LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Five Dollar Bribe), Info On This New Local Band, And More!!

Here's a post for your Saturday night reading that didn't start off being so centered around one topic, but one thing led to another, so before we look at a note on a likely inactive local band, we'll swing the other way with a new group and a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT concerning their first show next month, so here's what you should know about them so far!

New local hard rock quartet Five Dollar Bribe will make their public concert debut on Saturday, April 4th at Beck's Bar! Announced via this Facebook event page and plugged on local promoters Underground Events SSM's Facebook page, this event will actually be in the 3:00 PM Saturday matinee slot that Beck's usually reserves for acoustic acts, but I don't know if this is due to members' ages/inexperience or a sign that the former Vibe Lounge is trying out electric bands in the early timeframe. As best as I can tell, Five Dollar Bribe are made up of teenage musicians who I don't recognize from prior local bands, and their lineup includes singer/bassist Randy Lundigran, singer/guitarist Jayce Albury, guitarist Tyler Greely, and drummer Chase Chapman. They don't (yet?) have a Facebook page that I am aware of, but they do have pages on Instagram and TikTok!

Instagram is way too limiting for me to link to bands on there for the SMS, and TikTok is video-only, but I will absolutely add Five Dollar Bribe to our links if they get a more feature-rich band page or website! Described as "the greatest cover band ever" on Instagram, they have posted twelve videos to TikTok that were mostly cross-posted to Instagram, though some videos on the latter are muted for one reason or another. Covers so far include an acoustic rendition of Alice In Chains' "Nutshell" by Jayce, a partial cover of My Bloody Valentine's "When You Sleep" by Tyler, an outdoor acoustic two man cover of Title Fight's "Shed", and three full band performances. These include Title Fight's "Numb, But I Still Feel It", Hum's "Stars" (complete with helmets and masks for all), and The Stone Temple Pilots' "Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart". Randy sings on the latter two covers, with Jayce doing Title Fight.

The above poster points to acts from Ozzy Osbourne and Pink Floyd to System Of A Down and Weezer in their planned set, but let's be real here: What local bands (of any age) are covering Title Fight and Hum, let alone Dinosaur Jr.? Picking bands like that will give them a lot of attention locally alone, but they do show talent in their videos so far, and a sense of humour! They have also not been averse to comedic videos, including this "guess who the drummer is" challenge where you can see the whole band trying to drum, two very different attempts at playing Green Day's "Brain Stew", and a couple of other non-musical videos that lean into TikTok (and yes, most of these videos are vertical, but you know my gripes about that by now). I wanna see/hear more from them, especially fuller videos of heavier covers, but Five Dollar Bribe are off to a good start, and encouraging young talent locally is important!

Their debut over the Easter long weekend goes down on Saturday the 4th at 3:00 PM (no word yet as to who is playing the nightcap at Beck's) with a presumed 19+ age limit for general attendees and no announced cover charge.  See above for much more on Five Dollar Bribe in advance of their debut in two weeks, and as it's the only one of the three full-band videos on Instagram that isn't muted (I can't embed TikTok videos here, I have tried), here's their cover of "Numb, But I Still Feel It"!

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Finally for today, we have a band to move to our inactive band links (perhaps belatedly), namely Sault Michigan hard rock cover quartet Rhythm & Brews. While we're not technically at our one year threshold for a band's inactivity, that may be not be their own doing, as Kewadin Casino briefly listed this band as playing at The Rapids Lounge in Sault Ste. Marie over the May 17th weekend of last year on their entertainment page. The shows actually ended up going to classic/hard rock quartet Tarnished (who added Rhythm & Brews bandmates Chris Leask and Ron Suchey in 2024), so this is increasingly looking like either a mistake on the casino's end or Tarnished taking over scheduled Rhythm & Brews dates there. Rhythm & Brews had (more or less) succeeded guitarist Chris Hubbard's old cover rock band 415E in 2021, and reunited him with his old Nixxon Dixxon bandmate Brandon Carr on vocals.

