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

This is a quiet weekend for hard rock, metal, and punk concerts in the Soo this weekend (granted, the W.T.F. Festival has many of the local entertainment headlines), so we've padded out this concert preview post with some new videos from a prominent Sault Michigan act, plus some assorted recent news and updates! Now, let's kick things off with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, and give our June Jam concert video showcase post from this morning a look below this one!

Joining his already announced Gliss Steak & Seafood matinee concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY, prolific local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will play a special afternoon concert set THIS SATURDAY at 12:00 PM when he plays at Mark's Breakfast Plus' first anniversary celebration! Apologies for the short notice on that concert, it was only announced on via it's official Facebook event page yesterday. As a way of honouring their first anniversary at the Market Mall, the west end diner will also have prize giveaways, free anniversary cake, and hourly specials on hand on SATURDAY, while Rock 101 DJ Allison "Alli J" Miller will reportedly be broadcasting on site with sister station Oldies 93 concurrently with Tym's concert (source here), so keep all of these angles in mind! Of course, Tym's ongoing weekly run at Gliss continues with two more matinees tomorrow and Saturday, with the latter unusually being the later show on a two gig day!

All three shows have no announced age limits or cover charges (though remember, both are sit-down restaurants), and while the Gliss shows are 6:00 PM matinees as usual, SATURDAY'S show at Mark's Breakfast Plus is at 12:00 noon, so don't be late! Congratulations to everyone at Mark's for their first year in business, and hopefully this weekend's bash, and Tym's Gliss gigs, are all big hits with fans and patrons alike! For more details, click here and visit the above links, and here's Tym live! (Note: we will separately cover Tym's Mark's Breakfast Plus concerts this coming Monday-Wednesday in our next news post, as it's too soon yet to tackle them.)



Next up, here's this weekend's only other advertised hard rock/punk concert, an unusually big one scheduled for Room 21 TOMORROW NIGHT! So big, in fact, that promoter J.D. Pearce had to move it downstairs into their sister barbecue restaurant Low & Slow, so keep the shift in floor in mind! This concert will see local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades and alternative/punk trio Handsome Sandwich make their venue debuts as support for British Columbia alternative folk musician Jesse Stewart, who fans may recognize from his rapidly growing online profile with energetic, passionate, and punk-inspired performances on YouTube. These helped him win a contest to appear in the Trailer Park Boys season 9 finale, and if you haven't seen Jesse before, definitely do so, I've never seen anyone this lively and intense while playing a mandolin! Regarding the openers, this will be Jack Spades' first concert since March, while it'll be Handsome Sandwich's first of the year.

It's great to see each group back at it, and hopefully Johnny delivers the goods as he pulls double duty with both bands tomorrow! While this 19+ concert had sold out it's limited 50 tickets at the end of April, the move downstairs to Low & Slow opened up as many new seats, so head to Low & Slow/Room 21 on Albert Street West A.S.A.P. just in case it re-sells out! Tickets are $15, and a 10:00 PM start time is advertised. This should be a fun concert of punk, alternative, and folk intensity, so visit the official Facebook event page for complete details, and here's Jack Spades live!



Also today, here's some new videos from Sault Michigan classical metal group Theatre of Night's Facebook page, as shared via keyboardist Craig Harrison's personal Facebook page on Saturday! Craig posted three clips, which feature him and guitarist Steve Giles jamming at a table, with Craig also manning an effects board on his tablet. One video is entirely focused on Steve performing a very classical-sounding number, but the other two have the guys recording what sounds like the same song, which has more of a 1970s classic rock vibe from what I can detect (one is embedded below, the other you can watch here.) Casual, but well performed, so give them a look too!



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 event name:

• This past Sunday's Dumpster Mummy concert at The New American Pub in Sault Ontario was quietly cancelled that same night, as per the headliners' Facebook page. The band cited "venue complications out of our control" for the cancellation, and while the Facebook event page was taken down at 10:00 PM on Sunday, there was never a public acknowledgement of the show's status from local promoters or openers. Hopefully nothing too serious happened, it'd have been cool to see Dumpster Mummy back in the Soo!
• We have replaced local progressive death metal band Gates of Winter's link on the SMS with their Reverbnation page, as their Facebook page was quietly taken down in recent months. Now, this is usually a reliable sign that a band has broken up, but given Gates of Winter's acknowledged slow pace to public updates, and a personal Facebook video of Bryan and Steve jamming that was posted online in April, I am inclined to believe that the page was automatically deactivated due to disuse, as what happened to Destroilet last year. Hopefully they are still together, I know fans are still eagerly awaiting the "Perihelion" release!
• The Gore Street Cafe's closing party will take place on Wednesday, June 27th at 5:00 PM, and they're going out with a bang, with a massive lineup including Edmonton experimental duo Wares and a stacked local opener lineup with such SMS-familiar artists as M.D. Dunn, Jacob Quarrell, Conika, DJ Seith, Vol. side-project Mik & Steve, and much more. Tickets are $25 for this all ages bash, and food will be included with admission. There's no major hard rock or punk component to their final event (yet?), but everything sounds like the perfect way to send things out for regulars! Click here for complete and current details!

