A new month is upon us, and it's already starting out to be newsworthy in a somewhat melancholy way, so that's leading things off, but there will be a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT and a new video to check out later on. Now, here's what you should know in the news!
As many of you will probably be aware by now, Ontario Premier Doug Ford will put the province into another mass lockdown phase starting Saturday at midnight due to rapidly rising COVID-19 cases. This is slated to run through the end of the month, and an extension into May or possible tightened restrictions would be on the table if case counts don't visibly improve. Click here or visit your preferred local/provincial news outlets for more details on these new measures. This won't be a complete lockdown on the level of the ones we went through from March-June of last year and in December-February, as schools are not slated to close, and non-essential retailers can remain open with a 25% capacity limit. However, this will wipe out indoor dining & nightclub service once again, consequently also calling off what little concerts in the Soo that were booked at traditional venues from April 3rd-30th.
The only scheduled hard rock concert in Sault Ontario that was publically announced in that timeframe was a planned matinee this Sunday at Reggie's Place from Tym Morrison, a show that would have been previewed on short notice in this post had the Premier not pulled the emergency brake. The Facebook event page for that concert has not been updated to reflect it's cancellation, but regardless, yesterday's announcement will have confirmed it's status. Of course, a third lockdown is not ideal for the local music scene, especially given that the Algoma District is still not doing as badly as Southern Ontario for cases, though numbers have slowly been adding up in this region (229 confirmed cases and 4 deaths as of this writing, source here.) Yes, vaccines are starting to roll out, but clearly not fast enough to stem the tide of this third wave, so hopefully these new measures will help.
Unless you were lucky enough to get a vaccine already, please take every recommended measure to keep yourself and others safe. Wear a face mask, be vigilant, wash your hands, practice social distancing, and stay home where possible. Hopefully this lockdown isn't lengthened or tightened, so that we can get back to somewhat more normal proceedings, especially with more vaccines eventually making their way here. We will get through this!
With that said, we do have a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT before the lockdown goes into effect, as local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will rock Reggie's West for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced this gig via their Facebook event page yesterday (it's unclear whether this is a last minute booking due to the lockdown or if this was already planned, just not publically promoted before now.) This will be Soundcheck's first concert since their run of three in four days at the same venue during St. Patrick's Day week, and their last until May(?), so if you want to see Terry, Cameron, Paul, and Glen's brand of classic and hard rock covers on Good Friday, be at The Reggievelt TOMORROW! A 7:30 PM start time is in effect for this 19+ show with no age limit. See above for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!
Finally for today, remember how local folk punk/extreme metal musician Chase Wigmore teased on his Facebook page last month that he is "almost finished with something that is on an
entirely different level of magnitude than my normal work"? Well, the fruits of that labour were uploaded to his YouTube channel yesterday, namely a half hour piano composition named "The Symphonic Organism"! If considered an "album", there are no track listings given. Chase is a more accomplished guitarist, but his piano playing is lively and proficient, and it's great to see him expand his horizons like this! Give "The Symphonic Organism" a listen below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums? post next! Thanks everyone!
To end a quieter but eventful month, here's a new news post that mostly takes us to the Sault Michigan area for recent news, positive and negative alike. Here's what you should know!
Hopes of more indoor concerts taking place in Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula in the near term have taken a hit, as Governor Gretchen Whitmer has signed executive orders that will limit indoor gatherings to 10 or fewer people in the state as of today, including in the U.P. and Northern Michigan regions. As well, nightclubs and bars in the state are now restricted from indoor service if they earn 70% or more of their income from alcohol sales. Read more on the executive orders at this link or your preferred state news services. Obviously, this is a step backwards, but if you've been following local or Detroit news as of late, you will know that COVID-19 cases are rising in Michigan, so this is to try and slow the spread of the virus once again. Noting that this is the SMS, I won't comment further on the non-musical aspects of the pandemic, other than to remind everyone to stay safe, wear your face masks, and use common sense out there.