While as averse to posting videos online as most of Chris H.'s prior bands were, Rhythm & Brews had been a fan favourite sight at regional venues from 2021-2024, often aided by amusing Photoshopped band pictures, though social media postings from the band ceased by October 2023. They had a very talented lineup, and hopefully we see Brandon and Chris H. in a new band down the road, but don't miss Chris L. & Ron in Tarnished, or ex-bassist Brett Blackwood in Unfortunate Sun! That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next week! Thanks everyone!

More Of This Weekend's Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

Let's continue covering this weekend's hard rock concert slate by looking at most of this weekend's proper concerts, Bone Yard 225 excepted (check the post below this one for details on their Reggie's dates). Remember, as Halloween was last night, some venues and bands are holding belated Halloween events tonight and/or tomorrow night, but others are not visibly doing so. Due to the amount of shows, I'm holding tomorrow's multi-band concert in Brimley, Michigan and the Rust tribute concert in Sault Ontario for our next post, so look for those then! Now, here's what you should know as the weekend continues, starting in Sault Michigan!

Local hard rock sextet Exit 808 will return to the local stage when they headline The Merchants Bar's Halloween party TONIGHT! This will actually be Exit 808's second Halloween concert this year, following a road trip to Bergland (5 hours west of the Soo) for the Bergland Bay Bar's holiday festivities this past Saturday, which appears to have went well for them! Surprisingly, this talented group took October off from local dates, so if you've missed Exit 808 since their Three One Three fundraiser event in late September, don't bypass tonight's Halloween show! It's worth noting that the tags in their most recent Facebook page plug of this event don't include singer Dillion Semasky, guitarist Will Robbins, or bassist Myke Young, rather Drew Collister from the Ishpeming rock band No Expectations, former fill-in bassist Blaze Beairl, and Soundworks Productions owner Warren Woeste.

Drew is indeed filling in for Dillion Semasky on vocals for unannounced reasons, but I can't confirm if Will and Myke will be absent too (note that I haven't seen Will referenced in new Exit 808 social media postings since August, and he doesn't have a personal Facebook page that he can be tagged with). We'll let you know if anything gets clarified, but hopefully Amy, Alex, Jackie, and crew can still deliver a fun night of hard rocking covers tonight at The Merch! There will be a costume contest with prizes tonight, so don't put your costumes away just yet! This show has a 21+ age limit, no cover charge, and a 9:00 PM start time. Visit the above links for more details on this show, and here's Exit 808 live!

Next up, both regional Kewadin Casino branches are having hard rock-leaning bands this weekend, though just to get this out of the way now, neither branch is tying in this weekend's concerts with Halloween. The casinos did their Halloween festivities at all locations this past weekend, so expect the status quo as we enter November. At The Rapids Lounge in Sault Ste. Marie, attendees TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT will be seeing local hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews, who will be playing their first publically advertised shows since back in June. Featuring former Nixxon Dixxon bandmates Brandon Carr & Chris Hubbard alongside recent Tarnished rhythm section Chris Leask & Ron Suchey, this talented group will have lots of fan friendly hard rock covers ready to go this weekend, even if they still don't have public videos to preview their shows with! These dates are at 9:00 PM with 21+ age limits and no cover charges.

Meanwhile, The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin will play host to Traverse City metal trio Scarkazm TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Surprisingly, we haven't seen Scarkazm rock either Kewadin branch since the spring, so if you've missed Adam, Dave, and Jeff's hard hitting covers and originals, you'll definitely want to keep in mind that they're ending 2024 with the help of three concert weekends in the E.U.P.! They'll be at the Soo Kewadin over the Thanksgiving long weekend, and will return to St. Ignace in mid-December, so you have lots of chances if you can't come out tonight and/or tomorrow! Like with Rhythm & Brews in the Soo, tomorrow and Saturday's shows are 21+ affairs at 9:00 PM with no cover. Visit the above links for more details on both of Kewadin Casino's regional post-Halloween concerts, and for a preview, here's Scarkazm live earlier this year!

