Before we begin today's post, I wanted to offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends of local concert/mixed martial arts promoter "Big" John Yeubanks, who passed away this morning at the age of 44 after a two year battle with cancer, as per numerous Facebook postings. Click here for details on his fight via a GoFundMe campaign from earlier this year. Based out of Gaylord, Michigan, John was long associated with events promotion in Sault Ste. Marie via his companies Big John's MMA and Superior Entertainment. While best known in the area for his fight cards at Kewadin Casinos, John also co-promoted a handful of high profile local concerts via Superior Entertainment, including 2015's P.O.D./Hoobastank and Saving Abel concerts at The Dreammakers Theater, 2017's Dokken/Firehouse show at what's now GFL Memorial Gardens, and the Josey Scott show at The Rink at The Train Station last June.
Big John's local legacy for many will be via his many MMA cards here (his final fight card was just last month), but he did bring some big concerts up to our area, and despite being from Northern Michigan, he did help put on multiple concerts and MMA shows in Sault Ontario, relatively uncommon examples of local event promotion from across the border. From what I know of John, he was a good family man driven by faith, and he was very candid about his health on social media, so I do hope that he is fondly remembered by all who knew him at this difficult time. R.I.P. Big John!
Today's post otherwise looks at the rest of this weekend's known hard rock concert previews, starting with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, as Sault Ontario 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, drummer Glen Thomas only announced them on his personal Facebook page earlier today, and neither the band nor venue have followed suit publically. TOMORROW & SATURDAY's shows complete another triple-header weekend at the former Reggie's West for Soundcheck, whose usual Thursday jam night hosting duties (sans singer/guitarist Cameron Oliver) are tonight before the full band rocks out all night TOMORROW & SATURDAY to end one month and begin another. Despite the late notice for the normal concerts, hopefully Soundcheck deliver more hits all weekend!
As usual for Soundcheck's Jay's concerts, expect these to be 19+ events with no announced cover charges and 9:30 PM start times. Visit the above links for more details on the festivities TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT, and for a preview, here's Soundcheck live!
Next up, here's some more weekend concerts that did get advance notice, starting with local hard rock quintet HeadFirst, who will return to Reggie's Place for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT before heading to Shooters Downstairs Lounge for a concert on SATURDAY NIGHT! As Shooters hosts DJ nights on Fridays this year, HeadFirst had to look elsewhere to fill out their weekend schedule, and while I don't know which band was signed at Reggie's first, Bone Yard 225 (who are playing a one-nighter at The Water Tower Pub tomorrow night) have Saturday sewn up at Reggie's, so everyone wins in this regard! Unlike Bone Yard, HeadFirst's two shows this weekend both appear to be standard plugged-in fare compared to their launch event at Reggie's two weeks ago for their debut studio single "Don't Care, Don't Mind". Downtown will be rocking all weekend with this fast rising young group, so don't miss out at either locale!
Also, I surprisingly haven't commented on "Don't Care, Don't Mind" yet here, but you can hear it on major streaming services and I've embedded it below as the preview video for this weekend via their YouTube Music channel. It's a solid enough song with good production and a slightly bluesier edge vocally, and fans of HeadFirst should take to it, but I know that they are capable of more melodic and hooky material if they have more studio plans. Tomorrow's Reggie's concert and Saturday's Shooters show have 9:30 PM start times, 19+ age limits, and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details on both gigs, and here's HeadFirst's new song!
We'll close today by heading to The Rapids Lounge at the aforementioned Kewadin Casino in Sault Michigan, where local hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews will take the stage for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! These will be this local supergroup's first publically acknowledged concerts since the I-500 weekend at the same venue, but you may recall seeing the band's instrumental members guesting with Tarnished at The Merchant's Bar two weeks ago. Formal concerts from Rhythm & Brews are not super frequent (and live videos of them are far less so), but this union of Nixxon Dixxon, 415E, Power Slug, and Highway 63 alumni promise to deliver a fun weekend of hard rocking covers, so don't miss out on all of the action this weekend! Personal Facebook promotion of these shows suggest that Rhythm & Brews will have new songs, a "new atmosphere", and "maybe a few surprises" in store this weekend.
As usual for Kewadin lounge concerts, tomorrow & Saturday night's shows have 21+ age limits, 9:00 PM start times, and no cover charges. We still don't have public video footage of Rhythm & Brews to preview them with, but go see them in person for yourself this weekend, and visit the above links for more details! That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!
