Today's post is 100% devoted to previewing this year's Northern Vibe Festival, which returns for its seventh annual installment from Friday-Sunday at the old Hempfest site on Poplardale Road in nearby Ophir! 2020 aside (for obvious reasons), Northern Vibe has proven to be a huge end-of-summer bash for local concert goers and campers alike, and this year's is shaping up to be a fun one once again, especially with the pandemic at a lesser state! Food & art vendors will also be on site once again, and be sure to visit the official festival website for full non-musical details. Like usual, there will be two stages, including the Roost River Stage for DJs, and the Forest Stage for live bands, this year named the Thompson Memorial Forest Stage in honour of the late Chris Thompson, who drummed with three bands at last year's Northern Vibe before he passed away last fall. A little birdie told me that the memorial t-shirts made up in his memory might be on site this weekend, so if you ordered one, keep that in mind!
Like last year, the bands and DJs (regardless of stage) are mixed up on the official poster, but alas, organizers have not publicized the daily performer schedules on either stage this year, which is sadly on par with 2021. Maybe they're trying to encourage full weekend ticket purchases, so you can't cherry pick going to see specific bands and leave, but I don't know that for certain. However, Cover-Up frontman Dustin Jones did post the Forest Stage band schedule in a photo on his personal Facebook page, and while there has been a band withdrawal from his copy since, I want to give massive kudos to Dustin for sharing that, as it makes my job today much easier! Like last year, the Thompson Memorial Forest Stage is curated by Spades GT/ex-Frightlight frontman J.D. Pearce, who moved to Barrie in 2020 but has came back home to work with Northern Vibe and resume his live booking magic both last year and this weekend.
With all that said, let's cover these SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS now that I have a band schedule on hand (apologies again, it's their call to not post a schedule publically), and TOMORROW'S opening night will be headlined by the aforementioned Spades GT, as the local/Barrie crossover thrash quartet will play their first Soo area gig since their final concert as Jack Spades in late 2019. This will also be your first chance to see them since new bassist Daniel "Odie" Rodbard and drummer Tyler "Jeeb" Reiner joined & Tiffany, Rob, and Johnny left, while Spades GT should play their newest originals tomorrow as well. Very good to see J.D., Daniel, and crew back on a local stage, so don't miss them at 10:00 PM! Remember, Chris Thompson was briefly Jack Spades' drummer in 2017. In a late lineup addition not reflected in the poster, Niagara Falls prog/improv rock trio The Road Waves (who played at Northern Vibe in 2017 & 2018) will co-headline at 9:00 PM tomorrow!
Only confirmed for this year two weeks ago, The Road Waves made a good impression with their soul-influenced funk rock stylings, and it'll be neat to have them back this year also! Sporadically seen local Foo Fighters tribute band The Soo Fighters will return to Northern Vibe for a second straight year at 8:00 PM, in their first show since the Halloween weekend last year, and in the debut of their new lineup, with singer/guitarist Jules Cote & guitarist Wes Greco now joined by bassist Mitch Sirie (replacing Arthur Lacasse) and his Bear Hunters/Handsome Sandwich bandmate Johnny Belanger (replacing the late Chris Thompson). Thanks for Johnny for the clarification on their exact current lineup! A reason for Art's departure hasn't been announced, but hopefully we see him back out there at some point, and The Soos should deliver a fun set for Foo Fighters fans tomorrow, especially with Chris in mind!
Online page-less punk cover quartet The Cover-Up will play their second show of 2022 when they rock Northern Vibe tomorrow evening at 7:00 PM, while local alt-punk trio A Dire Setback will end their year-long stage hiatus when they open the Friday schedule at 6:00 PM. Nice double whammy of modern punk rock to kick off the festival, so don't be late! I'll detail admission fees and such at post's end, but 9&10 News is calling for sunny-to-clear weather in the 17-22° range tomorrow evening. For a preview of the Friday lineup, here's Spades GT live!
