Today's post is devoted to Kewadin Casino concert videos, new and old alike, and we'll start with the Skid Row-headlined concert at The Dreammakers Theater in Sault Ste. Marie on March 23rd, which took on new significance when frontman Erik Gronwall left the New Jersey glam metal band just four days later to focus on his health (Erik is a leukemia survivor & bone marrow transplant recipient with a compromised immune system). In fact, the Sault Ste. Marie show was the final one with Erik, so how's that for timing? Our first post with videos from the show went up on the day his departure was announced! Of course, our best thoughts go out to Erik, whose health actually caused this show/tour to be postponed from the fall as it was, and for my money, he was the best singer Skid Row had brought on since Sebastian Bach left! Halestorm's Lzzy Hale will fill in temporarily with Skid Row in their upcoming festival dates.
As for the Soo show, the ever prolific Christopher Paci was in attendance to film all three bands on the 23rd for his YouTube channel, filming Skid Row in eight videos! He shot them playing "Big Guns", "18 & Life", "Psycho Therapy", "Time Bomb", "I Remember You", "The Gang's All Here", "Youth Gone Wild", and as embedded below, their set-opener "Slave To The Grind". Chris was further away from the stage than in prior local videos that we've seen, but we do see more of the stage at once here, and it was an honest sell out based on the audience! The sound here is a little soft but you hear everything you need to, and Erik was nailing these songs even on his final date, so check them out above & below!
Next up, Chris also filmed six videos from co-headlining Los Angeles hard rock quintet Buckcherry's set, including "Say Fuck It" (they titled it, not me), "Hellbound", "Sorry", "Gluttony", their extended & covers-infused "Crazy Bitch" medley, and as embedded below, their opening song "Lit Up". I've never been a huge fan of theirs, and Josh's voice is inconsistent across these videos, especially later in the set, but they put in an energetic performance for fans, and they've always been good to the Twin Saults, so give Buckcherry's newest local concert videos a watch above & below!
As for opening Philadelphia hair metal quartet Britny Fox, Chris filmed them playing "Plenty Of Love", "Girlschool", and as embedded below, "Dream On". Even with a mostly different lineup than when fans last saw Britny Fox in town, they sound good for glam metal fans on these videos, and for better or worse, less fans had cameras rolling so you get a clearer view of the band than you do with the later acts. Check these out for yourselves above & below as well!
Finally, let's wind back to 2014 for a video that I didn't feature on the site in the first place. Back in November 2014, Staind frontman Aaron Lewis came to Sault Ste. Marie for the first time since launching his solo career as a country musician, and while that obviously doesn't fit our genre range, he did and still does cover Staind ballads in his solo sets. At the time, I covered videos filmed by attendee Dana Howland on here, as she filmed Aaron playing Staind's "It's Been Awhile" and covering Pearl Jam's "Black" (which was a solo radio hit for him years before he acutally went solo). Either due to my own omission or due to that post being written before she uploaded it (it's been nine years, I don't remember), I never acknowledged that she also filmed Aaron playing the Staind hit "Right Here Waiting" at Kewadin on this night, so it is embedded below! This came to my attention because it was re-uploaded as a "Shorts" video.
As such, her Staind videos from 2014, this one included, turned up in their own special section when searching for recent Kewadin videos. "Shorts" are not as restrictive as Facebook "Reels", and her videos were vertical and focused on a solo musician right along, so I won't complain about the formatting here (no comment on Aaron's political views either, but this show was before a lot of that became more prominent). The stage lighting is VERY over-exposed here, but Aaron's performance is on point for Staind fans, so give this belated local concert video a watch below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
For today's post, let's take our first gander at videos from Saturday night's sold out Skid Row/Buckcherry concert at The Dreammakers Theatre at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino! What I have heard from the concert has been largely positive, but you can see for yourself here, as at least two attendees so far have posted videos from Saturday's festivities, and more is absolutely to come. Just a heads up, both of the channels mentioned here don't appear to be locally based, and moreso are Skid Row fans who travel to film them at multiple gigs, so the majority of the videos on their channels are not local. We'll start with the headlining New Jersey glam metal veterans, who were the only band filmed for attendee theheidis' channel. She shot Skid Row playing "Youth Gone Wild", and while I would normally embed that one here as it's much longer, I'm instead embedding the video of them playing their new album's title track "The Gang's All Here".
Why that video? Because it's multi-camera, but not in the way you're thinking. While one half of the video is shot by theheidis, the other was shot on her friend's camera by Skid Row singer Erik Gronwall! It looks like he filmed vertically and theheidis opted to crop her horizontal video to fit both in frame within a 16:9 aspect ratio. Not ideal for her copy, but we get a very unique split view for over a minute, with Erik filming the audience and himself in "selfie mode" (as it were) while synced up with theheidis' video. Very neat, and the song is solid for fans, who shouldn't have much to worry about with Erik behind the mic! Check out theheidis' videos above & below!
Today's other videos come from YouTube user Diana, a.k.a. yuthgonwild (sic), who did film all three bands on Saturday. Diana filmed eight videos at Kewadin, with five being of Skid Row's set, including "The Gang's All Here", "Resurrected" (abbreviated when her phone cut out), and "Monkey Business", albeit in two chunks, again due to her phone cutting out during the song. The longer first part is embedded below, but you can watch part 2 here, and a forcibly vertical/abbreviated version can also be seen there in "Shorts" format. Diana had a similar vantage point to theheidis, with a close seat near the stage's far right corner, but her video quality is a little rougher by comparison. Fans will still very much enjoy her videos, especially "Monkey Business" (one of my favourite Skid Row songs), and the guys sound really good across all three songs filmed for this channel, so definitely give these a watch above & below!
Diana filmed two videos of Los Angeles hard rock quintet Buckcherry's co-headlining set, including of their song "Gluttony", but embedded below is their set closing hit "Crazy Bitch!" Now, the video is 11+ minutes long because, as is common for this song in recent years, they extended it by making it a medley with a bunch of covers and incomplete songs, along with band introductions and crowd banter (they definitely did this at their Sault Ontario show in 2021). Filmed at more of a low side-stage vantage point here, the performances are lively and well received, but Josh's vocals are definitely tired by this late stage of the night, and he can be heard to hear. Check everything out above & below!
