Thursday, April 9, 2026

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Crush & Headrush) And Weekend Concert Previews!!

(Updated at 10:45 PM) Another quiet weekend for hard rock concerts in the Twin Saults is upon us, so we can fit almost everything in this post with the exception of Sunday's Pop Evil concert, which will absolutely be in our next news post. As always, we'll start with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so here's what you should know on this Thursday night, along with new videos from two of the bands in question!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will return to The Kiln at Searchmont Resort for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced by drummer Tony Santoro on the band's Facebook group this past Friday. While the band connection isn't reflected in Searchmont's recent postings, TOMORROW'S show is well timed, as Generations are playing at the resort during the final weekend (the "season ender bender", if you will) of the C.S.R.A. Snowcross Championships, and Searchmont is getting a festival to go along with the snowmobile racing ahead, including DJs, pig roasts, and vendors from TOMORROW through Sunday, so click here to see what all is taking place! There will be different musical acts at The Kiln on Saturday night and in an 11:00 AM-5:00 PM Sunday matinee timeslot, but I don't know who is playing on those days.

If you want to see Valerie, Joe, Pierre, and Tony's old school rock covers at Searchmont, they'll take the stage tomorrow at The Kiln from 8:00-11:00 PM with no announced age limits, and while there are ticketing fees to see Snowcross races, I don't believe you have to pay to just see Generations live. I admittedly don't get too engrossed into the winter sports scene, but Snowcross weekend looks pretty packed, so see above for more on everything going down while it still looks like winter outside! Visit the above links for more details, and here's Generations live!

Next up, fellow local classic/ hard rock cover quintet Headrush will set up shop at The Esquire Club for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, these shows were first announced via their official Facebook event page on Monday. Marking their first concerts outside of the Full Throttle Saloon since they last rocked The Esquire Club in late November, it will be good for west end fans to see this skilled 1980s-leaning cover rock group back at it this weekend, and expect a nostalgia rush along with the Headrush TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! The Johns, Wes, Gino, and Frank hit the stage both nights at 9:30 PM, these are 19+ events, and there are no announced cover charges. Visit the above links for more on TOMORROW & SATURDAY'S concerts, and for a preview, here's some brand new videos of Headrush live at The Full Throttle Saloon two weeks ago!

Publically shared by bassist John Amendola to their Facebook group, these were filmed by frequent local concert attendee and supporter Audrey Marshall for her personal Facebook page. She filmed the guys covering Journey's "Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'" and, as embedded below, Cheap Trick's "I Want You To Want Me". While both are incomplete (90 seconds or so apiece), Audrey was filming horizontally, and had a close tight angle of the band, though I will note that they do seem really cramped on the stage at the former Primavera Hall. Sound performances of these late 1970s classic rock staples, so give them a watch above & below!

Also, we'll head to Sault Michigan briefly, where local hard rock trio Crush will play their second show of the year on SATURDAY at The Merchants Bar! Apologies again for the short notice, this show was only announced via this comedy video on their Facebook page on Tuesday (I won't dare try to describe it). While the show was only announced on five days' notice, at least it got that much, unlike their Savoy Bar show in February, which neither they nor About:Blank publically acknowledged on social media at all! Unless they had another unadvertised concert in the past six months, this will be Crush's debut gig at The Merch, though members have played there in the past with their sister band Tarnished (remember, Crush basically took over as Alex & Josh's outlet for both original music and comedic viral content after Tarnished shifted to a covers-only focus in 2024). 

It's good to see Crush back at it, and hopefully the guys rock The Merch well with their nicely developing original slate on SATURDAY NIGHT! Note that I saw reference on their Facebook page last month to a pair of shows downstate next month but I can't find the post that mentioned the dates and locations. The video above notes that SATURDAY's show has a relatively short run-time of 10:00 PM-12:00 AM, it is a 21+ affair at The Merch, and there is no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Crush live in their local concert debut last year!

Finally for today, we'll head back to Sault Ontario for a show that did get advance notice before this week, specifically at The Water Tower Pub, where reunited local classic/hard rock cover quartet Quite Frankly will take the stage for one night only on SATURDAY NIGHT! Two weeks removed from their most recent gig at the Boots & Saddles Roadhouse, this will be Quite Frankly's first show at this central venue in three months. If you haven't see the new look Quite Frankly in recent months, why not make a trip to The Water Tower Pub for their rocking cover slate on Saturday? As always, this venue hosts different nightly acts, and tomorrow's band is veteran country cover quintet Out & Out Country (featuring former That's Chester/Double Down drummer Ric Datson). There's no cover charge on Saturday, a 19+ age limit, and an 8:00 PM start time as usual here. Visit the above links for more details!

For a preview, here's a brand new video of the band at Boots & Saddles two weeks ago, courtesy of their Facebook page, and it features their cover of Alannah Myles' "Black Velvet". Like with the Headrush videos above, this is horizontal but incomplete (a minute long this time), and while this isn't exactly a surprise pick or a deep cut, it's well performed with Linsaey L.W. delivering strong vocals, so give it a watch for yourselves below!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for the Pop Evil preview and more next! Thanks everyone!

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