The Rest Of This Weekend's Concert Previews, Plus Din & Mike Haggith Updates!!

As promised, here's the rest of this weekend's hard rock concert previews (barring any late notice announcements), and this one will be very much centric around one band in particular and their frontman, but it's certainly a big weekend for them, and there is one more unrelated show to take note of! Here's what you should know!

After a successful two year run (beyond if you count their acid jam days), local alternative hard rock trio The Din will amicably disband TOMORROW NIGHT after their "Suburban Sendoff" at LopLops Lounge! Acting as both their farewell show and the CD release party for their second and final CD "Suburban Dream", The Din will make one final stop at the Queen Street East venue to end their local run with a bang, with many songs from their two albums sure to make their set, and perhaps a Hip cover for good measure? The band has teased that just 50 copies of "Suburban Dream" have been pressed for the show, and with a digital release not yet guaranteed, get down to LopLops tomorrow to get your copy before it's too late! Local indie/hard rock quartet Bizotic will open tomorrow night's proceedings with their own creative original sound, so keep them in mind before The Din say goodbye! Doors open at 9:00 PM tomorrow for this 19+ concert, with Bizotic kicking things at around 10:15 PM.

As for admission and album fees, nothing has been firmly stated on the Facebook event page, but for reference, LopLops shows often have $5 cover charges, while The Din's debut CD sold for $10 upon it's release last year. While we're on the subject, this show and The Din's future were both addressed in this new Sault Star article from Jeffrey Ougler, so what should you know on it? The article features interview quotes from frontman Mike Haggith, where he reflects on why they're breaking up, members' future plans, and what to expect from "Suburban Dream", and it's a good in-depth read for fans! In terms of new revelations, Mike elaborated on where he's moving for work, the guys did debate becoming a full touring band before work commitments got in the way, and Mike plans to keep The Din visible with old media postings via their online pages that should sustain things for another two years (after all, the article name is "Inactive, not hushed".)

Also, Mike didn't completely close the door on future Din activity if "Suburban Dream" caught on critically, but it's clear that this weekend's show is the end of this chapter. I'm glad to see that things are ending on a good note and that they'll continue to have an online presence, just as long as there isn't a mass deletion of old pages and media at some point! I hate when bands do that. Don't miss Mike, Tammy, and Brandan's Suburban Sendoff at LopLops tomorrow night, and for a preview, here's The Din live!



Next up, here's one more weekend concert preview, as while The 3 Day Millionaires rock The Rockstar Bar upstairs, The Algonquin Pub (or Spin Nightclub?) will welcome local indie/hard rock band Vol. as they open for St. Catharine's folk/bluegrass band Dirtfight and Hamilton alt-blues duo Frankie & Jimmy on Saturday night! This unique show will see another homecoming from the members of Shit Liver, albeit in their much milder sister band Dirtfight (who last played here last May), while Frankie & Jimmy made fans with their unique hybrid originals at The New A last July, so it's great to see both bands back to cap off their Northern Ontario tour! As for Vol., they'll add a dash of hard rock to the proceedings in their first ever acoustic concert set to open the night, though they teased on their Facebook page on Saturday that they'll have "a little tiny surprise" during their set. Might it be the rumoured fourth band member, or is something else afoot? Be at The Algonquin Pub on Saturday night to find out!

Note that this show is still scheduled for downstairs, despite the planned dance club nights "every Saturday" at The Algonquin Pub/Spin Nightclub, so if there's any public confirmation of a venue conflict, we'll let you know! In any event, the pub has seen recent renovations, likely tied to the Spin Nightclub launch. As it stands, this show has a $8 cover charge, 19+ age limit, and 9:00 PM start time. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Vol. live & plugged in!



Finally, we'll come full circle with some news from the aformentioned Mike Haggith, as he officially re-activated his solo project last week, via his Facebook page! After a year & a half of public inactivity while focusing on The Din, Mike is bringing his solo project back "after some thought", and he noted that he wants to continue to do his part "to provide all of you with the highs & lows you've come to know and love." In terms of solo album plans, Mike left open the possibility of working on one next, though it's not clear publically if he plans to complete and release "Neighbourhood Watch Revisited", the album he was working on when his solo project initially went inactive last spring. As you may recall, Mike released no less than 47 studio albums in either Windsor or Sault Ste. Marie between 2005 and 2016, and it's great to see that he will continue his music career out in Manitoba, so visit the above links for more details, and Mike's back in our active band links!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!