Mike Haggith Concert Preview, Heavy Lies The Crown Updates, And Much More!!

Before we begin today's post, I wanted to apologize for two missed concerts, as veteran local ska/hard rock trio Tripod The Dog played at The Esquire Club for Saturday matinee concerts on both March 26th & this past Saturday. I only belatedly heard about both shows via bassist John Amendola's personal Facebook page, as Tripod The Dog have not launched an updated social media page to promote their shows, but The Esquire Club's Facebook page did plug both back in February. I profusely apologize again, hopefully both shows were hits, and I will keep better tabs on The Esquire Club's Saturday matinee series in the future!

Today's post otherwise looks at some assorted recent notes and big updates from an E.U.P. band, but let's lead off today for a special Tuesday night concert preview for a Sault Ontario homecoming, as local/Thompson, Manitoba solo stalwart Mike Haggith will play his first Soo date in over two years TOMORROW NIGHT at the Mane St. Cafe on Queen Street East! While certainly visible to local fans with his live-streamed concerts and new albums, Mike hasn't graced a local stage since playing at Outspoken Brewing in August 2019 (partly due to the pandemic), so it'll be great to see the former Din frontman back in town tomorrow! While this solo acoustic gig is far smaller in scope than his cancelled CD release show in 2020, Mike will play both of his Thompson-era albums "If Ever Comes The Day" & "Bridges" in full tomorrow night, along with select older and newer cuts, so prepare for lots of songs you haven't heard in concert here before!

This show has no opening act, and is presumably on a Tuesday due to Mike's busy personal schedule, especially given his day job. This is a FREE & ALL AGES show with a 7:00 PM start time, and CD copies of his two newest albums will be on sale for $10 tomorrow at the Mane St. Cafe (right near Case's Music). It'll be great to have Mike back in the Soo, if only for one night, so fans of his extensive solo catalog who've missed seeing him live in the pandemic era will want to head downtown for all of the festivities tomorrow, and at least it'll end early on a work/school night! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Mike live!

Next up, here's the latest from St. Ignace, Michigan metalcore band Heavy Lies The Crown, who have finally announced their teased return show! Unfortunately, it will not be local, instead taking place 3½ hours downstate in Saginaw, which is mildly surprising given that a factor in the departure of 3/5ths of the band was distance, but if you followed H.L.T.C.'s pre-pandemic live schedule, booking shows downstate rather than in the E.U.P. isn't anything new. Heavy Lies The Crown will be one of six Michigan metal or punk bands on the lineup for The Rock Rebel Show at the Hamilton Street Pub on May 26th, and you may recognize some of the other bands from Lansing rock radio station Q106 's Music Mania tournament last month. Hopefully Brandon & Ted's first live concert in over two years is a hit next month, but how will they look? Well, they have indeed found a new bassist & drummer!

After announcing on their Facebook page last week that they were "back at full strength", they shared this photo featuring an unidentified drummer (so Brandon won't have to drum on the 26th after all!), while also throwing the idea out of playing a show in Gaylord, which is a 2 hour drive from the Soo, customs/bridge traffic permitting. Yesterday, this video was uploaded featuring slow motion grayscale clips of Brandon, Ted, the new drummer, and their new bassist, finishing by teasing that they will be "announcing shows soon". As of this writing, they have not identified the new members by name yet, and they do not appear to have added a new second guitarist to replace Nathan at the moment, but we'll let you know if they clarify anything (for what it's worth, I don't recognize the new guys). Of course, it's great to see Heavy Lies The Crown getting back into the full swing of things!

Even without their massive lineup overhaul earlier this year, the band has not played live since before the pandemic, but the two year break gave them time to record and release their full length album and get more confidence and studio time under their belt, and with just Brandon & Ted left from H.L.T.C. lineups of yore, stage rust won't be as much of an issue in Saginaw next month. Hopefully we'll see them north of the Mack at some point for local fans, but check out all of their new updates above! External embedding of the new lineup video is unavailable due to Facebook content matching the background music from the band's new album.

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

• If you've been following Sault Ontario metal radio show Metal Morpheus on The Borderline in recent weeks, you'll likely know that the series has continued airing reruns in the past month, hence why I haven't recapped any new episodes lately. No word on where Josh has been, but at least in this hiatus, reruns are still being regularly aired on Sunday nights and re-posted after the fact, unlike for most of their winter break. We'll let you know when/if first run Metal Morpheus episodes resume production!
• Vanity First guitarist Mikhal Muto posted again on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group last week, this time inquiring about jamming or writing with "younger punk musicians" around 17 years of age. He can also sing, and he's open to playing covers. What this means for Vanity First isn't clear, and while Mikhal is still listed on their lineup on their Facebook page, the band has not made any updates there in over a month. In any event, if you want to work with Mikhal in whatever's next, message him at this link or above!
  