Given how the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the local concert calendar, this news won't affect too much in the way of announced hard rock concerts, but we can confirm that the planned Spun-headlined
concerts at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino next weekend have been cancelled, as per their their Facebook event page. Publically, a reason wasn't given for the cancellations, but I do know that they were called off before Governor Whitmer's announcement, as they had announced on Sunday that they would be playing an outdoor benefit gig in
northern Wisconsin next weekend. Also, note that the Marquette hard rock quartet weren't prior Kewadin regulars, but hopefully Spun come back when the
time is right! As of this writing, Kewadin's entertainment page still says they will "tentatively" resume their live concert schedule next month.
Lastly, what does this mean for Tarnished's planned Rock The Block sequel in the Soo next month? A 10 person limit for social gatherings would theoretically wipe out any indoor crowd, but assuming they were planning to host it at Crooked Music again, would they try and chance it, given that stores are not affected by the executive order? Tarnished have not posted on their Facebook page since before their EP release, but if they confirm a cancellation, postponement, or relocation of the event, we'll let you know. Stay tuned for more relevant updates on the COVID-19 pandemic!
Next up, let's stay in the E.U.P. for the latest from St. Ignace progressive metal band Heavy Lies The Crown's Facebook page! On July 2nd, singer Brandon West was featured in this short video plugging an upcoming interview that he and guitarist Ted Olson would be doing an interview with an Instagram page named Everythingcore. Maybe I am missing something totally obvious, but I have yet to find the posted interview, so either this page isn't the one Brandon meant, or it was yanked after it's live airing. I'll let you know if it surfaces! Five days later, the band shared this 10 minute video of them working in studio on their forthcoming full-length album, though the visuals aren't great, and not because of the vertical camera angle. It almost feels like the video is constantly buffering, and it has a tendency to pause on itself, but the music you hear sounds promising. However, embedded below is the first formal teaser clip from the sessions!
Uploaded to Brandon's YouTube channel, this is set to a parody clip of Brandon as a western movie gunslinger (randomly in what looks like a home under construction), this has a 15 second instrumental segment from their new song "Dead Teeth", which should whet fans' appetites until the full CD is on sale! Give it a watch/listen below, and stay tuned for more updates from Heavy Lies The Crown in the near future!
Finally for today, here are three assorted shorter Sault Ontario news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by business or artist name:
Over six months after announcing the big move, the local Long & McQuade music store opened in it's new location at 647 MacDonald Avenue (the former Northshore Sports & Auto site) on Monday, July 20th. As well publicized online, Northland Music and the Thomas Walls School of Music merged operations last year in order to become the local branch of the national music/lesson store chain, and now they have a bigger (if more eastern) storefront. Be sure to check out Long & McQuade to see what they have to offer!
Reggie's Place will reportedly be re-opening under new ownership in the near future, as per their Facebook page! The popular 458 Queen Street East nightclub abruptly closed in September of last year (just four months after re-opening following the 2017 fire upstairs), and while Reggie Daigle himself has sold this location, it will retain the Reggie's name, and it has a new logo designed by Destroilet's Matt Waples. There are a lot of unknowns yet, not just because of the pandemic, but will concerts remain country-centric (Soundcheck aside) when they can host them? Stay tuned!
Local metal guitarist Shane Desjardins is again looking to jam with other musicians, as per his newest posting on his Musicians Wanted Facebook group from Tuesday. Readers there and here may recall his search for musicians to jam and write with in May 2019, and you can hear his old music recordings on his YouTube channel. He has clear talent, so message Shane at this link or above for details!
That's all for this month, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!
Here is our 80th straight daily post at the SMS, and it includes some assorted recent news and notes, details on an ambitious project to catalogue local music history (something readers should all care about), and leading off, the latest updates on the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan. Here's what you should know!
On Tuesday, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer lifted the state's stay-at-home order, and if you want to read into the minutia about that announcement, there's plenty of articles about it on state news websites. The Sault Evening News outlined what you can and can't do now in this article published yesterday, and sadly, concerts as we know them are still prohibited for the time being. Indoor gatherings of more than 10 people and outdoor gatherings of more than 100 are still not allowed in Michigan, and even if something were to be booked, social distancing measures of 6+ feet remain in effect. The announcement doesn't change anything re: restaurant and bars in the Upper Peninsula and Northern Michigan, which were previously allowed to open with appropriate social distancing measures and can still do so (the rest of the state can open these businesses on Monday.) As for casinos, the closure of Michigan casinos until June 12th actually only applies to those under state jurisdiction.