Finally for this preview post, we'll head back to Sault Ontario, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 will headline at The Esquire Club TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Due to popular demand, the Second Line West venue opted to host Halloween parties this past Saturday and this weekend, but interestingly, they've opted to have the second Halloween party on the Saturday as well, not tonight. In other words, do not put away or throw out your costume just yet, as spooky season will be running until at least November 2nd in the west end this year! Yes, there will be one more costume contest with prizes tomorrow as well, while tonight's show appears to be the status quo more or less for Silent 9's diverse and often hard rocking cover slate, but there may be some costumes and Halloween frills tonight as well. You can see Jess, Ryan, Paul, and Steve in action tonight and tomorrow at 9:30 PM with 19+ age limits and no cover charges. See above for more details, and here they are live at The Esquire Club last year!

We'll cap off this weekend's concert previews with tomorrow's Rust and Dick Texas/Sole Aggressors shows on both sides of the border (and more?), so stay tuned then! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Scarkazm, Rhythm & Brews, And Tarnished), Plus X's & Y's Updates!!

Today's post is 100% devoted to Sault Michigan and the Eastern Upper Peninsula, as we have a bunch of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (one on SHORT NOTICE with a related apology) to take note of, along with big news on an upcoming album release, so here's what you should know!

Local hard rock/classic metal band Tarnished will return to The Rapids Lounge at the local Kewadin Casino TONIGHT after previously playing there last night! Apologies for the short notice and for missing yesterday's show, they were only announced on the band's Facebook page yesterday morning, with the band admittedly calling them a "surprise show", despite there being two gigs. According to (temporary?) bassist Chris Leask's personal Facebook page, yesterday's and TONIGHT's shows came about after "a last minute cancellation". The originally scheduled Rapids Lounge band this weekend was Traverse City dance rock quartet Risque, who confirmed on their Facebook page that they withdrew due to "unforeseen circumstances", but "we are all okay". Hopefully that is the case, and that Risque's scheduled return to the Soo Kewadin in December goes on!

Kudos to Tarnished for stepping in last night & TONIGHT on late notice, and this means that The Rapids Lounge hosted the same band in consecutive weeks, which is not common but a big thing for fans of their hard rocking covers and originals! TONIGHT's (and yesterday's) shows are 21+ affairs with no cover charges and 9:00 PM start times. Visit the above links for more details, apologies again for missing yesterday's show (surprise though it may have been), and here's Tarnished live!

Next up, let's stay with new Kewadin Casino shows, as the entertainment pages for both regional Kewadin branches have been updated to reflect bookings through the end of November! Not a ton of new hard rock-leaning bookings ahead there, and we already knew about Peril's St. Ignace shows next week and Fyrbird's Thanksgiving weekend there too, but Traverse City metal trio Scarkazm will return north for two concert weekends at both Kewadin lounges next month! The Peril sister band will first rock The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin on Friday, November 1st and Saturday, November 2nd, and in case you're wondering about a potential Halloween theme, I wouldn't bet on it given that their general events calendar points to their parties and costume contests at all branches being on Saturday the 26th (Sault Ontario's Touch of Class will be in St. Ignace that weekend).

As for The Rapids Lounge, fans will be able to see Adam, Dave, and Jeff back there on (Black) Friday, November 29th and Saturday, November 30th as they light things up over the Thanksgiving long weekend. That may be the last time you can see either Scarkazm or Peril in the E.U.P. this year, so don't miss out on Scarkazm's hard hitting covers before December rolls around! All four of Scarkazm's November gigs up here have 9:00 PM start times, 21+ age limits, and no cover charges. See above for more details!

The only other verifiable new hard rock shows at either local Kewadin branch will come on Friday, November 1st and Saturday, November 2nd once again, but this time at The Rapids Lounge in the Soo, where local hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews are slated to return to the stage! Rhythm & Brews (featuring current Tarnished performers Chris Leask and Ron Suchey on bass and drums) don't play live all the often right now, with next month's shows being their first publically advertised gigs that I have seen since June. It will be good to see Brandon, Chris Hubbard, and crew back in just under a month's time, and hopefully their hard rocking covers provide a strong kickoff to the month! Once again, I don't believe Kewadin Casinos are celebrating Halloween a day late at all based on their event calendar listings, and if you come there on the 26th to celebrate, that night's Rapids Lounge band will be local country duo Perry/Hatch.

