LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Band Camp Rejects) & Weekend Concert Previews!!

Another weekend is upon us, and before we get into this weekend's previews, I want to wish all of our American readers a happy Thanksgiving! There are actually no advertised hard rock shows in the E.U.P. that we know of this weekend, but things will pick up next month, and of course, if there's a late notice confirmation, we'll have it for you! Now, here's this weekend's Sault Ontario hard rock concert previews, starting with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for in a couple of days!

Newer local hard/alternative rock cover quartet The Band Camp Rejects will play their first ever solo headlining concert THIS SATURDAY NIGHT at The Rockstar Bar! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced the show via it's Facebook event page earlier this week (don't let the private status scare you off, the venue is publically advertising this one.) A one-nighter due to tomorrow's 9 Lives & Counting show (more on that in a bit), this will mark The Band Camp Rejects' first show since their well received Toystock set last week, and it's great to see the guys spreading their wings beyond the occasional multi-band show that they had been playing this year! No online pages yet, but with Havadder, Mourning Wood, Issues, and Under the Influence alumni in their lineup, you know they have a lot of talent! There is no cover charge for THIS SATURDAY, you must be 19 or older to attend, and there's a 10:00 PM start time in effect. Check the above links for more details, and here's The Band Camp Rejects live!

Next up, we'll move to previously announced concerts, starting with the return of prolific local singer/guitarist Tym Morrison to Gliss Steak & Seafood TONIGHT, TOMORROW, and SATURDAY! With another month in Tym's long-term arrangement at The Quality Inn's restaurant winding down, fans can look for his acoustic hard rock covers at the downtown venue over the coming three evenings, so keep these shows in mind for more unplugged action! Note that a personal Facebook posting by Tym notes that he'll be playing at least two regular nighttime shows at The Roadhouse Bar & Grill next month as well, but as he typically gives a public acknowledgement of these shows, we will wait for him to announce them that way before covering them here, and barring an unforeseen occurrence, remember that he'll announce his first December 2016 shows next week.

Tonight, tomorrow, and Saturday's shows will be 6:00 PM matinees with no announced cover charges or age limits, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Tym live!

Also this weekend, the aforementioned Rockstar Bar will welcome Toronto hard rock quartet 9 Lives & Counting to the Soo for the first time TOMORROW NIGHT! Touring in support of their new CD "Beautiful Distraction", 9 Lives & Counting's hard hitting modern rock stylings and energetic live atmosphere should be welcomed tomorrow when they make their local debut, so if you love hard rock, definitely consider a trip to see this band at The Algonquin Hotel's upstairs venue! Local openers will include alternative hard rock trio The Din (fresh off playing three shows in just over a day this past weekend), while local post-punk quartet Gnaeus have been added on late notice as a second opening band, to replace the singer-less Eclipse! Apologies for the delay in mentioning that on here, we couldn't comfortably fit it into a post since it was originally announced. There's no need to retread what happened in the Eclipse/421 camp, but Gnaeus are a solid choice to fill in, and they should deliver a solid set of their own tomorrow!

This concert is a 19+ event with a $5 cover charge, and it should start at around 9:00 PM. Hard rock and rock radio fans would be well served to come down to The Rockstar Bar tomorrow for this show, which promises to be a good time, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's 9 Lives & Counting live!



Finally for this weekend's previews (barring a late notice announcement), local alternative hard rock quartet Id Iota will return to LopLops Lounge THIS SATURDAY NIGHT to open for ex-Pixo Control frontman Mike Mikus in his current solo project's first concert appearance in the Soo! Originally scheduled for October 22nd before an unexplained 5 week postponement, this is the delayed final show of Mike's Drowning Crown tour of Ontario, and it will be both acts' first show since then. Id Iota should have a good set in store for fans of the Habitat Shuffle successor's entertaining originals, but there will be local intrigue for the first local concert appearance by Mike since The Pixo Control's final show in May, so how will he, Dustin, and Mitchell do with their new pop rock-centric originals from their planned debut album "Squareheads & Frogs"? Be at LopLops on Saturday to see for yourself, with some Id Iota action to kick things off! This 19+ concert has a $5 cover charge and a 10:00 PM start time. Check the official Facebook event page for more details on this show, and here's Id Iota live earlier this year!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes soon, and have a happy American Thankgiving! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (9 Lives & Counting), Weekend Concert Previews, And More!!

