Insurrection/Beguiler Concert Preview, Clutch Concert Videos, And Superior Whitefish Festival Notes!!

Before we dive into a late notice-riddled array of weekend concert previews, here's a new news post to check out on this Wednesday evening, and it includes videos from a recent major concert, clarification from a recent battle of the bands, and leading off, a mid-week death metal show to preview in Sault Ontario. Let's get things rolling!

We'll start today with a special Wednesday night concert preview, as Gatineau, Quebec death metal band Insurrection and Toronto deathcore quartet Beguiler will make their local concert debuts TONIGHT at Soo Blaster! Insurrection's groove metal-influenced brand of brutality has been a prominent sight among extreme metal in la belle province since 2008, so this stop on their Obsolescence Tour should deliver all of the metal action that you can get on a work night! Meanwhile, this show is over a year in the making for Beguiler in a sense, as they were one of the five touring Ontario metal bands slated to play at Crucifest, the cancelled death metal festival in Leeburn in July of last year. So far, they're the only one of the five to land a new booking in the area, which is great to see, and they should crush it tonight as well! Local support includes death/thrash metal trio Pillory in their first gig since former bassist Devon Lucier returned to the band.

Devon hasn't played with Pillory since 2014, so welcome him back in style tonight! As well, crossover thrash quartet Hails will continue their recent momentum with their own in your face originals tonight as well, so don't miss out on this brutal foursome if you can come out! Promoted by Ha!ls guitarist Mikhal Muto, this all ages concert has a 7:30 PM start time, and tickets ran for $20 in advance through the local openers and at this link, with the door price jumping to $25. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details on this very heavy way to help end July 2025, and here's Insurrection live!

Next up, if you're wondering why I haven't shared any YouTube videos from Maryland stoner/hard rock band Clutch's headlining concert at The Dreammakers Theater at the Kewadin Casino in Sault Michigan yet, it's because I hadn't found any... until now! YouTube user Jamesmclaughing (who also saw Clutch in Flint a few years ago) was on hand on June 19th, capturing two brief videos, both hovering around 42 seconds in length. At least they're horizontal! The first clip (of the end of a song that I couldn't make out) can be seen here, but embedded below is Clutch playing the end of "Big News II" early in their set. Muffled audio on both, but James had a good view of the stage & Neil's intense presence, so watch these above & below!

While we're on the subject, let's address some unanswered questions regarding our belated coverage of the concerts at Saturday's concerts at the Superior Whitefish Festival in Brimley, and our thanks to Molly Escherich's mom Tiffany for helping fill in some blanks via her comment on our Facebook page's post to promote yesterday's post here! After noting technical difficulties on the Music In The Park half (which ultimately cancelled Acoustic Beaches' set), she clarified that performers Whistle & Fish are a duo comprised of local musicians Jason Smith & Ken Murphy, who jam often at the Christopher Columbus Italian-American Society Hall in the Soo. No genre hints, but from what I have gathered, they aren't a hard rock group. Regarding the battle of the bands that day, Tiffany was kind enough to reveal who won the top three spots, and the mystery band Crush actually won the $1,000 top prize, so who were they?

They weren't the girl group covering Chappell Roan, for the record. According to Tiffany, Crush is a new local band featuring Tarnished bandmates Alex Traynor and Josh Fair alongside former bassist Isaac Royer, and the intent appears to be for this to be an original music outlet while saving Tarnished for covers (note that Tarnished have an EP of original songs and put out "Lightswitch" last year, but that was before Chris & Ron joined full-time).  We'll let you know when/if we get clarification on Crush's lineup, sound, and intent, but congratulations on winning the $1K! Tiffany also confirmed that Kaleb Shannon won the $750 second place prize (no small feat for a solo artist, as Molly knew in 2023), while The Nameless claimed the $500 third place prize. Surprisingly, Molly & The Other Guys (who won last year's LSSU Battle) finished in last on Saturday, but Tiffany did partially chalk that up to their late drummer switch.

Molly's brother Cayd filled in when About:Blank's Kade DesArmo had to drop out that same day, and it was the first time Cayd has ever played a live concert with a band, so there were obvious setbacks, and Tiffany did concede that maybe it should have been an acoustic set instead. I don't know if the battle was judged by actual judges or by a fan vote, but clearly something was missing here for Molly & crew given her talents & how she did at the LSSU battles (2023's was fan voted, last year's had judges). Hopefully everyone had a great time regardless, and if the Superior Whitefish Festival has a battle of the bands in 2026, I will not miss covering it here! Apologies again, and thanks again to Tiffany for helping out here!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Rust & M1), The Clutch Concert Preview, And Exit 808 Updates!!

Today's post features a bit preview for a notable E.U.P. concert and recent fallout from another one, but leading off, we have LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS concerning upcoming tribute band concerts in Sault Ontario, so here's what you should know!

