Sault Ontario Thanksgiving Weekend Hard Rock/Punk Concert Previews!!

The Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend is upon us, so let's preview this weekend's relatively compact slate of hard rock concerts in the Twin Saults! Here's what you should know before you settle in for turkey and football on Monday! (Updated on Friday at 8:21 AM)

Cumberland, British Columbia skate/hardcore punk quartet Mean Bikini will return to Sault Ste. Marie TOMORROW NIGHT when they headline a special outdoor concert at the Downtown Plaza! Coming just over two years after their local debut at The Speak Easy, this inclusive and politically-charged foursome are touring in support of their new album "This Ain't Gonna End Well...", and they deliver an upbeat and rough edged brand of punk that should make old and new fans alike tomorrow! Local support will come by way of comedy rock project The Floor Between Us. This show was originally to have been headlined by Baltimore psych rock duo Darsombra in their fourth local appearance, but following the car crash in New York this past Friday that tragically took synth player Ann Everton's life, the rest of the concert will proceed in her memory. Promoters Piecing It Together Shows plan to show Darsombra videos on the big screen above the plaza stage.

Mean Bikini will donate $5 from all t-shirt sales to her family, while an independent sellers market hosted by Muel Goods will also be on hand at the plaza, a'la at last year's It's The Pits Festival in Leeburn. This is a FREE & all ages show, so if you want to donate to Ann's family at the concert aside from buying a Mean Bikini shirt, get in touch with P.I.T.S. owner Nicole Dyble tomorrow evening. A 6:00 PM start time is in effect, but be advised that 9&10 News is calling for a 60-70% chance of rain during the projected showtime (temperatures will be 12-13°), so we'll let you know if the weather throws a wrench into the concert. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, here's Mean Bikini live, and R.I.P. Ann!

Next up, let's look at some covers-leaning bands on the weekend nightclub circuit this weekend, starting with southern hard rock cover trio Bone Yard 225's return to The Esquire Club TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Last seen rocking Reggie's Place two weeks ago in their final(?) concert bookings, these will be the first stops from "the dirty three" at this Second Line West staple since the spring, partially thanks to The Esquire Club's annual summer break from hosting live bands. Should be a good time for fans of Bone Yard's hard rocking array of covers and their three originals (so far), so keep things in mind this weekend! Meanwhile, your local 225 are now openly taking 2026 concert bookings (click here for details), and they will be back for the annual Toystock next month, whose lineup was just announced earlier today, so stay tuned for full coverage of that on the site this weekend.

This weekend's concerts have 9:30 PM start times, 19+ age limits, and no cover charges as usual for The Esquire Club. Hopefully things go well for Greg, Alex, and Warren as they return to the west end tomorrow and Saturday, so visit the above links for more details, and here they are live!

Also this weekend, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down will set up shop at Jay's Piston Broke Pub TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Two weeks removed from their most recent gigs at at Beck's Bar (they definitely didn't play at Reggie's last week despite never confirming that those concerts were cancelled), these will be Double Down's first shows at the former Roosevelt Hotel in almost a month. The band confirmed early Friday morning on their Facebook page that Mid Life Crysis bassist Lori Reinholtz will sit in with the band once again in lieu of a still-laid up Dan Beaupre, so come on down to Jay's this weekend to see what you missed out on the last few weekends, and Lori does sing here and there when filling in! You can enjoy Double Down's Cancon-laden array of rock covers tomorrow and Saturday at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no cover charges as usual. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here they are live!

Finally for today's previews, we'll head to Misty's Fifties for one more cover rock show in the west end, as local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will continue his busy 2025 slate there with yet another matinee show on SATURDAY! Two weeks removed from his last show at this Second Line West nightclub and restaurant, Tym should have another fun batch of classic and hard rock covers in store for fans on this long weekend, so keep everything in mind if you want an earlier batch of rock that day! If you can't make it, Tym will be back at Misty's next Saturday as well. This weekend's matinee concert takes place at 3:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Tym live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Generations), Darsombra Concert Updates, And A New Pillory Song!!

I'd like to begin today's post by offering our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Darsombra synth player/vocalist Ann Everton, who passed away on Friday in a car crash in Essex County, New York. She and her husband/bandmate Brian Daniloski had been on the road towards Montreal for the beginning of their fall North American tour, which was slated to include a local concert this Friday at the Downtown Plaza, but their tour van collided with a police cruiser this past Friday. Brian and the police officer inside the cruiser were hospitalized with minor injuries, and you can read more about the incident at this link. A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to raise money for Brian and Ann's family to cover related expenses in the aftermath of this tragic accident, so consider donating to help out. Local fans will recall seeing Darsombra (all the way from Baltimore, Maryland) thrice here at three different venues in the past.

