The Return Of Winkstinger, Tuned Updates, And Much More!!

Another slow news period has hit as of late, but let's help remedy that now that Thanksgiving has come and passed (on the Canadian side of the border), and I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! Today, we have lots of assorted recent notes, updates on a popular webseries, and first, a surprise band reunion, so here's what you should know!

Local extreme metal band Winkstinger are back! After almost two & a half years of public dormancy, they reemerged with a new Bandcamp page with live jam recordings this morning, with their Facebook page confirming that "things are happening", among other typically irreverent hype. Guitarist Jesse Cook (also of Jack Spades & The Elements) and drummer Jonas Gasperas are back from the original run, but singer Alan Wells and bassist Jason Bourcier are not back from their last full incarnation in 2013, and it remains to be seen who will fill out the new lineup. Their Bandcamp page features two new original songs in progress (one being over 7 minutes in length), though both are untitled at this stage, so give them a listen at the above links! Of course, fans will remember Winkstinger well from their original 2010-2013 run which saw them win 2012's Battle for the Blood, play numerous fun & heavy concerts (including at 6 Roosevelt Hotel metal nights), and record material for an unreleased debut EP.

Dare I say it, the new Winkstinger original jams actually sound more technical and progressive-influenced than back in their heyday, and while they did take a self-deprecating bent when describing the quality, I'd be very curious to hear these fleshed out with bass, vocals, and perhaps rhythm guitar! It's great to have Winkstinger back at last, so check out their new material above, and they're back in our active band links!

Next up, here's the latest from Local2's music webseries Tuned with Donna Hopper! Alongside newer episodes on Al Wood & The Woodsmen and another from Sudbury's Northern Lights Festival, the newest installment went up on Saturday, spotlighting the Soup Kitchen benefit at The Algonquin Pub earlier this month featuring (among others) the aforementioned Elements and The Bear Hunters! The main interview is with Machines Dream frontman and event promoter Craig West about the inspiration to promote the show and add the benefit side to it, why local musicians are more prone to participate in charity shows like this, and the odds that Machines Dream may do a similar event in the future. Short but respectful interview that shows Craig's good nature well, and it looks like the concert was a hit! In terms of concert footage, Machines Dream, Drew Armstrong & friends, and The Elements were filmed, but The Bear Hunters and Nikkfitt were not.

Most of the music is muted behind the interview, particularly Drew and friends (some of which being very familiar faces), but The Elements get some spotlight during the credits, covering what appears to be the ending of Primus' "Wynona's Big Brown Beaver". Another solid, if brief episode of Tuned, so give it a look at the above links!

Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news items (including two inactive band notes) from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or website name:

• Project 421 singer Curtis McKenzie is looking for a bassist and drummer for his "sweet new project" in the making. Presumably this references the band he previously posted about that he hoped wouldn't play metal or hard rock, but just in case it fits our coverage, message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Wednesday!
• In their newest update on their Facebook page, secretive local black metal duo Dullahan revealed that they plan to record their second "EP" soon, which they hope to be "even rawer" in production than on older recordings. They also reiterated that they'll "never" reveal their full identities, and have "no intention" of playing live (which is odd, they'd attract positive and unique attention with their sound if they did!) Stay tuned for more from Dullahan above!
• Rudyard, Michigan hard rock quintet Exiled have quietly deleted their Facebook (and sadly, only online) page, which likely indicates their breakup. Featuring Absolute, Full Throttle, and Division of Sanity alumni, Exiled played numerous regional concerts in the latter half of 2014 before announcing a break in December due to drummer Justin Lawless and his wife's impending arrival of their new baby, though no word on if that's a factor for the apparently demise. Exiled had a strong lineup, so hopefully everyone stays active in music, best of luck to Donny, Joe, Myke, Johnny, and Justin, and don't miss Joe with Ten Kings!
• We have moved Sault Michigan hard/alternative rock collective The Highest of Fives to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity. Featuring Intrepid, 415E, and Free Refill alumni, the band expanded from a young cover group in 2011 to a more fluid studio project that had ambitious plans to record & release short films, an album, and music videos that were only partially complete before their Twitter page's last update over a year ago. I liked The Highest of Fives high goals and diverse skill set, and hopefully they pick things back up again at some point! Best of luck to Devin, Jack, Marcel, Mike, Mitch, and Travis in the future!
• Ex-Late & Loud frontman Jonathan Tiberi is gauging support towards bringing his current Hamilton blues/hard rock quartet Jon & His Friends to the Soo for a concert (for reference, their lineup also features Mike Agostino & Scott Brady, Jon's bandmates in Xanadu from 2013's Apocalypse: The Musical event.) It'd be nice to see Jon and the guys back home, so message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group on October 7th for more details!
• And just as a house cleaning note for the SMS, we've removed the video bars from the sides of the page, which rotated recent videos from YouTube channels that we're subscribed to. For one reason or another, they no longer work, so I deleted the widgets that ran them. If they're ever restored or replaced by the host, I'll add them back, but I just wanted to acknowledge their absence!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews and more later this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Power Slug), An Inactive Band, And Much More!!

I hope you guys are continuing to enjoy the holiday season! As predicted, I assumed we'd have SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS today, so that leads off this post, but we also have a note on a band who's hit a year's inactivity for our band listings, a recent video posting, and more assorted notes, so read on below foe what you need to know!

Sault Michigan hard rock trio Power Slug will reportedly return to the stage for headlining dates at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, we just heard about these gigs via frontman Chris Leask's personal Facebook page yesterday, and the shows have not been plugged on the band's own Facebook page. Fairly dormant over the last few months, these will be their first concerts that we've heard about since their Manistique road trip in September, and their first at The Rapids Lounge since at least the summer, and while we haven't heard much on why they took a break in recent months, it's great to see Chris, Bob, and Chris back in the saddle for one more weekend before the new year! You can take in their hard rock covers TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT at 9:00 PM, you must be 21 to attend either night, and there's no announced cover charge. Go chug your mug with Power Slug if you can this weekend, and here are the guys at The Bird!



