LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Soundcheck & Tym Morrison) And Weekend Concert Previews!!

Before we begin, just an apology for missing a pair of shows in last weekend's concert previews, namely Highway 63's St. Ignace Kewadin shows last Friday and Saturday. We did cover them on the site in May, but they completely slipped us by last week. That's on me, I profusely apologize, but hopefully the shows went well! They will be back there in early December. Now, let's dive into this weekend's Halloween/early November concert previews, aside from Saturday's Who Made Who show (coming tomorrow), and we'll start with LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, some on SHORT NOTICE!

With a new month almost upon us, let's roll Tym Morrison's November concert slate into our concert listings today! First up, his long-term weekly concert arrangement at Gliss Restaurant on Spring Street marches on with matinee gigs TOMORROW & SATURDAY, and then on November 8th-9th, 15th-16th, 22nd-23rd, and 29th-30th! As well, he will return to The Roadhouse Bar & Grill on Trunk Road TOMORROW NIGHT and then again on Friday, November 29th as part of his slate of occasional Friday nighters there through at least March. Finally, his seasonal run of Thursday matinees at Thomson Farms Cider & Winery on Third Line West will conclude with concerts next Thursday and on November 14th, joining his previously listed Halloween gig TODAY, so keep all of these dates in mind for the 30 days ahead! Apologies for the short notice on this weekend's Gliss and Roadhouse shows, I should have rolled them in last week to preclude that. The veteran hard rock musician's busy schedule should be welcomed by his fans, so don't miss out on seeing him!

The Gliss and Thomson Farms shows are all ages events with early start times of 5:00 PM at the mill's on-site Wine Barn, and 6:00 PM at Gliss, while the Roadhouse shows are 10:00 PM affairs with 19+ age limits, and none of these concerts have announced cover charges. Also, I cannot confirm if Thomson Farms will have any special Halloween events today, but they have had no shortage of seasonal frills in the lead-up. Visit the official Facebook event pages linked here, here, and here for more details, and here's Tym live!



Next up, local classic hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will apparently be returning to The Water Tower Pub for headlining concerts TOMORROW AND SATURDAY NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, we only learned of these shows via the venue's November concert calendar on your left, as shared on the Sault Music Newsletter Facebook page on Tuesday. These were not listed on Soundcheck's 2019 concert calendar, but more shockingly, these are consecutive gigs at The Water Tower Pub, a venue that historically books different acts nightly, festivals aside. I presume Soundcheck are a late replacement on one night, hence the change in format, but in any event, fans of Terry, Travis, Paul, and Glen's old school covers should be right at home at this familiar central venue TOMORROW and/or SATURDAY! As usual for The Water Tower Pub, these are 9:30 PM & 19+ gigs with no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Soundcheck live in concert earlier this year!

Moving to previously announced concerts, Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished will return to Biggby Coffee for the latest show of their "every Thursday" matinee run there TODAY! We'll wait to cover November shows there until the band or venue confirms them publically, just in case there are any changes to this still-relatively new arrangement. No word on possible Halloween frills for the concert proper, but Biggby Coffee will have free kids drinks for any children who stop by in costume, so parents might want to keep that in mind! Of course, Alex & Josh should have another entertaining afternoon of hard and classic rock covers in store for fans and patrons alike, so keep this show in mind if you want some live music before you head out trick or treating! As recently the case, today's show is at 12:00 PM with no age limits or cover charges, but mind the locale, as this is a coffee shop & restaurant, not a nightclub. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tarnished live!



Finally for today's previews, let's head back to Sault Ontario, where local promoter J.D. Pearce's 15th annual Halloween party goes down TOMORROW NIGHT at The Rockstar Bar! Yes, this is taking place (slightly) after Halloween, though after a two year run of having this event on two consecutive nights, this year's installment returns to a one-night-only format upstairs. However, the post-2013 focus on cover bands will continue this year, as three local tributes will take the stage, including the revival of Foo Fighters tribute The Soo Fighters, who we last saw at this venue and event in 2017. Only frontman Jules Cote is back from their first run, so how will new members Wes Greco, Max Ambeault and Jonas Gasperas sound? We'll know tomorrow! New local Volbeat tribute band The Guitar Gangsters (featuring Garden of Bedlam's Buzz & Derek Turner and Jack Spades alumni Jesse Cook & Tiffany Stocco) will also make their own local concert debut here, which already has a lot of people's attention.

It'll be very interesting to see Buzz & Derek back together after a 4 year absence, and we should be in good hands from this talented foursome! The third band is a Me First & The Gimme Gimmes tribute (replacing a planned Rob Zombie tribute), and while their identity is not public, I'd put my money on this being Jack Spades doing Me First-style punk covers of non-punk songs, given that J.D. fronts them. Should be interesting to find out, either way! Expect a costume contest as usual for this 19+ event, which has a $10 cover charge and a 9:30 PM start time. Visit the above links for more details, I will see you there, and here's The Soo Fighters live two years ago!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for our Who Made Who preview and more on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Sailor's Tongue - "Pierced" CD Review!!

It is now time for our 124th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and for a second straight month, we're dipping into the archives due to no new paid albums coming out in October to my knowledge. After a three month spell of reviewing solo releases, we have a band's album this time, namely inactive local hard rock band Sailor's Tongue's demo CD "Pierced"! Released in conjunction with their Rotaryfest Second Stage set on July 20th, 2013, this independently-recorded & released album was originally intended as a sampler for their planned full length studio album that never came out, and as such, it intentionally had a limited physical release. In fact, I had planned to review this album on the site when it was new, but drummer Dean McKey asked me to hold off in lieu of the full length CD. Between them falling inactive by 2014 and the 6+ year wait, I think we're in the clear now, though note that songs 2-4 are clearly labelled as demos in the liner notes.

