Triumph/April Wine Concert Video Showcase (Part 3!!)

I am expecting an influx of Three Days Grace concert videos to be hitting YouTube very soon (the first of them have already started going live), so let's keep our busy end-of-month stretch going by covering more of last week's Triumph/April Wine concert! Unless someone uploads new public videos from this past Wednesday of both bands, this will be our last showcase of videos from attendees who filmed both bands, though there are more who only filmed Triumph that we'll talk about hopefully this weekend. The bulk of the public YouTube videos were addressed on the SMS already, but one more YouTube channel has videos of both Canadian hard rock legends, namely Denmark Street Pedal, which has a number of concert videos from literally all over the world, but this is the only local show that they have filmed at over the last two years. Possibly an intentional trip to be at Triumph's reunion tour kickoff? In any event, D.S.P. filmed one video of each band.

Their Triumph video is of them playing "Allied Forces", and it is a shame that Denmark Street Pedal didn't get more videos, as these are the best quality videos that I have seen from the show! A close placement on the floor (looks to be second row), a high quality camera with clear audio, and a nice vantage point of the stage with strong zoom combine well with an up tempo performance from all involved, with Phil and Todd handling vocals well so Gil Moore can focus on drumming. Don't bypass their Triumph video below!

Next up, we'll take a brief detour to Facebook, as a representative of Sault Ontario rock radio station 104.3 The Fox was in attendance, filming three short videos of Triumph's set for this batch post from their Facebook page that also included two April Wine videos and four photos. Their videos include a 19 second clip of "Somebody's Out There" and two short chunks of "Hold On" (the first 51 second video is embedded below, and click here to watch the 0:41 second part). Unfortunately, all three were shot vertically, but the filmer had a good view of the stage from the stands, and the audio was clear, so if only these were horizontal and full songs! Give these a look also!

As in parts 1 & 2 of our Triumph/April Wine concert video posts, we'll look at videos of April Wine from the same filmers for the back half, with the aforementioned Denmark Street Pedal filming them playing their classic single "I Like To Rock". Like with the "Allied Forces" video above, the overall quality here is excellent, and it does show the talent and enthusiasm that the current April Wine have, even if there's no original members left, so definitely check this video out for yourselves below!

Finally, we'll head back to 104.3 The Fox's Facebook page's batch post from last week, as they filmed two abbreviated vertical videos of April Wine's set, including 23 seconds of "Roller" and, as embedded below, 50 seconds of the guitar/drum solos & bridge of "Sign Of The Gypsy Queen". Again, I wish these were longer and horizontal, but what we do hear sounds good and you get a clear look at the stage given where the filmer was seated, so check out The Fox's April Wine videos above & below as well!

Our next post will 100% be devoted to weekend concert previews, and we'll continue our Triumph concert video coverage with an all-Triumph video post at some point by the weekend, so stay tuned for all of that! Thanks everyone!

The Realignment Project - "War Songs" EP Review!!

It's time for our 202nd monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and with our extensive backlog of new local album releases now stretching into 2027, let's continue our slow clear-out with a look at local industrial metal solo act The Realignment Project's third EP "War Songs"! Released to major streaming services on October 8th (their third EP in 2025 alone), this is again a one-man effort led by former Dirty Virgin drummer and Riverin frontman Matt Hicks, who sings and plays all credited instruments. Recorded locally & released through British indie label East London Recordings, you can stream "War Songs" on Apple Music, Amazon Music, Bandcamp, YouTube, Spotify, Boomplay, and KKBox (perhaps among others), and you can buy it on iTunes for $5.94, Amazon Music for $7.74, and Bandcamp on a "name your price" model. Via their label deal, you can also buy "War Songs" on CD and vinyl!

Print-on-demand copies are available in either format from ElasticStage at this link, with CDs costing $17.90 and vinyl records going for $43.90 (this does not include EP #4 "Let You Fall" as the B-side like what The Realignment Project did with their first two). Featuring six songs running for about 25 minutes, let's begin with the opening song!

