LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906 & Even Flow) And More Recent Updates!!

Before we get too far today, we have another missed concert to acknowledge on the site, from Saturday, February 7th in Sault Michigan, albeit one that had no public advertising that I can find. On that night, local hard rock bands About:Blank and Crush joined forces at The Savoy Nightclub, and for a show that About:Blank plugged after the fact on Facebook & thanked attendees for coming out to, why didn't either band mention it on their public pages? Especially as it was both bands' first gig of 2026, though Crush haven't even posted on their Facebook page in over a month. I do apologize for not covering this show on here, but alas, it's hard to when no one publically advertises it online, especially from the Ontario side of the border. However, About:Blank did post two new videos to their Facebook page from Saturday's show of them playing their original songs "Hearse", and as embedded below, "Unheard", so what can we glean from them?

The video quality of these videos isn't the greatest (the vertical orientation and The Savoy's lighting don't help), but the performances are solid and have a good energy that fans of Parker's past work with Tarnished will appreciate! Note that this set appeared to be as a duo following Nathan Webber's departure last month (I knew Nathan isn't in Crush, cold bug-induced error, sorry Alex), and hopefully the guys find the right guitarist and/or bassist to refill their ranks soon! Check out Parker & Kade rocking out at The Savoy above and below, and apologies again! I'd have happily promoted this show had someone said something publically!

Today's post otherwise features updates from a rising young metal band and some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, and we'll an hour west in Eckerman, where local blues/hard rock cover quintet Project 906 will play The Strongs Tavern for the first time this year on Saturday, February 28th! The band just announced this concert earlier today via their Facebook page when thanking everyone for seeing them in Cedarville last night, and it will mark their first show at The Strongs Tavern since July, an unusually long wait given that they historically play there often, especially compared to other regional hard rock bands. Hopefully the guys deliver a fun batch of rocking covers for fans out in Eckerman to end the month! If you're wondering, the picture is from the Cedarville show, but I don't know if hand drummer Brian Duford missed the gig, was just not present for the photo, or if he was one of the Snowsfest Bigfoot mascots in disguise.

If things go identically to 906's prior Strongs concerts, this will be a 21+ event with no announced cover charge and an 8:00 PM start time. Visit the above links for more news and updates from Project 906!

We'll head north to Sault Ontario for the back half of this post, starting with one more new show announcement, as new local Pearl Jam tribute band Even Flow will play their second concert on Friday, March 27th at Soo Blaster! Coming almost five months after Even Flow debuted on Halloween at Beck's Bar, you know that the guys have high aspirations when they're already headlining a larger venue like this, and while public media of them performing isn't on social media yet, the talent is certainly there! And yes, their singer is indeed Barbarians/ex-Wyld Stallyns frontman Rob Speers, as per personal Facebook postings (the band's bio doesn't give his last name). Also featuring Papa Fogals Chair and Odd Man Out alumni, this grunge and alternative tribute goes down at 8:00 PM on March 27th, it will presumably be all ages, and advance tickets cost $10 at this link or through band members. See above for more details on this event!

Finally, here's the latest from local metalcore duo Hollow Sky, and while they just resurfaced for their first Facebook page update since June of last year, observant fans may have noticed recent activity on streaming services attributed to them. In December, an album named "Echoes Fade Slowly" by a band named Hollow Sky surfaced on major streaming platforms, and the local band's Linktree page kicks to this album on YouTube Music. The three red flags here were A. the genre (indie/pop rock), B. the singer (female), and C. the online footprint (minimal, I have suspicions that this Hollow Sky is AI-generated). I reached out to the local band to tell them about this so they can address the links and attribution as needed, and they confirmed that they are 100% not behind "Echoes Fade Slowly". I fear that this isn't the only time that such a name/credit issue will crop up on streaming, so be observant!

In terms of actual content by Liam and Adam, their new posting is of a cover-ish of the riff from "1. The Many Names Of God", a new song by Birmingham, Alabama progressive metalcore band Erra that isn't even coming out until Thursday. However, Erra posted the tabs for the main riff of the song on social media, encouraging fans to try to perform their own interpretation of the riff to guess how it will sound. The video (with Liam on guitar and Adam on bass) sure sounds good with a nice technical crunch, but it's a hypothetical teaser of another band's song. Check out Erra's new song when it drops later this week, and give Hollow Sky's interpretation a watch below!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Crush) And Saturday Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

Before we begin this post, I waned to note that this Saturday's planned Soo Falls-hosted Oktoberfest concert at The Machine Shop was quietly cancelled, as per the end of ticket sales (source here) and lack of recent social media promotion. A reason for the cancellation was not publically announced, but remember that we did have two other Oktoberfest events in Sault Ontario earlier this fall. Hopefully we see BookcluB and Silent 9 back at it soon, and Nein German Guys at Oktoberfest events next year! Now, let's lead off this busy weekend's hard rock concert previews (Rust and Beck's Bar gigs aside) with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

New Sault Michigan hard rock trio (and Tarnished spin-off) Crush will make their Sault Ste. Marie debut THIS SATURDAY NIGHT with a multi-band concert at The Savoy Nightclub! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced via this teaser video from their Facebook page on Sunday where the band amusingly sampled a bottle of Josh wine (as Josh Fair is their guitarist). While Crush did play a downstate gig since then in Prescott on August 22nd, and will also hit the road tomorrow to open for deathcore band Godstine at a "Creepy Cheapy Halloween Bash" in Battle Creek, this will be just the second local gig since Alex, Josh, and Iggy formed Crush as their new original music outlet, leaving Tarnished in their current covers-centric formation. The Superior Whitefish Festival Battle of the Bands winners are the headliners on SATURDAY, and will be joined by the local debut of Rose City metal quintet Tribe989!