As we end the month of May and enter June 2024, this weekend's hard rock concert previews straddle the transition from month to month. It's not a busy weekend compared to recent weeks, but due to a heap of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (two on SHORT NOTICE) concerning an artist playing this weekend, I have to break up this weekend's previews into two posts. As such, HeadFirst and Rhythm & Brews, plus any further late notice confirmations, will come up in our next post hitting the site either tonight or tomorrow morning, so stay tuned! Now, here's what you should know to start off this weekend (and beyond!)
Local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison has announced a pile of upcoming concerts for the summer season, starting with returns to The Mike Case Memorial Stage outside of The Trading Post TOMORROW NIGHT and Misty's Fifties on SATURDAY! Apologies for the short notice on both of this weekend's shows, they were only announced on Monday via their respective official Facebook event pages linked here and here. As has become a tradition post-pandemic, Tym will bring his acoustic rock show back to The Mike Case Stage this summer now that it's open for the summer, but this year, the arrangement will see him play there every Friday at 7:00 PM through the end of September! No breaks or unbooked Fridays this year, so keep Tym's shows at 1332 Great Northern Road in mind before this stage closes for the year in four months! Of course, these shows are outdoors, and thusly, weather permitting.
As for Misty's Fifties, Tym had been booked to play there every second Saturday in recent months, with the last shows of that run scheduled to be on June 8th and 22nd, but clearly his shows at the Second Line West venue have went well, so his run there has been ramped up! Along with a short notice return THIS SATURDAY in what was originally an off day, he will also be playing at Misty's on June 15th, and will similarly return there (almost) weekly through at least the end of September! The only exception on the Misty's side of things is Saturday, July 6th, and while I believe I know why he's not playing that day, we await public confirmation. In terms of holidays, Tym will be pulling double duty on the Canada Day, Civic Holiday, and Labour Day long weekends via these shows. Lastly in terms of Tym's summer concert calendar, he will also return to The Dive Gastro Pub (née Low & Slow) for one night only on Thursday, July 4th!
That show is part of The Dive's new "Think It Over Thursday" series of rotating solo acoustic musicians, which Tym previously played in on May 9th, so keep his Queen Street East return in mind on the Fourth of July! No new Facebook event page was made for that show, it was just added to the May 9th one. For the sake of not overloading our concert calendar, I'll do what I did with Tym's past weekly arrangements and list these shows month by month. As such, only this weekend's and June's shows (plus his Dive show in July) are being listed for now, and I won't roll his weekly July-September gigs into the calendar until late the previous month. TOMORROW'S Mike Case Stage show (and beyond) are 7:00 PM events with no age limits or cover charges, SATURDAY'S Misty's concert (and the rest) are 4:00 PM matinees with no cover and 19+ age limits, and his Dive Gastro Pub show on July 4th is a 6:00 PM matinee.
Like three weeks ago, that should also be 19+ with no cover. Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for 21° temperatures and mostly cloudy weather TOMORROW, so it should be a good night to check out Tym's classic and hard rock cover selection at The Trading Post! If you want cooler indoor temperatures this weekend, head to Misty's on SATURDAY, but in any event, visit the above links for more on Tym's packed summer concert calendar, and for a preview, here he is live!
Next up, let's look at one more local band playing this weekend before we cover the rest in post #2, as local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will take the stage TOMORROW NIGHT at The Water Tower Pub before heading downtown to Reggie's Place on SATURDAY NIGHT! This split weekend is due to The Water Tower Pub (where Bone Yard traditionally plays acoustic, or "uncorked") hosting different nightly bands, but I have not seen a social media reference to what band is playing there on Saturday. As such, Bone Yard 225 will plug their instruments in for a one-nighter at Reggie's on Saturday, so if you'd prefer to see them at this venue or in their electric splendour, you know where to go! For reference, HeadFirst (who have a one-nighter of their own at Shooters on Saturday) will fill in the Friday gap at Reggie's, and those previews will be in our next post.
You can take in Bone Yard 225's southern fried hard and classic rock covers (and select originals) tomorrow at The Water Tower Pub at 8:00 PM, while the Reggie's show on Saturday is at a normal 9:00 PM start time. Both shows are 19+ affairs with no announced cover charges. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Bone Yard live!
That's all for now, but look for our HeadFirst and Rhythm & Brews concert previews (and more?) next! Thanks everyone!
