LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The T.R.I.P.) & More Weekend Concert Previews!!

Before we finish off this weekend's hard rock concert previews, just a heads up that a celebration of life for former Rising Tide/Wild Turkeys bassist Marshall Jaaskelainen will be held tomorrow night at The Tap Room at Northern Superior Brewing Co. at 6:00 PM. The brewery announced this on their Facebook page yesterday, and members of Marshall's family had announced it on personal social media accounts prior. The event will have an open mic aspect where friends, family, and bandmates can talk about Marshall and/or play music in his honour, though as far as I can tell, there are no formally scheduled bands. Of course, kudos to Northern Superior for hosting this, and given Marshall's talents and nature, I'm sure it will be packed tomorrow night to pay tribute to him. As of this writing, an obituary or details of further services have not been publically released, and we will let you know if/when they are. R.I.P. Marshall!

Today's post otherwise caps off this weekend's known and advertised hard rock concert previews in the area, and we'll start with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as sporadically seen acoustic classic/hard rock cover band The T.R.I.P. will reportedly be performing at The Water Tower Pub TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced via personal Facebook postings this week, though note that The Water Tower Pub's October schedule (since yanked off of their Facebook page) originally had TOMORROW as being a Beej Syrette solo concert. As you may recall, The T.R.I.P. (no word on what the acronym means) started as a side project for cousins & then-Double Down bandmates Joel & Beej Syrette, though after that band abruptly disbanded in March, The T.R.I.P. returned for a Beck's Bar gig last month, now with bassist Dan Beaupre joining them.

Now, this show conflicts with Soundcheck's short notice gig TOMORROW NIGHT at Jay's Piston Broke Pub (Dan joined them in August). He is listed by name in personal postings referencing TOMORROW'S T.R.I.P. concert, but where will he be? I'll clarify if something comes out! Regardless, if you've missed Double Down over the past seven months, keep this gig in mind, even if it's unplugged and sans Ric! Remember, The Water Tower Pub doesn't host the same band on back to back nights, and classic rock veterans 46th Parallel are playing there tonight. TOMORROW's show is at 8:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover. See above for more details, and no T.R.I.P. videos yet!

Also this weekend are local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations' newest concerts, which will see them rock Reggie's Place TOMORROW NIGHT! They were originally advertised to be playing tonight too, but the band confirmed that they are not playing tonight due to "certain circumstances", as per their Facebook group. As such, their defunct predecessors Jus' Chillin will perform instead with guest guitarist Michael Yurich. Usually, a Jus' Chillin reunion is prompted by Valerie being unavailable, but if Mike is sitting in, maybe Joe is absent (too)? The post said nothing about tomorrow night, so hopefully the status quo returns then. Here's hoping that there's a good turnout downtown regardless! Tomorrow's show is at 9:30 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover charges. See above for more details, and for a preview, guitarist Joe Miller has shared two new videos of them live onto their Facebook group! Both see them covering Pat Benatar songs at their most recent Water Tower Pub show, one being "Heartbreaker", which was originally filmed by attendee Kyle McGinnis.

Sadly, that one is vertical and only 93 seconds long, but it's a strong performance that lets Valerie let loose on vocals! Embedded below is the slightly longer (and horizontal!) video of Generations covering "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", which Joe shared from his own personal Facebook page. Not as challenging of a song for Valerie's range, but a classic rock staple that they know well, and despite the venue's extremely blue lighting, this video is well shot and framed. Give these a look above and below, and don't miss Generations at Reggie's Place tomorrow!

We'll close this weekend's hard rock concert previews in Sault Michigan, where local punk/alternative duo About:Blank will play a rare headlining concert TOMORROW NIGHT at The Merchant's Bar! The second of at least three gigs (private and public alike) for Parker and Kade this month, this will be their first public show in the Soo since their acoustic matinee outside of Moloney's Alley in June. Coming less than a week before they open for Bimbo at Pizza Hut (no word yet on if they're in the LSSU Battle of the Bands on Thursday), hopefully the guys tear things up at The Merch, where fittingly, they will have new merch for sale! Tomorrow's concert is a short one, running from 10:00 PM until midnight, so no openers and no stuffing four sets with covers.This is a 21+ concert with no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and here's About:Blank live!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Scarkazm, The Sky Pilots, And Tarnished), And One More Concert Preview!!

A SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT fell into my lap, so let's dive into a mostly all-Eastern Upper Peninsula post on this Saturday morning (not Sault Michigan, everything here is taking place or was filmed in other towns). Along with a Sault Ontario concert preview, we do have more upcoming EUP concerts that were recently announced, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock cover band Tarnished will return to The Lakeside Lounge at Bay Mills Resort & Casino in Brimley for another acoustic concert TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, I just heard about it this morning, but Bay Mills had first confirmed the gig on their Facebook page on Monday. TONIGHT's still-short notice gig will be Alex & Josh's second straight Saturday nighter at the Brimley casino's newer acoustic-amenable lounge, and while I don't know if this was always scheduled or if they're a late fill-in, hopefully they get a solid turnout for their 1980s-leaning rock covers once again! Remember, their acoustic shows do not have Chris or Ron present, we'll let you know when the full band announce new dates. Everything goes down TONIGHT at 8:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and here's (half of) Tarnished live!

Next up, The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino has updated their band schedule through the end of November via their entertainment page! Of course, it's just the St. Ignace branch, as The Rapids Lounge in the Soo is expected to close at month's end to make way for the construction of the new sports bar and water park. Kewadin have taken the extra step of noting genres for bands playing there on their entertainment pages though, which is long overdue, though very general, as they often don't get more specific than "rock & roll" as a descriptor. Just to clarify, Timberline and Uncle Ugly don't cross our "hard rock" line from what I've seen and heard, though they do have occasional covers. A band that does though kicks off the month on Friday, November 6th & Saturday, November 7th, namely Munising classic/hard rock cover quintet The Sky Pilots, in their first local appearance since rocking the St. Ignace Kewadin in May.

Always good to see former Swayze Train/Electric Motor Fish singer Melissa Strand in our area, and hopefully they have a strong turnout next month for their hard rock-leaning cover selection! As usual for Kewadin lounge gigs, these will both be at 9:00 PM with 21+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details on The Pilots' return!

Meanwhile, The Northern Pines Lounge are booking some very familiar faces for the American Thanksgiving weekend, as Traverse City metal trio Scarkazm will play their last EUP shows of the year at The Northern Pines Lounge on Friday, November 27th & Saturday, November 28th! Of course, their sister band Peril is rocking out at the soon-to-close Rapids Lounge tonight, so now Yooper fans know your last chances to see either band before 2027. Scarkazm's hard hitting originals and covers should go over well next month, so don't miss out on all of the action in St. Ignace then! Same as for The Sky Pilots three weeks prior, these shows are at 9:00 PM, have no announced cover charges, and you must be 21 or older to attend. Visit the above links for more details, and don't miss Jeff leave the drumkit to front Peril tonight in the Soo before The Rapids Lounge as we know it closes next month!

Finally for today, here's one more weekend concert preview for Sault Ontario, as local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will set up shop at Reggie's Place TOMORROW for another Sunday matinee concert! The third of six scheduled concerts on the batch Facebook event page for his late 2026 dates at the Queen Street East nightclub, this is one of two Sunday matinees ahead for Tym in October, with a return coming on October 25th, though note that Reggie's Facebook page hasn't publically confirmed any of Tym's recent shows there. If you're up for a fun afternoon of classic and hard rock favourites from this talented local musician and former Caveman Morrison frontman, head to Reggie's for the Thanksgiving Eve music! This is a 19+ event at 2:00 PM with no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tym live!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Soundcheck) And Weekend Concert Previews, Part 1!!

This is an unusually busy weekend for concerts at this time of year, so much so that I'll have to break up our hard rock/punk concert previews into three posts! Today's will look at bands playing tomorrow and/or Saturday in some description, but larger events on Saturday (namely Oktoberfest, Punk Rock Fiesta, Quite Frankly, Curtis McKenzie, Dos Amigos, and shows in the EUP) to follow. We're on it, and we're starting with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so here's what you should know to start things off!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck (7.3?) will reportedly return to Reggie's Place for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, these shows have not been publically announced on social media by the band or venue, and I only learned about the shows via personal Facebook postings. Soundcheck most recently rocked the Queen Street East tavern early last month, with this being their second weekend there with their current lineup. Should be a fun weekend for classic and hard rock cover action, assuming the personal Facebook postings are accurate! This AI-generated image was made by Reggie's for their shows there in May, but intentionally or not, it's not dated so it can be reused (though if the guys really have tacked 7.3 onto their name, why not make that official on their public social media pages? They should use social media more regardless.)