Crush had previously opened for Tribe989 at the aforementioned Prescott show last month (a fundraiser gig for this tour run), and Crush debuted at Bar-N Stock in Rose City in July (which Tribe989 also played at), not to mention Tarnished's past gigs there, so it's neat to see paths cross 3 hours north for a change. Tribe989 are a solid and melodic mixed-gender metal band, so don't bypass them! Newer local punk/hard rock trio About:Blank (featuring fellow Tarnished alumni Parker Talentino and Nathan Webber) will also take the stage on SATURDAY in their own first gig since the aforementioned Superior Whitefish Festival, though they were in the Music In The Park block, not the battle. Good to see About:Blank back out there, and hopefully their original tunes and sometimes surprising originals kick things off on the right foot! For the record, you may recall seeing Alex & Josh with Tarnished at the 117 West Portage Avenue bar back on July 4th.

SATURDAY'S concert (named "Destroy The Savoy") is at 7:00 PM, there is a 21+ age limit, and admission is $5 at the door. Not a bad deal all around for three originals-leaning Michigan hard rock/metal bands, and if you miss Tarnished's original material and more comedic social media videos/postings (we have to play catch-up on those), then Crush will be very much up your alley, let alone from their clear musical talent! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Crush live!

Next up, let's head to Sault Ontario for a pair of previously announced concerts, starting with a matinee gig from prolific local classic/hard rock solo musician Tym Morrison, who will keep his busy slate at Misty's Fifties going with yet another early acoustic booking on SATURDAY! This is the second in a three week run of weekly Saturday matinees from the former Caveman Morrison and Nostalgic Band frontman, so whether you regularly see him live or haven't see his skilled mix of vocals and guitar talents as of late, head to the Second Line West nightclub on Saturday to check out the action! Tym will not be at Misty's over Halloween weekend, but he will have six more shows there in November & December. Saturday's concert is another 4:00 PM matinee with a 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Tym live!

Finally for preview post #1, we'll head downtown to Gateway Casino, where classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will return to the stage on SATURDAY NIGHT! After taking a two months-long break while drummer Tony Santoro recovered from carpal-tunnel surgery, this will be Generations' first casino gig in four months, and also their first show since they parted ways with guitarist Tony Kajnar. In his place, Smokehouse frontman Michael Yurich (a frequent fill-in between Brandon and Tony K.'s stints) will guest on guitar on Saturday, so come on down to see how he fits in with Valerie, Pierre, and Tony S. anew! A one-nighter as is standard at Gateway Casino (they don't book bands on Fridays at all), Saturday's concert has an 8:00 PM start time, a 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details on Generations' return to the live scene, and here they are with Michael live!

That's all for now, but look for our Rust, Bone Yard 225, and Curtis McKenzie previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Sylo & Tarnished!!)

Just before things get rolling on the SMS, today marks our eighteenth anniversary since launching the original group. No major plans to commemorate the day, but just a brief thank you acknowledgement to all of our readers and followers for continuing to stick around and read/engage with our content, and here's to another big year for local metal, hard rock, and punk music ahead! For our first batch of weekend concert previews for July 2025, we have an all-LOCAL CONCERT ALERT post, mostly of the SHORT NOTICE variety, so here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan hard rock/classic metal quartet Tarnished have a busy and all-short notice concert weekend ahead, and before we get into all three gigs, I apologize for the short notice on all of them, Tarnished only announced the three via their official Facebook page earlier today. Is that a record for late notice gig announcements by one local band at different venues on a given weekend? Regardless, Tarnished will kick off the Independence Day long weekend TONIGHT when they return to the annual Fourth of July parade in Sault Ste. Marie, marking their fourth straight year playing on a float during the parade! Of course, the idea of a SMS-amenable band playing during a parade is still uncommon for bands other than Tarnished, but it'll be like a brief concert coming to you, which will be neat if you're checking out the parade TONIGHT! Obviously, this is free and all ages, but where can you see Tarnished along the parade route?

As last year, the parade begins TONIGHT at 7:00 PM behind the U-Haul on Davitt Street, running until Magazine Street, and will move north along West 14th and Ashmun Streets, as well as West Portage Avenue, so pick a good spot to enjoy the parade, with some hard rocking tunes from Tarnished alongside! Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for mostly cloudy skies with weather around 70° (21° Celsius), which sounds like fine conditions for a parade! Click here for complete details on the parade itself. Tarnished will continue the rocking in short notice show #2, as Alex, Josh, Chris, and Ron will set up shop at The Savoy Nightclub TONIGHT at 10:00 PM! This will be Tarnished's first show at the 117 West Portage Road bar in over two years, and while The Savoy's modern social media presence isn't high, it is good to see that they're still open and hosting live music there! This is a 21+ concert with no announced cover charge.