Next up, we regrettably have a band to move to our inactive band links in the next few days, that being local/Toronto hardcore punk/classical trio RedD Monkey. While the guys have not officially announced a breakup, they haven't issued an online update since Boxing Day last year when they played at the former Roosevelt Hotel, with frontman Steve Mozarowski later confirming an indefinite hiatus (or worse) in interviews and Facebook postings. Active since their formation in Kelowna in 2009, RedD Monkey had grown to become one of the more prominent local punk bands of the early 2010s, which saw them go on tour a number of times, record three albums (though only two were released), and play a number of major local concerts like the first three Sewer Swampstravaganzas, Rotaryfest's 2010 Second Stage, and 2009's Algoma University Battle of the Bands. In the past year, Steve had stayed busy "songwriting" with The Apocalypse Afterparty, while his brother Pete has dabbled in solo cello work, and drummer Joe Bumbacco can currently be seen in the Toronto sludge band Larval Host.

RedD Monkey accomplished a great deal in their 5 year run, and while the circumstances behind their year-long inactivity were never publicized, their energetic and fast paced concerts have been missed in the past 12 months. I hope we see their third album "Opus 2" come out at some point at the very least, but for now, best of luck to Steve, Pete, Joe, and their other former drummers in the future, and fingers crossed we see them again!

Also, here's a new video from local grunge/hardcore duo Bad Back, who you can next see live opening for the Detroit reunion at The Algonquin Pub on Tuesday! Hyped as their "Sault Ste. Marie comeback show" (as they haven't played a public gig within city limits since opening for The Archaics in July), this video from drummer Nathan Sauve's YouTube channel on Monday will give you a preview at their setlist on Tuesday, as it compiles many strung together clips of originals & covers alike from a recent jam session. The audio quality is solid, but the camera angle leaves something to be desired due to it's high angle, fish-eye lens filter, and complete lack of Nathan in visible frame. It gets the job done though, so give Bad Back's newest video a look below!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter items from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by band or store name:

• In their first Facebook page post in almost 3 months, local all-female hard rock quartet The Danger Cats revealed that drummer Calico Katie will be vacationing in England over the Christmas holiday, but they'll be back together in January to return to the stage. The girls haven't played live since September for unclear reasons, but hopefully they're back in action in short order, as they've been missed, and hopefully Katie has a great trip!
• Rudyard, Michigan hard rock cover quintet Exiled revealed on their Facebook page on Sunday that they're currently taking a break while drummer Justin Lawless and his wife welcome their new baby. Completely understandable, so look for them upon their return in the new year, and congratulations in advance to Justin & Anna on the coming arrival!
• Have you seen Facebook postings in the past week suggesting that Music Depot closed? A number of personal statuses suggested that the Gore Street music instrument store had it's last day on Saturday, but apparently, Music Depot just had an owner change and will be re-opening at some point soon, possibly next week. Hopefully that's all, as I know how much many local musicians like Music Depot! Our source is longtime staffer and Lucky 13 bassist Jeff Gray in a personal conversation.

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates over the weekend! Thanks everyone!

A New Local Metal Band, The Exiled Concert Previews, And More!!

Before we head to The Delta TONIGHT for the Rock For Dimes charity concert, here's a new news post for this Friday morning, and it includes a new concert video, assorted updates, and the last of this weekend's concert previews, but first, here's a new local band to check out!

We have a new local metal band to add to our links, and they are Das Skalpell Kampf, a new noise/grind duo that's already signed on with Blood Shed Productions! Originally named Scalpel Fight before discovering that the name was already in use (and taking on a Das Bunkerfest/German inspired alteration of the name instead), the band joins the growing ranks of two-man acts in Sault Ontario, and is the newest project from AlgomA guitarist Boyd Rendell, though like his "Darby Wigwaas" stage name there, both members of Das Skalpell Kampf take on stage names. Specifically, the singer/drummer is "Fonzy Grozny" and the guitarist is "Chachi Grozny", with the first names playing off of characters from the sitcom Happy Days. I'm not 100% sure on which one Boyd is, but for what it's worth, Fonzy's vocals on their first demo track don't match Boyd's high screams from AlgomA and BeeFMoutH. A live debut date hasn't been announced, but where can you hear D.S.K.?

The band was already announced as contributing to Blood Shed Productions' upcoming 11 way split demo (details here), but you can hear Das Skalpell Kampf's first song "Never The Same" at their new Bandcamp page, and while the recording quality isn't great, it fits the Blood Shed mold for minimalistic grindcore, and we'll have to see where things go for this new band! Stay tuned for updates, and like them on Facebook to stay in the loop!

Next up, here's our last of this weekend's concert previews (barring any late notice announcements), as Rudyard, Michigan hard rock quintet Exiled will rock out at Dan's Place in their hometown TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! I will note that Exiled haven't plugged these shows in the past month, but unless there's something explicit stated about these shows' status, we'll count them as still on. Last seen at the Highland Clan Motorcycle Club last weekend, these will be Exiled's first shows at Dan's Place since the summer, and if you've enjoyed their modern and classic hard rock covers since their debut (or just want some regional live rock), come out to see Exiled in Rudyard this weekend! 9:00 PM start times are in effect for both nights, you must be 21 to attend, and there's no announced cover charges. For more details, click here & here, don't miss Exiled TONIGHT OR TOMORROW, and we'll let you know when sharable videos turn up!

