LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tym Morrison & Soundcheck), A New Band/Merger, And Weekend Concert Previews!!

We're back after a few slow days to cover this weekend's concert previews, including some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (some on SHORT NOTICE), but with recent major news regarding an apparent band merger and the new Facebook page for one of those bands, we're saving our previews of tomorrow's Who Made Who concert and this weekend's Peril shows in St. Ignace for our next post, be that tonight or tomorrow morning, so look for them then! Now, let's begin this post with the first of this weekend's concert previews, and that new band!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to The Rednecks Saloon for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT, and they finally have a Facebook page to boot! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only just announced early this morning via it's Facebook event page. Five months after making their public concert debut at the former Nicolet Tavern, the former Nameus finally have an online page to promote themselves and concerts with, which is great to see, but what do we know now? On Soundcheck's page, they describe themselves as "a new local '80s retro & hairspray cover band" and a "party like hell band", so if there were any fears about not fitting the SMS, hopefully this assuaged them! In terms of lineup, they feature former Carbon Black bandmates Travis Sharpe (Havadder) and Terry Eaton each on vocals & guitar, alongside Terry's Mourning Wood bandmates Steven Flint on drums and (in a new lineup announcement) Paul Belair on bass, replacing Robin "Bones" Lee.

According to Soundcheck's Facebook page's biography, Robin left the band "to take care of his health and well being", after having spent less than a month with the group. Best of luck to Bones, hopefully it's nothing too serious that he's dealing with, and hopefully we see him back on stage soon! Now, given that Soundcheck's lineup currently features 3/4ths of Mourning Wood's most recent lineup, you would be right to assume that there is something afoot with that band's active status, as Mourning Wood's Facebook page newly confirms that they are "going to be amalgamating very soon" with Soundcheck, though they oddly note that they're playing the "same music", and that "a new member is joining the band", presumably meaning Travis, who wasn't in Mourning Wood. My first instinct is that Soundcheck are simply adding Paul on bass and taking on Mourning Wood's bookings going forward, which include two upcoming weekends at The Esquire Club in a few weeks, more on them in the near future.

Does the merger happening "very soon" mean that Mourning Wood gigs will continue in the short term beforehand? Does the "same music" reference mean country covers are being added to Soundcheck sets? Stay tuned for updates, but in any event, TOMORROW NIGHT'S show at Rednecks has no cover charge, a 19+ age limit, and a 10:00 PM start time. Check the above links for more on this concert, Soundcheck proper, and the merger, hopefully public videos finally start turning up, and Soundcheck are now in our active band links! We won't move Mourning Wood to our inactive links until we're certain that Soundcheck have taken over all of their future activity.

Next up, and with April now well and fully in progress, let's add prolific hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison's slate of solo concerts at Gliss Steak & Seafood this month to our concert listings, including shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY, plus a bonus return to The Roadhouse Bar & Grill TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies again for the short notice on this weekend's three shows, all were only announced by Tym earlier this week via their respective Facebook event pages (linked here & here.) Tym's usual Gliss matinees are continuing their march forward into the spring, with TOMORROW & SATURDAY'S shows joined by expected solo gigs on April 14th & 15th, 21st & 22nd, and 28th & 29th, so look for more unplugged hard rock classics at this downtown restaurant over the coming four weekends! As for TOMORROW NIGHT'S Roadhouse show, this marks Tym's first appearance at the Trunk Road venue of the year, and if you've missed him at this venue, don't bypass this show either!

As usual for Tym's Gliss shows this month, expect 6:00 PM start times and no announced cover or age limit (but remember where these are being held), while TOMORROW'S Roadhouse concert has a more typical 19+ age limit, 10:00 PM start time, and no cover. Check the above links for more details, and here's Tym live in concert a few years back!



Finally for today's concert preview post, here's a special Thursday night concert going down TONIGHT at The New American Pub, as Toronto hard rock quartet Return For Refund will make their local concert debut! Touring in support of their newly released studio album "Lift You Up", this talented band will definitely intrigue many fans with their 1990s-inspired blend of alternative rock styles, throwing in some grunge and blues influences for good measure, and they should attract a solid base of fans when they rock The New A tonight! Fast-rising local alt-punk quartet A Dire Setback will open as expected, but there has been a lineup change, as it was confirmed two weeks ago that blues/hard rock trio Electric Church have replaced pop rock artist Mike Mikus as the show's first act (apologies for the delay in noting this on the site, it slipped us by last month.) A reason for Mike's withdrawal wasn't announced, but hopefully nothing bad happened, and it will be neat to see Electric Church take on The New A for the first time tonight!