Finally for Tarnished's busy long weekend, they'll return an hour south to St. Ignace TOMORROW NIGHT as part of the annual Music By The Bay summer concert series at American Legion Park at 200 North State Street, and in one more new show announcement, they'll return there on Saturday, August 16th as well! Good to see Tarnished spreading their wings and helping prove that there's more going on for St. Ignace concert venues than just Kewadin Casino, so keep TOMORROW'S show in mind! Click here for the full daily schedule at the Music In The Bay series too, it runs until the end of August. This is another free & all ages concert taking place from 7:00-9:00 PM, and while the stage is covered for the band's sake, be advised that 9&10 News is calling for a 40-60% chance of rain TOMORROW with 75° weather (24° Celsius). Visit the above links for more on Tarnished's shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT, and for a preview, here they are live!

Finally for this all-LOCAL CONCERT ALERT post, Sault Ontario hard rock quartet Sylo will return to Reggie's Place TOMORROW NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced on the venue's Facebook page on Sunday (remember, Sylo don't have an active Facebook page). This has been a long time coming, as Sylo haven't played a show on record at Reggie's since 2022, so it will be neat to see Eli, Alder, Owen, and Jakob back at this Queen Street staple for a rare solo headlining appearance! Sylo have been making the most out of their return to active gigging this summer, and here's hoping for more of the same entertaining originals and covers from this talented young foresome TOMORROW! This is a one-nighter due to or resulting in classic rock cover quartet RPM playing there tonight. TOMORROW'S Sylo concert is at 9:30 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover. See above for more details, and here's Sylo live!

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That's all for now, but stay tuned for more weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Pop Evil Concert Videos, Plus More From Sault Michigan!!

Before we begin today's all E.U.P. post, I wanted to apologize for a missed concert in this weekend's previews, as local hard rock/metal band Tarnished played a solo headlining gig at The Savoy Nightclub last night. Of course, they were among the openers there for Scotty Austin/Redburn on Thursday night, but the band announced that they were playing "round 2" there on their Facebook page two hours before showtime, and the venue's Facebook page never posted that Tarnished were pulling double duty. Maybe the idea of Tarnished playing last night came together quickly after how things went on Thursday, but I do profusely apologize for missing this show on here, I'd have covered it had I gotten more notice!

That said, The Savoy's Facebook page does have a couple of relevant videos to the big show on Thursday, one being this brief promotional clip from February where Scotty Austin himself plugged the local date. He even mentioned playing in the Soo previously and that Redburn have been up here before (they opened for Saving Abel here in 2015), and little details like that make a video like this seem less cookie cutter and more personal, so kudos! The other video comes from the show proper, as a Savoy staffer(?) filmed who I believe to be opening local hard rock band The Nameless, specifically the (vocal-devoid) last 20 seconds of their third-to-last song. The video quality isn't great, with the filmer panning around quickly to show the packed house more than the band, not to mention the vertical camera angle, so we never see enough of the band with any clarity. If you told me I was wrong and that this was Tarnished, I wouldn't be shocked!

In any event, I don't know off hand what song this is based on the instrumental snippet on offer (The Nameless were covers-centric upon their debut last year, and if this was Tarnished, it doesn't match any of their or Alex's studio originals). For what little we hear, it sounds good, and the solid audience at this early stage is encouraging, so give it a look below, and we'll let you know if more videos turn up!

The rest of today's post is devoted to the Pop Evil-headlined concert at The Dreammakers Theatre at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino on March 17th, as the ever-prolific Christopher Paci's YouTube channel has us covered with videos of all three bands from last week! As far as I have seen so far, Chris is the only person to upload videos from this show on YouTube, at least publically. Yes, I am aware that he filmed videos at the Leash show in Sault Ontario earlier this month, check back for those next week. As for the Pop Evil concert, Chris uploaded 12 videos from that night, including seven of the Muskegon hard rock mainstays' headlining set, those being "Breathe Again", "Torn To Pieces", "Footsteps", "Skeletons", "Dead Reckoning", "Paranoid (Crash & Burn)", and as embedded below, "Eye Of The Storm". The audio quality on his camera/this sound setup is fairly raw, but Chris had a strong central angle of the stage!

You can tell that Pop Evil are very much on their game here with good energy, and if soundboard audio existed, I can tell that it'd be fairly similar to the studio tracks, so fans of Pop Evil's ample rock radio hits should be right at home with these videos above & below!

Phoenix metalcore band The Word Alive were filmed thrice for Chris' channel, including their original songs "Trapped", "Why Am I Like This", and as embedded below, "Nocturnal Future". The same audio quality harshness aside, The Word Alive are well captured here with a nice melodic flavour on their modern aggression, and the stage lighting for their set is accentuated nicely, so check it out below!

Finally, Seattle metalcore band Avoid got two videos from Chris, namely "Song About James" and, as embedded below, their opening two songs "Gator Fest" and "Cowabunga". Avoid's electronic-tinged attack helped get this show off on the right foot with some explosively energetic songs to boot, and I can see how them opening was the best call, so check out their videos above & below, and stay tuned for Chris' Leash videos next week!

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

The Scotty Austin Concert Preview, Plus New Videos From Each Side Of The Border!!

We're back on this Wednesday morning with some new videos, but leading off is a preview of a big local concert tomorrow night that I wanted to preview separately from our normal Thursday weekend concert preview post because it's that night, so giving it the extra day will be good to give it proper attention. Here's what you should know!