"Pierced" is credited to Sailor's Tongue's late-period quintet lineup, including Dean alongside his brother Kyle McKey on lead vocals and guitar, plus fellow guitarists Liam Seymour & Blake Jackson, and bassist Jeff Brown, though only the McKey brothers factor on every track. We're tying in this review with Liam's solo concert at The Whiskey Barrel last week, for the record. This CD is long since out of print, but all 7 songs can be streamed between Dean's Soundcloud page (the first four songs) and the band's Reverbnation page (the last three), and are linked as such in this review.

Featuring 7 songs running for about 34 minutes in length, let's begin this review with it's opening song, "Float"! Apparently recorded solely by the McKeys in 2010, this song has a very catchy groove that plays into their musical strengths, and I like the stop-start riffing in particular! If you're more familiar with Kyle's softer and country work, you may be surprised to hear his strong melodic vocals on heavier music like this, and he has a solid range that he puts to use well on the chorus! The bluesy touches in the song's structure are welcomed also, and it's very easy to see why this song was pegged to open "Pierced". Maybe it could stand to be a little heavier, but it shows what Sailor's Tongue were all about! In an odd mistake, songs #2 and #3 are actually flipped on the disc proper compared to the liner notes, so we'll treat the demo of "Wired For No Sound" as the second track, as that's where it is on the CD.

Opening with more of a southern twang (the "whoa-oh-ohs" don't fit), this song does indeed owe more to Kyle's country background, and it has more of a deliberate pacing while still having a rollicking & fun atmosphere. The choruses really help this song to stick in your head, and the guitar work is up to the task, while the use of a Frampton-esque talk box is a unique addition! I prefer "Float" overall, but if you like southern rock, even if Kyle's voice isn't a perfect match for the song, this one will deliver the goods! The actual track #3 is the demo of "Out of the Woodwork", which is more straight-forward than it's predecessors, and it almost reminds me of The Matthew Good Band at points, if that's fair. Dean's drumming is solid, and this song suits Kyle's voice more than the predecessor, though I don't like the tone on the backing vocals that much. The repetitive ending drags on too long, but the song is hooky and well written, and the guitar work shines as usual!

The third and final song labelled as a demo is next, namely "Shadow", which has a nice funk-inspired guitar riff , and even a little cowbell, but the song isn't as memorable as it's predecessors, almost feeling like the song was stitched together from parts of other songs. I think it's too reliant on the vocal structure, which is well sung as it goes, but I think the song isn't as cohesive and memorable as it could have been. I'd have at least taken things funkier, but it's not a bad song, I'd just have re-arranged it's parts. Fifth on "Pierced" is "Doctor John", which is another southern-influenced song that definitely succeeds across the board, with a fast pace, catchy vocals with an amusing story, and a driving rhythm that accentuates the guitar work, with very solid bass picking as well. I'd say this would be a great blues song if the music behind it wasn't so quickly paced and upbeat,  and it's definitely a highlight of mine on this CD!

The penultimate song is one of Sailor's Tongue's signature originals, "BootScattered", which is also the disc's shortest track. After a slow drum intro, the familiar swing-esque guitar riff kicks in, and this is definitely one you can stomp along with (that's a good thing!) The lyrics are as catchy and earwormy as ever, and the guitar and bass compliment each other well, but I think I prefer live versions of this song, where Kyle's singing is a little deeper than on this studio copy. Everything comes together really well on "BootScattered", which has always been one of my favourites from them! "Pierced" closes with it's longest song, "Beauty's Limousine", which is more of a melodic rocker that feature's Kyle's best vocals of the CD, and while it mostly has an upbeat hard rock sound, there is a nice instrumental section where the guys show their stuff well, though the title of the song is repeated far too much, and their catchiest work was in prior songs. Solid closer overall!

So, what are my final thoughts on Sailor's Tongue's CD? This may not have been the intended final product, but it showcases an entertaining and diverse hard rock band with lots of talent and songwriting ability, and there's no shame in this being their only(?) physical album! I assume the plan was to fully re-record these and other non-included originals with the full 2013 quintet lineup, but even the demos don't sound like demos, so don't let that scare you away! It's not overly clear how many of the guys are on most tracks, but the guitar work is great, Kyle's voice is generally a great fit throughout, and Dean's drumming is always on point. Sailor's Tongue could bounce between hard, southern, funk, and alternative rock without breaking a sweat, which isn't easy for every group, and songs like "BootScattered", "Float", and "Doctor John" showcase them at their best. Not every song worked across the board though, with repetition, backing vocals, and the structure of "Shadow" being my biggest points.

The McKey brothers have confirmed that they still songwrite for Sailor's Tongue despite now living out of town, and as we saw at Rotaryfest this year, they could always return for a show when we least expect it. I don't know if we'll ever get the full length album they were planning in 2013, but treating "Pierced" as just a teaser demo is selling it short. Give it (and more) a listen at the above links, and I hope you guys liked this month's CD review! Next month in this series, I am unsure what we'll be looking at, but here's what I can say. A new release would of course gain precedence, so check out our next "Where Are The New Albums?" post on Saturday for hints as to what could be on the docket. If no major albums come out from metal, hard rock, and/or punk bands, we would dip into the archives again, with precedence going to artists playing live locally in November. In any event, we will not be reviewing any albums from The Inner City Surfers or Awokest due to them still being in our 6 month anti-bias buffer period.

In any event, look out in November for our next CD review, and stay tuned for this weekend's concert previews and more news soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Hair Scare Live), New Videos, And Music City SSM Updates!!

Let's tackle some more recent news and notes as we begin winding down the month of October, and we're roughly splitting things between the twin Saults today. Here, we have some new videos from acts on both sides of the border, updates on ambitious music plans in Sault Ontario, and leading off, a huge LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for you 101.3 FM listeners on Saturday nights!