Also today, here's a unique (if short) new video from local grunge/hard rock quartet Haggith, more specifically, a drummer's-eye-view clip from their Devil's Night set at The Oddfellows Hall last month! It was shot during Curtis McKenzie's crowd warm-up before "Public Enemy", with camera work by drummer Mike Haggith, but it doesn't capture the full song, with Mike only manning the camera until he got ready to actually play the song. This video would have had more impact if the crowd was bigger, but give it a look below, and don't miss Haggith at Rock For Dimes at The Delta TONIGHT!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter stories from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• As you may remember, local doom/punk trio The Revolution teased on their Facebook page earlier this month that they'd be opening at AlgomA's CD release party for their new album "Reclaimed By The Forest" TONIGHT at The Moose Lodge, but there has been no follow-up on that from AlgomA since. As it looks now, that appears to have been either a premature announcement, incorrectly dated, or very private, but if we hear anything concerning a local release concert from AlgomA, we'll let you know!
• Local all female hard rock quartet The Danger Cats will end a 2½ month break from the stage when they head to Toronto for their first ever out of town gig as a special non-competing band at this year's Govfest Battle of the Bands at The Velvet Underground this coming Thursday! Big opportunity for sure, hopefully it goes well, and that we see them on a local stage again soon! Click here for more info!
• Dafter, Michigan solo hard rock artist Kenneth "SweetKenny" Sutton revealed the cover artwork for his 11th solo album "Slobber" on his Facebook page on Wednesday, which features an oddly pirate themed motif. Looks good, and keep an eye out for the album, which is scheduled to be released on January 15th, and an SMS review of that or "Amazonian" is likely then too!

That's all for today, but I'll see you guys TONIGHT at The Delta Waterfront Hotel for Rock For Dimes! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Strange Coyotes, Tym Morrison, And Exiled), And This Weekend's Concert Previews!

Hey guys, let's get this weekend's concert previews rolling, and even though there's a sharp post-Halloween drop for hard rock and punk shows this weekend, there's some notable events going down, so here's what you need to know, starting with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for this weekend! (Updated at 4:31 PM)

First up is a show that, when we originally posted this, was a private event at a not-completely-stated address, but because the Facebook event page lists a finite address and is now publically viewable, we'll call it on here. The event in question is another "Bloody Basement Jam" from Blood Shed Productions and Heavy North Entertainment TOMORROW NIGHT, which will feature four acts from The Devil's Night show at The Oddfellows Hall (and two that weren't there) returning for a sequel of sorts to that event, so who all's playing? The headliners are James Watterworth & Chase Wigmore from The Strange Coyotes (no sign of Mike Haggith) at 11:00 PM, with local goregrind duo Rotopsy on at 10:00 PM, local grunge/punk solo project Telephone & Address at 9:00 PM, the sporadically seen original version of Brutaly Fatal at 8:00 PM, local rapper Mikey Thomas at 7:30 PM, and Rotopsy bassist Tyler Gibson's Crucify The Whore solo project kicking things off at 7:00 PM. With only Chris from Telephone & Address not on the Devil's Night lineup, fans of that show shouldn't want to miss this one!

This show will be held at the basement of a residence at 109 Weldon Avenue (a couple of minutes from The Canadian Nightclub), which is definitely now being advertised publically. Doors open at 6:30 PM, this is ALL AGES, and there is no cover. For more details, visit the above links! This should be a fun concert for Blood Shed loyalists, and it's nice to see Brutaly Fatal playing again, so keep this event in mind if you're central, or just want some live grind, and here's The Strange Coyotes live last week (yes, the video works, just double click it to watch!)

Next up, we have Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison, who  will return to The Roadhouse Bar & Grill on Trunk Road for a solo acoustic show TOMORROW NIGHT! Don't worry, he's not done at The Harp Bar & Grill, and we'll get into his new November dates there in a second, but Tym is scheduled to return to his former regular stomping grounds for a rare non-customer appreciation night tomorrow, as The Harp is instead hosting local rock cover quartet Changing Lanes tomorrow night instead (source here), though no word on why Tym's not playing there on Saturday. Nice to see Tym back there again, though it is a little odd seeing Tym not at The Harp at all for a second time in three weekends. If you're hoping for new gigs at the former Madison's Pub, we will now add scheduled hosted jam night date there on Friday, November 14th (no listed solo date on the 15th) plus full weekends on November 21st-22nd & 27th & 28th courtesy of his website, and like before, we'll wait to touch on future months due to the immense length of his listed Harp bookings.

And of course, I apologize for the late notice on TOMORROW'S show, Tym only just publicized it on Facebook on Tuesday. Admission for all of the above dates is likely free, 19+ age limits are likely, and 10:00 PM start times are announced. For more details, click here and see above! While Harp regulars should definitely consider seeing Changing Lanes tomorrow (especially to see what Buzz from Garden of Bedlam has been up to during their recent break), east enders and Tym fans should not bypass his Road House return TOMORROW, so keep that and other November dates in mind, and here he is at The Service Grill!

Also in late notice shows for this weekend, we'll head to Sault Michigan, where Rudyard hard rock quintet Exiled will rock a special "belated birthday bash" TOMORROW hosted by members of the regional branch of the Highland Clan Motorcycle Club! Apologies again for the short notice, the band confirmed the show on Facebook on Monday, but we held it for our previews and to get more information on it. The second 2014 public event that Exiled have played relating to a local motorcycle club (after one for the Jokers Club in September), this appears to be a group birthday bash for members, but there are charitable causes attached, as you can donate a new toy at the door for free admission, with toys going towards their Ishpeming chapter's Toys For Tots promotion, which is awesome of them! If you can't donate a toy, admission will be $5 for this event, which has no announced age limits, and Exiled will be on at 8:00 PM tomorrow night.

As for the location, the event will take place at the Highland Clan's local clubhouse at 235 Magazine Street (minutes from The Satisfied Frog), so for more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Exiled have definitely been making a name at some diverse locales since their launch, and showing clear support for local bikers and their causes, so hopefully this is a successful event TOMORROW NIGHT, and we'll let you know when Exiled video footage turns up!