TOMORROW & SATURDAY's concerts are at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no announced cover charges, and the shows were not advertised as "epic crossovers" with their sister band Separate Wayz, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Nicole won't turn up. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Soundcheck live!

Next up, a packed weekend at the resurgent Rockstar Bar kicks off TOMORROW NIGHT with the one-off supergroup Hard Rock Review taking the stage there! For one night only, staples of local hard rock bands of the 1990s will join forces for a night full of 1980s-leaning rock covers, and for recent SMS coverage's sake, the most familiar names here will be (former?) Dodge This/Phatstick frontman Jason Taillefer and Flathead Ford/ex-Gsis Murphy drummer Anthony Fabiano. Good to see Jay in a plugged in band again after way too long! Bassist Robert Iacoboni (who later made his way to Taiwan in his extensive musical journey) and drummer Jeff See will round out their full lineup, but Robert's friend Dallas Crockett (of the Kelowna-based AC/DC tribute band High Voltage) will guest for a six song mini-set of AC/DC hits. Dallas isn't local, but his guest turn will add some zest to the proceedings!

One night before punk reunions take place at the same venue with Punk Rock Fiesta (preview coming tomorrow), Hard Rock Review will have no announced cover charge tomorrow night, but bring cash just in case given that most of the performers are living out of town. This is a 19+ concert with doors opening at 8:00 PM. Obviously, I have no videos of Hard Rock Review (shouldn't it be "Revue?") to preview the show with, but the Facebook event page lists bands that the guys will be covering, and with the talent on display, fans of this era of local hard rock bands should have a blast tomorrow night! See above for more details on the Hard Rock Review's debut!

Also taking place TOMORROW NIGHT is the return of local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations to The Water Tower Pub for one night only! While the band did announce the shows last month as part of their slate of (at least) three October gigs, the shows have been confirmed anew via the venue's October concert calendar, and we'll address its unaddressed hard rock shows in an upcoming post. After skipping this central nightclub last month, fans will get to see Generations back there tomorrow, and hopefully their classic and hard rock covers go over well as usual! As The Water Tower Pub hosts different acts nightly, country singer/guitarist Jeffrey Wright is headlining there on Saturday. Tomorrow's concert will be an 8:00 PM affair as usual with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's a brand new video of Generations live!

This was shot at their Gateway Casino concert last month, and was uploaded to guitarist Joe Miller's personal Facebook page before being shared to the band's Facebook group. It features him, Valerie, Pierre, and Tony covering Amanda Marshall's "Let It Rain", which I don't recall them covering in past media. Not badly handled, and Valerie's voice is more than up to the task of this mid-1990s slice of Cancon. Well filmed and horizontal to boot, so give it a watch below, and don't miss them at The Water Tower Pub tomorrow!

Finally for preview post #1, we'll go west to Beck's Bar, where local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will take the stage on SATURDAY NIGHT! Just Saturday though, as despite their website still listing the Sunday matinee for an "uncorked" concert, Beck's has since confirmed on their Facebook page that Curtis McKenzie is playing that day instead (preview forthcoming). A reason for the switch was not announced, but hopefully it's just a simple scheduling conflict. The full electric Bone Yard 225 experience awaits on Saturday though, with this being their first full plugged-in ("corked") concert since their one-off with Spencer Pine early last month, and their first typical weekend nightclub gig in city limits in two months. Now that the fall season is firmly in place, "the dirty three" should have a solid night of hard rocking covers and originals in store for fans at the Goulais Avenue nightclub on Saturday!

If you want to see your local 225 in "uncorked" mode, their next acoustic gig will be next Friday at the aforementioned Water Tower Pub. Saturday's concert is at 9:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cove charge, so see above for more details, and here's Bone Yard live!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Korpiklaani & Generations), Plus Convergence's New EP!!

Here's a second post late on this Thursday night, which is half devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for later this fall, plus a surprise new album release and related videos, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations have announced three concerts for next month, as per this concert calendar on their Facebook group! The first of the shows will be a one-nighter at The Water Tower Pub on Saturday, October 2nd, marking their first show of any kind since a private event last week, and their first at this central venue since early August. They're not scheduled anywhere over the Thanksgiving weekend, but Generations will return to Reggie's Place for a full weekend on Friday-Saturday, October 15th and 16th as well, after playing there late last month. No word yet on if we will see Valerie, Joe, Pierre, and Tony anywhere over Halloween weekend, but keep all three shows in mind for their talented mix of classic and hard rock covers next month! These are all 19+ with no cover, with the Water Tower Pub show at 8:00 PM and the Reggie's gigs at 9:30 PM. See above for more details!