SATURDAY'S longer lineup will be headlined by Toronto pop rock duo Goodnight Sunrise at 10:00 PM, marking their second regional summer festival appearance of 2022, following sets at this year's Go North Music Festival in Richards Landing. Not a heavier band, but still talented with a big sound, so don't leave early! The highest slotted local band is the diverse, genre-hating quartet Handsome Sandwich, who debuted their current lineup in Ophir last year, so look for more alternative and hard hitting jams from them at 9:00 PM! On Dustin's schedule, local punk/alternative quintet These Magnificent Tentacles are advertised in the 8:00 PM slot, but they apparently have withdrew from Northern Vibe, according to performer Johnny Belanger. If accurate, a reason for their exit has not been publically announced, but note that while the Tentacles were on the poster, they have not posted on their Facebook page in over a month.
Hopefully all is well in the T.M.T. camp! How timeslots will look with them apparently out, I can't say, but I'll go off of Dustin's schedule for consistency, though expect adjustments if you'll be in Ophir on Saturday. The 7:00 timeslot is given on his schedule as a Chris Thompson tribute, which I believe will be handled by the one-off Hey, What About Us?!, which is the band name that J.D. Pearce was planning to use for a Me First & The Gimme Gimmes tribute at his annual Halloween party in 2016. Whether Chris' tribute will also focus on Me First cover covers or not, I can't say, let alone the band members, but expect the good times & reminiscences to flow during this timeslot! The remaining Saturday bands include funk/hard rock cover quintet The Wyld Stallyns at 6:00 PM, instrumental surf rock trio The Dynowaves at 5:00 PM, indie punk quintet The Northwest at 4:00 PM (an oddly early timeslot given their recent profile), ...
...and indie rock quartet Man Feelings kicking off the Forest Stage lineup on Saturday at 3:00 PM. Solid group of recently prominent local bands to start the day, including some heavier/punk stylings from The Stallyns & Northwest! If you're wondering what happened to the previously announced set by local punk trio Redundant, it looks like they too have dropped out, which is reflected on Dustin's schedule, though like the Tentacles, they were still on the final poster from two weeks ago. A reason for Redundant's withdrawal has not been publically announced, but note that they have not played a concert since last fall, and have only posted on their Facebook page to note deceased musicians since then. Hopefully we see Redundant back on stage again soon! 9&10 News is calling for similarly sunny-clear weather on Saturday, with warmer weather in the 23-27° range. With all of the bands covered, what else should you know?
Camping gear is welcome to sleep over tomorrow & Saturday night (the festival ends Sunday but there's no bands that day), decorations are also welcome, but glass bottles and weapons are prohibited, as are renegade stages (this is actually something that has happened there before!). Online ticket sales have closed for Northern Vibe, but if you want to attend at the gate, full weekend passes will cost $125 there, and if last year was any indication, Saturday-only passes will run you at least $60 (understandably, organizers aren't hyping that up). Looks like a great time is in store for music fans in the Soo, so definitely consider heading east to Ophir (outside of Bruce Mines) for all of the action this weekend, and we'll have fallout when it arises! For complete details on the location, ground rules, and more, visit the above links, and for a preview of Saturday's lineup, here's Handsome Sandwich live!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile on the site next! Thanks everyone!
To start another work week at the SMS, here's another mid-week concert preview post, as we have hard rock/punk shows to spotlight over the next two days, including a major returning annual event with a stacked lineup, so here's what you should know!
After a pandemic-induced two year hiatus, Tidal Records will bring back its annual Go Skateboarding Day festivities and attached concert TOMORROW at Queen Elizabeth Park outside of the John Rhodes Center! Of course, Go Skate Day is a special holiday to encourage people (especially youths) to, well, go skateboarding, and safely indulge in other extreme sports activities, and Tidal Records held local Go Skate Day events from 2013-2019, including live bands atop the ramp from 2014 onward. It's great to see Dustin and company back for a belated eighth year, and hopefully there's a great turnout of skateboarding and music fans tomorrow! Skate games, refreshments, and other family friendly activities are to be expected, partially thanks to presenting sponsors. The expanded five band lineup includes headlining punk/alternative quintet These Magnificent Tentacles, who should turn some skater heads to close the day!
