LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Tea Party), A Concert Cancellation, And Much More!!

Here's a new news post for your Tuesday morning, which is by and large devoted to two topics: A major concert cancellation that many were expecting, and a huge LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month, but we also have some assorted recent news and notes to take in as well. Now, here's what you need to know!

Juno nominated Windsor hard/world rock trio The Tea Party will headline a FREE & ALL AGES concert at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion on Sunday, July 16th! As announced by in a press release on SooToday on Friday, the show is one of 23 free outdoor concerts taking place across Ontario between June 25th and September 17th as part of the Government of Ontario's ONTour concert series, which will see over 50 Ontario music acts playing across the province to celebrate Ontario's 150th' birthday, with the Soo's coming fourth in the tour. This is a nice surprise for music fans across the province, so visit the above links for current details on the tour so far! This will be The Tea Party's first local concert appearance since headlining at The Princess Theatre in 1998, before they had their biggest chart hit with "Heaven Coming Down", so this should be a cool chance to hear these Canadian rock legends playing many of their hits on a local stage after 19 years away, and for FREE!

A diverse opening lineup will include Toronto drum & bass duo Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker (who played at LopLops Lounge back in 2011) and Barrie country quartet The James Barker Band in their local concert debut. Both bands have had top 10 hits on the Canadian alternative and country charts, and should find solid audiences of their own next month! A 6:00 PM start time is advertised on the Facebook event page, and for readers elsewhere in the north, note that there will be ONTour events in Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Timmins, and Blind River as well, artists to be announced. This sounds like a great time for local music fans of varying genres, especially given The Tea Party's return, so stay tuned for updates if they come in!

Next up, it is now 100% official: the planned Rock The Border Music Fest at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion on Sunday is not taking place. Organizers quietly deleted the official Facebook page and event page yesterday, following a tumultuous month of no new public updates despite mounting local debate and pessimism about the planned concert. Australian hard rockers and planned co-headliners The Lazys confirmed the cancellation on their Facebook page, while planned local openers The Din took their issues and concerns public via the Facebook video below from this past Friday. The clip explains The Din's reasons for dropping out of the show (which hadn't officially been cancelled at that point), noted that they've obtained refund money for outstanding local tickets from March's aborted Quiet Riot concert from the same promoters, and encouraged fans to instead check out the Electric Church/Speaker concert at The Canadian on Sunday from local promoters Live705.

It's worth noting that if you purchased a Rock the Border Fest ticket, Live705 will honour them as coupons for their show on Sunday night, getting you admitted for the $5 father's discount price, which is very admirable of them! The Din encourage sharing of their video "if you value this city's ability to bring in big name concert acts". Also, note that the Eventbrite page for online ticket sales is still up as of Tuesday morning, despite the Facebook deletions, so don't buy tickets there hoping that this show might still occur. I won't single out any individual promoters here, but after two high profile hard rock cancellations in a three month span, it's easy to see why there's been so much online reticence in the past month, and the lack of public updates since May 7th was telling that something was up (at the very least.) Give The Din's video a look below, and don't miss Live705's Canadian Nightclub concert on SUNDAY or the aforementioned FREE Tea Party concert at The Pavilion in July!



Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist name:

• Local alternative/hard rock quartet Bizotic, alt-punk/no-genre trio Handsome Sandwich, and rapper Mikey Thomas have all been added as openers for the Vaultry-headlined concert at The Canadian Nightclub on July 7th. Promoters Live705 had originally only planned for 2 more acts on the bill of this rock/rap hybridization event, but now there's 7 total acts, including 4 bands and 3 rappers. Very intriguing event to be sure, so check the above links for full details on all of the action next month!
• This past Thursday night's CKY concert was covered by SooToday's Donna Hopper in this article posted online yesterday, featuring interview remarks with frontman Chad Ginsburg on his move to lead vocals and their upcoming CD "The Phoenix". As usual, Donna got some great photos at the show (albeit in black & white), including 5 of CKY's set, 10 of The Wild's set, and 4 of Jack Spades' set, though she didn't get anything from A Dire Setback or with CKY touring keyboardist Matt Cole. Solidly done once again, so check out Donna's new concert photos and coverage at the above links!
• Remember how Toronto death/groove metal quintet Sludgehammer were to have headlined the postponed Oddzfest II concert at The Oddfellows Hall on Saturday? Well, it was announced on Sunday that Bear Hunters guitarist Josh Stephney (the promoter of Oddzfest II) has replaced Chris Szarota as Sludgehammer's new frontman! No word on if the reveal would have been a surprise unveiling on Saturday or not had the show taken place, but it's great to see Josh singing again in a death metal band, so follow Sludgehammer above, and hopefully he brings them north for Oddzfest II at some point!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for even more news and notes on the SMS in the next few days! Thanks everyone!

