LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Mike Haggith), Heavy Lies The Crown Updates, And New Videos!!

Here's a late night news post for you guys to check out on this Saturday, which is half devoted to playing catch-up with an E.U.P. band's recent updates, but the rest is on the Ontario side of the border via a new video find and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for a little later this month. With all of that said, here's what you should know!

Local alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith will return to Sault Ste. Marie for a special acoustic solo concert on Tuesday, April 19th at Mane Street Cafe & Lounge! This surprise local date will be Mike's first in the province since he played at Outspoken Brewing in August 2019, and aside from the relatively new locale (adjacent to the Mane Street Salon in the Square 1 Mall at 626 Queen Street East), this show seems to be formatted similarly. Don't go into this expecting a rescheduling of the long-since-cancelled "If Ever Comes The Day" CD release party at LopLops in 2020 (one guess why that show didn't happen), but Mike promises to play both that album and last year's "Bridges" in order & in full on the 19th, along with some other cuts. A 7:00 PM start time, no cover charge, and no age limit are in effect, and CD copies of both albums will be on sale.

I don't think many fans were expecting Mike to announce a Soo date so abruptly, let alone on less than 10 days notice, but remember that his day job can account for scheduling quirks. It'll be great to have Mike back in town though, and fans of his Thompson-era original material will want to stop by the Mane Street Cafe next Tuesday evening to hear these songs in person after way too long! Get more details at Mike's Facebook page!

Next up, here's the latest from St. Ignace, Michigan metal band Heavy Lies The Crown, who haven't been idle despite losing 3/5ths of the band two months ago! As they teased at the time, H.L.T.C. took part in Lansing rock radio station Q106's third annual Michigan Made Music Mania tournament, where station listeners could vote on their favourite rising Michigan rock act in a 16 band bracket. Heavy Lies The Crown did win their opening round match over Grand Rapids rock band Crossing Bard before narrowly falling to Ann Arbor punk band Lake Mosaic in the quarterfinals (Jackson hard rock band Flowers on the Grave won the whole thing). Similarly, frontman Brandon West has entered a Michigan Metal Vocal Competition held by promotional company Ghost Media Entertainment, as one of 12 competing singers from statewide metal bands, so what should you know there?

Apparently being held virtually, vocalists will compete on Wednesday, May 4th, though initial promotion didn't reveal the criteria, prizes, or format. Best of luck to Brandon for sure, it'll be interesting to see how far he goes against his downstate competition! A lot of H.L.T.C.'s updates this spring have been of the slightly more comic/tongue in cheek variety, as immediately seen after they first announced their lineup changes, but on April 1st, the band revealed that they had a show booked! No one claimed this was an April Fools joke, but they have yet to reveal details on the concert. As of the 1st, Brandon noted that he would have to play drums for the show due to a lack of willing nearby drummers, implying that the show might be local for a change, but again, details are not out yet. We'll keep you posted, but to close, here's a new video of theirs!

Again a Brandon-centric update (no direct sign of Ted in their newest posts), this features him recording vocals for a planned new original song, but the captions helpfully tell us that while tracking this song, the police were knocking at his door over a noise complaint. Hopefully that doesn't happen too often, but given how heavy that Heavy Lies The Crown can get, you never know! The high screaming/singing hybrid here is well handled, but there's a lot to learn yet about their current songwriting. Is another album in the works? Are just Brandon & Ted handling instruments? How far along are they? Time will tell, but check it out below, and visit their Facebook page for all of the above topics & more!

Finally, here's a very belated live concert video that I apologize for not sharing on the SMS before, as it was uploaded to the Reggie's Place Facebook page in October 2020 during the show in question, without giving the band's name. Of course, it's Sault Ontario classic/hard rock quartet Soundcheck, and the video in question sees them covering Tom Petty's "Running Down A Dream" with guitarist Terry Eaton on vocals and frequent guest bassist Rob Gilmar in place of Paul Belair. The 21 second clip suffers from a harsh blue glare from the neon Bud Light sign behind Glen, but the cover is solidly done for fans, so give it a watch below!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next! Thanks everyone!