Updates On New & Upcoming Local Albums, Plus Two Concert Cancellations!

Before we dive into this post, I wanted to note two concert cancellations/postponements, one that we missed on here and one that is still ahead. First, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations cancelled their Friday nighter at Reggie's Place last week due to that night's ice storm, as per drummer Tony Santoro on their Facebook group at 10:55 PM on Friday, when the show would have been in progress. I hadn't heard of other bands on Friday that called off that night's show, though Generations were back as scheduled on Saturday night. Seeing as the announcement came that late, I obviously couldn't mention it in a post prior, but apologies anyway, and hopefully things went well for Generations at Reggie's on Saturday! The other postponement is actually for this Saturday's planned Dressed To Kiss concert at The Sault Community Theatre Centre.

The news broke on Rock 101's Concert Track segments on air, and promoters Miles Management confirmed in this Facebook comment reply that it will now take place on Saturday, August 9th, pushing the D.T.K. show back exactly 19 weeks. Miles Management cited "unforeseen circumstances" for the rescheduling (source here), and while an updated ticket link from the S.C.T.C. is not out yet, tickets bought for this Saturday will still be honoured. Disappointing for fans of Kiss that this talented tribute band had to delay their local debut, but hopefully the summer season date will work out!

Today's post otherwise looks are information on an upcoming album, and leading off, here's some details in a regular post on reunited local midwest emo/psych rock trio Fuller's new studio album "II"! I touched on everything in our review yesterday, but I try to actually mention unspoken details from prior news posts in a new news post too, in case readers don't check the album review first. "Fuller II" is available to buy on Bandcamp for $7 or on iTunes for $9.99, and you can stream it on Bandcamp, Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube, Amazon Music, and the Africa-geared Boomplay (at press time, there are no physical pressings of the album, though bassist Mark Rand had floated the idea in the pre-release promotion). "II" was released through the Advance Records imprint, and with one exception, is almost entirely made up of songs from the band's late-era run in the mid-2000s.

The album closer "Six" is a re-recording of the untitled sixth song from their 2002 EP (which had no song titles at all), and retains songwriting credits for ex-members James Kersley and Dan Fagan. Mid-2000s drummer Nathan Sauve is similarly credited as a co-writer on everything else. The songs on offer are presented in the exact order that they were played at Fuller's reunion concert at LopLops Lounge in December 2023, with the exception that their covers of American Football and Moneen songs that night were replaced by two short filler tracks named "A" and "B", one being an acoustic ballad and the other being a dark instrumental. Emo isn't my first love in terms of rock genres, but "II" is a solid album that fully realizes the Mark/Nathan era of Fuller, so definitely buy or stream it at the above links, and hopefully a proper release party happens when Mark is back home next! Here's the opener "Batteries From Old Flashlights" from YouTube!

We'll close by heading over to Sault Michigan, where local metal solo project X's & Y's announced on March 14th that they are releasing their second studio album later this year! To be entitled "Ruination Coactive", project leader Jason Mills revealed on their Facebook page that he "nearly finished both albums at the same time, but (he) needed to focus on one", that being last fall's debut album "The Obsidian Dream". Jason noted that he wrote the new album immediately after the previous during the pandemic lockdown in 2020, and he plans to release "Ruination Coactive" on streaming services and on CD once again. The cover artwork (reminiscent of old Konami games for the NES) was also shared, as was the eight song track listing. Is the fourth track "The Gemini Machine" a hint towards a late May-early June release, and/or a reference to this being album #2? We'll keep you posted!

No public word yet on how these songs will compare to what Jason put out last fall, but "The Obsidian Dream" had a bunch of guest performers, was recorded at Scholomance Studios in Brimley, and was entirely instrumental. We'll be six months past X's & Y's' album review last fall this month, so a review of "Ruination Coactive" will hit the SMS very shortly after it is released, so stay tuned for more from X's & Y's in the near future, and look for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Dressed To Kiss, Dirty Musky, And Curtis McKenzie), Plus Exit 808 Concert Previews!!

As promised, we're wrapping up this weekend's concert previews with this post, but we also have some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS of an increasing scale to take a look at also, so here's what you should know!