CKY Concert Videos, Plus New Electric Church Footage!!

Today's all-video post largely comes from the CKY concert at The Canadian Nightclub this past Thursday night, but there is one more video of another local band to round things out with at post's end, so let's get things rolling! These new CKY videos all come from the ever-prolific Christopher Paci's YouTube channel, as he filmed 10 videos of 3 of the night's bands, which were all posted on Friday! Sadly, he didn't get anything from A Dire Setback's opening set, but kudos again for him getting all of this! 7 of Chris' clips are of the Pennsylvania alt-metal headliners in action, including of their songs "Flesh Into Gear", "Days of Self Destruction", "96 Quite Bitter Beings", "Knee Deep", and "My Promiscuous Daughter", their cover of G.G. Allin's "Bite It You Scum", and as embedded below, their set-opening tracks "The Human Drive (In Hi-Fi)" & "Sporadic Movement". Solid clips as usual, especially given the central camera angle, and attendee heads aren't a massive factor given the band's on-stage setup!

You can also hear Chad Ginsburg's singing better here, at least from my perspective, as from my position at the far right corner of the floor near the stage, I was fighting to hear him over the raucous crowd at times. Give Chris' CKY footage a look above & below!



Next up, Chris posted two videos from co-headlining Kelowna southern hard rock quartet The Wild's set, including their opener "Roadhouse" and, as embedded below, "Party Till You're Dead". Similar camera angle to CKY, but given the lesser numbers on the floor, he had more room to change angles, and The Wild's rollicking brand of hard rocking originals come through nicely on these clips, so check them out above & below too!



Chris' remaining video is of returning local openers Jack Spades playing their usual set opening songs "They Live" and "Rise", giving fans their first ever glimpse of their 4/5ths new lineup in action. Intense as usual (new lineup or not), the new look Jack Spades got things rolling nicely here, and just if you were wondering, J.D. Pearce sang most of "They Live" in the crowd, in case you're wondering where he was. Give both songs a listen below, and don't miss Jack Spades at The Rockstar Bar in just under two weeks!



Finally, here's a new video from a separate concert, plus one more clip, from local blues/hard rock trio Electric Church's Facebook page! One video was quietly posted as a live stream on May 12th (apologies for missing it), and it features the guys jamming instrumentally at, presumably, a band member's home. Unfortunately, the filmer shot most of the video sideways, and as it was a live stream, they couldn't fix it beforehand, but the guys sound good if you can look past the angle! Their other new video is a minute-long black & white clip from the Sky's The Limit mental health fundraiser concert at The Tech last month, I believe of their song "Carey Baby". Solid footage, if a little smoky looking in the monochrome haze, so give it a look below, and don't miss Electric Church at The Canadian Nightclub THIS SUNDAY NIGHT alongside Speaker and other local bands!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates as this week rolls along! Thanks everyone!

CKY/The Wild Concert Review!!

It's finally time to review Thursday night's CKY concert at The Canadian Nightclub! In case you're wondering, this month's Defunct Local Band Profile will be our next post, either tonight or early tomorrow. Thursday's show had a very solid turnout of attendees, and while I have seen more packed concerts at The Canadian, the crowd reception and raucousness steadily grew throughout the night, and it was a cool atmosphere to be in! Just in case you missed our preview of this show, note that the reunited As It Stands quietly dropped out of the show and were not replaced, so this show ended by midnight, unusually early for a 19+ event, which could be good or bad depending on who you ask.

Opening Thursday night's festivities were local alt-punk quartet A Dire Setback, who maintained their forward momentum with a solid set of original material! No major surprises for fans compared to prior sets of theirs (aside from maybe bassist Matt Quinn's new green mohawk), but fans of songs like "Catastrophe", "Kicking & Screaming", and "Nightmares" will be pleased to hear that they sounded great and had no visible flubs or fatigue! Larry Babic was on point vocally, Matt handled the bass nicely throughout the set, and guitarist Chris Nielsen was his usual energetic self, and while there weren't high numbers on the floor for their set, responses were high from the crowd between songs. Solid way to kick off the night, and don't miss A Dire Setback one week from tomorrow when they rock the border opening for Speaker at The Canadian!