Calgary-based Motorhead tribute band M1 will make their local concert debut on Wednesday, July 9th when they rock Beck's Bar! This is the first instance of a touring band of any genre to headline at Beck's since opening in April, and it comes by way of a tribute to hard rock legends that you don't often see tackled here beyond the occasional "Ace of Spades" cover by local acts. While M1 don't necessarily look like Lemmy and crew, they have the sound down well, and if you check out their videos on their Facebook page, they do a good job in mimicking Lemmy's gravelly vocals in particular! When Beck's announced the show on their Facebook page on Monday, they indicated that there would be an opening band, but we await public confirmation. This 19+ concert will be an early-ish night (ideal for a Wednesday) with the openers starting at 7:00 PM, and there is NO COVER.

It's not every day when a touring band plays a free show in the Soo, let alone a tribute band, and hopefully M1's take on Motorhead draws well at Beck's in three weeks, as it may lead to more touring acts playing at the former Vibe Lounge in due course! Visit the above links for more details!

Next up, there's more tribute hard rock action ahead this fall, as Sudbury's Rust: A Tribute To Rush will rock Soo Blaster once again on Saturday, October 18th! Fans may recall seeing Rust rock the same venue in November of last year, but their members are no strangers to the Soo, as the Kuthy brothers also perform in Just Leppard, who have played Def Leppard classics here four times since 2019, including at Soo Blaster two months ago. Rush fans will enjoy Rust's faithful take on the progressive rock legends' catalogue once again this fall, and hopefully there's a sizeable turnout at Soo Blaster once again for Rust's local encore! Notably, Rust plan on playing the "Moving Pictures" album in its entirety in four months. Like last year, tickets run for $25 online and at the door, this is an all ages event, and there is an advertised 8:30 PM start time. Visit the Facebook event page for more details!

Also today, let's get a slight jump on this weekend's concert previews by way of a major headlining concert in Sault Michigan TOMORROW NIGHT, as Maryland stoner/hard rock band Clutch will make their way to The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino! Well known among metalheads (if not necessarily mainstream rock radio) for songs like "Careful With That Mic...", "The Mob Goes Wild", and "10001110101", Clutch's melodic & bluesy but rough edged brand of hard rock stands on its own, and it'll be interesting to see how things go tomorrow in their local debut! Part of me is curious to hear if there's a normal amount of Canadian attendees given the current political climate and tariffs, but we'll have to see in that regard. Opening for Clutch tomorrow are Nashville southern hard rock quartet Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown and Washington D.C. folk/country musician Nate Bergman. 

The performers definitely get heavier as the night wears on, but Tyler and Nate are talented artists, so don't be late! Clutch frontman Neil Fallon even plugged the show directly to fans in this "Reel" on Kewadin's Facebook page, which is neay! Presented by Rock 101 (who have played a fair amount of Clutch on air in the past four months), this stop on Clutch's Full Ahead Flank MMXXV Tour is all ages with an 8:00 PM start time, and this is the rare standing room only concert at The Dreammakers Theater. Tickets run for a flat $55 USD at this link, at the in-person box office, or at 1-800-KEWADIN. Should be a good time, and a definite change of pace, so visit the above links for more details, and here's Clutch live!

We'll stay in the E.U.P. to end today's post, courtesy of a new video from local hard rock band Exit 808! They kicked off their summer concert season at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino two weeks ago for their only truly local dates of this month, and it sounds like everything went well for Exit 808, aided by a bachelorette party taking place on the Saturday nighter! As per their Facebook page, they welcomed two guest musicians for the weekend, namely About:Blank/ex-Tarnished guitarist Nathan Webber (himself a founding member of Exit 808/Double Jack) and Project 906 guitarist Joe Jenkins on bass. While he was tagged in this post featuring photos from the weekend, Blaze Beairl appears to have missed these shows again, but he did rejoin them for their Walloon Lake concert on Saturday. A video was posted from the Saturday the 7th show, so what can you see there?

The video (sadly shot vertically) sees Exit 808, Nathan, and Joe covering the abnormally popular 4 Non Blondes' song "What's Up?" with Amy Beach handling lead vocals. I'll never quite understand how this song is such a popular cover choice (Sault Ontario bands cover it a lot), but it does have that crowd sing-along quality, whether I get it or not. The filmer was more to the side of the stage than we usually see from Northern Pines Lounge videos, and while I'm not a fan of accentuating empty crowd levels on the floor, they do eventually zoom in. Not my personal cover choice, but give Exit 808's newest St. Ignace concert video a watch below!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Clutch & Selias), 104.3 The Fox Updates, And A 1999 Concert Bootleg!!

Let's dive into some more big news on this Wednesday morning, including a surprise local concert bootleg discovery, programming news from a local radio station, and leading off, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS on both sides of the border, so here's what you should know!

