LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Headrush, Project 906, And Tym Morrison) And More Weekend Concert Previews!!

As promised, let's wrap up this weekend's hard rock concert previews along with some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (one on SHORT NOTICE), so here's what else to know for this busy weekend!

Members of Sault Michigan hard rock bands Project 906 and Exit 808 will join forces for a joint concert TONIGHT at The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot in Kinross! Apologies for the short notice, the show was only announced via Exit 808's Facebook page on Monday. Technically speaking, this is a Project 906 concert, despite that band not promoting the show on their own Facebook page whatsoever, but they have enlisted Exit 808 drummer Jackie Moon for the evening to fill in for an absent Jason VanLuven for unannounced reasons, with that post featuring every 906 member except Brian. There might be more of an 808 integration to the evening (Project 1714?!), as their most recent share of the event suggests "a rock music collaboration" featuring "some of the guys" from Exit 808, but I don't know which of Dillion, Alex, Nathan, and/or Blaze could turn up (Amy likely isn't given her supportive comment on said post).

Whatever permutation of the two bands we're getting TONIGHT, you'll get your hard rock fill from this talented collection of E.U.P. musicians! As usual for Well Diggers shows, this will be on their newly renovated outdoor stage, so head to the party yard for all of the action! Things go down TONIGHT at 7:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no announced cover charge. 9&10 News is calling for temperatures in the 55-60° range (13-16° Celsius) with mostly clear skies and no chance of rain. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Project 906 live at Well Diggers!

Next up, let's resume our weekend concert previews at Misty's Fifties in Sault Ontario, where local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison's acoustic solo act is slated to set up shop for yet another matinee concert TOMORROW NIGHT! Certainly no stranger to the Second Line West bar and restaurant, Tym has played there multiple times in 2025, most recently this past Saturday, so if you want to check out his ample setlist and considerable vocal and guitar talent in an intimate west end atmosphere, you know where to go! While we're on the subject, Tym is not playing at Beck's Bar anymore on Sunday. A reason for the cancellation of this Sunday matinee outing was not announced, but the September 28th gig was quietly removed from his batch Facebook event page for shows there (Beck's is hosting Out & Out Country on Sunday instead). However, we have six more new show announcements for Tym there, so when will he be back?

As per that Facebook event page, Tym will be back at the former Vibe Lounge for matinee gigs on Saturday, November 1st & 15th, Sunday, November 23rd & December 7th, Saturday, December 13th, and Sunday, December 28th, so keep his end-of-year rush in mind! Tomorrow's Misty's matinee is at 4:00 PM, the Beck's shows ahead are all at 3:00 PM, and all have 19+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the Misty's show's Facebook event page and the above links for more details, and here's Tym live!

Also, let's head to a venue that recently resumed hosting live bands for the fall season for some brand new shows later this year, as classic/hard rock cover quartet Headrush will end their own recent break by returning to The Esquire Club on October 24th-25th and November 28th-29th, as per the venue's fall 2025 concert calendar! Unless they announce something in the interim, the October shows will be Headrush's first since closing out Rotaryfest Stage 1 in July, and their first at The Esquire Club since the end of May. It is great to see the Johns, Wes, Gino, and Frank back at it, and hopefully they rock the house down on Second Line West across both weekends! As usual for The Esquire Club, these are 9:30 PM bookings with 19+ age limits and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and we'll have more from both Headrush and The Esquire Club on the SMS soon!

Lastly for this weekend's previews, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down will set up shop at the aforementioned Beck's Bar for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! This will be Double Down's fourth concert of the fall season and first at Beck's since the spring, so this should be a good opportunity to check out their new setlist and diverse range of classic and hard rock covers once again! With bassist Dan Beaupre still out injured (get well soon!), the Syrettes and Ric have recruited Mid Life Crysis/ex-Havadder bassist Lori Reinholtz to fill in tomorrow, after previously doing the honours when they rocked The Water Tower Pub last week. Welcome her back in style tomorrow at this fast rising Goulais Avenue pub! For reference sake, the matinee band tomorrow will be Joel & Beej's occasionally-seen acoustic side project The T.R.I.P., featuring a guest appearance by former Quite Frankly frontwoman Jack "Jacklyn Hyde" Alisat, as per Beck's Facebook page on Monday.

Busy day for the cousins, so if you want to see them before they plug in, The T.R.I.P. are on from 3:00-7:00 PM. Double Down take the stage at 9:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover. See above for more details, and for a preview, and here's Double Down live!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Nameless & Dodge This) And More Weekend Concert Previews!!

In today's second weekend concert preview post, we have some more SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS to help cap off a busy weekend in the Sault Ste. Marie area, so here's what you should know!

Local acoustic classic/hard rock cover trio Dodge This will reportedly return to The Water Tower Pub TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, we only heard about this show via personal Facebook postings about live music schedules this weekend, as neither Dodge This (who haven't posted online since July) and The Water Tower Pub (who haven't posted a monthly concert calendar since June) have publicized this booking on social media. If accurate, it's good to see Dodge This back after an apparent summer break, having last played a publically announced gig at The Dive in early July (they did drop out of a planned Beck's Bar gig last month though). Hopefully TONIGHT's show has a strong night of classic and hard rock cover favourites (and even some country tunes) from the July brothers and Jason, so keep it in mind! Remember, The Water Tower Pub hosts different nightly musicians, so Dodge This will not be playing there tomorrow.

