LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 906), New Videos, And Much More!!

As promised, let's round out this weekend's known local hard rock concert previews (both in Michigan's Upper Peninsula), while also covering some new video finds on the Ontario side of the border! First, let's start in the E.U.P. with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Local hard/blues rock quartet Project 906 will take the stage TOMORROW NIGHT in nearby Brimley at... Jack's Grub & Pub?! Apologies for the short notice, the band only confirmed this gig via their Facebook page on Monday. I've never heard of Jack's before, but it's a family-owned bar & restaurant at 9915 West 6 Mile Road (right close to the Brimley Bridge over the Waiska River), and it is owned by & on the same property as Willabee's Motel. While open since at least 2015, Jack's only sporadically hosts live bands, so it'll be interesting to hear how Project 906 do in their debut there TOMORROW NIGHT! This 21+ event has an 8:00 PM start time and no cover charge, and Brimley is 20 minutes southwest of the Soo. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's a brand new video of Project 906 in action, as also uploaded to their Facebook page on Monday!

Filmed at their most recent show at The Strongs Tavern in nearby Eckerman this past Saturday, this video features Billy, Joe, Dustin, and Odin covering Creed's "What If". I have to be honest, this isn't the best video that I've seen of Project 906, both for the camera angle (beside Odin & facing the crowd) and the somewhat choppy audio that really muffles the vocals, but while I'm also not a Creed fan, this cover does sound faithful to the original and they at least went with one of Creed's harder edged songs! Give it a look below, and don't miss Project 906 at Jack's in Brimley TOMORROW!

Next up, here's one more hard rock concert preview for this weekend (one that did have advance notice), as local hard rock quartet Tarnished are advertised to return to The Islander Bar in nearby Hessel TOMORROW NIGHT! Now, I must preface this show with a disclaimer, as the band has not promoted it on their Facebook page whatsoever, and I have not seen The Islander Bar's Facebook page reference this show since including it in a concert calendar post back on September 22nd. No one has said it's cancelled, but the lack of recent promotion is definitely noted, so keep this in mind if you're planning to make the 45 minute drive south tomorrow. If the show (tied in with the opening of deer season) is still on, you can enjoy Tarnished's hard rocking covers & originals at 9:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no cover. See above for more details and/or to see if this show is indeed cancelled, but that's not all from Tarnished!

Show on or off, we can leave Tarnished here in this post, as they announced on their Facebook page on Wednesday that they will be opening for Steel Panther at The Dreammakers Theatre at the local Kewadin Casino on November 26th (two weeks from tomorrow!) Last time out, Steel Panther had a touring opener (Wilson) but no locals, so this is a slight surprise, but Tarnished are an ideal pick given their talents, old school covers, and sense of humour! For a preview, Tarnished posted this 30 second Facebook video where Alex announces to his visibly unprepared bandmates (minus Nathan) the good news. Amusing clip, so give it a look below, and Steel Panther tickets are still available for their second local stop!

We'll close tonight's post in Sault Ontario... well, we'll first take a detour east to North Bay, as a video from local indie punk quintet The Northwest's recent show there is now online! This comes from their gig playing alongside David "Dino" White as part of the Guerrilla Grooves concert series on October 20th, where organizers host musical acts at a mystery venue that is only teased for the bulk of the promotion, and advance ticket buyers do not know where they're going. The venue (typically non-traditional and intimate in scope) is only revealed 36 hours prior to showtime, and in this case, The Northwest & Dino took the stage at Canadore College's aviation hangar. The staging won't be too out of the ordinary for local fans who have seen bands set up inside the Bushplane Museum, but the promotional aspect sure helps this stand out. I wonder if the Guerrilla Grooves concept could fly in the Soo? I can definitely think of some intriguing locales.

Plugged in advance with this promotional video featuring Wayne & Greg, the show proper seemed to go over well with North Bay locals, and you can bear witness yourself via this video from Guerrilla Grooves' YouTube channel earlier today, featuring The Northwest playing "Lights". The dual camera footage captures this Greg-sung track nicely, but I would like to see some more disparate angles of the hangar to frame how unusual the venue is from where you would normally attend concerts at. Solid (if mellow) rocker, so give it watch below, and stay tuned for more from them!