Former Cinderella frontman Tom Keifer will return to The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino for a special headlining concert on Saturday, February 22nd! Fans last saw Tom on a local stage when he and Cinderella rocked this venue in April 2011, and while Cinderella proper disbanded in 2017, he has a full solo band now and new original material with them, so look for new songs and his old classics like  "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)" & "Nobody's Fool" early next year! Support will include Maryland glam/hard rock quintet Kix in their apparent local debut, who will bring a repertoire of classic songs like "Don't Close Your Eyes" & "Girl Money" to the table in February, so genre fans should be right at home with their set! Los Angeles hair metal veterans Faster Pussycat will round out the bill on this night, and with songs like "House of Pain" and "Nonstop To Nowhere", they should set the tone very well in four months' time!

Notably, this concert is branded as "Hair Scare Live", after the popular Saturday night hair/glam metal show on Rock 101, who first announced this concert this past weekend, and have the exclusive pre-sale ticket code on air. Very cool for Scott and company to get the show's name on a concert very much up their alley! This all ages, 8:00 PM show has tickets going on sale on Halloween at 10:00 AM, with general tickets starting at just $25, and you can get yours then at this link, the in-person box office, or at 1-800-KEWADIN. You couldn't ask for a more Hair Scary show than this, so rock the winter blues away at this one, and visit the above links for full details!

Next up, let's continue playing catch-up with local classical metal band Theatre of Night's Facebook video postings that we missed covering on the SMS this year, now focusing on their Facebook group! Generally, this is where keyboardist Craig Harrison shares videos originally posted on his personal Facebook page, rather than brand new exclusive content. On April 28th, Craig shared this video featuring their original (and non-seasonal) instrumental named "The Drowning", which first went on Reverbnation back in 2017. Described as "a somber anthem of beauty & sadness", this has a delicate ethereal sound that suits their classical ties well, and Steve's guitar work is really solid, so fans should give it a listen if they haven't already! On June 9th, Craig shared a video of singer Rachel Mender beautifully covering Evanescence's "Hello" in studio, and it's got very strong emotion to it, possibly inspired by her then two month-old son Grey's major health battle (click here for information.)

Best of luck to Rachel & Ryan at this difficult time, no parent should have go through something like this! We'll wrap for now on a happier note, namely this video Craig shared from August 20th of Rachel tracking vocals in studio for Theatre of Night's version of "O Holy Night", complete with another shot of the monitor as things get recorded. Short by excellently done as usual, it's nice to hear an isolated vocal track recording (which isn't common for heavier bands to show off around there), so give that video a look below!

 

Moving back to Sault Ontario, remember how local party metal band The Apocalypse Afterparty ran a private venue named Mellow D's Underground that hosted a handful of concerts in early-mid 2017? Well, it returned in a new (private) location on Friday at a Halloween party that the Soo's Got Talent third place finishers headlined! The band never acknowledged the show (entitled "The Spooktacular Soiree") publically until yesterday via their Facebook page. The A.A. shared the stage on Friday with hip hop acts, including Killabeatz, Kodex, ex-As It Stands frontman Justin "Nadj" Pregent, and Conika, who filmed this video of Paul, Alice, and Amanda covering Lorde's "Tennis Courts." Lighting is what it is given the location, and the video only runs for 63 seconds, but it's a lively and intense rendition as you might expect, and this seems like a fun way to bring Mellow D's back after a 2+ year hiatus! Give this video a look below, and stay tuned for more from them!

Finally, remember the discussion of "Music City Sault Ste. Marie" and an event with music industry professionals (including Treble Charger frontman Greig Nori) at The Water Tower Inn two weeks ago? Well, here's what we know about that, though you can get more technical details via the SooToday articles linked here & here. In a nutshell, representatives from numerous municipal and arts organizations have came together to help build up Sault Ste. Marie & it's music industry to become a true "music city" and a full destination for tourism, jobs, city development, and artistic growth therein. London was cited as an inspiration, based on the economic activity, publicity, and tourism there following their hosting the Juno Awards in March, with the Soo hosting the Junos cited as a potential goal. The involved groups and sponsors hosted the "Mastering of a Music City" event on October 17th, outlining their vision and what we could take from London's example, followed by a networking session.

I'm all for bolstering the Soo's music community, it'd be a huge boost for local recognition and tourism if done right, and we have loads of musical talent here, past and present! This is a tricky market in some respects given how Sault Michigan largely controls local radio, and as such, Canadian acts often don't have the same visibility. Maybe that could be addressed via Music City SSM? The Junos is a lofty goal, especially as they haven't been held in a venue as small as the Gardens since 1994, but it sure would be cool to have them here. Visit the above links for much more on these plans, and stay tuned for more news on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

YouTube Channel Profile Series: 1djminer & wabaanimkii's Channels

It's now time for this month's YouTube Channel Profile Series entry, as we look at 1-3 YouTube channels featuring half or more of their videos with a local focus, be they on artists or concerts, in order to spotlight them for local readers and encourage new subscriptions. This month, our first randomly selected channel only had two distinct local hard rock-relevant video types, so we added a second channel with only one video to fill things out. We have some interesting content on both sides of the border today, including footage from a huge show here over a decade ago, so here's what you should know!
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1djminer's Channel (http://www.youtube.com/1djminer)

Owner: YouTube user 1djminer, identity and hometown unclear

Channel Timeline: Launched on February 14th, 2007; Videos posted from January 25th, 2008 through March 5th, 2011

Channel Summary: This channel is solely devoted to live concert videos shot by 1djminer during the three year span it was actively used for video postings. While six of the 11 videos are from the first Three Days Grace concert at The Steelback Center (now GFL Memorial Gardens) on January 24th, 2008, the last five are from out of town concerts featuring Avril Lavigne, Matthew Good, and Bon Jovi.