If you're curious, the Saturday performers at the Great Northern Road nightclub will be new local country rock supergroup Elly McWatters & The Drifters. TONIGHT'S Dodge This concert has a 19+ age limit, no cover charge, and an 8:00 PM start time. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Dodge This live!

Next up, Sault Michigan hard rock quartet The Nameless will visit The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot in Kinross for the first time for an outdoor concert on SUNDAY! Again, apologies for the short notice, this gig was first announced via the venue's Facebook page on Wednesday. When the band corroborated the booking later that night on their Facebook page, they indicated that the opportunity to play here arose despite previously planning a break to work on new material for their sets. As such, this will be The Nameless' first gig since rocking The Merch three weeks ago. Well Diggers will be familiar to Yooper readers from hosting Project 906 on occasion in 2023 & 2024, and it will be neat to see a different local hard rock cover band on their outdoor stage on SUNDAY, so keep this matinee booking in mind! Unlike the prior 906 gigs here, this will be a 3:00 PM matinee concert on SUNDAY, and there will be no cover charge.

It's too soon for an hourly forecast, but 9&10 News is calling for mostly cloudy skies, no chance of rain, and a high temperature of 71° (21° Celsius). Weather is looking good and calm for the next while, including 70+/20+° weather over the next week, so enjoy these outdoor concerts while we still can realistically have them! Visit the above links for more on The Nameless' Kinross debut on SUNDAY, and here they are live a few months back!

Now let's head back to Sault Ontario, where local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will return to Reggie's Place for concerts TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Two weeks removed from their last gigs at Reggie's, this will be another prime opportunity for fans to check out Greg, Alex, and Warren's down and dirty brand of classic, hard, and southern rock covers, plus their three originals, and merchandise will be on sale as usual! "The Dirty Three" should be in fine form at their favourite venue, so don't miss out on all of the action on Queen Street East tonight & tomorrow! Your local 225 take the stage both nights at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no cover charges, and if you can't make it, they'll be back at Reggie's in two weeks. Visit the above links for more on Bone Yard's shows tonight & tomorrow night, and for a preview, here they are live!

Finally for this second weekend concert preview post, here's one more big show taking place on SUNDAY NIGHT, as Oshawa-based Bon Jovi tribute band Bon Jovi Forever will return to town when they headline at the Sault Community Theatre Centre! One of four Bon Jovi tribute bands to rock the Soo in the past 15 years, Bon Jovi Forever are the tribute that headlined at The Rockstar Bar in 2016, so it will be good to see their hair metal classics and later general rock favourites back on a local stage on Sunday, let alone on the huge theatre stage at White Pines! Of course, I won't judge which Bon Jovi tribute is better or more faithful than the rest, but B.J.F. deliver a faithful sounding and looking stage show, as led by frontman Baz Littlerock, so don't miss out on their local return in a couple of nights! This all ages concert at 8:00 PM has tickets running for $58.24 (adults), $46.94 (seniors or students with valid ID), or $26.60 (children).

You can buy tickets at this link or at the in-person box office at Station Mall. As of this writing, there are still seats in the third row and back in the left and right sections, while the center section has seats from the seventh row and back (the upper gallery seating is not open for this show). If you're a Bon Jovi fan, you won't want to miss Bon Jovi Forever at the S.C.T.C. on Sunday, so visit the above links for more details, and here they are live!

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

More Of This Weekend's Hard Rock & Punk Concert Previews!!

As promised, here's part #2 of this weekend's hard rock/punk concert previews, covering previously announced shows tonight and tomorrow night across the Twin Saults and area (minus The Nameless, check back tonight or tomorrow morning). Here's what else you should know!

We'll resume our previews in St. Ignace, Michigan, where Traverse City classic metal trio Peril will return to the stage TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT at The Northern Pines Lounge at their Kewadin Casino branch! You don't see bands returning to a Kewadin lounge this soon for another weekend engagement very often, but this weekend's shows will be Peril's first at the St. Ignace casino's lounge in just two weeks, so if you're ready for more of Jeff & crew's hard rocking cover attack (or missed them last month), you won't want to miss tonight and/or tomorrow night's action! It's too soon to know when they or their sister band Scarkazm will return to the E.U.P., but neither are scheduled again at the St. Ignace or Soo Kewadins until at least the fall. Note that a comment on their promotional image on their Facebook page implies that the casino was advertising locals Tarnished as playing St. Ignace weekend, so what's that about?

As best as I can tell, that was a mix-up with physical advertising at the St. Ignace branch, as Tarnished are indeed playing at The Northern Pines Lounge next weekend. While Peril replied that "there were a couple of schedule changes", our coverage has always went off of online advertising, which always had Peril this weekend and Tarnished following them. Visit the above links for more on Peril's last local concerts of the summer, and for a preview of these shows, here they are live!

Next up, we'll head north to Sault Ontario, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will return to Jay's Piston Broke Pub for concerts TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Like Peril, these shows come just two weeks removed from their prior shows at the same venue, so west enders and regulars at the former Roosevelt Hotel will want to keep their return in mind! Generations are in the middle of a string of concerts on consecutive weekends during this busy summer slate, with their next show after this being at Rotaryfest Stage 1 this coming Thursday. This weekend's shows should be a good warm-up, if not nearly as warm given that they'll be indoors this weekend compared to Rotaryfest! Yes, Generations filled in as jam night hosts at Jay's yesterday as well, the second time they have done so since Soundcheck stepped down as the regular weekly hosts last month. Hopefully that went well for all involved!

