Beat the heat (to a pulp)

>> Punk, metal and all things super-heavy for the summer

by JOHNSON CUMMINS

Foufounes Électriques once again offers one of the biggest terrasses in town to cool off on, but don't get caught lounging when Southern-fried truckstop rockers Raging Slab roll in on June 11. On June 18, Foufs has Speedealer and Like Hell (from Minneapolis) and on July 7, the extreme metal of Vader. On August 1st, Montreal favourite Reverend Horton Heat bring his Texan-style psychobilly freakout back to Foufs. A date has not been announced yet, but sometime in early August, Foufs will play host to old-school black metal lords Morbid Angel--be very afraid, you heathens.

Not to be missed in the terrasse department is the newly renovated Jailhouse Rock. Owners Dom and Dave Castelli have fixed up the terrasse overlooking beautiful Mont-Royal Blvd., and have plenty of drunken barbecues already planned. With its freshly upgraded sound system, some of the bands Jailhouse have in their sights are NYC's gutter rockers Lower East Side Stitches and Toronto's sleazy Plasma Blast on June 14, and on June 23, Uncle Costa's surly Vulgar Deli.

Okay now, mark this one down on your calendars. Mike Tramp of White Lion (yeah, that's right, White Lion!) will stop in at Jailhouse (yeah, that's right, Jailhouse!) on June 25 to croon through his songbook of power ballads. Toronto's latest sensation C.J. Sleeze caused quite a stir when she was here with the Forgotten Rebels, so be sure to check out this strip-rocker on June 29. Ex-Eric's-Trip psychedelicists Elevator Through play July 2 while soul-punk gods the Delta 72 rock the joint silly on July 6.

Estrus Records' punk-blues duo Lee County Killers play on July 13 and Robin Black's ego will illuminate the Jailhouse when his Intergalactic Rock Stars come to town on July 14. Just over a year old, the Lipstick parties are bigger than ever and will once again serve all of your glam needs on July 21. One of the most anticipated shows of the year is when punk legends the Dictators roll into town on July 28 for a first-time performance in Montreal. Woo hoo!

Café Campus has been booking more and more rock these days and continues with a great summer lineup. On June 18, see MusiquePlus video stars Caféïne laying down their Gun Club rock and on July 5, don't fail to check out the almighty Detroit Cobras making their first appearance in Montreal. July 6 has ex-Didjits and Supersuckers guitarist Rick Sims' new band the Gaza Strippers playing downstairs at Petit Campus.

L'X has one of the most progressive metal bands happening right now on July 4 when Cephalic Carnage hit town. Don't miss this. Nearby, the Punkorama tour is at Metropolis on June 23, headlined this year by Guttermouth and including U.S. Bombs, Union 13 and Deviates. The big daddy of all punk fests happens again this year when the Vans Warped Tour makes a stop at Île St-Hélène on Aug. 10. The confirmed lineup includes AFI, Rancid, Less Than Jake, Pennywise, H2O, Bouncing Souls and many, many more, with a host of skaters, extreme sports and so on. Rumour has it that a punk-rock karaoke will go down that night at Jailhouse, with members of all of the above mentioned bands taking stabs at classics by Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Dead Kennedys and more.

Scary guy Marilyn Manson lets us know that his 15 minutes are almost up when he plays the relatively intimate Metropolis on July 23. Can you say Vanilla Ice? Could a tour backing up White Lion's Mike Tramp be far behind?

If you want a good excuse to get out of town this summer, why not pack up the car and head down the 401 to see Slayer and Pantera at Copps Auditorium in Hamilton on June 25. Of course, if you're like me, you will probably just stay in town and count down the days to one of the best shows ever to hit this one-horse town--Spinal Tap! That's right, the Tap are turning it up to 11, as part of the Just for Laughs festival, on July 18 at Théâtre St-Denis. Pinch me! Fucking pinch me!