As with Scarkazm in St. Ignace that same weekend, expect 9:00 PM start times, no cover charges, and 21+ age limits for Rhythm & Brews' Soo shows. Visit the above links for much more on Kewadin Casino's regional lounge gigs for the rest of the fall season!

Let's close today with the latest from local metal solo project X's & Y's (led by former Life's Eclipse guitarist and Werehold Records founder Jason Mills), who has been very busy in recent months! As of September 11th, their long-gestating debut album "The Obsidian Dream" was complete, and unlike every Werehold release from their heyday, this actually is done and dusted, and Jason sent the album to be printed on physical CDs the following week! The full album will be released on Friday on all major streaming services and on CD while supplies last. The first 30 CDs come with an NES-inspired band sticker, and if you order it early, it will immediately ship, so you may get yours before October 11th if you're quick/close enough. Jason posted the video below onto X's & Y's Facebook page on Thursday to preview the packaging for "The Obsidian Dream", which will have eight songs, and note the Werehold logo on the back!

I'm not sure if this is a first step for the label's rebirth or just to have a label for the release even just in name, but it's neat to see it on a real physical CD in 2024! Two of the songs have guest musicians (pause it 19 seconds in to see their names clearly). If you've been following Jason's original metal music over the past couple decades, you'll wanna pick up "The Obsidian Dream", so visit the above links to get your CD and/or more details, and click here to see guest guitarist Jeremy Belter playing a riff from the final cut "Never Left"! Very incomplete, but very promising at the same time!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Nameless), A New Local Hard Rock Band, And Tarnished Updates!!

For today's SMS post, we're heading to Sault Michigan and the E.U.P. to cover some recent updates from across the river, including big lineup news from a prominent hard rock band, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next week, and leading off, a new local band with a few familiar faces, so here's what you should know on this Tuesday night

We have a new local hard rock bands to add to our Sault Michigan band links, that being Unfortunate Sun! Described on their Facebook page as "the EUPs newest high energy rock band", and presumably playing off of the C.C.R. song with the name, they are effectively the successors to the now-defunct Fake Chow, and have already signalled more of a hard rock base in their sound than Fake Chow ever did. Lead singer Skip Parish, guitarist Jody Sandhagen, and Project 906 drummer Jason VanLuven are now joined by ex-Shift bassist Tony Rogers (yes, he was Slappy from Clownsack) in place of Jeffrey Barr. Unfortunate Sun debuted via an outdoor gig at Huck's Pub & Grill in nearby Rudyard on July 27th during the town's Summerfest weekend, and they have yet to announce further concerts of any kind. Two videos have been shared on their Facebook page from that night, where they covered Tommy Tutone's "867-5309 (Jenny)" and, as embedded below, Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train".

Also, Exit 808 singer Dillion Semasky reportedly joined them on stage to cover Seether's "Remedy", but there are no other setlist hints so far. Unfortunately, both videos are short and vertical (despite the Tommy Tutone cover being shot horizontally, so it's sideways), and we see more of attendees than the band for the Ozzy cover, but what I've seen points to a technically sound melodic hard rock cover band, and it'll be interesting to see what Unfortunate Sun have planned for the rest of the year! Check them out for yourselves above & below!

Next up, a rare multi-band local concert will hit Pickles Bar & Grill in nearby Brimley on Saturday, August 17th! This event is brought to us by promoter Brighton LeBlanc of Serious Business, who put on the multi-band concert at The Satisfied Frog last November featuring a Karstens reunion and four touring bands from around the state, but no bands in common are playing next week. The headliner here is R. Solomon, an electronica musician from Detroit, which may seem out of left field, but the show at The Satisfied Frog last year had a similar genre variance in the lineup. Two known local bands will be opening, namely hard rock quintet The Nameless and young local punk trio The Sole Aggressors (the winners of last year's fan-voted LSSU Battle of the Bands). We haven't heard much from them this year, but according to their Facebook page, they've parted ways with singer Henry Boucher, who wasn't at the battle of the bands anyway.