Let's dive back into recent news and notes on the SMS today, and in this catch-up day, it just so happens that we're leading off with Mikhal Muto-featured projects for a third straight day! Gotta go where the content is, as both of his current punk bands have new Facebook videos to check out, but for variance, let's start with his skate punk/thrash trio Hails, who were filmed at their headlining concert at The Distraction on May 19th for two videos posted to their Facebook page in the past week. Notably, both appear to feature Mikhal's brother Carmen as a guest guitarist, but Ha!ls did not credit him in either video's description. The two videos run for under a minute in length (Hails rarely post videos of full songs), and feature the guys and Carmen playing "Down For Life" and, as embedded below, "The Drifter". The former song is on their "Rock And Rolls" EP, but the latter is not.
The filmer (I believe it was the same person) shot Ha!ls from two different angles on the 19th, with "Down For Life" being in a normal front-on placement, and "The Drifer" being shot side-stage. I still think that the stage lighting here is too purple, but the setting at the former barbershop is certainly unique, and Hails rocked out as well as you'd expect here, so check out their abbreviated new live videos above and below!
Next up, let's trade Brent for Andrew and look at Ha!ls' sister band Vanity First, who posted one more video from last month's album release party at Soo Blaster onto their Facebook page two weeks ago! In this case, it's of the guys (and the aforementioned Carmen Muto) playing their original song "Off With Their Heads" from the same camera and vantage point as their Choking Victim cover posted on May 8th. Lively performance with "cool guitar stuff" that faithfully captures this song in a good way for fans who heard it on "Identity Crisis", which I will be reviewing on the SMS next month! It's worth noting that Vanity First's introduction on their Facebook page now calls them a "local three (sometimes four) piece punk outfit", implying that Carmen will be back for more Vanity concerts in the future, if not necessarily all of them or for entire sets. Check out their new "Off With Their Heads" video below!
Also, let's move to an entirely unrelated punk act next, namely inactive indie/lo-fi punk solo project Telephone & Address! You may recall this Christopher Shoust-led group from a series of independent album releases & sporadic live dates in the 2010s, and he recently launched a new YouTube channel to collect short films that he has made over the years, including the previously seen F.F.B. documentary trailer. In two of his newest YouTube uploads, Chris posted 2015 skateboarding footage there under the title "Skate Army", with both featuring a full song from Telephone & Address' seventh album "Rust Orchid". The first one is embedded below and uses their song "Seven", but "Skate Army 2.0" instead uses the song "Sunrise". Credited skateboarders here are his old Red & Black bandmate Damjan "Spider Fingerz" Binda, ex-Id Iota/Free Beer frontman Christian Lemay, Man Feelings/ex-Bizotic drummer B.J. Swire, and Chris Leclerc (who's not a musician that I can recall).
Chris Shoust considers these to be "half skate video and half music video", so it is neat to see these songs get some love nine years on! Now, "Rust Orchid" is an interesting choice of album to source the music from (that album also being from 2015 acknowledged), as that album was entirely made up of dark ambient instrumentals that were a far cry from the drum/bass and folk punk material on Telephone & Address' albums before and after this. Not badly composed, but not my first thought of a skate video soundtrack, especially with no visual effects to match the music. Well edited overall though, so give the skate army's work a watch!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or store name:
According to this SooToday article by Alex Flood on their recent purchase of rare instruments, long-time Queen Street East music store Case's Music is now fully owned by ex-Blues Harvest frontman Jake Rendell and his wife Lee, with Jake previously holding a co-ownership stake at Case's since at least 2018. Case's had been co-owned by Carrie Suriano since 2010, initially with her ex-husband Jay Case (Mike Case's nephew). Hopefully the Rendells keep things going successfully long term, and Jerry's instruments seem to be in great hands!
In a quiet change to the lineup for the It's The Pits Festival in Leeburn on July 22nd, local acoustic folk solo project Sibling have been removed from event advertising. A public reason for Sibling's exit wasn't announced, but project leader Mike Kyle (better previously known as Shit Liver's bassist) had made personal Facebook posts to the effect that he was stepping away from music for personal reasons. Hopefully all's well with Mike and that we'll hear from him again in time! As of this writing, Sibling have not been replaced on the bill, but we'll let you know if they are.
It is rare to see a touring band announce a lineup change between the announcement of a local concert and showtime, but Minnesota hair metal band Vixen have parted ways with singer Lorraine Lewis due to the band "going in a different direction" (I hate that excuse), as reported on music news websites like this. Now, Vixen only had one classic-era band member (drummer Roxy Petrucci) left anyway, so it's not like Hair Scare listeners will get a dramatic shift from their classic studio material here, but it is worth noting given their upcoming set opening for Ace Frehley at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on July 20th. Stay tuned for updates!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!
