LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Generations), A New Local Album, And Much More!!

Today's post touches on some assorted recent stories, including a big loss for local news media, a new song from a local metal project, and a new album from a reunited local band of sorts, but we're leading off with LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations have announced two upcoming dates for next month, both Saturday nighters, as they'll rock Shooters Downstairs Lounge on October 19th and then Gateway Casino on October 26th! Fresh off of their set at this past Friday's Band Together To Rock Cancer benefit (more on that on the site soon), these two dates will be Generations' first at either venue since last month. The shows will also presumably see guitarist Tony Kajnar back after he missed the benefit gig on Friday (Muckrakers frontman Mike McDonald filled in for the night, and if you want a teaser of our upcoming coverage, click here). No word yet on if the October 26th gig at the casino will be Halloween themed or not, but remember that Halloween is a Thursday this year, allowing venues the opportunity to host their party a day late on November 1st rather than five days early.

You can enjoy Generations' classic and hard rock cover array on these Saturdays next month with no announced cover charges and 19+ age limits, and while they'll take the stage at 9:30 PM at Shooters, the Gateway Casino concert is at 8:00 PM. No word on if we'll see Valerie, the Tonys, and Pierre anywhere else before mid-October, but keep this talented veteran group's next announced shows in mind, and see above for more details! 

Next up, here's a mild surprise, as defunct local classic metal quartet Late & Loud kinda sorta reunited to release the second score/soundtrack album to their Dungeons & Dragons podcast Late & Legends last week! As you may recall, Late & Legends sees Jonathan Tiberi, Brendan Christie, and Benn Garside (with Josh Hatherley as game master and audio editor) play D&D with their own storylines and characters as they explore/save the city of Renlan, and they released their first score album of songs used in the podcast back in April 2021. It is still available to buy/stream at this link, but has brand new artwork and a slightly amended title. Now, Late & Legends began season 4 in May of last year and hasn't posted a new episode since that month, but "Season Two (Podcast Soundtrack)" reflects the episodes that aired in February-October 2021, and if you want to catch up on the action, click here or visit your favourite podcasting host service.

Unlike with "Late & Legends 1", it seems like Brendan Christie had a much stronger hand in recording this material, with Jon and Benn only getting limited credits, and Josh is not listed as writing or performing at all once again. You can buy the 12 song score album for $8.99 on Bandcamp or stream the whole thing for free there, and it may just get reviewed on the SMS in the coming week! Plans to review Sykotyk Rampage's new album may get delayed, as I was hoping to have the accompanying comic book for full context by now, so it may get bumped to October in lieu of "Late & Legends 2". Stay tuned, but give it a listen above! As this is three+ year old music, Late & Loud are not back in our active band links. 

Speaking of projects featuring Brendan Christie, here's the latest from his active progressive/djent metal band Convergence, who posted the first full song from their upcoming EP "Gemini" onto their YouTube channel on Friday! The song in question is "You Are Not Flesh" (obviously a new/altered title from prior track listing reveals), and it was uploaded there in two copies: an instrumental version and, as embedded below, one with vocals (it's a lyric video, to boot!). You can also buy (for $1) or stream it on their Bandcamp page, complete with altered cover artwork. As best as I can tell, Brendan himself provided the harsh vocals here, as also heard on their non-EP original song "Cancer" from last year, something I surprisingly never clarified on here at the time. I got kind of a Phil Labonte vibe from his vocals, which is neat! I'll hold comment on the song otherwise pending our eventual "Gemini" review, but check out "You Are Not Flesh" below!

Finally for today, I wanted to note the abrupt closure of a long running local news website that, in its various iterations, has crossed the SMS' radar multiple times. On August 30th, FirstLocalNews (née SaultOnline) shut down after just 15 months in operation following their change in ownership and branding. Producer and local news veteran Craig Huckerby revealed in this SooToday article by Alex Flood that the closure was due to low advertising revenue following the relaunch as FirstLocalNews, prompted when Rock 101/et al. parent company Sovereign Communications bought SaultOnline from Superior Media, starting fresh with a brand new site and name. FirstLocalNews had its roots dating back to Craig leaving the former MCTV News in 2003 to launch LTVNews (later SooNews and Local2), before SooToday bought it in 2014. Craig and Superior Media launched SaultOnline in Local2's wake, with ownership also producing local news television content via ONNtv, which also appears to have closed.