Like two weeks ago, this weekend's concerts are 9:30 PM affairs with 19+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details on Generations' Jay's return this weekend, stay tuned for their Rotaryfest return on Thursday, and here they are live!

Also this weekend, if you crave some original and/or punk music, Napanee, Ontario ska punk band Master Nate & The Reprobates will deliver that in spades TOMORROW NIGHT when they make their local debut at Soo Blaster! A relatively newer band who are currently in the late stages of a suite of eight album releases, their up-tempo ska punk stylings, raspy vocals, and strong lyrics should draw sub-genre fans downtown tomorrow, so don't bypass their brand of "rock revolution" then! You may also recognize Master Nate & crew from sharing the stage with locals The Northwest at The Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto in April 2023. However, your local openers tomorrow night are local skate punk trio (quartet?) Vanity First, who last rocked Soo Blaster in April for the "Identity Crisis" release party. Good to see everyone back on the big stage tomorrow, and as Mikhal's bands are not at Rotaryfest this year, keep this show in mind if you want to see them!

This 19+ concert has $10 admission at the door or via advance ticket sales on Soo Blaster's website, and doors open at 9:00 PM. Visit the official Facebook event page for more on tomorrow's punk action, and for a preview, here's Master Nate & The Reprobates live!

Finally, let's close things back in the E.U.P., as Sault Michigan hard/blues rock quartet Project 906 will continue the "summer of 906" when they return to The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot in nearby Kinross TOMORROW NIGHT! Fans may recall seeing Billy, Joe, Dustin, and Jason at The Well Diggers' outdoor stage last summer, and they'll be back there tomorrow in a rare hard rock concert at this Kinross nightclub/restaurant (remember that Exit 808's planned debut there last month was cancelled for unannounced reasons). Hopefully tomorrow's concert is a big hit for Project 906, and that there's a solid turnout! Note that there will be a 50/50 draw and food specials as well. Everything takes place at 3047 West M-80 in Kinross tomorrow night at 8:00 PM, and there is no announced cover charge. Weather-wise, The Weather Channel is calling for sunny to clear skies tomorrow night, and they should beat the rain forecast scheduled for early Sunday morning.

Temperatures tomorrow evening are projected to range from 71-80° Fahrenheit (21-26° Celsius), so it should be a warm evening for summer lovers. Visit the official Facebook event page for more on Project 906's Kinross return tomorrow, and for a preview of the hard rock action in store, here's 906 live at The Well Diggers last year!

That's all for now, but look for our Nameless preview and more next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Stephen Pearcy & Exit 808!!)

Before we dive into a stacked slate of weekend concert previews on the Canadian side of the border with the long weekend ahead, let's head south to Sault Michigan for a bunch of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for later this year, including a local band's summer calendar and a big Kewadin headline show for this fall. Here's what you should know!

Newer local hard rock quintet Exit 808 have announced a slate of summer concerts via their Facebook page last week, marking their first shows since adding Infathom's Dillion Semasky as their co-lead singer, so when can you see them live next? The former Double Jack will actually debut him at a non-local event on June 8th, namely Drewpalooza 2, a public birthday concert/mental health fundraiser in Republic (3½ hours west of the Soo), where they will share the stage with frequently seen Marquette hard rock cover band Spun, among other western/central U.P. acts. Looks like a fun event, so keep it in mind if you're out west or are up for a road trip! Exit 808 will finally play their first local concert (ie. within an hour's drive of Sault Ste Marie) since changing their name and lineup on Saturday, June 15th when they debut at The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot in nearby Kinross, presumably on their outdoor stage.

Well Diggers is still relatively new for us to cover shows at, so hopefully things go well next month, indoors or out! Expect that show to be an 8:00 PM affair with a 21+ age limit and no cover charge. After that, Exit 808 will hit the road again, albeit further into the Upper Peninsula for a set at Rally For The Valley, an annual outdoor concert festival in Ewen (outside of Ontonogan, 4½ hours west of Sault Ste. Marie) that will share multiple acts in common with Drewpalooza, including Spun. More details are forthcoming, so if you're in the Western U.P. or are up for the drive, click here for details! The rest of the shows are in our coverage range, starting with Exit 808's second Soo date of the year, when they rock The Merchant's Bar for the first time in five months on Saturday, June 29th. The Merch likely won't promote this show online, but it's good to see Exit 808 playing there again!

Exit 808's remaining shows in this wave of announcements will see them make their debuts at the two regional Kewadin Casino branches with on-site lounges. They'll rock The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin branch for full weekends on July 19th & 20th and on August 16th & 17th, sandwiching their first ever St. Ignace shows when they debut at The Northern Pines Lounge at their Kewadin Casino on August 9th and 10th. It's great to see Exit 808 entering the Kewadin rotation, and hopefully all three weekends go well for them! The latter seven local dates all likely have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no cover. Between Dillion's addition, the name change, and Isaac Royer's departure (the band has not confirmed if they've found a new permanent bassist yet or not), there's been a lot of change in Exit 808's camp lately, but they've got a big summer ahead, so see above for more details!

