LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Tarnished), An Inactive Band Note, And A Full Concert Video From 2006!!

Three posts in five days, things are definitely starting to get a little busier around here, which can't be a coincidence given that the second Ontario lockdown is officially over! Fingers crossed that there won't be a third. Today's post features a nice long look a a full local concert set from 14 years ago, a note on a likely inactive local band, and leading off, a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT?! Here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished (well, frontman Alex Traynor & bassist Josh Fair) will play a special acoustic matinee concert at Crooked Music at 539 Ashmun Street TOMORROW! Apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced on their Facebook event page yesterday, in conjunction with a show there yesterday as well. That was announced on only 90 minutes notice, which isn't ideal, but it's great to see Tarnished playing live again! Apologies again, I would have plugged yesterday's show here had it had more reasonable notice! That was Tarnished's first publically advertised concert since the Rock The Block event at the same venue in July (blame the pandemic on the delay), but yesterday's & TOMORROW's shows are two-man acoustic jams with no drummer or Nathan in sight, a'la their live-streamed concerts from last year. If you can't make it out, Tarnished have promised that videos from these gigs are forthcoming.

These bookings make me wonder if last week's "Crooked Jam" video (embedded as a preview below) was either an unadvertised first gig here in their return to live performances or just a private warm-up, but given the absence of any kind of audience, I'd assume it's more the latter. TOMORROW'S show (as was yesterday's) has a 12:30 PM start time, no age limits, and no cover charge, but be respectful of Crooked Music's capacity, social distancing, and mask-wearing regulations. Visit the above links for more details, and stay tuned for more from Tarnished soon!

Next up, I will likely (and reluctantly) be moving Sault Ontario funk/hard rock quartet The Elements to our inactive band links tomorrow due to a year's inactivity. The band has not issued a public update since quietly posting a studio track from their unreleased debut album on their Facebook page one year ago tomorrow, and while the ongoing pandemic could be a huge factor as to their lack of activity, their sister band The Wyld Stallyns have updated social media & played a couple of live-streamed concerts in the interim. Debuting at the former Roosevelt Hotel back in February 2014, The Elements would become a steady fan favourite sight at concerts over the ensuing six years, including the occasional headlining gig, a few turns as tribute acts with themed sets & fake names, appearances at Rotaryfest, Hempfest, and Toystock, and sets opening for the likes of Saving Abel, Random Killing, and K-Man & The 45s.

I wouldn't be shocked at all if The Elements return when normal concerts get the go-ahead, but if this is it, they had a solid run with a fun live presence, never taking themselves too seriously despite proficient covers and strong original material! They could easily fit in with metal and punk shows with their diverse yet aggressive set, and most of the band have honed their unplugged chops with The Wyld Stallyns in recent years. Best of luck to Rob, Jesse, James, Jonas, and Alex in the future!

Finally, here's a surprise find, as a 14 year old video of Toronto-based AC/DC tribute band Thunderstruck live at The Canadian Nightclub was posted on YouTube two weeks ago! This was uploaded onto bassist Pete Dove's YouTube channel as part of a recent spree of full concert videos he's uploaded from this and various other bands of this, but this is the only Soo date, which took place at The Canadian (back when it's host hotel was still The Knights Inn) on December 27th, 2006. AC/DC fans will be more familiar with fellow tribute bands Who Made Who and Hells Bells from their more frequent local dates since, but Thunderstruck remained active through at least the fall of 2019, pandemic acknowledged. Pete gave some insights into this video in the description, noting that it was his second concert with Thunderstruck, their first in a four date swing of Northern Ontario, and his first proper full-concert video that he had filmed of one of his bands.

If you want blood, you've definitely got it here, as Pete's video runs for over two hours, so what AC/DC classics did Thunderstruck tackle on this night? In the first set, they covered "Live Wire", "If You Want Blood (You Got It)", "Shoot To Thrill", "Shot Down In Flames", "Rock 'N Roll Damnation", "Sink The Pink", "Sin City", "Givin' The Dog A Bone", "Dog Eat Dog" (which is not credited in the description's setlist), "T.N.T.", "Rock 'N Roll Ain't Noise Pollution", and "Whole Lotta Rosie", before taking their break, which Pete did abbreviate here. The second set features renditions of "Hells Bells", "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap", "Who Made Who", "Jailbreak", "Back In Black", "It's A Long Way To The Top ("If You Wanna Rock 'N Roll)", "Girls Got Rhythm", "Have A Drink On Me", "Highway To Hell", and "You Shook Me All Night Long"...

...before returning with their namesake song "Thunderstruck" as an encore. Intriguingly, the last seven minutes of the video features the band hanging out in their rooms at the former Knights Inn after the concert, and seeing this VCR camcorder video of them watching a CRT TV makes it feel even older than it actually is! Very solid set of AC/DC classics from a band with the requisite chops, especially with Blair Briceland & a very energetic Rich Trevor nicely channeling Brian and Angus respectively, and the audio quality holds up well after 14 years! Give Thunderstruck in the Soo a watch below!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for last month's poll results and our new poll on the site on Thursday, and with the recent uptick in news, we shouldn't be waiting until Sunday for a traditional post! Thanks everyone!