Spades GT Videos & Updates From August-September 2025!!

For our first post of October 2025, let's resume playing catch-up with local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT's recent activity by acknowledging the recap video from the fifth annual Rye Fest in Brantford on August 9th! In doing my research for our last Spades-centric post on September 21st, this completely slipped me by, which I apologize for, so kudos to guitarist Daniel Horton for sending me the link after that post went live! After we hear a clip from "Wrecked" from their new album "United", we see Daniel in his vehicle getting ready to meet the rest of the guys in Brantford, before we get to see the whole band setting up for their set and Daniel mingling with multiple Rye Fest attendees and performers (many horns are thrown in this segment). The desserts on offer looked good too! We do get brief raw video footage of Spades GT playing "Rise" late, but it's side-stage, vertical (as ever), and just of the start of that song.

I'm not sure of the advantages of the taped-together beer staff, but this was an entertaining recap video for fans of these types of uploads! I still prefer full live songs, let alone horizontally shot ones, but it looks like the guys had a blast at this all-day metal festival, so check everything out below!

On September 2nd, the band announced on their Facebook page that they were featured in the newest issue of the Niagara-On-The-Lake-based Plunk O Rama zine, but it's a legit physical zine like in the good old days, hand-stapled and everything. As such, you'll have to head down there to buy a copy and/or read the Spades article, assuming that the band doesn't re-post it online. In the former Jack Spades' first show of their fall concert calendar, they returned to their hometown of Barrie for the first time in "a while" (almost 3 months) on September 6th, where they and their friends in G.F.U. opened for Daniel's other band The Fast Life at C.W. Coop's. This show did get a vertical recap video as well, if a shorter one (granted, it was a smaller concert), so what can you see here? Along with mingling and setup, we get a lot of talk about wildlife in the Barrie area from Daniel and Tyler, and the odd sight of J.D. singing while wearing a bucket hat.

I'm not sure that the slow jam backing music in the first half is a good fit, but we do get (all too brief) raw video footage of all three bands in the back half, with a focus on Daniel playing a guitar solo in the Spades clip. Also, props to Sean's choice of t-shirt, now we just need to see him play in that band's hometown! J.D. said that they "killed it", and from what we see of the show, I'm unable to disagree, so give the Coops recap video at this link! Unfortunately, Facebook was able to content match "Wrecked" in this particular recap video, so I'm unable to embed it here. On September 18th, the guys asked on their Facebook page for suggestions towards adding a possible new cover song to their setlist, implying that it would be for "spooky season" or at least Halloween themed, so offer suggestions there in the event that they haven't added such a cover yet! The following day, they did post a new (vertical) video that I can embed here, so what is there to see?

Shot in drummer Tyler Reiner's vehicle, Tyler (or "T", as it were) shows off a copy of the Plunk O Rama zine that they're featured in, though you can't really read the shown pages clearly on the video. Copies were sold at their merchandise table at their next show, however! Tyler also plugged (in particular) their Toronto show opening for The Exploited on October 19th, which they are actively selling tickets for, as well as their debut in Niagara Falls this coming Friday. Good updates all around, so give this one a watch!

For today, we'll close with Spades' return to Newmarket at The Lion Pub & Grill on September 20th, which was basically an encore of the top half of the C.W. Coop's show, with all three bands making the 40 minute drive south for it. A vertical recap video was shared from this gig, which leads off after the titles with Daniel and bassist Sean MacNab outside of the venue. Sean teases that they may have "exciting news around October", so we'll have to see what he was hinting at now that it is October! After everyone arrives at the venue, we do get some brief raw footage of the guys playing "United" at The Lion, along with some brief clips of Daniel with show attendees and performers, as well as The Fast Life & G.F.U.'s later sets. Effective recap video within the confines of what fans can expect from them, even if vertical and heavily edited, so give the Newmarket one a watch below!