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

Dumpster Mummy Concert Preview, Theatre Of Night Updates, And Much More!!

Having just attended last night's All The Wasted Years concert, you can expect a review and videos later today, but for now, let's keep the news rolling to kick off this new month! Today on the SMS, we have some assorted news and notes, the latest from a prominent Sault Michigan band, and to lead off, here's a concert preview for tomorrow night!

We'll start with the delayed conclusion of this weekend's hard rock concert previews, and this one will pique the interest of you metal fans, as Dartmouth, Nova Scotia metal trio Dumpster Mummy will return to Sault Ontario for a concert at The New American Pub TOMORROW NIGHT! This will be the headliners' first local concert appearance since headlining at The New A in September 2016, though unlike that concert, this one had plenty of advance notice. With a chaotic, fast paced death and groove metal sound that will appeal to extreme metal heads, Dumpster Mummy will be a fine choice to kick off the summer metal season in said genres, so don't miss them tomorrow! Local support will include the first concert of 2018 from death/extreme metal quartet Winkstinger, while local goregrind solo project Crucify the Whore will also return to the stage tomorrow for Tyler's first public, non-house party show as C.T.W. since Dumpster Mummy's 2016 show here, ironically enough.

I don't know why C.T.W. (let alone Blood Shed Productions) were so quiet over 2017, but hopefully this is a big return show for this explosive one-man band tomorrow! Promoted by Winkstinger frontman Josh Amendola, this 19+ concert has a 9:00 PM and a $5 cover charge. This early stop on Dumpster Mummy's 2018 Canadian tour should be a great time for metalheads, despite the Sunday night placement, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here are the headliners live!



Next up, you know how Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night often posts snippets of them recording new music that never seems to lead to a new album? Well, it appears we weren't looking in the right spot, as they have put out two new albums since 2012, but as they're curiously exclusive to their Reverbnation page, they've fallen under the radar. Along with their two holiday-themed albums from the early 2010s and a posting of their defunct sister band End of Existence's CD, one of these surprise albums is entitled "Darkness Falls", as released on February 19th, 2015, and features 9 symphonic, gothic-inspired instrumental compositions. The other new album is called "Guntower Democracy", which was only released in February of this year, and was described by keyboardist Craig Harrison in some postings at the time as "some 'old school' stuff Steve (Giles) and I wrote a while back." Unlike every other release Theatre of Night album, this is not an orchestral-centric instrumental release, and harbours more in common with Craig's old band Dust 'N Bones.

Both albums are on sale on Reverbnation for $4.99 or 99¢ a song, but you can stream all included songs for free there. Theatre of Night would get more exposure of these albums if they posted them on more sites like Bandcamp (hence why I'm so late to the party), but if you've liked their prior recording videos or Craig's vocal performance clips, these will be of high interest! That all said, a review of "Guntower Democracy" could make the site next month, as time is ticking for it to be "new" release, but I can't guarantee anything yet. Before we move on from Theatre of Night updates, they do have a brand new video to check out via their YouTube channel on Sunday, and it's of Craig at the keyboard composing "a new epic soundtrack song for future use." Shades of SweetKenny's array of scores, or is something else afoot? In any event, the song is very orchestral and beautiful in this early stage, so give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from their camp!



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

• As widely covered in local news media last month, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario's City Council has approved the offer made by Green For Life Environmental Inc. (the Soo's recycling contractor) to take over naming rights for The Essar Centre, with it's name becoming GFL Memorial Gardens effective August 1st as part of a 10 year, $750,000 deal. Response has been mixed from what I've seen, but the Memorial Gardens name being restored is welcomed, and remember that GFL's president is Sault Ste. Marie native and former OHL goaltender Patrick Dovigi. Keep the impending new name in mind for concerts and games starting in August!
• Peace Vibe/Flat Stanley drummer Glen Thomas is looking to play live more regularly than his current bands' schedules, and is open to playing as a full time or fill-in performer with a local band. Glen has ample musical experience in many genres, and has played with metal bands back in the day, and hard rock more recently with Mourning Wood. If you're interested in his services in any genre, message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from last week for more details!
• Registrations are now open for the third monthly Musician's Showcase at The Superior Cafe in Sault Michigan, so head to Crooked Music on Ashmun Street to get signed up to perform! Slots are expected to fill up quickly for the showcase, which will take place on Saturday, June 30th. Might we hear some hard rock acts again? We'll find out as the month progresses, but don't hesitate if you want in!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our review of last night's All The Wasted Years concert on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Treble Charger & Dumpster Mummy), Plus New Videos!!

