LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Hails & Tym Morrison), An Inactive Band Note, And More!!

Before we begin today's post, just a heads up that Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Project 906's planned show at Jack's Grub & Pub in Brimley tonight has been cancelled, as per their Facebook page this morning. The cited "health reasons" for withdrawing, but didn't specify what was wrong and with which band member(s). Of course, hopefully he (or they) get well soon, and that we see Project 906 back on stage before you know it! Now let's head back to Sault Ontario for some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (one on SHORT NOTICE) and related updates!

Local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to Reggie's Place for an acoustic matinee concert on SUNDAY! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only announced this show via its Facebook event page yesterday, with the notification popping up minutes after yesterday's post hit the site. While we're on the subject, Tym will also return to the YNCU Curling Center at 124 Anita Boulevard on Saturday, February 11th for his second gig there in three months, so if you want to see him in a traditional nighttime timeslot, that's your next opportunity! SUNDAY's show comes just two weeks removed from his last matinee concert at Reggie's, so expect more of his fan-friendly unplugged classic and hard rock hits then, and while it's standard fare this weekend, the show at the former Community First Curling Centre next weekend is again coinciding with a bonspiel, this time themed after the Super Bowl.

As you can see on the poster and in the write-up at this link, there's lots of entertainment lined up for competitiors and attendees online, with Tym providing musical entertainment in their on-site restaurant The House at 8:00 PM. SUNDAY's Reggie's matinee is at 3:00 PM, and both events have no cover charge and 19+ age limits (you don't have to enter the bonspiel to see Tym's set next week only). Visit the curling concert's Facebook event page and the above links for more details, and for a preview of SUNDAY's concert, here's Tym live in concert last year!

Next up, debuting local punk trio Hails and local folk punk/extreme metal solo musician Chase Wigmore will join forces at a special art exhibition/concert on Friday, March 17th at... The Art Hub at Spring?! Located at 504 Queen Street East (the name references the space being at the corner of Queen & Spring), The Art Hub is located at the former Big Brothers Association office, and it opened there as an art gallery and events venue last year, with this being the first concert to cross our genre radar. In fact, it is one of many arts and culture events behind held by the returning Fishbowl Festival, which takes place at various downtown venues during Pisces season (February 20th-March 20th), though this is the only SMS-amenable concert so far. This will mark a relatively rare live appearance by Chase, who has been largely focusing on studio material during the pandemic, so it'll be interesting to hear how he does next month!

As for Hails, they are the new band from Slumshine/These Magnificent Tentacles frontman Brenton Ellis, which sees him on vocals & bass joined by Vanity First bandmates Mikhal Muto and Keeghan McAllister on guitar & drums respectively (my source is Brent's personal Facebook page, as Hails don't have a public page of their own yet). This band will apparently be playing skate punk, so not too far off from Vanity First (just with Brent rather than Andrew), and remember that Vanity First are still active and have been regularly posting on their Facebook page so far in 2023. Despite their placement on the poster, Brent confirmed that Hails are headlining, which makes sense given the art exhibition angle of this event, entitled the Full Circle Rock & Roll Spectacular, as Brent is an accomplished painter & visual artist and will be showcasing art "celebrating connectivity and continuity" on this night.

Between his music and artistic endeavours, Brent has a big night ahead next month, and hopefully there's a great turnout for him on both fronts in six weeks! This event has a $10 cover charge ("pay what you can" is also an option), it is ALL AGES, and doors open at 7:00 PM at The Art Hub on Spring. Visit the official Facebook event page for much more on this event, and if you're a Facebook friend of Brent's, do check out his pictures of his paintings and such to get an idea of what he's bringing to the table for this!

With Brent having launched this new band, I have reluctantly opted to move his local punk/alternative quintet These Magnificent Tentacles to our inactive band links. Their last public update was only in July when plugging their participation in the Open Act contest, and while 6+ months on its own isn't enough for us to be consider them inactive, Hails' launch is definitely of note, while founding guitarist Steve Edwards has been posting on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group in the past week, noting that he's "getting back out there after a short hiatus" and is now working on a 1990s-centric cover band that already has a singer and bassist attached (click here if you want to try out on guitar or drums). All of this doesn't paint a supremely positive picture for the Tentacles' future, alas. T.M.T. launched as a two man studio band in May 2021, releasing their "Surfacing..." EP one year ago this month.

After adding Handsome Sandwich's Mitch Sirie and half of Gnaeus' original lineup last May, the expanded Tentacles played a handful of multi-band events in the ensuing month+, but updates ceased in July, and their quiet withdrawal from the Northern Vibe Festival in August may make a little more sense now. It's a shame that These Magnificent Tentacles appear to have dissolved, as they were an entertainingly diverse yet punk-leaning act, and I liked their EP, but between Hails, Handsome Sandwich, and Steve's new group, most of the band is definitely keeping busy. Best of luck to Brent, Steve, Mitch, Brad, and Brendan no matter what, and stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!