As SMS coverage goes, we always got more relevant material from SooToday and their offshoots than from the sites that Craig produced, but I always appreciated having different viewpoints for major concert events when Local2 or SaultOnline sent their own reporters to attend, and they had some good exclusive content that you can (partially) read about on the SMS where dead links allow. Truth be told, them starting completely anew as FirstLocal did them no favours, even if necessitated by the need to rebrand and launch a new website, but hopefully staff lands on their feet with new ventures, as local journalism is important! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

Treble Charger At Big Shiny Saturday Concert Video Showcase!

I apologize for this slipping through the cracks over the past 2+ months, but when the band in question doesn't really have an active social media presence, it wasn't as likely to cross my radar. As teased in some of the local press for their reunion gig at The Machine Shop in March, local/Toronto indie/punk quartet Treble Charger did indeed continue playing live via summer festival dates in Southern Ontario! We knew at the time that they'd be playing at Riverfest in Elora last month, but before then, they actually were booked for the Big Shiny Saturday festival in North York, which took place at The Bowl at Sobey's Stadium on July 6th! Here, they played alongside fellow domestic 1990s-2000s rock acts The Tea Party, The Headstones, I Mother Earth, and Bif Naked (The Headstones were never on a Big Shiny Tunes album, but they're of the same era). In searching YouTube, at least seven attendees filmed Treble Charger's set, so let's cover four of them in today's post!

We'll start with attendee superfannrock, who filmed Treble Charger playing three songs at Big Shiny Saturday during their middle set (he also filmed The Tea Party and The Headstones for his channel). Songs filmed include "Hundred Million", "Red", and as embedded below, their second song "Brand New Low". Sharp angle with a smoky ambiance, but superfannrock got a nice zoomed in view of the guys in action, who sound on the level of their reunion gig, and while he's laser focused on filming just the band, you do get a sense that this is a big stage. Check these out above & below!

Next up, attendee ShakyShorty filmed a song each from the five acts at Sobey's Stadium on this day, with his Treble Charger video being of their early Bill Priddle-sung classic "Red", which was their second-to-last song. Also, Frank Deresti and David Peredun continued on bass and drums from the local date in March, so it is very neat to see an all-local Treble Charger lineup, let alone playing out of town! While ShakyShorty didn't employ as extreme of a zoom, he also had a far more central view of the stage and got more of the framing and setup as a result. If you like mid-late 1990s indie Treble Charger, you'll like how the guys played "Red" here, so check this quality performance out below too!

Alas, superfannrock was one of only two of the seven filmers to shoot anything other than "Red" and "American Psycho", so I apologize for any redundancy in advance. Both of those songs were shot by attendee Toronto Live Music, who filmed everyone on Big Shiny Saturday except Bif Naked. To spread things out a bit, I'll also feature this channel's "Red" video here, but I'd argue that these are the best of the Treble Charger videos for quality in this post, with Toronto Live Music clearly closer to the stage and framing things well with some lighter, more natural zooming, and the audio is nice and clear! Good stuff on both accounts, so check these videos out also!

Three of the other four Big Shiny Saturday filmers only filmed "American Psycho" during Treble Charger's set, and we'll close with that song from attendee Fun Randyz, who also filmed everyone except Bif Naked on July 6th, but this was his only Treble Charger video. Like she did at The Machine Shop in March, Greig Nori's daughter Ava joined the guys on stage to provide guest backing vocals from the bridge onward, which is a fun touch that I'm sure Greig loved repeating! This punk-era staple is always a crowd favourite, and while Randy was a little further back, he zoomed in well on the stage with good audio, so give his clip a watch below!

We'll have more from Treble Charger and Big Shiny Saturday in an upcoming post, but it looks like everything went well in North York in July, and here's hoping their other 2024 festival dates were similarly successful! Stay tuned for all of that and more on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Skoff, Exit 808, And Peril) Plus The Teenage Head Concert Preview!!