Finally for today, here's a video that I apologize for the delayed mention of, as here's a 19 second clip of Toronto-based Rush tribute band Crush playing "The Spirit of Radio" at Reggie's Place back in July! This was live-streamed on Reggie's Facebook page, but slipped us by until now. The light blue haze and dark stage lighting aren't a good compliment, but what little we hear of the song sounds good, pause in the lyrics aside, and hopefully there was a decent turnout to see The Ultimate Rush Experience (and their original sister band Pyramid Theorem) that night! Give this clip a watch below!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Bobaflex & Black Crown Initiate), The River Jacks Concert Preview, And More!!

Before we begin this post, I wanted to offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Kayge Fowler, who passed away last night after a brave and courageous battle with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (or DIPG) over the past year. He was just 6 years old. As well documented on the Prayers For Kayge Facebook group and local news media, Kayge fought valiantly against this terrible and aggressive form of brain cancer, and numerous people (locally or elsewhere) helped donate and contribute to the Kayge Fighters Against DIPG Foundation through many campaigns and special events, including last week's Music 4 Kayge fundraiser concert at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, which featured acts like Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide and Stiffler's Mom successors The Tilrays. While we had covered his dad Paul's brief work with the local band Keep It Lit in the past, I didn't know the Fowler family, but I can't imagine what they're going through right now.

From what I've learned about Kayge in the past year, he truly was a superhero, and fought this horrible disease with a bravery and compassion that we all should take the example of. I send my best thoughts and wishes out to Paul and Mandy, Kayge's siblings, and their extended family at this difficult time, and at least he's no longer in any pain. R.I.P. Kayge!

Now, today's post features a special Monday night concert preview, but first, here's a pair of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for you metalheads over the coming months! We'll start at The Rockstar Bar, and if you liked last July's Rivers of Nihil-headlined concert there, you might want to circle Saturday, August 3rd, as another Reading, Pennsylvania metal band will be there on this night, namely Black Crown Initiate! A technical death metal trio in their own right, Black Crown Initiate's melodic yet aggressive brand of material should whet any extreme metal appetite when they make their local concert debut later this summer, so be sure to check them out to see what they bring to the table! In fact, if you love melodic and technical death metal, this show will be a sonic feast, with B.C.I. also joined for this show and tour by Denver quartet Vale of Pnath, Nashville quartet Inferi (who played at last year's Rivers of Nihil concert), and Chicago quintet Warforged.

It's hard to differentiate the four bands briefly, but each has their own explosive original attack and lots of brutality on hand, so don't miss out on these four bands, and it's great to see Inferi back in the Soo, especially after almost stealing the show in July! At press time, there has been no local openers confirmed.Promoted by Live705 in (surprisingly) their first show since Rivers of Nihil, tickets for this 19+ concert will be $15 in advance or $20 at the door, with details on advance presale tickets forthcoming, while a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. This should be a great time for melodic death metal fans, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details!

Next up, West Virginia nu metal/hard rock quintet Bobaflex will make their own local concert debut on Tuesday, September 10th when they headline at Soo Blaster! A familiar sight to nu metal diehards over the past 2 decades (or for anyone who owns the Gigantour compilation live album), fans may recognize Bobaflex from such rock radio charting singles as "Bad Man" & "I'm Glad You're Dead". This hard touring, diverse, and aggressive band should deliver a solid set for local fans, and I'm curious to see how well they draw this fall! Like the Black Crown Initiate show, this lineup also features four out of town bands, including one we've seen before. The other local newcomers include Minnesota female-fronted hard rock trio City of the Weak (whose catchy modern hard rock sound should strike a solid chord), as well as Baltimore hard rock quartet Silvertung, who've also found some chart notice in the States with their aggressive yet accessible original material.

Sudbury grunge/hard rock quartet The Fortunate Losers will also be on the bill, just over two months after opening for Monster Truck at the same venue, and they should get a strong response in their Sault Ste. Marie return! A local opening band is to be announced. Presented by Thunder Bay's Loffredo & Associates (who are also bringing The Cancer Bats to Soo Blaster two nights later), tickets are $20 at the venue and at this link, plus a $5 service fee. I believe this is a 19+ show, and a 7:30 PM start time is advertised. Kudos to Frank for another big show at Soo Blaster, and visit the official Facebook event page for more details on this intriguing lineup!