Finally for now, Diana filmed opening Philadelphia hair metal quartet Britny Fox playing their hit song "Long Way To Love" on Saturday! Now, 15 years have passed since their last show here, during which time the band went on hiatus, with bassist Billy Childs relaunching them in 2022 with no other classic members, so any preconceptions from 2009 should be avoided. Still, this lineup seems to have a good handle on things and they have a good ear for melodies, not to mention strong vocals from new frontman Ronnie Rogers, so give their performance a watch below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!
Another concert weekend is upon us, so let's preview known hard rock/punk concerts taking place over the next couple of days! As heavier shows go, this is a quieter weekend, perhaps the hangover after St. Patrick's Day, but there is a big concert in the E.U.P. to note, and first, a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for Sault Ontario, so here's what you should know!
Online page-less local alternative/punk cover band Bookclub will play their first publically advertised concert of 2024 when they return to Searchmont Resort TOMORROW for their Spring Bash! Apologies for the short notice, we only heard about this event via this poster on Searchmont's Facebook page this past Saturday, and Bookclub still do not have social media pages to promote their concerts with. While this Inner City Surfers alum-laden supergroup have played Searchmont before inside at The Kiln, TOMORROW'S concert will be outdoors on Searchmont's patio, marking out first concert preview of 2024 where a weather forecast will be optimal! Along with the music, skiiers and snowboarders can expect a terrain park party TOMORROW with drink discounts, fun & games, prizes, and more, so visit Searchmont's post linked above for more details on what to expect!
Prices for skiing and such aside, TOMORROW'S show has no cover charge or age limit, and Bookclub are playing a 3:00-5:00 PM matinee, with the bash proper beginning at noon and running into the evening. Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for sunny weather at -5°, so the recent winter resurgence will likely not have new precipitation TOMORROW, but the cold temperatures will be a plus or minus depending on what you personally like if not hitting the slopes. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Bookclub live last fall!
Next up, here's some previously announced concerts, stating with local southern hard rock veterans Bone Yard 225, who will return to the stage TOMORROW NIGHT for an unplugged (uncorked, if you prefer) concert at Gateway Casino!
Last seen in their acoustic format at The Water Tower Pub four weeks
ago, this will be Bone Yard's first unplugged show since tacking "225"
to their name late last month. If you like/prefer their stripped down
"uncorked" set, and/or miss The Bearded Lounge, don't miss out on all of
the action tomorrow, with lots of classic and hard rock hits to go
around! A one-nighter as is standard for the venue, Bone Yard 225 take
the stage at Gateway Casino tomorrow at 9:00 PM, and expect a 19+ age
limit. See above for more details, and for a preview, here's two brand new videos from Bone Yard 225's jam night-hosting duties at Reggie's Place last night!
Originally filmed by attendee Marcy Catherine before being shared to their Facebook page, the videos are not standard fare in any sense. Reggie's was in the part of town hit by a raccoon-induced power outage last night (click here for details), so Bone Yard 225 made the most of it by getting uncorked a day early! Marcy filmed them (with Greg on vocals, Alex on guitar, and Warren providing hand clap percussion) covering Van Halen's "Ice Cream Man" and, as embedded below, Queen's "Fat Bottomed Girls". Lighting is much worse on the latter, but again, they were literally blacked out at Reggie's. Fun, if vertically shot, covers that show Bone Yard 225 turning lemons into lemonade, so check them out above & below!
Finally, here's the big one for known & announced hard rock shows this weekend, as New Jersey glam metal icons Skid Row and Anaheim hard rock band Buckcherry will both return to The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino TOMORROW NIGHT! This sold out concert will be Skid Row's first here since October 2005 (the cancelled 2008 show at Runway Park in Sault Ontario acknowledged), but they've had momentum on their side in recent years since their lead singer carousel stopped on Erik Gronwall, whose energy and Sebastian-esque voice have won very positive reviews as of late, so hopefully classics like "Youth Gone Wild" and "Monkey Business" go over strongly tomorrow! Buckcherry have been more prominent on local stages since we last saw Skid Row, with this being their fifth show in the Twin Saults since 2011, and third in under five years!
Readers will have last seen Josh Todd and crew in October 2021 when Buckcherry were the first major touring hard rock headliners in Sault Ontario following the pandemic lockdowns, but they last played at Kewadin during their outdoor show with Pop Evil in 2019. While I'm admittedly not a fan of theirs, Buckcherry have been good to the area in the past 13 years, and hopefully their hits like "Crazy Bitch" and "Lit Up" draw a solid response once again! Philadelphia hair metal quartet Britny Fox will open the proceedings in their first local concert since opening for Great White at the Soo Kewadin fifteen years ago, though only bassist Billy Childs remains in the band from that 2009 set. He's found a solid lineup to bring hits like "Long Way To
Love" & "Dream On" to the stage, so don't be late for their set! This concert (and its tour leg) was postponed from October 28th to tomorrow due to Skid Row singer Erik Gronwall's health concerns.
Presented by Rock 101 and The Hair Scare, this all ages concert begins at 8:00 PM tomorrow night, and it is legitimately sold out (hair metal's a proven draw up here!). If you want to be notified on late ticket availability, click here, call 1-800-KEWADIN, or check the in person box office, and for reference, anything that opens up will start at $45 USD. Non-refunded tickets from the original October date will be honoured tomorrow. This will be a huge night for hair and glam metal fans, and the new Skid Row lineup definitely deliver the goods for old and new fans alike, so visit the above links for more details, and here's Skid Row live!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!
On this Friday afternoon, today's post takes us entirely to Sault Michigan and the Eastern Upper Peninsula, courtesy of some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, a major show postponement, and an apology for missing a festival featuring one of the bands in question. Here's what you should know!