We'll pick things back up with Spades GT with a new video interview that Dan & Sean recorded last month, plus new show announcements and their gigs this weekend, so stay tuned for all of that and more soon! Thanks everyone, raise 'em up, and cause a scene!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Pillory & Half Past), An Inactive Band Note, And More Recent Updates!!

Before we begin this news post, just a heads up that Curtis McKenzie did not play at The Dive Gastro Pub on Saturday despite announcing the show on his Facebook page. Curt confirmed that "an accidental scheduling conflict" was to blame, but I don't know if it was on his end or the venue's (though note that The Dive never publically announced a Saturday musical act on their Facebook page). Disappointing for fans, but he will be back at The Dive before you know it, check back in our next weekend concert preview wave for proof! Now, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS and other recent assorted updates from Sault Ontario bands!

Local hard rock quartet Half Past will return to Beck's Bar for one night only on Saturday, October 11th! While we just saw them open for Napoleon at Soo Blaster earlier this month, this will be this talented veteran act's first solo headlining concert in five months, so they must have been among the local covers-leaning bands who took a summer break. It's good to see Jordan, Alain, Arthur, and Johnny back in their element as four-set headliners at a local bar, and hopefully this Thanksgiving long weekend concert is a big hit! No word yet who is playing in the Saturday matinee slot that day, Beck's will no doubt announce it on Monday the 6th, but remember that Beck's hosts DJs on Fridays. This show has a 9:00 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and no announced cover charge. Should be a fun time for hard rock fans in the west end, so visit the band's Facebook page for more details on this concert!

Next up, local death/thrash metal trio Pillory will indeed release their full-length album next month via a CD release party at Soo Blaster on Saturday, October 25th! The album will be named "Old Soul" (apologies for erroneously giving its name as "Old Stone" last week), and it was recorded earlier this year at Unsalted Audio with producer Dustin Goodall. Pillory plan to release the album on major streaming services on October 27th, but concert attendees will get to buy it on CD two days early, and a vinyl pressing is also in the works. Fans will have heard the likely songs from "Old Soul" dating back to their late 2010s rebirth as a death metal act, and it will be neat to hear them fully realized, especially 12 years after their demo EP "Cringe At The Cross" came out, so come on down to Soo Blaster next month to check everything out! Support will come by way of progressive metal quartet Convergence and crossover thrash quartet Hails, so expect a very heavy night of local metal!

Admission for this presumably all ages concert will be $20 in advance through band members and at Soo Blaster "within the next week", and the door charge will jump to $25. Doors will open at 7:00 PM. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for more from Pillory and this album as it rolls in!

Also, we have a band to move to our inactive band links, that being skate punk trio Vanity First. We have not heard a public update from them since they headlined a free barn show just outside of Thessalon on September 21st of last year, past our one year inactivity threshold. Since then, guitarist/vocalist Mikhal Muto, drummer Keeghan McAllister, and occasional late-era guitarist Carmen Muto (Mikhal's cousin) have focused on playing in the aforementioned hardcore punk/crossover thrash band Hails, with singer/bassist Brenton Ellis in place of Vanity First frontman Andrew Beggs. Known simply as Vanity until March 2022, they debuted in 2020 and became a reasonably prominent young punk band as we emerged from the pandemic, releasing a self-titled demo in 2022 followed by their studio album "Identity Crisis" in the summer of 2024. Fans may recall seeing them open for bands like Leash, Inconsistent Me, and Rent Strike in the early 2020s, along with multiple headlining dates.

It's fairly obvious now that everyone (sans Andrew) have moved onto Hails as their primary band, after they co-existed with Vanity First for most of 2023 & 2024, and while Ha!ls are a heavier band on average, there is obviously shared DNA there. Don't bypass them if you miss Vanity First, and while I hope we haven't heard the absolute last of that project, best of luck to Andrew and Nick in their next musical outlets as well!

