Friday, February 21, 2014

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (415E, Peril, Driven, And RamWagon), Including Some Cancellations!!

First off, I just want to congratulate Team Jacobs on winning gold at the Olympics in Sochi this morning! You've done Sault Ste. Marie proud, we can't wait to see you guys get your medals! Now, today's post at the SMS is 100% devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS across the river at the Sault Michigan and St. Ignace Kewadin Casino branches, as the respective entertainment pages for each location (links here & here) are now updated for concerts at The Rapids Lounge & Northern Pines Lounge through the summer, and yes, a bunch of hard rock bands have new dates! Now, due to the amount, we'll save the two new shows from Banned (which are last chronologically) for another upcoming post just to spread things out, but they are coming! Also, if you look at the entertainment pages, you'll notice a new band named #YOLO (which did include the hashtag) that's playing three upcoming weekends through July, though another recent personal Facebook post credits them as No Decision.

While public updates are minimal on them, I can confirm that they're more or less the same as defunct rock cover band Toast's late-era acoustic lineup, just with former Shift frontwoman Amy Beairl on vocals instead of the now relocated Melissa Strand (and I believe their name was once Pushing Forward Back according to older Kewadin schedules.) Promising, we'll have to see how they sound, and thanks to guitarist Mike Libertoski for the info!

We'll start our verified hard rock cover announcements with Sault Michigan hard rock quartet 415E, who will apparently play their second through fourth concert weekends of the year at the local Kewadin branches, including their long awaited returns to St. Ignace on March 21st & 22nd and on May 30th & 31st! The March weekend will be the former Hubbard-Menard Band's first shows at The Northern Pines Lounge in 8 months (barring interim announcements), while they'll also return to the Sault Kewadin for the first time in almost 5 months with a weekend there on June 13th & 14th. Nice to see the guys playing more following their late-2013 hiatus, so hopefully they get a solid turnout for these dates, sporadic as they may be! Again, I can't verify if their lineup as the same as last year though, but in this case, no news might mean no change. Like usual, these shows have 21+ age limits, no announced cover charge, and 9:00 PM start times, so check the above links for more details, and don't miss 415E's Van Halen-influenced intensity later this year!

Also with three upcoming Kewadin concert weekend to add to their schedule is Charlevoix classic metal trio Peril, who will return to The Northern Pines Lounge in St. Ignace for shows on May 23rd & 24th and on July 25th & 26th, which sandwich a Rapids Lounge return in the Soo on June 6th & 7th! For upcoming concerts, these join their already announced St. Ignace gigs next weekend, while the June stops in Sault Michigan will be their first there in over 4 months. Peril's entertaining metal covers should fit in nicely again as they return to the Eastern U.P. in mid-2014, so if you're up for some live heavy action, you know where to be! For the record, no new dates for frontman Jeff Hudson's other metal band Scarkazm were among the recent announcements at the regional Kewadin branches, but hopefully their April shows go well so they come back up here! Like the 415E shows, expect 21+ age limits, no cover, and 9:00 PM start times, so check the above links for more details, and be there for Peril's next U.P. shows!

Now to some summer exclusives, Cheboygan classic hard rock trio Driven will make their long awaited return to the Upper Peninsula for a concert weekend on Friday, June 27th & Saturday, June 28th at The Northern Pines Lounge in St. Ignace! These will be this skilled veteran band's first Kewadin Casino dates in 9 months, so it's been a long time coming for the regional return of Driven, who have carved out a very solid reputation for themselves! I just wish there was more media online to check out of theirs. As above, you must be 21 to see Driven in June, there's no announced cover charge, and everything starts at or after 9:00 PM. Check the above links for more details, and fingers crossed these aren't Driven's only Eastern U.P. stops of the year, as fans will know how good they are!

Finally for today's new shows, Sault Michigan hard rock quartet RamWagon have a new Kewadin concert weekend announced, as they'll apparently return to The Rapids Lounge on Friday, August 8th & Saturday, August 9th! Promising sign for this rising newer quartet (featuring Monkey's Uncle and Full Throttle alumni), but there have been a ton of cancellations too. Aside from the above shows and their scheduled Sault Kewadin weekends on March 28th & 29th, October 24th & 25th, and November 28th & 29th, Kewadin's entertainment pages no longer list other announced RamWagon dates that were confirmed on their Facebook page last month, with it's schedule being refined on Sunday. Their March 14th & 15th Soo shows are now divided between Banned alum Alex Schrovenwever's current cover rock band Ricochet and a live UFC 171 broadcast, while their May 9th & 10th dates in St. Ignace and August 1st & 2nd shows in the Soo are now slotted for local acoustic rock duo The London Gentlemen (though the latter shows are still listed on RamWagon's Facebook page.)

Also, the shows on July 11th & 12th, October 17th & 18th, and December 19th & 20th have replacements to be announced, and the cancellations leave RamWagon with no upcoming St. Ignace dates in 2014, or anywhere for a four month stretch starting in April. A reason for the cancellations (or withdrawals?) has not been publicized, but something big must have happened to suddenly lose 6 concert weekends. Hopefully all's well in their camp though, and hopefully their modern hard rock covers go over well next month! The new August shows also have a 21+ age limit, no cover, and 9:00 PM start times, and check the above links for more details!

That's all for today, but I'll see you guys TONIGHT at The Rockstar Bar for Late & Loud's reunion show! Thanks everyone!

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