Finally for known heavier concert previews this weekend, we'll touch on the only previously announced hard rock shows that we had heard of, as Sault Michigan hard rock quartet 415E will continue their busy recent concert schedule with their returns to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Last seen there with their temporary duo lineup in August, this will obviously be the guys' first show in St. Ignace since restoring their full quartet form, so if you haven't seen Chris, Dave, Mitch, and Tony live together yet, this weekend's as good a time as any, as you never know when they'll be back on stage! Admission is free for this weekend's 21+ concerts, and 9:00 PM start times are likely. For more details, check the above links, don't miss 415E in action THIS WEEKEND, and here's their original lineup live last year!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for mre news and notes over the weekend! Thanks everyone!

The Rest Of The Halloween Weekend Hard Rock/Punk Concert Previews, And More!!

Happy Halloween, everyone! Our busy Halloween weekend continues today with our last previews of the weekend's concerts, including the known heavier Sault Michigan shows and a special Sunday nighter to cap the season with, but we also have some assorted recent notes at post's end. Now, here's what you need to know!

Newer Rudyard, Michigan hard rock quintet Exiled will provide their own Halloween entertainment TONIGHT when they headline a "Monster Bash" at the Dondee Lanes in Sault Michigan, marking their debut at this venue! Announced earlier this month on their Facebook page, this will be Exiled's first concert appearance since sharing the stage with Ricochet at the Savoy on the 10th, and though public information on the Halloween events to be had tonight are minimal, I would expect costumes being encouraged, at the very least, and who knows what other seasonal perks will be in store! Of course, Exiled's own blend of covers (and experienced lineup featuring Monkey's Uncle, NoXcape, and Division of Sanity alumni) should entertain fans at the Dondee, so don't miss out if you're across the river! Like at other recent Dondee events, there will be an earlier start time of 8:00 PM, no announced cover charge, and a 21+ age limit. Click here for more details on the Monster Bash, and hopefully some live video footage of Exiled turns up!

Also this weekend on the American side of the border, Kinross classic/hard rock trio Banned will return to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Fresh off of a road trip to Engadine this past weekend, these will surprisingly be Banned's first stops at St. Ignace's Kewadin branch of the year, and as you'd expect, there will be some type of Halloween theme going down tonight, so bring your costumes! Even without the seasonal setting, Alex, Wayne, and Don should have an entertaining variety of originals & covers to take in this weekend to help end one month and bring in another, so keep their shows in mind as well if you're in the E.U.P.! Both tonight & tomorrow's shows have no announced cover charge, 21+ age limits, and 9:00 PM start times. For more details, visit the above links, and here's Banned covering C.C.R. earlier this year!



Finally for this weekend's hard rock and punk concert previews, local concert promoter J.D. Pearce's final show in his "Punkrocktober" run of seasonal shows goes down THIS SUNDAY at The Rockstar Bar, which may be after Halloween, but better late than never! Headlining on Sunday are Montreal psychobilly favourites The Brains, who return to our area almost a year after their well received 2013 show here, and if you like your rockabilly with a large infusion of punk and attitude, you should take to The Brains' return again! Opening for them on Sunday are Montreal punk quartet Boids, whose own more traditional blend of punk rock should serve them and fans well, so don't miss their set either, as they have good energy and talent to go around! Though a local opening band is still "to be announced" as per the Facebook event page, a personal Facebook post by frontman Rob Speers says that local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements will be opening, and they'd be a good fit here, so keep an eye out for them!

This 19+ concert goes down Sunday night at around 9:00 PM, and there is a $10 cover charge. For more details, check the above links! After seeing three shows in three days, I can't guarantee if I'll be at this one, but fans of psychobilly and good old fashioned punk rock should not miss out on The Brains & Boids THIS SUNDAY, so check above for more info, and here's The Brains live in 2012!



We'll close today with some assorted recent updates from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• Veteran Sault Ontario drummer Mike Severin is looking for local musicians who'd be interested in joining an old school punk band that he intends to launch, who would cover bands like The Clash, The New York Dolls, and Social Distortion. He's looking specifically for a singer and/or guitarist (no word on if he has a bassist already), and interested parties must be able to jam one night a week. If you're interested, message Mike at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post on Tuesday!
• I've deleted the defunct Sault Michigan/Japan metal project Mugwort from our inactive band links, as their MySpace (and only online) page's link now redirects to an unrelated person's personal account, so it looks like it was taken down. Mugwort weren't around long and didn't post much, but follow singer Bob Helsten's similar local bands like I.S.O.M. and End of Existence for more material!
• I've replaced defunct Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Nixxon Dixxon's link on the site from their now-deleted Facebook page to their still active MySpace page, which still has substantial concert photos to warrant the link's inclusion on our listings, despite it's older studio cover songs having been pulled a few years back. It'd be cool to see Nixxon Dixxon reunite at some point, but follow 415E and The London Gentlemen for members' current work!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for our review of last night's Devil's Night show at The Oddfellows Hall in our next post (if all goes well), and we'll see you guys at The Algonquin Pub TONIGHT for The Halloween Party with Frightlight! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Who Made Who & Exiled), Plus New Videos!!

Well guys, this is our 2,000th published post at the SMS, so I just wanted to briefly thank everyone for the support and readership since we moved our main operations from Facebook to this website in December 2008! Here's to 2,000 more, and beyond! Now, today's post is otherwise business as usual, as we have some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS and recent video postings, so here's what you need to know!

