Rhythm & Brews Concert Previews, New Videos, And Much More!!

Let's get a proper news post up on the SMS after what feels like somewhat too long, and while the hard rock concert calendar in Sault Ontario remains slight as restrictions are phased out, we do have a pair of shows to preview today in the region, plus some assorted stories and new videos. With all of that said, here's what you should know on this Thursday evening!

Sault Michigan hard rock cover quartet Rhythm & Brews will return to The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! This will be Brandon, Chris, Brett, and Ron's first concert weekend of 2022, their third total that has had public advertising, and their first set of gigs at The Rapids Lounge since they made their live debut there in July. This talented supergroup of Nixxon Dixxon, 415E, Monkey's Uncle, and Ten Kings alumni should deliver a strong weekend of hard rocking tunes for fans in the E.U.P. so consider a trip to the Soo Kewadin tomorrow and/or Saturday! Both of these Rhythm & Brews dates are 9:00 PM affairs with no cover charges and 21+ age limits, but please respect and follow any public health guidelines posted at the lounge/casino to ensure everyone has a safe time. See above for more details, and we'll let you know when Rhythm & Brews videos of any kind surface!

Next up, let's head to Sault Ontario for some new videos, starting with the latest from local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek! After publically spending the holidays and renewed pandemic restriction period holding merchandise giveaways, the band posted this video onto their Facebook page yesterday, featuring short clips of a song from their upcoming EP! The end credits imply that they were recording at Voodoo Bones Studios in 2020, but if that's an accurate date, they've been sitting on the tracks for quite a while! Regardless of when the were in the studio, they are planning to release the EP this summer. The video proper just has black & white teaser images with some post-production effects, plus some warning alerts at the start to set the mood. There's not enough here to critique the songs yet, but give the teaser a watch below, and stay tuned for more from Fort Creek's camp!

Also, young local punk band Vanity have posted two new original song demos to their YouTube channel in the past couple of days, titled "Playboy Magazine" and, as embedded below, "White Ghosts"! The former is mid-tempo with heavier choruses and somewhat nasal clean vocals, while the latter is more of a straightforward punk song, and both are promising signs of diversity from this rising group! No word yet on if they are indeed making a bassist change, but give Vanity's new originals a listen above & below!

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

 

• The Glambition fundraiser concert at the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre has been postponed once again to Saturday, April 23rd, as per a quiet update to its Facebook event page. This is the fourth public date for the Pauline's Place benefit (scheduled to feature The Apocalypse Afterparty), with the prior three called off due to rising COVID-19 case counts and/or the Ontario capacity restrictions, including the last planned date of this past Sunday. Hopefully things level out enough for Glambition to finally occur!
• Local alternative/hard rock quartet Handsome Sandwich revealed on their Facebook page on January 21st that "we have not been stagnant during this period", and that recording sessions for their debut album "Lettuce" were ongoing, with drummer Johnny Belanger completing drum tracking that week, even including this photo. Before then, Handsome Sandwich hadn't posted on Facebook since their Rockstar Bar show in November, and hadn't referenced "Lettuce" at all since a pre-production update in July, so it's great to see that they are still hard at work! Stay tuned for updates!
• If you're wondering why we never recapped Mike Haggith's Facebook live-stream concert on January 25th, it's because he postponed it the morning of due to "feeling pretty run down" after a busy month, so he "opted to take today to rest and refocus". The live-stream will now take place on February 12th (one week from Saturday), and scheduled guest Jacob Quarrell will be interviewed as planned for the new date. Given Mike's day job, his explanation makes a lot of sense, and I'm surprised he hasn't postponed a prior live-stream for similar reasons before. Hopefully everything works out for next weekend, including both share contest covers!

 

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