The First Hard Rock/Metal Concert Previews Of 2013!!

After last weekend's cancellations, I'm glad to see a full lineup of hard rock and metal shows going down this weekend, which means it's time for our first weekend concert previews at the SMS of 2013! For space reasons (and to give it proper emphasis), we're previewing the Queensryche show tomorrow as the likely lead story, so today's post is 100% focused on Sault Ontario, including no less than 4 hard rock shows TOMORROW and one on Saturday, so read on below for what you need to know this weekend (And check out this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on Absolute in the post below this one!)

First, we'll head to The Speak Easy at Algoma University TOMORROW NIGHT for their first show with a hard rock band of 2013, and that band is local grunge quartet Haggith in their own first gig of the new year! Compared to our original announcement of this show last week, we know a ton more on it, including that there's much more than just Haggith playing tomorrow. In fact, this concert is actually a birthday event for local singer Kate Drew, who will be performing with her acoustic rock band The Freshwater Sirens and four other bands, and there's quite a diverse array of bands expected! While Haggith will bring their prolific grunge and alternative originals to the stage at around 11:30 PM tomorrow (as per their Facebook event page), the rest of the lineup includes the aforementioned Freshwater Sirens (featuring Apocrytha & Lazer Queen alumni), local funk rock trio The Dirty Few (essentially successors to The Vertically Impaired, but with Crimson Crusade's Devon Lucier in place of John Petingalo), local blues rockers Pocketful of Scoundrel (with members of Blues Harvest & The Woodsmen), and Algoma University's Celtic Drum Group, which all sounds very promising (especially for all of the somewhat newer bands!)

I apologize for being late on the non-Haggith details, I only heard about them after Haggith started promoting it last week. A cover charge hasn't been announced for this concert, which is definitely 19+ (no word on any possible Algoma student exemptions), and the first band is on at around 8:30 PM. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This sounds like a very intriguing show, especially for the diverse array of genres and newer talent on display, so keep it in mind for that reason and in case you wanna celebrate Kate's birthday! For a preview, here's Haggith playing many originals at their Bushplane Musical Madness set in November!



Next up for tomorrow's shows is the return of new local alternative hard rock quartet Lucky 13! Two months removed from their live debut at Toystock, the band featuring Aftersight frontman Ed Vowels, ex-Wishbone guitarist Jeremey Salatuk, former Turner Up bassist Jeff Gray, and Gully Yodelers drummer Roger Sartini will play their first ever headlining gig at The Rockstar Bar tomorrow night, in what should be a big concert! This talented band of local veterans should have a set full of 1990s-leaning hard and alternative rock covers in store, and if you liked Aftersight, you should definitely enjoy Lucky 13's gritty rock sound tomorrow night! I'd expect a cover charge in the $5 range, you must be 19 to attend, and there's a 10:00 PM start time announced. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! I was impressed with Lucky 13's debut at Toystock, and hopefully they experience similar successes tomorrow and beyond, so keep their show in mind for your weekend's plans! For a preview, here's Lucky 13 playing 3 songs at Toystock last year!



Finally for the Friday-only gigs is Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison's first live appearance of 2013, as he brings his solo acoustic show back to The Roadhouse Bar & Grill on Trunk Road tomorrow night! Though Caveman Morrison's planned 2013 launch last weekend was scuttled, Tym's unplugged covers are always a fun sight locally, and with The Roadhouse being one of his recent favourite venues, I'd expect a great night of music tomorrow! Admission should be free for this 19+ event, and a 10:00 PM start time is listed on the Facebook event page, so check the above links for more details! Tym's solo acoustic concerts are always good times, and with a diverse and large setlist as he always has, there'll be a little something for everyone, so take the trip to the East End for this show if you can! For a preview, here's Tym covering Heart's "Alone" at The Service Grill in 2011!



Lastly for the Sault Ontario weekend schedule is the 2013 debuts of new local hard rock quartet The Suicide Kings, who will make their first ever appearances at Docks Riverfront Grill tomorrow night & Saturday night! Still fresh off of the still unclear cancellation of their Rockstar Bar concerts last weekend, the guys will nonetheless continue their frequent live concert dates with some recently rare heavier music at the higher end Foster Drive venue, and hopefully these shows are huge hits! The guys are also scheduled at Docks for weekends in February and March too, so if you like this venue but can't make this weekend's gigs, you do have options! The Suicide Kings' alternative hard rock covers and originals will be on at 10:00 PM both nights, there is a 19+ age limit, and I believe the cover charge is in the $5 range. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Hopefully the guys rock Docks to it's core this weekend, and be on the lookout for more news from The Suicide Kings as it comes in! For a preview, here they are playing their song "Into The Fray" at Toystock last year!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Queensryche preview and more news tomorrow, and on a related note, if you missed Rock 101's interview with Queensryche drummer Scott Rockenfeld this afternoon (like I did), it'll re-air on "Scott & Brian in the Morning" at some point early tomorrow! Stay tuned for that and more!