Finally, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band name:

 

• SooToday's Brandon Walker got a picture of local alternative/punk supergroup BookcluB's set at Outspoken Brewing's Oktoberfest street party on Saturday for this article on the event, confirming there that the band played as a quintet sans guitarist Brandon Ruch. It was already known that Brandon moved to Barrie earlier this month, but he did come home to help BookcluB open for Forever Seger, so it remains to be seen if that was his farewell with the band or if he will keep coming home for BookcluB shows when able. We'll let you know if something is said about their second guitarist slot, but hopefully the Oktoberfest set was a hit!
• In the newest video from the aforementioned Ha!ls' Facebook page on August 22nd, guitarist Carmen Muto is seen playing through their original song "All Systems Go" from their new self-titled album. I'll hold comment on the song pending that album's review next month, but Carmen shreds beyond his years in this clip, as fans will be well aware, so if you like Ha!ls' ferocious original attack, give this playthrough video a watch above! Unfortunately, Facebook content matched the studio recording that Carmen played along with in the video, so I can't embed it here.
• Online page-less metal supergroup The Sault Side Squad have quietly added The BAG frontman Spencer MacGillivray as their new lead singer, replacing Justin Pregent, as confirmed via the artist profiles on the Facebook event page for December's Broke & Hungry benefit concert at Beck's Bar. A reason for Nadj's departure wasn't announced, but remember, The Sault Side Squad don't have an online page to announce lineup changes with. I don't even know when Spencer joined, but note that The BAG haven't issued a public update since opening for Virvum in July. Hopefully all is well with Justin, but based on what I know of The S.S.S.'s setlist, Spencer will fit in with them well going forward!

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

YouTube Channel Profile Series: Vern03's Channel

For our last monthly feature post of September 2025, here's this month's YouTube Channel Profile, and for our latest spotlight on a YouTube channel whose content is at least half devoted to local metal, hard rock, and punk artists/concerts, we're heading back almost two decades to one of the biggest metal concerts to hit Sault Ontario. Here's what you should know!

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Vern03's Channel (http://youtube.com/Vern03)

Owner:  YouTube user Vern03, a.k.a. j.vernz, but I don't 100% know his full identity

Channel Timeline: Launched on September 11th, 2006; Videos uploaded on March 21st & 22nd, 2007

Channel Summary: Intended as a channel to host videos from both concerts that he attended and his then-band, Vern03 only ever uploaded six videos here, all from the Heaven & Hell/Megadeth concert at the Steelback Centre (now GFL Memorial Gardens) on March 20th, 2007, capturing footage of all three bands on this night.

Why You Should Watch: As a window to one of the first major rock concerts at the new Gardens, this is a fun look back, especially given that there hasn't been much (if any) heavier shows there since! I was there and it was a really good concert, and it's hard to believe that it was over 18 years ago now, though be advised of the scratchy and poor audio quality with hindsight. Note that Vern03 explained in the description that he had a 100 MB file size limit to stay under at the time, implying that he filmed some videos longer than 4:50 that he couldn't upload at the time, though there are a few other videos from this show floating around YouTube.

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

 

Black Sabbath LIVE: Mob Rules: Despite headlining this concert, Vern03 only got two videos of headlining metal supergroup Heaven & Hell at the Gardens, and just to get this out of the way now, he always labelled them as "Black Sabbath" on his channel. Heaven & Hell were a reunion of Black Sabbath's "Mob Rules"-era lineup fronted by Ronnie James Dio, renamed afer Dio's first album with Sabbath to avoid confusion the then-still active Ozzy Osbourne-led Black Sabbath. Alongside footage of Vinny Appice's drum solo, Vern03 shot Heaven & Hell playing "The Mob Rules", which has had over 19,000 views in the process. That is quite a feat given the poor audio quality, but you have to remember where digital cameras were in 2007 compared to now. It was a very loud show, but excellent to witness live, and Vern03 had a good side angle of the stage from where he was!