Specifically, this means that tribal casinos (like the Kewadin Casino branches and Bay Mills in Brimley) could begin re-opening this past weekend, but both appear to be exercising caution, as both have clearly announced on social media that they will also remain closed until June 12th. The short term future of concerts at these casinos still doesn't look good, and they took another hit on Friday, when Kewadin formally cancelled the Tripp 'N' Dixie show at The Rapids Lounge in the Soo on June 13th, as per that show's Facebook event page. Also, Kewadin's website's entertainment page has announced that "all events are temporarily postponed until further notice", which covers any concerts booked through at least the Fourth of July. As such, I have removed Tarnished's Signatures Lounge dates in the Soo on June 18th & 24th from our calendar, as well as Highway 63's Northern Pines Lounge shows in St. Ignace on July 3rd & 4th.
As such, our Sault Michigan calendar is now empty until the rescheduled Black Label Society concert at The Dreammaker's Theater on August 8th, but if I was a betting man, I wouldn't be gambling on the new date holding up, alas. Stay tuned to the SMS and your preferred Michigan news source for further details on the coronavirus pandemic and it's effect on concerts as they roll in!
Next up, let's move to Sault Ontario, where Rotaryfest music director Shaun Antler is working on a big project, specifically to catalogue and archive a list of as many local bands as possible. The project was covered in this Sault Star article by Brian Kelly on May 28th, and began in conjunction with Rotaryfest's Rewind anniversary stages two years ago, but recently resumed work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shaun plans to wrap up things by the end of the month and share her results with the Sault Ste. Marie Museum, with plans to create a music exhibit at the museum in the future using her data. This is definitely a daunting project, especially when trying to catalogue and cite information on local bands before social media. I've given 2005 as my cutoff for reasonable online materials before, but as websites close and overhaul their layouts, that gets harder too. If you can help Shaun add bands or musicians to her database, message her at santler@shaw.ca!
A handful of SMS-relevant bands are cited in the article as needing member information, such as Free Beer, Smeltzer, and Them. I have helped Shaun with this project, and while members of those bands have been covered on the SMS in the past, social media aliases and common names may be tripping up some of her leads. I hope to send her some more info shortly, but contact her above if you want to help out! 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 event name:
This probably goes without saying, but this year's Algoma Ride For Autism (scheduled for June 20th) has been cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers confirmed this on their Facebook page on Tuesday, but they do hope to bring the event back in 2021. This is SMS relevant because live music has been a staple of the charity motorcycle rally's festivities, including a run of annual sets by local punk veterans Redundant. Hopefully the Ride does return next year, it's a great event for a great cause!
Local guitarist Michael McCormick is looking for a singer for his current hard rock band project, who take inspiration from bands like The Foo Fighters, Halestorm, Metallica, and Poison. Specifically, he wants someone with "good frontman skills", but singing ability isn't necessarily his primary concern. I'm not familiar with Michael musically, but his post is attracting interest, so message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post on Sunday for more details! Just use common sense given the pandemic.
Had an active social media account existed for them, I would have recently moved Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie's solo project The Sorrow Fields to our inactive band links. This project last saw a public update via Mission Control Studios'
Facebook postings on their unreleased debut album's sessions in January
2019, and Mitch's personal Facebook page (which saw occasional Sorrow
Fields updates) was quietly taken down in recent months as well.
Hopefully nothing bad happened, as Mitch is a very talented musician,
and I hope we'll see The Sorrow Fields and Bear Hunters' long-gestating
albums on sale down the road!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
We're back with a news post on the site today, which goes in two paths, including proper updates on the early relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions in the Sault Ste. Marie area and what this means in the short term, plus some new videos from a prominent local musician who recently got a big media platform. Here's what you should know!