The first "war song" is "Digital Sacrilege", which seems to be about calling out someone for betrayal and/or selling out. This has more of a techno base to its instrumentation, and really gives off Nine Inch Nails vibes with how Matt is singing here, though his vocals are the only real lean to hard rock or metal here. There is real emotion and frustration in the lyrics, especially in the chorus and pre-chorus, but this song honestly feels unfinished, like the electronic elements should be layered over guitar work, and the percussion is a little overdone as such. It sets a good tone to start though! The title track "War Songs" is next, and this restores the rock stylings in full while still having a distorted electronic undercurrent. Lyrically about hiding from and ignoring incoming oppression, this features ominous spoken word verses and screamed choruses, though Matt's vocals there are largely buried in the mix.

Why he made that call, I don't know, as it really breaks up the momentum of the verses, but aside from the over-processed quiet vocals there, this is an improvement in all other facets, especially if you want some metal from T.R.P.! Third is the EP's shortest song "Look In The Mirror", which is a motivational "pick yourself up and don't give up" type of song, but still intense and heavy. The distortion when Matt yells the title is a little overdone, and the structure is a tad repetitive for the song's length, but it balances hard rock and industrial well with clear passion! I'd still have varied the structure a little more. Next up is "Acid Rain", an anti-war composition that shares a lot musically with "Digital Sacrilege", in that it's primarily an industrial song which only dips into rock territory via Matt's singing. Verses are approached in a bitter yet eerie tone that slowly build into the choruses.

Not a bad composition that goes along with the themes of the EP so far, but I do prefer Matt's heavier songs in this project, which better balance the musical styles without an emptier feeling without obvious guitars. Track #5 is "Bones And Dust", which is the longest song on offer, and its lyrics are basically resigning to one's fate when things seem hopeless. Proper rock instrumentation returns here, but this is more of a deliberately paced track that milks its length and only really gets into metal territory on the choruses. If Matt ever took The Realignment Project to live concerts, the choruses would play well with audiences, but the song moves along a little too slowly for my liking despite good intensity at its peaks. "War Songs" closes with "Claim Your Dead", which is about the after-effects of the war and what the survivors have to deal with even after the fighting has stopped.

This resolves the EP's anti-war concept well, and while it doesn't dip into rock stylings at all, its effectively a coda for what came before it, with a reserved and reflective (if dystopian) bent, including heavy use of symphonics and keyboard. I do prefer the heavier and livelier songs here, but this serves its purpose in the framework of the story! That all said, how does "War Songs" compare to The Realignment Project's first two EPs? While not far removed tonally, this being a concept EP does give it a distinct vibe and message, even if only half of the songs could be called "industrial metal". Lyrics weren't repetitive, Matt is definitely using his vocals in more varied ways, and there was a little more musical freedom here, especially on "Claim Your Dead", but if you like their heavier songs (music, not lyrics), this may be somewhat lacking. Even with the overly processed chorus vocals, my favourite song on offer here is definitely the title track.

For drawbacks, I did find the first two industrial-dominant songs to be emptier without guitar work,  "Bones & Dust" was too deliberately drawn out, and there can be some uneven intensity in the vocals compared to the music. As far as The Realignment Project's discography to this point, I think my favourite is "The Frustration Sessions", but all have positive qualities and are very original in a local context, so see what you think at the above links, and I hope you guys liked this month's CD review!m We'll continue clearing out our backlog when we look at local death metal band Pillory's new album "Old Soul" next month, so stay tuned for that in May! Thanks everyone!

Triumph/April Wine Concert Video Showcase (Part 2!!)

You know the Triumph/April Wine concert at GFL Memorial Gardens on Wednesday was a huge success, as we have even more videos from the show to feature on here, and I'm gonna have to extend our fallout posts to four as a result! Today's videos weren't even uploaded when I was writing up our first Triumph video post on Sunday, so let's dive right in to our look at 32 brand new videos from two different YouTube users!