 

Megadeth LIVE: Hangar 18: Co-headlining on this night were Los Angeles thrash metal legends Megadeth, who Vern03 must have liked more than Heaven & Hell (or Black Sabbath) as he filmed them thrice for his channel, including playing "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" and "Symphony Of Destruction". Featured here is the last uploaded video on this channel, of Dave Mustaine and crew playing "Hangar 18", which is the longest and most complete of his three Megadeth clips. Audio-wise, the Megadeth videos survive better than Heaven & Hell's thanks to quieter audio levels, and it doesn't hurt that Dave's singing voice wasn't impaired by the metal plate in his neck yet, so fans should take to Dave, James, and the Drover brothers' performances after adjusting for the camera quality!

Down LIVE @ STEELBACK: Vern03's only video of New Orleans sludge metal band Down's opening set is of them playing "Bury Me In Smoke". Down's presence on this tour notably meant that the still-surviving members of Pantera's classic lineup (Phil Anselmo & Rex Brown) played in Sault Ste. Marie, alongside alumni of Corrosion of Conformity, Crowbar, and Eyehategod, which is very neat! Unfortunately, even if the audio quality here was better, Phil's voice was really rough due to a recent illness. I prefer Pantera to Down, but there's a lot of talent in that band, and they set the tone well for who was to come on this night!

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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! The joys of our random selection model, as after one month looking at something else, we'll be dipping back into the waters of local "blue Chinese metal crash rock" quartet Sykotyk Rampage via another auto-generated YouTube Music channel featuring some of their studio material for the second time in three months! Like last month, this one features two recent albums of theirs, so look for that on or around October 26th, and for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

Agnosticism - "Atticcore Fornication" EP Review!!

It's now time for our 195th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and this month, we're beginning a two month spell of reviews of new albums from prolific local rock guitarist Mikhal Muto via his emo/folk punk solo project Agnosticism's new EP "Atticcore Fornication"! Released to major streaming services on June 12th, this is the Instagram-only project's fifth album and their fourth to see a wide release beyond YouTube, with this being the third album of theirs that I have reviewed for the SMS. Mikhal did note at the time that "Atticcore Fornication" features songs that are now 2-3 years old and that he doesn't necessarily agree with the lyrics of them now, but he wanted to finally get these songs out. He also said that this EP would be their "last release for quite some time while I focus on other writing projects", one presumably being his new self-titled album with his crossover thrash band Hails that we're reviewing on the blog next month. 

Mikhal (also known from Vanity First and The Apocalypse Afterparty) is the lead performer here on vocals and guitar, but he is joined on one song by guest vocalist Kayden Simon. You can stream this independently released and recorded EP on YouTube Music, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Boomplay, and it is buyable for $5.94 on mp3 on iTunes. Song names below are linked to their YouTube copies. With six songs running for about 19 minutes, let's begin this EP review!

"Atticcore Fornication" begins with "Sea Of Discontent", which opens with a pleasant and intricate guitar intro that gives no indication of Mikhal's folk punk leanings until 57 seconds in, when he begins singing with his distinctive nasal tone befitting a punk project like this. The intensity quickly builds with pointed lyrics, background screaming, and abrasive guitar strumming, and it's really a tale of two songs here, but both halves work well enough depending on what you're going for! I'd have structured it with more of a balance but it works to lead the EP off! Next is its longest song, the 5+ minutes-long "Friends With A 40", this song is more of a rollicking folk number from the off that would really suit a full band if Agnosticism was one! The song shifts in tempo and structure a fair amount across its runtime, including some more deliberate strumming in the bridge and more passioned vocals from Mikhal, and the song rarely lets up.

Even at its length, its not a boring song and it is one of the highlights of this EP, so Agnosticism fans won't want to bypass it! Third is "Nightmares", featuring Kayden Simon on guest vocals. Here, Kayden does the first verse and alternates the choruses with Mikhal, and while they compliment each other well, the tone of Kayden's voice is an acquired taste for this style of music. Mikhal's anger and screaming is well handled when he takes the lead, but this song also has that abrasive scratching/clicking noise from the guitar strumming that first cropped up late on "Sea Of Discontent" and that's starting to get a little old. Good song though, and a slight change of pace! That's followed by "Every Band Has A Song Called Untitled" (I guess that is true to a certain extent!), which is a folksier and less intense number with more reserved singing. You still know it's Agnosticism via Mikhal's voice though (and that background scratching noise).