(Updated on Sunday at 9:40 AM) To begin this revised post, we have a cancellation to note, as today's Cruisin' The Dub car show at the newer A&W on Great Northern Road (which would have featured local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck as musical guests once again) has been cancelled due to today's rainy forecast, as per drummer Glen Thomas' personal Facebook page. It's not clear if there will be a make-up date this fall, as this was to have been the final A&W car show of the year, but given the likely downpour this afternoon, I totally get why the event was called off. Hopefully we see Soundcheck live again soon! 

Now, let's lead off with LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS and a big weekend concert preview, starting with Traverse City, Michigan classic metal trio Peril's return to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on Friday, October 11th and Saturday, October 12th! These are the only new-to-me metal or hard rock shows at either Kewadin branch on the newly updated schedules for both regional Kewadin lounges' entertainment pages, but, I profusely apologize for missing Peril's shows at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin branch yesterday and tonight for coverage on the SMS. I don't know how these slipped me by, other than to say that I am aware that Kewadin hasn't been booking as many hard rock shows at their lounges as of late, and Peril didn't plug this weekend's gigs on their Facebook page until earlier today, after the Friday nighter had already happened. Still, those are excuses, I know.

Given how Peril have been rocking the local Kewadin branches since the SMS launched, I should be keeping track of everything every time, so I apologize again, and hopefully this weekend's shows were huge hits, as will next month's in St. Ignace! These dates have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no cover charges. Do not miss Peril back in the E.U.P. in three weeks, and I apologize again for blanking on covering their Soo dates this weekend! I will definitely be on top of their next Rapids Lounge dates!

Next up, here's two more new shows as we start adding Halloween events to the schedule, and given that October 31st is on a Thursday this year, expect to see seasonal concerts both the week prior and the day after given the timing! In the former's case, Toronto grunge/punk trio Skoff will make their local concert debut on Saturday, October 26th when they headline local promoters Piecing It Together Shows' Halloween party at the Fraternal Order of Eagles club at 246 Wellington Street West! A newer band making waves in Southern Ontario with their raw and explosive sound that early 1990s rock fans will definitely take to, it should be interesting to see how Skoff go over locally, especially given the seasonality and costumes galore! Local support will be provided by crossover thrash quartet Hails (last seen opening for The Ripcordz) alongside electro synth pop musician Owen MK, who debuted for the former Dryer Fire at an all-local event two years ago.

Aside from the scheduling and the promotion of this being a Halloween party, we don't know any further details yet about spooky frills or entertainment beyond the implication of costumes being welcomed, but this is just the second Eagles Club show that P.I.T.S. are trying (the first is next week). This all ages event has a 7:00 PM start time, and tickets run for $15 at this link or $20 at the door. Since the pandemic and the end of J.D.'s Halloween party, multi-band events like those have not been common, so this could fill a void for fans of punk and metal! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details on this event!

Meanwhile, as Halloween is on a Thursday this year, some bands/promoters will take advantage by hosting their festivities a day late on Friday, November 1st, and one of those will be Sault Michigan hard rock band Exit 808, who will topline The Merchant's Bar's Halloween party that day! With their next show at Team Century 21's A Night Of Music a week away, the Hallowen gig at The Merch is their next advertised date as of this writing, and there will definitely be a costume contest with prizes for attendees, so don't put your getups away yet! No other specifics yet on what to expect, but of course, Exit 808's dual  vocalist-lead hard rock covers will provide the sound you need as usual! This event has a 9:00 PM start time, 21+ age limit, and no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and stay tuned for more from Exit 808 soon!

Finally, here's the big Sault Ontario concert TONIGHT featuring a touring headliner to wrap up this weekend's concert previews, namely Hamilton punk legends Teenage Head at The Machine Shop! As hyped in this SooToday article from Alex Flood on Tuesday, this concert goes beyond being Teenage Head's first local stop in the internet age, as it's a fundraiser for the Sault Ste. Marie branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association. This cause is very important to the band and promoter Ed Lofstrom of Martin's Trailers & Accessories, who is an avid fan of the band's dating back to their early years. Mental health is a serious issue, and it's great to see everyone come together to support such a wonderful charity, and to the extent that Teenage Head are calling this one of the most important shows of their career! Before their garage punk classics like "Let's Shake" and "Some Kinda Fun", Korah Collegiate's student band Mustang Sally will open.

