By Jason Wellwood, Witchfinder General

Last week marked the big PIPA and SOPA blackouts in the U.S. in opposition to bills being passed south of our border which would essentially censor the internet. The government is trying to sneak these bills in under the guise of helping to stop online piracy, but what they are really doing is trying to gain control over something that they shouldn’t be involved in, namely the internet. This starts with the guise of preventing piracy but continues into censoring the web altogether. I’ve noticed a …

Ambitious and progressive, razor-raw and unrelenting, the debut from Cape Town’s WILDERNESSKING is passionate and exciting, and I’d daresay an early frontrunner in my book for one of the best of the year.

Alas, I’m not sure that this record is all that different from Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light I, but I’m not quite feeling this one as much. I shall have to revisit the original, perhaps.

Ghost haunts the Mod Club tomorrow nite with Blood Ceremony and Ancient VVisdom. No need to sell your soul–advanced tickets are just 15 bucks!

Right from the beginning though it is obvious that Joe Thrasher not only want to make you bang your head, they want you to remember these songs for a long time.

Though it does not quite possess the potent and urgent vibe of Altar of Plagues’ Mammal, Social Disservices takes second place in my personal albums of the year. Hopefully it will receive even more recognition in 2012.

Fortunately, it seems that quite a few bands that used to play that Bloor Street dive have moved on to the 460 now. A much better location, if you ask me–College and Spadina, literally right next to the El Mocambo. Mind you, there’s really no comparison between the ElMo and this hole in the wall, for better or for worse.

When The Screams Come is a great visual document of the band that will be as entertaining to longtime fans of the band as it will be to newcomers. It’s not the flashiest, it’s certainly a warts-and-all type performance, but it captures a historically important band in their background getting the kind of adulation they deserve.