Why You Should Watch: As one of the best public sources for this early Steelback Center concert featuring two massive names in modern hard rock, this is well worth checking out, while the latter out of town videos generally hold up for fans of those artists! Note however that 1djminer did not film opening act Econoline Crush, and there are a lot more videos from both this and Three Days Grace's 2009 show here on other YouTube channels, including this one that only focuses on their live shows at any location. Also, 1djminer has not visibly used this YouTube channel in over eight years.

Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

Seether and 3 Days Grace - Broken-SSM: By far the channel's most popular video with over 1,000 views, this video is of co-headlining South Africa hard rock band Seether playing their hit ballad "Broken" at the Gardens in 2008, with then-3DG lead singer Adam Gontier playing Amy Lee for the occasion. The video quality's acceptable given the age, but the audio takes a sharp hit when the song gets heavier, unfortunately starting during Adam's solo verse. Nice to see footage of the local cover, which is well done, and videos of this particular version of "Broken" at other shows can be found elsewhere on YouTube! Other Seether videos shot by 1djminer are of them playing "Fine Again", "Remedy", and "Gasoline", though all have similarly distorted audio.

  

3 Days Grace - SSM (ROOSTER) Alice in chains cover: Regarding Three Days Grace's headlining set that night, 1djminer did film them playing (part of) "Pain", but the distorted, scratchy audio of the Seether videos recurs there. However, he did film Adam covering Alice In Chains' "Rooster" solo during their set, and the softer song and acoustic guitar fit the camera specs a lot better! A bit of a shaky angle, but Adam's rendition is really nice, and it was a fun surprise to see at this show 12 years back!

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Wabaanimkii's Channel (http://www.youtube.com/wabaanimkii)

Owner: YouTube user Wabaanimkii, identity unclear, though that is a recorded last name in Northern Michigan

Channel Timeline: Launched on March 1st, 2007; Videos posted on June 11th, 2013 & August 8th, 2016

Channel Summary: Aside from a silent parody short about a hunter, Wabaanimkii's only surviving video is of inactive Sault Michigan alt-metal band The Karstens covering The Deli Creeps' "Bend Up" during a set at Downtown Days in August 2016, playing at an outdoor stage at the corner of Ashmun Street and East Portage Avenue. Complete with a guitarist joining in mid-song, this is very nicely shot on a beautiful day, and while this isn't the heaviest song from The Karstens' repertoire, it's great to see unexpected covers like this in the E.U.P.! Note that prior Karstens covers of Buckethead and Flipper songs have since been taken down from this channel for unannounced reasons, though you can see more videos of them live elsewhere, including at the band's own YouTube channel.


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I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! This series will return on or around November 26th when we profile another randomly selected YouTube channel, this time the channel from former Pixo Control frontman Mike Mikus, featuring lots of content from his old local band's run and his more recent solo work! Stay tuned for that, and for more news this week! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Wyld Stallyns) & New Facebook Video Uploads!!

Here's another news post for your Saturday morning reading, which mostly focuses on new video postings from a few local bands, but leading off, here's a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns will hit the road for a special Halloween party concert TONIGHT at The Island Bar & Grill in Hilton Beach! Apologies for the short notice, the band only confirmed this gig via their Facebook page on Thursday. A road trip to the small village on St. Joseph Island (an hour southeast of the Soo) is not entirely foreign for us, as Stiffler's Mom played at The Island Bar & Grill back in 2015, while Tym Morrison and CASS Cafe-linked metal bands have also played recorded Hilton concerts elsewhere. In this case, TONIGHT'S Halloween party will see the usual frills for such an event, including a costume contest, though if you are at all interested, the bar is on the site of the Hilton Beach Inn, so you can stay the night if need be. A 6:30 PM start time is in effect TONIGHT, and age limits and cover charges are not advertised. See above for more details, and here's Rob, Christina, and Jesse live!



Next up, here's a brand new video of local Tool tribute band Parabol tackling the classic song "Lateralus" at Soo Blaster two weeks ago! This video was only posted on their Facebook page on Thursday, but better late than never. An incomplete 2:43 clip of the song's end, this still captures their faithful and intense stage show very nicely from a close angle, and John Barber sure is channeling Maynard James Keenan throughout! Fans of Tool and/or Parabol won't want to miss this video and it's professional stage setup, so give it a look below, and visit their Facebook page for details on their out of town gigs in Sudbury & North Bay next month!



Also, here's another new live concert video, this time of Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished's most recent "every Thursday" matinee concert at Biggby Coffee! This was posted on the venue's Facebook page yesterday, and it features singer/guitarist Alex Traynor covering Tom Petty's "Free Falling" solo for tips and coffee. Where's guitarist Josh Fair? I have no idea, but seeing as the full three-piece band played at LSSU that same night, this appears to have been a temporary absence, maybe even just this song. Alex handles this cover well, and the video's nicely angled, so give it a look below!



Finally, let's continue our look at Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night's short video uploads on their Facebook page as they continue their Christmas tour prep! On September 28th and again five days later, the channel posted videos of guitarist Steve Giles playing at a table, with the first one featuring more of his electric shredding, and the second being acoustic and far more reserved. Both are under 40 seconds long, but they showcase his musical range nicely, if not the stuff we'll be hearing on tour for the holidays! This past Sunday, another minute-long video was posted of Steve and bassist Scott Andringa (on guitar) acoustically covering Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here". I'm not a huge Pink Floyd fan, but the cover works well, though the video has too tight of an angle. We'll wrap things with their two newest videos from Monday, including this video featuring a pan & scan of the studio while their version of "O Come All Ye Faithful" plays in the background.

While this and the video featured below have a hazy black & white filter put on them, the preceding clip is a solid enough teaser of the work they've been doing! Featured here, we have Theatre of Night proper playing "Carol of the Bells", giving us our first look at drummer Erik Sales in their 2019 Christmas tour teaser videos in the process. The 30 second clip showcases everyone in their element, though we don't see Craig (who's behind the camera), and Rachel doesn't sing at this point, despite being present in frame. Now we are caught up re: Theatre of Night's Facebook page, so give these videos a look above & below, and stay tuned for more from their camp!