Very atypical choice for openers, but the talent is always there from the current Colts! This show (during Teenage Head's 50th anniversary year, no less) has no age limit, an 8:00 PM start time, and tickets running for $45 at this link (VIP mezzanine tickets run for $60). On a musical and charitable level each, this will be a huge show for old school punk fans, and I hope all goals are exceeded for Ed and Teenage Head tonight! Visit the above links for more details, and here's Teenage Head live!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 906) & More Weekend Concert Previews!!

Let's continue this weekend's concert previews by looking at five more concerts taking place on both sides of the border this weekend, one being a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 will return to The Strongs Tavern in nearby Eckerman for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced this show via their Facebook page yesterday. While this is historically one of 906's favourite venues, this will surprisingly be their first show in at The Strongs Tavern since February, with no public shows booked there during their #summerof906. It's good to see the guys back in Eckerman TOMORROW, and hopefully there's a solid turnout for their hard rocking selection of covers as usual! If their new promotional image is anything to go by, Mark Bowen Band drummer Brian Duford (who guested with them frequently on hand drums this summer) will not be present for this gig. TOMORROW's concert is a 21+ affair with no cover and an 8:00 PM start time. See above for more details, and here's Project 906 live!

Next up, let's head north to Sault Ontario, where local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will rock Reggie's Place TONIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the late preview of tonight's show in this post, things slipped me by when plotting this busy weekend out. After dropping out of their planned Shooters gigs this past weekend, tonight & tomorrow's shows will see Greg, Alex, and Warren back downtown for their first plugged-in gigs since last month's Dragonfly Run, and their first normal solo concerts in city limits since they played at Reggie's in late July. A lot of the promotional material for this weekend's concerts has revolved around Bone Yard's infamous "Bone Yard shot" that will net you a free t-shirt if you can down the whole thing successfully, so if you're up for that challenge, keep that in mind this weekend! Otherwise, their hard rocking covers can be enjoyed tomorrow at 9:30 PM (and also today if you have a time machine. You can still go late!)

Both shows are 19+ affairs and there are no announced cover charges. Hopefully this proves to be another strong weekend for your local 225, and if you miss out, they'll be back on stage in two weeks and back at Reggie's in late October! Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Bone Yard live at Reggie's earlier this year!

Also, we'll head to Misty's Fifties, where former Caveman Morrison/Nostalgic Band frontman Tym Morrison will continue his weekly summer(?) matinee series TOMORROW! The penultimate advertised stop in his 2024 arrangement at the Second Line West nightclub (though it could always be extended), this will be your only announced chance to see Tym's classic and hard rock covers this weekend, as his Friday run at The Mike Case Memorial Stage ended for the year last week. Of course, if you prefer the matinee timing and indoor locale, you'll prefer this series continuing anyway, so consider a west end jaunt tomorrow to hear Tym's unplugged covers! Note that Tym recently indicated on his personal Facebook page that he had been suffering from pneumonia for much of the summer, but he is feeling better now, so if he didn't sound 100% at some recent gigs, keep that in mind! No word on if he missed any concerts outright though.

Tomorrow's concert has a 4:00 PM start time, presumed 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. In case this is the second-to-last show in this run for Tym, then don't miss out tomorrow at supper time! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here he is live! 

Finally for this preview post, we'll head south to Sault Michigan for this weekend's other major touring headline concert, as original Ratt frontman Stephen Pearcy will make his local debut TOMORROW NIGHT at The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino! While hair metal fans have seen Ratt (then fronted by Jizzy Pearl) in town as the openers for Skid Row back in 2006, this will be the first time that Saultites and Yoopers can bear witness to Stephen on local soil singing classic Ratt songs like "Round & Round", "Way Cool Jr.", and "Shame Shame Shame". I'm not a diehard hair metal fan, but Stephen sang many classic songs back in the day, and this is a good market for 1980s glam rock, so this should do well! Connecticut hair metal band Steelheart (not to be confused with Canada's Streetheart) will open tomorrow in their local debut, so look for their own hits like "I'll Never Let You Go" in their set!