Toronto melodic death metal band Selias will head here for the second time in under six months when they perform at Soo Blaster once again on Friday, March 14th! As local metalheads may recall, Selias headlined Heavy North Entertainment's comeback concert there in September of last year, with next month's show kicking off the band's Western Canadian Annihilation Tour, which hopefully goes well for all involved! H.N.E. are promoting this show, in their first concert booking of 2025 and second since their relaunch. It's worth noting that drummer Tyler Reiner (better known currently from his work with Spades GT) is not pictured in Selias' newest band photographs, implying that he has left their ranks, though hopefully he comes back north with Spades soon! No word yet on opening bands, but in September, Selias were joined by fellow touring metal band Out Of Spite and six local hard rock/metal acts, including some big returnees.

One of those openers was new local technical death metal band Bardo (fronted by Heavy North Entertainment owner Tyler St. Amour), but I have no idea if they're playing next month. We'll let you know when additional bands are confirmed! No word yet on ticket prices or availability therein, but last year, the show was all ages with an early 5:00 PM start time to accommodate the eight band lineup, and tickets ran for $15 online, at Soo Blaster, via local openers, or at a couple of Queen Street East businesses.  There's blanks to fill in ahead, but visit the above links for more on Selias' St. Patrick's Day weekend stop at Soo Blaster next month!

Next up, here's yesterday's big Sault Michigan concert announcement for The Dreammakers Theatre at their Kewadin Casino branch, as Maryland stoner/hard rock quartet Clutch will make their local concert debut on Thursday, June 19th! While not a mainstream rock radio presence, Clutch have carved out a devoted following with their bluesy but hard hitting brand of original rock in the past three decades thanks to fan favourite songs like "Electric Worry", "The Regulator", and "X-Ray Visions", and it will be neat to see them in town this summer! If press releases and news sites like Blabbermouth are to be believed, Clutch will be playing their self-titled 1995 album in full on this tour, so fans of "Spacegrass" will be excited! Openers on the Full Ahead Flank MMXXV Tour will include Nashville southern hard rock quartet Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown and Washington D.C. folk/country singer/guitarist Nate Bergman.

While we're obviously getting heavier as the night progresses, Tyler and Nate have a lot of talent, so don't bypass their sets for some bluesy southern fare! This all ages concert (on Juneteenth, no less) has an 8:00 PM start time, and this one is standing room only, so the seats are gone for the night. Tickets go on sale for $55 USD on Friday at this link, at the in-person box office, or at 1-800-KEWADIN, but pre-sale tickets are already available if you have the requisite code. I wouldn't have had Clutch pegged as a band that I expected to rock the Twin Saults in 2025, but this should be a solid concert, and decidedly unique compared to what often comes to the Soo Kewadin, so see above for more details!

Now let's dive into some programming updates from new Sault Ontario rock radio station 104.3 The Fox! The big reveal is that morning drive program The Brock & Dalby Show now has a nighttime version airing weeknights from 8:00-10:00 PM on The Fox and its sister stations in Northeastern Ontario and Kingston. As best as I can gather, this features condensed/select host segments heard in their regular 5:30-9:00 AM timeslot in between music, and it premiered after The Biggs & Barr Show on Monday night. Another note that I didn't bring up when first covering the relaunched CJQM is that Tuesdays have a slight theme, namely "Two For One Tuesday", where two back-to-back songs featuring the same artist (if not always in the same band) will be played on occasion. This is hardly an all-day, every-song theme (like "Twofer Tuesday" is on WRIF in Detroit), but it's something different every so often on Tuesdays!

Lastly, I never mentioned when noting local midday DJ Dan Koo's on-air work that he has a segment of his own called "Dan's Big Three", where he quickly goes through three big local news stories. It sounds like things are going well for the former Q104 in their new format, and I am enjoying the variety that their existence affords in conjunction with Rock 101, so continue tuning into 104.3 FM on your radio dial or online!

Finally, many readers will be aware of concert bootlegs being popular among diehard fans and collectors, and the Soo was not immune to getting them on occasion. Back on July 15th, 1999, Halifax hard rock legends April Wine headlined in Sault Ontario at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, one of their (at least) three local concert stops, including one at Sault Memorial Gardens in 1984 and another at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino in 2013. The 1999 show was recorded by rej1064 and remastered by Rocker200, and was first uploaded to the bootleg forum Dimeadozen in 2006, with the YouTube channel Classic Rock Live Concerts posting it publically on Sunday. I won't list the track order here, as you can see it below via the bootleg's back cover, but the hits that you expect April Wine to play were represented in the 17 song set. The audio quality isn't pristine, but you hear enough to get the gist of how April Wine sounded in 1999!

There are some abrupt stops between songs, so I take it that rej1064 was trying to record individual tracks and/or cut down on between-song banter/introductions. Still, 75 minutes of legit local concert audio from 26 years ago is really neat, especially as it predates the YouTube generation where you can readily find full concert streams from the past two decades, and the band sounds good throughout this concert. Check out the full local April Wine bootleg below, and R.I.P. Myles!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!