We'll start with YouTube user hbogie321go's YouTube channel, and no word on if this is the same person as hbogie123, who also uploaded videos from shows at the then-Essar Center in the early 2010s. Same person or not, you may recognize hbogie321go from posting videos from 2024's Sheepdogs and Chase Rice concerts in the Soo, among many others out of town. From the headlining Mississauga hard rock band's set, hbogie321go filmed them playing "When The Lights Go Down", "Hold On", "Allied Forces", "Rock & Roll Machine", Rik Emmett's extended guitar solo after that song, their cover of Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountain Way", solos and introductions from the rest of the band, most of "Magic Power", "I Live For The Weekend", "Fight The Good Fight", and as embedded below, "Lay It On The Line". For one reason or another, a few of hbogie's videos were separately uploaded as "Shorts" videos.

Three brief vertical videos can be seen thusly, namely portions of "Somebody's Out There", "Follow Your Heart", and the last minute of "Magic Power". Why that song was broken up (and filmed in two aspect ratios), I don't know, but the vertical excitement(?) doesn't stop there, as four of the regular videos were also shot like that. At least most of the videos are in a normal widescreen orientation, and hbogie was in a good central spot on the floor to capture the set. A lot of attendee heads and arms can be seen up front but it gives a good silhouette effect for reactions! Solid quality in spite of orientation flips with strong performances from Rik, Gil, and crew, so give this batch of videos a look above and below!

Like on Sunday, we'll pick things back up with hbogie321go in a second so we can check out more of Triumph's set, this time via prolific local concert filmer Christopher Paci's YouTube channel! Yes, I am aware that he was also at the Pop Evil concert, stay tuned for those videos soon. All but two of Chris' Triumph videos were songs that hbogie filmed, with these uploads including "When The Lights Go Down", "Spellbound", "Hold On", "Rocky Mountain Way", "Lay It On The Line", "Follow Your Heart", "Magic Power", "Fight The Good Fight", and as embedded below, "Rock & Roll Machine". While not as centrally located, Chris looks to have been about second row on the floor, and we get a clearer look at the staging setup thusly! The framerate seems lower on these clips (this could be my computer's fault, granted) but Chris zooms in a lot, and the audio is clear, so give his Triumph videos a watch above and below as well!

As on Sunday, the back half of this post is devoted to videos of Halifax hard rock band April Wine's opening set from the same filmers, though neither filmed nearly as much. In hbogie321go's case, he filmed Brian and the gang playing "Oowatanite" and, as embedded below, "Roller", while his "Shorts" videos included their cover of Hot Chocolate's "You Could Have Been A Lady", "Say Hello" , "I Like To Rock", and "Enough Is Enough". Shakier camera than we would later see from his Triumph videos, but these are both quality videos of the modern version of April Wine, so give these a watch above and below!

Finally, Chris Paci got three April Wine videos last week, including "I Like To Rock", "Sign Of The Gypsy Queen", and as embedded below, "Say Hello". The same framerate drop aside, everyone sounds good here (even with the lack of original members), and they know these classic songs as well as you'd hope, so check them out above and below for yourselves!

We will have more from this concert in a few days, but our next post will likely be this month's CD review, so check back on the SMS tomorrow for that! Thanks everyone!

YouTube Channel Profile Series: Bone Yard 225

After a slight delay, here's this month's YouTube Channel Profile, as we again take a look at a randomly selected YouTube channel whose content is at least half devoted to local metal, hard rock, and/or punk musicians/concerts! This month, we drew a channel from a prominent veteran local band who have been hard at work in the 2020s, so here's what you should know!

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Bone Yard 225 (http://youtube.com/boneyard225)

Owner: Likely Bone Yard 225 singer/drummer and local graphic designer/event organizer Greg Simpson

Channel Timeline: Launched on June 5th, 2024; Videos posted from the following month through January 2025

Channel Summary: Though active locally since their 2009 beginnings as a country cover band, Bone Yard only launched their own YouTube channel in 2024, coinciding with their expansion into original songwriting as a southern/hard rock trio. Their channel includes three lyric videos for their three released studio tracks so far, a brief clip from the 2024 Dragonfly Run featuring their music, and a teaser for a radio interview.