Next up was the long awaited return of local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades to the stage for the first time since the SNFU show in September, as they publically unveiled their 80% new lineup for the first time! First off, who was the mystery man replacing Johnny Belanger behind the drum kit? None other than Project 421/Eclipse drummer Chris Thompson, making him the only person to join J.D. Pearce as a member of Fitswitch, Frightlight, and Jack Spades. Very solid and fitting choice, and he held up things well on Thursday! Of course, new guitarist Daniel Horton is also in the same 3 bands as Chris, and if you were curious, he and fellow new hire Anthony Orazietti more or less split lead guitar duties, with both showcasing quality solos. As for new bassist Steve Shaw, while I'm more familiar with his guitar work with Talk Shit, he performed well on Thursday and fit in with the guys! In terms of the set proper, it was somewhat rushed, but most of their standard originals were worked in to the proceedings!

Fan favourites like "Rise", "Fear Corps", and "Motorwolf" (with vocal cameo by ex-guitarist Jesse Cook) were joined by a surprise cover of The Inner City Surfers's old song "Ten Commandments", which was very cool to hear! Local bands should cover other local bands more often. There were occasional hiccups and timing miscues with the new lineup musically on Thursday, but for what was their first show together, this was a solid first look at Jack Spades 2.0, and don't miss them opening for Beaver Slap later this month!

Co-headlining on Thursday were Kelowna, British Columbia southern hard rock quartet The Wild, and to many fans, they stole the show with their old school-tinged brand of rock 'n roll! Any comparisons to Jackyl held up very nicely with their rollicking originals like "Ready to Roll" and "Roadhouse", and they even added extra flourishes, like matching denim vests, some synchronized guitar moves on stage, and the extended faux-song endings on "Banger". I was reminded in ways of when Wilson opened for Jess Margera's other band Fuckface Unstoppable here in 2013, though The Wild had more of the retro flavour. Dylan Villain's got an almost deceptively strong voice, and he and The Kid complimented each other nicely on guitar, while Boozus' bass work was just as impressive as his beard! Very solid set from The Wild, and yes, you can say that it was wild too! Hopefully they come back through the Soo!

And finally, your headliners were Pennsylvania alt-metal trio CKY in their first ever local stop, and they delivered a very fun set to cap off the evening with! Playing a mixture of familiar older songs like "Attached At The Hip" and "Knee Deep" as well as a few new selections like "Days of Self Destruction", the guys even broke out a couple of surprise covers, including GG Allin's "Bite It You Scum" and.... "Jungle Boogie" by Kool & The Gang?! Apparently, they'd never played that cover live before Thursday. One of the big questions that CKY diehards had before this show was how guitarist Chad Ginsburg would sound on lead vocals in place of the departed Deron Miller, and while he doesn't have the same range or projection (particularly on "Flesh Into Gear"), he can carry a tune well, and believe me, fans in the crowd picked up any needed slack! Though everyone was well spaced on stage, he and Matt Deis had solid chemistry, and Jess Margera's drumming was reliably good!

Also, props to new touring keyboardist Matt Cole (also Jess' uncle and Gnarkill bandmate), who filled things out with some understated but well performed contributions himself. Overall, CKY put on a great show, as did the openers, and kudos to J.D. for putting this huge show on! You can check out our photos from the show at this link or via our Facebook page, and as for our videos, here's A Dire Setback covering OneRepublic's "Counting Stars", Jack Spades' new lineup playing "Breakneck Speed", The Wild playing "Banger", and CKY playing "Rio Bravo"!









That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Tym Morrison) And Weekend Concert Previews, Including CKY!!

A quality weekend of hard rock concerts is upon us, so let's preview this weekend's announced heavier shows today! Nothing is on the public docket for SMS-covered bands in Sault Michigan this weekend, but there's some big things going down on this side of the border, so read on below for your previews, starting with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Prolific local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to The Barrelhouse Wine & Whiskey THIS SATURDAY NIGHT for a regular nighttime solo concert, joining his previously announced Gliss Steak & Seafood matinees TOMORROW & SATURDAY! Apologies for the short notice on the Barrelhouse concert, it was only just announced via it's official Facebook event page on Monday. Returning to the Queen Street East tapas restaurant for his eighth announced solo concert there, this will be a good opportunity to see Tym at a more typical nighttime setting, especially if you missed last week's Roadhouse return or his last Barrelhouse gig three weeks ago, while his usual weekly evening gigs at Gliss should appeal to regulars and fans alike at that fellow downtown restaurant!