We'll close today's post with the big announcement from Allstar Promotions, who had been teasing a show at The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino on Saturday, September 21st in recent weeks, and they finally made the reveal on Tuesday, as original Ratt frontman Stephen Pearcy will play here for the first time! Best known for hit songs like "Round & Round", "Back For More", and "Lay It Down", hair metal fans may recall seeing Ratt open for Skid Row here in June 2006 (apologies for missing that when covering Skid Row's local date earlier this year), but they were fronted by Jizzy Pearl then. Stephen's voice has held up over the years, and it will be interesting to see how he goes down as a solo headliner this fall on his 1984 Back In The Cellar Tour! Connecticut hair metal veterans Steelheart (not Streetheart) will open with hits like "I'll Never Let You Go" and "We All Die Young" in their back pocket, so don't be late for their apparent local debut this fall!

Tickets go on sale this Friday at 10:00 AM at this link, at 1-800-KEWADIN, and at the in-person box office, while Rock 101 has been announcing a pre-sale code on air if you want to be an early bird. Tickets will run for $39.50 USD, and this all ages show begins at 8:00 PM. Hair metal is a proven draw in Sault Michigan, and Ratt still have a lot of fans, so hopefully Stephen's local debut is a huge hit this fall! Visit the above links for more on this concert, and stay tuned for Victoria Day long weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906!!)

Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 have announced their summer concert slate via their Facebook page, which is the sole topic today! No word on where they've been since their last date in February, but they have multiple dates around the E.U.P. scheduled in July and August, while also announcing solo dates from frontman Billy Bernier in Mackinac Island (which is outside of our coverage range) and at The Islander Bar in Hessel tomorrow night. I'm not sure if Billy's solo show is basically Project 906 unplugged or if he explores less hard rock in his sets, so I won't cover that show on here just in case, but keep it in mind if you're in Hessel! If you want to see the full splendour with Joe, Dustin, and Jason too, they have two private bookings next month, but their first public date in five months will see them rock the aforementioned Islander Bar on Friday, July 5th with a return planned for Saturday, August 10th!

The former show is a normal affair, but the latter will be a special matinee set during the Les Cheneaux Islands Antique Wooden Boat Show, an event that 906 did play last year as well, albeit at a normal nighttime timeslot then. It's too soon yet to know what possible changes could be in store on August 10th, but last year, The Islander Bar had four nights of live music from different nightly acts the week of the boat show. Stay tuned for any updates! On Saturday, July 13th, Project 906 will return to The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot in nearby Kinross for an outdoor concert, and their first show at this venue since last summer. Should be a good time in a relatively unique setting, so keep their Well Diggers return in mind also! Then on Friday, July 26th, the guys will return to the Soo for a concert at The Merchant's Bar alongside "special guests" The City Lines, so who are they?

As best as I can tell, 906 are actually opening for The City Lines, a power pop trio from Ann Arbor whose frontman is Sault Ste. Marie native and Sault Tribe member Patrick Deneau. Not the heaviest band going, but fans of indie rock and midwest emo (let alone more recent material by The Northwest) will take to The City Lines, and it's cool to see Patrick play a show at home like this, let alone the rare sight of Project 906 opening for a touring band! Moving ahead to August for another festival set, Project 906 will make their debut at Pickford Hay Days on Friday, August 2nd, and while they didn't specify the locale beyond saying that it'd be outdoors, the festival's Facebook event page confirms that they're playing at Pickford Township Park (no word on extra bands). Click here for full non-musical details on Hay Days, but food trucks will be nearby for festival and/or concert attendees, and you are encouraged to bring lawn chairs.

The last of the newly announced Project 906 shows will see them play in Cedarville on Saturday, August 3rd for this year's tenth annual Government Bay Barge Bash, which I am pretty sure is returning to its literal location on a floating barge in Government Bay in front of Bumpas at 74 East Hodeck Street. Promotion for this year's Barge Bash has not begun that I've seen, but this event has featured multiple bands in recent years, and how unique is it to see bands playing literally on the water? Note that one of the bands that played last year's Barge Bash (which didn't have known-to-me hard rock bands at the time) was Dirty Musky, a new band featuring 415E alumni Dave Menard and Brett Blackwood alongside Brett's dad Fran (of Clownsack fame). Despite that lineup, Dirty Musky have given no indication of their set/sound on social media, so I won't rush them into our coverage, but keep them in mind!

Most of these shows have 8:00 PM start times, but the Pickford show is at 7:00 PM, the Cedarville show is to be announced (remember, multiple bands play that), and the Hessel boat show gig in August is a 4:00 PM matinee. The Islander Bar, Well Diggers, and Merch shows are all 21+ while the rest are all ages, and while none have a stated cover charge, do inquire within as far as the annual festivals go. It's great to see Project 906 back (even without Strongs Tavern returns booked, surprisingly), so look for their hard rocking cover slate at multiple E.U.P. venues in the coming months, and stay tuned for more news on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

The Rest Of This Weekend's Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

As promised, let's wrap up this weekend's hard rock/punk concert previews by covering previously announced shows not covered in yesterday's post. Here's what you should know to round out a busy weekend!

We'll pick things back up by heading first to Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula, starting with the debut of local blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 at The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot in nearby Kinross TONIGHT! This will be both the first show we've covered at this relatively newer venue, which you may remember as the Malamute Saloon once upon a time, as well as Project 906's first since Fake Chow/Camaros drummer Jason VanLuven replaced Odin Osogwin behind the kit (Jason missed last week's gig in Cedarville due to being double booked with Fake Chow that same night). This show seems to be getting more of a to-do than your usual bar band setup, with 906 breaking in a new outdoor stage at Well Diggers (located at 3047 West M-80), and attendees can also expect food & drink specials, plus a charity 50/50 raffle. Hopefully things go well for Project 906 in Kinross tonight, especially in a new locale for them!