It's now time for our last monthly feature post of May 2024, namely this month's YouTube Channel Profile! As always, we're spotlighting a randomly selected channel whose content is at least half devoted to local metal, hard rock, and/or punk musicians/concerts. Coincidentally, this month's CD review (posted yesterday) share a common guitarist/songwriter, but the review was blocked out for May long before this channel was randomly picked last month. Here's what you should know on this channel!
Owner:A member of local punk band Vanity First, exact identity unclear
Channel Timeline:Launched on December 7th, 2020; Videos uploaded since that day
Channel Summary:The official YouTube channel for Vanity First, it has seen steady usage since their public launch in 2020, including a dozen live performance videos from jam sessions and public concerts alike, as well as four early live audio recordings, their 2022 "Vanity" demo, and two later studio songs. The guys are also among the more prolific local bands in terms of posting vertical "Shorts" videos (not unlike Facebook's "Reels"), and the nine "Shorts" so far are largely unique from their longer horizontal brethren on this channel, mostly capturing some live performance clips. Note that the band's pre-March 2022 videos were all retroactively renamed to reflect tacking "First" onto their name.
Why You Should Watch:This is definitely worth a watch for Vanity First fans, especially ones who were around for Vanity's original 2020-2022 quartet era, as many of their newer videos have been exclusive to their Facebook page or other social media services, with only the seven newest videos (and most of the "Shorts") focusing on the band as they currently are (though the channel did see a new video four weeks ago). This talented young group get a good display across their channel, and while I would prefer that the "Shorts" be normal videos, they're at least more flexible to use and share, unlike "Reels" (and where else will you hear a local band covering the Caillou theme song?!). Note that their new album "Identity Crisis" is exclusively available on YouTube via the band's automated YouTube Music channel. Also, despite sharing a 2/3rds identical lineup, there are no Hails videos uploaded here.
Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:
Killing In The Name: The two most popular videos on Vanity First's channel are pre-name change cover songs from jam sessions, both garnering 1,200+ views, but their "Shorts" cover of Rage Against The Machine's "Killing In The Name" from November 2021 is slightly more popular than their longer & horizontal cover of Green Day's "When I Come Around" from December 2020. The band is represented here by frontman Andrew Beggs (also playing rhythm guitar for this cover), Agnosticism's Mikhal Muto on lead guitar, his Ha!ls bandmate Keeghan McAllister on drums, and original bassist Nick McClelland, who left Vanity in the spring of 2022. I am of the opinion that this is Rage Against The Machine's most overplayed song, and I definitely wouldn't have shot a cover of it vertically, but it's enthusiastically performed in a good locale to capture the guys rocking out! There are longer and more varied covers on the channel though.
Vanity First | Demo EP 2022: In one of their last acts as a quartet named Vanity, the guys independently released a self-titled demo EP in February 2022, and posted it onto their YouTube channel twice over: as individual videos for each song, and as one complete 16+ minute album upload. In both cases, "Vanity" features six songs: "Hard Feelings","Playboy Magazine","Empty Home","Black Flies", "White Ghosts", and "Breathe". With the exception of the last song, all of these tracks were re-recorded for "Identity Crisis", so "Breathe" and Nick's presence would be the main hooks to hear these recordings over the similar but better produced 2024 versions. Still, it is definitely interesting to see where Vanity started off before they made their "First" choice!
Vanity First - Playboy Magazine Live at Toystock: Of their relatively few performance videos on YouTube since becoming Vanity First and since Andrew took over for Nick on bass, the best quality one comes from the band's set at Toystock at The Grand Gardens in November 2022, where the guys were filmed playing "Playboy Magazine", which is one of their songs with Mikhal on lead vocals. Shot at a close (if slightly low) angle with liberal usage of the zoom lens, this is a lively performance of one of Vanity First's best known original songs, and kudos to them for donating their time for this annual Christmas Cheer event!