Why You Should Watch: "Boneheads" will likely be mostly interested in this channel for the YouTube copies (with lyrics!) of their original songs, as the Dragonfly Run video features one of those songs again and the interview teaser obviously doesn't have the full recording. While the guys haven't visibly updated this channel in over a year, your local 225 are far more active for posting and sharing videos on their Facebook page, and (recent break acknowledged) are still active, so hopefully we see some more YouTube activity and original music when the time is right!

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

 

Dragonfly Run: Bone Yard 225 are well known for their charitable involvement in Sault Ste. Marie, including performing at and promoting the annual Dragonfly Run (née Ride For ARCH), which made its debut at its current Grand Gardens homebase in August 2024. In their second upload to YouTube, the band shared this video of motorcycle riders hitting the road from the Grand Gardens to kick off that year's proper rally, with their debut original song "F.A.F.O." as backing music. complete with on-screen text to thank all involved. Kudos to Greg, Kerry, the rest of the band, and all staff and volunteers for supporting the hospice for so long!

 

 

Gypsy Spell Lyric Video: The three studio original songs posted here include the aforementioned "F.A.F.O." and "The F Word" (originally named "Fuck!"), but the most popular and longest of the three is "Gypsy Spell" from January 2025. Another lyric video, this features a slideshow of live photos, fans, logos, and promotional images, with the song being about being seduced by a woman under the titular spell. As on the other songs here, Greg is joined by guitarist Alex D'Ettore and bassist Warren Reville. I'll hold comment on this song proper pending our review of Bone Yard's album-in-progress, but fans of "the dirty three" will enjoy the danceable hard rock on offer!

 

 

Bone Yard 225 on the "Smart as Trees" Podcast on theborderline.ca radio!!! Wed Jan 29th @ 12 noon!: The title of this video does a lot of the explaining on its own, but this 67 seconds-long teaser (their last YouTube upload to date) features a slideshow of photos relating to Bone Yard's appearance on local internet radio station The Borderline, where they were interviewed by Adrian Vilaca for an episode of Smart As Trees. The band used "F.A.F.O." as backing music again, but spoken word studio bumpers that Greg, Alex, and Warren recorded at the time are also layered in. This was an informative 40-minute interview that outlines their then-current status and future aims well, if with some adult language, so give it a listen on demand above!

 

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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! Next month in this series, our latest randomly selected channel is that of Woodward Avenue Studios, the locally based recording studio owned and utilized by members of Convergence, so look for that on or around May 26th, and stay tuned for more news and this month's CD review soon! Thanks everyone!

The Three Days Grace/Finger Eleven Concert Preview, An Inactive Band Note, And A New Soundcheck Video!!

Let's take a look at some news and notes on this Monday evening, including our extended preview of a major concert tomorrow, a band newly moved to our inactive links, and a surprise live concert video find, so with all of that said, here's what you should know!

We'll start with today with a huge concert preview for TOMORROW NIGHT, as Norwood, Ontario hard rock icons Three Days Grace and Burlington alternative/hard rock quintet Finger Eleven will return to the Soo at GFL Memorial Gardens! For Three Days Grace, this will be their third time at the arena, and first since headlining there in December 2009, and of course, this is their first local date with ex-My Darkest Days singer Matt Walst on vocals, notably with original frontman Adam Gontier returning to the band in 2024 to give them two lead singers. The two do share vocals throughout the night, so if you wanted to hear Adam do "I Am Machine, or Matt do "Animal I Have Become", let alone new stuff like "Apologies", this is your chance! As for Finger Eleven, local fans last saw them opening for I Mother Earth at The Machine Shop in 2018, and this will mark (at least) their fifth concert appearance here, and first at the former Essar Center.