A rare multi-band Sault Michigan hard rock concert with touring acts outside of the Kewadin Casino umbrella goes down TOMORROW NIGHT when former Saving Abel frontman Scotty Austin makes his solo debut here at The Savoy Nightclub! The man behind the microphone for Saving Abel's last three local stops (including 2015's Superior Festival at the Savoy), Scotty returns to the Soo tomorrow in the midst of his extensive King of Rock Tour of the US. While his Saving Abel run came after that band's commercial peak, his strong vocal stylings and local familiarity bode well for his first local appearance since Muddfest in 2019, so don't miss out! Joining him on the Michigan/Ohio wing of his tour are Saginaw rap rock band Redburn (who opened for Saving Abel locally in 2015) and New Munster, Wisconsin hard rock quartet The Almas, who each have their own fun brand of modern rock to bring to the table!

Of course, Redburn have not been back to the Soo in over seven years, but The Almas' energetic original stylings are new to a local audience, and both should be worthy compliments to Scotty's headlining set tomorrow! Two local hard rock bands are playing support, including the more classic metal-leaning sound of Tarnished in their Savoy debut, and fresh off of their late notice St. Patrick's Day show at The Merch, hopefully their upward momentum continues here! The lead-off band is local hard rock quintet The Nameless in their first show of 2023 and first since opening for the dormant Buddy Repperton & The Camaros last spring, as well as their first gig since ex-Tantrym Tyme bassist/guitarist Mike East replaced Nick Fish in their lineup. How will the band look and sound after their long break? Find out tomorrow! Presented by Blowout Biker Promotions, advance tickets for this 21+ concert run for $15.

As far as I know, there's no online sale point for tickets, but you can buy them through the local openers and presumably at The Savoy proper, though note that Tarnished said on their Facebook page on Sunday that "we only have a few tickets left". An 8:00 PM start time is in effect for this show, and it should be a big one for modern hard rock fans in the E.U.P.! A lot of familiar faces and newer acts are on this stacked bill, and the price is definitely right, but how will The Savoy do in their return to heavier concert bookings? Find out tomorrow! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Scotty Austin live!

Next up, let's head north to Sault Ontario to take a look at the newly released (if delayed) second music video from local alternative hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich's forthcoming debut album "Deconstructed"! After being postponed from the single's release on major streaming services on March 15th due to unspecified "complications", the video was released to their YouTube channel on Monday, and it features the band performing their song "Better Off" (together and separately) through heavy post-production filters on a changing colour backdrop, not unlike those old Apple iPod commercials from the 2000s. As a Photoshop user, this reminds me of what would happen if the Photocopy filter came to life! I'll hold comment on the song pending our planned review of "Deconstructed" in the summer, but give it a watch for yourselves below, and look for one more advance single from the album next month!

Lastly for today, here's a clip of Heavy Lies The Crown guitarist Ted Olson playing 55 seconds of their song "A Hellbound Heart" on acoustic guitar! Uploaded to the St. Ignace, Michigan metalcore band's Facebook page on Saturday, Ted asked fans if they'd be interested in hearing H.L.T.C. play an acoustic set, and while commenters more complimented the guitar/performance than answered the question, it's an interesting idea, especially if they have enough songs with clean vocals to fit! Ted's playing here (combined with the right pedal) helps this unplugged clip sound pretty nice, though I believe the video is mirrored. Check it out below, and stay tuned for more from Heavy Lies The Crown soon!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Scotty Austin & Bone Yard!!)

Two topic post on the SMS tonight, as we have lots of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS to look at, including a bigger E.U.P. show for the spring, but let's start with lots of new dates from a familiar local weekend staple!

Local southern hard rock cover trio Bone Yard have announced their first 2023 concert dates via this concert calendar on their Facebook page earlier today, ending their month+ break in the process! As you can see, four of the first six dates will come at Jay's Piston Broke Pub, which was the site of their last dates of 2022 as well, so if you're itching for some hard rocking classics from Greg, Alex, and Warren, head to the former Rosie on January 27th & 28th, and then on February 17th & 18th! The guys will also return to Shooters Downstairs Lounge for concert weekends on February 10th & 11th and then on March 10th & 11th, with next month's gigs being their first at the Dennis Street venue in over three months. The local dates wrap up with stops at Reggie's Place on Queen Street on February 24th & 25th, their first appearances at that downtown staple since early December.

As for the March 3rd & 4th dates, those will see Bone Yard make a rare road trip to Sudbury to play at The Coulson Entertainment Center, which last came up on the SMS when Soundcheck hit the road for gigs there in September. It's always neat seeing local bands make the four hour trek east for gigs in Sudbury, and hopefully Bone Yard make lots of new Boneheads in March! No word on if Bone Yard's gap weekend of February 3rd & 4th is currently open, an intended break, or if their sister band The Bearded Lounge are playing somewhere else that weekend, so stay tuned if we hear of bookings then. As for the ten new local dates, all are 19+ affairs with no announced cover charges, and the start times are 8:00 PM at Shooters, 9:00 PM at Reggie's, and 9:30 PM at Jay's. Visit the above links for more details on these new shows, and stay tuned for more from Bone Yard when it rolls in!

Next up, here's a post-pandemic rarity for Sault Michigan: Touring hard rock acts coming to the area, but not to Kewadin Casino, as former Saving Abel frontman Scotty Austin will return to town for a headlining concert at The Savoy Nightclub on Thursday, March 23rd! Now, Scotty is not the singer who fronted Saving Abel on radio hits like "Addicted" and "The Sex Is Good", but he was their lead singer for their last three local dates, including Muddfest in 2019, so if you've frequented modern hard rock and post grunge shows in the Soo, he won't be an unknown commodity. Scotty left Saving Abel in 2021 to pursue a solo career, and will be touring the US extensively this year as part of his King of Rock Tour, so it'll be good to see him back at the site of 2015's Superior Festival that he and Saving Abel headlined! Also neat seeing The Savoy hosting bands again, I can't think of anything major there in years.