• Local/Barrie punk/metal quartet Spades GT will return to the annual Spiderfest in Meyersburg on July 8th! Before the pandemic, the former Jack Spades frequently hit the road for this multi-day punk festival, but now from Barrie, it'll just be a 2½ hour drive. Spades GT are on the smaller Friday lineup without acts familiar to local concertgoers, but Saturday the 9th will see the likes of The Ripcordz & Random Killing, among many others. Hopefully the guys have a great time as usual at Spiderfest this summer!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Mike Haggith), Heavy Lies The Crown Updates, And New Videos!!

Here's a late night news post for you guys to check out on this Saturday, which is half devoted to playing catch-up with an E.U.P. band's recent updates, but the rest is on the Ontario side of the border via a new video find and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for a little later this month. With all of that said, here's what you should know!

Local alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith will return to Sault Ste. Marie for a special acoustic solo concert on Tuesday, April 19th at Mane Street Cafe & Lounge! This surprise local date will be Mike's first in the province since he played at Outspoken Brewing in August 2019, and aside from the relatively new locale (adjacent to the Mane Street Salon in the Square 1 Mall at 626 Queen Street East), this show seems to be formatted similarly. Don't go into this expecting a rescheduling of the long-since-cancelled "If Ever Comes The Day" CD release party at LopLops in 2020 (one guess why that show didn't happen), but Mike promises to play both that album and last year's "Bridges" in order & in full on the 19th, along with some other cuts. A 7:00 PM start time, no cover charge, and no age limit are in effect, and CD copies of both albums will be on sale.

I don't think many fans were expecting Mike to announce a Soo date so abruptly, let alone on less than 10 days notice, but remember that his day job can account for scheduling quirks. It'll be great to have Mike back in town though, and fans of his Thompson-era original material will want to stop by the Mane Street Cafe next Tuesday evening to hear these songs in person after way too long! Get more details at Mike's Facebook page!

Next up, here's the latest from St. Ignace, Michigan metal band Heavy Lies The Crown, who haven't been idle despite losing 3/5ths of the band two months ago! As they teased at the time, H.L.T.C. took part in Lansing rock radio station Q106's third annual Michigan Made Music Mania tournament, where station listeners could vote on their favourite rising Michigan rock act in a 16 band bracket. Heavy Lies The Crown did win their opening round match over Grand Rapids rock band Crossing Bard before narrowly falling to Ann Arbor punk band Lake Mosaic in the quarterfinals (Jackson hard rock band Flowers on the Grave won the whole thing). Similarly, frontman Brandon West has entered a Michigan Metal Vocal Competition held by promotional company Ghost Media Entertainment, as one of 12 competing singers from statewide metal bands, so what should you know there?

Apparently being held virtually, vocalists will compete on Wednesday, May 4th, though initial promotion didn't reveal the criteria, prizes, or format. Best of luck to Brandon for sure, it'll be interesting to see how far he goes against his downstate competition! A lot of H.L.T.C.'s updates this spring have been of the slightly more comic/tongue in cheek variety, as immediately seen after they first announced their lineup changes, but on April 1st, the band revealed that they had a show booked! No one claimed this was an April Fools joke, but they have yet to reveal details on the concert. As of the 1st, Brandon noted that he would have to play drums for the show due to a lack of willing nearby drummers, implying that the show might be local for a change, but again, details are not out yet. We'll keep you posted, but to close, here's a new video of theirs!

Again a Brandon-centric update (no direct sign of Ted in their newest posts), this features him recording vocals for a planned new original song, but the captions helpfully tell us that while tracking this song, the police were knocking at his door over a noise complaint. Hopefully that doesn't happen too often, but given how heavy that Heavy Lies The Crown can get, you never know! The high screaming/singing hybrid here is well handled, but there's a lot to learn yet about their current songwriting. Is another album in the works? Are just Brandon & Ted handling instruments? How far along are they? Time will tell, but check it out below, and visit their Facebook page for all of the above topics & more!

Finally, here's a very belated live concert video that I apologize for not sharing on the SMS before, as it was uploaded to the Reggie's Place Facebook page in October 2020 during the show in question, without giving the band's name. Of course, it's Sault Ontario classic/hard rock quartet Soundcheck, and the video in question sees them covering Tom Petty's "Running Down A Dream" with guitarist Terry Eaton on vocals and frequent guest bassist Rob Gilmar in place of Paul Belair. The 21 second clip suffers from a harsh blue glare from the neon Bud Light sign behind Glen, but the cover is solidly done for fans, so give it a watch below!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tarnished & Tym Morrison), Plus New E.U.P. Metal Videos!!