I wanted to begin today's post with the latest on the Ontario and Michigan shutdown orders and the status of concert venues in our area, specifically relating to Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer's announcement yesterday that bars and restaurants in the Upper Peninsula and much of Northern Michigan can start re-opening with precautions on Friday. Click here or visit your preferred state news source for full details on the announcement. Chippewa County only has 2 confirmed COVID-19 cases and no deaths, so it's easy to see why the Soo is part of the first sections of Michigan to start re-opening. If bars and restaurants choose to re-open on Friday, they must limit capacity to 50% and enforce social distancing guidelines and safety precautions. However, social gatherings are still limited to 10 or fewer people, and municipal governments can enforce stricter rules if necessary. That all said, what does this mean for concerts going forward?
As of late, our Sault Michigan concert calendar had been primarily centered around the local Kewadin Casinos and Tarnished's weekly matinees at Biggby Coffee, with some exceptions. Between such businesses having to run at half capacity in the near term, and the social gathering limitations, I would be surprised to see either rush into concerts as we know them, and Biggby have not addressed their imminent plans on Facebook at press time. Before yesterday's announcement, Kewadin had announced (after multiple prior delays) that they would be re-opening on June 1st, and Governor Whitmer did not directly cite casinos in the first wave of business re-openings, so that may hold true yet. Stay tuned to Kewadin Casino's online pages for further details, especially with three touring out of town bands (The Lows, Peril, and Tripp 'N' Dixie) still scheduled to play in Sault Ste. Marie and St. Ignace's lounges over the June 12th weekend, though I'd be very surprised if they occur as normal.
Finally, there has been no comparable announcement from the Ontario government at press time regarding bars & nightclubs, though Premier Doug Ford had already announced that, as of today, stores with a street entrance can start re-opening with appropriate guidelines (source here.) As such, SMS-relevant retailers like The Rad Zone and Vintage Games N' Junque have started re-opening with a minimum capacity. If you choose to go out to a re-opened store this week, please use common sense to keep yourself and everyone else safe and coronavirus-free. We'll have more on the pandemic as it relates to bands and concerts when it rolls in!
Let's move into a happier topic to finish this post, specifically from Fairmounts frontman/Inner City Surfers drummer Mikey Hawdon, whose series of "Quarantunes" (a.k.a. "Mikey & His Uke" videos) are definitely gaining steam now that they are on YouTube! Yesterday, Mikey got some major attention on Global News at 5:30 PM, which you may have saw locally on channel 3 on Shaw Cable or 12.2 on an over-the-air antenna. The 2½ minute piece by long-time Global correspondent Susan Hay features Mikey talking about how he re-discovered his ukelele, the pandemic's impact on his day job, the spread of his quarantune videos, and their impact on him personally. No mention of his individual bands, but he does rep for home with a Greyhounds toque! This is a well done report that will hopefully get Mikey even more attention for this daily series, and while Global doesn't allow external embedding of their videos, click here to see the whole thing!
Since we last covered Mikey's quarantunes on Thursday, he had uploaded 5 more to YouTube and social media, all featuring special guests. These include covers of the WKRP In Cincinnati and Monkees theme songs, and three punk tracks, namely NOFX's "Eat The Meek", Screeching Weasel's "Hey Suburbia" (featuring ex-guitarist John "Jughead" Pierson), and as embedded below, the Joey Ramone version of Louis Armstrong's "What A Wonderful World". Fittingly, this video's guest musicians are Lucas Stagg & Amy "Gabba" Zuccheto, who played with Mikey in his Toronto-based Ramones tribute bands The Gabba Heys and/or The Merves, and all three share vocals. This is a nice optimistic rendition of this Joey Ramone classic, and his other new quarantunes are fun escapist listens during this stressful time for punk and classic TV fans, so give all of Mikey's past and present videos with his uke a watch above and below, and stay tuned for video #66!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
After a two day sojourn into single topics from the E.U.P., we have a new news post today, including updates on an upcoming concert (we hope!) and a related video upload, but let's begin with the latest updates regarding the ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic and it's affect on local hard rock and punk concerts. On Monday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer issued stay-at-home orders, ordering only essential services to stay open as part of the efforts to contain the coronavirus. Click here and here to read news articles from the province and state about these announcements, or visit your favourite news outlets. In Michigan, the executive order is for 3 weeks for the period starting yesterday and ending April 13th, while in Ontario, the stay-at-home period is just 2 weeks starting today and ending on April 7th, though those could always be extended if things aren't appreciably better by next month.