Tonight's concert has no announced cover charge, a 21+ age limit, and an 8:00 PM start time. Expect clear weather with a temperature no lower than 10°, according to 9&10 News. This should be a fun way to welcome Jason to Project 906, and their brand of crowd friendly hard and classic rock covers should get fans in Kinross going well, so visit the above links for more details, and here's Project 906 in concert last year!

Next up, we'll head further south to St. Ignace, where Traverse City classic metal trio Peril will return to their Kewadin Casino for gigs at The Northern Pines Lounge TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! While they have been seen in Sault Ste. Marie since, these will be Peril's first St. Ignace concerts since rocking that branch over the New Year's weekend. Peril don't play live as often as their sister band Scarkazm, but this is their second stop in a run of three E.U.P. weekends in three months, so hopefully fans of their old school hard rock and metal favourites come out in full force this weekend! As usual for Peril's Kewadin trips, expect 9:00 PM start times, no cover charges, and 21+ age limits at The Northern Pines Lounge tonight and tomorrow, and if you can't make it, you can see them at The Rapids Lounge in the Soo at the end of next month. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Peril live!

Now let's head north to Sault Ontario, where local southern hard rock cover trio Bone Yard will return as musical entertainment for this year's Queen Street Cruise TONIGHT & TOMORROW! Of course, this is the annual event inspired by the old tradition of cruising Queen, where everyone drives down Queen Street East and shows off their vehicles, and that throwback takes place tonight followed by a car show tomorrow, though unlike past years, it will be held at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion and along Foster Drive rather than outside of GFL Memorial Gardens (planned construction work was cited initially but this SooToday press release suggests that expanded space was why they moved). Regardless, visit there and the Facebook page for all non-musical details, like vendors, draws, how to join the cruise, and more! Bone Yard have played the Queen Street Cruise annually since 2016, so look for more solid tunes from them downtown this weekend!

Bone Yard will break out their old school southern and hard rock covers under the big tent at 6:30 PM tonight, while Saturday's gig will be a 12:30 PM matinee during the Show n' Shine car show. Yes, they are under the tent, but weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for clear sunny conditions tonight in the 12-16° range, while it'll be partly cloudy with a high of 23° during the matinee tomorrow. These are all ages events with no cover charge for general attendees. Visit the above links for full details, and here's Bone Yard live in concert earlier this year!

Finally on this busy weekend for hard rock and punk concerts, we'll get a little of both at Soo Blaster TOMORROW NIGHT when local punk trio Vanity First and rap/party metal duo The Apocalypse Afterparty join forces! Both bands have opened for major bands at Soo Blaster in recent months (Gutter Creek and Leash for Vanity First and various touring rappers for The A.A.), but this is an all-local showcase. Hopefully Vanity First's up-tempo modern punk originals and diverse covers go over well as they continue their upward momentum, and it's great to see The Apocalypse Afterparty on an rare all-local gig, so look for lots of eclectic minimalist rap rock from Paul & Amanda too! Sponsored by Session Cannabis, this 19+ event has doors opening at 7:00 PM and advance tickets run for $17.31 ($15 plus processing fees) at this link (oddly not given on Facebook at all, just Linktree), with the door price jumping to $20.

The ticket price for two local bands may seem steep, but Soo Blaster is a huge venue and both bands are talented groups on the rise that have released debut EPs, so hopefully they attract a strong turnout tomorrow! Visit the above links for more details, and here's Vanity First live!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906) & More Updates From Them!!

After a nearly three month hiatus, Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 resurfaced on their Facebook page yesterday with a bunch of new concert dates for mid-late 2023! Last seen in Hessel in March, the guys revealed that their break was basically due to paternity leave for bassist Dustin Paras, who welcomed a newborn baby with his wife (congratulations!), though they did make a lineup change during the gap, as veteran local rock drummer Jason VanLuven has joined the band, replacing Odin Osogwin. A reason for Odin's departure wasn't announced beyond them saying that he "decided to part ways with the band", but they thanked him for his contributions. You may recognize Jason as the drummer for bands like Bucksaw, Paradise Excuse, Chump Change, 415E, and more recently, Fake Chow and Buddy Repperton & The Camaros, so fans have nothing to worry about in terms of Jason's skill level!

Otherwise best known as Oddfellow's drummer, Odin had replaced Gary Croad in Project 906 in November 2021, and he seemed like a good fit with the band, but hopefully things are 100% amicable, and that we see him back in another group down the road! To avoid a redundant re-post in a few days, I'll hold Project 906's return gig this Saturday for our next batch of weekend concert previews, but note that it won't even be their debut with Jason due to Fake Chow playing in Hessel that night. His debut with 906 will come on Friday, June 16th when the guys will make their Kinross debut at...The Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot? Located at 3047 West M-80 (20 minutes southwest of the Soo), Well Diggers opened back in 2018 and has sporadically hosted live musicians, but Project 906 will be playing on their brand new outdoor stage next week, weather permitting.