Presented by Allstar Promotions in a rare hair metal booking for them, this concert has no age limit and an 8:00 PM start time. Tickets are still available in rows D-J ($49.50) and K-Q ($39.50) in the left/right sections, with all remaining center section seats (rows K-N) running for $49.50, and $39.50 standing room tickets are also available. You can buy yours at this link, at 1-800-KEWADIN, and at the in-person box office. If you love hair metal, you won't want to miss tomorrow's concert, so visit the above links for more details, and here's Stephen live!

That's all for today, but look for our Teenage Head and A&W car show previews and more on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Soundcheck & Curtis McKenzie) & Friday Concert Previews!!

Another busy weekend is upon us, so we'll have to split up our hard rock/punk weekend concert previews into two posts once again. As such, this post will look at shows taking place tonight and tomorrow in some form or fashion, with shows on Saturday only (Stephen Pearcy, Teenage Head, Project 906, and Tym Morrison) being previewed tomorrow, so look for those then! Now, let's lead off this weekend's previews with some SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!

Former Project 421/Eclipse frontman Curtis McKenzie will return to The Dive Gastro Pub for a "Think It Over Thursday" concert TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced yesterday on both Curt's Facebook page at The Dive's new Facebook page (they deleted their old one and started anew for unannounced reasons), with Curt indicating that he "just got the invitation". TONIGHT's show is effectively a rescheduling of Curtis' once-booked Dive show this past Thursday, which was never publically advertised until he revealed that there was a double-booking, so no harm no foul there! Fans may have last seen him break out his acoustic guitar for sets at the Rowdy Ranchers Horse Show in Laird this past weekend, and while he has yet to post any videos of his 2024 gigs on social media, you can see his full setlists and some photos from the weekend on his Facebook page!

TONIGHT'S indoor concert at the former Low & Slow has an earlier 7:00 PM start time, a 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details on what should be a fun night of hard and alternative rock covers, and for a preview, here's Curt live a few years ago!

Next up, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Jay's Piston Broke Pub for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, these shows were only announced yesterday on the band & venue's Facebook pages. These will be Soundcheck's first shows in three weeks, and first at Jay's (members filling in with The Hoovers at the ARCH Run aside) since early July, so if you've missed Terry, Cameron, Jim, and Glen at this Korah Road staple, be there TOMORROW and/or SATURDAY! In fact, the guys (sans Cameron) will dust off their old jam night hosting hats tonight as well, returning to be the house band for the conceit for one night only, so if you want to enjoy the music or join in with ¾ths of Soundcheck, keep tonight's festivities in mind as well! Just a reminder that we don't cover jam or open mic nights as "concerts" on the SMS due to their in-built unpredictability for who performs what on any given block.

Note as well that Soundcheck will reportedly be playing at one more car show at the newer A&W on Great Northern Road on Sunday, and I will be previewing that in Saturday's news post given that it's further out and so much different from the Jay's shows (incidentally, they played an A&W car show the weekend they last played at Jay's, but at least this one had better online advertising!). You can enjoy Soundcheck's hard rocking and varied covers TOMORROW & SATURDAY at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no cover, and jam night would be much the same. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!

Now to two big shows that did have advance notice, starting with a special benefit concert TOMORROW NIGHT called Band Together To Rock Cancer! As you may know, Mustang Heart guitarist Lorenzo Fabbri is battling cancer, so his bandmates are returning to the stage tomorrow at The Tarentorus Sports Club at 56 Avery Road alongside other local cover rock bands to help raise money for his family at this difficult time! Four bands will take the stage at the west end curling rink/events hall tomorrow, including classic/hard rock cover quartets Double Down and Generations, classic rock veterans RPM, and Mustang Heart themselves in their first show of 2024, with Lorenzo's Stages bandmate Sam Spadafora and ex-Double Down guitarist Adam King joining them as special guests. Refreshments and a cash bar will also be available for attendees tomorrow night, and there will be a door prize for attendees & support ticket buyers.