Local hard rock band The Nameless will return to the stage with their apparent headlining debut on Friday, September 22nd at The Merchants Bar! This very sporadically seen quintet have only played two publically acknowledged concerts to date, most recently at the Scotty Austin show at The Savoy Bar in March, and while I'm not sure why they've been so publically quiet since debuting last year, hopefully their cover-centric set and on-stage chemistry have developed to the point where they can comfortably headline a solo concert! Be advised that The Merch's Facebook page has not publically acknowledged this show at press time, which shouldn't be all that shocking, as the venue rarely promotes artists playing there online. Next week's show has a 9:00 PM start time, no cover charge, and 21+ age limit. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for more!
Before we move on, note above that I said "publically acknowledged concerts", as The Nameless actually played at this year's Sugar Island Music Festival on Friday & Saturday, August 11th-12th. Their sets were advertised on the festival's website, but the band did not promote their involvement in advance online. The Sugar Island Festival (45 minutes east of the Soo by road/ferry) came back after a pandemic hiatus in 2021, but hadn't booked known hard rock bands again until this year, after usually having a token hard rock act in the past (often Banned or Tarnished). I profusely apologize for missing out on the Sugar Island Fest for coverage here, but hopefully The Nameless made a strong impression!
Next up, Kewadin Casino have announced their band schedules for this and next month on their website's entertainment pages! As noted in yesterday's post, two will see Traverse City classic
metal trio Peril back at The Northern Pines Lounge in St. Ignace on October 13th & 14th (following tonight & tomorrow's Rapids Lounge concerts), while we already knew about Manistique hard rock duo Fyrbird's shows in St. Ignace next weekend. Two of the upcoming weekends were not known to us prior to yesterday, and are now listed in our calendar, starting with the aforementioned Fyrbird, who Kewadin has returning to The Rapids Lounge in the Soo on Friday, October 6th & Saturday, October 7th! These shows are not listed on the schedule posted on their Facebook group in June, which says that they're playing a show in Stephenson in the western Upper Peninsula on that Saturday.
Given that Kewadin's schedule is newer than the aforementioned schedule on the band's end, I'm inclined to believe that the Stephenson booking was cancelled, but we'll let you know if Kewadin erred on the schedule in some form. You can enjoy Fyrbird's hard rocking minimalist covers back in the E.U.P. in three weeks at 9:00 PM with 21+ age limits and no cover charges as usual, but again, they'll definitely be in St. Ignace next weekend first, plus in Gould City (in Mackinac County but beyond our one hour's drive-time coverage range) at month's end. See above for more details!
The other new Kewadin dates ahead for hard rock fans will see local hard rock cover quartet Rhythm & Brews return to The Rapids Lounge on Friday, October 27th & Saturday, October 28th! Yes, this talented union of Nixxon Dixxon & Highway 63 alumni drew the Halloween weekend at the Sault Ste. Marie branch, so you can expect lots of entertaining hard rock tunes from Brandon, the Chris', and Ron in a month & a half's time! No word on a costume contest or specific spooky frills for the occasion, but one imagines that costumes will be encouraged, especially on that Saturday. Of course, remember that Rhythm & Brews rarely update their Facebook page, so they may not plug these shows there. Once again, these are 21+ events with 19+ age limits and no announced cover, Halloween weekend timing acknowledged. See above for more details, and stay tuned for more from Rhythm & Brews if it comes in!
To close this all-Sault Michigan post, we have a major concert postponement to note on here, as the Skid Row/Buckcherry concert at The Dreammakers Theatre at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino will no longer take place on Saturday, October 28th. On Wednesday, the headlining New Jersey hair metal legends announced that the third leg of their The Gang's All Here tour with Buckcherry was being postponed to next spring due to health concerns with singer Erik Gronwall. Skid Row's camp did not go into complete details about what's wrong, but Erik is a leukemia survivor, and he noted in the press release that he still has a compromised immune system following a stem cell transplant two years ago, which can make it harder for him to beat infections. Given Erik's vocal abilities and how well he's been received after their carousel of vocalists in the 2010s, it speaks to their faith in him that they'd postpone the tour while he heals up!
The tour run will now end in the Soo on Saturday, March 23rd, a postponement of exactly 21 weeks. Tickets bought for the October date will be honoured next year, but refunds are available at point of purchase, so inquire with Kewadin Casino if you don't think you can make the new date. With the date change, there has been a band removal, as while Buckcherry will still return to our area as co-headliners, the new tour poster no longer lists Philadelphia hair metal quartet Britny Fox. Disappointing to see them apparently drop out, presumably due to scheduling, but hopefully they come back up here down the road! Note that the poster does credit an opening set on this leg from Waterloo, Ontario hard rock quartet Sierra Pilot (featuring Spades GT guitarist Jay Sarrazin, and as seen at The Northern Vibe Festival last month), but as best as I can gather, Sierra Pilot's own advertising only has them playing the Canadian dates next March.
Sierra Pilot aren't a new addition to the tour, for the record, as they were scheduled to open north of the border next month as it was. If they do happen to be able to play in Sault Michigan (or if another bands it tapped to open then instead), we'll let you know, but keep the new date circled for your hair metal and hard rock fix in March, and hopefully Erik gets well soon! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site over the weekend! Thanks everyone!
As promised, today's post is stacked, courtesy of three big LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS across both sides of the border, so here's what you should know!
Local alternative/hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich & indie/punk quartet The Northwest will hit up The Sault Community Theatre Centre for the first time each as part of a four band event on Saturday, June 10th! Entitled Soo Soundcheck (no known relation), this is one of two multi-band events taking place in June at the former Kiwanis Theatre that share very similar branding & support from the Canadian Heritage Fund & Case's Music (if these aren't promoted internally, I don't know who's putting them on). This will be Handsome Sandwich's first announced concert since their album release show at The Loft next Saturday, while The Northwest have yet to play on a local stage in 2023. This event will see them & indie rock quartet Man Feelings (Handsome Sandwich's openers next week) opening for sporadically seen progressive rock band Machines Dream.