A reason for Henry's departure wasn't announced, but hopefully all's well with him in any event! The band also played a public concert outside of the Bayliss Public Library in the Soo on May 7th, which I profusely apologize for missing on here, but hopefully it was a hit, and the setlist for that show can be seen on their Facbeook page! The fourth act next week is "Sean & Diego", who I know nothing concrete on beyond the poster. This show has a 9:00 PM start time, 18+ age limit (not 21+), and a $10 cover charge. Visit the above links for more on all of the action in Brimley next weekend, and thankfully I'm able to cover this one in a much timelier fashion!

Also today, we have some big news from local hard rock/classic metal band Tarnished, who have surprisingly parted ways with bassist Parker Talentino. In a post on their Facebook page yesterday, the band noted that "it was a difficult decision" and that "we felt it was best for the project moving forward". While they didn't go onto specifics otherwise, Alex & Josh are still on amicable terms with Parker, and they wished him well in his future plans, including his active solo project. Parker had replaced Isaac Royer on bass in Tarnished last fall, while also handling rhythm guitar when Chris Leask was guesting with them, and he last played with Tarnished at the Sault Kewadin this past weekend. While Parker is a talented multi-instrumentalist who seemed to fit well with Tarnished, I always got the sense that his folksier acoustic solo output was truer to what he likes musically. He has a bright future ahead regardless!

Regarding Tarnished's lineup vacancies, the band revealed that Rhythm & Brews/ex-Highway 63 bandmates Chris Leask & Ron Suchey will be playing bass & drums "for all of our current upcoming shows" (they have frequently guested with Tarnished at regional dates since May, including this past weekend). The band's statement is somewhat ambiguous, as it could be interpreted as Chris & Ron filling in for currently booked gigs only, but we'll let you know if Tarnished say that they have 100% joined the band or not (keep in mind that Tarnished's recent downstate gigs were as a trio, with Alex primarily drumming while singing). Also note that Rhythm & Brews are still active, last playing live in June, but they do not play live with Tarnished's frequency. At present, Tarnished are booked for road trips to Grand Marais on Thursday and in Rose City later this month, before coming home to rock The Rapids Lounge in late September.

Chris & Ron are talented local rock veterans who should bolster things for at least the next two months! Lastly, two new videos of Tarnished this past weekend were posted by Audrey Marshall (a frequent filmer of Sault Ontario concert videos) as comments on the band's Facebook page post on Friday, and are thusly unembeddable here. They include a (vertical) video of them covering Neil Young's "Rockin' In The Free World" and a shorter (but horizontal!) video of their cover of ZZ Top's "Tush". Both feature Alex just singing, while an unidentified female bassist guested on the Neil Young cover. Solid while they last, so check them out on Facebook, and stay tuned for weekend concert previews next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Soundcheck) & More Weekend Concert Previews!!

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!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tarnished) & More Related Updates!!

Local hard rock/classic metal band Tarnished have announced a number of concerts into September via their Facebook page on Thursday, and while not all truly "local", fans in the E.U.P. will have multiple chances to see them ahead! Not counting their then-upcoming & late notice show at The Merchant's Bar on Saturday (more on that in a bit), Tarnished's next show will be at Byce's Michihistrigan Bar & Grill in Gould City (90 minutes southwest of the Soo) on June 15th, with a return booked for there on July 12th. Not in our coverage range, but if you're in western Mackinac County or are up for a road trip, keep these dates in mind! Yes, the venue's name is misspelled in the band's poster (forgetting a "hi" both times). The Michihistrigan shows bookend a return to Shelly's Rainbow Bar in Ishpeming (3 hours west of here) on Saturday, July 6th, which will notably fall near Independence Day, so fans in the western/central U.P. may want to note that extra just in case!

Unless something truly local is announced in the interim, Tarnished's next gigs within an hour of Sault Ste. Marie will be on Friday, July 19th and Saturday, July 20th when they return to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino for their first shows at that Kewadin branch since 2022. Hopefully things go well for Tarnished in two months' time in their St. Ignace return! Expect these to have 9:00 PM start times, no cover charges, and 21+ age limits. One week later, Alex, Josh, and Parker (and crew?) will play at "Hamilton Pub" on Saturday, July 27th, but where is that? I am not 100% certain, but the likeliest match is the Hamilton St. Pub in Saginaw (3½ hours south of the Soo). This is the sort of thing where specifics would be a good idea, especially as I don't recall Tarnished playing somewhere with a similar name, so hopefully they or the venue clarify the locale!

