LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Soundcheck & Tym Morrison) And This Weekend's Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

Another weekend is upon us for local concert-goers, and there's a decent amount of hard rock cover bands to check out over the next few nights, so let's start with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!

Local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to Reggie's Place for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only announced this gig via its Facebook event page on Sunday. Fans will have last seen Tym's unplugged classic and newer rock covers at Reggie's via a Sunday matinee last month, but this will be his first typical nighttime gig at the Queen Street East nightclub since October. If you've missed Tym in more traditional confines in both timeslot and venue alike, don't miss out on TOMORROW's festivities, and of course, if you can't come out for this one, Tym will be just down the road at Tazzi's next week. A one-nighter due to or resulting in the debuting Tannerite's show there on Saturday, Tym's array of acoustic hits are on TOMORROW at 9:00 PM with no cover charge and a 19+ age limit. See above for more details, and here's Tym live!

Next up, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Jay's Piston Broke Pub for traditional concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, we only heard about the SATURDAY gig via the venue's Facebook page on Monday, with the band's Facebook page only following suit earlier today. Yes, Soundcheck are also hosting tonight's usual Thursday jam night at the former Reggie's West, though remember that we don't cover jam/open mic nights due to their unpredictability. The reason why Jay's announced just the SATURDAY show is because that one has a Hawaiian theme, not unlike their 1980s themed show at the same venue at this same point last month. Whether this is going to become a monthly re-occurrence for Jay's and/or Soundcheck, I don't know, but if Soundcheck headline a different themed concert there on April 8th, you'll know these are doing well!

SATURDAY'S festivities will be a good excuse to break out your Hawaiian shirts and/or any tropical props that you may own, but as to how well Soundcheck's set could adapt to the theme... come out to find out! If you just want a straightforward classic/hard rock concert, come TOMORROW instead! Both gigs (and jam night tonight) have 9:00 PM start times, 19+ age limits, and no cover charges. See above for more details, and here's Soundcheck live with a summery cover choice from last year!

Now we'll move to hard rock shows that had advance notice before this week, starting with local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard's return to Shooters Downstairs Lounge for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! After cancelling their planned Reggie's shows in late February and subbing in their acoustic side project The Bearded Lounge for their Water Tower Pub show this past Saturday, these will be Bone Yard's first concerts in three weeks, and first at Shooters in a month. However, this won't be a standard weekend of just Bone Yard covers, as according to their Facebook page, the aforementioned Bearded Lounge will open both gigs! As such, these will be that duo's first ever Shooters dates as far as I know, so if you like Greg & Alex unplugged, don't be late either night! As well, the band has teased that they have "got a special guest sitting in with us", though they didn't reveal who the guest is or what they're playing.

Keep in mind that, if The Bearded Lounge (who are basically Bone Yard minus bassist Warren Reville) replaced Bone Yard on late notice last week, and are taking up part of their time this weekend, is this just their way of noting that Warren can't play this weekend either and the "special guest" is a fill-in bassist? Maybe I'm completely wrong, but the shoe fits in theory. We'll let you know when/if the guest is announced! Dual band setup aside, these remain 8:00 PM events with 19+ age limits and no cover charges. See above for more details on the southern fried rock action to come, and here's Bone Yard live at Shooters earlier this year!

We'll close today with a road trip to St. Ignace, Michigan, as Sault Ste. Marie hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews will return to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Barring something that was only announced on personal accounts and not on their public Facebook page (which has happened), these will be Rhythm & Brews' first shows of 2023, and their first advertised dates at the St. Ignace Kewadin since July of last year. With their stacked lineup of familiar faces from bands like Nixxon Dixxon, 415E, Clownsack, and Highway 63, fans can be assured of a solid weekend of hard rock covers despite this band's constant aversion to posting videos or audio of their shows (but in that way, it forces you to see them live for that!) These are 21+ affairs with 9:00 PM start times and no cover charges, as usual.

Hopefully Rhythm & Brews have a great weekend in store for fans in/around St. Ignace, so visit the above links for more on this weekend's concerts, we'll let you know if videos surface, and that's all for today, but look for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next! Thanks everyone!