Be advised that the image on the ticket sale page does not include The Northwest, and while Occam's Razor says it's an old listing, we'll let you know if they actually dropped out (the image above was from Machines Dream's Facebook page on Monday). An all ages event with doors opening at 6:00 PM, tickets are $16 for adults and $12 for students, seniors, and kids 12 and under, and you can buy them at this link (use the code s@undcheck2023 by Sunday to get $4 off of an adult ticket). Very intriguing idea, especially to use such a large theatre for an all-locals concert like this, talented as they all may be, so visit the above links for more details, but we're not done with the S.C.T.C. yet!
The other June show at White Pines' on-site theatre will see local funk/hard rock cover sextet The Wyld Stallyns and online page-less alternative/punk quintet Bookclub join forces again on Sunday, June 25th, this time in a concert dubbed Northern Echoes! Making their fourth joint appearance since Bookclub debuted last fall (with the Festival of Beer coming next for them next Saturday), Northern Echoes is suggested on the ticket sale page to be tribute band-centric, though if Bookclub and The Stallyns are taking on one-off tribute themes for the day or not, I couldn't tell you with certainty yet. This does call to mind J.D. Pearce's old Halloween parties, which leaned into one-off and temporarily renamed cover bands by the late 2010s, but again, I know nothing. At least one more band is teased to join this bill though, and we'll let you know when they are revealed, tribute/cover band-themed or not.
Ticket prices and start times are the same for Northern Echoes and Soo Soundcheck, but be advised that Northern Echoes has $8 admission for kids 12 and under, not $12 (no word on why there's a distinction). Click here to buy Northern Echoes tickets! Presumably, the S.C.T.C. box office at Station Mall can also hook you up for both. Something about these events leaves me thinking that there's more going on with them/the venue than current promotion is letting on, so stay tuned in that regard, but hopefully The Wyld Stallyns and Bookclub make use of the huge stage in mid-June, despite being a work/school night for many. Visit the above links for continuing updates on both concerts as they roll in!
Finally, here's that big new concert at The Dreammakers Theatre at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, as New Jersey glam metal quintet Skid Row and Anaheim hard rock quintet Buckcherry will join forces there on Saturday, October 28th! Both bands are no stranger to the Soo area, with headliners Skid Row last playing here in October of 2005, back when the late Johnny Solinger and Dave Gara were on vocals and drums. This time, Erik Gronwall and Rob Hammersmith have the honours, and Skid Row have been getting lots of positive renewed attention since Erik took the mic thanks to their new album "The Gang's All Here", so expect cuts from that disc and hit songs like "18 & Life", "I Remember You", and "Monkey Business" in their set this fall! Yes, Skid Row were also supposed to play at Runway Park in Sault Ontario in June 2008, in a cancelled show more famous now for the linked battle of the bands won by Sense of Truth (imagine if they reunited to open for this!)
Meanwhile, Buckcherry have played in our area at least four times since 2011, most recently at Soo Blaster in Sault Ontario in October 2021, at the Soo Kewadin in an outdoor gig with Pop Evil in 2019, and in The Dreammakers Theatre proper in 2012. While not a hair/glam band, Buckcherry have multiple songs with lyrics and themes that fit right in with Skid Row, and the contrast in sounds will appeal to a wide array of local rock fans! Expect Buckcherry hits like "Lit Up", "Sorry", and "Crazy Bitch" in their return set this fall, of course. Support will come by way of Philadelphia hair metal quartet Britny Fox, who Hair Scare fans may recall seeing at The Dreammakers Theatre way back in January 2009 when they opened for Great White. In the 14+ years since, only bassist Billy Childs remains, but hits like "Long Way To Love" & "Dream On" are to be expected!
Presented by Rock 101, tickets go on sale to the public on May 12th at this link, at 1-800-KEWADIN, and at the in-person box office. Tickets will start at $45, but the full price range is not out yet. Pre-sale codes will be available if you sign up at this link, and the pre-sale tickets become available on May 10th. This is an all ages event with an 8:00 PM start time. This should be a huge concert for hard rock and hair metal fans, and with this being the Halloween weekend, who knows what horrors await in six months! There's plenty of time to get amped up for this one, so visit the above links for complete details, and stay tuned for this month's CD review and more news and notes on the site very soon! Thanks everyone!
Before we dive into fallout from last night's big concert, let's clear out some more backlogged news stories in today's post, including new material from a rising young metal guitarist, some very belated details on a local rock journalist's return to interviewing, and leading off, a new song from an upcoming album! Here's what you should know!
The second single from local indie/punk quintet The Northwest's upcoming third EP "All In" can now be heard on major streaming services and within their new music video! Uploaded to their YouTube channel on Thursday, the video (directed by Andrew Sowka) features hands holding Polaroid photographs framed over the widescreen view of the picture-in-hand, and the song's lyrics progressively appear on the bottom of the Polaroid. If that's not your speed, the lyrics are also in the video description. Interesting approach and it's well made for what The Northwest were going for! They got a second interview with Niagara Falls music website From The Strait yesterday, where writer Kris Goetz asked an unidentified band member about this song's inspiration, their songwriting process, who they'd like to tour with, getting played on Hockey Night In Canada, and what helps The Northwest stand out as a band.
While the repeat coverage from an out-of-town site rather than a local one may seem a little odd, remember that The Northwest are getting more and more eyeballs on them thanks to the Hockey Night In Canada appearances and their own acknowledged talents & experience, and the interview gives us some good insight into what they're aiming for nowadays! I'll hold comment on "Shorelines" for now, pending our eventual review of "All In", but give The Northwest's new music video a watch below!
Next up, I wanted to give a long overdue spotlight to a local journalist and interviewer who we had talked about pre-pandemic, namely Ernest "Che" Skinner, who wrote the Rock Talk column for SaultOnline in the late 2010s before moving over to Wawa-News.com in February 2019. Well, he left that site as well and has since went independent, via last summer's launch of Border City Rock Talk, which specializes primarily in coverage of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and his own classic-leaning rock music reviews, interviews, and opinion pieces. For the most part, his rock articles on Border City Rock Talk so far have not been hyper-focused on local bands or concerts, but remember that the pandemic has been a steady concern. Still, Ernest has gotten some very big gets for both print and video interviews that you can read on their website and their YouTube channel! For example, who all has Che interviewed for YouTube in the past year?