Of course, concert venues and nightclubs are not and should not be considered essential services, so concert cancellations in the above stay-at-home periods are now inevitable. That said, the only shows directly affected by this news that were listed on the site are Scarkazm's planned St. Ignace Kewadin Casino stops on the April 10th weekend. As such, they have been removed from our calendar, but look for the guys back in the E.U.P. this fall! The Ontario stay-at-home order ends sooner than Michigan's, so for now, the April 10th shows in Sault Ontario from touring tribute bands Sandman and Just Heart are not directly affected, but the status of either one isn't looking amazing, especially as Sandman's Thunder Bay show on the 11th has already been postponed. Neither the bands nor venues have announced that they are off as of this writing, but we will keep you posted. One concert that was definitely cancelled over the weekend was the Whoop-Szo concert at The Sault Ste. Marie Museum on April 16th, for very obvious reasons.
As well, Ottawa thrash quartet Lycanthro have postponed their upcoming Tour of the Wolf, including their planned Rockstar Bar stop on April 21st, as announced in this Facebook video regarding their upcoming plans, though local promoters have not corroborated this on social media. No word as of yet regarding the First Jason concert on April 26th, but absolutely stay tuned for updates. Just in case anyone was wondering, I am not listing Tym Morrison's usual weekly matinee shows at Gliss or Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished's Thursday matinees at Biggby Coffee until we hear from either venue that their dine-in operations have resumed. I would have been mentioning their April slates in this weekend's concert previews, had we had any shows to preview, so I just wanted to be clear and up front regarding those weekly arrangements. Looking ahead to May, promoters The Diamond Mine Agency have revealed that they have a backup date in place for the Buckcherry concert at Soo Blaster on May 13th if they have to postpone it, so visit the official Facebook event page for more on that front.
Looking ahead to May, one concert that month that could very well be affected by COVID-19 is local/Thompson, Manitoba alt-hard rock solo artist Mike Haggith's planned CD release concert at LopLops Lounge on Friday, May 15th. Last week, Mike posted on his Facebook page to clarify that, as of then, the release show was still on, but they would absolutely postpone the event to a later date if circumstances warrant it. However, like A Dire Setback this Saturday, Mike will still be releasing "If Ever Comes The Day" digitally and through streaming platforms on schedule, with in-person and mail delivery of CDs also available, so fans will have that to look forward to! Assuming the release concert goes on as planned, Mike announced his backing musicians for his set that night via the show's Facebook event page, so who's joining in? On drums is Re:Born's Brandan Glew, who was Mike's Din bandmate in their post-acid jam run and at his "The Warinside" release show in 2015.
Rather than his bass role with The Din and at the 2015 release party, Mike is playing live guitar this time, with A Dire Setback bassist Matt Quinn rounding out the apparent trio lineup in May. Solid and talented choice, though will this be the second release concert that Matt's involved with in a two month span to be postponed due to the coronavirus? I sincerely hope not, but Mike did elaborate on much of the above notes in this new Facebook video embedded below, where he also revealed that there could be a live-streamed event of some kind on May 15th if the concert is postponed, and he even teased plans to film a music video for a single from the album in the Soo if things level out. In any event, he is teasing a new single release and more info about the songwriting in the interim. Give Mike's video a look, and stay tuned for updates on the release show and "If Ever Comes The Day", plus this month's YouTube Channel Profile tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
Another day, another batch of COVID-19 updates, and the big one today (re: local concerts) is that Ontario Premier Doug Ford has declared a state of emergency in the province, and has declared that all restaurants, bars, and nightclubs must close through at least the end of March, save for drive-thru, take-out, and delivery services. Click here for more details on this front. This announcement will officially shut down all planned concerts in our calendar or otherwise this month, but given prior cancellations and postponements, we don't have much left to remove today. Due to the mass closures, the Tym Morrison concert at The Roadhouse Bar & Grill on March 27th is now cancelled, as is A Dire Setback's LopLops concert on March 28th, which was extra notable because it was planned to be the launch party for their self-titled debut CD. Regarding the album, A Dire Setback have since confirmed on their Facebook page that it will still be released on CDBaby on March 28th, with the release party being postponed to a later date.