Firehouse Concert Video Showcase (Part 3!!)

It took almost 5½ years, but here is our third all-video post from the Dokken/Firehouse concert at GFL Memorial Gardens (then known as the Essar Centre) in September 2017! The reason this show is back on our radar is because promoters Superior Entertainment recently launched a new Facebook page and have been posting media from their concerts there, primarily from this show. The only concert videos uploaded there so far come from this event, and none were previously featured on the SMS, at least not via a link that works in 2023. I'm not sure if the new Superior Entertainment page is part of a planned relaunch for the Sault Michigan-based concert/MMA promoters or just a way to (re-)post old event materials, but note that their newest post is a gag poll asking what artist that inactive(?) local hard rock band Bucksaw should cover next. If Bucksaw have reunited, this is the only post that I have seen to confirm it so far, but I'll let you know if anything else is said.

None of the videos on Superior Entertainment's Facebook page (all unlabelled) come from Dokken's set, but co-headlining South Carolina hair metal quartet Firehouse's set was captured in two videos, including a 29 second clip of them playing "All She Wrote" and, as embedded below, a 1:41 clip of them playing the second half of their power ballad "Love Of A Lifetime", albeit filmed sideways from the 5 second mark onward. Why upload it based on the original orientation, I don't know, but the two videos sound good for fans, and Firehouse were good to the Sault area in the early-mid 2010s, so give these a watch above & below!

The other three live videos on the channel come from Los Angeles/Saskatoon arena rock quartet Love 'N Revenge's opening set, though two videos are just 13 seconds long and I can't identify the song performed in one of them (the other is a cover of Rockarma's "Bring It"). Embedded below is their cover of Skid Row's "Youth Gone Wild", and props to frontman Damon Kelly for sounding admirably like Sebastian Bach here! This clip runs for barely over one minute, but like the "All She Wrote" video, you get a good look at the stage from the vantage point of this stationary camera, and the band's on point, so check these out above & below as well!

Finally for the new/old videos is a re-post of a promotional clip for this concert featuring the members of Firehouse (except frontman C.J. Snare) that was first posted onto Superior Entertainment's now deleted Facebook page on September 29th, 2017, the day before the concert took place. Kewadin Casino concert-goers in particular won't be too surprised by touring bands plugging their show here like this, but this was notable as Firehouse had already arrived in town, so check it out (again) below!

As of this writing, the Superior Entertainment Facebook page otherwise features photos of event posters and the events proper, be they from Dreammakers Theater hard rock concerts or MMA cards, so do check everything out at this link, especially if this is setting the stage for a return to booking live events in 2023. That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

A New Local Punk Band & Album, New Videos, And Much More!!

We have a new news post on this Monday evening, which is half devoted to a new-ish band who you may remember seeing live last fall, while we also have lots of updates from a solo project, a new live concert video, and an apology for missing a show for previewing on the site last week. Here's what you should know!

We have a new local band to add to our Sault Ontario band links, and they are noise punk duo No Funeral! You may recall seeing this band at a Dryer Fire-promoted event at Outspoken Brewing in October, and they were scheduled for last month's cancelled Matthew Nadon memorial concert, but aside from being described as an "indie noise" act, little was public about them unless you saw their October set. I knew from personal Facebook postings that former AlgomA drummer Jamie Vincent was one half of this band, but No Funeral shares far more in common musically with his mid-2010s grunge/punk duo Bad Back, but with two key differences: More of a chaotic post-hardcore bent, and that Jamie isn't the frontman here. Rather, their singer/guitarist is Connor O'Brien, who played guitar in the defunct Edmonton noise punk band Flint, of which Jamie was a member on bass from 2009 until he moved back to the Soo in 2012.