Finally, here's our preview of a special concert THIS MONDAY NIGHT, as Calgary punk quintet The River Jacks will return to the Soo for a third time when they rock The New American Pub! Fans may recognize The River Jacks from their Algonquin Pub headlining show here in 2015, before debuting at The New A two years ago when they opened for The Old Wives. With their well-written lyrics, strong punk attack, familiar brand of punk rock (perhaps with accordion?!), The River Jacks should deliver another fun set of original material on Monday, so genre fans won't want to miss out! In a surprise confirmation last week, both of the local openers were replaced, as DJ Seith and local acoustic folk solo project Slumshine are in, while Jack Spades and Shit Liver drummer Matt Baic are out, as per the Facebook event page. Reasons for the opener switches were not publically announced, but hopefully nothing bad happened, and remember that Matt as a solo artist wasn't a familiar concept for our coverage as it was.

Having openers of such a wildly different genre is a little surprising, but Slumshine's Brent Ellis has the punk chops from his various old bands, and DJ Seith has been known to throw some heavier tunes into his mixes from time to time! Presented by Six, Two, Oh. for a second straight River Jacks show, this 19+ concert has a $5 cover charge and an early 8:00 PM start time, presumably a help given the school night scheduling. This should be a fun concert with a now-nicely varied range of sounds, so keep it in mind for your Monday plans, see above for more details, and here's The River Jacks live!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The River Jacks), A "New" Local Band, And The Faps Concert Preview!

Here's a new news post for your Sunday evening reading, and it covers a few big topics, including a preview of a special Tuesday night concert and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for this summer, but first, let's formally (and very belatedly) roll a prolific local band into our links on the site!

We have a "new" band to add to our active Sault Ontario band links, they being reunited ska-punk/hard rock band Tripod The Dog! An official band page has not been launched (that I know of) since their return gig earlier this month, but I recently discovered this Facebook group that was actively maintained by the band in 2007 & 2008 before their prior break-up, so we can belatedly list them here. When this group was regularly used, Tripod the Dog were comprised of founding singer/guitarist Mark Oliverio (later of Thin Ice), alongside Billy Bastards guitarist Greg Beharriel & ex-Role Models/Comedics drummer Phil Greco. Bass was supplied at the time by Sean Berlinguette (later a bandmate of Mark's in Glitch), though he was replaced in late 2007 by future Skeyes of Seven bassist Mike Mannarino. Mark and Sean returned for Tripod the Dog's reunion set at Rotaryfest last year alongside ex-Ground Zero drummer Brian Egglesfield.

1990s-2006 lineups are not well publicized online, but on 1998's "Local Steel" compilation, Mark & Greg were joined in Tripod The Dog by bassist Matt Miller and drummer Tracey Hilderley (a future bandmate of Mark's in Boogie Fever), and postings heavily imply that Scott Aultman and Kevin Becker were also prior band members. Updates on the Facebook group largely concern shows played by Tripod The Dog in their last active year of this era, including multiple dates at Foggy Notions (now Coch's Corner) and Stir (later The Vibe Lounge), though some reminiscing also occurs there from past gigs, as well some loose hints & suggestions for tour dates and new studio material. Apparently, Tripod The Dog were transitioning from their ska punk/alternative leaning set to one more based in hard rock after Mike joined the group, but given Sean's involvement in their reunion last year, one assumes that the new Tripod the Dog reverted to their old sound.

As Greg (who I don't believe is back in the band) was the primary administrator of this group, I doubt it'll receive new updates, but fans of Tripod the Dog's mid-2000s incarnaton should be interested in checking it out. Tripod the Dog were a skilled and fan favourite band in their original run, and it'll be interesting to see what comes next now that Mark has brought them back, so visit the above links for more on their work a decade+ ago!

Next up, here's that LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as Calgary punk quintet The River Jacks will return to Sault Ste. Marie for a headlining concert on Monday, June 3rd at The New American Pub! This will be The River Jacks' third local concert appearance (at least), following their set opening for The Old Wives at The New A two years ago, and a prior Algonquin Pub headlining gig in 2015. This stop on their spring tour should bring another entertaining night full of message-laden, well influenced punk rock, and genre fans would be well served to check this show out, whether you saw them locally before or not! Local openers have not been confirmed at press time, but for reference, Stegadeth opened for The River Jacks locally the last time out, while the now-defunct Gnaeus and Stereo North did so in 2015. Presented by Six, Two, Oh. like in 2017, this 19+ show as an early 8:00 PM start time, and while a cover charge isn't publicized, prior local dates were both $5.