Let's cover the rest of this weekend's concert previews (barring any supremely late notice events) in this post, with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT and a new Shaw TV video to round things out for good measure! Now, here's what you need to know!

Toronto hard rock quartet 9 Lives & Counting will make their local concert debut with a headlining show at The Rockstar Bar on Friday, November 25th! As the Facebook event page says, trouble is coming to "the Sault Ste. Marie" for this concert, with 9 Lives & Counting touring in support of their debut CD "Beautiful Distraction", and their groovy blend of hard and alternative rock should be a solid attraction for local fans next month! Haggith alumni will populate the local opening slots, with modern hard rock quartet Eclipse and alternative/hard rock trio The Din returning to The Rockstar Bar to deliver their own original songs and select covers for fans, so don't miss out and don't be late! This 19+ concert has a $5 cover charge, and while an oddly early start time of 8:00 PM is advertised, I'd assume bands won't play until at least 9:00. This should be a fun night for fans of modern hard rock, and 9 Lives & Counting definitely aren't a cookie cutter band, so check the above links for more details on next month's show!

Next up, let's tackle this weekend's remaining hard rock concert previews, all in the Sault Michigan area, starting with Kinross classic/hard rock trio Banned, who are advertised as returning to The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Though Banned have curiously not posted on their Facebook page in over a month, this weekend's shows are the last currently advertised on their Facebook page's cover photo (they have yet to acknowledge their last two Kewadin weekends that the venue previously confirmed.) Unless something is said to the contrary, we'll treat these as on! Fans may want to check out frontman Alex Traynor's recent feature in Shotcaller Magazine though, as he gets a one page spotlight in the Midwest U.S. photography magazine's latest issue. Seems like an odd fit, but it's a nice look into Alex's influences and musical background, so check pages 42 &43 at this link for the full article via it's online edition!

As for this weekend's scheduled Rapids Lounge gigs, look for Alex, Don, and Wayne at around 9:00 PM tonight and tomorrow, with no cover charges and 21+ age limits in effect both nights. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Banned live!



Lastly for this weekend, Sault Michigan classic/hard rock cover quartet Highway 63 are advertised to rock The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT as well! Again, Highway 63 haven't newly plugged these shows, but both the band and venue confirmed them publically in earlier schedule announcements.This veteran outfit remain a steady and entertaining attraction with their monthly gigs at both local Kewadin Casino branches, and with alumni of Monkey's Uncle, The Mama's Boys, I.S.O.M., and Deprecor in their lineup, you won't want to miss out on this weekend's action! Highway 63 will be on at the St. Ignace Kewadin tonight and tomorrow at 9:00 PM, and also like Banned's shows, expect 21+ age limits and no announced cover charges. Check the above links for more details, and here's Highway 63 live!

Finally, here's a new Shaw TV Sault Ste. Marie feature video on local post-punk quartet Gnaeus! Posted onto Shaw TV's YouTube channel yesterday, this wasn't acknowledged online by the band prior, but I believe it aired on channel 10's news video rotation before making it's way to YouTube. The piece was filmed by Shaw TV's Christian Lemay (Id Iota), with performance footage from their set opening for The Din at The Tech in August scattered within interview clips of Gnaeus shot downtown in front of the MS Norgoma. The interview proper features all 4 members discussing Gnaeus' formation, why Brad Irwin plays the synth, the guys' enjoyment of what they do, their debut CD "Meditations" and the origin of the album's name, experiences recording the album and playing live, where to buy the CD (there are copies at Pino's, believe it or not), and more. Solid interview that covers a lot of positive ground in a short time, so give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Christian and Id Iota very soon as well!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news, notes, and updates soon! Thanks everyone!