In the almost eight years since we last saw Finger Eleven here, they have kept touring and released their new album "Last Night On Earth" last year, so expect classics like "First Time" and "Falling On" along with newer cuts like "Adrenaline" as the take the stage! Opening the proceedings tomorrow are Edmonton hard rock quartet Royal Tusk in their local debut, and they've been slowly gaining traction on domestic rock radio with songs like "Head Up" and "Hated" from their new album "Altruistic", so don't sleep on their accessible but hard hitting original sound tomorrow! This stop on Three Days Grace's Alienation Tour is brought to you by Live Nation, and while neither local rock radio station is a presenting sponsor, both have had ticket giveaway contests. A 7:00 PM start time is advertised for this all ages concert, and limited tickets are still available at this link or at the in-person box office, starting at $116.50 in section 119.

Other sections and general/floor seating will run $157.25, but there's not many left. VIP passes are also available, so see above if you're so inclined. The sixteen years long wait for Three Days Grace alone will be cause for excitement, but add in Finger Eleven's return and Royal Tusk, and you've got one hell of a Tuesday night out, so don't miss out on all of tomorrow's action in spite of the work/school night scheduling! Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Three Days Grace live!

Next up, I have reluctantly moved local alternative/hard rock band Handsome Sandwich to our inactive band links. While not at our one year inactivity threshold, I'm now inclined to believe that they quietly disbanded in late 2025, thanks in part to their "Collage" EP's abrupt release in September, their lack of any public updates since, and most members currently focusing on new projects. After a year's hiatus during the pandemic, guitarist Jesse Cook & drummer Johnny Belanger brought Handsome Sandwich back in the summer of 2021, but not as the genre-less cover trio that fans had known since 2017. Now with singer Taylor Emlaw in their ranks, they became favourites at local concerts for the next four years, including two Rotaryfest Stage 2 sets, tour runs in Southeastern Ontario, and their 2023 release party for "Deconstructed" at The Loft.

The band last played live at the Northern Vibe Festival in August. Since then, Johnny has been playing with ex-guitarists in both Eden Plague and The Golden Scoundrels while also joining the revived Stiffler's Mom offshoot Wheelhouse, Taylor is working on a new project with HeadFirst alum Raine Rancourt, and bassist Rafael Medina has moved back to his native Colombia, where he has joined the band Adios Celeste. Handsome Sandwich had a good eight year run locally in two very different halves, and they stood apart musically with a fun alt-rock sound and pointed lyrics. Best of luck to everyone (including James, Mitch, and Brandon) in the future!

We'll close today with a new/old video of local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck that made its way to YouTube in September of last year! This was uploaded to former drummer Glen Thomas' personal YouTube channel shortly before the band reunited without him, and it comes from Soundcheck's set at Toystock at the Grand Gardens in November 2022. In their fourth of five consecutive Toystock sets, Soundcheck were represented here by Glen alongside founding guitarist Terry Eaton, singer Cameron Oliver (who is not playing guitar here at all), and guest bassist Rob Gilmar, who frequently sat in for Paul Belair in the early 2020s (Jim Michaud would join the band permanently a few months after this gig). Soundcheck were filmed here by an uncredited attendee covering The Black Keys' "Lonely Boy" and Big & Rich's "Save A Horse (Ride a Cowboy)" to close their set.

Alas, this video was shot vertically, but we do get the unique visual of the filmer walking to the stage early on, and they do focus on Cameron as he roams the stage on the latter cover (also note the uncredited guest singer on "Save A Horse"). I admittedly don't have love for either of these cover choices, but the performances are lively and the crowd was receptive, so fans of the 2019-2025 Cameron era of Soundcheck will want to give these covers a watch below, and best of luck to Cameron in Nashville!

That's all for now, but definitely stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!

Triumph/April Wine Concert Video Showcase (Part 1!!)

