LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Banned & Telephone And Address), Plus More Recent News!!

We haven't had what could be termed as a full "news" post on here since Sunday, so let's rectify that with a surprise second post on this Friday afternoon, but be sure to check out our Northern Vibe Festival & Biker Pirate Party concert previews in the post below this one! Now, we have new video postings, assorted updates, and LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS to take note of today, so here's what you should know!

Local punk/grunge solo project Telephone & Address will return to the stage on Monday, September 14th when they open for Victoria, British Columbia psych-pop band The Backhomes at The Gore Street Cafe! This will be Telephone & Address' first show since the IRN concert in July (that is, if they played, given that Chris' side project The Red & Black's debut may have replaced them entirely), and it might come in time for the release of their new album "Monster", which Chris noted earlier this week will be pressed next month. Keep that in mind, especially as "Rust Orchid" got a CD release show at The Gore Street Cafe earlier this year! As for The Backhomes, their spacey-sounding alt-pop is a good fit for the venue, and they have talent to display, so give them a listen to see what you think! This ALL AGES Monday nighter will operate under a "pay what you can" model, and it has a listed start time of 7:00 PM. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for updates on the show and "Monster"!

Next up, Kinross, Michigan classic/hard rock trio Banned have announced their first concerts of the fall and winter, as per their Facebook page on Tuesday, so when can you see them next? After a road trip to Gould City tomorrow and a private wedding next weekend, the guys have no currently confirmed bookings until late October, but they're busy after that, with returns to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino planned for October 23rd & 24th, November 27th & 28th, and December 25th & 26th (so if you want live rocking on Christmas, here you go!) They'll also be back in Hessel at The Runway Bar on November 20th & 21st. Curiously, there's no dates listed for the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin, but they will take a road trip out to Manistique to play the Halloween weekend at their Kewadin branch. If more dates are announced, we will be sure to let you guys know, but all of these have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no announced cover charges.

Check the above links for more details on these shows, and also, a new live concert video of Banned was posted on their YouTube channel on Sunday! Filmed at The Sugar Island Music Festival earlier this month (making this the first video we've seen of them at this annual event in four years), this video is of Alex, Wayne, and Don covering AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long", with Don Traynor handling lead vocals, though Alex Traynor joins in for most of the choruses. Not a bad cover, the guys make it work, but it does sound a little empty with only one guitar. Well filmed too, so give it a look below!

Also today, here's a pair of new studio track uploads from Din frontman and prolific solo artist Mike Haggith! While we wait for his and The Din's next concerts, Mike uploaded two "single versions" of his recent solo original songs "We Met As Surrogates" and, as embedded below, "Of Cars & Criminals" onto his YouTube channel on Monday. Compared to the original "Warinside" versions, these are shorter by at least a minute each (including the removal of each song's non-musical intro), with Mike hyping them as condensed and more focused than the originals. Personally, I didn't find the original songs to be overly long, and I prefer the production and fuller sound on them, but hey, it never hurts to experiment, and the songs are effectively pared down! Note as well that Mike's original Facebook page post for the singles hyped that he and The Din were continuing their "studio progress", but no word what the end goal of that is. Give Mike's new single versions a listen above and below!



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

• The Canadian Nightclub is apparently planning to bring back regular live bands on weekends! In conjunction with Maxx Entertainment, the Pim Street venue will kick things off with country cover quartet Bone Yard in two weeks, but more local & out of town bands are planned, and there will apparently be NO COVER CHARGES. In lieu of the karaoke and "mix & mingle" nights on weekends, bands will play an hour early from 9:00 PM-1:00 AM, with DJs playing between sets and closing the night. Great to see The Canadian booking regular bands on weekends again, so stay tuned for updates, and see the above links for more info!
• Local independent label/studio Six Two Oh has launched a new performance video series called "Live @ Six Two Oh" that will feature performances by local and out of town bands from their headquarters. The first episode (recorded in June) features Edmonton garage rock favourites The Archaics from when they were in town for their headlining LopLops concert, though given Six Two Oh's usual genre focus, metal & punk bands are sure to follow if this continues. Check out the first episode above!
• Local pop punk quartet Stereo North are looking for suggestions for new covers to tackle in future concerts, even saying "the more outlandish, the better", as you may remember that they have no qualms playing non-punk songs in a punk style, like Katy Perry's "Dark Horse". If there's something off the beaten path that you'd like Stereo North to cover, mention it on their Facebook page!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and this month's CD review in the coming days! Thanks everyone!