 
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Who Made Who, Just Leppard, Tym Morrison, & Tarnished!!)

A quiet weekend of hard rock concerts is in store for the last weekend before Halloween, so to round out this weekend concert preview post, we have some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS to tackle for next month for you tribute band fans! That said, let's start with the previews, which both have very SHORT NOTICE add-on shows to note on here!

Reports of the end of Tym Morrison's Thomson Farms Cider & Winery run are premature, as the prolific local hard rock singer/guitarist will return to the Third Line West mill's on-site Wine Barn for matinee concerts TONIGHT and next Thursday! Apologies for the short notice on TONIGHT's show, Tym only confirmed that his Thomson Farms arrangement was extended via the new gigs' Facebook event page on Sunday. It looks like Thomson Farms either now close for the season in mid-November, or always did and I didn't know, but either way, Tym didn't advertise these last(?) four gigs until this week. These should be a prime chance to see Tym's unplugged hard rock covers at a familiar local establishment once again, so keep TONIGHT and Halloween's gigs in mind! We'll add his November shows here and at Gliss to our concert listings next week. And yes, Tym will continue his long-term arrangement at Gliss Restaurant on Spring Street TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT as well at his regular place and time!

Fans of Tym's skilled and vast setlist should be in good hands as he rocks Gliss this weekend, so don't miss out either! Also, I apologize for missing a late notice venue change for Tym' show this past Saturday, as his Gliss gig apparently did not take place, so he was able to play at Thomson Farms instead for a rare non-Thursday show there. Hopefully that went over well! TONIGHT'S Thomson Farms show is at 5:00 PM, he's at Gliss at 6:00 PM, and these gigs do not have announced age limits or cover charges. Click here and above for more details, and here's Tym live!



Next up, Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished's ongoing "every Thursday" run of matinee gigs at Biggby Coffee will continue TODAY, but that's not all, as they'll be making their Lake Superior State University debut TONIGHT with a full band concert at The Galley in The Cisler Center! Again, apologies for the short notice on the latter event, it was only announced via this Facebook event page on Monday. You don't hear of hard rock bands playing on campus at LSSU very often, let alone in The Galley (a restaurant/lounge), so it will be interesting to hear how this advertised 90 minute set goes TONIGHT! It will also be a chance for fans to see the rarer electric version of Tarnished with drummer Tommy Korcal, which plays less frequently than the 2 man acoustic variant.

These shows do not have advertised cover charges or age limits, with Tarnished's regular unplugged Biggby concert taking place at the new 12:00 PM start time, and their trip to The Galley is at 8:00 PM TONIGHT. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Tarnished live!



Also, here's some more new concert announcements for next month as part of The Canadian Nightclub's wave of live tribute bands this fall, starting with the return of Toronto-based AC/DC tribute band Who Made Who for one night only on Saturday, November 2nd! No, I did not put this concert off on purpose, it really only got two weeks notice online. By far the most familiar AC/DC tribute among local audiences in the 2010s, this will be Who Made Who's first local concert appearance since rocking The Rockstar Bar in April of last year, though they are no strangers to The Canadian, having played there most recently in 2012. It's great to see Who Made Who bring their brand of high voltage rock & roll back to the Soo next month, and hopefully there's a great turnout for their faithful sounding and looking stage show once again! Tickets for this 19+ & 9:00 PM event are $15 in advance at The Canadian Motor Hotel's front desk, or $20 at the door. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details as they roll in!

Finally, the other new tribute band concert at The Canadian Nightclub next month will see Sudbury-based Def Leppard tribute band Just Leppard make their local debut on Saturday, November 9th! Unlike Who Made Who, this band is very new to the live circuit, only having debuted in August, and this is just their second announced concert, if you can believe that. As such, this will be an interesting opportunity to see how Just Leppard compare to the real thing, and luckily, they do have this promotional video if you want to see what they bring to the table. Myself, I'm not a big fan of Def Leppard, but if you're a loyal Hair Scare listener, you'll want to circle this date on your calendar! Identically to Who Made Who's show the previous week (and the CCR tribute concert on November 16th), this is a 19+ concert at 9:00 PM with tickets running for $15 in advance and $20 at the door.) Head to the official Facebook event page for more details!

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

Black Mastiff Concert & Theatre Of Night Videos!!

Before we tackle this weekend's hard rock concert previews, let's cover some recent video finds from both sides of the border, starting with live footage from Monday night's Black Mastiff-headlined concert at LopLops Lounge! Promoters Oh!No Collective were on hand livestreaming all three acts for the first time post-name change, and we'll start with the featured Edmonton stoner/hard rock trio, who were filmed playing their new CD's opening song "Downed By A Sound" and another song I couldn't immediately place. Black Mastiff sound good in this performance, almost like a doomier Monster Truck, if you can make sense of that, and it's a shame there's not more fans up front. Of course, being on a Monday night AND the same day as the election doesn't help, but you can see what Black Mastiff brought to the table below, from a couple of different angles! Oh!No also shot this video of opening indie/alt-rock quartet Man Feelings playing an original song of theirs, and it has nice melody, if not the aggression of the night's other acts!

The other video from LopLops on Monday is of prolific local folk punk/metal solo artist Chase Wigmore, who recently confirmed on his Facebook page that his planned Devil's Night solo album release (and by extension, it's attached release concert) has been postponed for personal reasons, though he is more direct and blunt in his actual post. Disappointing, but fans still got to see him live this month, and you can see it for yourself in the Oh!No Collective's livestream! Captured in progress, this has Chase in full folk punk mode with melodic intensity and nice guitar work all around! That said, I wouldn't have been filming from so far away, which just accentuates the low early turnout (at least zoom the camera in or something.) Give Chase's video a look below, and stay tuned for more from him and/or Awokest soon!