It's high time that we spotlight videos from Wednesday night's Triumph/April Wine concert at GFL Memorial Gardens on the SMS, and we have a lot of videos to rifle through, from at least eight different public channels and uploaders! While local news media didn't cover it in person from what I have found, the concert was a rousing success based on social media reports, which is great to see! To start our (at least) three fallout posts from Wednesday, we'll look at videos of both Canadian classic hard rock legends from two different filmers, so here's what you should know!

Most of the current YouTube videos from the show come from attendee Chris Berlinguette, who posted 12 videos to his YouTube channel, joining a few dozen other concert videos from elsewhere in Ontario and even in Buffalo, New York. Nine of his videos are from Triumph's headlining set, where he filmed the reunited Mississauga legends playing "Hold On", "Allied Forces", "Blinding Light Show", "Rock & Roll Machine" split across two videos (here and here), their cover of Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountain Way", "Lay It On The Line", "Follow Your Heart" (complete with a partial cover of "24 Hours A Day" at the start), and as embedded below, their two encore songs, namely "I Live For The Weekend" and "Fight The Good Fight". You'll notice by the video lengths that Rik, Gil, and crew are very amenable to jamming and extending songs live ("Rocky Mountain Way" alone is a 9 minute video), so fans got their money's worth!

Give their long hiatus as a touring concern, Triumph sound pretty good overall in these videos, and their touring musicians do beef things up without taking away from the original lineup, though bassist Mike Levine did not join the tour due to a long-term hand injury. Note the locally unique sight of Gil Moore and Brent Fitz drumming on stage simultaneously! The lighting and video screen definitely adds to the presentation, and they picked a solid cross-section of hits from their original run! Chris also had a good vantage point of the stage from the floor, clearly from the third or fourth row. Check out his Triumph videos for yourselves above and below!

We'll pick things back up with Chris in a second, but for some more Triumph videos, let's look at the three uploaded by the non-local tourism YouTube channel Two Thirsty Travelers, which does feature a bunch of live concert videos from far-flung locales. One of the thirsty travelers filmed three Triumph songs on Wednesday, namely "Somebody's Out There", "Never Surrender", and as embedded below, "Hold On". Props to touring bassist Todd Kerns for wearing a Marco Mignosa Soo Greyhounds jersey for part of their set too! The travellers were in side-stage seating, giving us a clearer and more open look at everyone in action, if sacrificing a real look at the audience, but things sound good, so give them a look above & below also!

For the back half of this post, we'll look at the above filmers' videos of Halifax hard rock legends April Wine's first local concert set in 13 years, and first since the retirement & death of frontman Myles Goodwyn. Chris Berlinguette filmed three videos from their set, including "I Like To Rock", a triple header of the back half of "Just Between You & Me", "Sign Of The Gypsy Queen", and "Roller", and as embedded below, both "Oowatanite" and their cover of Hot Chocolate's "You Could Have Been A Lady". Now, April Wine have no original band members left (and long-time guitarist Brian Greenway is the only current member who was even in the band before 2011, so I understand there being fans who don't really consider this to truly be "April Wine". That said, Brian has assembled a talented band to carry the name forward, and Myles did give the current touring band his blessing before he retired in 2023.

The performances here are sound, and from experience, I honestly hear April Wine a little more frequently on local radio than Triumph, so the familiar songs are done in a way that won't alienate fans beyond debating their authenticity compared to the 1970s band. Marc Parent has good energy and melody to his vocals, though some higher notes don't come easy. Good stuff for fans of these classic songs, so give Chris' April Wine videos a look!

Lastly for this post, the aforementioned Two Thirsty Travellers filmed two videos of April Wine's set, specifically them playing "I Like To Rock" and, as embedded below, "Sign Of The Gypsy Queen". These are both songs that Chris also filmed, so interest here will primarily be around the side-stage angle, but they're still a good look at the guys in action playing some familiar hits from back in the day, so give these a look above and below as well!

There's definitely more coming from Wednesday's concert, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Stones & Crows), A New Local Band, And The Headrush Concert Preview!!