Expect SATURDAY'S Barrelhouse show to be a 19+ event with no announced cover and a 10:00 PM start time, while tomorrow & Saturday evening's Gliss double header is all ages with no cover and a 6:00 PM start time, though note the location of these shows. Visit the above links and this link for more details on Tym's latest round of unplugged hard rock solo shows at both The Barrelhouse and Gliss, and here's Tym live a few years back!



Next up, we'll move to entirely previously announced concerts with the highly anticipated Canadian Nightclub concert TONIGHT headlined by Pennsylvania alt-metal trio and video series namesake CKY! This popular band will be very familiar to many fans for songs like "96 Quite Bitter Beings", "Flesh Into Gear", and "Knee Deep", and even without long-time frontman Deron Miller, their unique hard rocking originals should provide a set full of quality rock for fans at The Canadian in their local debut, so don't miss out! Kelowna, British Columbia southern hard rock quartet The Wild will co-headline in their own local debut, and their free-wheeling brand of intense Jackyl-esque originals should provide a solid prelude to CKY, so keep them in mind! Local openers will include the return of punk/metal quintet Jack Spades after a nine month stage hiatus, with frontman & show promoter J.D. Pearce now joined by Daniel Horton, Anthony Orazietti, Steve Shaw, and a drummer to be confirmed (possibly Chris Thompson.) How will the new look lineup sound? Come on out tonight to find out!

Fast-rising local alt-punk quartet A Dire Setback will open with another high impact set of original favourites, so come early to ensure you see them! Note that the previously announced reunion set from As It Stands has quietly been removed from the official Facebook event page, and there has been no public reasons given as to why. Hopefully nothing bad happened, as their reunion has been eagerly awaited! A 19+ concert, tonight's show starts at 6:30 PM, and limited tickets will be available at the door for $20 for this huge show, so don't miss out on thie one, and get knee deep with the quite bitter beings TONIGHT! See above for more details, and here's CKY live last year!



Also going down this weekend is the return of local party/hard rock cover trio Stiffler's Mom to The Esquire Club for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Previously announced via the venue's own calendar for bands in the second quarter of 2017, this weekend's shows will mark the guys' first stops at the west-end bar and venue of the year, last rocking out there in December. It's great to see Greg, Mike, and Jon playing a recently rare set of gigs outside of The Rockstar Bar, and hopefully they deliver fun nights worth of hard hitting and fan favourite covers over the next two nights! As usual for Stiffler's Mom's live sets, expect a 19+ age limit, 10:00 PM start time, and no announced cover charge. Check the above links for more information, and here's Stiffler's Mom live!



Finally for today's previews, we'll head to The Rockstar Bar for that venue's kick-off to their summer season with a triple header of rising alternative bands THIS SATURDAY NIGHT! New local genre-less but alt/punk-esque trio Handsome Sandwich (in their Rockstar Bar debut), alternative hard rock trio The Din, and  hard rock quartet Eclipse will join forces for this show, which unites a nice selection of familiar performers in bands ranging from reunited to established to still new, and there's a nice selection of sounds to take in from the three on Saturday! Is it worth noting that all three bands on Saturday feature a former Haggith member in their lineups? This show is also notable as it will help kick-off the re-opening of the Rockstar Bar's outdoor patio for the summer, so keep that in mind if you enjoy the patio in between the bands.

A $5 cover charge is in effect for this concert, which has a 10:00 PM start time and a 19+ age limit. This should be a fun concert featuring three talented local bands, especially if you haven't seen Handsome Sandwich or Eclipse post-reunion yet, so visit the Facebook event page for more details, and in lieu of a public Handsome Sandwich video, here's The Din live!



That's all for today, but I'll see you guys TONIGHT for CKY! Thanks everyone!

Ruptured Birth Concert Preview, A Unique Drum Cover Video, Upcoming Concert Notes, And More!!