Before we begin this post, just a heads up that the Glambition fundraiser concert at The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre (scheduled for this Saturday) has been postponed again due to the rise in regional COVID-19 cases, as per the event's Facebook group late last month. The Facebook event page confirms the date change to Monday, January 30th, but the statement confirming the postponement was not cross-posted there. Disappointing but understandable, and hopefully things quiet down in time for next month! Still, we do have some SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for this weekend, plus a new videos from some familiar faces, so here's what you should know!

Local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will play his second concert at Mane Street Cafe & Lounge on Queen Street East TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only announced this show via its Facebook event page on Monday. Apparently "back by popular demand", Tym made his debut at the Square 1 Mall cafe & hair salon spinoff on November 12th, and hopefully he delivers another skilled night of unplugged classic & hard rock hits for assembled fans TOMORROW! Yes, there will be half priced martinis and snack board specials if these interest you. An early 7:00 PM start time is in effect TOMORROW, prepare for a 19+ age limit, and there are no announced cover charges. Crucially, please use common sense to maintain social distance, wear face masks, and do not forget your vaccine passport if you want to attend this concert safely. See above for more details, and here's Tym live & in concert!

Next up, we'll head to Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula, where local hard rock quartet Tarnished will return to Huck's Pub & Grill in nearby Rudyard on SATURDAY NIGHT for their themed ugly sweater party! Again, apologies for the short notice, this show was also only announced on Monday, this time via the band's Facebook page. Last seen via their replacement gigs at The Rapids Lounge two weeks ago, this will be Alex, Nathan, Isaac, and Josh's first Rudyard stop since playing at Huck's (the former Joe's Bar & Grill) almost a month ago at a hunter's bash. Given the seasonal timing, SATURDAY'S concert will be in the holiday spirit, with attendees encouraged to wear ugly Christmas sweaters, and there will be prizes of some kind on offer (perhaps for the ugliest sweaters of all?) Yes, there will be drink specials too, no word on if you have to wear a sweater to get them. A 9:00 PM start time is in effect on SATURDAY, as well as a 21+ age limit and no cover.

Please be sensible and follow any public health guidelines posted at Huck's to ensure everyone's safety, especially with recent rises in COVID case counts and the new omicron variant. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tarnished live!

We'll stay in the E.U.P. to wrap up this post via some new videos, including new teasers over the past week from St. Ignace progressive metal band Heavy Lies The Crown, who have posted one new video on their YouTube channel each day over the past week hyping that their long-teased full length album will be released tomorrow! You can pre-save its Spotify copy on Distrokid, but the band has not confirmed if it will be available elsewhere, let alone via outlets where it'd be on sale. The teaser videos (all under a minute long) feature audio clips from the album alongside thematic imagery and text hyping the release, but I embedded today's presumed final teaser video here, as it's the longest and gleans the most information. The album will be self-titled, and it will include twelve songs, including at least three of the songs from their 2019 EP "Scatter Brain", sans "Thing #1" unless they renamed it.

I cannot 100% confirm if the "Scatter Brain" carry-overs are re-recorded or not, but the version of "Knuckle Butter" from their music video in July used the 2019 recording. The album's cover artwork is embedded above, which can be seen on Distrokid and the YouTube teasers. Could H.L.T.C.'s new album leapfrog the Room 206 vinyl re-release in line as our next album review? It does have being a mostly new album and an earlier release date on its side, but it also has to officially be sold, not just posted for streaming. We'll let you know, but stay tuned for the full release tomorrow (our coverage should be short to follow), and check out this week's teasers above & below!

Finally, here's a surprise: New guitar performance videos from former local metal guitarist Mike Libertoski! The Galactic Alignment, Slackjawed Rats, and Swayze Train alum no longer lives in Sault Ste. Marie, but he is still musically active, currently performing in the White Lake deathcore band Bleak Life. After a nine year hiatus from his YouTube channel, Mike resumed posting new videos there in the last couple of days, and while all are short, it's great to see Mike is back and hasn't lost any of his considerable guitar skill! The videos include two teasers of Bleak Life original material (one audio only, one in black & white), plus a sweep picking arpeggios demo, and two cover snippets of Archspire's "A Dark Horizontal" and, as embedded below, Necrophagist's "Stabwound". I wish these were longer, especially the Archspire clip, but Mike's still got it, and Bleak Life have brutal songs of their own, so give everything a watch above & below!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906, Rhythm & Brews, And Tym Morrison), Plus Weekend Concert Previews!!