We'll close today with a long overdue look at the various Facebook preview videos (all relatively short) posted by Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night in the lead-up to their third annual Christmas tour, which kicks off next month and will have a return date at The Dreammakers Theatre at the local Kewadin Casino on December 14th! The first of these videos went up on August 19th, starting with this 39 second clip of guitarist Steven Giles shredding, which serves as a nice showcase of his skills! That same day, the band posted this minute-long video of singer Rachel Mender covering Evanescence's ballad "My Immortal" karaoke-style, which isn't well framed if you want to see her front-forward, but this is more proof of her very nice vocal abilities! Neither of those videos are Christmas-related, but the band remedied that a week later with this video featuring tracking for a version of "What Child Is This?" with Rachel on vocals.

Similarly on August 31st, the band shared this video of bassist Scott Andringa laying down bass tracks in studio, which is short like the others, but he performs as well as you'd expect, and we again see a preview of the tracking on the computer. We have seen the occasional teaser video of computer tracking for actual studio copies of Christmas carols with the recent touring lineup, but are these just for the band's own rehearsal purposes, or might we actually see a "Christmas Night" reissue with Rachel, Scott, and Erik on board? In any event, the clips have a lot of promise, no matter what lies ahead! A few weeks later, Theatre of Night brought us the video we'll leave off with today, which features both Steve & Scott rehearsing/recording in studio, this time by playing "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen", with more tracking monitor visuals in the middle.Nice to see the guys playing off of each other so well, so give this video a look below, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night's Facebook page (and group?) soon!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews and more tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Black Mastiff Concert Preview, New Videos, And Musicians Wanted Facebook Group Updates!!

As promised, let's preview a special Monday night concert today, and to round things out, we also have some new videos from some familiar faces, and some long overdue tidbits from a popular Facebook group. With all of that said, here's what you should know!

If you're looking to blow off some steam and/or celebrate following the election, you have a great outlet to do so TONIGHT, as Edmonton stoner/hard rock trio Black Mastiff will make their local concert debut when they headline at LopLops Lounge! One of the middle stops on their tour in support of their new CD "Loser Delusions", Black Mastiff's alternative rock-tinged take on stoner rock should provide a solid night of original action at LopLops tonight, so give their smooth melodic tunes a listen to see what they bring to the table! The varied opening roster will include local indie-alt rock quartet Man Feelings in their first public concert since the summer, as well as prolific folk punk/metal solo artist Chase Wigmore, whose set you may not want to miss, especially if his teased Devil's Night concert doesn't occur. Promoted by the Oh!No Collective, this 19+ show has a 9:00 PM start time (note that election polls close at 9:30 PM), and admission is either $10 or "pay what you can."

While the Monday night scheduling won't be optimal for most, this should be a fun concert if you can swing attending, with a nice mix of sounds to take in from the night's three acts. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Black Mastiff live!



Next up, here's another new video from Chase's old Strange Coyotes bandmate Mike Haggith, who shared this clip of him playing "The Nature Of The Times" in his Windsor hometown onto his Facebook page last week! Mike flew home last week for a spell, and he was able to perform there at The Dominion House Tavern at a jam night this past Tuesday, joining in with his old S.C.A.R. bandmate Dylon Rabidoux and fellow area musicians. The 7 minute video showcases a loose and casual take on the "Bridges" opening single, and even a late saxophone(!) solo, and it's worth a watch for fans of his Thompson-era output, so give it a watch below!

Also, here's a new video of local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck live at Reggie's West this past weekend! This video was posted onto SaultOnline's Mike Caruso's YouTube channel on Saturday, so I presume it was filmed on Friday. The 8+ minute clip features Soundcheck covering Styx's "Too Much Time On My Hands" and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' "Runnin' Down A Dream" in succession, with Travis Sharpe singing lead on the former song, and Terry Eaton doing the honours on the latter. The warm lighting isn't to the video's advantage, especially the mobile closer angle, but the covers sound good, like how you'd expect from Soundcheck! Unfortunately, bassist Paul Belair is stuck behind that large pillar that's still on the stage, as old Rosie regulars will recall, but at least he shows up on the closer camera. Give this one a look below, and check out more recent live cover action on Mike's channel linked above!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, all as related to musician searches on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group! As usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• Local singer/guitarist and Soo's Got Talent semifinalist Cameron Oliver is looking for a creative bassist and drummer for his new local band project, who will "play mostly country and '80s rock." Of course, he's on guitar and vocals, and while the description isn't necessarily pointed in our direction, remember that he did cover Ozzy Osbourne's "Mama I'm Coming Home" in the second round last month. Click here or message him via his group post from September 29th if you want more details!
• Former Half Past frontman Jordan Rains is looking to start a new local band, who would play hard rock, metal, and alternative music. In this band, he would be playing guitar too, and he is looking for a bassist and drummer. Jordan showed promise in his brief Half Past stint, so if you're interested in working with him, message him at this link or on his group post from August!
• On September 4th, Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie posted on the group to say that he was looking for musicians to join him in a planned Linkin Park tribute band named Bellevue Park for "the upcoming Halloween show", with Mitch himself handling lead vocals and guitar. If he meant J.D. Pearce's annual party, then that ship has sailed, but in the off chance this is still a plan for this month/beyond, message him at this link or above for more info!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates this week! Thanks everyone!

The Soo's Got Talent Finals Results & Video!!

Before we preview tomorrow's Black Mastiff concert and cover some more recent updates, here's our long awaited fallout/results post from the finale of a major local entertainment competition (and ARCH fundraiser) that wrapped up over a week ago, so here's what you should know!