For the first time in a week, we have a post that's primarily about news and updates at the SMS! Yes, there is one concert preview for an impending metal concert, but also, we have some assorted recent updates, perhaps some bad news for an upcoming concert, and a new drum cover video, so here's what you should know! (Updated on Sunday at 12:20 PM)

Heavy North Entertainment are back for their first concert of the year, and it will see the return of two Northern Ontario extreme metal bands to the Soo TOMORROW NIGHT at The Oddfellows Hall to cap off their Grime Life mini-tour of Northern Ontario! The featured headliners are Sudbury death metal quartet Ruptured Birth in their first Soo stop since opening for Vesperia at The Algonquin Pub in 2015, and with many brutal sci-fi inspired originals in their repertoire, prepare for a face melting good time tomorrow! North Bay extreme metal trio Thekillingfield will make their long awaited local return tomorrow as co-headliners, marking their first local appearance since 2011, with a pair of 2014 sets cancelled in the interim. It's hard to believe we've been waiting over five years for Thekillingfield to hit the local stage again, so welcome them back with open arms and horned fists as well! Local opening acts will include the return of local death metal favourites The Bear Hunters in their first concert of 2017, so how will they sound after their 7 month stage hiatus? Find out tomorrow!

Online page-less death metal duo Twistory will round out the lineup in their first public concert set in almost a year, while a planned opening set by Crucify the Whore has been cancelled due to equipment difficulties, as per the Facebook event page, and they have not been visibly replaced. This ALL AGES show has an 8:00 PM start time (with doors opening at 6:30 PM), and there will be a $6 cover charge at the door. Death metal fans should be very excited by this show, including a number of long awaited returns to the local stage, particularly Thekillingfield's progressive-tinged explosion, so visit the above links for more details, and here's Ruptured Birth live!



Next up, here's a pair of new videos, starting with this unique clip of As It Stands drummer John Mignacca beating the electric drumskins all over Sault Ste. Marie! Uploaded to his new "Flo McNasty" YouTube channel on Tuesday, the video (filmed by John's former A.I.S. bandmate Nathan Bouliane) features John drumming along to his old band Skeyes of Seven's original "Cognitive Dissonance" in various locations, including outside of the "Algoma's Friendliest City" sign, the International Bridge, the Roberta Bondar Pavilion, and inside the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Center. Very creative and well shot, this is well worth checking out for fans of local landmarks, John's drumming, and Skeyes of Seven, though after watching, I was also thinking of other places he could drum for a sequel! One outside of concert venues might be interesting, particularly ones John played at frequently. Give it a look below, and don't miss As It Stands return at The Canadian on THURSDAY!



Also today, here's some recent clarifications and updates regarding a teased concert event for later this month. Though there has been no formal confirmation, numerous postings on it's Facebook event page have indicated that the Rock The Border Music Fest at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion on June 18th is no longer taking place. Pessimism and unconfirmed personal reports don't paint a good picture, especially as this show was promoted by some of the same organizers behind the called-off Quiet Riot show (CSA branding or not), and while the ticket sale page is still online, there haven't been any public updates to this event from organizers since May 7th. Based on available reports, I'm reluctantly inclined to remove the show from our links, but if there's any official confirmation that it's still on in some form, we will redact this! If true, this is all very disappointing, especially given the hype and the chance to make up for the Quiet Riot concert, but if it's off, hopefully ticket buyers get full refunds promptly!

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 event name:

• The Sault Star's Brian Kelly interviewed CKY drummer Jess Margera for this article that went in the newspaper and on their website on Monday in advance of THIS THURSDAY'S headlining show at The Canadian Nightclub.Within, Jess discussed the band's move to a three-piece lineup following Deron Miller's departure, their recent collaboration with Mastodon's Brent Hinds for their new single, fan response in their recent tours, why you won't hear much from their last album "Carver City", and more, and it's a solid read in advance of this highly anticipated show, so check everything out above!
• The previously announced CureCon festival from new local company Ma Lady Menace on August 12th will reportedly not be taking place at The Royal Canadian Legion hall on Great Northern Road, as per the venue's Facebook page earlier today. The Legion apparently has had "NO dealings" with the promoters, and while I won't get into the online rumous and mixed feelings within, note that Ma Lady Menace have not updated their Facebook page in two weeks, when they acknowledged website maintenance. We'll remove CureCon from our concert calendar due to the lack of venue, but if it's still held elsewhere, we'll let you know!
• The Machine Shop confirmed via this press release last week that March's postponed Quiet Riot concert is now officially cancelled, citing a "breach of contract" between the headliners and promoters CSA International, and told people where to get refunds for tickets if they had yet to do so. This story resurfaced because the originally planned rescheduling was for May 26th, but CSA had previously redacted that on their own. The discussion about the promoters and refund process has sparked more pessimistic online debate, but all I'll add here is that I hope everyone still looking for a ticket refund gets theirs soon, if they haven't already.