Saginaw rap rock band Redburn will make their long awaited return to the Soo as co-headliners, having last played here when they opened for two separate hard rock shows at The Dreammakers Theater in 2015, Saving Abel among them. Nu-metal fans should be excited to see Redburn back in the area in two months! Female fronted New Munster, Wisconsin hard rock quartet The Almas will make their local debut on this bill as well, and their up-tempo, direct brand of originals should be a welcome addition on March 23rd, while local hard rock quartet Tarnished will set the tone in their Savoy debut, and you know they'll bring their A-game for this one! "N More" are also credited on the Facebook event page, so if additional acts are added to the event, we'll let you know. Presented by Blowout Biker Promotions, this 21+ event has an 8:00 PM start time, and tickets will run for $15 if you believe Tarnished's Facebook page (no word on a hike at the door).

If 2015's Superior Festival is anything to go by, tickets should be on sale at The Savoy at 117 West Portage Avenue, and perhaps through Tarnished, but there have not been firm statements about ticket availability at press time (though this show will be cheaper than the Superior Festival was). Mid-range hard rock events with touring acts not at Kewadin are a rarity in Sault Michigan, so take advantage of this one if you want more like this to stop there, and many hard rock tastes should find something to like between Scotty and the opening bands! Visit the official Facebook event page for continuing details, and stay tuned for more news and notes on the site as the week continues! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Banned, The Elements, And Tym Morrison) & Most Weekend Concert Previews!!

I know things have been quiet on the site over the past week, and while the weekend's two day break was partially for personal reasons, the last two days were definitely due to a recent slow patch for stories at our news desk. That said, a busy weekend of concerts is upon us, including a few SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for good measure, so we'll tackle most of those today, while saving Saturday night's Rudyard Musicians Festival for tomorrow's post to give it proper emphasis given it's scale and timing. Now, here's what you should know to start this weekend!

Kinross classic/hard rock trio Banned will play a rare concert at The Savoy Bar in Sault Michigan TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced via it's official Facebook event page on Sunday. A one nighter due to Banned's road trip to Gould City for a concert there on Saturday, TOMORROW'S show is, as best as I can tell, Banned's debut at the 117 West Portage Avenue nightclub, as hard to believe as that is. Fresh off of their successful return to the annual Sugar Island Music Festival, this should be another solid local showcase for Alex, Don, and Wayne, so keep TOMORROW'S show in mind for some hard hitting and fan favourite covers! A 10:00 PM start time is in effect, you must be 21 or older to attend, and there is no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Banned live!



Next up, we'll head back to Sault Ontario, where local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements have reportedly been named as openers for TOMORROW NIGHT'S long-anticipated K.I.C.K. headlining concert at The Canadian Nightclub! Apologies again for the short notice, this show had been advertised for weeks as a solo event for the indie rock quartet, but The Elements were only just publically confirmed yesterday to kick things off. Arguably their biggest headlining concert yet, the Keep it Cool Kids will be playing multiple sets at The Canadian TOMORROW from their upcoming album along with new cuts, and this should be a prime opportunity for fans to check out K.I.C.K.'s skilled originals! As for The Elements, they're riding high off of their own headlining set last week at The Rockstar Bar, and their ska-influenced mix of heavy and alternative styles should help set the tone TOMORROW, despite their late confirmation! Another 19+ event, a 9:00 PM start time is advertised, though have money on hand in case there happens to be a cover charge.

K.I.C.K. have impressed fans routinely with their smooth indie rock sound in the past few years, and The Elements will add their own "element" to give fans of a heavier persuasion a little something TOMORROW NIGHT, so keep this huge show in mind, and here's The Elements live!



Lastly for new announcements, prolific local acoustic hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to Mark's Breakfast Plus at the Market Mall THIS MONDAY & TUESDAY to go along with his regular Gliss Steak & Seafood shows TONIGHT, TOMORROW, and SATURDAY! Again, apologies for the short notice on the Mark's gigs, these were only just announced via their own Facebook event page on Sunday, and while their timing would suggest that we'd cover them closer to Monday, I'm lumping them with the Gliss shows for synergy & to ensure that the Rudyard Musicians Festival gets proper emphasis in our next post. Three weeks removed from his debut "weekend" at the new breakfast-centric diner at the Second Line West mall (with collectibles store and ice cream parlour from the same owners also now open there), Tym will have two more evenings of unplugged rock classics in store for fans and patrons there on MONDAY & TUESDAY!

And of course, Tym's ongoing weekly run at Gliss marches on with evening gigs tonight through Saturday, so keep this run of 5 matinee shows in 6 nights in mind! All of these shows have 6:00 PM start times, no announced cover charges, and no age limits, but remember that both venues are sit-down restaurants, albeit with very different menus and environments. Visit the official Facebook event pages linked here and above for more details on these 5 upcoming shows, and here's Tym live!