The fact that Connor isn't local may explain why we've only seen No Funeral in concert once, but this project's existence is definitely more on the local side of things than Edmonton, especially given the credits for... their debut album!? Yes, No Funeral's self-titled debut album (and if you believe Jamie's personal Facebook page, their "only" album) was released to their new Bandcamp page yesterday, and the description there says in more graphic terms that the band has been in the works for two years, with the album coming together within a two week span before coming out. The album was produced by Dustin Goodall at Unsalted Audio last fall, with Dustin supplying backing vocals, additional bass, and "musical saw", while Saultite author Mat Laporte guests on saxophone on the two closing tracks and also provided the album artwork. Much like Bad Back's Bandcamp albums, "No Funeral" is on sale on a "name your price" model.

I'll hold comment on the album pending our eventual review of it (I currently have it pencilled in for June given our current backlog), but if you miss Bad Back in particular, don't bypass No Funeral! Of course, connections to Flint will be obvious if you're familiar with that band from before Jamie moved back home (or if you've lived in Edmonton), so if you want to hear Connor & Jamie's prior output, do check out Flint's Bandcamp page, as I believe Jamie factors on all but their newest two songs posted there. As best as I can tell, No Funeral's only public online page is on Bandcamp, but give it a look to see what they bring to the table, and consider paying something for the album to support their work!

Next up, I want to apologize for a concert that we missed in this past weekend's concert previews, as local funk/hard rock cover band The Wyld Stallyns returned to The Kiln at Searchmont Resort for a matinee concert on Saturday. The band did not announce this show on their Facebook page in advance, and I only learned that it was a thing when a video from attendee TerriDollie Williams' personal Facebook page was shared to the band's seldom updated Facebook group yesterday. Sensing that this likely wasn't from their Searchmont gig in January, I learned belatedly that the resort's Facebook page plugged it on Friday. Still on short notice, but at least someone got the word out. I have to do better re: Searchmont concerts, especially with The Stallyns not always plugging their own shows on Facebook, so my apologies again, I'd have plugged it had I known! That said, how about that video?

TerriDollie filmed the band (minus saxophonist Josh Norling, who apparently missed the January Kiln show too) covering The Outfield's "Your Love" with Christina Speers on lead vocals. Not a supremely heavy choice, but everyone handles it well, and I'd hope most attendees were familiar with the original song! The video is vertically shot, but as the video is as much to highlight a young relative getting into the song as it is the band proper, I won't nitpick the angle. Cute watch in that respect too, so check it out below, and apologies again for missing The Stallyns at The Kiln... again!

Finally, here's the latest from newer local rap rock solo project Less Than Zero, so what have they been up to since the fall? First off, in November, project leader/ex-Winkstinger guitarist Jason Ladouceur changed the band's name in In The Sun. According to their Bandlab page on December 6th, the new name is intended to make the project "more inspirational", though their sound and even their existing logo remain unchanged. If you're Facebook friends with Jason, you'll know very well that he is always posting material for In The Sun, and at the moment, fifteen unique songs can be heard on Bandlab, many being tweaked as time goes on, so you can tell that this is a labour of love for him. In fact, under the name "In The Sun1", three songs are now up on Spotify, while a couple dozen videos can be seen on their YouTube channel, and Jason did tease late last year that he wants to release an In The Sun album in the near future.

Embedded below is a recent take of their song "Factory Reset" (all of their songs except a cover of Megadeth's "Sweating Bullets" are original). Jason's method of frequently posting these songs and then adding to/editing them over time is helping the songs sound heavier and more fully realized, so if you do check out In The Sun's songs, definitely listen to the newest instance of each song on Bandlab or YouTube, not the oldest ones unless you want to see the journey. Vocals can still come off as unnatural and not as aggressive as the music calls for, but again, Jason's always working on these songs, so I doubt he's done yet. Check out much more from Less Than Zero In The Sun above & below!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Wyld Stallyns), Plus Some New Videos!!

I have a new news post to check out on this Sunday morning, which includes some new live-streamed videos from concerts this past weekend, new songs from a prominent E.U.P. metal band, and leading off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for month's end, so here's what you should know!