New Sault Michigan hard rock quintet Exiled will make their Dondee Lanes debut this coming Friday (Halloween night) when they headline a "Monster Bash" there! Announced on their Facebook page last week (apologies for the delay, it slipped us by), this show comes three weeks after their joint show with Ricochet at The Savoy, and adds to a stacked Halloween weekend concert lineup for hard rock and punk bands in the Sault area next weekend, including the previously announced Banned shows in St. Ignace and plenty more on the Canadian side. Featuring alumni of Absolute, The Bottom Line, and Division of Sanity, Exiled should deliver an exciting night of music on Halloween, so keep it in mind for your Halloween concert plans, and bring your costumes! Like this weekend's 415E shows at the Dondee, there's an earlier start time of 8:00 PM and a 21+ age limit in effect, though a cover charge hasn't been announced. See above for more details, and stay tuned for updates!

Also in recent concert announcements, Toronto-based AC/DC tribute band Who Made Who will return to Sault Ontario on Saturday, November 15th for a headlining show at The Rockstar Bar! Our source is the new concert calendar posting on their Facebook page, though keep in mind that the venue hasn't officially confirmed the booking on their pages. One of the most frequently seen tribute bands in the Soo, fans may remember seeing The Ultimate Tribute to AC/DC at the same venue in March, which followed a number of prior gigs (mostly at The Canadian) through 2012. Fans of AC/DC should be amped up Who Made Who's high voltage rock 'n roll and their return next month, and I wonder if the guys added AC/DC's new song "Play Ball" to their set? A $5 cover charge is likely for next month, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time makes sense. Check above for more info, and we'll let you know if we hear more!

We'll close today with new videos, including a new live video from local classic/hard rock quintet That's Chester! You may remember that drummer Ric Datson pulled videos of them covering AC/DC and Supertramp songs from his YouTube channel in September due to copyright issues, but the absence didn't last long for one of them, as the video of them covering AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" was re-posted on his channel on October 1st! This comes from a recent wedding that they played in Elliott Lake, apparently outdoors under a tent, and it's a solid cover from these local veterans! No word who's playing the bongos though, the odd corner camera angle mostly cuts off their head, but Ric confirmed that the person's not in the band. Give the full video a look below, and hopefully the Supertramp video resurfaces at some point!

Finally for today, Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night are the subject of two new videos on keyboardist Craig Harrison's YouTube channel, as uploaded there over the past week! Both feature Theatre of Night original songs alongside a slideshow of his own art, including one for their song "Ragnarok Rising" and another embedded below for their song "Uthgar's Last Stand", which he noted in the description was based on a Norse comic he drew in college. We still await the new Theatre of Night original CD, but fans should like the orchestral metal on display, and Craig's art (while noticeably different from former drummer Greg Giles' art that used to be prevalent in their material) is very well done in it's own right! These new postings join a brand new original song on their Reverbnation page named "FellHallow's Eve", which is obviously seasonal, and taps moreso into their classical sound than their metal side. Give everything a look above, and here's Craig's new video for "Uthgar's Last Stand"!



That's all for today, but I'll see you guys at The Bushplane Museum TODAY for the Soo Zombie Walk and the pre-walk bands! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Stiffler's Mom & Exiled) And Most Of The Weekend's Concert Previews!!

It's now time for this weekend's hard rock concert previews in the Sault area, including two SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, but to give it proper emphasis and spread out the previews, we'll be looking at Saturday night's Rad Zone birthday party (as headlined by The Ripcordz with local openers) at The Rockstar Bar in tomorrow's post, so look for it then! Now, let's kick off this weekend's previews!

Sault Ontario party/hard rock cover trio Stiffler's Mom will return to The Rockstar Bar for a solo concert TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the show was first announced on the venue's Facebook group on Tuesday, but we held it for our previews to avoid a redundant re-post. This will be Greg, Mike, and Jon's second Rockstar Bar appearance in three weeks (following last month's Kieran Strange show), but will be their first headlining set there of the fall, so if you're up for a night of entertaining and wide ranging covers, keep tomorrow's show in mind! Remember, this is a one-night-only gig due to Saturday's Ripcordz/Rad Zone birthday concert that we're previewing on the site tomorrow. This will be a 19+ event, there will be a 10:00 PM start time, and while some recent gigs have had no cover charge, bring at least $5 just in case. For more details, check the above links, and here's Stiffler's Mom covering Ozzy Osbourne at the first annual Toystock!



Also in recent new concert announcements, new Rudyard hard rock cover quintet Exiled will return to The Savoy Bar & Nightclub in Sault Michigan TOMORROW NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, we first heard about this show on Monday, but held it for our previews. Like at last month's Redburn show, Exiled will again share the stage with another band, this time being Ricochet, the frequently-seen Rudyard cover quintet featuring former Banned guitarist Alex Schrovenwever. Ricochet are known to cover the occasional metal song, and they have an extensive slate of upcoming concerts, so don't bypass them if you're at The Savoy tomorrow! Exiled themselves should deliver a hard-edged set of modern and classic rock covers too, so fans of members' older bands should have nothing to worry about! A 10:00 PM start time is in effect for this one-night-only gig, you must be 21 to attend, and there's no announced cover charge. For more details, click here & here for each band's Facebook event page, and we'll let you know when Exiled videos turn up!

Moving to previously announced concerts, Charlevoix classic metal trio Peril will return to The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Coming just a week after Jeff Hudson's other metal band Scarkazm made their Sault debuts, these will be Peril's first Upper Peninsula gigs of the fall, and their first at The Rapids Lounge in six months, so if you don't frequent the St. Ignace Kewadin, this could be considered a long time coming for Peril fans! Jeff, Adam, and Brooks should have a solid weekend of metal classics in store this weekend, presumably at 9:00 PM each night, while you must be 21 to attend either night, and there's no announced cover charge. Check the above links for more details! Peril have proven to be a favourite sight in the area over the years, and their metal attack can't be denied, so don't miss their return to the Soo this weekend, and here's Peril live in Vanderbilt!



