New Live Concert Cover Videos & More Recent News & Notes!!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our Canadian readers! Before you settle in for turkey and football (assuming you didn't take care of that yesterday), here's an all-Sault Ontario post for the day off, and it's devoted to recent videos and some other updates, so let's get things rolling!

Normally, I would hold this new video of local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down for our next preview of one of their shows (their next publically scheduled gig is on November 21st at The Water Tower Pub), but seeing as it has two guest performers, let's show it off on its own! This comes from one of their gigs at Jay's Piston Broke Pub over this long weekend, in which Mid Life Crysis bassist Lori Reinholtz again sat in for Dan Beaupre, but the guys also welcomed Bourbon Blue singer/guitarist Jules Cote to sing lead on a cover of Oasis' "Don't Look Back In Anger"! Filmed from another high stationary vantage point (if not as straight-on as other past Double Down videos shot like this), this is a soundly handled cover that Oasis fans should like! You can tell that Jules isn't used to singing on stage without a guitar in hand, but his voice fits well enough here, if not hitting as high of notes.

It is worth noting that Bourbon Blue have recently added ex-Re:Born frontman Robert Nevitt as their new lead singer, though Jules remains in the pop rock cover band that he co-founded, so we should still see him on lead and backing vocals where needed. Check out the Syrettes, Ric, Jules, and Lori tackling Oasis this weekend below!

Next up, here's a mild surprise, namely a cover of April Wine's "I Like To Rock" by local indie rock band Jupiter Marvelous! While their original music largely doesn't cross our genre radar, their lineup is entirely comprised of alumni of past local hard rock bands, and they do have the occasional hard rock or punk cover in their live sets (remember when they covered Fall Out Boy at Rotaryfest?). This was filmed for veteran local rock guitarist Mike Cliffe's YouTube channel, one of multiple videos of Jupiter Marvelous that Mike has filmed there, and this was from the band's set at Wolf Fest at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion last month. Most of this Canadian hard rock staple was captured here, with new guitarist Spencer Pine taking on lead vocals, which old Electric Church fans will be sure to appreciate! I'd have had the screen behind the band showing something, but Jupiter Marvelous are a talented and very adaptable band, so give this a watch below!

Also today, here's a new video from local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225's Facebook page last week, which features drummer Greg Simpson heading to his drumkit at his home studio for what he says is "my favourite time". The implication is that he was working on new Bone Yard material, but nothing was explicitly said there. Regardless, he had his coffee ready! Nice little glimpse at the behind the scenes process, and Facebook was not able to content match the Black Label Society song in the background, so give this video a watch below, and stay tuned for more from your local 225!

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

 

• Sporadically seen local deathcore band Bardo have quietly altered their name to Bardos, as per their Facebook page. A reason for pluralizing the name wasn't announced, but note that their only Facebook posts in the past year have been to plug Heavy North Entertainment concerts put on by frontman Tyler St. Amour. The name change would be a sign that they're still active despite not playing an acknowledged public concert in over a year, so we'll have to see what comes out next from Bardos!
• The Facebook event page's description for the 1990s punk reunion concert at Soo Blaster on December 27th had been updated to note that "some original members" of the three reuniting bands will be playing, hinting that Fist Magnet, Room 206, and/or The Spigots may not be fully/officially reuniting here. A discussion thread there from co-promoter/P.R.O.D. guitarist Christian Foisy did shed some light on that, with ex-Spigots guitarist Jeff Nisbet questioning who would be representing that band. Christian added that singer Trevor Harding & bassist Frank Guidocco would be playing in December, so the "some original members" clarification may reflect The Spigots in particular. It will be a must-attend show regardless!
• I have moved local/Toronto indie/punk quartet Treble Charger back to our inactive band links. They last issued a public update or played live when they opened for Everclear at the annual Western Fair in London in September of last year. I will not be commenting on the allegations from October of last year, which are far outside of what I want to cover on here, and do not directly affect our coverage of local music beyond the band's active status.

 

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Bone Yard 225 & Oktoberfest) And More Weekend Concert Previews!!

Let's keep the weekend concert previews rolling on this Thursday evening with more concert action in downtown Sault Ste. Marie, particularly from two concurrent outdoor community festivals promoted by local breweries. One is a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, and we have more new dates to touch on, so here's what you should know for concert preview post #2!