There are some unknowns yet regarding this concert, but The River Jacks' skilled and familiar brand of original punk action should attract a solid audience at The New A in June! It's just a shame this is a Monday nighter. Visit the official Facebook event page for continuing updates!

Finally for today, here's our preview of a special mid-week concert, as Saskatchewan trash-punk duo The Faps will return to Sault Ste. Marie for a headlining show at the aforementioned New American Pub THIS TUESDAY NIGHT! Unusually being held in the spring after four prior autumn concerts locally, this will be The Faps' first local concert appearance in six months, and their first at The New A since 2017. Blair & Skylar's high impact & irreverent stage show should be welcomed back by many local fans for this stop of their No Name, No Fame Tour, but what music will they bring to the table, and what will they be wearing? Believe me, that's a valid question! Openers will include new local indie rock quartet Dusty Hazelwood (featuring Lion Ride, AlgomA, Dynowaves, and Fever Tops alumni), as well as singer/bassist Brenton Ellis' online page-less acoustic solo project Slumshine, in their first SMS-covered concert since 2017. Nicely varied lineup, there should be something for everyone!

Also promoted by Six, Two, Oh. (who are partly led by Dusty Hazelwood's own Jamie Vincent), this 19+ show has a 9:00 PM start time and a $5 cover charge. The Tuesday night scheduling is unfortunate for anyone with work and school commitments the next morning, but if you can make it to The New A for all of this action, you'll get a wide array of talented musicians, including a ferocious and unpredictable Faps set, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here are The Faps live!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (CureCon), Alberta Intrusion Concert Preview, And More!!

Before our review of last night's Soo Art Rocks! concert makes the site, we have a new news post for your Saturday afternoon, so what's in store? Some assorted recent news and notes, a preview of a concert going down TOMORROW NIGHT, and leading off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for an intriguing concert event later this year that, while having a lot of blanks to fill, has a lot of promise, so here's what you should know!

Local classic metal quartet Project 421 will reportedly be on the lineup for CureCon, an ambitious convention on Saturday, August 12th where local vendors and artists will come together to support each other, donate to regional charities, and support local businesses. To be held at the Royal Canadian Legion on Great Northern Road in a rare concert at that venue, this event is a co-production of Live705 and upstart local company Ma Lady Menace, ran by local entrepreneur Douglas Ewen. I'm unsure what the company name means, but Ma Lady Menace specialize in selling "crash course crates", which are basically LootCrate-esque boxes filled with just content for fans or newcomers of a media franchise or band, and now they're experimenting with live event promotion and plan to work with Live705 on some events. Very intriguing, we'll have to see where this all goes, and Ma Lady Menace are now linked on the SMS!

As far as I can tell, Project 421 (who confirmed their involvement on their Facebook page) are the only band to publically say they're performing at CureCon so far, in their first announced concert since Halloween, though we may see them somewhere prior yet. Great to see the guys back regardless, they've been missed! Live705's involvement would suggest that A Dire Setback are playing too, but I have not heard confirmation of any other acts yet. Ma Lady Menace have noted that merchandise tables and advertising are available towards the convention proper, but I'm unsure if they're seeking bands the same way or have groups in mind internally. For more details on that end of things, click here! The live band portion of CureCon will be at 8:00 PM on August 12th after the convention portion wraps up, which itself starts at 12:00 PM. Admission will be $20 in advance or $25 at the door for the whole CureCon events, or $15 for just the convention or concert alone.

The concert itself is a 19+ event, but CureCon's prior events have $5 entry for children 3-12 years old, and kids under 3 are free, while there will reportedly attached contests and band Crash Crates, details presumably forthcoming. There are a lot of unknowns yet regarding CureCon, like what kind of convention this will shape up to be (Comics? Home show? Anything & everything?), the remaining band lineup, and more, but I like the ambition on display, and I'm definitely curious to hear more details regarding CureCon, Ma Lady Menace, and other attached entities! Stay tuned for updates!