Finally for today's preview post, we'll close with a show that entirely had lots of advance notice, as Vancouver hardcore punk quintet The Alien Boys will make their local concert debut TOMORROW NIGHT when they rock The Rockstar Bar! Don't let their name fool you, this band is actually an all-female group, and are the current project from former Rebel Spell guitarist Erin McGillicuddy, so if you've missed that band on a local stage, here's a quality alternative! The Alien Boys' brand of upbeat yet edgy punk rock should find another solid audience tomorrow night, so keep them in mind for your weekend concert plans! Local openers will include online page-less death metal duo Twistory (in just their second public concert set of the year) and new local indie/hard rock trio Vol. in their second public concert total. If you missed Steve, Shane, and Matthew earlier this month, and don't want to wait for online media to be posted, come to The Rockstar Bar tomorrow to hear what Vol. have in store in their sophomore outing!

A rare Six, Two, Oh. concert to take place at The Rockstar Bar, tomorrow's 19+ show has a $5 cover charge and a 9:00 PM start time. This should be a solid night of diverse musical action with some punk and metal sprinkled throughout, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The Alien Boys live!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Rudyard Musicians Festival preview and more tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Superior Festival Video Showcase!!

At last, we have some YouTube videos to share from Friday night's first annual Superior Festival, and that's the focus of today's post, so what should you know? All courtesy of frequent regional concert filmer Christopher Paci's YouTube channel once again, he filmed 10 videos from the show, including every band save for Sault Ontario openers The Elements and Mourning Wood (not sure why, but they were the opening two bands, so if he was running late, that'd explain it.) Oddly, I haven't heard a whole lot from those bands online concerning how their sets went, and I've only found a single photo from Mourning Wood's set, but to be fair, both bands only sporadically update their Facebook pages. There is some big lineup news to note from Mourning Wood though in time for their next shows, so stay tuned for that later this week! And yes, the festival was held inside The Savoy Bar & Nightclub rather than outside for unannounced reasons, despite the lack of rain on Friday. Maybe it was logistically easier?

Six of Chris' ten videos are of the headliners, Mississippi hard rock quintet Saving Abel, whose videos from the show were of their songs "Addicted", "18 Days", "15 Minutes To Fame", "The Sex Is Good", their set-opener "Ready To Burn", and as embedded below, "Drowning (Face Down)", complete with frontman Scott Austin calling fans to come up closer to the stage. It's odd seeing a platinum selling band like this at a venue like The Savoy, but the more intimate environment is great to interact with the fans, and I like how their sound has gotten a bit heavier since Scott took over on vocals! Good audio, and Chris got a nice close angle of the festivities, so give his videos a look above & below!



Rochester, New York post-hardcore band Lights Out Paris co-headlined on Friday in their second local concert appearance, and Christopher filmed them playing one of their more melodic originals, "Rochester To Rochester". Not bad for the genre, and it's definitely something different compared to what Sault Michigan shows often get, but their more aggressive material had more of an impact on me than this one. Not bad though, so check it out below!



Chris also got two videos of Sault Michigan metal quartet Tantrym Tyme (with debuting second guitarist Michael McLeod) covering Alter Bridge's "Metalingus" and, as embedded below, The Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Dani California". We already featured the band's own clip of the Alter Bridge cover on here yesterday, hence why the Chili Peppers cover is in this post, but I will concede that this song is not a good fit for Tantrym Tyme. They excel on heavier and more melodic songs, and Jacob Hotlen is almost inaudible on vocals here, but their talent still comes through, and give their videos from the Superior Festival a look above and below as well!



Last of Chris' clips from the festival is Muskegon hard rock band Voodoo Theory (in their local concert debut, I believe) covering The Foo Fighters' "Everlong". Not a bad rendition of this Foo Fighters classic, but like above, this cover doesn't fully show their energetic modern hard rock sound seen on their originals. Still solid, so give it a look, and hopefully they're back again!



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

Major Superior Festival Updates, Plus New Sault Michigan Videos!!

Before we dive back into concert previews, here's an all-Sault Michigan post for your Friday afternoon! Along with a pair of videos from local solo artists, we're leading off with huge changes for a hyped debuting concert festival, so here's what you should know!

We have some big updates regarding the first annual Superior Festival in Sault Michigan, which has been postponed, relocated, and downsized all at once. Originally planned to be held tomorrow at Aune-Osborne Park, promoters Superior Entertainment have confirmed that the ambitious festival has been moved ahead two weeks to Friday, August 21st, and will now take place at The Savoy Bar & Nightclub (5 minutes up the road.) According to this new Sault Evening News article, the move in date and location was due to concerns with the weather forecast for Saturday and to avoid the financial hit of cancelling the event if there was rain, with The Savoy being a safe option to safeguard against the weather. If the forecast is good, they can set up outdoors like with their Summerfest series, but if they're calling for rain, they can hold it indoors and still have over 500 fans. Despite the new location, minors under the age of 21 can still attend if accompanied by an adult.

With the changes, the lineup has been downsized from what was previously announced, with planned local openers Integrated System of Machines, Power Slug, Retro Troop, and Terry Talentino, and Detroit punk trio Heroes of Charlotte all now out of the event. Reasons for their individual withdrawals weren't announced, but remember that the festival was postponed two weeks, and the new date may not jive well with many personal schedules. A trio of out of town bands are still on board, including Mississippi hard/modern rock quintet (and recent Kewadin Casino headliners) Saving Abel, Rochester, New York post-hardcore band Lights Out Paris (who played last month's P.O.D. show), and Muskegon hard rock quartet Voodoo Theory. Local hard rockers Tantrym Tyme are the only remaining Sault Michigan band, while the last two bands are both from Sault Ontario, including the return of classic/hard rock trio Mourning Wood (who had been replaced by Retro Troop initially.)

