LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 906), More Weekend Concert Previews, And More!!

(Updated at 5:51 PM) One more post before we end the month, and with a matinee show today to preview, let's not dilly dally before it gets too late! Along with remaining hard rock concert previews for this weekend, a new video, and some assorted updates, we're leading off with another SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you should know!

Local blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 will return to The Merchants Bar for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced on their Facebook page on Saturday, with a Facebook event page only following yesterday. Fresh off of a well received show in Eckerman this past Saturday, TOMORROW'S concert will be Project 906's first show in memory at the 108 West Spruce Street nightclub, which only sporadically hosts heavier bands but did welcome Tarnished (more on them in a bit) earlier this year. Always good to see 906 in Sault Ste. Marie city limits, and hopefully their hard rocking covers find a solid downtown audience TOMORROW! Expect a 9:00 PM start time, no cover charge, and a 21+ age limit. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's a brand new live video (well, one of them) of Project 906 at The Strongs Tavern in Eckerman this past Saturday night!

Two videos from the same filmer were actually shared on the band's Facebook page earlier this week (one posted there outright, one shared from guitarist Joe Jenkins' personal Facebook page), and they include a minute of the instrumental jam from Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" and as embedded below, a full cover of Don Henley's "The Boys of Summer", complete with more of a guitar solo than the original song had. I'm more of a fan of the Ataris cover myself, but 906 put their own spin on this classic rock staple with good energy, and the filmer had a nice and close angle of the band on both videos! Give them a look above & below, and don't miss Project 906 at The Merch TOMORROW!

Next up, let's preview two shows taking place TONIGHT that had lots of advance notice, starting with local hard rock quartet Tarnished's debut at Northern Light Cannabis Co. in nearby Dafter! Concerts at cannabis dispensaries are not common for the SMS to cover, but this isn't completely out of left field, as Tarnished had teased possibly playing there in July. Tonight's show coincides with Northern Light's existing weekly Fire Up Fridaze celebration, including an open consumption lounge, board games, and product discounts, so definitely keep all of that in mind if you are a marijuana user who also happens to like Tarnished's hard rock covers & originals! The first tribally owned cannabis provisioning center in the state, Northern Light Cannabis Co. is located at 2736 West M-28 in Dafter (15 minutes south of the Soo). This is obviously a 21+ event (you must show valid photo ID), and there is no advertised cover charge.

Official advertising gives a 12:00 PM start time, but that reflects Fire Up Fridaze specifically, not Tarnished's set, which the band has confirmed will begin at 4:00 PM (still a matinee though). Note that the Facebook event page credits "Gene Check" as also appearing today to provide information on the cannabis industry in the E.U.P., so crediting him thusly implies that he'll be speaking on stage before/during the band's set. It will be very interesting to hear how things go for Tarnished at a very atypical venue, but a lot is planned with and aside from the music, so see above for more details, and here's Tarnished live!

Finally for this weekend's known hard rock concert previews, let's jump north to Sault Ontario, where local rap/metal duo The Apocalypse Afterparty will hit Soo Blaster TONIGHT as mildly surprising openers for American underground rap icon Tech N9ne! Last seen at Glambition in June, tonight's show will return The A.A. to their old Soo's Got Talent platform with their locally distinct brand of drum-and-bass rap rock, and hopefully they set the tone well! In fact, they're one of many local openers on the final poster that has been circulating on local rap Faebook accounts, more in a second. Of course, Tech N9ne is the featured attraction here, a hip hop legend from songs like "Face Off" & "Like I Ain't" whose hardcore stylings and skilled rhymes should not be bypassed by genre fans tonight! Tech N9ne's fellow Strange Music rapper King Iso and Guelph MC Robbie G will also open this show, and both are ALSO talented artists!

The other advertised local openers include Strangers, MJR League, Conika, Lumberjack Pat, and Bold Noize, and while I don't know some names, look for some fast rising local hip hop to start the evening! A co-presentation of The Diamond Mine Agency, this 19+ show has an 8:00 PM start time, and tickets run from $51-$57 7 on Eventbrite or at the door, with VIP packages also available at this link. This is more of a rap show than a rock one, but The Apocalypse Afterparty will inject a little of that flavour into the proceedings before ceding the stage, and this should be a fun time for anyone into hip hop, especially given Tech N9ne's profile! See above for more details, and here's The A.A. live a couple of years ago!

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

• Local cybergrind/gorenoise solo project Malignant Neoplasm have revealed that they have a by-demand compilation of their eight (or ten) albums now on sale on a "pay what you can" model, as per their Facebook page on September 16th. No word on future activity otherwise, as they haven't been up to a lot publically since releasing "Hugz" in April of last year, but hopefully Tyler has some more music up his varied sleeves, and contact him if you want the MxNx compilation!
  
• Local/Barrie punk/metal band Spades GT will open for Montreal hardcore punk legends The Ripcordz and Hamilton punk band Artificial Dissemination (both of which the former Jack Spades have opened for in the Soo) tomorrow night at The Queens Nightclub in Barrie! Shame this isn't local, it's been too long since The Ripcordz played here. Spades GT have revealed on Facebook that tomorrow's show will be their last of 2022 before apparently hitting the studio, which should be exciting, so stay tuned for updates!
  
• This entirely slipped me by during our Rotaryfest coverage, but local funk/hard rock quintet The Wyld Stallyns & guest saxophonist Josh Norling were photographed by The Sault Star's Brian Kelly for two photos shared online at this link, alongside pictures from fellow Thursday performers Flathead Ford and The Northern Jazz Ensemble. Solid pictures, too bad there weren't more shared of the bands! Give them a look above, and don't miss The Wyld Stallyns at Shooters TONIGHT!
   

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next month! Thanks everyone!