LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Peril, Driven, Scarkazm, and 415E)

Today's post is 100% devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS across the river, as Kewadin Casino's concert calendars on their entertainment pages have been updated through year's end! There are some blank dates still, but most weekends through December 27th now have a slated artist, and yes, there's some verified hard rock bands within! I'll clarify a few things first though, including that while Kewadin still advertises RamWagon's previously announced shows this year, I'm still under the impression that the band was succeeded by new country rock quartet Highway 63, who took over their planned March dates in the Soo last month. Unless there's renewed activity, I wouldn't read into their continued inclusion. Also, the band named #YOLO is indeed the new acoustic rock trio featuring local metal alums Amy Beairl, Mike Libertoski, and Tony Rogers, though their name is now No Decision (Alice in Chains reference?) They basically replaced Toast after singer Melissa Strand moved out of town, but it's not clear yet if they cover a heavier song sampling than Toast did.

There are also a handful of bands with new hard rock show concert confirmations in December only, but to spread them out, we'll cover them separately in an upcoming post. For the rest of the new and previously announced Kewadin Casino dates in both Sault Michigan and St. Ignace, check the above links, but let's look at the new hard rock & metal confirmations in chronological order by earliest dates!

First, Charlevoix classic metal trio Peril are now confirmed for an additional four weekends at the two main regional Kewadin Casino branches through year's end, including dates at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino on May 30th & 31st and October 10th & 11th, and returns to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on October 24th & 25th and December 12th & 13th! Joining upcoming dates at both branches through July that we already knew about, most of the new show confirmations are via Kewadin's entertainment pages, but the May dates aren't listed there, so they appear to be new additions after Kewadin's last updates, and were announced via Peril's Reverbnation page. It's great to see Jeff and company back in the Eastern U.P. for even more 2014 dates, so don't miss their old school heavy attack at either Kewadin Casino throughout the year, including for three consecutive weekends in May & June! All of the new shows have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no cover charges, so check the above links for more details!

Next up in new Kewadin Casino announcements are some new late 2014 dates for local hard rock band 415E! Joining previously announced regional dates through June, the former Hubbard-Menard Band will rock The Northern Pines Lounge in St. Ignace on August 1st & 2nd and then on November 7th & 8th, which sandwich a return to The Rapids Lounge in Sault Ste. Marie on October 17th & 18th. It's great to see the band back for some more regional dates later in the year, so look for some entertaining originals and covers well into the fall! Note as well that this newest band photo on their Facebook page depicts just singer Dave Menard and guitarist Chris Hubbard on stage with no drumkit or bass visible with them. Have recent gigs been just as a duo due to Jack Slater & Devin Anderson's recent out of town residence, or was this a one-off moment? Either way, 415E will be on at 9:00 PM for the new dates, you must be 21 to attend, and there's no announced cover charge. See above for more info, and don't miss 415E's next announced dates in St. Ignace next month!

Moving back to new shows relating to Peril frontman Jeff Hudson, his Traverse City metal band Scarkazm have one more regional concert weekend now booked for 2014, as they'll return to The Northern Pines Lounge in St. Ignace for a weekend on August 29th & 30th! Slated to be just their third concert weekend in the E.U.P. following dates in January and later this month, this melodic groove metal band (with Jeff on drums) must have made a great first impression in January, and hopefully their intense originals and covers go over nicely again for their August dates in St. Ignace! I wonder if they'll come north to Sault Michigan at some point? Like the above dates, Scarkazm's August weekend will be 21+, the shows start at 9:00 PM, and there is no announced cover charge. Check the above links for more details, and make sure to see Scarkazm live in St. Ignace in two weeks!

Finally for today's new Kewadin concert confirmations is the return of Cheboygan classic hard rock trio Driven to The Northern Pines Lounge in St. Ignace on October 17th & 18th! These come almost 4 months after their upcoming St. Ignace stops in June, and while they don't come up north too often (and to Sault Michigan even less), their experienced and fun cover attack should find another solid audience come October! As with the above dates, Driven's October shows are 21+ affairs, start at 9:00 PM, and have no announced cover charge, so check the above links for more details! This popular trio always deliver a fun party atmosphere at their live dates, and their St. Ignace stops this fall should be no exception, so stay tuned for updates on Driven's next trips to the E.U.P. in June and October if they roll in!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews and this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles tomorrow, plus the remaining new Kewadin Casino hard rock show announcements for December hopefully on Friday! Thanks everyone!