Local funk/hard rock cover sextet The Wyld Stallyns will return to Shooters Downstairs Lounge for one night only on Saturday, March 25th! This show was announced via this poster advertising the live music slate at Shooters this month, as per the venue's Facebook page, and while we already knew about Bone Yard's return there later this week, The Stallyns' return is new to us! It'll be the Speers' & crew's first announced concert (barring anything new in the interim) since playing at The Whisky Barrel last month, and their first at Shooters since they played a "no repeat weekend" in January, though I have no idea if they're going to try that conceit again on the 25th, if cut in half. A one-nighter due to or resulting in Dorian Grey's show there on Friday the 24th, The Wyld Stallyns funk & hard rock covers have a 19+ age limit, no cover, and an 8:00 PM start time. Visit the above links for more details!

Next up, let's take a brief detour to St. Ignace, Michigan, where their resident metalcore quintet Heavy Lies The Crown have released not one, but two new original songs onto their YouTube channel! Fans will have already known about the scheduled premiere of "Cigar With The Devil" last week, which is embedded below, but they surprised us by posting one more new song named "Celebrate The Night" yesterday. Visually, both follow the same template as "Gods Butter" (new image with flickering light effects in post). It is worth noting that the band considers all three of these songs to be "demo tracks", which is how they're categorized on their YouTube channel, but whether these are to be touched up for the full album or if the full album is being considered a "demo" is to be determined. I'll hold comment pending our full album review, but give them a listen above & below, and stay tuned for more from H.L.T.C.!

Back to Sault Ontario for some new live videos now, including one at The Water Tower Pub last night from.... The Bearded Lounge?! As you may recall, local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard were advertised to play at the Great Northern Road nightclub last night, and the venue's Facebook page confirmed Bone Yard as recently as Thursday, but The Bearded Lounge live-streamed this video to their Facebook page at 8:12 PM from early in Bone Yard's advertised set. Of course, The Bearded Lounge is Bone Yard's acoustic side project sans bassist Warren Reville, so Occam's Razor says that Warren couldn't make the show, with Greg & Alex making due on short notice by going unplugged last night. Hopefully all is well with Warren regardless, and as you can see with the blue mood lighting, the Pub was able to acclimate for the new-ish band! As such, this was The Bearded Lounge's first public show of 2023, and first at The Water Tower Pub since last summer.

The video sees Greg & Alex playing the back half of their slowed down cover of Kiss' "Rock & Roll All Nite", which comes through well for fans, and while the blue lighting isn't ideal for visual clarity, you don't miss anything, even with the vertical camera! Give it a watch below, and look for Bone Yard in full strength (one assumes) at Shooters this weekend! FYI, Rick Charbonneau & friends played at The Water Tower Pub on Friday.

Finally for today, here's a live-streamed video from local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek's Facebook page during their show at Jay's Piston Broke Pub on Friday night, filmed from the stage by frontman Justin Grayson himself! This sees the guys covering Tracy Chapman's "Give Me One Reason" (arguably owing more to Black Stone Cherry's cover), which sounds good despite some muffled audio from Justin's phone. Alas, he was filming vertically, but given the nature of who was filming & when, you can't be too harsh, and you get some unique visuals of the crowd dancing on the floor and him singing directly to the camera, so it's definitely a neat watch as local concert live-streams run, so check it out for yourself below!

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

Where Are The New Albums? (March 2023 Update)

It's finally time for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post, with another look at the current statuses and release whereabouts of upcoming albums from local metal, hard rock, and/or punk bands who have publically confirmed studio sessions under their belts! While one album (Molten Imp & C.T.W.'s split) has been removed from the series due to its successful release last month, another upcoming album has been added following its commencement of recording sessions last month, and it's a big one! As always, entries with updated or new information have the album name in italics. So, where are the new albums? Read on below to hopefully find out!

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Chase James Wigmore - The Chaotic Rite

Rumoured Songs: Multiple

Background: Ever the prolific artist & songwriter, local folk punk/extreme metal musician Chase Wigmore has been working on an extensive rock opera for years (once claimed to be a 33 part work), originally named "A Story About A Kid Named Todd". Worked on in between his other unrelated solo albums, released for sale or otherwise, Chase posted a lengthy elaboration of the rock opera last year, now titled "The Chaotic Rite", outlining its concept, recording plans, and long-term release timeline. Clips of songs have surfaced on his Facebook page, as well as the final artwork, while in promotion for his last release, Chase has hinted that "The Chaotic Rite" might be his final eponymous solo album.