Admission tomorrow night is $20 at the door or via advance tickets available through Mustang Heart members, and support tickets are available for $15 for those who want to help Lorenzo but don't want to/can't attend the concert proper. Doors open at 7:00 PM, and there's no stated age limit. It is great to see four local rock bands join forces to help Lorenzo and his family at a trying time, and hopefully lots of donations and good will are raised at the Tarentorus Club tomorrow! Having lost my mother to cancer, I can absolutely relate. See above for more details, here's Mustang Heart live at Rotaryfest 2022, and get well soon, Lorenzo!

Finally for today's preview post, we'll head to The Whisky Barrel, where Hamilton outsider folk/punk musician B.A. Johnston will play his fifth local headlining date TOMORROW NIGHT! An outlier in multiple ways from the Gore Street nightclub's usual acoustic music fare (The Devil's Sons at month's end acknowledged), this will be B.A.'s first Sault Ste. Marie date since he rocked Outspoken Brewing in August 2023. All of his shows here have been at different venues, so a wide array of audiences have bore witness to his irreverent sense of humour, audience interaction, and punk-infused brand of self deprecating acoustic punk music, and trust me, it's far better to see B.A. Johnston in person than to read some guy's write-up on his live show! Wyld Stallyns frontman Rob Speers will open tomorrow as he continues his ever-busier slate of acoustic gigs away from the band. Hopefully he warms things up well before B.A. hits the stage!

Despite the touring headliner, tomorrow's concert has NO cover charge, it is 19+, and it has an early-ish run time of 8:00-11:00 PM. Bring Hawkins Cheezies at your own discretion, but B.A. does like them! Fans of acoustic rock, especially on the more eclectic and humorous side, won't want to miss tomorrow's action at The Whisky Barrel, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's B.A. live!

That's all for now, but look for more weekend concert previews on the SMS next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Theatre Of Night) & Heavy Lies The Crown Updates!!

Tonight's post is 100% devoted to Sault Michigan and the Eastern Upper Peninsula, and while it's mostly about one band in particular, we are leading off with a big LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this fall that Christmas fans will want to mark down, so here's what you should know!

Local classical metal band Theatre of Night are slated to return to The Soo Theater for their annual local Christmas concert on Saturday, November 30th! The band has yet to confirm this booking on their own social media, but the Ashmun Street theater announced it on their own Facebook page on September 5th via this poster for upcoming shows during the fall/winter season. As you may recall, this venerable project played their first local concert since 2019 at the Ashmun Street theater on the Saturday after the American Thanksgiving last year, and said scheduling will be repeated in two months, so Theatre of Night will be kicking off the Christmas season in style! This will presumably be Theatre of Night's second local concert with new singer, bassist, and narrator/backing vocalist Marquita, Luke, and Sandi Bernard in the fold, but they have spent most of 2024 posting teaser "Reels" on Facebook, so who's to say if things will look exactly as they did last year.

Expect lots of metallized Christmas carols with a narrative theatrical flourish once again over the US Thanksgiving long weekend from this experienced and professional group no matter what, including another Christmas tour with extra shows downstate! The local concert will start at 7:00 PM, it should be all ages once again, and while admission price/ticket details are not yet known, note that last year's Theatre of Night show had admission by donation with a recommended amount of $20. Visit the above links for more details on what should be a fun and festive night of metal!

Next up, let's get further caught up on St. Ignace metalcore band Heavy Lies The Crown, who we last left off with after their headlining set at the 2nd Street Music Festival in their hometown last month and their announced guitarist switch, so what was next on their docket? The band had a busy weekend just over a month ago, as they first headed to Grand Rapids on August 23rd to open for shoegaze metal band Glassfield at Skelletones, in what was their last show with Nathan Switzer back on guitar (his replacement, Katharsys Theory drummer Kaycee Mason, debuted with H.L.T.C. last month but did not make the trip to Grand Rapids). The guys seemed to have some sort of hang-up on the 4 hour trip southwest, judging by this "Reel" of their vehicle stopped on the side of the road, but as the woman's voice says, "But we did make it!". To hype the show up, this video was posted of members loading gear into the venue.