Leisurely paced but moving along steadily (a late screamed verse aside), this gets the job done for what it is, but I do prefer my Agnosticism to be more punk-influenced and aggressive on the whole. The penultimate song here is "Light Pollution", which was first released as a one-off single in July 2024 before making it onto this EP, and it is the same recording. While still having a punk attitude, this song is also relatively laid back, though you can tell that it was recorded somewhat separately from the rest of "Atticcore Fornication" based on the slight recording quality shift and that the guitar work isn't scratchy and clicky. A good song for fans of Mikhal's lighter side, and you have to appreciate the fuller structure of it! The EP closes with its shortest song, "Here's To Living", which is a return to form for fans of their more intense and freewheeling folk punk, but the pre-bridge verse sounds like it was recorded underwater.

For recording clarity, lack of filler content, and clearer/less clicky guitar work, this is another key highlight to end the EP with, and folk punk fans will take to what Mikhal's doing here a lot! Overall, I did like "Atticcore Fornication" for what it is, and fans of Agnosticism's prior output will be right at home with it! Mikhal knows the subgenre and how to write simple yet detailed acoustic punk material with intense and pointed lyrics, and he makes good use of his distinctive & impassioned vocal style! I like punk more than folk, so songs like "Here's To Living" and "Friends With A 40" were my favourites on offer, and if it was me, I'd lean more into those styles or turn Agnosticism into a full emo/punk band, but he;s doing what he wants to do with the project. Compared to their most recent EP that I reviewed previously (last year's "A Letter Of Resignation"), this EP is most differed by that clicky/scratchy noise on the guitar work on all but the last two songs.

My own musical preferences aside, that grinding noise on tracks 1-4 got increasingly abrasive and I would have re-done or edited it out if it was up to me. If you can get past that, Agnosticism delivered the folk punk goods on this EP, and hopefully their teased hiatus doesn't take too long, but give it a listen or buy it at the above links, and we'll see some of what Mikhal's been up to since when we review Ha!ls' self-titled album on the SMS next month! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Silent 9 & Curtis McKenzie) And A Brand New Album Release!!

Here's one more news post on this Saturday morning before we dive into some month-ending feature posts, and it includes a big new album release and some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, one on SHORT NOTICE, so here's what you should know!

We have one more hard rock concert preview for this weekend, as former Haggith/Eclipse frontman Curtis McKenzie will return to The Dive Gastro Pub for one night only TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Curt only announced this gig on his Facebook page yesterday, and the venue has not corroborated this booking on theirs. I wonder why The Dive doesn't post a monthly events calendar anymore? Despite announcing next month's Beck's show with over a month's notice, TONIGHT's Dive show (his first there in two weeks) has far less of a turnaround to get the word out, but hopefully there's a sizeable crowd at the former Low & Slow, even with Oktoberfest and Wolf Fest running opposite it downtown! You can take in Curtis' alternative and hard rock covers TONIGHT at 9:30 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more on TONIGHT'S show, and here's Curt live!

Next up, let's wrap up the hard rock show announcements at The Esquire Club for this fall, as local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 will return there on Friday, November 14th & Saturday, November 15th! These are surprisingly the only announced public shows ahead for Jess, Ryan, Paul, and Steve after Wolf Fest tonight, with the rest of their 2025 shows (and beyond) on their website's concert calendar being private events. No idea if we'll get interim announcements of some kind for Silent 9 at public venues or nightclubs, but in case this is it for them in 2025 for general audiences, don't bypass their hard rocking and fan friendly cover slate in seven weeks! We will let you know if any SMS-leaning bands play at the Second Line West nightclub in early-mid 2026 when announced, but Silent 9 will be on at 9:30 PM with no cover charges and 19+ age limits in November. See above for more details!