This concert will be an 8:00 PM affair with no stated cover charge and a 21+ age limit. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details! Next, the guys will return to Sault Ste. Marie for the first time this year when they rock The Merchants Bar (a.k.a. The Merch) on Friday, June 23rd! The Merch rarely promotes musicians who play there on their Facebook page, but hopefully 906 rock the house down later this month! Five months after cancelling a planned show there due to an in-band illness, Project 906 will finally get a rain date at Jack's Grub & Pub in Brimley on Saturday, July 1st (a.k.a. Canada Day), in their first show there this year. Hopefully this date sticks unlike over the I-500 weekend! On Saturday, July 8th, the guys will return to one of their favourite venues, namely The Strongs Tavern in nearby Eckerman. Last seen there back in January, this should be another fine opportunity to check out 906's hard rocking covers!

In their only return booking within these newly confirmed dates, Project 906 will return to Snows Bar & Grill in Cedarville (site of this weekend's show to-be-previewed) on Saturday, July 15th, and that's the last of the solid once-a-week bookings confirmed yesterday. The other three are more spaced out (at least currently), starting with a return to The Islander Bar in Hessel (site of their last show with Odin back in March) on Friday, August 11th. Their first announced date of the fall season will come on Saturday, September 16th when they rock The Back Bay Grill & Games at Bay Mills Resort & Casino in Brimley, their first stop at "your perfect up north retreat" since February. Obviously, these are all 21+ gigs with no announced cover charge, and Back Bay aside, all have likely 8:00 PM start times. If February's show is anything to go by, then they'll likely start the Bay Mills concert in September at 9:00 PM. 

The final new date will see Project 906 rock Huck's Pub & Grill (formerly Joe's Bar) in Rudyard on Saturday, October 28th in that venue's Halloween party! 906 were last seen at Huck's in December, but did not play at their Halloween party last fall, so hopefully their own spooky rock and roll provides the right soundtrack! This one should also be a 9:00 PM gig with a 21+ age limit and no cover. It's great to see Project 906 back with a busy slate of concerts, so don't miss out across the E.U.P. over the coming months, and stay tuned for more on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Alex Traynor

It's now time for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, our monthly spotlight feature on one or two local metal, hard rock, or punk acts, in order to give them some deserved press for current readers, and as usual, bands are randomly selected! We're ending 2020 in the Sault Michigan area for a profile oin a talented musician that is still very much active, just in a band rather than solo nowadays. Here's what you should know!

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Alex Traynor

Genre: Hard/Alternative Rock
 
Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie/Kinross/Mount Pleasant, Michigan

Members:

Alex Traynor (Tarnished, Banned), all instruments

Audio/Video: Alex has released one studio album, namely his EP "Crazy World", which came out on CD and for digital download in March of last year, after being recorded in Mount Pleasant in the fall of 2018. Though this is his only studio output to date as a solo musician, he did write similar original material with his main local groups Banned and Tarnished, releasing an EP with the latter named "Down To The Wire" earlier this summer. Select videos of his solo concerts and in-studio covers can be found on Alex's Facebook page as well, as well as three music videos. Here is the official music video for his EP's title track!

Info/Analysis: A steady young presence on the Eastern Upper Peninsula cover band circuit with his 2011-2019 classic/hard rock group Banned, Alex launched his own solo project in the spring of 2017. Much of his early updates were Banned-related aside from a few studio cover videos, appearances on 1230 WSOO, and an early demo of "Crazy World", before he moved to Mount Pleasant that fall. In the summer of 2018, Alex began a run of solo acoustic concerts both in Mount Pleasant and at The Signatures Lounge at the Soo's Kewadin Casino branch. After the recording cycle and release of his EP, and a couple of Friday Sessions appearances on The Four on 9&10 News in the spring of 2019, Alex kicked off his pre-pandemic run of regular matinee gigs at Biggby Coffee. His last advertised solo concert was in Mount Pleasant in June 2019, after which he moved back to the Soo, dissolved Banned, and launched his current hard rock band Tarnished.

Alex's solo output has taken a backseat in favour of Tarnished, though that band took over the Biggby arrangement, while also playing songs from "Crazy World" in their setlists. In that sense, Alex is still very active as an original musician, and Tarnished don't stray far in sound either, but Alex's solo EP was a good harbinger of what was to come from him in a full band, with his melodic voice, strong guitar skills, and ambition present on all 5 songs! Follow Tarnished to see what Alex is up to musically nowadays!

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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! This series will head back to Sault Ontario to kick off 2021, as our next randomly selected band will be inactive 2010s outsider punk/folk project Telephone & Address! Look for that on or around January 10th, and for a new news post by Sunday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Tym Morrison), Weekend Concert Previews, And New Videos!!

It's now time to kick off another weekend of concert previews! Due to both the amount of shows this weekend and the massive scope of that festival, our previews of Oh!No in Leeburn will come in a second post making the site later today. Don't worry, it is coming! Now, here's what you should know regarding other hard rock shows this weekend, including new videos from two acts, a missed concert apology, and a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Joining his regular matinee gigs at Gliss Restaurant TOMORROW & SATURDAY, local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will play a second straight Thursday evening gig TONIGHT at Thomson Farms Cider & Winery on Third Line West! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only announced this show via his Facebook event page earlier this week. Clearly, his show last week did well, as Tym's back for an encore at this popular west end winery & cider mill TONIGHT, so if you're up for some live acoustic hard and classic rock while partaking in locally made & grown wine, cider, and produce, you know where to be! At this juncture, I have no idea if Thursday matinees here will become a regular thing or not, though note that Thomson Farms closes for the season after Halloween, as best as I can tell. Of course, look for Tym's regular downtown acoustic shows tomorrow & Saturday as well at Gliss, as per usual in his long-term run there, so regular fans are in good hands!