The psychedelic hard rock duo's multimedia stage show debuted here at The New American Pub in July 2017, before rocking LopLops Lounge in August 2019, and they last played here at the so-called March Street Stage in July 2023. All but the Six, Two, Oh.-hosted LopLops gig were promoted by Dryer Fire (now Piecing It Together Shows), and Darsombra were to have played at the Downtown Plaza on Friday alongside British Columbia punk band Mean Bikini, locals The Floor Between Us, and a Muel Goods-hosted independent sellers market. That show will still take place, and according to P.I.T.S. owner Nicole Dyble on their Facebook page, they'll be showing Darsombra videos on the screen above the Plaza's stage, Brian will still receive his artist fee despite being unable to perform, and Mean Bikini will donate $5 from all t-shirt sales on Friday to him. Kudos all around for the support being shown in Ann's memory, both locally and afar!

I was unable to see Darsombra's local dates, but their brand of "post-apocalyptic galaxy rock" made a mark on local fans, and it was impressive to see an American touring band come here this much! Darsombra's mix of hard rock, drone, psychedelic, and experimental sounds, plus a diverse visual experience that Ann had deep involvement in, made them a captivating watch. I've heard very good things about Ann as a person, and I feel so bad for Brian and the rest of their family at this difficult time. We'll have more on Friday's concert in this weekend's concert previews, but consider coming out to show your support and still see some live outdoor music. R.I.P. Ann!

Today's post otherwise features a new song from an upcoming album and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will end their recent hiatus by headlining at Gateway Casino on Saturday, October 18th! This will be Generations' first concert in over two months, last seen at the now-closed(?) Reggie's Place in late July, and their first show at the downtown casino in four months, so fans will have been waiting a long time to see them in action! This wasn't a summer break like some other local cover rock bands had, as drummer Tony Santoro was recovering from carpal tunnel surgery, as per their (now-private) Facebook group. Of note, next Saturday's show will be Generations' first since they parted ways with guitarist Tony Kajnar after a two year run with the band, with Tony S. confirming that he left "due to personal reasons pursuing a new project".

 

Otherwise best known around here from Flat Stanley and The Peace Vibe, hopefully Tony K.'s new band is successful, but it will be easier to not have to specify which Tony when covering Generations! Smokehouse frontman Michael Yurich (who filled in with Generations before Tony K. came on board) will guest on guitar for next Saturday's one-nighter, which takes place at 8:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more on Valerie, Pierre, and Tony's return to the stage!

Finally for today, here's the first advance single from local death/thrash metal trio Pillory's upcoming full length album "Old Soul!" Released on September 30th to Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music (all linked here) as well as their new YouTube Music channel, the song in question is "The Angst Of Existence", which has been a staple in Pillory's sets since their mid-2010s revival era. Of note, the Distrokid tags for the album credit 2015-2017 bassist Jordan Leach as a co-writer of the song alongside Robert and Bret. I have no idea if Jordan (who moved out of the country for work reasons in 2017) recorded bass tracks remotely for the album, or if this is just giving him credit for co-writing the song, but we'll let you know if the band confirms anything! I'll hold comment on "The Angst Of Existence" until we review "Old Soul" on the site next year, but give it a listen below!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this weekend's concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Darsombra & BookcluB) And A New Video Interview!!

Before we begin this post, just a brief apology and clarification, as Tym Morrison did indeed play a solo acoustic show at Misty's Fifties on Saturday, not country musician Allan Mooney. While the promotion for that matinee timeslot was more active on Allan's end, he cited "a mixup in bookings" as to why he wasn't playing (source here), and Tym did quietly share the Facebook event page for his Misty's shows afterwards. I wish Tym would have said more about this gig, but I do apologize for the mix-up on my end, and hopefully this Misty's matinee went well! If you missed it or want more, he will definitely be back there this Saturday, preview forthcoming!