We'll close today with big album news, as local alt-hard rock band Handsome Sandwich's sophomore album "Collage" yesterday was surprisingly released to major streaming services yesterday! Keeping the album name teased as early as their return to the stage in May, the abrupt release has much less fanfare than when "Deconstructed" came out in May 2023, and reminds me of when Johnny & Mitch's (old?) local death metal band The Bear Hunters released "The Dead Testament" quietly online at the end of 2020 without similar hype or a release party during their slowdown of activity. Hopefully this isn't a bad omen for the Sandwich's future, but it's great to see "Collage" finally out! This album was recorded at the Algoma Conservatory of Music between September 2023 and early 2024, and features the seven songs teased right along, including "Carousel" and "Unhappy", the two song titles that were not widely reported on social media.

Credited to the label imprint Sonic Sunshine (not Ugly Salad this time), Handsome Sandwich are represented on this album by singer Taylor "Tea" Emlaw, guitarist Jesse Cook, bassist Rafael Medina (who didn't record on "Deconstructed"), and drummer Johnny Belanger, while former guitarist Mitch Sirie tracked parts for the album in late 2023 before his departure from the band, and he is featured on the cover artwork. Former rhythm guitarist Brandon Ruch (who replaced Mitch for most of 2024 and has not himself been replaced in the band yet) is credited in Distrokid's tags for the album on YouTube, but I don't know what songs he contributed to, nor if there are any guest performers otherwise. I don't know when/if CDs will be on sale, but this image from their Facebook page of a back cover with titles would imply that they were at least planned. "Collage" can now be streamed on Spotify, YouTube, Amazon Music, Boomplay, and BeMusic.

The album is not on Apple Music or Bandcamp at press time, even though "Deconstructed" was released on both, and as such, it isn't on sale on mp3 format anywhere yet, just on pure streaming services. In any event, an album review on the SMS isn't imminent, as we have quite a backlog built up for new local album reviews (Agnosticism, Ha!ls, Spades GT, No Arrow, and Sykotyk Rampage are next), so assuming an mp3 or CD copy of "Collage" goes on sale by then, we won't be able to review it until February 2026. Stay tuned for more from Handsome Sandwich when updates roll in, check out "Collage" above, and look for that Agnosticism review next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Headrush, Project 906, And Tym Morrison) And More Weekend Concert Previews!!

As promised, let's wrap up this weekend's hard rock concert previews along with some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (one on SHORT NOTICE), so here's what else to know for this busy weekend!

Members of Sault Michigan hard rock bands Project 906 and Exit 808 will join forces for a joint concert TONIGHT at The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot in Kinross! Apologies for the short notice, the show was only announced via Exit 808's Facebook page on Monday. Technically speaking, this is a Project 906 concert, despite that band not promoting the show on their own Facebook page whatsoever, but they have enlisted Exit 808 drummer Jackie Moon for the evening to fill in for an absent Jason VanLuven for unannounced reasons, with that post featuring every 906 member except Brian. There might be more of an 808 integration to the evening (Project 1714?!), as their most recent share of the event suggests "a rock music collaboration" featuring "some of the guys" from Exit 808, but I don't know which of Dillion, Alex, Nathan, and/or Blaze could turn up (Amy likely isn't given her supportive comment on said post).

Whatever permutation of the two bands we're getting TONIGHT, you'll get your hard rock fill from this talented collection of E.U.P. musicians! As usual for Well Diggers shows, this will be on their newly renovated outdoor stage, so head to the party yard for all of the action! Things go down TONIGHT at 7:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no announced cover charge. 9&10 News is calling for temperatures in the 55-60° range (13-16° Celsius) with mostly clear skies and no chance of rain. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Project 906 live at Well Diggers!