No word as of yet on if the album will show up in physical storefronts on time, but given how fluid and volatile the coronavirus pandemic is, maybe they don't want to guarantee anything just yet. At least not all is lost in their camp, and our review of "A Dire Setback" at month's end is still on track! The evidence against it was mounting, but tomorrow's Slumshine concert at Home Bakehouse Bed & Breakfast was finally cancelled earlier today, as per it's Facebook event page. With Ontario and Michigan now closing any formal concert venues through at least March 31st, this puts the kibosh on local concerts of any genre (and likewise, our weekend concert previews) for at least two weeks, which will be very odd for many routines locally, but anything we can do to flatten the curve! As bands are all off stage right now, I won't announce any posts from bands plugging their own breaks "until further notice" here unless they have extra updates to report, as I fear I will sound like a broken record.
Looking onward to April, we can also confirm that Calgary stoner hard rock quartet Woodhawk have postponed their Violent Nature Canadian Tour, including their planned LopLops date on April 21st, as confirmed on the band's Facebook page and since corroborated by local promoters The Oh!No Collective. Very disappointing, but it's the safest thing for right now. That said, the April 10th weekend still has three out-of-town hard rock bands (Scarkazm, Sandman, and Just Heart) with scheduled concerts that have not visibly been cancelled or postponed. It's anyone's guess how different the pandemic will be in Ontario and Michigan come April 1st, but we will let you know whether these shows (and those beyond) take place or not. The big dominoes ahead are the First Jason concert on April 26th (attached to the Steel City Nostalgia Fair) and the Buckcherry concert in May, and while both are currently still scheduled, organizers of both events have confirmed on Facebook that they are absolutely monitoring the situation.
I was hoping today's post would have room for some non-coronavirus topics, but alas, this is understandably a major news story affecting everyone in the province, state, and elsewhere. Tomorrow, we will change the subject, if briefly, with last month's poll results and a new poll on the site, and there is more news coming that is not in any way dependent on COVID-19 (even a brand new local band!) We will close today on a lighter note, if still relevant to the major topic, as we look back on the postponed Black Label Society concert at The Dreammakers Theatre at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino from this past Friday. That show being called off may sting extra for local berserkers, as B.L.S. had already made it to the Soo on Friday and were already setting up for the concert before they got the word that they had to cancel. However, before they left, presenting sponsor Rock 101 filmed a short video for their Facebook page making light of the situation.
After catching a glimpse of the tour t-shirt, frontman Zakk Wylde and bassist John DeServio are seen on stage at the nearly empty Dreammakers Theater discussing the rest of their tour being "knocked out", before John guarantees to viewers that "we'll be back", and decrees that he'd also "like to knock something out too", and it may or may not be Zakk. Amusing clip for fans that helps alleviate some of the disappointment, especially when they came so close to the local finish line, so give it a look below, and we will have some non-COVID-19 material to discuss tomorrow, I promise! Thanks everyone!
In what's fast becoming a new normal for The Sault Metal Scene (sigh), we might as well look at the latest on the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and it's effects on the local hard rock/punk concert calendar. The big news that broke today is that Kewadin Casino has postponed the Candlebox-headlined concert at The Dreammakers Theatre in Sault Michigan on April 18th, as per their Facebook page (the Little Texas show was also postponed.) As with the Black Label Society concert, you can hold already-purchased tickets to be honoured when the Candlebox show here is rescheduled, but refunds are available from Kewadin at point of purchase. This is definitely disappointing, but alas, it's not entirely unexpected, especially with the recent news that Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has issued an executive order to close all bars, nightclubs, and restaurants in the state through the end of March, as they work to contain the coronavirus (click here for details.)