On this Saturday morning, let's get our first concert preview-less news post of the month up on the SMS, so what's in this one? New videos from a pair of familiar local frontmen, and to lead off, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for this summer, so here's what you should know!

Dartmouth, Nova Scotia metal trio Dumpster Mummy will return to Sault Ste. Marie for a headlining concert at The New American Pub on Sunday, June 3rd! Fans may recognize Dumpster Mummy from a short notice show at this same venue back in September 2016, and it's great to see their death and groove metal-influenced attack on a local stage after over a year & a half away, especially with more advance notice, so don't miss out next month! Local support will include death/extreme metal quartet Winkstinger in their first announced concert of 2018, as well as the long awaited return of local goregrind solo project Crucify the Whore in their first public, non-house party set since (ironically) 2016's Dumpster Mummy show. After a very quiet 2017 from the Blood Shed camp, it's great to see C.T.W. back on stage after far too long, so keep Tyler's return in mind for then. Also, we do wish Tyler a happy birthday!

Promoted by Winkstinger frontman Josh Amendola, this 19+ concert at The New A has an advertised start time of 9:00 PM, and while cover charges had not been announced at press time, note that the Dumpster Mummy show in 2016 had an advertised entry fee either $4 or "pay what you can." Despite the Sunday night placement, this should be a fun concert for extreme metal lovers, and hopefully there's a solid turnout at The New A in a month's time! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details!

Next up, the second band playing Rotaryfest's main stage at Clergue Park this year has been confirmed, as local/Toronto indie/punk quartet Treble Charger will headline the Friday, July 20th lineup at the Soo's annual summer festival! Though not yet listed on the Rotaryfest website (expect a full lineup announcement by early July), Treble Charger's involvement was confirmed via this official Facebook event page earlier this week. While it is possible that Greig, Bill, and company played Rotaryfest during Treble Charger's original run, this is the first time on the current online record that the Juno nominees have played either Rotaryfest stage, so it'll be awesome to see them on such a big event in their first local show of the year! No word yet on who's opening for Treble Charger on July 20th, but Rotaryfest's Friday lineup tends to have 5 or 6 total acts (2011-2013 aside), and remember that Calgary classic rock legends The Stampeders will headline Stage 1 on Saturday the 21st.

Also, given their stature and past billing from Toronto, I imagine that Treble Charger will be exempt from the "covers only" rule for local performers (though that could be an oversight on my part!) As always, expect all three nights of music at Rotaryfest's main stage (including Thursday the 19th) to be FREE & ALL AGES, and while time slots are not out yet, expect Treble Charger to be on at 10:00 PM, with the bands proper beginning at 6:00 or 5:00 PM, pending if there's 5 or 6 bands. Hopefully Treble Charger deliver a solid set and get a sizeable crowd down to Clergue Park in a couple of months, and stay tuned for continuing lineup details!

We'll close today with some new videos, starting with some from former Din frontman Mike Haggith's Facebook page! One video from Monday isn't music-related at all, instead the result of a post from the Wholesome Memes Facebook page relating to a posted story about a lasagna dinner. It's cuter if you're familiar with the post he references, but if you're hoping for some new music, Mike does have you covered! He uploaded this video on Sunday of him playing a new original song called "If Only You Could Hear Me" that he wrote last summer, but wasn't sure what he wanted to do with it in studio, so he opened up the lines for fans to give input. In this format, it's an acoustic demo with Mike's softer, higher register vocals, and honestly, the guitar work reminds me slightly of "My Sweet Lord" by George Harrison. I don't know if that's a viable inspiration for where to take this song, but it works for what it is, and give it a look below!



Finally for today, here's a video of A Dire Setback frontman Chris Nielsen performing at Room 21's open mic night on Tuesday, as live streamed on the band's Facebook page! Cited in the description as "the best way to warm up vocals" before their set opening for The Steves on Wednesday, the video features Chris covering "Don't Look Now" by comedian and country singer Rodney Carrington, which definitely shows his range extends beyond punk! The humorous lyrics are hard to make out in the muffled audio, but the vertical camera angle works fine given that this is a solo performance, and give it a look below to see a different side of Chris on stage!



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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Dumpster Mummy), Apocalypse Afterparty Updates, And New Banned Videos!!