Make it two Oktoberfests that local alternative/punk cover supergroup Bookclub are playing at this fall, as they have been added to the lineup for SATURDAY'S Outspoken Brewing-hosted Oktoberfest street party on Queen Street East! Apologies for the short notice, the band was only confirmed for the festivities on Outspoken's Facebook page on Monday (they were obviously the "more TBA" when the brewery first announced the street party on September 4th, and there are no other punk/hard rock-leaning bands scheduled). Still riding the momentum from the Forever Seger concert earlier this month, BookcluB should be a fine and crowd pleasing fit on Queen Street (closed between Elgin and Bruce) on SATURDAY evening, so don't miss this stacked sextet then! It is worth noting that guitarist Brandon Ruch was present with the band at Forever Seger despite his announced move to Barrie, and he is pictured in the Oktoberfest advertising.

I don't know what's Brandon's status with BookcluB is going forward, but we'll let you know when/if we learn who was playing guitar with Mikey and crew on SATURDAY! BookcluB are slotted in the middle on SATURDAY at 5:30 PM, with local DJ/EDM duo Flummoxx closing the festivities at 10:30 PM, and indie rock quartet Lucy's Diner (the former Hollow Heads) scheduled in between at 8:00 PM. Local polka band Nein German Guys (who are also playing at Soo Falls' Oktoberfest at The Machine Shop with BookcluB on October 18th) will keep the Oktoberfest vibes rolling at 3:00 PM, and the day begins with folk singer/guitarist and Dustcovers member Tom Peer at 2:00 PM. Beyond the music, there will be lots of games and competitions (with prizes) to take in, plus food, beer (as you'd expect), vendors, and more German-flavoured entertainment, so definitely visit Outspoken Brewing's Facebook page for full details on SATURDAY'S events!

Tickets run for $30 at this link (plus processing fees) and presumably at the gate on SATURDAY. Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for a high of 19° with mostly cloudy skies and a 10% chance of rain, which should bode well for Oktoberfest revelers, but do follow up with your preferred local weather outlets for updates closer to. Visit the above links for more on SATURDAY'S first of three Oktoberfest parties in the Soo this fall, and for a preview of all of the action, here's BookcluB live!

Next up, local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will return to their favourite local stomping grounds (Reggie's Place) TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Two weeks removed from their last stops at Reggie's, "the dirty three" should be in fine spirits with some gritty and in-your-face covers and originals all weekend long, plus with lots of merchandise and hoodie orders in store for fans, so don't bypass this weekend's action if you're up for it! While we're on the subject, Greg, Alex, and Warren have some newly announced dates ahead at The Esquire Club, which resumes hosting live bands this weekend after their summer break, and as per the venue's Facebook page, they'll be back there on on November 7th-8th! The band already announced their Thanksgiving weekend shows there. We'll have more on the other hard rock-leaning new shows at this Second Line West staple in an upcoming post, but it's good to have The Esquire Club hosting concerts again!

Your local 225 are on at 9:30 PM tomorrow and Saturday at Reggie's and for their November dates at The Esquire Club. All four shows are 19+ affairs with no announced cover charges. See above for more on Bone Yard's upcoming concerts, and here they are live!

Finally for weekend concert preview post #2, let's re-answer the viral question: What is Wolf Fest? Running head to head with Oktoberfest for downtown outdoor concert action from a local brewery on SATURDAY, Wolf Fest takes place at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, and will be hosted by Northern Superior Brewing Co. to help give back to the community and their customers. Along with live music, attendees under the big tent will get to enjoy local vendors and artisans, beer, a charity auction, barbers, tattoo artists, an arcade, and more, so definitely visit Northern Superior's Facebook page for full non-musical details! SMS readers will likely be most drawn to classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 in the 7:00 PM timeslot (their prior scheduling of a Northern Superior show on Saturday was clearly this and not at the Tap Room), but the headliners at 8:15 PM are pop rock cover quartet The Killer Hooks, who do have some heavier covers.

Online page-less local Tragically Hip tribute band The Luxury will take the stage at 5:45 PM, preceded by indie rock band Jupiter Marvelous (led by Killer Hooks frontman Tony Marcello's son Anthony) at 4:30 PM. In a late confirmation, the "special guests TBD" are actually The Royal Canadian Navy Band, believe it or not, so don't miss them leading off Wolf Fest at 3:00 PM! The weather should hold up identically (tent acknowledged) for Wolf Fest, which has admission by donation to the Alzheimer Society of Sault Ste. Marie, which is a wonderful cause. Saultites have a lot of options for live music, beer, and varied entertainment downtown on Saturday, so see above for more on Wolf Fest, and here's Silent 9 live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Double Down and Tym Morrison previews (and more) on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Wolf Fest & Double Down!!)