Courtesy of their Facebook page, frontman Brandon West & drummer Blaze Beairl are seen entering Skelletones, alongside running commentary by the filmer. Not a ton to look at, but it's unique as local band videos go! If you actually want to see their set from this night, two videos were live-streamed on the 23rd, with the longer of the two embedded below (here is the shorter one). Unfortunately, both videos were shot vertically, the very blue lighting is not ideal for clarity, and the longer video is VERY quiet, so prepare your volume dials in advance. What we see in the clips looks brutal in good ways, and hopefully Nathan had a good sendoff, so check out Heavy Lies The Crown in Grand Rapids above & below!

The following day, H.L.T.C. headed to Alpena (2 hours southeast of St. Ignace) to play at this year's French Road Bash, an outdoor metal festival there that they have played at before. On that afternoon, they rocked the Bluegrass Bar Stage as the second of six scheduled bands there, with new guitarist Kaycee Mason's band Katharsys Theory co-headlining (the closing band was Alpena's own Citrus Orange). It was implied on Facebook that Kaycee was involved in the sound for the French Road Bash too, and it sounds like his new band approved of the results! Two videos from Heavy Lies The Crown's set were shared to Facebook, including one of them playing "Knucklebutter", but I'm not embedding it here because they did that thing where a horizontal video is uploaded in vertical dimensions with huge pillarboxing. Why do some pages leave tiny videos like that up rather than re-upload them in a normal 16:9 full-screen orientation?

Instead, embedded here is their set-opening performance of "Bounty" last month, and yes, it was uploaded in the orientation it was filmed in! From where the filmer was standing, bassist Christian Cook was often obscured by that tree, but this is a solidly heavy song that plays to Heavy Lies The Crown's strenghts, and the ambiance of them playing in front of a thick forest is sure neat! Give their French Road Bash videos a watch above & below, and hopefully the festival was a smash hit across the board!

Finally for today, we can officially say that we're caught up on Heavy Lies The Crown updates after this! Last week, Brandon shot and uploaded this video to their Facebook page where he reminded everyone about their new song "These Walls" (wrote during Nathan's return stint), which he says is "comin' out decently soon", later noting that it would come out this fall. He also reminded everyone about the recent lineup changes, including ex-drummer Jaxon Massaway's impending return as their second guitarist, and Brandon noted that this will mean that H.L.T.C. will have three drummers in their lineup! What he didn't mention there is that they are scheduled to make the 3 hour drive to Escanaba at the re-opened Delft Theater on October 19th (source here), though I haven't found much in the way of public details on that event. It will be neat to see Heavy Lies The Crown play a show in Escanaba (in da moonlight?) if it's still in the works!

It remains to be seen what else Brandon, Jaycee, Jaxon, Christian, and Blaze have in store for the rest of 2024, but stay tuned to their social media pages for more as it rolls in, and check out Brandon's update video below!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Half Past), A New Local Band, The Damn Truth Preview, And More!!

Today's post is full of big news and notes, including a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, a mid-week concert preview, and a high profile new cover video, but let's lead off with a kinda sorta new local metal band, so here's what you should know on them on this Monday night!

We have a new-ish band to add to our Sault Ontario band links, and they are local "progressive tech death" metal quartet Bardo! I say "new-ish" because they're kind of a renaming and a replacement band all at once. Initial advertising for the Selias-headlined concert at Soo Blaster on September 28th had promoter Tyler St. Amour's mid-2010s death metal band Them returning after a seven year hiatus on this night, but it has since been confirmed on Facebook that they'll instead be going by the name Bardo, and a separate Facebook page was launched to reflect the new-ish band. Given everything, I'm treating Them and Bardo as separate bands (with Them back in our inactive links), especially given the gap since 2017 and that Bardo are not a duo and are playing more technical material, so there has been a clear evolution! No word on what Bardo means, for the record. Tyler aside (who is on vocals and bass), who else is in this group?

The lineup is not given in writing on social media yet, but it looks like two of Tyler's old March Into Regression bandmates are in this group, namely his brother Travis St. Amour (best known from Bring The Fallen) on drums and Christopher Neveau on guitar, but I have yet to identify who the second guitarist is. We'll let you know when things are confirmed publically! Two videos have been shared to Bardo's Facebook page so far, and while both have them short-handed (only one guitarist in the newer clip, and Tyler isn't playing bass in either), but these point to a brutal and more refined sound than Them were known for, and they should turn heads at Soo Blaster! Check out their first original "Blood Moon" below!

