands on. It's been a long two years since I was last at the Hard Luck, and from what I've noticed, it seems that the venue made upgrades to their P.A. system with better speakers, which made the performances that much better. I've always been a fan of great sound.

Wind Cries Mary from London were faced with the difficult task of opening up the night. When I first saw them during round 2 of this year's battle, they brought an abundance of energy to the stage, both in terms of their stage presence and their music, and nothing changed for their performance at the Ontario finals. There was a big empty space at the front of the stage in the crowd, and frontman Keiryn Jacobs seemed a little annoyed by it at the start. It's always a weird thing to see when a frontman asks a crowd to move and there's no response, but they did manage to get a couple of their followers to come to the front and headbang to their songs.

Up next were Hamilton metallers Lutharo. I found their sound a little interesting. While the music was pretty straightforward metal with twin guitar harmonies and aggressive riffs and grooves, I found the mixture of the aggressive screams and powerful Bruce Dickinson-esque melodic vocals and high notes from frontwoman Krista Shipperbottom quite interesting. Playing drums with them was Cory Hofing from Crimson Shadows, which was a pretty cool thing to see. One thing I noticed was that bassist Rusian Lypovsky ended up snapping a string on his bass, but he made the best of it with the strings he had left. Their tight performance and great musicianship really made them stand out. Each member also displayed great stage presence, and this all proved why they were more than worthy contenders of advancing to the Eastern finals.

Closing off the night were guest headliners Old James, a Toronto power trio whose sound is in the vein of 70s classic rock, bringing a different element after four awesome metal acts. Being that they were guest headliners, their set was longer than the competitors, clocking in at around 45 minutes. One of the standout moments of their set was that they treated us to a cover of Thin Lizzy's "Cold Sweat". One of my criticisms about their set however, was that frontman and bassist Brian Stephenson liked to joke about dicks a lot. Sorry Brian, but jokes like that get old real fast. It's okay and funny once, but multiple times will get the crickets chirping. I'm just being honest like I always am, but I mean that in the nicest possible way. Aside from this flaw, their musicianship and energy was exceptional. Brian and his brother, drummer and backing vocalist Chris Stephenson, sounded really great together when they would harmonize on vocals. The other cool thing about their set was that they announced that guitarist Andy Thompson recently got married, so congratulations to Andy and his new wife for tying the knot.

As we arrived at the end of the night, it was time to select the two bands that would play at the eastern Canada finals. The two bands chosen were Centuries Of Decay and Lutharo. Congratulations to the two bands! Good luck and have fun in Montreal in May!

WIND CRIES MARY

Keiryn Jacobs - Vocals
Malcolm Lamont - Guitars
Michael Arounlasy - Guitars
Randy Mead - Bass
Devin Nickles - Drums

Label: Unsigned
Website: www.windcriesmary.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/Windcriesmary

ASTAROTH INCARNATE

Sam Astaroth - Vocals
Pablo Sagastume - Guitars
Ric Galvez - Guitars
Sergio Moyano - Bass
Emile Giordan - Drums

Label: CDN Records
Website: www.astarothincarnate.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/AstarothIncarnate

LUTHARO *

Krista Shipperbottom - Vocals
Victor Bucur - Lead guitars & backing vocals
John Raposo - Guitars
Rusian Lypovsky - Bass
Cory Hofing - Drums

Label: Unsigned
Website: www.facebook.com/Lutharoband

CENTURIES OF DECAY *

Devin Doucette - Lead vocals & guitars
Rob McAllister - Guitars & vocals
Derrick Doucette - Drums
Matt Hems - Bass

Label: Unsigned
Website: www.centuriesofdecay.com
www.facebook.com/CenturiesOfDecay

OLD JAMES (GUEST HEADLINER)

Brian Stephenson - Lead vocals & bass
Andy Thompson - Guitars
Chris Stephenson - Drums &backing vocals

Label: Unsigned
Website: www.oldjames.ca
www.facebook.com/OldJamesband

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WACKEN METAL BATTLE CANADA 2019 / 2018 / 2016

Wacken Metal Battle Canada - National Final Joins Forces w/ Boonsdale Fest June 9th - Toronto @ Opera House

Wacken Metal Battle Canada - Western Final - Metal Master Kingdom Show Review

Wacken Metal Battle Canada - Southern Ontario Final - Metal Master Kingdom Show Review

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WACKEN METAL BATTLE CANADA 2019 / 2018 / 2016

Wacken Metal Battle Canada - National Final Joins Forces w/ Boonsdale Fest June 9th - Toronto @ Opera House

Wacken Metal Battle Canada - Western Final - Metal Master Kingdom Show Review

Wacken Metal Battle Canada - Southern Ontario Final - Metal Master Kingdom Show Review

Author

Archives

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click here for News & more

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INTERVIEWS

REVIEWS