LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Gianni Gagoots), New Sault Michigan Videos, And More!!

At last, here's our first news post of November 2016 that doesn't feature weekend concert previews! Below, you'll find some assorted recent news and notes, and a pair of videos that will be relevant to Sault Michigan-area readers, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for year's end!

New local improv hard rock/funk quintet Gianni Gagoots will cap off 2016 as one of the featured performers at Six, Two, Oh.'s Holiday Funk Show at The New American Pub on Friday, December 30th! Last seen opening for Castle in September, this will be Gianni Gagoots' third local concert appearance, and their second with their current lineup, and they'll be on an eclectic & wildly varying bill that will call to mind the three-act hybrid shows that Six, Two, Oh. put on in the summer, just on a bigger scope. The advertised headliners are Montreal jazz/funk trio The OM Sound, while the other local opening acts are rapper Mikey Thomas, the debut of a new local rock band named Bizotic (public information forthcoming, but this may be their Facebook page), local comedian Shane McGuigan, and the turntable stylings of DJ Seith. If you liked the Debutaunt show that Mikey and Shane opened in August, definitely keep this one in mind, as there's a little something for everyone!

This show has a $5 cover charge, you must be 19 or older to attend, and there is an advertised 9:00 PM start time in effect. This show definitely has an intriguing lineup, and while it largely doesn't lean to metal and hard rock, Gianni Gagoots will help cover that with their funk and punk-inspired instrumental jams, and it's anyone's guess how Bizotic will sound at this point, but we'll let you know if public information on them is revealed! Circle this show at The New A for your New Year's weekend plans!

Next up, here's a new original hard rock song from the YouTube channel of prolific Sault Michigan metal artist Bob Helsten, a.k.a. Orb Hearthstone! The I.S.O.M. and Power Slug alum is an avid fan of the Entropia Universe MMORPG video games, and he recorded the song "I'm Not As Eco As I Used To Be" for hopeful usage in the game & related ventures, featuring fellow game user "Refuge MirrorBlack Denied" on guest bass. Even if you're not familiar with the game (like myself), the song has a fun hard-driving sound that will appeal to fans of the newest I.S.O.M. album, but if you prefer his harsh vocal work, you may be disappointed. Check it out below!



Also, here's a short new video to hype up TONIGHT'S Bret Michaels concert at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino! It's just of Bret reminding fans in the Soo that the show is coming up tonight, and that it will be "an unbelievable party" that will "rock your world", and while it's not that substantive, it's cool to see a major artist film a video specifically tailored to us like this! Give it a look below, and remember, tickets are still available, so get yours A.S.A.P. if you haven't already!



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

• In their first album recording update in over five months, Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie revealed on their Facebook page that the local death metal quintet only have 4 songs left to finish recording vocals & lead guitar for their upcoming second album "The Dead Testament", and he cited "finishing touches" for the delay in it's release. Mitch spoke very highly of the recording quality of this album compared to "Eternal Hibernation", noting also that it's "a rebirth" of the band. Sounds good to me, so stay tuned for continued updates!
• We surprisingly haven't mentioned this on the site yet, but the late-notice replacements for one-off Me First & The Gimme Gimmes tribute Hey, What About Us?! at last week's Halloween Party at The Algonquin Pub were a Misfits tribute named The Black Mirrors, whose lineup featured Fitswitch alums J.D. Pearce, Jason Bourcier, Andrew MacDonald, and Chris Thompson. Very cool, hopefully they had a good turnout, and I wonder if this might lead to a full Fitswitch reunion down the road?
• Downtown banquet hall and occasional concert venue The Verdi Hall (later Bucci's Verdi Hall) has quietly changed it's name to The Bridge View Banquet Hall. A reason for the name change isn't available online, but to be fair, I don't believe the Queen Street West location has an active online page anymore. The change was also noted in recent local radio ads. If we hear of any public concerts there in the future, we'll let you know!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates next week as we plow into November! Thanks efvveryone!