Next up, here's that LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as local hard rock quartet Half Past will return to Soo Blaster on Saturday, October 12th for a big headlining date! The reunited foursome will actually debut there at the aformenetioned Selias-headlined concert, but they will be the topline attraction next month, in their first headlining gig since rocking Shooters early last month. As far as I can tell, there's no frills or raison d'etre for this show beyond playing some hard rocking tunes live, so don't miss out on Jordan, Alain, Arthur, and Jonny's encore at Soo Blaster two weeks after the Selias concert! Half Past will have an opening act next month as well, namely Bullet Train frontman Cory Murchison, who will break out his acoustic guitar for the occasion. Promotional materials credit him as "Cory Daniel", which is the handle used when he opened for Fort Creek in 2022, despite playing shows since where his last name was used in advertising.

Fans of Half Past's original 2008-2012 run will recall that Cory was active then fronting Sense Of Truth (and he played with Jonny in Skeyes Of Seven afterwards), so they're well acquainted, and it should be a fun atmosphere! Given the large upscale venue, this is a ticketed event, so admission will be $10 in advance at this link (physical tickets are available through the performers and at Soo Blaster), and the door price will jump to $12. This will be an ALL AGES event, and Cory kicks off the night at 8:00 PM. Hard rock fans will get their fill on this night, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details on all of the action next month!

Also, here's a special Tuesday night concert preview, as Montreal classic/hard rock quartet The Damn Truth will headline at the aformentioned Soo Blaster in their local debut TOMORROW NIGHT! This retro-styled band have been getting some good local press attention this week, getting a brief write-up by Brian Kelly for The Sault Star (at this link) and some high praise on The Borderline's website, so you know that this female-fronted group will deliver a solid night of 1960s-inspired melodic rock originals, and no less than Bob Rock produced their new material, so you know they're on the up & up! A varied local opening roster includes local alt-punk trio A Dire Setback (in their second show of 2024 and first in Sault Ste. Marie city limits in over a year) and alternative rock trio The Haze (née Skinbox) in their first show since they added an unspecified new band member, so find out who is joining Steve, Jordan, and Brad in The Haze tomorrow!

Another show promoted locally by Mikhal Muto, tomorrow's concert has advance tickets running for $20 at this link and presumably at the venue, with the door price jumping to $25. Like the Half Past show next month, the music starts at 8:00 PM, though it was not stated if there will be a 19+ age limit here or not. The Damn Truth should turn heads tomorrow, especially with Lee-La's distinctive Janis Joplin-esque vocals, so don't miss out if you can swing this work/school night event! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The Damn Truth live!

Finally for today, here's song #13 in local punk supergroup project Mikey & His Uke's 30th anniversary series of remotely filmed covers of Green Day's breakthrough album "Dookie"! Posted to their YouTube channel last week, this video came just two weeks after the previous cover of "Emenius Sleepius", in the quickest turnaround in covers for this series since song #7 ("Basket Case") went up in March, which is good to see! In the penultimate credited song on offer, Mikey & crew tackled the thirteenth track on "Dookie", namely the short deep cut "In The End". As always, Bookclub frontman Mikey Hawdon is on guitar and (initially) ukelele, with Goldfinger alum Darren Pfieffer back as the house drummer for the "Dookie" covers, complete with another hockey jersey. Vocals here are provided by Authority Zero frontman Jason Devore, while Buck-O-Nine bassist Andy Plafoot returns for his seventh turn on the low end in the "Dookie" series

Aside from Jason putting on a mask during his footage, there's no major frills to note from the filming locations and activity, but it's well edited as you'd expect, and the performance is strong, with Jason's vocals fitting well with the experienced musical hands on offer! Unless they tackle the bonus unadvertised song "All By Myself", the "Dookie" cover series will wrap up with "F.O.D.", which could arrive at any point up to October 21st based on past release timeframes (the current average would be September 27th). Check out "In The End" for yourselves below!

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