I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profile! Next month in this series, we will be looking at two channels due to the first randomly selected channel only having two videos period, so a single-video channel was also picked to round things out with. Next month, we'll be looking at the YouTube channels of two inactive local bands, namely alt-hard rock quartet Id Iota and death metal band Kaepora Gaebora (a.k.a. Exploring Detritus), so look for all of that on or around June 26th, and for more news on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
It's now time for our 179th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, as we're taking a look at local folk punk/emo solo project Agnosticism's newest EP "A Letter Of Resignation"! While this is my first time reviewing an EP from this project (whose only social media account is on Instagram), Agnosticism has released two prior EPs (2021's "Chaotic & Dysfunctional" and 2022's "4 Hours"), plus their sole full length album "Happy Pills" in 2022, as well as numerous one-off singles. Quietly and independently released on February 23rd, "A Letter Of Resignation" was solely recorded by prolific local punk guitarist Mikhal Muto, who is better known from his work with Vanity First & Hails and as the second bassist in The Apocalypse Afterparty. You can stream "A Letter Of Resignation" on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, and Boomplay, and if you want to legally buy it on mp3, it costs $4.95 on iTunes.
Song names below are linked to their YouTube copies, and note that Mikhal labelled the album and songs in all lowercase officially. With five songs running for 15½ minutes, let's begin this EP review with its first song "New Year's Revolution"! Tied with track 3 as the EP's shortest song, this is an intense and speedily performed song that fits the folk punk trappings well, but Mikhal does get a slower bridge to show off his guitar skill. Any fears of this not being that "punk" given that it's acoustic and folksy are eradicated with a piercing scream midway through, and his voice in general is a good match for the subgenre, while also having the melodic tone that would suit a mid-2000s emo band if he was of that era (fans of the songs that he sings with Vanity will know that already). I would like cleaner and more professional recording quality, but this is an effective introduction!
Next up is "Just Promise Me You'll Stay A Little Bit Longer", and if you wanted things to be folksier and clearer in a singer/songwriter sense, you should take to this song moreso. Intense vocals do work their way in there in bursts, but this song just moves along on the same track instrumentally with the only variance in the strumming occurring at the very end. Not a bad song for folk punk fans who value the first half of that sound, and it's easier to get a sense of the lyrics here, but the "punk" side of things and the song's repetitive structure don't help compared to the opening song. Third is "Separation Anxiety", which opens with passionate and somewhat anguished vocals from Mikhal before he takes things into fast paced galloping territory, and he dips into Chase Wigmoresque territory with the aggressive vocal bursts here, so fans of his earlier folk punk albums will like what Agnosticism are cooking up here!
If you liked "New Year's Revolution", you'll like "Separation Anxiety", an equally short and similarly intense listen that captures the best qualities of folk punk! That's followed by "Lips", which isn't as varied and punk-leaning as the odd numbered songs so far, but it arguably allows for Mikhal's best guitar showcase so far, and it does have its passionate vocal moments late. It's definitely got more going for it for guitar riffing and melodies than track #2, and while not as chaotic as Agnosticism at their peak, the structure is well paced to let Mikhal demonstrate his guitar ability in an acoustic setting, so it's worth checking out! "A Letter Of Resignation" closes with its longest and only 3+ minute song, "Attic". This is the slowest and most ballad-like track on offer, and the lyrics seem the most personal yet, especially with all of the name dropping. The vocals are the star of the show here, with his guitar seemingly being an afterthought.
You have to be invested in Mikhal's lyrics and/or vocal style to appreciate "Attic", as the guitar isn't the focus here, and while I appreciate the direct lyrics, it has the same problem as the second song for me: going along on one track without shaking things up or playing up the punk in the folk punk on offer. Fans of "Breathe" from the first Vanity demo might beg to differ, but it's not how I'd have ended the EP. So, how do I grade Agnosticism's new EP? I admit that I'm not a folk punk guy, but Mikhal knows and likes the subgenre and it shows on a solid release for fans! I do think that he should focus more on the intense, rollicking folk punk songs like "New Year's Revolution" and "Separation Anxiety", and you will find more songs like those on earlier releases, but you can tell that he wanted to stretch and play some softer material here too, even if this listener didn't like the singular path on most of the other songs as much.
If Mikhal was born in the late 1980s/early 1990s, he'd have been one hell of a emo frontman during that genre's heyday, and his lyrics are very evocative, but on softer/more serious songs, I would try to still have a varied song structure rather than relying on just the lyrics to carry them. I have yet to formally review earlier Agnosticism releases to compare, but folk punk fans will find a lot to like from "A Letter Of Resignation", and hopefully Mikhal ramps up social media promotion for the project to better promote this and other releases, as there is something there! Buy or stream this EP above, and I hope you guys liked this month's CD review! While I have long stuck by a rule on the SMS that I wouldn't review albums by the same project in consecutive months, two separate bands featuring the same musician have always been fair game, so next month's review will be of Mikhal's main punk band Vanity First's new album "Identity Crisis"!