Current Release Status: Your guess is as good as mine for when this will finally come out, but remember that Chase is very prolific and varied in his musical interests, and not every album of his has seen a formal paid release, either by finishing it's lifespan as a demo, or by being released online for free. Regardless, he has been working on the rock opera for years to ensure a quality product, so stay tuned for updates from his camp!

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Fort Creek's debut EP

Rumoured Songs: "Hammer Down"

Background: Local southern/hard rock quintet Fort Creek have sporadically teased plans to record an EP since February 2020, and while the pandemic lockdowns may have gave them more time to record, they wouldn't release any samples until almost two years later when they shared this snippet of their single "Hammer Down" their Facebook page, later posting this 72 second clip. The guys debuted it at their headlining concert at Soo Blaster in June, and have played it live regularly since, but they have yet to release any full tracks online. The band revealed that they have been working in studio in early 2023, but did not 100% say it was towards this album or not.

Current Release Status: Fort Creek originally planned to release the EP in "late summer", later adjusted to "late 2022", but both timeframes have obviously came and went. The band had been part of a three month hiatus late last year, but whether the break was to work on the EP isn't publically known. There are a lot of unknowns either way, especially given the 2+ years of production time and that this is a band primarily known for their work on the weekend cover circuit (though some members do have experience in name original bands, especially Tony). It will be interesting to see how things develop, so stay tuned!
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Handsome Sandwich - "Deconstructed"

Rumoured Songs: "All Or Nothing", "Bitter", "No Entry", "No Idea", "Better Off"

Background: After taking a year+ long hiatus during the pandemic, local "no genre" band Handsome Sandwich reunited in mid-2021 with a new lineup, with Jesse Cook & Johnny Belanger now joined by singer Taylor Emlaw, guitarist Mitch Sirie, and (as of last summer) bassist Rafael Medina. Via their new Facebook page & YouTube channel, the band almost instantly began teasing a debut album (after previously being covers-only from 2017-2020), posting videos of them playing original songs. In June 2021, Handsome Sandwich revealed that the album had began pre-production, with recording at Unsalted Audio with producer Bill Priddle and mixer Dustin Goodall. The band also confirmed in July that guest saxophonist Josh Norling will appear on their new song "No Entry". In November, the band confirmed that the album's name was changed from "Lettuce" to "Deconstructed", and recording sessions wrapped in January, with Jordan Zadorozny mixing the tracks at Skylark Park in Pembroke. The first single "Bitter" was released to streaming services last month, with "Better Off" and another song to come this month & next.

Current Release Status: The band has had a release date of May 6th planned for this album since last fall, and that will culminate in a release concert at The Loft, which is The Algoma Conservatory of Music's third floor intimate concert venue and attached recording studio. Handsome Sandwich did tease that this set will be "live recorded", but they have not specified if they meant in video or audio format, and if the latter, if they plan to release their set as a live album or not. Assuming no hang-ups or delays, May 6th should be a huge occasion, especially given the fancier setting for the release party, so stay tuned for updates!

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Mike Haggith - "All The Best In All You Do"

Rumoured Songs: "I've Seen It Before", "Twist of Fate", "If Only You Could Hear Me"

Background: During his live-streamed Facebook concert in February 2022, local/Thompson, Manitoba alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith revealed that he was working on his newest studio album, entitled "All The Best In All You Do". Like his other Thompson-era albums, this will have an overarching concept, this time about the transition out of depression and being manipulated by others, into a happier personal life. At the time, Mike was 35% done with the album, and he has played two new originals planned for it in live-streams and in his 2022 concerts, as well as "If Only You Could Hear Me", a still-unreleased song from early in his time in Thompson. A single version of "Twist of Fate" was unveiled in July, and live videos of all three songs can be found on Mike's Facebook page and/or YouTube channel. Mike moved to Barrie, Ontario for work reasons at the end of 2022, and has indicated plans to resume work on his solo career, including this album, in the near future. 