Back in town, Tarnished will play their first advertised dates in the Soo since this past Saturday when they rock The Rapids Lounge at the local Kewadin Casino on Friday, August 2nd & Saturday, August 3rd before returning there for dates on September 27th & 28th! Always good to see Tarnished's hard hitting originals and covers on their home turf, so keep these two weekends in mind! Like at St. Ignace in July, these are free & 21+ shows starting at 9:00 PM. The guys will also return to the Grand Marais Music & Crafts Festival in Grand Marais (2 hours west of here) on August 8th as their free Thursday headliners, which should be a fun time if you're in the neighbourhood or wanna hit the road, so see above for more on the festival! Lastly for the show announcements, Tarnished will play at "Barn Fest" on August 30th & 31st. Like the "Hamilton Pub" show, Tarnished didn't give details here, so what is Barn Fest?

The likeliest candidate is a returning concert festival in Rose City (3 hours south of the Soo), and you can get details on last year's Barn Fest at this link. Stay tuned for clarifications when they are made by Tarnished, venues, and/or promoters! Closing with more Tarnished news, the guys announced on Wednesday (after a day of teasers and fan guesses) that they'll be releasing a new studio single named "Lightswitch" on May 31st on "all music streaming services". I highly doubt that it will be on all of them, but I encourage Tarnished to prove me wrong. Regardless, I am curious to hear it! As for their show at The Merch on Saturday, the band posted a bunch of pictures from it on their Facebook page yesterday, confirming that Josh Fair (a.k.a. "Josh Tyler") was indeed on lead guitar again. Bassist Parker Talentino played rhythm guitar, while frontman Alex Traynor just sang without playing guitar for at least part of the evening.

Rhythm & Brews' Chris Leask and Ron Suchey guested on bass and drums as advertised, while their bandmate Chris Hubbard guested on drums for a few songs as well, much like he did in Tarnished's recent Ratt jam session cover. Josh's personal Facebook page now credits him as the band's lead guitarist, so that seems pretty official in at least his case, though it's not 100% clear if Alex and Parker's roles have permanently changed, let alone who will be their new full-time drummer. Despite the fact that the rest of their promised full set videos from the battle of the bands in Alpena are still not posted on Facebook, Tarnished have announced that "some videos of us playing our 80s style covers LIVE" are coming soon, so look for those in the near future if all stays on track! Seems like exciting times for Tarnished in 2024, so see above for more details on their Merch show and upcoming plans, and look for more on the SMS soon! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Sylo), More Weekend Concert Previews, And More Updates!!

As promised, we're capping off a busy weekend's slate of hard rock concert previews in today's second post, and while all of these previews are of shows that had advance notice, we are leading off with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this month, and some new videos are dotted within too. Here's what you should know on this Thursday night!

Local hard rock trio Sylo have reunited after a year+ hiatus, complete with a new Instagram page, and they'll play their first show in a year & a half on Friday, February 23rd at The Distraction! In case you need a refresher, Sylo is the band formerly known as Raincourt, and after guitarist/namesake Raine Rancourt (now of HeadFirst) left in the summer of 2022, they regrouped as a trio, opening for Vanity First at an event in Goulais River and playing a one-off gig at Reggie's. Nothing else publically came of Sylo at the time beyond rebranding their two original songs on streaming services. Singer/guitarist Eli Russell, bassist Owen Dearing, and drummer Jakob Kuiack are all back for their reunion, and you can see how well they shake off the rust in three weeks, at an event being opened by party metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty, one of two Distraction shows this month with both Eli & Mikhal Muto involved (the other is previewed in a bit).

I can't speak for Sylo yet, but I was impressed by Raincourt's sound & professionalism during their all-too-brief run under that name, so here's hoping that they pick up where they left off in 2022, with some upbeat rap rock from The A.A. as well! As usual for The Distraction, this is an all ages event with a "$5 or pay-what-you-can" structure, and doors open at 5:00 PM. Visit the above links for more details, and before we move on to this weekend's previews, give Sylo's only Instagram video (of Elijah playing their Raincourt-era original "War Times" unplugged) a look below! Strong take with intense vocals, hopefully this is a good sign for their comeback!