Among others, you can check out interviews with Twisted Sister's Dee Snider, Triumph's Rik Emmet, Spinal Tap and The Simpsons' Harry Shearer, Great White's Jack Russell, and Helix's Brian Vollmer, so clearly Ernest is doing the right things to attract some big names! I will embed one here, as it crosses both the hard rock and local concert line, namely Ernest's 15 minute interview with Buckcherry frontman Josh Todd from last August, which was obviously in advance of Buckcherry's headlining date at Soo Blaster in October. Apologies for this being so late, I didn't know Ernest had resumed his rock interviews and writing until very recently. The interview has Ernest asking Josh about their new album "Hellbound", Josh's fandom of Minor Threat, how the tour was going at that point, what to expect from Buckcherry's setlist, what critics think, the struggle with alcoholism, Josh's work as a phlebotomist, ...
...and how the pandemic personally affected him. While there are a few hesistant points with Ernest's questions, this was a casual and well handled interview that goes along well with what he's been doing for so long now, and at least the Buckcherry show went on as planned last fall! Hopefully we'll see more from Border City Rock Talk that crosses over with local concerts & musicians as bookings tick up this year, but give his Josh Todd interview a watch below, read and view much more above, and Border City Rock Talk is finally linked on the SMS!
Finally, I wanted to give another spotlight to local metal guitarist Shane Desjardins, who has recently resumed working on original material under his project name Red Ruins Me! We've mentioned him on the SMS in 2019 and in 2020, and while I don't believe Red Ruins Me has a social media presence beyond their YouTube channel, Shane did post a "full album" there last month named "Resurrect", followed by a pair of instrumental deathcore tracks & two live videos. One is a compilation of guitar riffs, while the other sees Shane & a friend covering Killswitch Engage's "Rose of Sharyn" (albeit with the original song very loud). I don't know if Red Ruins Me will ever expand beyond free YouTube postings, but Shane is a talented songwriter with a good ear for brutal riffs that honestly remind me of something you'd hear in an action video game soundtrack at times! Give his music a listen above & below, and look for a surprise Rolling Stones cover!
That's all for today, but if all goes well, we will start looking at B.L.S. concert fallout tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
Things have been quiet lately, but the SMS will be busier in the home-stretch of October 2021, and that starts with a new news post on this Sunday morning, including more new videos from a recent notable concert and leading off, a new album re-release, so here's what you should know!
As promised, defunct local power pop/hard rock trio The Din released the "deluxe edition" of their 2017 debut album "Give In To The Din" on multiple digital platforms yesterday, so what should you know about that? Early promotion for the re-release indicated that there would be 18 tracks, double the amount on the album in it's original form, and whether you expected this would comprise of an alternate version of each song or completely unreleased material, you'll be partially right on both fronts. Two of the nine songs are new in studio form, namely a demo version of the previously unreleased original "Differences" and a 98 second spoken word track named "Our Place In The Scene". The rest are pre-release variants of songs that did make the cut for the album, including an alternate version & instrumental mix of "Flux", first and instrumental mixes of "Potato (Should've Known Better)", a demo version of "Remember", ...
...a first mix of "In Search Of The Perfect Moment", and an instrumental mix of "75". You can stream all 18 songs, new & old, on Spotify and Bandcamp, while the album will run you $7.99 on Amazon or $10 on Bandcamp in mp3 format. Full links for it's streaming/download locations can be found on The Din's Distrokid page. I won't comment on the deluxe edition yet, as this will very likely be reviewed on the SMS this week, but give the whole album a listen/purchase above, and stay tuned for news on when The Din's teased live album "Technically Live" will come out, let alone frontman Mike Haggith's first live-streamed solo concert in over a year tonight on his Facebook page!
Next up, here's the rest of prolific local concert filmer Christopher Paci's videos from Tuesday night's Buckcherry concert at Soo Blaster! Chris started uploading these on Wednesday night, well after his first Bad Chug video was uploaded that morning, but too late for me to include in our last news post on Thursday, which was auto-posted at midnight and completed the previous day. Starting with the headliners, Chris filmed five videos of the Anaheim hard rock quintet playing their set-opener "54321", "Hellbound", "Rain's Falling", "Sorry", and as embedded below, the end of their cover of Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69", followed by their own song "Crazy Bitch", which was extended to over 10 minutes via frontman Josh Todd introducing the band, bantering with the crowd, and covering a bit of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Proud Mary" before the final chorus. This is all fairly common for this song live, FYI.
While I personally am not a Buckcherry fan, it's great to see them finally make up their May (and November) 2020 date here and tour Canada successfully without any visible illnesses throwing a spanner in the works! I'd have liked to have seen more masks on fans, especially given how packed the floor was for Buckcherry's set, but remember, vaccine passports were mandatory to enter Soo Blaster for this one. Audio has it's scratchier moments, but Chris had a good angle of Buckcherry, and they were on form compared to their Kewadin gigs from the 2010s, so check out all of their videos from Tuesday night above and below!
Chris also filmed three videos of opening local punk trio Redundant's first public concert set in over two years, including of them covering Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues", and an abbreviated 1:40 version of The Ramones' "Blitzkrieg Bop", but embedded below is them playing their own original "What Will You Do". Nice to see Justin, Andrew, and Rick back on stage after far too long, and they seem happy and in their element on these strongly done tracks, though note that Chris was on the opposite side of the stage for their set. Give these a look above & below as well!