Current Release Status: Given Mike's day job and personal commitments, he hasn't been as active on social media in recent months, but he was playing live dates last year and presumably working on recording the new album where time allows, though all of the personal and professional changes involving his move to Ontario are definitely acknowledged. Hopefully things are progressing naturally, and we'll keep you posted!

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Spades GT''s first full-length album

Rumoured Songs: "Cenobites", "Hands"

Background: After a successful local run from 2013-2020 that included their 2014 debut EP "The First" and six more studio tracks on 2015's "Fed Up!" split, local crossover thrash quintet Jack Spades were relaunched in late 2021 as Spades GT, once frontman J.D. Pearce moved to Barrie for work reasons. After playing live throughout 2022, the band announced plans to record a full-length album in January, hitting the studio in Toronto with producer Kyle Marchant (pictured with 4/5ths of the band here) last month. Only J.D. remains from the Jack Spades-era CDs, now joined by late-era Jack Spades guitarist Daniel Horton (who also moved to the GTA) plus new additions Jay Sarrazin, James Roy Daley, and Tyler Reiner on guitar, bass, and drums. The album will feature guest appearances from Anvil frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow on guitar and Daniel's Fast Life bandmate Andrew Moorehouse on vocals.

Current Release Status: The band announced via this Facebook post yesterday that the album is "coming out in May", and if that projection holds, it's convenient timing given that Spades alumni Jesse Cook & Johnny Belanger's debut album with Handsome Sandwich is also slated for release that month! Given the extra opportunities and availability that Spades GT have in Southern Ontario, things can easily come together quicker and on a higher profile compared to their mid-2010s efforts. Keep posted to Spades GT's online pages for further updates, and songs from the new album have been filmed in live concert videos!

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The Uncanny Valley's debut album

Rumoured Songs: "The Uncanny Valley", "Glowin'", "Middle Man", “This Love is Psychedelic”, "Stuck In Rotation", “Sweet Like Sugar”, "Fumbling Through"

Background: The new classic hard rock band from 2019 Soo's Got Talent winner Adrian Sullivan, fans will have seen original material of theirs right from the start, as The Uncanny Valley debuted their own songs in their first live concert at The Canadian on New Year's Eve 2019. Live concert & jam session videos have followed on their Facebook page featuring their own material as well. After posting a teaser audio clip of "Sweet Like Sugar" in September 2020, they posted the full studio version of "Middle Man" that October, finally confirming there that they are working on their first album. The guys did record a studio version of "Stuck In Rotation" at Unsalted Audio for the Clusterfolk Music Festival and a related compilation album in April, but whether that exact recording will be included on the band's own album is unclear.

Current Release Status: No clue, which isn't helped by The Uncanny Valley's age and relatively unfamiliar profile for many readers, not to mention the complications of the pandemic, but they have played a number of local concerts in the past few months. That said, they are a talented group who seemed to be taking the right steps for the future, and hopefully more updates on The Uncanny Valley's debut album follow in some form or another when ready!

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I hope you guys liked this month "Where Are The New Albums?" post! This series will return on or around April 2nd, while our next monthly feature post will likely be this month's Defunct Local Band Profile projected for Friday. Look for them then, and for more news and notes on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Handsome Sandwich And Tym Morrison) & The Leash Concert Preview!!

As promised, we're wrapping up this weekend's hard rock concert previews in this post (barring anything on super late notice), but leading off are a couple of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS at two relatively unfamiliar venues as the SMS goes, so here's what you should know!

Local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to the live stage on Friday, March 17th when he debuts at... Tazzi's Cafe & Restaurant?! If you're unfamiliar, Tazzi's is located at 478 Queen Street East (just down the road from Reggie's Place) and it's by no means new to the Soo, having been open since at least 2008, but they've only really been getting into live music bookings since last summer. They typically bring in acoustic country and classic rock solo acts, and often film them for their Facebook page, so keep that in mind! Tym appears to be the latest to give Tazzi's a whirl, and will be doing so on St. Patrick's Day, but I have no idea if they go all out for that holiday or not there (be advised that Tazzi's has not promoted Tym as playing yet). Concerts at Tazzi's have early 8:00 PM start times, no announced cover charge, and 19+ age limits. Visit Tym's official Facebook event page for more details on this hard rocking debut!