The only new additions are Sault Ontario funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, marking their Sault Michigan debut and first announced concert since the spring, which is both surprising and nice to see! Also note that SooToday (which Elements frontman Rob Speers works for) are now listed as a presenting sponsor on the poster, but I have yet to see confirmation on SooToday's end regarding their involvement. Everything is later now too, running from 7:00 PM-2:00 AM instead of 12:00-11:00 PM. As best as I can tell, tickets are now a flat $25 with no discount option for kids, but previously purchased tickets will be honoured on August 21st, or can be swapped at point of purchase (though note that Kewadin Casino's ticket page doesn't have a new link for online ticket sales yet.) New tickets can be bought at The Savoy itself or at (906) 430-5242 as well, though no word on if the planned motorcycle giveaway will continue given the festival changes. For full details on the Superior Festival's changes, visit the above links!

I will note that the weather forecast for tomorrow currently calls for partly cloudy conditions and a peak chance of rain at 15% tomorrow afternoon, but for a first year outdoor festival, I can understand promoters playing things safe just in case. Hopefully the Superior Festival is still a huge success in two weeks despite everything, and I'm especially curious to see how the two Sault Ontario bands do on the U.P. stage! Stay tuned when and if more updates roll in, and see above for all of the changes!

We'll close this post with new videos, including a brand new song from local extreme metal solo project The 1,000,000,000's Who Died! Entitled "Execute", it's an unusual posting in that it's the first song posting in over 2 years that doesn't coincide with label Werehold Records' usual Friday the 13th music events from their YouTube channel (the next Friday the 13th is in November.) This short instrumental showcases Life's Eclipse frontman/Werehold founder Jason Mills' brutal metal talents well, but it could use a little variance (or vocals) to break from some monotonous parts. Give The 1,000,000's Who Died's new song a listen below!



Finally, here's a new guitar solo video from 415E guitarist Chris Hubbard, as uploaded to his YouTube channel yesterday! An attempt at replicating a live guitar solo from recent tour dates by Eddie Van Halen (who Chris is a huge fan of, if you don't follow his solo postings and band work), comments on the video are already lauding Chris' performance here for it's accuracy to EVH himself, and even if you're not familiar with that solo, this is still excellently done! Give Chris' new video a look below!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for more weekend concert previews in short order, including, yes, possible late notice ones! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Ten Kings And RPM) & Go Skateboarding Day Coverage!!

Before we begin previewing this weekend's hard rock concerts, here's a new news post for your Wednesday afternoon, and remember not to miss TONIGHT'S Teethmarks concert at The Rednecks Saloon! Today, we have lots of recent media coverage from a big all ages concert event this past weekend, and first, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the next two months, so here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Ten Kings will return to The Savoy Bar & Nightclub next weekend for concerts on Friday, July 3rd & Saturday, July 4th, albeit outdoors! Like last summer, The Savoy is again hosting outdoor shows behind the bar under their "Summerfest" branding, as per their Facebook page, with Traverse City's Scarkazm kicking things off this weekend, and given the summer season, why not take advantage of the weather with shows on their outdoor stage? These will be Ten Kings' first shows at The Savoy since indoor gigs earlier this month, and will ironically come one week after THIS SATURDAY'S set at Lake Superior State University at their own unrelated Summerfest event, which we'll preview in the coming days. Next weekend's Savoy shows have no cover charge, 10:00 PM start times, and 21+ age limits, but as these are outdoors, follow the weather just in case. Click here for more details on their Fourth of July weekend shows, and stay tuned for our full preview of LSSU's Summerfest!

Next up, you know how The Roberta Bondar Pavilion in Sault Ontario hosts live bands in FREE concerts on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the summer? Well, that doesn't usually cross our radar given the bands that play it, but there is one exception on Thursday, August 20th, as local classic/hard rock quartet RPM will play the Pavilion on that day! Our source is this Sault Online article, which also lists a full schedule for the outdoor concert series this year, which mostly feature classic rock, country, and traditional bands. As you may remember, RPM are the sporadically seen band featuring bassist Lindsay Pugh and musicians from his own adult music camp, and you may have seen them at the 2013 Rock For Dimes and scattered Rockstar Bar shows. They're an improving band, and hopefully their show in August at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion will be huge for them!

This is a FREE & ALL AGES show, but no start time is listed (the shows are in the daytime though.) Click here for more details, and stay tuned for more from RPM as we hear it!

We'll close today with lots of recent coverage of Sunday's Go Skateboardng Day festivities from Tidal Records at Queen Elizabeth Park! Local2 was on hand to film the skaters for this video, which we can't embed here, but what can be seen in there? Lots of skating action from the local skaters who came out, plus interview remarks from Tidal Records owner Dustin Jones and skate team member/Id Iota frontman Christian Lemay, and while there is video footage of each band, only Caroline Divine get included audio. A brief clip near the end also appears to show local beatboxer Killabeatz on the mic, so he must have performed before I got there or right at the end. The video is excellently done, featuring multiple great angles of the skaters in action (and the bands), including GoPro footage and even video from a drone! This is a great showcase of Go Skate Day, so click here to give it a look! SooToday's Donna Hopper was on hand for this article as well, so what lies within?