Finally, Chris had one more video of local/Ottawa hard rock quartet Bad Chug to upload that didn't go up at the same time as his prior song of theirs, so here it is! Also featuring Aaron on lead vocals, it's a slower number (but still heavy) compared to their first upload from Tuesday night, and appeared to feature Jacob using a talk box for backing vocals, which you don't see here too often! Like before, I couldn't make out enough words to tell if this was an original or a cover. Chris' vantage point of the stage was better here, so Aaron is much easier to make out, but this is at the expense of Kyle, who was at least very active! Give Bad Chug's second video a look below, and hopefully we hear more from them soon!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for our recap of the aforementioned Mike Haggith's revived live-stream concerts tomorrow, but remember that you can tune in tonight at 7:00 PM EST on his Facebook page to watch it live first if you are so inclined! Thanks everyone!
We're back with a new news post on the SMS on this Thursday morning, and it includes one more teaser for a concert tonight at a technically private venue (organizers want fans to come though, and this may be the push you need!), plus the first public videos from a recent major concert, and leading off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this month! Here's what you should know!
Revived Sault Michigan hard rock quartet 415E will return to The Hilltop Bar in nearby Sugar Island for a Devil's Night concert on Saturday, October 30th! This will be 415E's first publically advertised concert since playing at the same venue in February 2020, with guitarist Chris Hubbard publically working on his long-gestating solo project and his new band Rhythm & Brews in the interim. I'm not sure if 415E were just on hiatus during the pandemic or if Rhythm & Brews were functionally "replacing" them, but it's great to see 415E back, and with their pre-pandemic lineup intact! This includes singer Dave Menard, bassist Brett Blackwood (who played in Rhythm & Brews' debut gigs), and drummer Jason VanLuven joining Chris once again, as revealed in this 5 second "video" to promote the concert, though it's more of an animated poster than anything else, hence why it's not embedded here.
Hopefully 415E's hard rocking brand of covers get a strong reception from fans in Sugar Island next weekend, so don't miss out if you're able! Pre-pandemic Hilltop Bar events had 7:00 PM start times, there's no announced cover charge, and expect a 19+ age limit, and please respect & follow any social distancing and public health guidelines at the bar to ensure everyone's safety, especially over Halloween weekend. See above for more details!
Next up, and from what accounts I've heard online so far, last night's Buckcherry concert at Soo Blaster in Sault Ontario was a success, and a couple of public videos from it are now online to check out! One is a brief 15 second clip of the headlining Anaheim hard rock quintet playing their 2012 single "Gluttony", as shared by 705Live Sound Co.'s Facebook page yesterday afternoon. Not to be confused with dormant concert promoters Live705, 705Live provide sound at live events, and they were on hand in that regard last night, hence why their video is so far from the stage. Still, you can get a sense of the crowd numbers, and even with the vaccine passport mandate, it looks like a sizeable crowd came out! Fan heads do mostly block Buckcherry from view, but the overall quality is respectable despite the video's short length and lack of zoom. Give it a watch below, and we'll let you know if more videos surface!
The only other video I've found on a public source so far comes from new-ish local/Ottawa hard rock quartet Bad Chug's opening set, as filmed by prolific local concert filmer Christopher Paci for his YouTube channel, marking his first concert video upload since The Hair Scare Live in Sault Michigan in February 2020! We all know why it's taken this long for him to film anything else. No word yet on if Chris shot anything from Buckcherry or Redundant's sets (the Bad Chug video was uploaded early yesterday), but we'll let you know if anything else surfaces! The video gives us our first look at Bad Chug on a Sault Ste. Marie stage and with new second guitarist Jacob Quarrell (no comment on his attire), and on this song, it looks like guitarist Aaron Desmoulin is on lead vocals. Alas, the scratchy audio & steady cymbal hits don't help in my efforts to identify if this is a cover.
The song proper is an up-tempo hard rocker that has a little bit of a classic rock feel to it that almost reminds me of some horror punk. Not bad, but again, this isn't the clearest quality audio, so hopefully more footage of Bad Chug (at this show or otherwise) surfaces! Chris wasn't too far from the stage and he had a good vantage point of the proceedings, but Aaron is very hard to make out from the very bright stage lighting above him and his placement at the side of the stage. Give this Bad Chug video a look below, and we'll have more videos from this show when & if they goes public!
Finally for today, here's a trailer for tonight's Alien To The Ignorant concert at the private venue Mellow D's Underground, but this one isn't focused on the headliners, rather openers/venue hosts The Apocalypse Afterparty! Uploaded to their Facebook page on Sunday, this serves a double purpose, as while it promotes the concert (including finally giving away Mellow D's current address!), it also features 17 seconds of their to-be-released music video for their cover of Saul Williams' "List Of Demands (Reparations)". The video (shot by Spacebag Productions) shows the band playing in that very cramped room as we saw in prior teasers from the shoot, perhaps not a bathroom like I had guessed, but it is worth noting that The Apocalypse Afterparty appear to just be represented here by frontman Paul & drummer Amanda Stanghetta without a second bassist, which would 100% signal that Alice Rose has left the band.
A reason for her departure was not announced, but she had initially been absent on temporary basis as of December 2019, and The A.A. had enlisted uncredited bassists to fill in through last summer, but the video has the Stanghettas in full-on Death From Above 1979 mode as a two-person band. Hopefully all's well with Alice! The music video teaser is promising and shows Paul & Amanda getting an energetic, full sound out of this staple cover of theirs, and hopefully the full video is released soon! Give it a look below, and remember, the address for TONIGHT'S Alien To The Ignorant concert (also featuring the returning Bear Hunters) can be found within!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
Today's post is devoted to previews of two notable mid-week hard rock/metal concerts in Sault Ontario, one well over a year in the making, and the other featuring a lot of intrigue for it's cryptic locale and touring headliner, with both also featuring local openers we haven't seen in a long time. Here's what you should know!