Next up, here's the big new show announcement that caught many extreme metal fans by surprise, as Finnish folk metal sextet Korpiklaani will make their local concert debut on Saturday, November 7th at Blaster Powerhouse! A veteran staple of metal in Finland for over two decades, Korpiklaani (which means "The Backwoods Clan") deliver an effectively folk-inspired sound that often sounds like a medieval party, complete with a violin and accordion(!) in their live repertoire, but they are decidedly a metal band with harsh vocals, and certainly not something we see often in this part of Ontario, so welcome them to the Soo in six weeks' time! Opening on their Canadian tour in November are Toronto melodic death metal quintet Crimson Shadows in their own local debut, and their power metal-influenced brutality should get the pits going in their own right, so definitely give them a listen as well!

Local support will come by way of local death metal quartet Eden Plague (the former Bear Hunters) and debuting local "midwest screamo" band Free Drugs. I have no intel on who they are, but assuming they're not a surprise band that night, we'll let you know when anything goes public! Promoted by Underground Events SSM, this all ages show at 7:30 PM has tickets running for $25 (no word on a hike at the door or if local openers will have any), which you can buy online at this link. Legit Scandinavian metal legends coming here is rare, so do not bypass what will be a major highlight of the fall calendar for local metalheads! Visit the above links for more details!

Also today, here's a surprise new EP release, as local progressive metal quartet Convergence quietly dropped their long awaited first studio effort with their current lineup on major streaming services on September 7th! After previously teasing that it'd be self-titled or named "In Bloom", the EP has reverted to the "Gemini" name that they were planning to use in 2024 before Stephen and David came on board, despite "Gemini" being their third release. "The Ebb", the title track, "You Are Not Flesh", and "In Bloom" are the four included songs, with "The Ebb" being a holdover from their de-listed all-instrumental 2024 EP "Dead & Dreaming" (now with a full band) and the other three songs all originated in the planning for album #3 in any form. Convergence have been very quiet this year, partly due to drummer David Peredun now living in Southern Ontario, so hopefully the abrupt release of "Gemini" isn't a bad sign re: their future!

In any event, you can actually buy this EP for $5.99 on Bandcamp, or hear it for free there and on the usual streaming haunts. Our review backlog remains quite large, so "Gemini" is currently pencilled in for April, so look for that then, and hopefully we hear more new songs and re-recordings alike from Convergence when able, as they were teasing a full album as recently as the spring! To promote the release, new videos have been posted to the band's YouTube channel in recent months, including guitar playthroughs from Brendan and Jake of both the title track and "You Are Not Flesh" in amusingly suburban locales, complete with on-screen tabs if you want to try and play along or learn how the songs were constructed. Watch for Rocky the dog in the latter video! Completing the set with prior lyric video uploads, Convergence also uploaded lyric videos to their channel for both "You Are Not Flesh" and "In Bloom".

The whole EP was also uploaded as one single YouTube video (as opposed to the auto-generated songs on YouTube Music), but embedded below is the playthrough video for "You Are Not Flesh" starring David, as it's the only one of the three where the band member in question is fully seen on camera (Brendan and Jake's heads are continually out of frame on theirs). Despite his move down south, it is encouraging to see David still working with Convergence, and while I'll hold comment on the song pending our full review next year, his drum abilities are certainly not in doubt. Give these new videos (and the "Gemini" EP) a look above & below!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the SMS soon! Thanks everyone!

Dead II Society Updates, Plus Our Next Tym Morrison Concert Preview!!

Today's post ended up being more skewed to one band than I imagined, but there's a lot to cover with their recent launch and first major material! However, we are leading off with a preview of a matinee concert tomorrow, so here's what you should know on this Saturday night!

We'll start today with the last hard rock concert preview for this weekend, as local classic/hard rock solo artist Tym Morrison will return to Reggie's Place for another matinee concert TOMORROW! Shifting his unplugged concert focus to indoor venues for the fall, Tym just played at Reggie's last week, with tomorrow's concert being the only time in his confirmed bookings there through December where he is the matinee performer on consecutive Sundays. Hopefully things go well with a good turnout and solid covers from the former Caveman Morrison frontman tomorrow afternoon as usual! Like last week, this is a 2:00 PM concert with a presumed 19+ age limit and no cover charge. If you can't make it, he'll be back at Reggie's in three weeks. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Tym live!