As promised, we're wrapping up this weekend's hard rock concert previews tonight on the SMS, along with featuring new videos of the band in question, but leading off, we have a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT and the first public info on the new band involved, so here's what you should know!

We have a new local blues/hard rock band to add to our active band links, and they are Stones & Crows! This is the new project from former Electric Church frontman Spencer Pine, and if you liked that project, you may not have to seek them out to like their Facebook page, as Spencer just renamed the Electric Church Facebook page to repurpose it for the new band. This isn't common for local bands to do, but Generations did that with Jus' Chillin's Facebook group. I'll probably leave Electric Church (who broke up in 2018) in our inactive links with the same URL though, because the page has a double purpose now! Spencer is joined here by Floor Between Us bassist Nicholas Gingras and former HeadFirst/Them drummer Anthony Boudreau, with all three being given a stage name on social media (Spencer is "Bukky VanZant", Nicholas is "Nikki Crow", and Anthony is "Tony Stone").

Their lineup may not be complete, as according to this Musicians Wanted Facebook group posting from April 16th, S&C are looking for a keyboardist "who can bring that vintage feel to the... keys that sit right in the pocket to add depth to heavy blues grooves". Applicants must be aged 20-35, consistent and on-time, able to improvise and learn songs quickly, have their own setup, and have "feel, tone, and stage presence". Auditions can be in person at their jam space or online. Keyboards in local rock bands aren't exceedingly common, so hopefully they can find the right person, and contact the guys above if you're interested! In that LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, Stones & Crows will make their live debut on Friday, June 26th at Beck's Bar, which was announced in this jokey Facebook video featuring the guys sitting on a couch. No word on why this horizontal video was needlessly letterboxed into vertical "Reel" dimensions though, making it tiny.

The concert will be a 19+ affair at 9:00 PM with no announced cover. Based on early sound descriptions, Stones & Crows do sound like successors to Electric Church, with "a modern hard rock sound rooted in blues & grit" and artists like Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, and Stevie Ray Vaughan cited as being covered along with planned originals. Then as now, they'll stand out locally, so stay tuned for more from Stones & Crows soon, keep their debut show in two months in mind, and give their first video a look below!

Next up, here's the last of this weekend's hard rock concert previews, as local classic/hard rock cover quintet Headrush will return to The Full Throttle Saloon for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Last seen at this venue in late March, tomorrow's concert coincides with a "rabbit party" at the former Primavera Hall, literally meaning that they're serving roasted rabbit on the dinner menu tomorrow, so keep that in mind if that interests you! This will be Headrush's last Full Throttle gig before they open for Ozzy Osbourne tribute band The Crazy Babies there on May 9th, and if you didn't hear about the admission fees for that show, tickets cost $70 at the venue or at this link, and reportedly, there will be no admission at the door, which alone is unusual for a local concert. I won't pass judgment on how the venue/band landed on that price, but I hope that the concert draws as well as they're hoping!

Tomorrow's headlining concert is at 9:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's some brand new videos of Headrush live at The Esquire Club two weeks ago! Bassist John Amendola shared three clips from attendee and local music supporter Audrey Marshall's personal Facebook page to the band's Facebook group, with Audrey filming the guys covering Triumph's "Lay It On The Line", Tommy Tutone's "867-5309/Jenny", and as embedded below, AC/DC's "Whole Lotta Rosie", which is the only one of the three to exceed one (or two) minutes in length. The Tommy Tutone cover notably features Soundcheck/Half Past drummer Johnny Amendola (John's son and ex-bandmate) sitting in for Gino Pulente behind the kit. That video happens to be vertical, alas, but Audrey did seem to focus on Johnny primarily for it.

He fits in well with his dad and gang on that cover, as you'd expect! The other two covers see Headrush in heavier territory (and timely in the case of Triumph) and doing a solid job on them, with John Anderson's voice suiting early AC/DC well in particular, so give everything a watch above and below, and don't miss Headrush tomorrow in Steelton!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the SMS this weekend! Thanks everyone!