In today's post, we're focusing solely on LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, all involving prominent local cover bands, so here's what you should know for later this month and beyond!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down's summer break is almost over, and after eleven weeks away from the public stage (even festivals), they have announced a busy slate of nightclub gigs through mid-December! Now, two caveats here: I'll hold their return gigs next weekend for that round of weekend concert previews given the now-short notice, while with the exception of next weekend's dates, all shows are listed as being on a single night (and all but one of those is given as being on a Friday only). Given normal booking trends, I will treat the Jay's and Reggie's bookings as being for the Friday and Saturday of the given weekends, but we'll let you know if that isn't the case. All new dates were announced via Facebook event pages this summer, mostly last month. Beyond next weekend, their first show back at The Water Tower Pub since June will take place on Friday, September 19th, with a return there also taking place on Friday, November 21st.

Both of these are one-nighters, as The Water Tower Pub historically doesn't book the same band on consecutive days. After playing a private stag & doe on September 26th, fans can see Joel, Beej, Dan, and Ric back at Beck's Bar for one night only on Saturday, September 27th, and it will be good to see them back at this newer west end favourite for the first time this fall! On October 3rd and 4th, Double Down will return to Reggie's Place for the first time since last year, and while I don't know why the Syrettes and crew haven't played there in so long, hopefully they rock the house well for downtown fans next month! Lastly, as part of their run of monthly weekends at Jay's Piston Broke Pub, you can see the guys back at the Korah Road nightclub over the Thanksgiving long weekend (October 10th-11th) before returning to the former Roosevelt Hotel on November 21st-22nd and December 12th-13th.

Sounds like a lot of good chances ahead to hear their hard rocking cover array, complete with teased new setlist additions, so keep all of these dates in mind, and we'll address their first shows back from their break on Thursday! All of these shows are 19+ with no announced cover charge, while start times are 8:00 PM at The Water Tower Pub, 9:00 PM at Beck's, and 9:30 PM at Reggie's and Jay's. Visit the above links for more details on Double Down's fall/winter return schedule!

Finally, and after three weeks of teasers from Northern Superior Brewing Co., we can finally answer this question: What is Wolf Fest? Well, it is a community festival taking place on Saturday, September 27th where the downtown microbrewery plans to give back to the Sault area and supporters, and there will be beer on tap (as you'd expect) plus food and a wide array of local vendors and artisans. This even extends to barbers, tattoo artists, and an arcade, believe it or not! Visit the brewery's Facebook page for complete non-musical details so far. Rather than cram everything into the Tap Room on site, Northern Superior will hold Wolf Fest at the Roberta Bondar Pavilion, and four bands will rock the big stage under the tent there, including classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9, confirming their prior teasers about playing here. Good to see Jess, Ryan, Paul, and Steve back at it after their recent Tap Room gig!

The headliners in three weeks are veteran local/Toronto pop rock cover quartet The Killer Hooks (who do cover hard rock songs on occasion), while frontman Tony Marcello's son Anthony will play a rare concert with his dad that night when his indie rock band Jupiter Marvelous also rock Wolf Fest. The advertised lineup is rounded out by online page-less Tragically Hip tribute band The Luxury (featuring Redefined, Late Shift, Headrush, Billy Bastards, and Tripod The Dog alumni), while the poster references "special guests T.B.D.", so we'll have to see what that entails. Wolf Fest is presumably an all ages event, it runs from 3:00-11:00 PM on the 27th, and admission is by donation to the Alzheimer Society of Sault Ste. Marie. I think Northern Superior could have gave Wolf Fest more direct promotion and less of a teaser campaign, especially as it's three weeks away, but this sounds like a fun event with a lot going on, so visit the above links for more on Wolf Fest! 

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

More Of This Weekend's Hard Rock Concert Previews, Plus A Major Concert Postponement!!

Before we begin this weekend's second concert preview post (check this morning's post for all of the Tarnished show coverage), we just learned yesterday that tomorrow's Drowning Pool concert at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino was quietly postponed two weeks ago, as per this link. A reason for the postponement wasn't announced, but refunds were being processed A.S.A.P., and existing ticket buyers will get priority seating for the new date and a complimentary ticket for Saturday night's Pop Evil/Buckcherry concert, which will be previewed later in this post. For what it's worth, a sentence in Kewadin's press release briefly credits planned Drowning Pool openers Joyous Wolf as now opening for Pop Evil & Buckcherry, which does make sense, as Joyous Wolf were otherwise opening for Buckcherry on their current tour, but I have not seen any public reference to them being added elsewhere.