Next up, here's a new music video and single from new local outlaw punk quartet Dead II Society! As teased when they publically launched last month, they did indeed release their first studio original "Dead & Buried" onto "all music streaming platforms" (a continually unlikely claim from any band) on Wednesday! To promote the release of it and its music video, frontman Erik "Buzz" Boissineau was interviewed on Scott Cook In The Morning on Rock 101, where the song was also played. It's rare when clips from on-air interviews on 101.3 FM get shared online, but hopefully the interview went well! To promote everything, the band was featured in this SooToday article by James Hopkin on Tuesday, which features remarks from Buzz and guitarist Mike Yakasovich. In it, Buzz details that his plans to write and record a full album with a new band began in 2020, shortly after he moved back to the Soo.

Mike noted that Dead II Society were basically kept secret while they were in development in recent years, so they're not brand new as a unit, just new to the public at large. Buzz's past work with his 2008-2015 metal band Garden of Bedlam is also brought up, especially as he knew Scott Cook following that band's victory in the Rock 101-hosted Kiss Battle of the Bands in 2009. It's a solid and informative interview that helps explain what Buzz and the gang have been up to in the early-mid 2020s, so give it a read above! Now that the cat is out of the bag, the song can be heard on major streaming platforms as well as Bandcamp, which all confirm that the song was recorded at the Canadian Musicians Co-operative Studio in Barrie and at The Loft at the Algoma Conservatory of Music with producer/Golden Scoundrels guitarist Brandon Ruch, with mixing by Jordan Zadorozny of Skylark Park in Pembroke.

Bryan Lowe mixed the song at Joao Carvalho Mastering in Toronto. Buzz did imply wanting to release a Dead II Society album, but is that 100% in the works or is this just step #1? Regardless, the music video (directed by Brandon's Golden Scoundrels bandmate Josh Penno at Spacebag Productions) is the first upload on the band's new YouTube channel. The video intercuts studio performance footage of Buzz, Yak, bassist Andrew Torgerson, and drummer Charlie Yanni (all separately shot) with scenes of actress Jean Becker. The lyrics imply that the song/video is about a woman trying to get out of an abusive relationship, and her hopes for what she wants her partner to deal with as a result. Well edited overall, and left with just enough room for interpretation that there are still some elements of the story to question what happened and why! With all of that said, how exactly do Dead II Society sound as a band on this track?

Their sound was described as melding "skater punk, alternative country and arena rock", and while the soaring Volbeat-reminiscent vocals will remind you of Garden of Bedlam instantly, this is a pure punk song that fans of the 1990s local scene will appreciate! If anything, this fits more with Charlie's back catalogue than anyone else here. I don't really get a country vibe from this song, but if they're implying it, that must be ahead (also, remember that Buzz's other main local bands like Barfly and Changing Lanes weren't as heavy as Garden of Bedlam). A promising start with fantastic production and mastering, so give it a look above and below, and witness their debut at the sold out Punk Rock Fiesta at The Rockstar Bar on October 3rd!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the SMS tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Riverside Stasis & Tym Morrison), The Nate's Chow Concert Preview, And New Videos!!

Let's conclude this surprisingly busy weekend concert preview slate in tonight's post, including LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (one on SHORT NOTICE), but also here are videos from two recent concerts, so with all of that outlined, here's what you should know on this Friday night!

Fresh off of the end of his seasonal Mike Case Memorial Stage run for 2026, local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison isn't resting on his laurels, as he will kick off a new series of Sunday matinee concerts at Reggie's Place THIS SUNDAY! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only announced this show in this batch Facebook event page on Monday, and Reggie's haven't been actively promoting musicians playing there recently on social media. This isn't a regular weekly or bi-weekly run, but Tym will kick things off with consecutive shows THIS SUNDAY and next Sunday the 20th, before playing there on October 11th (on the Thanksgiving long weekend) and October 25th (no word yet on if that show will have any Halloween themes). Tym is only blocked once each in the last two months of the year, namely on November 15th and December 13th, so keep all of these shows in mind if you're a fan!

Tym's unplugged hard rock cover action will take place THIS SUNDAY and the five Sundays to come in Reggie's 2:00-6:00 PM matinee block. All dates are 19+ with no announced cover charge. Matinees or not, Tym doesn't commonly play at band-frequented nightclubs as a solo act, so note the downtown action ahead in the last third of 2026, see above for more details, and for a preview of SUNDAY's show, here he is live!