Today's post otherwise dives into a new video, and leading off, two LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for later this month, and we'll start on Saturday, September 20th, when local alternative/punk cover band BookcluB will surprisingly open for Toronto-based Bob Seger tribute band Forever Seger: The Silver Bullet Experience at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion! Much like the Hotel California show this summer with locals Headrush opening, the big tent downtown will play host to a major touring tribute band, and while Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band aren't hard rock or metal, they have a talented and faithful stage show in store for fans of his! BookcluB will provide the SMS tie here with their varied setlist and supergroup lineup, though this will be their first announced show following guitarist Brandon Ruch's move to Barrie, and the band has yet to announce a replacement for him. We'll let you know if we hear anything in that regard!

Tickets cost a flat $44 at this link or at the in-person box office at GFL Memorial Gardens. The show is all ages and it has a 7:00 PM start time. I've never been a massive Seger fan, but Forever Seger definitely do him justice with their faithfully sounding stage show, and Bookclub should set the tone well with their cover mix! Visit the above links for more on this big tribute show later this month!

Next up, Baltimore, Maryland psychedelic hard rock duo Darsombra and Cumberland, British Columbia skate/hardcore punk quartet Mean Bikini will both return to the Soo on Friday, October 10th for a joint concert at the Downtown Plaza! This concert is part of local promoters Piecing It Together Shows' newly announced fall concert calendar, and the only one to have heavier or punk bands on the bill. The same promoters brought both bands here in the past under their old name Dryer Fire, with Darsombra playing three different venues here between 2017-2023 (most recently the so-called March Street Stage), while Mean Bikini headlined at The Speak Easy in September 2023. Good to see both bands back next month, and hopefully the weather holds up for their unique and distinctive original sounds given the outdoor locale! Local comedy/alternative band The Floor Between Us will open the proceedings.

Muel Goods (who you may recognize from vending at last year's It's The Pits Festival in Leeburn) will host an independent sellers market that night too, and visit the Facebook event page for information on how you can be a vendor at said market. This concert is FREE & ALL AGES with a 7:00 PM start time, and it should be a fine way to kick off the Thansgiving long weekend, weather permitting! Visit the above links for more details on this intriguing multi-genre show, as well as P.I.T.S.' other fall concerts!

Finally, remember how local/Barrie crossover thrash band Spades GT had teased an impending video interview with guitarist Matthew "Fang" Voros by Dave Standridge of Hershey, Pennsylvania's This Is Pop Punk Promotions, not unlike what J.D. and Daniel had taken part in last year? Well, that interview has not yet been posted online (if it was even recorded already), but in looking up This Is Pop Punk Promotions' YouTube channel to see if it was posted there yet, I found another very locally relevant interview, and coincidentally, it's with a former bandmate of Daniel's, namely fellow local/Barrie musician Mike Haggith! If Mike plugged this interview on social media after it went live in April, then it completely passed me by. The 28+ minutes-long interview starts right away with Dave asking Mike about the inspiration behind starting his own indie label MorningStar Records, with The Din and the Soo coming up here in context.

This evolves into Mike's exploration into print-on-demand CD/vinyl manufacturing and the DIY indie musician community on YouTube, and of course, the artist-friendly affiliation model rather than musicians signing everything away. Dave next asks Mike about his biggest influences (for musicians and labels) and favourite Barrie-area musicians, and the major act that Mike would most want to work with, before asking some non-musical questions. Among those: Mike's favourite movie, his best vacation, the charity that he'd donate $1 million to, what historical person he'd talk to, what there is to do in Barrie, and his favourite baseball team, which leads into lots of baseball/MLB talk at the end of the interview. This is all definitely more about MorningStar Records and Mike as a person than his solo music career, but it's a good and light interview that fans of his will take to easily!

I do still think that Dave should have more natural segues between questions and points of discussion, as there are a bunch of abrupt topic changes, but he and Mike got along well here, and the baseball discussion came off very natural, even to me, someone who doesn't watch it. Check out Dave & Mike's full interview below, and we'll let you know when/if Fang's interview goes live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!

Mean Bikini Concert Preview, Plus Spades GT Updates!!

Hey guys, just a heads up that my primary computer is having issues outputting sound, so I've had to use my phone and/or a backup laptop for listening to things addressed in today's post. I sincerely hope that this isn't a prolonged issue, but if anything seems amiss from normal coverage, that is why. Now, we have a mid-week concert preview and some more recent news items to address tonight, so here's what you should know!