After four weeks of exciting performances, the second annual Soo's Got Talent competition ended at Soo Blaster on Friday, October 11th, with singer/guitarist Adrian Sullivan being named as the winner! Apologies for the delay, we were waiting for video from the finals to turn up online before making a full wrte-up. As outlined in this SooToday article by Darren Taylor, Adrian narrowly edged out vocalist Juliana Regan for the top spot, as determined by judges Darren Robertson, Mike Severin, Lesley Walsh Tibben, and guest Tim Murphy. Adrian picked up $1,000 for the top prize, and judges actually announced everyone's final ranking publically, including a strong third place showing for resurgent rap/metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty, which is supremely encouraging given their long layoff and outlier status! Their finish was better than at the VM Radio Battle finals run in 2015, if you want to compare the events.

Also, kudos to Coulson Perri (a wild card finalist, mind you) placing in fourth! Adrian is briefly interviewed in the above article (which includes photos of all seven finalist acts), where he notes that he has solo music on Soundcloud, he's currently in an up & coming local band named The Uncanny Valley, and he is primarily inspired by classic rock bands like Led Zeppelin & The Who. We didn't see Adrian tackle any heavier bands in his covers during The Soo's Got Talent, but he is a very talented musician with a bright future ahead of him, and it'll be very interesting to see what he has in store down the line! As for the final round video, SaultOnline and ONNtv outdid themselves to cover the last round, as partly due to each finalist playing two songs, the last episode runs for over two and a half hours! As aired on ONNtv on Wednesday and posted on their YouTube channel on Friday, what all can you see in the final round?

The video starts with Tim Murphy covering "This Is The Moment" from the Jekyll & Hyde musical,  before moving into the finalists, who are each starting with a song picked by the judges. Robert "Killabeatz" Drolet (5th place) opens with an interpolation of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song", which includes pre-recorded vocals of his and live beatboxing. Interesting approach, and he worked with what he was given, but I think his regular repertoire suits him better. Other "judges pick" covers include Bethany Pelletier LeBeouf (7th place) singing Alessia Cara's "Scars To Your Beautiful" & The Dancing Divas (6th place) performing Jessie J's "Price Tag", followed by the impeccably dressed Apocalypse Afterparty covering R.E.M.'s "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)", and the rapid fire vocals and lyrical content suits their sound really well! Coulson Perri is next singing Alice Cooper's "Only Women Bleed", and he plays the part nicely, complete with Alice-esque costuming and makeup!

Juliana Regan is next doing Sinead O'Connor's version of "Nothing Compares 2 U", with Adrian Sullivan rounding out the first half by covering George Michael's "Faith". In between halves, the "surprise celebrity tribute artist" was actually local Elvis Presley impersonator Jimmy Fiore covering "Burning Love" & "Can't Help Falling In Love". I'm not a big Elvis fan, so judge for yourselves how he compares! The second half performance order is identical to the first, and it features Killabeatz doing a parody of "A Whole New World" from Aladdin leading into a beatboxing performance, Bethany covering Sarah MacLachlan's "Angel", and The Dancing Divas covering Wilson Phillips' "Hold On", before The Apocalypse Afterparty played a laid back yet hard-edged original song that suits their approach! We also get Coulson (sans makeup) covering Duran Duran's "Hungry Like The Wolf" and Juliana tackling Postmodern Jukebox's jazz cover of The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army".

Adrian closed the competition with his own original song "Something To Believe In", before 2018 Soo's Got Talent winner Daniella Brewer returned to update everyone on what she's done in the past year, and to sing her cover of Lewis Capaldi's "Bruises". Afterwards, we got an unadvertised guest song from the rapper who performed with Killabeatz in earlier rounds, accompanied by Apocalypse Afterparty frontman Paul Stanghetta on drums. The video ends with the judges announcing the winners and their closing remarks. I will say, the video proper started going out of sync with the audio track after a while, but there's a lot to take in here, hence why this post is only devoted to the finals. A lot of promising young talent took the stage for year #2 of The Soo's Got Talent, and it will be very interesting to see how everyone's careers progress as a result, but congratulations again to Adrian on his big win, and be sure to watch the video below and the above links for much more from this event!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Black Mastiff preview and more next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Wyld Stallyns) & This Weekend's Concert Previews!!

Now, let's dive into this weekend's hard rock concert previews in a relatively quiet weekend slate! Just as a heads up, the Soo Zombie Walk does indeed return from it's 2018 hiatus on Saturday at the Bushplane Museum, but the only advertised musical performer is Northwest guitarist Greg Callaghan's solo act. Click here for more details on the walk, but as for our previews, let's start with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns will return to their recent stomping grounds (The Whiskey Barrel) for one night only THIS FRIDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only confirmed this show on their Facebook page on Tuesday, but it was previously announced on the venue's Facebook event page for October concerts there. The only stop at this Gore Street restaurant and bar this month for the Elements side project, this will be The Stallyns' first show since rocking The Upper Deck Bar & Grill last week, and first at The Whiskey Barrel in three weeks. Look for the Speers' and Jesse (and James & Jonas?!) to deliver more hard rocking and fan favourite covers on FRIDAY at 8:00 PM! This show has no cover charge or advertised age limits, but mind the locale, this isn't a traditional nightclub. Visit the above links for more details, and here are The Wyld Stallyns live!



Next up, we'll move to previously announced concerts, starting with the continuation of Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished's run of acoustic matinee concerts "every Thursday" at Biggby Coffee, as they'll be back there TODAY! The second week of the slightly later scheduling (now taking place at 12:00 PM rather than 10:30 AM), but everything else appears to be the same, as Alex & Josh are still here to bring their unplugged covers to fans and patrons as they play for "tips and coffee" once again. The later timeslot may be better or worse for some of you guys, pending your own work schedules, but if you're free in the afternoon, why not enjoy some free acoustic hard rock this afternoon? Of course, this is an all ages event. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Tarnished live at Biggby Coffee!