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Next up, and like yesterday, we'll start today's weekend concert previews in Sault Michigan, where local hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews will return to The Rapids Lounge at the local Kewadin Casino branch TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! One week removed from gigs in St. Ignace, the guys will hit the stage on a packed weekend, given that the International 500 snowmobile race takes place on Saturday, and with all of the tourists in town for the occasion, and Kewadin already hosting many of the official pre- and post-race events, a sizeable crowd should be in store for Rhythm & Brews' hard rocking cover slate on both nights! Personal Facebook postings about this weekend's shows heavily suggest that singer Brandon Carr will be absent once again, with guitarist Chris Hubbard, bassist Chris Leask, and Tarnished frontman Alex Traynor filling in again on vocals in his absence. Hopefully all's well with Brandon, and of all the weekends to miss!

Tomorrow and Saturday's concerts have 21+ age limits, no cover charge, and 9:00 PM start times. Despite their continued lack of public videos to preview their shows with, this talented band should entertain assembled fans and I-500 attendees with their familiar hard rock renditions this weekend, so don't miss out, and visit the above links for more details!

Also, we'll look at a show featuring a headlining band from Bay City, Michigan, but the show is in Sault Ontario! On SATURDAY NIGHT, touring punk solo act/"musical therapist" Jackal Blood will make their local concert debut at The Distraction, as part of a unique event featuring five solo musicians/projects. Jackal Blood's hybrid of acoustic/folk punk with backing tracks and honest lyrics will definitely strike a chord with many attendees at the former Big Guns Barbershop on Saturday, so be sure to check them out to see what you think! The four local openers, all solo acts, include emo/folk punk solo project Agnosticism, prolific folk punk/extreme metal singer/guitarist Chase Wigmore, Sylo frontman Eli Russell (who headlined the first ever concert at The Distraction last fall), and Floor Between Us frontman/2022 Soo's Got Talent finalist Colin Gasparelli. Nice array of styles and sounds between these five acts!

This concert has doors opening at 6:00 PM (it's projected to end at 11:00 PM, it is all ages, and admission is again via the venue's "$5 or pay-what-you-can" setup. It's rare nowadays to get this many original acts on one bill, let alone five solo musicians, but hopefully Max, Mikhal, Chase, Eli, and Colin deliver the goods for many tastes on the punk and rock spectrum on Saturday! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Jackal Blood live!

Finally for this weekend's previews, let's head to Shooters Downstairs Lounge, where local hard rock quartet Half Past will finally return to the public concert stage THIS SATURDAY NIGHT! Over twelve years after they last graced a local stage (The Rockstar Bar in October 2011), fans can witness their comeback, with returning members Jordan Rains, Alain Fletcher, and Arthur Lacasse now joined by Al's old Skeyes of Seven bandmate Johnny Amendola behind the drumkit. So much has changed since we last saw Half Past in concert (R.I.P. Luke & Chris), but their talents are definitely still there, so hopefully they get off on the right foot once again on Saturday! A one-nighter due to Shooters' Friday DJ nights, this show has a 9:30 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, we do have some brand new jam session videos from Arthur's YouTube channel to check out!

On New Year's Day, the band was filmed covering 10 Years' "Novacaine" and, as embedded below, Chevelle's "Joyride (Omen)", and while the audio quality is somewhat muffled and cybmal-heavy, these are the best jam videos that we've seen of Half Past since they first announced their reunion in the fall of 2021. 2+ years later, they're finally ready to play live again, and hopefully they've dialed everything in just right! Give Half Past's new videos a watch above & below, and don't miss them on Saturday!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Rhythm & Brews, Soundcheck, And Generations), Plus Weekend Concert Previews!!

The last concert weekend of January 2024 is upon us, so let's devote this post to weekend concert previews! Hard rock fans have a decent amount of (publically announced) shows to take in, so let's lead off this post with LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, some on SHORT NOTICE!