Apparently promoted by the venue proper (it is not Live705 affiliated beyond A Dire Setback's set), this show has a 9:00 PM start time, $5 cover charge, and 19+ age limit. This should be a solid night of hard and alternative rock originals, so definitely consider a trip to The New A tonight, check the official Facebook event page for updates, and here's Return For Refund live!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Who Made Who & Peril previews, and more, next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Return For Refund), More March Mash-Up Videos, And More!!

Before we tackle this weekend's concert previews, here's a new news post for you guys to check out, if you are so inclined! This post contains some new videos from a recent concert, and some assorted recent updates, but let's kick things off with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month!

Toronto hard rock quartet Return For Refund will make their local concert debut on Thursday, April 6th when they headline at The New American Pub! Harbouring a 1990s-feeling blend of genres like grunge and alternative, with even some bluesy touches, Return For Refund are touring in support of their new CD "Lift You Up", and they should prove to be a well-recieved and entertaining attraction at The New A in three weeks! Local support will come via newer local pop punk quartet A Dire Setback and former Pixo Control frontman Mike Mikus (in his solo debut at this venue), and while neither are a "hard rock" act, their talents speak for themselves, and they should prove a nice compliment on the 6th! Note that I'm unclear who's promoting this show, as Live705 nor Mike are claiming it, so it may have been through the venue. In any event, this is a 19+ show with a $5 cover charge and 9:00 PM start time. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for more on this intriguing concert!

Next up, here's a pair of new videos posted to the aforementioned Live705's Facebook page during this past Saturday's March Mash-Up at The Canadian Nightclub, showcasing two bands from that day's events. One is of local death/thrash metal trio Pillory, as uploaded during their set, albeit posted twice when promoters weren't sure if the first copy went through. This was one of the band's first songs during their set, though I'm not 100% certain of the title, partly as this is is just 41 seconds long and doesn't feature a part with vocals. Still, this is some quality side-stage devastation from Robert, Jordan, and Bret, so give it a look below!



Live705's other video is of new local alternative hard rock quartet Bizotic playing a song during soundcheck before the concert proper actually began, though given my still light knowledge of their songs by name, I can't title this one. Given that this is from soundcheck, Bizotic are lacking the spontaneity and atmosphere of their actual set (not to mention, their plasma clock), but they sound good here, and the trumpet is largely audible! Check it out below!

 

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

• Project 421 frontman Blair Burch is "looking for an outlet" where he can play guitar in a hard rock or metal setting, though he doesn't want to play in a band with death metal growling vocals, and he has lots of available time and a jam space. What this posting means for the future of Project 421 (who indicated that "we aren't going anywhere" on their Facebook page three weeks ago) isn't clear, but he's a talented guitarist, so message Blair at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Sunday if you're interested in jamming with him!
• I have deleted former Gore Street concert venue GLOW (a.k.a. The Other Place, Nite-Life Dance Club, etc.) from our inactive concert venue links due to the deletion of it's last known surviving Facebook group at some point in recent years. Also, it's old FreeWebs page has since been "frozen" itself too, and I doubt Mike would revive it at this point, so there goes the backup plan. The GLOW location always felt like a quality locale for concerts prior to it's ultimate closure in 2010, and hopefully it finds a new long-term purpose!
• It's official: Sunrise Records is taking over HMV's spot in Station Mall later this year! The Soo location was among the first 29 new branches announced for the Ancaster-based record store chain's takeover of at least 70 HMV stores, and this has since been confirmed via local news media. I hope Sunrise Records does well in the Soo, and can at least match the decade-long runs that Music World and HMV had in this location of the mall, so stay tuned for when they open hopefully later in the spring! For reference, HMV liquidation sales are now at least 40-60% off everything in store, and they must close by the end of next month.

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews next! Thanks everyone!