Punk fans who don't mind seeing a live concert on a school/work night may want to stop by The Speak Easy at Algoma University TOMORROW NIGHT, where Cumberland, British Columbia skate/hardcore punk quartet Mean Bikini will make their local debut! A unique and somewhat politically charged band who uniquely have a half non-binary lineup, this newer group should definitely turn heads with their upbeat and high energy brand of punk rock originals, so don't sleep on Mean Bikini despite the Wednesday night timing! Online page-less (Instagram aside) local folk punk solo project Agnosticism will open in their first show of the fall, so if you're interested in seeing Vanity First/Ha!ls guitarist Mikhal Muto's unplugged exploits, be there nice and early tomorrow! Promoted by Dryer Fire, it has since been confirmed that this 7:00 PM show will be all ages, so don't worry about the student ID exemption here!

Furthermore, despite initially having an admission fee of $10 in advance ($15 at the door), Dryer Fire have announced that this show is FREE thanks to support from the Algoma University Student Union, so keep that in mind! We haven't seen a public punk/metal concert at The Speak Easy in over five years, with a pandemic and heavy renovations happening in the interim, so it'll be interesting to hear how tomorrow's show goes over! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Mean Bikini live!

Next up, here's the latest from local/Barrie crossover thrash band Spades GT, so what have they been up to over the past month? On September 1st, their new album "Sewer City Radio" got a perfect 5/5 review by John Haseltine of Metal-Rules.com in their "Quick Jabs" series of brief new album reviews. John highly praised the "highly infectious tracks" as being "heavy thrashy rock with that pop-punk feel", and while he's not quite right about calling this their "debut album" (someone send him "The First"!), the praise was well deserved! A week later, the former Jack Spades posted a "Reel" on their Facebook page where frontman J.D. Pearce kinda covers Alanis Morrissette's "You Oughta Know".... kinda! You have to watch it to get the joke. Another "Reel" made its way there on the 17th where drummer Tyler Reiner showed off their new "Sewer City Radio" t-shirts that are now on sale.

The shirts actually show a radio station graphic, so there's a new interpretation! Spades GT's most recent show saw them and other bands open for Random Killing (a band Saultites know very well) at The Bovine Sex Club in Toronto on Saturday night, which J.D. and Daniel plugged in two separate "Reels" linked here & here (nothing major to report in either, though J.D.'s has glitchy video effects). Daniel posted another "Reel" on Sunday to thank everyone who came to see them at The Bovine, and he noted there that Aidan Grossman of the The Grossman Film Group was filming their set for an upcoming docuseries. Aidan had filmed Spades GT when they opened for Anvil in Toronto in May of last year, and the footage was excellent despite the longer raw video never being posted online. This bodes very well assuming that the docuseries plans go according to plan, and hopefully it does!

One more "Reel" was posted earlier today featuring some of Aidan's footage, and true to form from last year, the quality is very good as we see (most of) Spades playing at The Bovine and talking to the camera beforehand, but why was this uploaded as a "Reel"? Aidan's footage is in landscape orientation (16:9) whereas "Reels" are permanently vertical! I recommend watching in full screen on a computer if you can, and true to form, I can't embed it here. Photos from the Toronto show (which guitarist Jay Sarrazin was absent for) were also posted to Facebook. In terms of new shows, Spades GT have added to their Toronto concert opening for Anvil with dates opening for the "Metal On Metal" icons in Sudbury at The Coulson Entertainment Centre on October 26th & at The Queens Nightclub in Barrie on November 9th (the Pembroke show listed on this poster does not feature Spades GT).

Alas, no Soo date, but it'll be neat for locals there to see both bands, and for father & son Reiner to share the same stage on these nights! Finally, their newest announced show will take them back to The Atria in Oshawa on October 28th when they and eight other bands will open for Random Killing again at the twelfth "In Crust We Trust" concert there. Spades opened for Drew & crew at The Atria in July as well, so this will be a familiar night even moreso if you're in the area! Now we're caught up on what Spades GT have been up to this month, but stay tuned for more on the site soon, including this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Fall Of Earth & Mean Bikini), The Ripcordz Concert Preview, And New Videos!!

We are officially in the fall months, and let's kick things off with a packed post on this Friday morning, including LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, one more weekend concert preview, and some new live videos. Here's what you should know to kick off your Labour Day long weekend!

