LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Double Down), A New Local Band, And Much More!!

Here's a new news post on this Hump Day, as it were, including the latest from high profile bands on both sides of the border, and first, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS tied in to a brand new band full of familiar faces, so here's what you should know!

We have a new local classic/hard rock cover band to add to our Sault Ontario band links, and they are Double Down, the new project from former Bone Yard bandmates Brad Stephen & Ric Datson! As live rock music goes, we haven't heard much from Brad & Ric since they left Bone Yard in January of last year, but you may have seen teasers about Double Down in recent months, with the band launching their Facebook page last month, though note that it's formatted like a normal personal page that you can add as a friend, not a band page. Regardless, the guys encourage you to follow it for updates, and it's not 100% private. Brad (on bass) and Ric (on drums) are joined here by former Griphook/100 Gran singer/guitarist Joel Syrette and former Hollow/Mustang Heart guitarist Adam King (who guested with Griphook at that band's final show in 2016). Set-wise, what can we expect?

In a comment reply to this photo two weeks ago, they cited covers of everyone from Kiss and Whitesnake to Big Wreck and Royal Blood, and even Steely Dan and Daft Punk, so they are certainly not far from Bone Yard in tone, if with less of a southern rock theme. In our teased LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, Double Down will debut at Reggie's Place on Friday, April 21st and Saturday, April 22nd for shows that are presumably 19+, starting at 9:30 PM, and cover-free. It'll be interesting to hear how Double Down sound next weekend, but the talent is certainly there, so visit the above links for more details on them and their first gigs!

Next up, let's hop to St. Ignace, Michigan for more recent updates from local metalcore band Heavy Lies The Crown's Facebook page! Yes, their recent interview is still coming soon, but I am behind on their own Facebook posts as it is! In this post on March 29th, the band said "videos wrapped up", but it's not clear if they mean multiple videos or if they forgot an apostrophe. In any event, photos are included from what appears to be a music video shoot, and based on the (hopefully) fake blood being applied on set, it'll be quite a video when released! After acknowledging on March 31st that "A Sold Soul" is inspired by the Spawn comic book, they asked fans to vote on Opnr to suggest H.L.T.C. as openers for the Taproot-headlined concert in Grand Rapids in November. Still a five hour drive to get there, but click here if you want to show your support for another downstate trip for a big concert opportunity!

After a week-long break from Facebook, the band returned with some new videos, including this "Reel" of singer Brandon West modeling his Heavy Lies The Crown hockey jersey. In other unembeddable content, they shared another Opnr campaign to see if they can get on the bill for the Oceano-headlined concert in Grand Rapids in June. For videos that we can embed here, Brandon starred in three short newer ones, starting with this video on Friday of him holding a long box and asking if fans can guess what's inside. Don't worry, there isn't any grim Se7en-esque items inside it, as he revealed in this video the next day that it contained a one-of-a-kind H.L.T.C. skateboard! If you don't watch the clip, the art on the board is of their duck mascot Iggy smoking a cigar (not unlike their song "Cigar With The Devil"). The text calls this "merch", but if they plan to sell it, I haven't heard details.

Lastly, Brandon posted this video on Sunday of him walking indoors with his band jersey and sunglasses to wish everyone a happy Easter... eventually (he said this took a few takes). Good updates from their camp, and hopefully we hear much more from Heavy Lies The Crown shortly, but check out their new videos above & below, and that audio interview will be next on the site from them, I promise!

We'll wrap things up back in Sault Ontario (well, by way of Barrie) for some of the latest from local crossover thrash quartet Spades GT! The former Jack Spades actually just played at the multi-band Road To Lockdown Fest in Toronto on Friday (click here for details), which followed previously announced gigs in Guelph and Newmarket in the preceding week, so the guys are definitely staying busy in Southern Ontario now that their album recording sessions are, if not completed, at least not being plugged regularly. Their next show will be in Barrie when they open for The Anti-Queens on April 27th (moved from the 24th), so visit the official Facebook event page for details on this kinda-sorta rebooking of the planned Anti-Queens/Jack Spades show in the Soo during lockdown #1! The guys also shared this new band logo that, while less derivative of the Skull Skates logo, is somewhat boring to me, if I'm being honest. If it's here for the long haul, it may grow on me yet!

One new Facebook video was also uploaded earlier today, but alas, it is a "Reel" and therefore unembeddable on external sites like this. It was filmed at an unidentified concert from last year and features frontman J.D. Pearce singing and accidentally showing us what happens when you try to drink a little too much at once mid-song. He saves himself well, I found! Note that the end of the video features logos for various social media pages, including Spotify, though their only content there so far is their Jack Spades material from the mid-2010s. Visit the above links for much more on Spades GT's recent activity in the GTA, and stay tuned for weekend concert previews and more next! Thanks everyone!