That album had a higher profile release in April and is currently the last album in our lengthy backlog of new album releases dating back to late 2022, so look for its review on the site next month, and for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!
Before we begin today's post, I wanted to acknowledge that Wyld Stallyns/ex-Elements singer/guitarist Rob Speers played a late notice & rare solo concert at The Dive Gastro Pub (formerly Low & Slow) yesterday as part of their new "Think It Over Thursday" series featuring acoustic musicians. I'm not sure that I would have been able to cover it before it happened given how crammed this weekend is, but I am also not entirely sure if Rob's solo set was just a solo Stallyns/Elements show or if he played things softer for genre all around. Regardless, I hope his debut at The Dive went well!
Now, let's finish up this weekend's hard rock/punk concert previews by
looking at Sault Ontario concerts taking place solely tomorrow or on
Sunday (anyone that played on Thursday or yesterday is noted in the post
below this one), and we'll start with three Saturday matinees, including
local acoustic classic/hard rock solo musician Tym Morrison, whose bi-weekly arrangement at Misty's Fifties
marches on for another installment TOMORROW! Unless things get
extended, Tym only has two more shows left in this series at the Second
Line West nightclub, both next month, so if you want to take in Tym's
hard rocking solo covers and professional production, head west! As
usual for his shows at Misty's, this is a 4:00 PM matinee with a likely
19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Tym live!
Next up, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will return to Shooters Downstairs Lounge for one night day only TOMORROW! While originally advertised by the band as a normal nighttime concert at the Dennis Street nightclub, Shooters has since confirmed that this show will actually be a 5:00 PM matinee, so keep the earlier timeframe in mind if you want to enjoy Valerie, the Tonys, and Pierre's blend of classic and hard rock covers! Of course, this is a one-nighter due to Shooters' Friday DJ nights this year, and while Shooters said on their Facebook that "we're shaking things up" with Generations' "first matinee" there, the earlier scheduling is actually to accommodate a second concert tomorrow night from Sudbury adult contemporary singer Ashley Woodruff, who also played at Shooters last July. While Generations' concert is considered a separate event and not as Ashley's openers, neither show has a cover charge if you wanna hit both.
Generations will take the stage from 5:00-9:00 PM tomorrow, while Ashley's distinct later concert begins at 9:30 PM. Obviously, both events are 19+. Hopefully things go well a little earlier for Generations, so visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here they are live!
There is some punk-leaning nighttime action to take in TOMORROW as well, as local folk punk/emo solo project Agnosticism (whose only social media account is on Instagram) will be headlining at The Distraction! As far as I know, this will be Agnosticism's first public local concert since releasing their new EP "A Letter Of Resignation" earlier this spring, so this could be considered the de facto release party for it (our review of said EP is coming in the next week). Project leader/prolific local punk guitarist Mikhal Muto is no stranger to the East Street venue, and he should have some entertaining folk punk originals in store for fans tomorrow! This all acoustic solo performer show will be opened by The Floor Between Us frontman Colin Gasparelli (who opened for Jackal Blood at The Distraction in February) and Mikhal's Vanity First bandmate Andrew Beggs (a.k.a. "Andrew Keith") in a rare solo set of his own.
I don't know how Andrew solo will differ from Vanity beyond being unplugged, but a wide array of sounds should be on offer tomorrow! While also a matinee, this has the latest start time of the three shows previewed here (6:00 PM). Unlike the above events however, The Distraction is an all ages venue and admission for this show is under a "$5 or pay-what-you-can" model. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Agnosticism live a couple of years back!
Finally, we'll take things to the slightly misnamed March Street Stage (beside June & Friends Hair Salon at 485 Queen Street East) for an eclectic outdoor concert on SUNDAY NIGHT from local promoters Piecing It Together Shows (née Dryer Fire) in their first hard rock-featured booking of the year! The headliners tomorrow are Victoria, British Columbia noise rock/synth duo Pet Retina in their local concert debut, though drummer Max Patterson played here for Dryer Fire last June at The Drawing Club on Bruce Street under his solo project handle i.o (concert promotion is treating this as "i.o. & Pet Retina so there is a possibility that i.o will have a separate set). Pet Retina have a strong and sometimes wild brand of noise rock, so don't miss out on something different on Sunday! Local support will include "noise art" project Hinterbrane, led by local artist Michael Burtch performing alongside Frank Deresti (of Lake Effect fame) and Annie King.