Next up, here's a pair of concert previews for shows over the next couple of nights, starting with The Alberta Intrusion, a concert featuring three touring punk bands from out west that are headlining at The New American Pub TOMORROW NIGHT! Those three bands are The bands in question are Edmonton pop punk trio The Old Wives, Edmonton punk rock standouts Worst Days Down, and Calgary punk quintet The River Jacks, and they should deliver their own entertaining takes on the genre tomorrow, so be sure to check all of them out! Of note, some readers will have seen The River Jacks at The Algonquin Pub two years ago as a headlining act during their Gonqshow concert series, so if you wanted an encore, here it finally is! Local punk trio Stegadeth (replacing Talk Shit) will open the proceedings, with frontman Bill Bennett having previously opened for The River Jacks locally with Stereo North, and they should be a fine fit tomorrow, so don't be late!

Promoted by Six, Two, Oh. in their first fully promoted concert in over two months, you can apparently still get $5 advance tickets at Advance tickets are apparently now available at Northland Music, Case's Music, The Rad Zone and Big Guns Barbershop near the library downtown, though note that the price jumps to $7 at the door. A 9:00 PM start time is listed, and this is a 19+ event. This should be a great concert for punk fans, with a trifecta of intriguing Alberta acts and some local action from Stegadeth in store, so don't miss out tomorrow night, and here's The Old Wives live!



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

• Local blues/hard rock trio Electric Church are reportedly working on their debut studio album, and have been recording tracks at Mission Control Studios! We were first alerted to this when the studio shared a picture on their Facebook page of Spencer, Elijah, and Beau with Dustin Jones, and the band confirmed on their own Facebook page that they are "working up some new songs... for the album." Very cool to hear, hopefully more updates come out soon!
• The Gore Street Cafe will apparently be forced to relocate to a new venue in July, as per owner Nicole Dyble on their Facebook page on Monday. Plans reportedly called for the cafe to leave the laundromat at month's end, but for "a number of reasons", things have been extended a month. Despite many varied concerts, events, and a fan friendly business model, the cafe has had a rough go in the past year, and while Nicole hopes to find a new venue, she admitted that "the future of the cafe is uncertain." Hopefully things work out for the cafe, they're doing great things there, and fingers crossed that they find a new locale this summer!
• Were you added by a Facebook friend account called "TheSault MusicScene" yesterday? If you were curious, I am NOT behind it, and name aside, I don't believe it's related to the early-mid 2000s music website. The new page is intended to help promote & advertise local concerts of any genre, and while they haven't said who's running the page publically yet, I believe the lead administrator is a musician & former promoter.  If this page is maintained and kept up with, it could be a great resource, so keep it in mind! However, as a personal Facebook account with most posts hidden from non-friends, I can't link it here unless they relax the privacy settings so it's publically vieawable.

That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Soo Art Rocks! preview next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Old Wives & Deathsticks), A New Local Band, And More!!

Before we kick off our first news post in four days, just a heads up that today is reportedly the final day for HMV's liquidation sales before their Station Mall location closes for good in advance of Sunrise Records moving in. Last time I was there, everything was 70% off or more, so make use of the sales today if you can, and we'll be replacing them in our music store links shortly as well! Now, here's a stacked news post featuring a surprising lineup departure, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the spring, and first, a new local band!

Over a month after their local concert debut, new local punk/alternative trio Handsome Sandwich have finally launched their own Facebook page, so what should you know? Comprised of Bear Hunters drummer Johnny Belanger, Winkstinger guitarist Jesse Cook, and Redundant bassist James White (with Johnny providing most lead vocals), you may have seen this curiously named band open for Gianni Gagoots live at LopLops Lounge last month, but that remains their only announced concert appearance. Despite the trifecta of past common band links for 2/3rds of the band (James & Jesse with The Elements, James & Johnny with Caveman Morrison, and Jesse & Johnny with Jack Spades), Handsome Sandwich will reportedly not sound like any of them, and will harbour more similarities with Johnny's solo concert sets that he played in the mid-2010s, some with Jesse playing alongside. An original song named "Signs" is in progress, but unless you missed their debut gig, there are no other hints about their sound yet.

A band with such well done (if bizarre) artwork can't be all bad, especially with such a solid lineup of familiar faces from recent punk and metal bands, and it will be very interesting to see how Handsome Sandwich fare into 2017! I know that Johnny had wanted to front a punk band locally for a while now, and if this is the realization of that goal, then look out, as there's a lot of potential to be had, even with such a curious yet creative band name! Stay tuned for more on Handsome Sandwich as it comes in!