Finally for today's preview post, Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will continue his ongoing weekly concert arrangement at The Harp Bar & Grill with solo gigs there TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Note again that Tym's Facebook event page for this weekend only explicitly advertises tomorrow's gig with no Saturday show indicated, but his website's calendar still advertises him as playing both nights, so unless we get firm clarification, we'll treat both days as on. Entering his 45th consecutive week of solo acoustic cover shows at the former Madison's Pub, look for more of the same entertainment this weekend (or at least tomorrow), as his talents and song knowledge are quite extensive! There's no announced cover charge this weekend, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is in effect for tomorrow/both nights(?) For more details, check the above links, don't miss Tym's latest unplugged action at The Harp, and here he is covering Heart's "Alone" live at Mill Square!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Ripcordz preview and this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles TOMORROW! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (White Cowbell Oklahoma & Exiled) And New Video Finds!!

I know some of you are awaiting fallout from this past weekend's Hardcore Homecoming/Random Killing concert, but with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, I didn't want it all to be de-emphasized, so that will very likely lead off tomorrow's post, so don't worry! Also today, we have an archive video find, a recent metal concert video, and another new show for later in the fall, so here's what you need to know!

I'm getting very contradictory reports about bands playing TONIGHT at The Savoy Bar & Nightclub in Sault Michigan, so here's what we currently know. Last night, Rudyard hard rock quintet Exiled (pictured) revealed on short notice that they'll be playing at The Savoy for the first time tonight at 10:00 PM, preceding their motorcycle club party gig tomorrow, but that's not what The Savoy's own Facebook page is advertising. Instead, they're promoting a show to be headlined by Saginaw rap/rock band Redburn with support from Munising metal quartet Infathom, which Redburn's pages are plugging, but not Infathom's (they haven't posted on Facebook in over a month.) Given that Redburn advertised this show on their Facebook page today, I'm inclined to believe that they're playing, and while not confirmed officially, it looks like Exiled have replaced Infathom on the bill, though we'll correct this if need be.

For what it's worth, Redburn aren't a "heavy" band per say, but you don't see this type of sound in the area too often, and it looks like they'll be playing at The Savoy again in December if you're into a full rap show! Regardless of what goes down tonight, keep The Savoy in mind for some live rock!

Moving to a show that we can 100% confirm, Toronto southern hard rock notables White Cowbell Oklahoma will roll through Sault Ontario on Sunday, November 30th during their 15th anniversary tour, as they'll be headlining at The Rockstar Bar! Notorious for their entertaining jam-heavy live concerts (complete with power tools), their country-infused rock originals should be a fun sight back in the Soo for the first time since their well received concert at The Grand Theater four years ago, so don't bypass this one either, and click here for Donna Hopper's entertaining review of that show from SooToday to see what you're in for! The announced openers are The Paceshifters, a hard rock band from The Netherlands who have a grungy yet modern sound that should go over well too, so don't miss them either! For reference, W.C.O.'s own pages advertise Vancouver psychobilly band Big John Bates & the Voodoo Dollz as opening too during their tour (as they did at their 2010 local show), but the local Facebook event page doesn't mention them.

This 19+ concert will begin at 9:00 PM on November 30th, and there will be NO COVER CHARGE, so there's all the more reason to come out! Check the above links for more details, and if you know White Cowbell Oklahoma's reputation and over the top live concert experience, you won't want to miss this one at the end of November! Stay tuned for updates when & if they come in!

Closing today with some new video finds, here's two new clip of Sudbury blackened death metal band Catharcyst from their co-headlining set opening for IDNS at The Oddfellows Hall two weeks ago! Uploaded to the band's YouTube channel today, they're of Catharcyst playing their songs "A Spell Has Been Cast" and (as embedded below) "Terra", both of which being filmed from the band's merchandise table at the far end of the hall. The video quality of these is not good, with dark and grainy lighting and an angle too far to make out much of anything regarding the band or fans, but the audio quality is solid enough! Check out Catharcyst's new videos above & below!



We'll close today with another archive video of local classic/hard rock veterans Havadder, courtesy of the same Nicolet Tavern concert from February 2012 that gave us their Foo Fighters cover that was on the site earlier this week! Same filmer too (YouTube user Danabelle39), but for whatever reason, her videos from this show were split across two channels. The video on her own channel is of Havadder's 2012 lineup covering Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' "Runnin' Down A Dream" with frontman Jason Roy on lead vocals, and it's a good cover for fans of the original song, but the vocals can be muffled. Check out the full video below!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for Random Killing concert fallout and more in our next post! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Long Shot) & This Weekend's Concert Previews!!

Before we get into the details of this month's poll, let's cover this weekend's hard rock & punk concert previews, as there's some interesting shows going down, including one TONIGHT, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next weekend!

Newer local hard rock quartet Long Shot will play their next gig on September 26th (one week from tomorrow) when they play at the Fraternal Order of Eagles' clubhouse in nearby Heyden! The band featuring the Dawe brothers, Nathan Muto, and Jeremy Ganuelas were last seen at a LopLops event in August, and while a show at the Eagles club may seem a bit odd, remember that many of Long Shot's gigs have been in unique settings (and Tym Morrison used to play regular gigs here.) There appears to be some sort of on occasion for this show though, as Mexican food will be on sale, so keep that angle in mind too! There is no cover charge, Long Shot will be on at 7:00 PM, and there's no announced age limit. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Should be an interesting show, so if you're in the Heyden area, remember Long Shot's next show next Friday, and stay tuned for updates!