The Gliss shows are at 6:00 PM, TONIGHT'S Thomson Farms show is at 5:00 PM, and none have announced cover charges or age limits. Click here and above for more details, and for a preview, here's a new video of Tym live inside of Thomson Farms' wine barn last week, as per their Facebook page on Monday! A cover of Tom Petty's "Free Falling", this 22 second clip doesn't even last long enough to get to the chorus, but Tym sounds good as far as it goes, so check it out below, and don't miss him there TONIGHT!



Next up, let's take a detour to the Eastern Upper Peninsula, where Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished will play at the acoustic-centric Signatures Lounge at the local Kewadin Casino branch TONIGHT, before the (presumably) full band rocks Kinross Speedpark TOMORROW NIGHT! These are the middle shows in a busy stretch for Alex & Josh (and Tommy tomorrow), following a short notice set at yesterday's Sault Ste. Marie Farmers Market, and preceding their road trip to Toledo, Ohio on Saturday. I profusely apologize for missing their matinee gig at the Farmers Market yesterday, it's brief advertising on their Facebook page on Monday slipped right by us. Hopefully it was a hit though, we'd have covered it had we known about it! Originally announced as an Alex Traynor solo show and a Banned concert respectively, tonight's Signatures Lounge date and tomorrow's post-Four Cylinder Friday set should deliver solid crowds each for this new band!

Note that Tarnished did not mention a Biggby Coffee matinee in their Facebook advertising from Monday, which would seemingly signal the end of their shows "every Thursday" there, but we'll let you know if that proves to be incorrect. Tonight's Signatures Lounge gig has an early 6:00 PM start time, a 19+ age limit, and no cover, while tomorrow's Kinross Speedpark show begins after the races end. I can't verify if you can get in free after the races just to see Tarnished or not, but the races proper have a 7:30 PM start time, and $5 admission fees ($6 Canadian), with kids 11 and under FREE. Click here and visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's a new video of Tarnished live-ish at the Soo Farmers Market on Wednesday! Shared onto the Farmers Market's Facebook page yesterday during business hours, this 9 second clip is primarily about the market proper, but in the upper left, if you look really close, you can see Alex & Josh covering Kenny Wayne Shepherd's "Blue on Black"!

This is not an ideal video for angle or length if you want to see Tarnished in action, but they sound good while it lasts, and the video shows the scope of the Farmers Market well enough. Check it out if you want below, and see much more from Tarnished's unplugged hard rock cover attack TONIGHT in the Soo and in Kinross TOMORROW with electric gear and drums in tow!



Finally for this weekend's non-Oh!No concert previews, let's head back to Sault Ontario, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to The Esquire Club for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! As advdertised on their 2019 concert calendar, this will be Soundcheck's second concert weekend at this popular west end venue in a three week span, and first shows anywhere since their Roberta Bondar Pavilion matinee late last month. This should be another prime opportunity for fans to see Soundcheck's often heavy blend of covers, so don't miss them at The Esquire Club once again this weekend! As usual for shows there, expect a 10:00 PM-ish start time, no cover charges, and a 19+ age limit tomorrow and/or Saturday. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Soundcheck live!


 
That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Oh!No III previews next, plus more news shortly! Thanks everyone!

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Banned

For today's second post, let's tackle this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, as we continue our monthly spotlighting of defunct or inactive local metal, hard rock, or punk bands, in order to look back on their runs and see what they accomplished & where they went! This month, our rotation brought us to the Sault Michigan area, and this month's randomly selected choice was a very prominent band throughout the 2010s that only recently confirmed their demise, so here's what you should know!
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Banned

Genre: Classic/Hard Rock/Country

Hometown: Kinross, Michigan

Members: (Members not in their last full lineup in italics)

Alex Traynor (Tarnished), vocals/guitar
Wayne Lawrence (Bad Side), bass
Don Traynor, drums/vocals

Mike Straw, vocals/keyboard
Tara Starr, vocals
Alex Schrovenwever (Steelhead), guitar/bass/vocals
Denny Smith (Thieves In The Night), guitar 
Steve Jacobus, bass
Jim Pentland, bass
 
Audio/Video: Banned never released any studio material, but they did play select original songs in at least their early concerts, as documented by Alex's sister/Don's daughter Ashley's YouTube channel, including such original songs as "Cocaine Riot", "Plaid Girl", and "Yoopers Got Talent" that didn't survive to Alex's later solo project. Ashley's & Banned's own YouTube channels are the best sources for live cover videos from their active run, alongside Banned's Facebook page, though scattered other videos are extant online. However, note that no videos from 2017-2019 were ever publically posted by Banned, and certain 2013-era videos have long since been taken down. Here's Banned covering Nirvana's "Come As You Are" in 2016!

Info/Analysis: Effectively launched by January 2011 when an early lineup played at a talent show, Banned was formed by the father/son duo of Don and Alex Traynor, who were the group's only constant members throughout their 8 year run, with future Steelhead frontman Alex Schrovenwever a common sight in their early years. The band saw frequent lineup upheaval from 2012-2014, including expanding to a quintet for a few spells, as well as a country-centric period in 2013 when Tara Starr was their lead vocalist, before settling on their final trio incarnation. Frequently seen via "jobs" at regional nightclubs, community events, and battles of the bands, the Traynors & company would later make their name with occasional gigs outside of the E.U.P., while also notably playing eight times annually at The Sugar Island Music Festival. Despite Alex's move to Mount Pleasant in late 2017, Banned continued playing regularly through a March 2019 show in Grand Marais, before amicably dissolving that summer.