Next up, here's a new show for next month from promoters Underground Events SSM, and if you want some newer original music to kick off the Thanksgiving long weekend, then you may want to come to Beck's Bar on Friday, October 9th. On this night four weeks from today, three bands will join forces, including alt-hard rock quartet Riverside Stasis, ska punk quartet ASDP (fronted by promoter Mikhal Muto), and newer local "diamond rock" band (and Doo & The Boyos side project) Stones At The Alter! The former two bands have been reasonably visible recently, ASDP's continued lack of social media beyond Instagram and Bandcamp acknowledged, but Stones At The Alter's presence is encouraging given how quiet they have been over the past four months, so hopefully things are going well behind the scenes for them! Remember, S@TA guitarist William Wardlaw is ASDP's bassist, so assuming nothing changed this summer, he'll have a busy night next month. 

This 19+ concert will have FREE admission (not even a "pay what you can" option) and a 9:00 PM start time. Sounds like an intriguing array of live music with originals and covers expected all night, and you can't beat that admission price, so keep the Thanksgiving weekend action at Beck's in mind, and visit the official Facebook event page for more details! 

We'll next head to the EUP to wrap up this weekend's hard rock concert previews, specifically local cover hard rock trio Nate's Chow at the annual Stalwart Agricultural Fair in Goetzville TOMORROW NIGHT! Two years removed from headlining "the biggest little fair in Michigan" under their old name Unfortunate Sun, the now Skip-less group will head back to Goetzville to cap off a weekend full of family entertainment and farm games/activities (Sault Ontario readers will see many parallels with last month's Laird Fair). Tomorrow is the closing day of the Stalwart Fair, so be sure to visit the official Facebook page for the full itinerary of what's going down in Goetzville prior to the show. Nate's Chow are hitting the outdoor stage at 8:00 PM (after the last draft horse pull) at the fairgrounds at 8081 East M-48. Admission to the fair is a flat $5 for the whole weekend, and this is definitely all ages.

9&10 News is calling for clear skies for most of the evening tomorrow in Goetzville with temperatures ranging from 58-65° (14-18° Celsius). Fall is definitely here! Visit the above links for more details, and here's a brand new live video from their Facebook page from their "end of summer bash" at The Islander Bar in Hessel this past Saturday! The clip sees the guys covering Limp Bizkit's "Break Stuff" with drummer Jason VanLuven on lead vocals. Interesting pick, and Jason's vocals may be gruffer than the song really needs, but it's an energetic and up tempo cover that I do wish was filmed for longer than 41 seconds. Give it a watch for yourselves below!

Finally, let's look at videos from Wednesday's Bone Yard 225 concert at the aforementioned Beck's Bar in Sault Ontario with Stones & Crows frontman Spencer Pine on guest guitar! After frontman Greg Simpson posted vertical videos on their Facebook page to promote that they're now booking 2027 concert dates and have some new band merchandise and t-shirts to sell, they headed to Beck's for the concert, where three official videos were shot, though sadly, two are A. vertical, and B. live-streams, so they will vanish from Facebook around October 9th given their current guidelines. As such, I won't embed either here, but give them a watch while you can! One is the last three minutes of a fast blues rock song with guitarist Alex D'Ettore on lead vocals that I cannot immediately identify (Alex's singing through this cell phone camera isn't super clear), while the other is a full take of "the dirty three" + Spencer covering Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' "Running Down A Dream". Embedded below is the only proper video of the three.

The horizontal(!) video was uploaded on Thursday, and captures an 8+ minute extended jam version of The Jimi Hendrix Experience's "Little Wing" with Spencer on lead vocals. Good to see the guys letting Spencer sing a bit here, and the collaboration between him and Alex on guitar was a good idea, and they are clearly having fun shredding together! Spencer does seem overdressed compared to Bone Yard, but Becky's idea to bring him together with your local 225 worked out, and I just hope that there was a decent turnout given that this was literally "midweek mayhem". Give these videos a watch above and below, and there's more coming!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Soundcheck) & Labour Day Weekend Concert Previews!!

Despite this being the Labour Day long weekend, it's quiet for hard rock/punk concerts in the Twin Saults and EUP, so barring a surprise show announcement, our weekend previews fit in only one post! Note that Double Jack are playing at the soon-to-close Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino this weekend, and I don't mean the former Exit 808, as the Bay City-area classic rock cover band of the same name (who the local band changed their name over) are playing there this weekend. Confusing, but good to see the original Double Jack making their way north! 