Joining their previously announced Hawaiian-themed party at the same venue on SATURDAY NIGHT, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will also be playing a normal un-themed concert at Jay's Piston Broke Pub TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, drummer Glen Thomas only confirmed TONIGHT'S show via their Facebook page earlier today (yes, you could infer that they'd be booked both nights but Jay's Facebook page was solely promoting the Hawaiian party on Saturday). Joining tonight's usual jam night hosting duties, Soundcheck will be seen at Jay's in three very different lights this weekend, but if you want to see them with Cameron and just playing a traditional concert, you'll want to be at the former Reggie's West TONIGHT! As for tomorrow's Hawaiian party, this is a reprise of the themed events that Jay's hosted in early 2023, and you can expect drink specials, limbo and bikini contests, and tropical decor, while Hawaiian shirts and such are encouraged for attendees.

TOMORROW & Saturday night's Soundcheck concerts are 9:30 PM affairs with no cover charges and 19+ age limits. Whether you just want a night out or if you want to pretend it's a luau to beat the winter blues, you'll get a solid soundtrack via Soundcheck's talented classic & hard rock covers, so visit the above links for more details, and here they are live!

Next up, fellow local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations will play their first concert of 2024 THIS SATURDAY NIGHT when they return to Shooters Downstairs Lounge! Again, apologies for the short notice, drummer Tony Santoro first announced this gig via their Facebook group this past Friday but I didn't see it until earlier this week. After a slowed down concert slate to end 2023 with just one public date in December (also at Shooters), Generations are back to deliver more old school rock hits on SATURDAY, so keep their return in mind! Like at their shows at Reggie's in September, Muckrakers frontman Mike McDonald will be subbing in for guitarist Tony Kajnar on SATURDAY due to "a prior family commitment", and hopefully things aren't too serious for Tony K., but Mike is a talented musician! A one-nighter due to Shooters' continuation of weekly DJ nights, this 19+ concert takes place at 9:30 PM on SATURDAY with no cover charge.

It's good to see Valerie, Pierre, and Tony S. back on stage, with Tony K. presumably back in time for their Jay's concerts next month, so definitely consider heading to Shooters on SATURDAY to see this talented veteran group for the first time this year! See above for more details, and here's Generations live!

Also this weekend, let's hop across the border for Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews' return to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Their first publically announced shows of 2024 and first in St. Ignace since August, these will see a change from their normal gigs, as frontman Brandon Carr will be absent for unannounced reasons, as per guitarist Chris Hubbard's personal Facebook page (the band hasn't posted on their Facebook page yet this year). Chris noted that vocals will instead be handled by a combination of himself, bassist Chris Leask, and Tarnished frontman Alex Traynor this weekend, and while I can't vouch for Chris H.'s lead vocal abilities, Power Slug and Tarnished fans should be intrigued! No word on if Alex is playing with them all night on guitar too, or if he's just joining the band for select songs. While we're on the subject, Rhythm & Brews will also rock The Rapids Lounge at the Soo branch on February 2nd & 3rd!

As first announced via Kewadin's entertainment page (we'll have more soon on the other Kewadin hard rock shows next month), this rare scheduling on consecutive weeks will see Rhythm & Brews crucially serving as the live band during the International 500 snowmobile race weekend, with many pre- and post-race events being held at the casino already, so they'll reap the benefits of the busy and exciting I-500 weekend! This and next week's shows are all 21+ events with no cover charges and 9:00 PM start times. See above for more details, and alas, we do not have any public videos to preview Rhythm & Brews shows with yet!

Finally for today's known hard rock previews, we'll head back north to Sault Ontario, where young local metal trio The BAG and punk cohorts Vanity First will join forces on SATURDAY NIGHT at The Distraction! The first of two concerts in seven days from these two acts on the same stage (joining next Friday's Esquire Club gig), this will be The BAG's debut at the former Big Guns Barbershop building on East Street, while Vanity First ended their months-long hiatus from the stage at this new downtown venue in December. Whether you're a metalhead or a punk fan, these two bands are injecting some youthful energy to the scene, so don't miss out on their two pronged attack on Saturday (and if you can't make it, they have an encore in the west end less than a week later!). This is an all ages event at 7:00 PM with a "$5 or pay-what-you-can" entry setup. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The BAG live last year!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile on the site next! Thanks everyone!