Over their eight years together, Banned delivered a solid sound that could appeal to a wide audience while also delivering a harder edge, and considering that Alex was just 16 when Banned launched, his musical growth over that time was always welcome to see! I was never on board with their late-era marketing that only focused on Alex, and the 2013 country run was tricky to maneuver on The Sault Metal Scene, but they always had a strong cast of musicians on hand for their often exceedingly frequent gigs, and their videos will have ample proof of that. Don't miss Alex's new band Tarnished and/or his solo project to hear what he's been up to as of late!
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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band profile! Next month, our rotation will bring us back to Sault Ontario, but as the first band we randomly selected doesn't have enough surviving information to warrant a single profile, we randomly picked on more to fill it out. Ironically, and in a coincidence I did not plan in advance (I use a random number generator!), we'll be looking at two linked black metal projects from the mid-2010s, namely Abhorrent Forest & Dullahan! Look for these on or around September 10th, and for more news next week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tarnished) & Related Weekend Concert Previews!!

After a one week lull following Rotaryfest, we have an unusually busy concert weekend at the SMS  to kick off August, so here's what we have in store. Due to a number of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (some on SHORT NOTICE) from the same local band, we'll focus only on them to start, while we'll look at Tym Morrison, The Wyld Stallyns, and Pop Evil later today, before looking at Saturday's Inner City Surfers, Highway 63, and Black Crown Initiate concerts tomorrow. Hopefully that covers everything, barring more late notice announcements. Now, here's what you should know to start this weekend!

New Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished will continue their "every Thursday" run of acoustic matinee concerts TODAY at Biggby Coffee, but that's not all for Alex and Josh (and Tommy?) this month! Joining their increasingly busy concert schedule, the Banned successors will also play outside of Phat Boutique at 559 Ashmun Street for a second straight week as part of the ongoing Ashmun Alive festival series TONIGHT, while they'll also be playing another acoustic set TOMORROW AFTERNOON as part of this year's Sidewalk Sales! Apologies for the short notice on the latter two gigs, they were only publically confirmed via Facebook event pages linked here and here earlier this week.  All three of these two man unplugged gigs are FREE and ALL AGES matinees, so whether you're up for some 10:30 AM indoor jams for tips and coffee today, or you want to head downtown TONIGHT at 6:00 PM or TOMORROW at 12:00 PM, you have ample opportunities to hear Alex & Josh break out some fan favourite covers this weekend!

Note that I don't know where exactly Tarnished will be playing during Sidewalk Sales, but Phat Boutique again would make sense. That all said, Tarnished will also have one non-Biggby/Ashmun show this month in the region, as they will (more or less) take Banned's place at this year's Sugar Island Music Festival on Saturday, August 10th! Advertised without the "acoustic" tag in it's Facebook event page's title (and thusly implying that they'll have electric instruments and drums here), this will be frontman Alex Traynor's ninth straight year at this annual festival, and first not fronting Banned, though Tarnished get a high co-headlining slot at 8:45 PM on Saturday. Other bands this year, again of the festival regular, country/folk, and online page-less variety, will include headliners 3 Zip, 3½ Men, Aberdeen, 2 Cents, All Arms, Joel Choate, The Gentleman George Band, Walkers Rye, Moose River and February Sky, and an Al Gross-hosted open mic block opening at 11:00 AM.

With the exception of Friday openers Steph & Dave and Sunday headliners Jim & Joe Schutz, every band on those days is also playing on Saturday, unlisted "friends" aside, and Tarnished are only advertised for Saturday. As usual, admission for this ALL AGES outdoor festival on Sugar Island is via a $10 souvenir button purchase (kids 12 and under are FREE), which gets you admission for all three days of the festival, with no single day passes available. Buttons are on sale at Ed's Bayview Store, The Hilltop Bar & Grill, or the Westshore Convenience Store in Sugar Island, and at Crooked Music in Sault Ste. Marie, and presumably at the gate, and for more details (including on all of the non-musical festivities), visit the official website! Also for Tarnished's busy concert slate, they just played out of our coverage area today in Curtis, they'll take a road trip to Alex's current(?) Mount Pleasant home base for a show on August 15th, and will also travel to Gould City and Toledo, Ohio for gigs next month, so keep those in mind if you live afar!

Lastly, Alex Traynor's previously advertised solo concert at The Signatures Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino on September 5th, and Banned's previously announced Kinross Speedpark gig on September 6th have both turned into Tarnished concerts, as per their new Facebook event pages linked here & here, so both are now credited in our Sault Michigan concert listings as such. This seems to confirm that Tarnished have superceded Alex's own solo project in live priority, though hopefully he doesn't completely put his original music on the shelf. I think that covers all of Tarnished's new concert updates, and it's great to see Alex & Josh (and Tommy) staying busy! No word on how long this will last, especially if Alex has any impending Mount Pleasant commitments, but enjoy Tarnished while you can at all of these gigs, including TODAY & TOMORROW! See above for more details on all of these new concerts, and here's Tarnished live!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for more weekend concert previews this afternoon! Thanks everyone!