Next up, let's resume our weekend concert previews at Misty's Fifties in Sault Ontario, where local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison's acoustic solo act is slated to set up shop for yet another matinee concert TOMORROW NIGHT! Certainly no stranger to the Second Line West bar and restaurant, Tym has played there multiple times in 2025, most recently this past Saturday, so if you want to check out his ample setlist and considerable vocal and guitar talent in an intimate west end atmosphere, you know where to go! While we're on the subject, Tym is not playing at Beck's Bar anymore on Sunday. A reason for the cancellation of this Sunday matinee outing was not announced, but the September 28th gig was quietly removed from his batch Facebook event page for shows there (Beck's is hosting Out & Out Country on Sunday instead). However, we have six more new show announcements for Tym there, so when will he be back?

As per that Facebook event page, Tym will be back at the former Vibe Lounge for matinee gigs on Saturday, November 1st & 15th, Sunday, November 23rd & December 7th, Saturday, December 13th, and Sunday, December 28th, so keep his end-of-year rush in mind! Tomorrow's Misty's matinee is at 4:00 PM, the Beck's shows ahead are all at 3:00 PM, and all have 19+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the Misty's show's Facebook event page and the above links for more details, and here's Tym live!

Also, let's head to a venue that recently resumed hosting live bands for the fall season for some brand new shows later this year, as classic/hard rock cover quartet Headrush will end their own recent break by returning to The Esquire Club on October 24th-25th and November 28th-29th, as per the venue's fall 2025 concert calendar! Unless they announce something in the interim, the October shows will be Headrush's first since closing out Rotaryfest Stage 1 in July, and their first at The Esquire Club since the end of May. It is great to see the Johns, Wes, Gino, and Frank back at it, and hopefully they rock the house down on Second Line West across both weekends! As usual for The Esquire Club, these are 9:30 PM bookings with 19+ age limits and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and we'll have more from both Headrush and The Esquire Club on the SMS soon!

Lastly for this weekend's previews, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down will set up shop at the aforementioned Beck's Bar for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! This will be Double Down's fourth concert of the fall season and first at Beck's since the spring, so this should be a good opportunity to check out their new setlist and diverse range of classic and hard rock covers once again! With bassist Dan Beaupre still out injured (get well soon!), the Syrettes and Ric have recruited Mid Life Crysis/ex-Havadder bassist Lori Reinholtz to fill in tomorrow, after previously doing the honours when they rocked The Water Tower Pub last week. Welcome her back in style tomorrow at this fast rising Goulais Avenue pub! For reference sake, the matinee band tomorrow will be Joel & Beej's occasionally-seen acoustic side project The T.R.I.P., featuring a guest appearance by former Quite Frankly frontwoman Jack "Jacklyn Hyde" Alisat, as per Beck's Facebook page on Monday.

Busy day for the cousins, so if you want to see them before they plug in, The T.R.I.P. are on from 3:00-7:00 PM. Double Down take the stage at 9:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover. See above for more details, and for a preview, and here's Double Down live!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Bone Yard 225 & Oktoberfest) And More Weekend Concert Previews!!

Let's keep the weekend concert previews rolling on this Thursday evening with more concert action in downtown Sault Ste. Marie, particularly from two concurrent outdoor community festivals promoted by local breweries. One is a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, and we have more new dates to touch on, so here's what you should know for concert preview post #2!

Make it two Oktoberfests that local alternative/punk cover supergroup Bookclub are playing at this fall, as they have been added to the lineup for SATURDAY'S Outspoken Brewing-hosted Oktoberfest street party on Queen Street East! Apologies for the short notice, the band was only confirmed for the festivities on Outspoken's Facebook page on Monday (they were obviously the "more TBA" when the brewery first announced the street party on September 4th, and there are no other punk/hard rock-leaning bands scheduled). Still riding the momentum from the Forever Seger concert earlier this month, BookcluB should be a fine and crowd pleasing fit on Queen Street (closed between Elgin and Bruce) on SATURDAY evening, so don't miss this stacked sextet then! It is worth noting that guitarist Brandon Ruch was present with the band at Forever Seger despite his announced move to Barrie, and he is pictured in the Oktoberfest advertising.