Moving to this weekend's previews, Montreal ska punk quintet K-Man & The 45s will make their second headlining appearance in Sault Ontario when they return to The Rockstar Bar for a special Thursday night show TONIGHT! Well known for their fun reggae-infused punk rock originals and Ramones covers (hence the alternate Ska-Mones moniker), K-Man & The 45s impressed when they came here in October, and they should be up to similar standards tonight, so don't miss them for a good old fashioned night of ska! Like last fall, local all-female hard rock quartet The Danger Cats will be opening this show in their second Rockstar Bar appearance of the month, and their entertaining blend of covers & originals should fit right in tonight as well! Keep in mind however that guitarist Paula Panther got hit with an illness (as per their Facebook page status referencing that they're "cursed"), but they'll power through! Promoted by J.D. Pearce, you may also remember that this show was originally planned to be an afterparty for the now-cancelled Misfits concert that would have taken place today, so at least we still have something!

This show has a $7 cover charge, 19+ age limit, and 9:30 PM start time. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Ska-punk fans would be well served to head down to The Rockstar Bar TONIGHT for all of the action, so don't miss K-Man & The 45s & The Danger Cats, part 2! For a preview, here's the headliners playing three songs live last year!



Next up is week #42 of Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison's ongoing weekly concert arrangement at The Harp Bar & Grill, as he returns there for solo gigs TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Like usual for his lengthy run at the former Madison's Pub, Tym will be hosting and playing at their weekly jam night tomorrow, before headlining a usual unplugged solo concert on Saturday, so he'll be delivering some solid tunes and hard rock renditions regardless of the day you come by! Tym's approaching 10 full months of his Harp run, easily the longest of his weekly engagements at a venue since moving back to the Soo, so come see a solid night of acoustic classics either night! Like usual, there's no announced cover charge, 19+ age limits, and 10:00 PM start times in effect. Check the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Tym covering Extreme!



Finally for known area hard rock concerts this weekend is new Rudyard, Michigan hard rock quintet Exiled, who will be rocking out at the first annual "Wild In Da Wilderness" party for the local branch of the Jokers Motorcycle Club of Michigan THIS SATURDAY! Sort of a different show compared to what you'd expect, but I assume at least one Exiled member is in the Jokers club. The event itself will feature food, bike games, 50/50 raffles, and free camping, with Exiled (featuring Absolute, Full Throttle, and Division of Sanity alumni) rocking out at some point later in the day, I'd assume, though I can't confirm if there will be other bands. The event (which is open to the public) will be held at 7100 M-129 (close to the 7 Mile Road turnoff), with a $10 cover charge ($15 for couples), doors opening at 1:00 PM, and you must be 21 to attend. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and Exiled's own page for their own confirmation about the event! If you're interested in hitting up this Jokers club party (biker or not), then keep it in mind for Saturday! No preview videos yet of Exiled though.

That's all for now, but stay tuned for last month's poll results and this month's new poll later today! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Nudge, The Danger Cats, And Exiled), More Concert Previews, And More!!

Thanks to some SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, our second post with weekend concert previews to start the month is much higher in that regard than we had anticipated! The new shows & one previously announced gig (plus an additional new show later in the month) lead off this post, but we also have some late updates for a Sault Ontario all ages concert tomorrow night, so read on below for what you need to know!

Ishpeming/Marquette hard rock cover quartet Nudge will return to The Satisfied Frog in Sault Michigan for headlining concerts TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, we just heard about these shows last night, though they had been advertised on Reverbnation before recently. These will be Nudge's first appearances in our neck of the woods since rocking the Frog in May, and unless a December return is planned, will be their last Soo stops of 2014, so if you've missed Danzo and company, keep their hard rocking good times in mind for tonight & tomorrow! Note that this weekend's shows will also bookend a mini-golf tournament at 2:00 PM tomorrow between the band and Satisfied Frog staff at Lockside Mini Golf at 447 West Portage Avenue (across from the locks), which you can attend if you want to cheer on the band and/or Frog crew! For the actual concerts, admission is likely free, you must be 21 to enter, and 9:00 PM start times are likely. For more details, visit the above links, and for a preview, here's Nudge covering Alice In Chains!



Also in new concert discoveries for this weekend, Sault Ontario all-female hard rock quartet The Danger Cats will headline at The Rockstar Bar TOMORROW NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, the girls only announced this show yesterday. Hyped as a "the back to school show", this will be their first headlining concert appearance since their weekend at The Esquire Club in July, and with their set opening for The Red Rails still fresh in the memory, their originals and covers should go over well with the Rockstar Bar faithful tomorrow! For reference, this is a one-night-only gig due to the previously announced Summer Thunder show at this venue tonight. A $5 cover charge is likely for tomorrow's Danger Cats concert, you must be 19 to attend, and a 10:00 PM start time is in place. For more details, click here! Late notice or not, The Danger Cats should put on a solid show tomorrow, so keep it in mind for an entertaining night of local hard rock, and for a preview, here are the girls at The Rockstar Bar last month!



Lastly for our known hard rock concert previews this weekend is a previously announced show from new Rudyard, Michigan band Exiled, who also have a new concert to announce for later this month too! They'll first rock Kincheloe TONIGHT as the live entertainment at The Bunker at The Oaks at Kincheloe golf course (at 50 Woodside Drive), which is part of a night golf event to raise money for the autism charity Corner Pieces. Great cause, and a unique setting for a concert (band name typos aside!) Admission to the golf event itself is $30 a person, but I'm unsure if Exiled's set will be independent of that fee or will only be available as part of it. There's no announced age limits, and a 9:00 PM start time is announced. This show precedes a new announcement for Exiled, as they'll be (among?) the entertainment at the "Wild In Da Wilderness" party for the local branch of the Jokers Motorcycle Club of Michigan on Saturday, September 20th, which is publically attendable! Located at 7100 M-129 (close to the 7 Mile Road turnoff), this 21+ event will have live music, food, prize raffles, bike games, and free camping from 1:00 PM on that day, so visit the official Facebook event page for full details!