Heading back to Sault Ontario, it's another busy weekend for local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison, who will wrap up his weekly seasonal run at Thomson Farms Cider & Winery TODAY, before continuing his long-term arrangement at Gliss Restaurant TOMORROW & SATURDAY! With seven gigs at the Third Line West mill's on-site Wine Barn in the books, Tym will cap off the season with one more matinee go-around today (he is not advertised for October 24th), so if you want some live music with your cider, wine, and/or fresh produce, you know where to be! Of course, fans who want a closer downtown event can see him at Gliss once again tomorrow and/or Saturday, with more dinner-time hard and classic rock covers sure to be expected there! As usual, these arw all free shows without stated age limits, with today's Thomson Farms concert being at 5:00 PM, and the Gliss shows starting at 6:00 PM. Visit the Facebook event pages linked here & here for more details, and here's Tym live!

Finally for this weekend's previews, let's head to Reggie's West, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! After taking last week off, this will be Terry, Travis, Paul, and Glen's first concert weekend since playing The Esquire Club two weeks ago, and their first at the Reggievelt in just over a month. Always expect an entertaining night of hard rocking covers from this veteran quartet, and they should entertain the masses at Reggie's West this weekend! If you miss out, they will back here in mid-November. As usual for Soundcheck's concerts here, expect there to be no cover charges and a 10:00 PM-ish start time, while you must be 19 or older to attend. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here a brand new video of Soundcheck live, courtesy of SaultOnline reporter Mike Caruso's YouTube channel!

A cover of Cheap Trick's "I Want You To Want Me" at The Water Tower Pub last month, this oddly features Soundcheck as a trio minus singer/guitarist Travis Sharpe, with Terry obviously singing lead. No word on why Travis missed this song, but it's a well handled cover, and nicely shot on multiple cameras like with Mike's other recent cover band clips. Check it out below, and don't miss the real thing this weekend!



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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Eric Martin & Theatre Of Night), Plus New Videos!!

Before we dive into this weekend's concert previews, here's a new news post that is mostly devoted to a pair of big LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for the winter at a major local concert venue, but there are some new videos to round things out. Here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night will embark on their third Christmas tour over the holidays, with at least one E.U.P. stop on the route once again, as they'll return to The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino on Saturday, December 14th! Apparently entitled the "Dreams of Christmas Tour" this year, fans both in the Soo area, downstate, and even in Illinois have enjoyed Craig, Steve, and company's metallized takes on Christmas carols since 2017, and as you heard in instrumental form on their "Christmas Night" CD, they should deliver more seasonal entertainment for hometown fans in a couple of months time! If you are curious, or live below the bridge, you can also see Theatre of Night in Jackson and Blanchard next month, plus in Holland on December 21st, so click here for information on those gigs. I expect further gigs to be added in due course, and for reference, Theatre of Night also played shows in Grand Rapids, Zeeland, and locally in Pickford last year, and in Midlothian, Illinois in 2017.

A 7:00 PM start time is expected for this ALL AGES concert, which will presumably be held in The Dreammakers Theater's table seating configuration once again, and note that food, drinks, and a cash bar were on hand here last year. Tickets are not on sale yet, but last year, they went for $15 (table seating) or $25 (theatre seating), with some proceeds going to the local Salvation Army. It's great to see Theatre of Night back for a third go-around of their Christmas tour, but will this be their only Chippewa County stop for 2019,and what other frills might pop up here and elsewhere? Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and before we move on with this post, they have a bunch of videos we have bypassed over the last few months as they've prepared for the tour, which I profusely apologize for missing out on! They are mostly short, and I'll definitely address them all in an upcoming post, but we'll start with a longer one shared from keyboardist Craig Harrison's personal Facebook page back in June.

This is of Craig playing his 2016 original composition "If I Could Just Tear Down These Walls", in a performance he labelled as "early morning piano work." If you missed his original deleted YouTube copy of this song, it's a dark and melancholy song without any Christmas hints, but you can feel the emotion in it, and the sepia filter in this video works to it's advantage! Give it a look below, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night soon!



Next up, here's the first big hard rock/metal concert announcement for 2020 at the aforementioned Dreammakers Theater, as Mr. Big frontman Eric Martin and Trixter bassist P.J. Farley will join forces for a special acoustic concert there on Saturday, February 15th! Hair metal fans will no doubt recall Eric's work with Mr. Big in the early 1990s, including such hit songs as "To Be With You", "Just Take My Heart", and "Green-Tinted Sixties Mind", and it'll be very interesting to hear him tackle his material in an apparent unplugged setting in four months! P.J. Farley isn't the opening act, as he and Trixter bandmate Steve Brown have routinely backed up Eric in his solo gigs as of late, though venue advertising lists this as a duo performance. We'll let you know if anything changes! Tickets for this all ages show go on sale this Friday at 1-800-KEWADIN, this link, and the in-person box office, and an 8:00 PM start time is advertised. No word on a possible opening act.

Unplugged shows from major touring headliners aren't a foreign concept at the Sault Kewadin (remember when Godsmack played here?), but with a Hair Scare-approved twosome making their way here, it should be an interesting show in many respects, and affordable too! Check the above links for more details as they roll in,and get your tickets on Friday!

Finally for today, here's a new video on Sault Ontario/Manitoba alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith's YouTube channel, featuring the audio from his set at the annual Jamming For Jackets fundraiser concert in his current Thompson, Manitoba homebase this past Saturday! Mike only played an 18 minute set, but he was the event's headliner, and he performed his new originals "The Best You Never Had", "MorningStar", and "Communique" here, plus "The Nature Of The Times" from his delayed "Bridges" album. Nice to hear some new live copies of these songs, and the recording quality's solid overall, so give this a listen below, and keep watch for more from Mike!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!