Now, in terms of our concert calendar in the Eastern Upper Peninsula, this surprisingly doesn't affect that too much, as we didn't have any nightclub shows from local or touring hard rock bands listed there anymore, but this theoretically would interrupt local hard rock band Tarnished's "every Thursday" matinee run at Biggby Coffee, where they were expected to play at 12:00 PM this and next Thursday. I will tentatively remove those dates from our calendar too, but if Tarnished or Biggby confirm otherwise, I will add them back. I suppose they/Alex could play just for people picking up to-go/take-out orders (which will still be allowed in Michigan)... stranger things have happened! Also, I will leave Traverse City hard rock trio Scarkazm's April 10th weekend concerts at the St. Ignace Kewadin in our concert listings for now, as they take place after the March ban ends, but this situation is fluid and could get far more volatile, so stay tuned for updates on those and other April events as they roll in.
Over in Sault Ontario, the provincial government was not issuing a ban for restaurants and nightclubs at this time, as the evidence does not support doing so right now, but Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams is now strongly recommending that they close. Click here & here for more on this subject. In any event. Gliss Restaurant on Spring Street have announced on Facebook that they are closing their regular business hours as of today due to COVID-19, but they will re-open for reservations booked there and will bring in staff accordingly. They did not give a timeline for when they'll be back in full, but this would appear to interrupt Tym Morrison's weekly matinees there on Fridays & Saturdays. Again, I suppose he could be brought in to play for reserved guests, but that's not truly a "public" concert, so I'll also de-list his March gigs there until otherwise stated. Unless given reason otherwise, his March 27th gig at The Roadhouse Bar & Grill will remain in our calendar for now.
Also, The Rockstar Bar's Martin Fiser noted on their Facebook group today that they will be closed through this weekend due to the coronavirus, and they may have to cancel events into April pending how the pandemic unfolds. SMS-wise, this would primarily impact next month's Just Heart & Lycanthro concerts, but it is too soon to make judgments on them.
The last surviving hard rock or punk concert left on our calendar for this weekend was The Sick Sons & Slumshine at LopLops Lounge
on Friday, and that show has also been cancelled, as per it's Facebook event page. No word on if this will be rescheduled, but both bands are local, so watch their social media accounts for details either way. As well, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck have announced on Facebook that their planned Wawa road trip in two weeks (to play at a women's curling event that they were a part of before) has been cancelled, and they are "officially off for a few weeks", with updates pertaining to scheduled gigs to be announced. Soundcheck have only plugged their concerts on short notice (if at all) in 2020 so far, and accordingly, they were not listed in our current concert calendar anyway, but any heads-up to fans is welcomed! With all of this said, we surprisingly still have a concert to preview, so what should you know there?
The aforementioned Slumshine are still advertised to play their "Story Time With Slumshine" concert at Home Bakehouse Bed & Breakfast at 168 March Street THIS WEDNESDAY! The relatively unfamiliar venue has been gaining fans in recent months with their homemade baking and their requisite B&B operations, and they have confirmed that they are staying open to help serve the community, as of 3:09 PM (they don't have a real dine-in operation anyway.) Slumshine's planned acoustic punk originals will be joined by Brent telling short stories about them, VH1 Storytellers style, and he hinted that more "Story Time" shows are in the works. This special Wednesday evening concert has a 7:00 PM start time, a "pay what you can" entry model, and no age limit. Assuming this show isn't called off amid the coronavirus fears, this should be a unique but entertaining event at Home (2 minutes north of Gliss), and Slumshine's established unplugged punk attack should make and keep lots of fans!
If you're craving live punk music, this could be one of very few chances to see it for a while, assuming it goes on as scheduled, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, here's Slumshine live, and if we hear anything regarding this show's status, we'll let you know!
Unless a short notice concert pops up that boldly tries to go on amidst the COVID-19 panic, we will have no concert previews this weekend, which is bizarre, but isolating and keeping the coronavirus contained is essential, and we can only hope that things improve in the near future for everyone's health and safety. That's what's important, concerts can wait until we figure things out. Stay safe, everyone, and we'll have more news on the site this week!
