On this blustery Monday night, let's devote it to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the months ahead, including for a popular nightclub's upcoming schedule and a big booking for a prominent act, so here's what you should know!
Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 will headline the opening night concert at this year's Bon Soo Winter Carnival on Friday, February 7th! This booking was announced on the band's Facebook page yesterday, and marks their return to The Machine Shop, a venue that they've played multiple times as both openers for touring acts and for private functions. The official program also lists this concert, among multiple other family events at the Canal District and downtown for Sault Ste. Marie's annual winter carnival, though I don't believe any of the other Bon Soo-linked concerts fit the SMS' coverage. Silent 9's concert caps off a busy first day for this year's Bon Soo, so definitely read on there to find out what all is going on on day #1 for the opening ceremonies and beyond! This all ages concert takes place from 8:00-10:00 PM, and admission is free with your $12 Bon Soo button or $8 jacket tag. See above for more details!
Next up, the early 2025 band schedule for The Esquire Club was (re-)posted on their Facebook page yesterday! The Second Line West nightclub had previously posted a schedule that was quickly taken down and amended (it's mostly similar but I did notice that the now-defunct Soundcheck were listed for a weekend in the spring on that version). Like in recent years, the schedule stops at the end of June, with the venue taking a two month break from live bands in the summer before picking things back up in September, so aside from this month's mostly-concluded slate, who is coming to The Esquire Club in the first half of the year among hard rock-leaning acts?
First up is local hard rock quintet HeadFirst, who will play their first local dates of 2025 on Friday, February 14th & Saturday, February 15th! This talented young group have not corroborated these bookings yet on social media, but they just played their first ever Sudbury gigs at The Coulson Entertainment Center over a week ago, which has hosted Bone Yard 225 on multiple occasions in the 2020s, and despite teasing working on stuff behind the scenes otherwise to start the year, they have hinted at more dates to be announced. As it turns out, HeadFirst (who last played at The Esquire Club in mid-December) drew both the Family Day long weekend and, in the case of the Friday nighter, Valentine's Day for scheduling, so keep both angles in mind if you're coming out for either gig next month! You can enjoy their hard rocking originals and covers next month at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no cover charges. See above for more details on HeadFirst's upcoming activity!
Next among SMS-amenable acts is the aforementioned Silent 9, who will return to The Esquire Club for their first times this year on March 21st & 22nd before returning on May 9th & 10th! If you have missed seeing Jess, Ryan, Paul, and Steve's fan-friendly blend of classic and hard rock covers in a normal nightclub setting, you'll want to keep both of these spring weekends in mind, especially given the gap since they last rocked The Esquire Club just after Halloween! Speaking of which, neither of these 2025 weekend bookings fall on holidays (the former gigs are after St. Patrick's Day and well before Easter, and the latter are a week out from the Victoria Day long weekend). Like with HeadFirst above, expect these shows to be 19+ affairs with no announced cover charges and 9:30 PM start times. Visit the above links for much more on Silent 9's 2025 schedule, and look for them after Bon Soo's opening ceremonies next Friday!
Lastly for now, fellow local classic/hard rock cover quintet Headrush (not to be confused with the aforementioned HeadFirst) will keep the good times going on Second Line West when they return to The Esquire Club on March 28th-29th and then on May 30th-31st! This skilled 1980s-centric group played their first shows of 2025 here just this past weekend, and while a different Head____ band will be there next month, fans of Headrush will get their fill later this spring, when the snow should be gone to boot! No word yet on if we'll see them elsewhere before late March, but neither of these weekends falls on a Canadian holiday either. As with the shows above, expect Headrush to take the stage at 9:30 PM on both nights with no announced cover charge, and you must be 19 or older to attend. For more details on Headrush's upcoming gigs, visit the above links!
Other existing bands on the early 2025 schedule are not hard rock-leaning that I am aware of, but I do want to point out that new local rock cover band Separate Wayz (scheduled for weekends in April and May) appears to be the new band from former Soundcheck bandmates Terry Eaton and Jim Michaud, alongside Terry's old Mourning Wood/Soundcheck bandmate Steven Flint, but we await full details on their sound and lineup. Click here for more on them as it's announced! That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site shortly! Thanks everyone!
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