The biggest Sault Ontario hard rock concert of the pandemic era will finally take place TOMORROW when Anaheim, California hard rock quintet Buckcherry will make their fourth local appearance (and first in this half of the Twin Saults) when they headline at Soo Blaster! This concert was originally scheduled to take place way back on May 13th, 2020 before everything went topsy turvy in March of last year, forcing a postponement to November 11th, and then ultimately to tomorrow night, but barring an imminent COVID outbreak, this show is taking place! Buckcherry are definitely in Canada and they have been touring across country all month, so fingers crossed! Well known rock radio staples from hit songs like "Sorry", "Lit Up", and "Everything", Buckcherry are touring in support of their new CD "Hellbound", so expect lots of familiar songs and new cuts in their first local stop since 2019's outdoor Kewadin Casino gig with Pop Evil, and before that, headlining Dreammakers Theater shows in 2011 & 2012.
This will also be Buckcherry's first local appearance since Billy Rowe replaced Kevin Roentgen on lead guitar last year. Amazingly, the local support acts remain unchanged since last spring, and they will include punk trio Redundant in their first public concert set since they opened for The Cancer Bats at Soo Blaster in August 2019, as far as I can gather. Obviously, it's great to see Justin, Andrew, and Rick back on stage after over two years, so don't be late for their familiar punk attack! The other opening band is local/Ottawa hard rock band Bad Chug in their long-delayed local concert debut, but they were previously active in Ottawa dating back to 2016! In case you're unfamiliar, their lineup features guitarist Aaron Desmoulin, bassist Kyle Dube (who was quietly re-added to their lineup anew), and drummer Matt D'Ettore, plus local folk singer/guitarist Jacob Quarrell as their newest member.
I'm not 100% sure if Jacob will play the same roles in Bad Chug (they credit him as "bender"), but readers may be familiar with his acoustic solo sets, previously under the project name Shit Creek Survivor. Bad Chug's mid-2010s Ottawa material had a solid carefree hard rock base, and it will be very interesting to see how they do in 2021 with in a new city, so find out first tomorrow night! Promoted by the Ottawa-based Diamond Mine Agency in their first major local booking with heavier bands, tickets are still available for $39.99 + taxes and service fees on Eventbrite, so click here to get yours online in advance! I presume you can also pay at the door, and yes, tickets bought for Buckcherry's 2020 dates will be accepted tomorrow. Everything starts at 8:00 PM, and unfortunately, this is a 19+ event. And as recently usual, attendees must show vaccine passports at the door to get into Soo Blaster.
Given the size and anticipation for this show, it's more important than ever that attending fans please mask up, follow social distancing guidelines at Soo Blaster, and use common sense to keep everyone safe, and thusly ensure that we get more concerts like this in the short term. Admittedly, I'm not a Buckcherry fan, but it's great to see that at least one of the COVID-postponed concerts is finally taking place, and hopefully Josh and crew deliver a fun set of up-tempo rock hits for fans tomorrow night, complete with local openers we haven't seen on a public stage at all in the 2020s! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Buckcherry live in Sault Michigan in 2019!
Finally for today, here's a special preview of a technically private concert taking place THIS THURSDAY NIGHT, but organizers are treating this as a public event, just with the venue being given out on request if you want to come out. The show in question will see Saskatchewan post-hardcore trio Alien To The Ignorant make their first ever local concert appearance when they headline at local party metal band The Apocalypse Afterparty's re-opened and relocated private venue Mellow D's Underground! Alien To The Ignorant's brutal hardcore sound and none-too-serious approach to their promotion should serve them well to attract an audience on Thursday, so don't miss out if you can come out on a work/school night! Local death metal quartet The Bear Hunters will play their first concert set in over two years on Thursday, which will also be their first live appearance since releasing their album "The Dead Testament" last fall, so hopefully they shake off the rust with their brutality!
And yes, The Apocalypse Afterparty themselves will perform in a rare live appearance that isn't purely a private house party, so what musical shenanigans will the Stanghettas be up to with their up-tempo brand of music? Be at Mellow D's Underground, wherever it is, to find out! There is no advertised cover charge for this concert, which has a thankfully early start time of 6:00 PM, and inquire with The Apocalypse Afterparty and/or Paul & Amanda for the address in case they never publicize it. Vaccine passports must be presented upon entry, and please use common sense re: social distancing. Visit the above links for more details, stay tuned for more updates, and here here's Alien To The Ignorant live!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!
Well, this is a rare sight: two posts in a two day span! I wasn't planning to have anything new on the site today, but surprisingly, a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT dropped into my lap courtesy of a prominent Sault Michigan band, so I cobbled together stuff I was saving for next week to fill this post out. There are some Sault Ontario topics to get to, including a new album release and more, but we're mostly staying in the E.U.P. here via some new videos and that concert, so here's what you should know!
Local hard rock trio Tarnished will return to Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast (well, outside of it) in nearby Hulbert Township TONIGHT for a special "summer rock party" concert! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced the event via this poster on Wednesday, but the venue had posted the Facebook event page for it over a month ago. While I'm surprised Tarnished waited until this week to plug the event, I should have caught Hulbert House's own event page before now, and I profusely apologize for that! Tarnished have played a few shows downstate in the interim, but this will be their first publically advertised local concert since March (also at Hulbert House), and this will mark their first E.U.P. date since the departure of bassist Donald Alexander. As per this low-res photo from their concert in Vandalia last week, it looks like Josh is still on drums, but I can't tell whether someone's playing bass instead of guitar or not.
As best as I can tell, Tarnished are the only band playing TONIGHT, and with no lockdown order in Michigan, why not come out to see some live hard rock, let alone outdoors! Be advised that 9&10 News is calling for isolated thunderstorms in Hulbert around 10:00 PM. TONIGHT'S all ages concert has a 6:00 PM start time, a $15 cover charge, and takes place outside of the B&B at 9920 South North Hulbert Road. Concerts, let alone outdoor ones, have been rare for obvious reasons in recent months, so if you can make the drive west, don't miss Tarnished under the stars TONIGHT, and here they are live!
Next up, defunct Sault Ontario classic metal quartet Late & Loud are back (kinda) with a new album.... kinda! While the band proper did dissolve following their two standalone reunion gigs in 2014, with members largely moving out of town at least temporarily, they obviously remained friends, as evidenced by the creation of their role playing game podcast Late & Legends last fall. I'm not super knowledged about D&D-style role playing games, but clearly the guys know their stuff and have made up a detailed fantasy world and characters to work with, and you can get links on their website towards audio and video episodes of their exploits in Renlan. Much to my surprise, the podcast has led to the release of a "new" album in April entitled "Late & Legends 1" that is on sale for $5 on the Late & Loud Bandcamp page, marking their first album since 2013's "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal" reissue!