Next up, local alternative/hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich's album release party for their debut album "Deconstructed" will take place on Saturday, May 6th (not May 5th) at.... The Loft?! Yes, another new-ish venue for our coverage, as The Loft is the concert venue opened in 2021 on the third floor of the Algoma Conservatory of Music at 75 Huron Street (the former St. Mary's Paper office), and is actually managed by Treble Charger frontman Greig Nori, who also runs the recording studio on the same floor. You can read all about The Loft's specifications, atmosphere, and amenities at this link, and most tantalizingly for casual fans is that The Loft has HD cameras by default and is wired straight to the recording studio if bands want to have concert sets recorded. In fact, Handsome Sandwich confirmed that this set will be "live recorded", so whether audio or video, keep that in mind!

The show proper will be Handsome Sandwich's first of 2023 (unless they announce anything beforehand), and they plan to perform both the entire "Deconstructed" album alongside new songs not on the album that night. Indie rock quartet Man Feelings will open in their own first concert of the year, and while not as heavy as the Sandwich can get, hopefully the guys deliver their entertaining originals with zest to kick off the evening! No word on if their set is getting recorded/filmed too or not. Tickets will run $25 for this show (if physical CDs are being sold, I don't know what they will cost individually), and there will be a cash bar on site. You can buy yours at this link, but be advised that The Loft advertises a capacity of 180 people for concerts, so get yours A.S.A.P. just in case! A 7:00 PM start time is advertised, and there is no stated age limit. Colour me impressed by the scale and setting for the release party!

I had known about what Greig and everyone at the Conservatory was doing for a couple of years, but concerts at The Loft so far have more leaned more towards what you'd see at LopLops or on CBC Music (certainly not a criticism), hence why it took us this long to mention it in any detail. Given Handsome Sandwich's existing ties with Treble Charger's Bill Priddle (who produced the album), that can't have hurt for connecting the right dots! The long wait for the album release continues (remember, they had May 6th announced as the date last fall), so definitely visit the above links for more details on this show and to buy your tickets, as it will be quite a concert from the setting and atmosphere alone!

Finally for today, here's that final concert preview for this weekend, as Hamilton-based Pearl Jam tribute band Leash will hit Soo Blaster TOMORROW NIGHT in their first ever local appearance! The first of two touring hard rock tribute bands scheduled at Soo Blaster in the spring months (joining Kiss tribute Destroyer next month), Leash deliver a very proficient brand of Pearl Jam's distinct grunge & alternative classics, and while the vocals aren't a 100% match, genre fans should get their money's worth tomorrow! In a late confirmation on Monday, local punk trio Vanity First will serve as local openers tomorrow in their first announced concert set of 2023, and first set at Soo Blaster since opening for Gutter Creek in September. Vanity First aren't a perfect genre match, but they weren't for Gutter Creek either, and this should give them a solid audience to deliver their up-tempo originals and covers to once again, so don't be late!

A 19+ concert as you may expect, tomorrow's festivities have doors opening at 7:00 PM, and tickets run for $25 in advance at this link or $30 at the door (a $320 VIP table package is also on sale at the online ticket link). If you like seeing talented touring tribute bands in the Soo, and want to see a different range of them compared to what usually stops in town, coming out to see Leash would definitely be a good idea, so come enjoy Seattle by way of Hamilton tomorrow night! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Leash playing multiple songs live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Fort Creek) & Most Of This Weekend's Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

They say that March comes in like a lion & and goes out like a lamb, and while that may not be a 100% accurate for local hard rock concerts, there are enough to warrant splitting this weekend's concert previews into two posts! As such, our preview of Saturday night's Leash concert will be in tomorrow's news post, and yes, this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post will be slotted in somewhere in the short term. Now, let's start with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!