Just a heads up, this post originally featured notes on two concert cancellations for next weekend, but due to a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT that broke afterwards, I have removed those to make room for it, so the concert can have even one day's word on the SMS without lengthening this post any more than necessary. The show cancellations will return in our next multi-topic news post, I promise! Now, let's dive into this weekend's concert previews tied in with new shows, starting with a pair of gigs TOMORROW that were both announced on late notice!

Local hard rock musician Tym Morrison will make his debut at Mane Street Cafe & Lounge TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only announced this show via its official Facebook event page on Monday. If you're unfamiliar with Mane Street Cafe, the name is not a typo, as the cafe is inside/adjacent to the Mane Street Salon & Spa in the Square 1 Mall at 626 Queen Street East (right beside Case's Music), with "mane" referencing hair. Mane Street is by no means new to the downtown core, having been open since at least 2018, but live music there pre-pandemic never strayed into hard rock, so Tym's set is a mild surprise for us. Still, he's no stranger to playing at venues not familiar for otherwise hosting heavier acts, so this fits in that way, and hopefully Tym makes a great first impression! Note that Tym is allegedly the first live musician back at Mane Street, but they have had artistic events since.

Tym will be on at 7:00 PM TOMORROW, expect a 19+ age limit, and there's no announced cover charge, and yes, there will be half price martini specials. Of course, vaccine passports must be shown upon entry TOMORROW, and please use common sense to keep everyone safe, especially with case counts where they are. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tym live!

Next up, Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 will return to The Strongs Tavern in nearby Eckerman TOMORROW NIGHT as part of the owner's birthday celebrations! Again, apologies for the short notice, Project 906 only announced this show via their Facebook page just this evening, but the venue's Facebook page did first announce it this past Friday. The Strongs Tavern only hits our coverage for Project 906 gigs there, so I don't think to check there as often as I maybe should, alas. This will be the band's first public concert since playing at The Inn in Paradise on October 23rd for that bar's annual Halloween bash, though Paradise is just outside of our coverage range (an hour's drive from Sault Ste. Marie). Whether you consider Paradise to be fully "local" or not, that show slipped us by to even acknowledge on the SMS last month in the first place, so I apologize again!

You don't hear of too many hard rock bands playing in Paradise, and it is nice to see 906 taking the trip west to play there! As for TOMORROW'S Strongs Tavern show, it is absolutely a public event despite the birthday trappings, but be sure to wish Heather a happy birthday if you come out for Project 906's hard rocking covers, last seen at this venue in June. Expect a 9:00 PM start time, 21+ age limit, and no announced cover, but please respect any and all social distancing and public health measures in effect there. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Project 906 live!

Also, let's head a half hour southwest to Rudyard, where new Sault Ste. Marie hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews will play their third public concert on Saturday, November 20th when they make their debut at Huck's Pub & Grill! Better known to some readers as Joe's Bar & Grill before it's re-opening, name change, and renovations by new owners in 2017, Rhythm & Brews will be the featured band at a hunter's bash there next Saturday, and hopefully their brand of hard rock sets the right musical note! This show does finally confirm that the reunited 415E (also featuring guitarist Chris Hubbard and bassist Brett Blackwood) weren't a replacement or successor for Rhythm & Brews after that band's debut at The Rapids Lounge in July, so the two bands do seem to be coexisting, if playing shows relatively sporadically, all told, but if you've been anxious to see the latter band again, here you go!

This union of Nixxon Dixxon, 415E, and Highway 63 alumni can be seen next Saturday at Huck's (11358 West Main Street in Rudyard, a half hour southwest of the Soo), with their concert being a 9:00 PM affair with no announced cover charge and a 21+ age limit. Please respect and follow any and all social distancing and public health measures at Huck's to keep everyone safe, as usual, and visit the above links for more details!

Finally, let's flash back to this weekend for concerts that had advance notice, as local hard rock band Tarnished will return to The Rapids Lounge at the aforementioned Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino for shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! These will be Tarnished's first E.U.P. dates since rocking the St. Ignace Kewadin in September, with their last three announced bookings seeing them hitting the road for dates in Gould City, Grand Rapids, and most recently, Clio for their Croptoberfest event last month (bizarrely, Tarnished never promoted playing that event in advance on Facebook, but it's a 4 hour drive from here regardless). Despite the photo on the Facebook event page featuring their three piece lineup, I assume these shows will feature their quartet lineup, despite still not confirming the identity of their new bassist on Facebook, but yes, the new bassist played with Tarnished in Clio.

Look for Tarnished to play more fan favourite covers and originals tomorrow & Saturday night at 9:00 PM, these are 21+ events, and there's no announced cover charges, but please respect and follow any and all public health measures at the lounge and/or casino to ensure everyone has a safe and healthy time. After all, there's a reason why Kewadin are cancelling and postponing Dreammakers Theatre shows as of late! Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Tarnished live!

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