Cumberland, British Columbia punk quartet Mean Bikini will make their local concert debut on Wednesday, September 27th when they headline at Algoma University's on-campus nightclub The Speak Easy! It is great to see The Speak Easy being used as a metal/punk venue again, as we haven't covered a SMS-amenable show there in over five years (pandemic acknowledged). A unique band in the sense that half of their lineup is non-binary, Mean Bikini's intense brand of skate and hardcore punk (dotted with some political lyrics) should find a very receptive audience later this month, and while all of their music on Bandcamp so far is relatively new, you have to start somewhere! Online page-less local folk punk/emo solo project Agnosticism (led by Vanity First/Hails guitarist Mikhal Muto) will open the proceedings in their first gig since playing at a private house party event with multiple other acts on August 19th.

This concert is one of four being put on by local promoters Dryer Fire this month, half being at The Speak Easy, and I hope that both do well to encourage more promoters to resume booking concerts there, especially after they completed some big renovations post-pandemic! This mid-week concert has an announced 7:00 PM start time, tickets are $10 in advance at this link or $15 at the door, and while one assumes this will be 19+, many past Speak Easy concerts were open to underage attendees if they had valid Algoma University student ID, so inquire within if this still applies. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details!

Next up, if you've been craving a proper metal show, this should help, as Edmonton melodic deathcore quartet Fall Of Earth will make their local debut on Friday, October 6th at Soo Blaster! Another relatively newer band with no posted media before the 2020s, Fall Of Earth bring a hybrid of metal subgenres to the table along with a standout live performance, and as they hit the road in support of their new album "From The Ashes", hopefully local metalheads come out in full force for this one next month! Reunited local death metal quartet The Bear Hunters will play their first public concert in almost two years as openers, and if you discount that Mellow D's Underground-hosted event given the venue's pop-up nature, this will be their first truly public show with a permanent address since 2019, when The Bear Hunters opened for Seax & Warsenal, also at Soo Blaster. Hopefully there's much more from Nik, Mitch, Justin, and Johnny to come, and it's great to have them back!

The opening band will be newer local metal trio The BAG, fresh off of their set at Lopstock in July, and they should set the tone with their in your face (if mostly untitled publically) original slate and select covers! Promoted by Bear Hunters drummer Johnny Belanger (who also hosted the big, yet private & friends-aimed event in Leeburn last month), this concert has a 7:30 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and admission of $15 in advance or $20 at the door. I am not sure if they're selling tickets online or if they will be solely available through local openers/the venue, keep posted for updates on that front. This should be a great time for metal fans, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details!

Now let's wrap up this weekend's known hard rock and punk concert previews within an hour of city limits, and it's the big one, as Montreal hardcore punk trio The Ripcordz will make their post-pandemic return to the Soo TONIGHT at The Loft at The Algoma Conservatory of Music! Like The Bear Hunters above, this will be Paul Gott & crew's first stop at a permanent local venue since the fall of 2019, but they've never stopped, we just had a pandemic and the move of usual local promoter J.D. Pearce to contend with. Now they're back for another furious night of hardcore punk originals old and new, and if you saw their seven local dates from 2013-2019 or their numerous trips prior, you won't want to miss out on tonight's festivities! Local support will come by way of alt-punk trio A Dire Setback (who opened for The Ripcordz the last time they came here) and newer local punk rock quartet Far From Fine.

Fresh off of their sets at The Northern Vibe Festival, hopefully their Loft debuts go swimmingly tonight! Promoted by ex-Destroilet drummer Matt Waples in his debut booking, tonight's 19+ and 8:00 PM show has $25 tickets on sale at this link, and uniquely, Matt plans to hold a $500 raffle IF the show sells out of online tickets. Ploy to sell out the concert or just trying something different? I don't know, but if you want a shot at $500, don't wait to buy at the door! This should be a fun concert for hardcore punk fans, and long overdue in many respects, so visit the official Facebook event page for more on tonight's action, and here's The Ripcordz live!

We'll close today with new videos from Nostalgic Band frontman and veteran acoustic singer/guitarist Tym Morrison! This past Saturday, he took the hour+ drive east to Thessalon for a private booking of some description at the Pinecrest Tent & Trailer Park there, and as luck would have it, Christopher Paci was there that day and decided to film some of his set for his YouTube channel! How their paths crossed, I don't know, but Chris filmed Tym covering Toto's "Africa", Oasis' "Wonderwall", and as embedded below, Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive". Granted, this is the only one not zoomed in, but it is the longest of the three, and allows us to see the cabin space that Tym was playing at on Saturday at a little better. I'm not a huge fan of these songs, but Tym performs them as strongly as you'd expect, and his full solo concert setup came with him to Thessalon, so check these out above & below, and don't miss Tym TONIGHT at The Trading Post!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!