Honestly, this is more of a score than a proper album, compiling backing music heard in the podcast proper, so expect something more along the lines of SweetKenny's late-period albums than a true sequel to "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal". Still, it does feature 12 new instrumental compositions, six each by guitarists Brendan Christie & Jonathan Tiberi, though I don't know if Benn or Josh contributed to the recording sessions. As this is technically a new Late & Loud album, it is eligible for a review on the SMS (perhaps this month?!), but in any event, give the podcast and/or album a listen, watch the pilot below, and Late & Loud are surprisingly back in our active band links!
Also today, here's another new original song from Heavy Lies The Crown guitarist Ted Olson's YouTube channel on Tuesday! Entitled "Devoured", this is a collaboration that the St. Ignace product made with Darien Deilami, an Oklahoma-based metal vocalist from the band Xeropthalmia (among others). Given the long distance, it's surprising that the final product is only 73 seconds, but it's a brutal death metal track while it lasts, and Darien's brutal vocals fit very well (there's even a lyric track on the video if you want to try and sing along!) Give "Devoured" a listen for yourselves below!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band name:
The Buckcherry-headlined concert at Soo Blaster in Sault Ontario has been rescheduled once again, this time to Tuesday, October 19th, as per a quiet update to the Facebook event page. Organizers and bands haven't made a massive deal of the new date yet, perhaps due to the uncertainty on the border and if normal concerts will have the go-ahead in the province by then, but optimistically, I have listed the new date on the site. Fingers crossed that things will be more opened up by the fall! If you do want tickets for the new date, or to inquire about refunds, click here.
St. Ignace, Michigan progressive metal band Heavy Lies The Crown teased on their Facebook page last week that they are in "talks of a music video for a new song that has never been heard yet", but followed that up a day later by apologizing for not posting lately (despite the previous day's post), saying that "things have happened recently that has changed our route a little." Nothing too detailed has followed since, just vague teasers, but hopefully all is well in their camp!
The rescheduled Queen: It's A Kinda Magic tribute concert at the Sault Community Theatre Centre in Sault Ontario did not take place on Wednesday for obvious reasons, but it has been rescheduled once again, as their website's tour schedule now lists it as taking place on Sunday, May 22nd, 2022. Surely, we won't have to worry about lockdowns and social distancing by next spring.... right?! Again, fingers crossed, and the new date is listed on the site! Yes, tickets are on sale at this link.
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next week! Thanks everyone!
We're back with a new news post on this Friday afternoon, and it includes some new videos from some familiar faces, a few shorter updates, and leading off, a surprise archive concert audio recording from dearly missed local band. Here's what you should know!
The set was shorter than normal due to a noise curfew, but you get your fill of doom-era Woods of Ypres while it lasts, though I was surprised that "Against The Seasons" got more representation than the then-new "Woods IV". The audio quality isn't pristine, but it holds up well despite being over a decade old, and it's really cool to hear some archival audio of theirs! Yes, the Soo comes up near the end. Give the whole set a listen below!
Next up, here's one more new playthrough video from local progressive metal duo Kraken Mara's YouTube channel! Despite updating the description of their 2017 playthrough video of their song "Stratus" to reflect their 2021 EP plans, that video (the one outside St. Mary's Paper) was taken down and replaced with a brand new playthrough video that was uploaded earlier today! The song is identical, but the video now features Brendan and Jake playing "Stratus" in various locations inside The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre. Effectively done with nice visuals inside the museum and with the bushplanes, though I honestly wouldn't have had them sitting down in every shot, especially as these weren't at their studio. It's a shame to lose the original playthrough clip, but hopefully this is another positive sign towards Kraken Mara's album plans, so give it a watch below!
(Just as a correction from last time: Their song "Moon's Haunted" is not
the same as "Miscreant", it was just moved off of their debut EP for a
planned future release. Thanks to Brendan for the clarification!)
Also today, here's a new original song from Rising Tide/Inner City Surfers frontman Dustin Jones, courtesy of his label Tidal Records' YouTube channel on Saturday! Entitled "Ain't Dead Yet", this was acoustically recorded at Mission Control Studios, and it features on-screen lyrics as the song goes along, which do reference spirit and resilence during the new lockdown. Despite it's unplugged trappings, it definitely has a punk energy and pacing that would not be out of place in his bands, though I don't know if it will be appropriated as such. Fun song, so give it a watch below!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or website name:
As part of the annual Bandcamp Day on May 7th (where the music store website waives all processing fees for one day so that artists get 100% of proceeds from sales), a number of local musicians are banding together to donate their Bandcamp Day earnings to the Sault Area Hospital COVID-19 Emergency Fund. The Facebook event page lists local musicians who have signed on, including punk acts A Dire Setback and Slumshine, with more to be added. Wonderful and timely cause, kudos to Nicole and M.D. for the idea, and try and buy local through Bandcamp on May 7th to help out!
This is a foregone conclusion at this point, but I have removed the rescheduled Buckcherry concert at Soo Blaster on May 11th from our concert listings due to extension of the current Ontario lockdown, which will now end on May 20th (subject to change). The Facebook event page has not been updated to reflect a cancellation or new postponement, but again, we'll still be locked down then. We'll keep you guys posted if this show is rescheduled again!
Dealing Without/ex-Redundant bassist James White is looking to start a new local band that would cover acts like The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tool, Sublime, and "whatever you can throw at me". As per his post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on Wednesday, he wants "to start actually playing bass again", and to play songs he likes that aren't in Dealing Without's setlist. Given the lockdown, now may not be an ideal time to jam with new musicians, but if you're interested in working with James in a new project, message him at this link or above to get more details!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and features on the site by next week! Thanks everyone!