At last, we're rounding out another weekend of concert previews with a delayed SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, but to round out this post, we have big updates from a band and their upcoming debut CD, and some new concert videos! Note that this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post is absolutely coming tomorrow, recent regular posts and personal commitments have forced it's delay, just in case you were curious. Now, here's what you should know for this Labour Day weekend post!

Dartmouth, Nova Scotia metal quartet Dumpster Mummy will make their local concert debut TOMORROW NIGHT when they headline at The New American Pub! Apologies for the short notice, the show was only publically announced earlier this week via it's official Facebook event page. Notably marking the return of promoters Heavy North Entertainment for the first time since last September's Fuck the Facts show, it's great to see Tyler St. Amour promoting again after a year's hiatus, albeit not at The Oddfellows Hall, but hopefully this isn't a one-off! Dumpster Mummy's aggressive sound combines death, thrash, and groove metal influences to very solid effect, and they should devastate The New A TOMORROW NIGHT, so don't miss out during this stop on their Canadian tour! A stacked local opening lineup will include classic metal quintet Project 421, goregrind solo project Crucify the Whore, groove/death metal duo Them (last seen opening for Gorod in May), and modern hard rock quartet Eclipse to kick things off.

Note that punk/metal favourites Jack Spades were originally slated to open as well, but were replaced by both Eclipse & Them due to a family emergency, and our thoughts are absolutely with them at this time! This 19+ concert begins at 9:00 PM TOMORROW, and while a $4 cover charge is listed, promoters also list that you can also "pay what you can", so keep that in mind in case this is accurate. Despite the relative late notice, this should be a fun concert for metalheads, so keep this one in mind for TOMORROW, especially with the Labour Day holiday on Monday! See above for more details, and here's Dumpster Mummy live!



Next up, here's the latest from recently dormant local rap/metal project The Apocalypse Afterparty, as their long gestating debut EP "Bufflesnort" is progressing towards release! In their first music-related posts on their Facebook page since March, the 2015 VM Radio Battle finalists unveiled five different covers for the EP (this one is their profile photo, if nothing else) that all feature a minimalist hockey motif. The band followed that by posting their cover of Saul Williams' "List of Demands (Reparations)", under the title "Better Than The Hives Did It" onto their Reverbnation page, joining their older studio recording of "The Crowd", though no word on if the latter has since been re-recorded. The EP itself was recorded locally at Tidal Records and mixed by Fairmounts guitarist Simon Head at Insight Recorders, who have worked with the likes of The Boot Hill Crooners and Jesse Merineau in the past. Note that The Apocalypse Afterparty have indicated that their new song will be taken down before they "prep for a hard release", so listen while you can!

An earlier post also hinted that a member of defunct Saskatchewan hardcore band The Holly Springs Disaster (a favourite touring act from Oddfellows Hall shows in the 2000s) would be making a guest appearance on the EP, but the band hasn't elaborated on that since. It should be noted that "songwriter" Paul Stanghetta (a.k.a. Puablos Stancu) posted on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday regarding a search for a new drummer, noting that they aren't necessarily looking for someone with a high skill level, just a high fun level, and that they want to jam 2 or 3 times a week and play live. While The Apocalypse Afterparty still only credit band members by stage names, I hope it's not contraband to note that the band had briefly enlisted Amber McKay as their drummer after Steve Mozarowski left last year, as per personal conversations, but she appears to have departed as well.

Though The Apocalypse Afterparty have only played a handful of live concerts, their creative stage show and masked personas definitely help them stand out among the crowd, and aspiring drummers should definitely give Paul a shout via his Musicians Wanted group post above or at this link if you want in! "Bufflesnort" seems to be shaping up well, and it should be an intriguing EP when it's formally released! Stay tuned for updates, and here's the Facebook video copy of "Better Than The Hives Did It"/"Reparations"!

Finally for today, here's some overdue new videos from Kinross, Michigan classic/hard rock cover trio Banned, mostly from their show at McNeil's Hotel & Bar in Gould City (90 minutes west of the Soo) last week, but one extra video does come from their private gig in Iron River last Friday. All again shared via live streams rather than uploads after the fact (why not advertise them in advance so more fans can watch live?), two were shared via frontman Alex Traynor's personal Facebook page, while the others were uploaded to Banned's Facebook page directly. The new Iron River video has Banned covering Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train", while the Gould City clips include renditions of Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World", Journey's "Any Way You Want It", and as embedded below, Guns N' Roses "Sweet Child O' Mine", all with Alex on lead vocals.

Though the band setup at McNeil's is odd (drummer, bassist, and guitarist from left to right?), Banned sound good on these covers, and it's nice to see that their recent footage dips more to older rock, which I've felt suited them better than some of the newer indie rock covers and country material that they've tackled. Solid stuff all around, so check out their newest videos above & below, and don't miss Banned in St. Ignace next weekend!



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