As well, cryptic local anti-folk/Americana act Tye Lawless Co. (also playing at the It's The Pits Festival in Leeburn in July) will be opening here. Sunday's festivities begin at 6:00 PM, this is definitely all ages, and this is strictly a "pay what you can" event with no recommended cover charge. Weather-wise, it's too soon for an hourly forecast as of this writing, but 9&10 News is currently calling for mostly cloudy weather with a 10% chance of rain and 20° temperatures on Sunday. Of course, keep tabs on the local forecast as we get closer to showtime. Visit the above links for more on the first hard rock-featured P.IT.S. show post-renaming, and for a preview of Sunday's action, here's Pet Retina live!
Another busy concert weekend is upon us, but this weekend, it's not because of a holiday! Yes, it is the Memorial Day long weekend in Michigan, but I only know of two hard rock shows in the E.U.P. from one band. This is just a busy weekend as we near the summer season, and as such, we will have to break up our previews into two posts. Today's previews involve bands playing tonight or tomorrow in some description, with the Saturday or Sunday-only shows from Pet Retina, Tym Morrison, Generations, and Agnosticism being previewed in tomorrow's post. Now, here's what you should know to start in rough chronological order!
We'll start with the first of two shows at The Distraction on East Street in a three day span, as Winnipeg folk punk band Greg Rekus & The Inside Job will make their local concert debut TONIGHT! If you appreciate folk punk (particularly the full band, Rising Tide-esque type), you will like Greg and crew's original music, which benefits from a raw, more direct style and lyrics more themed around tough times and social issues, and they should get a good response from local fans in this special Thursday nighter! This show will have a wide array of styles on offer from its three scheduled acts, including Shane "DJ Seith" Erickson and local hard rock quintet HeadFirst (in their Distraction debut) as the opening acts. HeadFirst's hard rocking sound (augmented by their new studio single "Don't Care, Don't Mind") should get some positive attention, and DJ Seith's turntable mixes are well done!
Tonight's all ages festivities at the former barbershop have a 7:00 PM start time, and admission is under a "$10 or pay-what-you-can" model. While folk punk is the main attraction, there is a little something for everyone tonight, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Greg Rekus live!
Next up, let's head north to The Water Tower Pub, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 will play the last traditional concert of their early 2024 concert slate TOMORROW NIGHT! Like last year, this talented foursome will be taking the summer off from the normal weekend bar grind aside from festivals & private bookings, so if you're hoping to see Jess, Ryan, Paul, and Steve in a public nightclub setting after tomorrow, you'll have to wait for September 6th-7th at The Esquire Club. Tomorrow's show will be Silent 9's first at the Great Northern Road venue since January, and hopefully their hard rocking and crowd-friendly covers get another strong reception! Remember that The Water Tower Pub hosts different nightly acts, with this Saturday's band there actually being Nova Scotia blues rock duo Claverhouse in a rare show (and EP release!) here from a touring band, so keep that in mind if you want something a little different!
We will address Silent 9's public summer festival appearances on the SMS soon, but note that their website's calendar claims that they will be making their Rotaryfest Stage 1 debut in July. In Rotaryfest's case, I traditionally wait until the festival releases the full schedule (last year, it was on May 26th), but either way, keep that in mind! Tomorrow's Water Tower Pub show has an 8:00 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Silent 9 live!
Now let's head back downtown, where local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will take the stage at Gateway Casino for another "uncorked" concert TOMORROW NIGHT! Normally, bands only play at the Sault Ontario casino on Saturday nights, but tomorrow's rare Friday nighter appears to be due to Gateway Casino's 25th anniversary celebration, with the concert being one of multiple special events going down tomorrow, including a $2,500 cash draw, a t-shirt giveaway, free cupcakes, hourly hot seat draws all day, and dinner specials. Of course, congratulations to the casino on a successful 25 year run, and here's to 25 more! Concert-wise, this is an acoustic show as usual for Bone Yard at 30 Bay Street West, and if you'd rather see them "uncorked" tomorrow rather than next week at the aforementioned Water Tower Pub, you'll wanna head downtown for their show and all of the 25th anniversary festivities!
No, Bone Yard 225 are not scheduled for a Saturday nighter elsewhere this weekend. Tomorrow's Gateway Casino concert has a 9:00 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Bone Yard acoustic live!