Former Haggith/Project 421 frontman Curtis McKenzie will play his first formal headlining concert of 2025 on Saturday, February 1st at The Dive Gastro Pub, as per his Facebook page! Not counting his turn hosting the former Low & Slow's inaugural Monday jam night earlier this week (not to mention his involvement in the Din reunion at the same venue next week), this will be Curt's first traditional solo headlining gig anywhere since rocking The Dive in early November. No word on why he's been away from the stage for so long for full concerts, but head down to this Queen Street East restaurant and nightclub to hear some "banger tunes" from this hard rock and grunge veteran! As usual for Curtis' shows at The Dive, expect a 9:00 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and no cover charge in two weeks. Visit the above links for more details, and don't miss Curt solo and reuniting with Mike Haggith & The Din next Saturday!

Next up, let's head to nearby Hessel, Michigan, where local hard rock quartet Dirty Musky will return to The Islander Bar for one night only on Friday, February 7th! Making their first live concert appearance of the new year and their first stop at The Islander Bar since Halloween weekend, this concert will coincide with the annual Les Cheneaux Islands Snowsfest and their annual pub shuffle (crawl, if you will) taking place that night at bars in both Hessel and Cedarville. Outside of the music, if 2024's pub shuffle is anything to go by, you can vote on which participating pub has the best decorations, costumes, and themed drinks, while also taking part in a scavenger hunt across the locations. Fun if you're in the area, and Dirty Musky should have some solid hard rock tunes in store that night! For reference, roots rockers The Seth Brown Duo are playing at Snow's in Cedarville during the pub shuffle, and the other bars don't host hard rock acts regularly.

Dirty Musky's "original msusic" (sic) can be enjoyed at The Islander Bar that night at 9:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no cover charge, and the band has teased having new setlist additions for this event. Visit the above links for more details on Dirty Musky's concert and Snowsfest proper!

Lastly for today's batch of new concerts, have you Kiss Army soldiers been relatively lacking in the past year+, last summer's Ace Frehley show in St. Ignace acknowledged? Well, you will want to circle Saturday, April 5th on your calendar, as Niagara-based Kiss tribute band Dressed To Kiss (or D.T.K.) will make their local debut that night at The Sault Community Theatre Centre! While local fans have seen Toronto-based Destroyer at least six times here in the past decade & a half (most recently in October 2023 at Soo Blaster), Dressed To Kiss will bring their own take on Gene, Paul, Ace, and Peter to local audiences this spring, and from what I have seen of their live show, they have the costumes, staging, and sound to please Kiss fans! You can see for yourself in three months at the former Kiwanis Theatre at White Pines Collegiate, and this show has an 8:00 PM start time.

Tickets run for $53.68 (adults), $42.37 (seniors and students with valid ID) or $16.95 (kids 14 and under) depending on where you apply. Whether you prefer D.T.K. to other Kiss tributes is subjective, but I think this band will appeal to local Kiss fans for obvious reasons, so click here or visit the in-person box office at Station Mall to get your tickets!

Finally for today, let's wrap up this weekend's hard rock concert previews by returning to the E.U.P., specifically The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, where local hard rock band Exit 808 will play their first local dates of 2025 TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Last seen in Bergland (4½ hours west of here) for a New Year's Eve concert there, this will be Exit 808's first truly local date since rocking Rudyard over a month ago, so if you've missed this talented covers collective, head to the Soo Kewadin tonight and/or tomorrow! Now, be advised that tomorrow's show takes place during the Detroit Lions/Washington Commanders NFL divisional round playoff game, which would theoretically divert attention from the band, though I don't know if there'd be a true conflict of consequence (though note that the band was openly hoping that the game would be early or on Sunday because of their show.)

You can see Exit 808 this weekend at 9:00 PM tomorrow and/or Saturday with 21+ age limits and no announced cover charges, though if you are at all concerned that the Lions game will cause Exit 808's show to be curtailed in any fashion, keep tabs with the band or venue closer to showtime (if you're curious, the game is on Fox tomorrow night at 8:00 PM). Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Exit 808 live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!