Both of these shows will also be Exiled's first as a quintet, with the band adding guitarist Joe Jenkins (Full Throttle) and bassist Myke Young (Division of Sanity) to their lineup in recent weeks, and with frontman Donny Newell visibly moving to just vocals rather than playing guitar too. Nice to see a fuller lineup, and with Joe & Myke's bands recently not doing too much, it's nice to see them staying busy with a new project! These are unconventional shows for Exiled, but both are for good causes and connections, so keep each in mind, and don't miss Exiled's night golf set TONIGHT in Kincheloe!

Finally for today, here's some late updates concerning TOMORROW'S IDNS-headlined all ages show at The Oddfellows Hall! In terms of the lineup, it appears that local doom/punk trio The Revolution have quietly been removed from the new band schedule on the Facebook event page, though a reason for the former Brutaly Fatal's exit has not been announced by the band or promoters. Hopefully things are alright in their camp, and we'll keep you guys posted when we hear more from The Revolution! Concerning acts that are playing, local grunge/punk solo project Telephone & Address confirmed on their Facebook page tonight that they will indeed release their new CD "Need Not Apply" tomorrow night! Chris projected $15 sale costs for the album, which has 15 songs likewise, and the cover of one copy is pictured. Nice to see, and the timing makes perfect sense, so keep an eye out for the new Telephone & Address album tomorrow! Remember, tomorrow's concert is ALL AGES, admission is $10, everything starts at 5:00 PM, and I hope to be there too, so don't miss out on one of the first big metal shows of the fall!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow, and more in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Banned & Exiled), A New Local Band, And New Videos!!

Busy day for me yesterday, but now let's touch on some back news items as we get up to speed! Today's post mostly relates to the Sault Michigan area, including LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS. a brand new local band, a new video, and a bassist change, but we have a cool Sault Ontario update to cap things off with. Now, here's what you need to know!

We have a new local band to add to our Sault Michigan band links, and they are a new hard rock trio named Exiled! Based out of nearby Rudyard, their lineup features former Absolute & NoXcape bandmates Donny Newell (most recently of the original Full Throttle) on vocals & bass and Justin Lawless on drums, alongside guitarist Johnny Mayer, who is presumably related to some of the other Mayer family members with regional music ties. A likely cover-centric band that tackles both classic & modern rock material, I assume they'll be musically similar to Donny & Justin's past collective bands, but no media is online yet to prove that. Exiled debuted at Dan's Place in Rudyard at some point earlier this month (apologies for missing that show), and in some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, their next announced concert will come on Saturday, September 6th when they play at The Bunker Bar & Grill at The Oaks at Kincheloe Golf Course (obviously in Kincheloe), which they'll follow with a full Friday-Saturday weekend back at Dan's Place in Rudyard on November 14th & 15th, so keep those in mind too!

Each show has an announced 9:00 PM start time, all are presumably 19+, and none have an announced cover charge (though for the sake of clarity, I'm not familiar with The Bunker as a concert venue at all.) Nice to see Exiled off to a quick start, and if the guys can recapture past magic and chemistry from older bands, things should be alright going forward! Check the above links for more details (and here for the Facebook event pages for these shows), and don't miss their unique golf course show in Kincheloe in a couple of weeks!

Next up, Kinross hard/classic rock trio Banned will return to the Chippewa County Fair in their hometown for a set THIS COMING FRIDAY! You may remember that the guys have played the fair in past years both by themselves and as part of the Rock Till You Drop charity battle of the bands, which I don't think is back this year (at the very least, it's not on the fair's schedule), but we'll let you know if we hear otherwise. It's good to see the guys back for this year's fair, so look for them at the pavilion near the Lions Club building on Friday at 4:00 PM! This is definitely ALL AGES, and click here for info on admission and ticket packages. While we're on the subject of Banned, singer/guitarist Alex Traynor has joined the wave of people participating in the Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS research (click here to see the video, hopefully more local musicians take part!), and a new video relating to their concerts is also on their YouTube channel now too, so what's there?

A cover of Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Pride & Joy" that was uploaded to their YouTube channel on Wednesday, this is an audio recording from a recent show at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, as set to photos of their set by Holly Traynor (a relative of both Alex and drummer Don Traynor.) The video also confirms that Banned's current lineup no longer features bassist Jim Pentland, with former Bad Side bassist Wayne Lawrence taking over in his place at some point in recent months. A reason for Jim's departure hasn't been announced, but he was last visibly depicted online with Banned in April. Hopefully all's amicable, so best of luck to Jim going forward, and it's nice to see Wayne back in a local band again! As for the video itself, it's well put together and edited, but I do have to nitpick the cover in one aspect, as the vocals don't have the bluesy soul or deep tone that really "fits" a Stevie Ray Vaughan cover, but all's good otherwise! It's at least heavier than their recent modern indie rock postings. Check out Banned's new slideshow video below, and good luck in Gould City this weekend!



Lastly, we have a video of defunct Sault Ontario classic metal quartet Late & Loud from their farewell(?) concert at The Rockstar Bar three weeks ago! Courtesy of local music promotion company For The Music Inside (who also took many photos that you can see at this link), this is of the guys playing their original song "Fast As A Bitch" with a guest appearance by former Lust Boys guitarist Ben Kemp-Reynolds (a.k.a. Benny Blitz), who some of you may remember as a bandmate of bassist Benn Garside's in both The Glass Statues and in older CASS Cafe-era bands! Great to see Benny back in the area, and he looks and plays the part even in a guest role! The video's solid and close to the action, though the colour is very warm and almost too "red" from the lighting, but other than that, no complaints! I'm just surprised this took 3 weeks to make it to F.T.M.I.'s YouTube channel, but things relating to this show did come slowly to their online pages. It's here now though, so give it a look below, and watch for a cool solo from Benny at video's end!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for some more big news and updates shortly! Thanks everyone!