This news is very surprising, especially with the original announcement not being all that widespread online, but hopefully the postponement was for necessary reasons and will indeed lead to a rescheduling at some point down the road, as it would be great to see Drowning Pool live in Sault Ste. Marie! See above for more details on refunds and perks for ticket buyers. Now, let's dive into more of this weekend's hard rock concert previews, Saturday-only gigs and Highway 63 aside, and we'll kick things off in Sault Ontario!

Local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns will make an increasingly rare trip away from The Whiskey Barrel for a headlining concert TONIGHT at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion as part of their Summer Concert Series! A rare hard rock-leaning concert in this annual downtown music event, this will be Christina, Rob, and Jesse's debut in the Summer Concert Series, but they are not new to playing under the big tent, having performed there last summer during the Fringe North Festival and/or Art In The Park festivities. This should be a prime opportunity for fans to hear The Stallyns' varied and often heavy covers on the big stage, so don't miss out tonight at 7:00 PM! This is a FREE & ALL AGES event. Note that the Sault Music News Letter Facebook page also credits The Wyld Stallyns as playing at The Whiskey Barrel on Friday, but they did so last week too, and in neither case was a show advertised online by the band or venue. If they are, we'll let you know, but click here for more details on tonight's Roberta Bondar Pavilion gig, and here's The Stallyns live!

Next up, let's touch on prolific local hard rock solo musician Tym Morrison's busy slate of concerts this weekend, as he'll return to Gliss Restaurant for his regular weekly matinee shows TOMORROW & SATURDAY, before continuing his mid-2018 run of weekly Sunday matinees at La Terrazza Franzisi in Richards Landing THIS SUNDAY! There's nothing horribly new or different to report for these gigs compared to last week's and beyond, but if you like his hard and classic rock covers, Tym will have plenty in store from his prolific setlist at the Spring Street restaurant over the next two evenings, while fans in St. Joseph Island will get to enjoy his acoustic show all day on Sunday by the wharf. Keep all three shows in mind on this busy concert weekend! As usual, Tym's Gliss shows are 6:00 PM matinees, while he'll be at La Terrazza Franzisi all day starting at 10:00 AM on Sunday, sans an hour break.

All of these shows are ALL AGES with no cover, but remember that these are restaurants, not nightclubs, so mind the locales. Tym's talented brand of unplugged hard rock should be a fine fit at both venues this weekend, so visit the official Facebook event pages linked here & here for more details, and here's Tym live a few years back!

Finally for today, Sault Michigan-area concertgoers can still enjoy some major headlining hard rock this weekend, as Muskegon hard rock quintet Pop Evil and Anaheim hard rock notables Buckcherry will rock Kewadin Casino THIS SATURDAY NIGHT on an outdoor stage! Both bands are no strangers to local audiences, with Pop Evil playing the Soo for the sixth time this weekend, and fifth under the Kewadin umbrella, while Buckcherry were last seen here in 2011 with a largely different lineup, with only Josh Todd and Stevie D. back eight years later. From Pop Evil's hard hitting songs like "Torn To Pieces", "Waking Lions", and "Take It All" to Buckcherry hits like "Lit Up", "Sorry", and "Crazy Bitch", fans are in store for lots of familiar rock radio hits on Saturday, and I just hope the weather cooperates! Remember, Kewadin's above Drowning Pool press release did list Los Angeles blues/hard rock quartet Joyous Wolf as being moved to this show as openers, and they are opening for Buckcherry on their current tour otherwise, including in Sudbury on Sunday.

If Joyous Wolf are playing on Saturday now, the addition isn't firmly stated elsewhere, but we'll let you know if anything's clarified.Tickets for this ALL AGES, 7:00 PM show are $25 for general admission or $35-$45 for closer reserved sections, and while most of the $45 seats are now sold out, lots of others remain at this link, 1-800-KEWADIN, or at the in-person box office (also, remember the complimentary ticket deal for Drowning Pool ticket buyers.) This should be a huge concert for fans of modern hard rock with Pop Evil's heavier sound and Buckcherry's party vibe meshing well, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Pop Evil in the Soo!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Inner City Surfers, Black Crown Initiate, and Highway 63 concert previews tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Drowning Pool), Dopethrone Concert Preview, And Much More!!

Before everyone celebrates Victoria Day, here's a new news post for this late Sunday night, and it includes some assorted recent updates, a musician search from a local guitarist, and a special Monday night show preview, but first, here's a big LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this summer!

