LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Peril, Tarnished, And Go Skateboarding Day!!)

Tonight's news post gives us some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, including a big returning Sault Ontario event later this month and some intriguing concerts in the E.U.P. in the coming months. Here's what you should know!

The annual local Go Skateboarding Day concert returns to Queen Elizabeth Park outside of the John Rhodes Center on Sunday, June 21st! After nine prior installments (eight with live music) were held by Tidal Records from 2014-2019 and 2022-2024, local promoter and musician Mikhal Muto inherited the reins of this annual event last year, only for Go Skate Day to be rained out as intended, the first time that the local version was ever called off for a reason other than the pandemic. An indoor skateboarding event at Prince Township was held on short notice, with a partial lineup of bands playing a private event afterwards, but weather permitting, the original format of Go Skate Day is back for 2026 via Mikhal's new promotional agency Underground Events SSM. This includes all-ages and free skateboarding for all skill levels from 12:00-5:00 PM, plus skate games and giveaways from sponsors.

For the first time since 2016, the local Go Skateboarding Day concert will have six advertised acts atop the half-pipe at the skate park, and while the performance order isn't clear from the Facebook event page, there will be two (kinda three) returning acts. Local party metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty (who played in 2024) and Shane "DJ Seith" Erickson (who played in 2015 and 2016) are back, while ska punk trio A.S.D.P. will play their first John Rhodes Centre gig on the 21st, though they (and DJ Seith) played at last year's private fill-in event. Go Skate Day newcomers will include Half Scoundies (Josh & Todd from folk/bluegrass quartet The Golden Scoundrels going acoustic), new local hard rock quartet 5 Dollar Bribe (in their first ever public multi-band concert), and local jazz/EDM solo musician Mario "Yecharo" Kwon, who is on Underground Events SSM's compilation album.

Quite an eclectic lineup of musicians (I never would have connected the Scoundrels... er, Scoundies with extreme sports) will be on hand, but of course, Mother Nature is very much a factor as to if Go Skate Day 2026 will occur as planned, and part of me is surprised that it took until 2025 for one to be impaired due to weather. I do hope that everything goes off without a hitch for Mikhal and crew this time, so visit the above links for more on all of the action one week from Sunday!

Next up, Traverse City, Michigan classic metal trio Peril have announced their concert calendar through September via new schedule images on their Facebook page! We knew about their car show-weekend gigs in St. Ignace on the 26th and 27th, but when else will Jeff, Howard, and Brooks be rocking a stage within an hour of the Soo? Their next shows in our coverage area will be on Friday, July 10th and Saturday, July 11th at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino, and they will be rocking out after the Steve Earle concert at The Dreammakers Theater on the 11th, so if you wanna keep the party going, head to the lounge afterwards! In August, they have two shows in St. Ignace, but not at Kewadin Casino. They'll instead set up shop at American Legion Park for one-nighters on Thursday, August 6th and Friday, August 21st as part of the Music By The Bay concert series!

 

Those are outdoor shows (bands play under a canopy at the park), and while these are rare non-Kewadin gigs for Peril in our neck of the woods, they have played at the Music By The Bay series before, weather permitting. Hopefully things go well for the guys in all six of their regional concerts this summer! The Kewadin dates next month are at 9:00 PM with 21+ age limits, the St. Ignace outdoor shows run from 7:00-8:30 PM with no age limits, and none have a cover charge. Visit the above links for more on this hard rocking veteran group's regional shows ahead!

 

Finally for this post, we'll stay in St. Ignace, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Tarnished will return for some non-Kewadin shows of their own in a few months! They too will return to American Legion Park for St. Ignace's Music By The Bay series on Friday, July 31st and Saturday, September 5th, with the latter falling over the Labour Day long weekend (they'll actually be the penultimate band of this series for 2026). As best as I can tell, Tarnished and Peril are the only heavier-leaning bands playing Music By The Bay shows this year, but there are other familiar names that you can see on the daily schedule at this link. Alex, Josh, Chris, and Ron will make another hour's drive south on Friday, September 18th when they rock The Driftwood Sports Bar again, this time during the Richard Crane Memorial Truck Show weekend! You may recall seeing Tarnished play three different locales during this event last year.

 

No word on if they'll be similarly busy in 2026, but if you love big rigs and transports, this truck show will be up your alley, and kudos to The Driftwood for capitalizing on all of these vehicle shows in St. Ignace by booking bands during them! We'll address the band playing there on Thursday, September 17th in an upcoming post. Like with Peril, the Music By The Bay shows are at 7:00 PM with no age limit or cover charge (weather permitting), while the Driftwood concert during the truck show weekend is at 9:00 Pm and will be 21+. See above for more on Tarnished's Mackinac County shows ahead, and look for weekend concert previews and our next Defunct Local Band Profile on the SMS in the coming days! Thanks everyone!