LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906 & Soundcheck), Weekend Concert Previews, And A Band Breakup!!

Before we begin this weekend's concert previews, just a heads up that local classic/hard rock cover quartet Obsession are not playing at The Esquire Club this weekend, despite announcing last month that the planned gigs there tomorrow and Saturday night were to be their last before breaking up. A reason for the cancellation of the dates has not been announced, but their website has been replaced by plain text by bassist/founder Jim Michaud noting that "the Obsession band has retired effective immediately" without addressing this weekend's concerts, and there was no follow-up as to their status on Facebook after his press release a month ago. Jim has since joined Soundcheck and will debut with them this weekend (more on those dates below), but whether they are a factor in the cancellation or not, I can't say with certainty. Obsession had announced their impending dissolution after an 18 year run last month when guitarist Gabe Tessaro opted to retire from live bands.

As for The Esquire Club, they have quietly confirmed that local country singer Brendan Hodgson will be playing tomorrow & Saturday night instead, as per their Facebook page. I assume it's safe to say now that, had Obsession played their farewell gigs this weekend, that they would have welcomed back multiple past band members in guest slots, which would have been neat, but it wasn't meant to be. Obsession were talented staples of the weekend cover circuit locally and they will be missed, so best of luck to Jess, Gabe, Jim, Steve, and their former members in the future! Now, here's what you should know for still-on hard rock shows over the next two days, starting with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Jay's Piston Broke Pub for traditional concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the venue only announced SATURDAY's show on their Facebook page on Sunday, and while the band has not publically confirmed these dates on their Facebook page at press time, drummer Glen Thomas confirmed that they're playing TOMORROW as well on his personal Facebook page. Thursday jam nights excepted (yes, they're back for that tonight also), these will be Soundcheck's first standard concerts at the former Reggie's West in just over a month, and the partial promotion on Jay's end is because SATURDAY NIGHT's concert is themed as a "classic 80's party", so expect a decade-heavy set of covers from Soundcheck on night #2! If you want to hear more of an array of eras, come TOMORROW NIGHT instead, but Soundcheck's talents are a given regardless!

As alluded to above, these shows will mark new bassist Jim Michaud's first formal gigs as a full Soundcheck member, following the cancellation of Obsession's planned farewell gigs this weekend, so be sure to welcome him with open arms, and/or come to Jay's for a similar musical fix in the west end if you were banking on seeing Obsession this weekend! TOMORROW & SATURDAY's shows are 9:00 PM events with no cover charges and 19+ age limits. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!

Next up, we'll head south to the Eastern Upper Peninsula, as Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 will return to Cedarville TOMORROW NIGHT for a one-nighter at Snows Bar & Grill! Again, apologies for the short notice, the band only announced this show via their Facebook event page on Wednesday, but the venue first announced it on January 31st. In an SMS context, readers will best know Snows as the host venue for a handful of Tarnished shows last year, and Project 906 played elsewhere in Cedarville last fall, but TOMORROW'S show will be part of this year's Les Cheneaux Islands Snowsfest Pub Shuffle taking place at nightclubs in Cedarville and Hessel this weekend! If you're in the area, click here to read the full program, but it doesn't detail who's playing where. Like last year, Snows is bringing in the hard rock for this year's Pub Shuffle (Tarnished performed there in 2022), and I believe this is Project 906's debut at Snows, so keep TOMORROW'S festivities in mind!

A one nighter due to or resulting in The Mark Bowen Band playing there on Saturday, expect voting for various superlatives among competing pubs in the shuffle this weekend, along with the expected solid tunes from Project 906 TOMORROW! The concert itself is a 21+ affair with no cover charge and an 8:00 PM start time, and I don't believe a Snowsfest button is required for entry given the locale (for Sault Ontario readers, this is Bon Soo-esque), but Snows has been selling them. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Project 906 live in their most recent gig!

We'll close back in Sault Ontario with shows that were previously announced by the band in question, as local southern hard rock cover trio Bone Yard will return to Shooters Downstairs Lounge for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! After taking last weekend off, this weekend's gigs will be their third and fourth of 2023, and their first shows at the Dennis Street nightclub in over three months. Not only will Bone Yard's brand of southern fried classic & hard rock covers be coming in hot as usual, but the guys have confirmed that more official t-shirts will be on sale tomorrow & Saturday night, including limited XXL sizes, so bring cash for those if you are so inclined! Tomorrow and Saturday's concerts are otherwise standard for Bone Yard at Shooters, including 9:00 PM start times, no cover charges, and 19+ age limits. Visit the official Facebook event pages linked here & here for more details, and here's Bone Yard live!

That's all for today, but look for our Tym Morrison preview and this month's Defunct Local Band Profile shortly! Thanks everyone!