Dallas metal quartet Drowning Pool will make their local concert debut on Friday, August 2nd when they rock The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino! A platinum selling band best known from rock radio hits like "Step Up", "37 Stitches", "Feel Like I Do", and (of course) "Bodies", this fan favourite band has over a decade's worth of familiar tunes to bring to the table, and whether you liked their material with Dave, Gong, Ryan, or Jasen, you should get your fill of Drowning Pool later this summer! Los Angeles blues/hard rock quartet Joyous Wolf will bring their retro-tinged sound to the Soo as the opening band, and with their new EP "Place In Time" now on sale, they should impress with their well-influenced and catchy brand of music in August as well! Tickets for this all ages, 7:00 PM concert are $20, and interestingly, this show is standing room only with no assigned seating. No, this event is not publically tied to Allstar Promotions.

It is worth noting that if you buy tickets for the next night's Pop Evil/Buckcherry outdoor concert at the Sault Kewadin, you can knock $5 off of your Drowning Pool ticket as part of a bundle deal for both concerts, but whether that interests you or not, you can buy tickets at this link, at the in-person box office, or at 1-800-KEWADIN. This should be a fun concert in it's own right, especially in the lead up to Pop Evil for this stacked concert weekend, so check the above links for much more details!

Next up, here's our preview of a special Victoria Day concert TOMORROW NIGHT, as Montreal "slutch metal" quartet Dopethrone will make their Sault Ontario concert debut at The New American Pub! Fans of slow, grinding, and sludgy metal should easily take to Dopethrone's blend of doom and stoner metal, and in this stop on their Trans Canadian Tour, expect a pounding of brutal and deliberately paced original material from this prolific band at The New A! Support will include the return of both halves of the "Trading Spaces" split cassette tape from October 2017, including local/St. Catharine's grindcore trio Shit Liver in their first live appearance back home in over a year. Their intense, fast-paced hybrid of death metal and crust punk should prove to be a fitting compliment in this doom metal doubleheader, so don't miss Josh, Mike, and Matt tomorrow either! Joining them are local doom/sludge metal trio AlgomA, ending a 19 month hiatus dating back to the aforementioned split tape's release party at the same venue.

After missing all of 2018 from the local stage, it's awesome to see AlgomA back at it, and hopefully they set the tone well with their own well-traveled doom and sludge metal attack! Presented by AlgomA's own Six, Two, Oh., tomorrow's 19+ show has a $10 cover charge and a 9:00 PM start time. Despite the holiday timing, this is a school/work night for many, but if you can make it to The New A, the sludge metal onslaught should be worth the trip, so visit the official Facebook event page and this commercial for full details, and here's Dopethrone live!



Also today, here's a musician search that might pique some readers' interest, courtesy of the Musicians Wanted Facebook group on May 9th! On that day, a local metal guitarist named Shane Desjardins posted to say that he was looking to jam with other metal musicians and perhaps write some material. He shared this video of an instrumental deathcore original he recorded back in 2017 for his YouTube channel, and while I'm not familiar with him musically at all, he actually has nine solo instrumental recordings there (8 originals, plus one cover of The Rolling Stones' "Paint It Black", believe it or not), as well as three solo cover videos. Shane has a lot of positive responses and subscribers already, and he definitely has talent in deathcore and extreme metal music, but could a local band with him on board result from the above musician search? Contact him at this link for more details, and give his existing videos a look above & below to see what he offers!



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

• The pre-ride party for this year's Algoma Ride For Autism will take place at The Canadian Nightclub on Friday, June 14th, as per it's Facebook event page. The pre-motorcycle rally festivities will include raffle draws and live music, and while bands have not been publically confirmed, remember that punk trio Redundant and/or frontman Justin Langlois have played A.R.4.A.-related events in each of the last 5 years. If they or other hard rock/punk acts sign on for this year's rally, we'll let you know!
• After only posting twice (on the same day) on their Facebook page since November 2017, and letting it close earlier this year, local rap/party metal band The Apocalypse Afterparty posted on their revived page last week. In a shared post, "songwriter" Amanda Stanghetta (nee Brown) indicated that they're looking for a jam space (with or without a drumkit) to rehearse at in Toronto between this coming weekend and June 11th. Making the most of a trip, or are they relocating south? In any event, The Apocalypse Afterparty are back in our active band links, so stay tuned!
• Local/Thompson, Manitoba hard rock musician Mike Haggith announced on his Facebook page on Wednesday that he is planning to remaster his 2014 solo album "A Place Of Our Own" for a digital re-release on current platforms, while also giving a longer description of the album's themes. As this is a remaster with no brand new content, I won't re-review the final product on here (visit this link for our original review), but hopefully this finds it's way on sale where "Neighbourhood Watch Revisited" did not!

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