LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Sole Aggressors) & The Second Annual LSSU Battle Of The Bands Preview!!

Today's post is devoted to Sault Michigan and the Eastern Upper Peninsula, mostly because of a battle of the bands tomorrow warranting an extended preview, but let's lead off with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for another multi-band event next month that Yooper readers won't wanna miss!

Here's a big new E.U.P. concert next month, as Brighton LeBlanc of regional promoters Serious Business (who are now on Instagram) is hosting another multi-band concert at Pickles Bar & Grill in nearby Brimley on Saturday, November 2nd! Three familiar local bands will take the stage on this night, including punk trio and reigning (for one more day) LSSU Battle of the Bands champions The Sole Aggressors and hard rock quintet The Nameless, who both played at the Pickles concert in August. The third local band is a reunion of hard rock band The Karstens, who played at Serious Business' debut event at The Satisfied Frog in the Soo in November of last year but have not been publically heard from since on social media (lack of known online pages acknowledged). The three groups will be opening for Grand Rapids experimental/synth solo project Dick Texas, who were among the bands who played at last November's local date.

This show takes place in the basement of Pickles, it has an 8:00 PM start time, an 18+ age limit (not 21+), and admission is $10 at the door. It's great to see Serious Business booking another multi-band show like this, which is not common in the E.U.P., so definitely keep it in mind for your post-Halloween plans! Visit the above links for more details!

Next up, here's our preview of the second annual Lake Superior State University battle of the bands, which goes down TOMORROW NIGHT at the on-campus Arts Center, so what should you know therein? After four local bands and two solo artists rocked LSSU last November in their first community battle, an expanded lineup of five bands and three solo musicians will be competing, and this year's battle will reportedly have judges rather than a fan vote, so hopefully everyone is on their A-game to impress! With hardcore punk trio The Sole Aggressors not defending their title, and a whole new voting setup, the field is wide open, so who all is playing tomorrow? Returning from last year are local classic metal/hard rock band Tarnished (now with Chris Leask and Ron Suchey on bass and drums) and folk singer/guitarist Kevin Blakeney (who promises to "go heavy" tomorrow).

One year after losing first place by three fan votes, Dafter singer/guitarist Molly Escherich will return as frontwoman of Molly & The Other Guys, who she confirmed on her Facebook page will feature Exit 808 drummer Jackie Moon, Tarnished frontman Alex Traynor on guitar (so he's pulling double duty tomorrow), and guitarist Nathan Webber, who previously played with Jackie and Alex in both groups, the former under their original name Double Jack. Of course, Nathan and Jackie came in third at the battle last year with Double Jack, so will that bode well for Molly & The Other Guys' chances? A new "Reel" of everyone jamming is also on Molly's Facebook page, but it has no live audio. Also returning apart from their band last year is former Tarnished bassist Parker Talentino, who will instead bring his own acoustic folk/alternative material to the forefront, but how will this do with judges?

One more returnee from last year is former Double Jack guitarist Melvin Willis in his new band Small Town Society. who have revealed their lineup on social media but little else, so come down tomorrow to see how they do! In a mild surprise, Traverse City hard rock quartet Sonic Dayze (featuring Sault Ste. Marie native Jeremy Gates on guitar) will make their local concert debut at this battle, in a very rare occurrence of a non-local band coming here for such an event. How will they do in new surroundings against Yooper acts? Local country/rock singer/songwriter Kaleb Shannon will also compete tomorrow with presumed originals from his repertoire, and the lineup is rounded out by the debuting Unsure, and their name is apropos, as I am unsure of anything regarding them or their sound/lineup. We'll let you know when/if we hear anything, before or after the battle takes place!

I'm also unsure about this year' prizes, but last year, The Sole Aggressors won $150 for first place and Molly took home $50 for second. The battle of the bands takes place at 7:30 PM, and admission is $10 for general attendees, $5 for kids 10 and under, and free for current LSSU students/staff with valid ID. Things definitely sound bigger and better across the board for year #2 of the LSSU Battle, but what all will go down? Be at the Arts Center tomorrow to find out! No preview video from me here, as I don't want to show a bias given the competitive/no-headliner nature, but visit the above links for more on tomorrow's artists, and stay tuned for regular weekend concert previews next! Thanks everyone!