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news as the month of June progresses! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (CKY & Nova Rex), Plus A New Din Video!!

On this Friday evening, we have a new video to share, but first, let's tackle two recent LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS featuring notable American headlining bands, including one in particular that's gotten tons of local buzz since it was announced yesterday! Here's what you need to know!

Pennsylvania alt-metal trio CKY will make their local concert debut at The Canadian Nightclub on Thursday, June 8th! Yes, the band best known for songs like "96 Quite Bitter Beings", "Flesh Into Gear", and "Familiar Realm" will rock the Soo in a few short months, and even without longtime frontman Deron Miller in their current lineup, their energetic punk-influenced originals are sure to get a huge reception in their local debut! After all, they're the namesake of and a huge part of the old CKY DVDs that begat the Jackass series, so keep that angle in mind too! A stacked local openers lineup will include the return of hardcore quintet As It Stands to the stage for the first time since 2012 on June 8th. Though A.I.S. only formally broke up in 2014, we've been waiting well over 4 years for a new show from the guys, and with John Mignacca back home, they're primed to reclaim their spot in the local scene! Also slated to open are punk/metal favourites Jack Spades, in the public debut of their new lineup!

No word yet on who's joining J.D. and Justin in their new lineup, but this will mark Jack Spades' first show since opening for SNFU in September, and this will be a great way to welcome them back after over 8 months away! The current opener lineup is rounded out by newer alt-punk quartet A Dire Setback, who should be in fine form following their own recent Canadian gigs, so don't be late for their set either! Notably, this is the first announced concert promoted by Jack Spades frontman J.D. Pearce since his annual Halloween party last year, but what a way to get back into the swing of things, and keep posted in case he has anything sooner to announce! This 19+ show currently lists an unusually early start time of 6:00 PM, and tickets are now on sale at this link for $20, though in-person local availability has not been publically noted as of press time. As a long-time fan of anything to do with the CKY name, this is a huge deal, and it will be awesome to have Chad, Matt, and Jess in the Soo come June 8th!

J.D. has noted that this show has seen the fastest online sales on the first day of any of his promoted concerts, so get your tickets A.S.A.P. just in case by clicking here, as who knows when and where they'll be available in person, especially with As It Stands and Jack Spades both returning that same night! Stay tuned for continued updates as they roll in, and As It Stands are back in our active band links, hopefully this isn't a one-off!

Next up, here's one more new show announcement for later this year, as Florida-based hair metal veterans Nova Rex will hit The Rockstar Bar for a headlining concert on Wednesday, August 30th! A familiar band to glam metal diehards, Nova Rex have been active since the mid-1980s, and while they never achieved the mainstream superstardom of other contemporary acts, they have a solid following that carried them to their own Netflix documentary in 2011, and they should light things up at The Rockstar Bar to help send out the summer! Returning local classic rock cover quartet Nikkfitt (featuring Browbeat and Redundant alumni) will open this show, and this will be a nice showcase for this talented local outfit who don't play live often enough, so keep them in mind as well! Admission for this 19+ event is $8, with advance tickets likely to be available at The Algonquin Hotel's front desk, and an oddly early start time of 8:00 PM is advertised. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for updates on this Hair Scare-worthy concert!

Finally, we were going to close with a new Facebook video from the aforementioned A Dire Setback, but that video was quietly deleted today for unannounced reasons, so we'll cover it if it's re-posted later. Instead, here's the latest clip from local alternative hard rock trio The Din, as uploaded to their Facebook page yesterday! Another in The Din's long line of comedic Facebook videos, this is a "public service announcement" on how not to headbang, a direct nod to Quiet Riot, who will no doubt play "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" on THURSDAY at The Machine Shop, with The Din opening the night's lineup! Needless to say, the headbanging demonstrations in the video aren't "traditional", and while the guys recuperate, drummer Brandan Glew hypes up the Quiet Riot show, especially as tickets are almost sold out. Click here for full ticket details while they last, and give The Din's new video a look below, as it is funny, and sound effects may be employed!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes over the weekend! Thanks everyone!