The article includes some of the tricks of note that skaters performed on Saturday, and general details on the event (though Conika is still listed as performing despite missing the event due to illness.) Donna also got some excellent photos from the event, including six from Garden of Bedlam's headlining set and one of DJ Seith, but photos of the other bands weren't included. The focus was the skateboarders, and rightfully so, as this was a great day for everyone to show their skills and have fun, and I hope this returns next year! No word on if Donna did a Tuned episode on Saturday (it'd be neat to see Garden of Bedlam in one finally), but check out Donna's full photo album & article at this link! We'll close with a video that we can embed here, courtesy of skater Dalton Hermiston's YouTube channel on Monday, and it focuses on skateboarding action during The Pixo Control's set, complete with audio, but again, the skaters rightfully get focus in the video, and Dalton's footage is solid!

Go Skateboarding Day was a fun time, and it's great to see the music and skateboarding communities colliding for a great afternoon of entertainment, so check out all of the recent media coverage above, and here's Dalton's YouTube video from Sunday!



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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tym Morrison & Mourning Wood) And More Weekend Concert Previews!!

As promised, here's the rest of this weekend's concert previews concerning hard rock bands (barring something on even later notice), and these include SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for TONIGHT & TOMORROW, this weekend's Sault Michigan previews, and a new video from one of these bands, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock trio Mourning Wood will be among the entertainment during TODAY'S Reggie's Place 25th anniversary party downtown! Apologies for the short notice, their involvement was only confirmed via bassist Steven Flint's personal Facebook page earlier today, and prior advertising for the event didn't list bands. We don't cover the original Reggie's much on here, but Mourning Wood have played often at Reggie's West since their launch, and they have played at the downtown Reggie's at 458 Queen Street East at least once as well. This popular bar and country/classic rock venue will celebrate it's 25th anniversary since Reggie Daigle bought the former Central Hotel by hosting a huge street party starting at 4:00 PM with beer gardens, live performers, classic cars, karaoke, and food from Jake's Grill, but aside from Mourning Wood, I can't confirm other bands. Steven's personal post implies that their set will be TONIGHT, and while he didn't specify a time, the events will end at 11:00 PM, so they're likely near the end of the night.

According to SooToday's article on the event, they'll be on an outdoor stage at the corner of Queen and March Street rather than inside Reggie's, and Queen Street will be closed from Spring to Elgin Street from 3:30-11:30 PM, so keep that in mind if you want to go or need to adjust your usual driving route. And yes, given the setting, I expect there's no cover or age limits, but be prepared if you go into Reggie's. This is a great spotlight for Mourning Wood (despite the short notice), and hopefully they help close out a milestone party for this popular venue! For a preview, here's Mourning Wood live at The Canadian last year!

Next up, remember how ex-Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison made his public debut at Gliss Steak & Seafood in the Quality Inn at 180 Bay Street yesterday evening? Well, he's coming back there for two more evening concerts TODAY & TOMORROW! Apologies for the short notice, we only heard about these via edits to the original Facebook event page this morning. These definitely weren't announced prior to yesterday's concert (we'd have plugged them then had we known), so either Gliss management loved Tym's set and wanted more, or they were accidentally left off originally. In any event, nothing indicates the beginning of a new weekly arrangement there (yet?), but if you want some acoustic hard rock covers downtown before his regular Harp shows, head to Gliss around suppertime TODAY OR TOMORROW!

There's no announced cover charge or age limit (but keep the restaurant setting in mind), and there's 6:00 PM start times in effect. For more details, visit the above links, and for a preview of these late notice extrs Gliss gigs, here's Tym live at The Service Grill!



Moving to previously announced concerts, we'll close things across the river in Sault Michigan for a pair of local hard rock bands playing this weekend, including local hard rock quartet 415E returning to The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Playing just their second concert weekend of the year (and first in the Soo), these are also the only only currently announced shows of the summer from this union of Nixxon Dixxon, Splitshot, and Highest of Fives alumni, so if you like their Van Halen-influenced covers and originals, don't miss 415E's return to the stage this weekend! In case you were wondering, their name is pronounced "forty-one-five-E". There are no announced cover charges this weekend, 21+ age limits both nights, and 9:00 PM start times in effect. Check the above links for more details, and here's 415E in their live debut!



Finally for today, Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Ten Kings will play outside of a Kewadin Casino branch for the first time TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT when they rock The Savoy Bar & Nightclub! Hitting the stage for the first time in almost a month, this supergroup from Scofflaw, Nixxon Dixxon, and Bottom Line alumni should be up to their usual tricks for their non-Kewadin debuts, and if you like classic-tinged hard rock, you won't want to miss out at 117 West Portage Avenue this weekend! They'll be on at 10:00 PM tonight and tomorrow at The Savoy, neither show has an announced cover charge, and you must be 21 to attend. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and for a preview, here's a brand new Ten Kings promotional video for this weekend! Filmed by WK Media's Wayne Kozeyah and shared from his personal Facebook page, it's just 22 seconds long, and features the guys covering the Queens of the Stone Age song "No One Knows".

Though tinted in a greenish monochrome presumably for artistic reasons, what we hear of the song (mainly the chorus) is well performed, but it is odd that most of Ten Kings' videos (live or promotional) have been very short and rarely capture a full song. Well done though, so give Ten Kings' promo video for this weekend a look, and don't miss their Savoy debuts this weekend!



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