We'll start our previews in Sault Ontario with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, as local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will take the stage at Reggie's Place TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, these shows first came to my attention via personal Facebook postings, and neither the band nor venue have publically advertised the gigs on social media. This weekend's shows will be Soundcheck's first there with their new bassist, as Sidekicks/ex-Double Down bassist Dan Beaupre has joined the group, replacing the now-retired Jim Michaud. I have not seen a 100% confirmation that Dan has also joined their sister band Separate Wayz (whose lineup is 75% identical), but it seems quite likely given how often they play "epic crossover" dates. Of course, this also reunites Dan with his old Hollow bandmate Terry Eaton, so fans of that 1990s group should like that!

Dan was present at their last two weekends at Jay's Piston Broke Pub too. Note that AI-generated artwork on personal accounts is referring to the band as "Soundcheck 7.3", but if they have tacked a Bone Yard 225-esque number onto their name, there hasn't been a public confirmation yet. Dan is a solid and experienced rock bassist who should fit Soundcheck (and Separate Wayz?) like a glove, so welcome him to the fold TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT if you haven't yet! Both shows are at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no cover charges. See above for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!

Next up, let's head to The Art Hub At Spring (technically at 504 Queen Street East) TOMORROW NIGHT, where local hard rock quartet The Reeves and space/hard rock duo The Spaceship Opening will join forces to open for Saskatoon indie rock quartet Autopilot! In something that completely slipped me by when this show was announced, this is actually a sequel to a concert from last fall, as Autopilot and The Spaceship Opening played at Piecing It Together Shows' pop-up venue on Wellington Street West in November, which I didn't cover here because I couldn't verify The Spaceship Opening's genre at the time (that may have been the final hard rock-included concert from the former Dryer Fire). 10 months later, they're rolling it back at a different downtown locale, but this time with The Reeves as a second opener, in what they referred to on their Facebook page as "our 2nd show" (did their debut at Toystock this past November go badly or did it just get forgotten?)

Regardless, their new originals should pair well with Andrew & Ralph's minimalist hard rock before Autopilot's distinct indie/alternative sound hits the stage! Promoted by Hails frontman Brenton Ellis as part of his slate of events and art exhibits at The Art Hub this month, this stop on Autopilot's Name That Tour! 2026 is an ALL AGES concert at 6:00 PM tomorrow, and admission is $15 or "pay what you can", which is down from last fall's $20 door charge (though it did have $15 advance tickets). Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The Reeves live!

Now to Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula for the back half of our long weekend previews, and we'll start an hour south in St. Ignace, where Sault Ste. Marie classic/hard rock cover quartet Tarnished will take the stage TOMORROW EVENING for the penultimate night of the town's Music By The Bay concert series at American Legion Park! This annual seasonal run of outdoor concerts daily from June-September wraps up with Nancy Kelel there on Sunday, but Tarnished are back once more before the fall truly begins, having last played at the park at the end of July. Presumably the full band with Chris and Ron in tow after they missed the band's acoustic Bay Mills Casino show last week, you can enjoy Tarnished's old school-leaning rocking covers tomorrow from 7:00-8:30 pm, and this is absolutely an all ages concert with no cover charge. If you can't make it, the guys will be at The Driftwood Sports Bar there in two weeks!

Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for 68-70° temperatures (20-21° Celsius) tomorrow evening with sunny skies, which sounds like a perfectly cromulent way to end the season if you like outdoor concerts. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tarnished live!

Finally(?) for this weekend's previews, we'll head to The Islander Bar in nearby Hessel, where local hard rock cover trio Nate's Chow will play their third post-renaming show TOMORROW NIGHT! Fans may recall seeing Jody, Brett, and Jason debut the former Unfortunate Sun's new name and Skip-less lineup at The Islander Bar last month, with a late notice gig downstate in Alanson in the interim. That show went well, complete with a bachelorette party concurrent with the concert, and now Nate's Chow are back home in the UP, so expect a fun night of hard rocking covers tomorrow! Unless The Islander Bar has had heavy renovations, I wouldn't believe how it's depicted in the AI-generated poster. "Nates Chow" (someone forgot the apostrophe in the prompt) are on tomorrow at 8:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no cover. See above for more details, and for a preview, here's our first live video of Nate's Chow in concert!