Finally for today's previews, let's head across the river to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino, where Traverse City, Michigan classic/hard rock cover trio Peril will return to the E.U.P. for Memorial Day weekend concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Last seen in our neck of the woods at the end of April in Sault Ste. Marie (which I regrettably missed covering here, apologies again), these will surprisingly be Peril's first St. Ignace dates of 2024. No official promotional image for these concerts yet, but they are definitely on, and hopefully Peril draw in a solid crowd both nights for the long weekend! If you can't make it, Jeff, Adam, and Brooks will be back at The Northern Pines Lounge at the end of June. This weekend's concerts are 21+ affairs with no cover charges and 9:00 PM start times. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Peril live a few years back!That's all for now, but stay tuned for the rest of this weekend's concert previews next! Thanks everyone!
For today's post, let's cover some more recent activity from local/Barrie crossover thrash quartet Spades GT, so what have they been up to since we left off in late March? Firstly, drummer Tyler Reiner was featured in a "Reel" on March 23rd to thank the Even Without Life (E:W:L) podcast for interviewing him and bassist James Roy Daley on air the previous day (click here to watch the now-heavily muted live-stream). While only the rhythm section was interviewed, Tyler did thank them "on behalf of all us boys in Spades GT", crediting J.D. and Daniel too. This is probably very obvious for many, but he did not mention guitarist Jay Sarrazin here, so this may be as close to a confirmation that he has left the band as we've gotten. Jay served as a fill-in bassist in late 2022 before moving to second guitar for a series of early 2023 gigs.
While he did feature in official band photographs at the time and was a listed band member on their taken-down website, he only appeared on two songs on "Sewer City Radio" and hasn't played in concert with Spades GT since the spring of 2023. All is definitely amicable (go see Hellrager at the Northern Vibe Festival in August for proof), but he was always busy with multiple other GTA hard rock bands. It was just never put in firm writing that he seemingly left Spades GT, but hopefully Jay rocks out with Spades again if things line up! Also, at the end of the "Reel" above, Tyler showed off a CD copy of "Sewer City Radio" on camera, noting that it is "on all streaming platforms". It's not on Bandcamp, among other platforms, so "all" really means "major", but do give it a listen thusly! The next day, the former Jack Spades noted that they would be getting airplay on Manchester, England internet radio station Hard Rock Hell Radio, which is very neat!
They were played by DJ Scott Knowles, a.k.a. The Mighty Northern Viking (what a handle) on his 10:00 AM Pillage program, and unlike many radio stations, the show is posted for on-demand streaming after its live airing, and you can hear episodes of The 10am Pillage at this link! The March 25th, 2024 episode has Spades GT, and they crop up 81 minutes into the 2 hour episode with the song "Final Girl", which Scott heard & liked after a friend posted the video on social media. No big insights beyond that, but cool to see Spades getting cross-continental airplay, and singer J.D. Pearce would like that they were played after a Graves-era Misfits song! In a new show announcement, Spades GT would be among the openers for Toronto hardcore punk legends The Bunchofuckingoofs (who headlined at what's now Jay's in August 2013) at Lee's Palace in Toronto on May 11th. We're not there in the timeline yet, but any fallout from that show is coming!
After seeing a planned tour run with The Dayglo Abortions in December get cancelled due to frontman Murray "The Cretin" Acton's recovery from cancer surgery, Spades will get a one show do-over in their current Barrie homebase at The Queens Nightclub on June 11th, so keep that hardcore punk intensity in mind if you'll be in the GTA then! In a post on April 3rd, Spades GT noted that they "are making great progress on writing the next chapter" (they had previously teased releasing new music this summer), and thanked Just Some Noise for their help (J.S.N. is a dedicated jam space in Barrie for area musicians). Another "Reel" was posted on April 6th that heavily implied that Spades GT had played live the previous day, but guitarist Daniel Horton was playing that night with his other band The Fast Life, and J.D. was in attendance, with both guesting on impromptu chorus vocals during G.F.U.'s song "Party Every Day"
Despite the unfortunate trappings of "Reels" (not to mention that the video was filmed and uploaded in horizontal landscape and pillarboxed to fit the vertical dimensions), it's a fun video, and I can see why G.F.U. have become friends and frequent setmates of Spades! I can't embed "Reels" here, but give it a watch above. We will pick things back up for Spades GT content in mid-April, and in their actual timeline, proper concerts were soon resuming, so we'll keep catching up soon, and look for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!