Local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek will return to Jay's Piston Broke Pub for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced these shows this past Friday on their Facebook page. Last seen at the same venue in January, Fort Creek have been spending the past month+ working in studio, presumably on their long gestating debut EP. They acknowledged on their Facebook page last week that "we've had a few minor setbacks", but they also noted that "we owe (these concerts) to each and every one of you that support us", so look for some hard rocking covers and likely originals at the former Rosie TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! You can rock out with Justin, Shane, Bill, Robin, and Tony TOMORROW & SATURDAY at 9:30 PM with no cover, and these are 19+ events. See above for details, and here's Fort Creek live!

Next up, let's look at some shows this weekend that had more than a week's notice, starting with local metal trio The BAG's return to The Esquire Club for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Replacing Mid Life Crysis on the venue's concert calendar for unannounced reasons, tomorrow's show will be The BAG's first of the year, last seen at both The Esquire Club and Reggie's Place in December. Should be another prime opportunity for Spencer, Austin, and Bradley to deliver the goods in both covers and originals alike, so if you want something a little heavier on this side of the border, a trip to this Second Line West venue should do the trick! Tomorrow's concert is indeed a one-nighter, as according to the venue's Facebook page, The Esquire Club is actually closing early on Saturday for an employee appreciation event that night. Hopefully that goes well, it's nice to see staff get some appreciation like this!

As usual for The BAG's Esquire Club shows, tomorrow's gig should have a 19+ age limit, no cover charge, and a 9:00 PM start time. Clearly The BAG are getting good responses to keep getting bookings at The Esquire Club (not traditionally a metal haven), so come on out tomorrow to see what they have up their sleeves! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here are The BAG live!

Now let's take a quick detour to Sault Michigan, where local hard rock quartet Tarnished will return to their home turf with shows at The Rapids Lounge at the local Kewadin Casino branch TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! These had advance notice via Kewadin's entertainment page, and we covered them at the time. While fans in the E.U.P. have only been waiting a month to see Tarnished live again following their Rapids Lounge dates in early February, they haven't been idle in the interim, hitting the road for concerts in Grand Rapids and Toledo, Ohio in the ensuing weeks. Both appear to have went well, and hopefully they made lots of fans down south last month!  A good reception from Yooper faithful should await Tarnished tomorrow & Saturday night, so don't miss out on all of the action! Tomorrow's and Saturday's shows have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no cover charges, as usual for Kewadin's lounges.

I can't embed this as a preview video as it was posted in a comment on Tarnished's Facebook page on February 17th, but a 17 second clip was posted by attendee Gerald de Boer from an outdoor gig at Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast in August 2021 (if accurately dated, one of this lineup's first sets), featuring a seemingly impromptu introduction by "Hooligan Joe". Vertically shot and not that long, but a fun look at how a Tarnished concert may kick off, so check it out on their Facebook page, and for a preview of this weekend's Rapids Lounge shows, here's a fuller live video!

Finally for today's previews, we'll head back to Sault Ontario, where local southern hard rock cover trio Bone Yard will play a rare Water Tower Pub gig on SATURDAY NIGHT! This Great Northern Road venue only sporadically hosts hard rock-leaning bands, so if you're in the central part of town and want to enjoy some southern fried classic and hard rock covers, don't bypass this one-nighter! No word on if Bone Yard still have t-shirts to sell, but their Facebook page has been hyping up "the Bone Yard shot", which appears to be a heavy duty shot of liquor that they've concocted, and if you can "survive" drinking it, you'll get a sticker for your accomplishment. That's a new one as local bands go! Remember, The Water Tower Pub traditionally hosts separate acts on Fridays and Saturdays rather than doubling up like most other cover band-friendly nightclubs in town, but I have not heard what artist or band is playing there tomorrow night.

Water Tower Pub shows have an earlier 8:00 PM start time, a 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details on Bone Yard's show on Saturday, stay tuned for updates on their recent studio teasers, and here they are live in a recent concert!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Leash preview and more on the site next! Thanks everyone!