Filmed by an uncredited attendee at last month's Hessel concert and posted to their Facebook page, this sees the band covering The Barenaked Ladies' "The Old Apartment" with Jody on lead vocals, and it's always neat seeing a Sault Michigan area band covering Canadian content! The audio is somewhat muffled, and the video is only 30 seconds long, but the performance isn't bad at all, and Jody's singing suits the original track, so give it a watch below, and don't miss the guys back at The Islander tomorrow night! 

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

YouTube Channel Profile Series: Nostalgic Band

After a delay largely due to a stacked round of weekend concert previews, here's this month's YouTube Channel Profile, as we again spotlight a randomly selected YouTube channel whose content is at least half devoted to local metal, hard rock, or punk musicians/concerts! For our last post in this series of the summer, we're looking at the channel of an all-too-brief cover rock band from three years ago that had a lot of promise and in-built chemistry, so here's what you should know! 

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Nostalgic Band (http://youtube.com/@nostalgicband)

Owner: A member of 2023 classic/hard rock cover trio The Nostalgic Band, exact identity unclear (possibly Randy, as he was credited for editing videos in the descriptions)

Channel Timeline: Launched on June 9th, 2023; Videos posted that day, three days later, and on August 1st of that year

Channel Summary: This is the only surviving online source for official content from The Nostalgic Band (f.k.a. Nostalgia), and features three live concert videos of the short-lived group, who featured former Caveman Morrison singer/guitarist Tym Morrison, former Browbeat frontman Randy "Dutch" Vanderploeg on bass, and former Nikkfitt drummer Chet Dziergas (note that Randy was in Caveman Morrison from 2012-2013, and he was also a Nikkfitt alum, albeit not when Chet was in that band). 

Why You Should Watch: If you liked The Nostalgic Band during their few mid-2023 concert dates, or have missed any of the members on stage in a band since (Tym's frequent acoustic concerts acknowledged), this will be absolutely worth checking out! This group had talent and chemistry, as fans of late-era Caveman Morrison will know, and it's a shame that things ended the way that they did that September. Note that the band's Facebook group was sadly taken down after their breakup, which Randy was wont to do when any of his prior bands folded. You can, however, see some extra footage of this group via this episode of Randy's Rides, his motorcycle-riding webseries.

 Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

 

Nostalgic Band Promo: The first and most popular video here comes from The Nostalgic Band's live debut at Reggie's Place on May 26th, 2023, which features minute-or-so long clips of them covering Metallica's "Enter Sandman", The Romantics' "Talking In Your Sleep", Starship's "We Built This City", The Scorpions' "Rock You Like A Hurricane", Ozzy Osbourne's "Bark At The Moon", The Cars' "My Best Friend's Girl", Loverboy's "Working For The Weekend", Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train", and The Cars' "Good Times Roll", with Randy on lead vocals for the Cars covers. While I'd prefer full songs, and the camera is way too zoomed out (making Reggie's look cavernous around the band), this is a good sampling of what The Nostalgic Band had in store, and it was good seeing Tym front a band again, even with short hair!

 

 

I DON'T KNOW cover by The NOSTALGIC band: In a sign that Ozzy Osbourne covers were popular for Tym, Randy, and Chet in this band, their other Reggie's video sees them cover "I Don't Know" at another Reggie's concert just two weeks later. Edited by Randy in post-production to include zooms into the stage and individual band members, this is a sound cover that shows off everyone's musical abilities well, even if Chet's head is largely obscured at this angle. The video quality isn't super crisp, but it is nice to see everyone in fuller frame, let alone a full video from a public concert!

 

 

Nostalgtic Band Live at the Ranch July 29 2023: In their final and longest upload, we get 37 minutes of the guys at a private outdoor event at "The Ranch" in July 2023, which was (as far as I can recall) cross-posted to their Facebook group before it was taken down. While edited to remove between-song breaks in post-production, the video features their full covers of Deep Purple's "Highway Star", Metallica's "Enter Sandman", Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'", Styx's "Too Much Time On My Hands", Bryan Adams' "Summer Of '69", Kiss' "Rock & Roll All Nite", Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Bad Moon Rising", "Bark At The Moon", and Whitesnake's "Slide It In". Despite fuzzy video quality and a somewhat sterile feeling without crowd reactions between songs, these covers are strongly performed with good enthusiasm and vocals from Tym, and it's a shame that The Nostalgtic (sic) Band didn't last longer than four months, but hopefully we see the guys down the line!

 

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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! This series returns (hopefully on time moreso) next month at around September 26th, but stay tuned next for this month's CD review! Thanks everyone!