I don't know what's Brandon's status with BookcluB is going forward, but we'll let you know when/if we learn who was playing guitar with Mikey and crew on SATURDAY! BookcluB are slotted in the middle on SATURDAY at 5:30 PM, with local DJ/EDM duo Flummoxx closing the festivities at 10:30 PM, and indie rock quartet Lucy's Diner (the former Hollow Heads) scheduled in between at 8:00 PM. Local polka band Nein German Guys (who are also playing at Soo Falls' Oktoberfest at The Machine Shop with BookcluB on October 18th) will keep the Oktoberfest vibes rolling at 3:00 PM, and the day begins with folk singer/guitarist and Dustcovers member Tom Peer at 2:00 PM. Beyond the music, there will be lots of games and competitions (with prizes) to take in, plus food, beer (as you'd expect), vendors, and more German-flavoured entertainment, so definitely visit Outspoken Brewing's Facebook page for full details on SATURDAY'S events!

Tickets run for $30 at this link (plus processing fees) and presumably at the gate on SATURDAY. Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for a high of 19° with mostly cloudy skies and a 10% chance of rain, which should bode well for Oktoberfest revelers, but do follow up with your preferred local weather outlets for updates closer to. Visit the above links for more on SATURDAY'S first of three Oktoberfest parties in the Soo this fall, and for a preview of all of the action, here's BookcluB live!

Next up, local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will return to their favourite local stomping grounds (Reggie's Place) TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Two weeks removed from their last stops at Reggie's, "the dirty three" should be in fine spirits with some gritty and in-your-face covers and originals all weekend long, plus with lots of merchandise and hoodie orders in store for fans, so don't bypass this weekend's action if you're up for it! While we're on the subject, Greg, Alex, and Warren have some newly announced dates ahead at The Esquire Club, which resumes hosting live bands this weekend after their summer break, and as per the venue's Facebook page, they'll be back there on on November 7th-8th! The band already announced their Thanksgiving weekend shows there. We'll have more on the other hard rock-leaning new shows at this Second Line West staple in an upcoming post, but it's good to have The Esquire Club hosting concerts again!

Your local 225 are on at 9:30 PM tomorrow and Saturday at Reggie's and for their November dates at The Esquire Club. All four shows are 19+ affairs with no announced cover charges. See above for more on Bone Yard's upcoming concerts, and here they are live!

Finally for weekend concert preview post #2, let's re-answer the viral question: What is Wolf Fest? Running head to head with Oktoberfest for downtown outdoor concert action from a local brewery on SATURDAY, Wolf Fest takes place at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, and will be hosted by Northern Superior Brewing Co. to help give back to the community and their customers. Along with live music, attendees under the big tent will get to enjoy local vendors and artisans, beer, a charity auction, barbers, tattoo artists, an arcade, and more, so definitely visit Northern Superior's Facebook page for full non-musical details! SMS readers will likely be most drawn to classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 in the 7:00 PM timeslot (their prior scheduling of a Northern Superior show on Saturday was clearly this and not at the Tap Room), but the headliners at 8:15 PM are pop rock cover quartet The Killer Hooks, who do have some heavier covers.

Online page-less local Tragically Hip tribute band The Luxury will take the stage at 5:45 PM, preceded by indie rock band Jupiter Marvelous (led by Killer Hooks frontman Tony Marcello's son Anthony) at 4:30 PM. In a late confirmation, the "special guests TBD" are actually The Royal Canadian Navy Band, believe it or not, so don't miss them leading off Wolf Fest at 3:00 PM! The weather should hold up identically (tent acknowledged) for Wolf Fest, which has admission by donation to the Alzheimer Society of Sault Ste. Marie, which is a wonderful cause. Saultites have a lot of options for live music, beer, and varied entertainment downtown on Saturday, so see above for more on Wolf Fest, and here's Silent 9 live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Double Down and Tym Morrison previews (and more) on the site next! Thanks everyone!