Next up, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, starting with the delayed local concert debut of Whitby, Ontario garage/noise rock duo Deathsticks, who will rock The Gore Street Cafe on Thursday, April 20th! Work commitments scuttled this band's planned New American Pub concert in October, but now, they're getting a second chance for local fans to see what the guys in AlgomA saw when the two played together in Peterboroigh last summer. Expect some minimalist but aggressive originals with a psychedulic spacey bent at times from Deathsticks next month when they headline at the laundromat! In place of the never-debuted Dark Garfunkel and Sleeping Together from October, the local opener is ex-Pixo Control frontman Mike Mikus, whose own rising solo pop rock originals continue to make waves, so keep him in mind for April 20th at well! Despite Six, Two, Oh.'s intended promotion of October's cancelled date, next month's show appears to be in-house through the venue, as is often the case there.

As usual for Gore Street Cafe events, this is an ALL AGES concert under the venue's usual "pay what you can" model, and an early start time of 7:00 PM is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more from this intriguing concert as it comes in!

Also, we have one more new show to confirm today, but this one is indeed via Six, Two, Oh., as three touring punk bands from out west will hit The New American Pub on Sunday, May 14th for what is being called "The Alberta Intrusion"! The bands in question are Edmonton pop punk trio The Old Wives, fellow Edmonton punk rockers Worst Days Down, and Calgary punk quintet The River Jacks, so how's that for a solid lineup of hard hitting punk from afar? In particular, you may recognize The River Jacks from headlining at The Algonquin Pub two years ago, so if you've missed them since that Gonqshow concert series date, here's the belated sequel! The local opening band is newer local punk/metal trio Stegadeth, whose frontman Bill Bennett opened for The River Jacks here in 2015 with Stereo North, and they should provide solid support to the Alberta intrusion in May! This 19+ show has a 9:00 PM start time and $5 advance tickets, though the price jumps to $7 at the door.

Advance tickets are apparently now available at Northland Music, Case's Music, The Rad Zone and Big Guns Barbershop on East Street, so keep those locales in mind, and visit the official Facebook event page for more details! This should be a great concert for punk fans, with The Old Wives' skate punk sound, Worst Days Down's more alternative stylings, and The River Jacks' old school sensibilities a nice match for any taste, so check the above links to give all of the night's bands a listen, and get your tickets A.S.A.P.!

Finally, we have a surprising update from a veteran cover fixture, as local classic/hard rock quartet Mourning Wood appear to have parted ways with drummer Glen Thomas. A reason for his departure has not been publically announced, but singer/guitarist Terry Eaton revealed that they have a drummer vacancy via his post on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday. Glen has been a fixture with this frequently seen cover band since replacing T.J. Case in August 2015 upon their expansion to a four-piece lineup, and it was nice to see Glen back in a band that played some hard rock for the past year & a half, but hopefully things are amicable, and don't miss him with The Peace Vibe! Glen's departure may explain why Mourning Wood haven't played live in over a month (with Terry & guitarist Steven Flint's side project Soundcheck picking up the slack recently), but they are looking for a new "tub thumper"!

Steven noted in a comment on the aforementioned Musicians Wanted group post that "versatility is key", having singing ability is a bonus, and they just want "a skilled musician who's down to earth" that loves to play live, while Terry mentioned that Mourning Wood have gigs booked through the end of the year, including New Year's Eve (specific dates and venues not listed.) If you're interested in trying out for Mourning Wood, message Terry at this link or above, and stay tuned for updates on their drummer search and more general updates soon! Thanks everyone!

River Jacks & Mourning Wood Concert Previews, A New AlgomA Interview, And More!!

We're back on this Wednesday morning with a new news post, so what's on tap? Assorted recent updates referencing summer concerts, a new interview from a popular local metal band, and two mid-week concert previews, so here's what you need to know!