Well, folks, this is a post I never thought I'd be making on here, but in light of recent news, I have to address the COVID-19 coronavirus on The Sault Metal Scene today. I had tried to not address it or the potential damage it could do to our coverage, lest I be accused of spreading rumours or fear-mongering, but as of last night, the pandemic is directly affecting the local concert calendar. Between last night and this afternoon, three big local hard rock concerts with touring headliners have been called off, namely tonight's Black Label Society concert at The Dreammaker's Theatre at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, tonight's Jean-Paul de Roover & The Bandaid Solution concert at LopLops Lounge in Sault Ontario, and next week's Matthew Good concert at The Sault Community Theatre Centre. The latter two shows were called off by the headliners themselves over the coronavirus itself and the related fears over it's spread, as noted on their social media accounts linked above.
Jean-Paul's tour was wrapping up here before he returned home to Thunder Bay, and he does promise to come back in the future. If you did happen to buy advance tickets, contact LopLops for refund information. If there are plans to try and have the local openers play on, they have not been announced as of this writing, but The Apocalypse Afterparty would likely have been out of tonight's show anyway due to the very recent birth of Paul & Amanda's third child. There's some good news, congratulations to them! Matthew's entire Moving Walls tour has been postponed, new dates to be announced, and while refunds are available at point of purchase, you can hold on to your tickets towards the rescheduled date, so keep tabs on that for further details. To Black Label Society's credit, they were still planning to play tonight's Kewadin show as recently as 12:00 PM today, via a now-deleted Facebook post, but they have since confirmed that the rest of their North American Crusade tour is postponed, starting tonight.
Like with Matthew Good, B.L.S. ticket-holders can hold onto their ticket towards the rescheduled show, but if you want a refund, they are available at point of purchase too. Now, I am not expecting that these will be it for local concert cancellations, but this is such a fluid, unpredictable situation, it's hard to say what will be announced and when. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has signed an executive order to temporarily ban or postpone any public gatherings of 250 or more people (details here), while Ontario's chief medical officer of health Dr. David Williams is recommending the same (source), though Premier Doug Ford has not visibly made that official as of this writing, while smaller gatherings should receive consultation from their local public health unit before proceeding. For due diligence, I checked the Facebook accounts for every hard rock or punk musician playing in the Sault area or E.U.P. this month to see if anyone has cancelled, postponed, or moved them.
As of this writing, I have not seen any firm public statements about other March concerts being called off, but my gut feeling is that all-local concerts at nightclubs would be less susceptible to be cancelled unless the pandemic truly does hit the Soo in a major way. In those cases, no bands are travelling from elsewhere, and I don't think most concert venues in our coverage draw 250+ people on the regular, especially not in the winter, so as long as everyone uses common sense, maybe those can continue. That said, the next scheduled out-of-town hard rock shows locally will be on April 10th, courtesy of Scarkazm in St. Ignace and Sandman in Sault Ontario. A lot of touring acts are slated to roll through later in April as well, most notably Candlebox in Sault Michigan and First Jason in Sault Ontario, but it is way too soon to make judgements on those concerts, which are mostly over a month away. If you are at all worried about upcoming concerts, follow the bands or venues on social media for the latest updates on their statuses, good or bad.
Obviously, there's a lot of rumours, fears, and pessimism about COVID-19 right now, depending on who you ask. It is true that there are no officially reported cases of the virus in Sault Ontario, but reports of possible exposure and self-isolation are very prevalent right now, including in Brimley, Michigan. If this all blows over and not many people get sick, we should be glad that we took the right precautions, not be shocked that no one died, that's not the point. I'm not a doctor, and I have no medical background (nurses in my family aside), but I think that a lot of the precuationary measures against the coronavirus are common sense. Wash your hands, try not to touch your face, use anti-bacterial sanitizer, don't hoard toilet paper, and if you think you have any symptoms, let a medical professional know. Maybe I can survive being infected, but I sure don't want to give it to my family and friends, especially those with pre-existing conditions.
Concerts are not the be-all, end-all of life. Maybe the all-local ones will take place, maybe some will be called off, it's too soon to say, but there are more important things to worry about right now. Stay safe out there, stay warm, and use common sense. COVID-19 will not affect The Sault Metal Scene's day-to-day operations aside from reporting on show cancellations and re-schedulings, so look for more on the site in the coming days!