The second concert in J.D. Pearce & Tidal Records' Gonqshow concert series at The Algonquin Pub goes down TONIGHT with Calgary punk sextet The River Jacks making their local debut as the headliners! A message-driven and focused band who mix folk rock and hard hitting punk into a strong and entertaining package that fans of The Dropkick Murphys should take to, so don't miss them TONIGHT during their Canadian tour! Note that the Soo date falls when they have no fellow touring acts joining them. The local opening bands (both of which making their Algonquin Pub debuts) include VM Radio Battle winning-post punk quartet Gnaeus and new local pop punk quartet Stereo North (featuring T-Rex Manning & Starlit Sins alumni), and both should fit in well for this Gonqshow entry, so don't be late! This 19+ concert has a 10:00 PM start time and a $5 cover charge, so for more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and for a preview, here's The River Jacks live last year!

Next up, we'll preview the likely next installment of Mourning Wood's weekly jam night series at The Rednecks Saloon, as the local classic/hard rock trio are presumably back there TOMORROW NIGHT for the eleventh straight week! I will give the caveat though that I saw no personal Facebook postings referencing last Thursday's jam night, but unless something is said to the contrary, we won't assume the worst for the series. Fresh off of a Saturday double-header at both Rednecks and The New A, this talented cover band should be ready to rock the former Nicolet Tavern once again tomorrow night with the same Thursday jam theme as before, so if you can play an instrument and want to jump on stage to play with Mourning Wood, here's your chance! Like usual, there's no announced cover, a 19+ age limit, and a 9:30 PM start time, so visit the above links for more info, and here's the guys last year!



Also, here's a new-ish interview with local doom metal trio AlgomA, courtesy of Italian metal website Metalhead.it! Conducted by Matteo Piotto with singer/bassist Kevin Campbell, and posted online on April 15th at this link, the interview is preceded by a brief review of AlgomA's CD "Reclaimed By The Forest" (which Matteo called "one of the most obscure and disturbing albums" of 2014), and don't worry, that's a positive remark! In the interview, Matteo asks Kevin about how sales of the CD are going, their lyrical and musical inspirations, their past local band experience, how they got Adam Geyer to do their album artwork, and their upcoming tour plans, and more. In terms of new stuff, Kevin did reveal that they're apparently opening for Toronto crossover metal band Teethmarks with Destroilet in the Soo on July 4th, which hasn't been publically confirmed yet otherwise, but we'll keep you guys posted.

He also referenced the band's June tour plans in the interview, and though he didn't detail shows specifically there, one new confirmation will see AlgomA headline in Hamilton on June 24th, so click here for more details. Solid and informative interview, and Kevin is friendly and well-spoken throughout, so give his interview a read at the above links!

Finally for today, here's some assorted shorter updates from the last little while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or event name:

• Is the annual Sault Michigan memorial concert festival LemmaFest coming back for year 5? In the form we're used to, it's not looking likely, as one of the main promoters is reportedly dealing with legal concerns, hence why there have been no announcements for the usual late June timeframe. However, musicians and supporters of the Mike Lemma memorial event are showing interest in putting on LemmaFest later in the year, so visit the event's Facebook page to join the discussion, and we'll keep you posted!
• A venue is to be announced, but local independent label PaperClip Productions are dipping into the concert promotion game for a show on August 10th that will feature Alberta metal bands Lie Among Us & Eternal Prophecy alongside local openers/label acts Haggith and, in their first show since reuniting, The Revolution. We don't call concerts on here until a venue is publically advertised, but click here for full current details on this intriguing Monday nighter, and stay tuned for updates!
• The planned Of Tall Tales-headlined Gonqshow concert at The Algonquin Pub appears to have been completely cancelled, as per it's removal from the Facebook event page. Originally planned to take place on July 18th, it was later changed to have a date to be announced, but no word on why it's no longer listed there. Of Tall Tales are a solid band, hopefully they come here at some point!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more weekend concert previews and more news to come! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Vesperia, Of Tall Tales, AxMinister, And The River Jacks!!)

Before we begin, I wanted to apologize for yet another missed Mourning Wood concert, as the classic/hard rock trio played a short notice matinee concert at The New American Pub on Saturday night, as per their Facebook page that day. The alert came too late for us to slide it into a timely post, but it was their first New A set in two months. Had this show have had more advance notice, we'd have definitely plugged it here, but our apologies either way! Now, today's post is entirely devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, all from a newly announced concert series taking place over mid-2015, so here's what you need to know!

Local concert promoter J.D. Pearce has announced a summer concert series called The Gonqshow that will see at least 10 different concerts hit The Algonquin Pub over a four month span between May and September! The first time that he's announced such an ambitious long-term run at a venue since the short-lived Heavy Thursdays at The Rosie, most of these concerts will have $5 cover charges, and all will likely have local opening bands. You can get more details at the official Facebook event page, but the first Gonqshow date (barring any interim announcements) will see Calgary punk sextet The River Jacks make their local debut on Wednesday, May 20th! Taking place early in their cross-Canada tour, their up-tempo punk sound with a folk tinge and message should find an audience here next month, so keep this show in mind as the Gonqshow begins! For reference, The River Jacks have touring bands joining them across Canada, just not in the Soo.

Local openers are being sought for this and most other shows that J.D. has planned for The Gonqshow this year, so message him at this link or above if you want to open for The River Jacks next month! Unless later stated otherwise, this is a 19+ event with a $5 cover and a likely 10:00 PM start time. For more details, visit the above links! This should be a great way to kick off this series, so don't miss The River Jacks' folk/punk attack!

Two Saturday night events (on May 30th and June 27th) await a public announcement of who's playing them, but next among announced Algonquin Pub events in this series is a wildly diverse concert on Saturday, July 4th that will be headlined by masked Toronto thrash trio AxMinister in their local debut! Possibly familiar as well for sharing the stage with locals AlgomA at a Sudbury event in June, their gritty pounding thrash originals should also make lots of fans on the Fourth of July (the SMS' eighth birthday too!), so keep them in mind! When I said this was wildly diverse, I meant it, as Alberta pop punk quintet Calling All Captains will open in their own local debut, and while a far cry from AxMinister, their energetic alternative sound will be familiar for fans of bands like A Fall From Innocence, so they'll find a good response as well! Capping off the wide sound array will be local rapper Mikey Thomas, and fans of his Blood Shed sets will know his skill for that genre!

There's arguably a little something for everyone at this show, which will again likely be a 19+ affair with a 10:00 PM start time and a $5 cover charge, so check the above links for more details, and whether you love thrash, punk, rap, all, or some of the above, keep this show in mind for July!

Next on the Gonqshow slate is an Algonquin Pub concert on Saturday, July 18th that will see Sudbury hardcore punk quartet Of Tall Tales make their own local concert debut! Some readers may recognize them from sharing the stage with local bands at the last two Rock 'N Roar Battles of the Bands in Spanish (they and locals Beaumont Avenue both placed last year, earning opening slots at last August's Rock 'N Roar Festival), but this will be our first chance to see O.T.T. on a local stage. Their originals (which give me a Howard Jones-era Killswitch Engage vibe at times) should impress many local fans in July, so definitely check them out, especially for their Backstreet Boys cover! Local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades will be one of at least two local opening bands for this show, and message J.D. A.S.A.P. via the above links if you want to open for this show too!

Again, this show will have a $5 cover charge, 19+ age limit, and 10:00 PM start time unless stated otherwise, and we'll let you know if something is! It's great to see Of Tall Tales finally make their local debut, and they should leave a huge impression, so keep tabs on this show as more updates roll in! 

Lastly for today, we'll head to The Algonquin Pub on Thursday, July 23rd, where Toronto folk/death metal quartet Vesperia will make their local concert debut amidst the Gonqshow! Formerly known as Bolero and featuring Hallows Die drummer Dylan Gowan in their lineup, Vesperia's melodic extreme metal sound will definitely pique the interest of many metalheads, especially given their experienced and talented lineup, so do not bypass this one in July! For reference, Shit Liver are playing with both Vesperia & Hallows Die in Sudbury this Friday, click here for more details. Local openers are completely undetermined as of this writing, but again, if you want to open, message J.D. via the above links! Like the above shows, this one will likely have a $5 cover charge, a 19+ age limit, and a 10:00 PM start time unless stated otherwise. For more details, visit the above links, and definitely remember this show for some summertime metal brutality! Stay tuned for updates!

There are four more shows in August and September among the Gonqshow roster, which we'll touch on in an upcoming post to spread them out, but the above links will give you info on them before then! J.D.'s outdoing himself once again, so kudos for what should be a stacked summer concert season, and I'm sure he's not done yet! Stay tuned for more here and on Facebook to come, and for more news and notes as they roll in! Thanks everyone!