Promoter Dustin Jones' own online page-less punk cover quartet The Cover-Up will return from their own pandemic hiatus as co-headliners, in their first announced show since their turn as "You First & The Givee Givees" at a tribute concert in December 2019. The Cover-Up are this year's only returning band from any prior Go Skate Day, so you know their upbeat skate punk covers will be a fitting soundtrack! Unplugged roots/ska group Unorganized Township will chill things down in the middle slot tomorrow, while two rising young alternative bands will open the proceedings, including punk quartet Vanity First, who will be making their first announced public concert appearance outside of Korah C&VS tomorrow! The guys actually played a set at Korah's Relay For Life cancer fundraiser event on the 9th, and the band shared photos on their Facebook page to end their three month break from posts there.
If that was a publically attendable event beyond Korah students & staff, I apologize for missing it, but again, Vanity First never plugged their involvement. Lastly, hard rock quartet Raincourt will open in their first announced show outside of White Pines C&VS, and with their new Tidal-assisted studio recordings making waves, hopefully they kick things off on a strong note! Go Skate Day 2022 is a FREE & ALL AGES event that is projected to run from 4:00-9:00 PM, and be advised that while 9&10 News projects partly cloudy weather of 24-28° during showtime, there is a chance for thunderstorms around 8:00 PM. If you love skateboarding and live punk-leaning music, head to The John Rhodes Center for all of the action tomorrow, and remember to bring the kids if they want to shred at the skatepark or even learn how! Visit the above links for full details, and here's These Magnificent Tentacles live!
Finally for today, here's one more mid-week concert preview, as local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to The Mike Case Memorial Stage outside of The Trading Post for a fourth straight week on WEDNESDAY NIGHT! My pre-call last week that Tym would be back at the Mike Case Stage this week was accurate, as even if he hasn't firmly said so on his Facebook group, as he launched a Facebook event page earlier today for this week's stop. As such, he does appear to be on a Gliss-esque weekly arrangement for Wednesday evening gigs there, so if you're up for some classic and hard rock covers way down Great Northern Road in two nights' time, you know where to be! Night #4 of Tym's Trading Post series has a 7:00 PM start time, no cover charge, and no age limit, and 9&10 News is projecting a sunny evening with temperatures of 12-15°. See above for more details, and here's a full concert of Tym's from back in 2020!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!
The summer season is sure giving me a lot to write about at the SMS, so apologies in advance if anything gets/is delayed for coverage on the site, I'm working on it! Today's post features a new live concert video, details on a new local album release, and leading off, two LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS that you punk fans will definitely be interested in for later this month, so here's what you should know!
Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Tarnished will return to Snows Bar & Grill in nearby Cedarville for a concert TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced the show on their Facebook page last night, even lampshading the short notice by saying "Better late than never!". Tarnished debuted at Snows (at 1187 South Park Avenue, 40 minutes south of the Soo) in February during the venue's involvement in this year's Les Cheneaux Islands Snowsfest pub crawl, but TONIGHT'S concert does not have any advertised frills or themes. Regardless, it's their first announced concert since their (also late notice) Rudyard gig three weeks ago, but Tarnished have hinted that they will have shows to announce soon that have advance word. In fact, after TONIGHT, they'll hit the road for non-local shows in Gould City and Curtis later this month, so visit their Facebook page for continued details on those events.
Despite the late notice, fans can expect more hard hitting originals and covers from Alex, Nathan, Isaac, and Josh TONIGHT in Cedarville, so don't miss out if you're able! This concert has an 8:00 PM start time, 21+ age limit, and no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Tarnished live!
Next up, after a two year hiatus for very obvious pandemic-related reasons, Tidal Records will bring back their Go Skateboarding Day festivities on Tuesday, June 21st with five Sault Ontario bands hitting the stage (well, top of the ramp) at Queen Elizabeth Park outside of the John Rhodes Centre! After previously celebrating Go Skate Day annually with a free skateboarding community event from 2013-2019 (featuring live bands since 2014), it's great to see Dustin and crew (and sponsors) bringing this back at last! As usual, expect skate games, refreshments, and family fun, and if you can skate, you're welcome to come down! As for the musical side, the advertised headliners are local punk & alternative quintet These Magnificent Tentacles, while Dustin's re-activated (and still online page-less) cover punk band The Cover-Up will play their first show of 2022 as the only returning band from any prior Go Skate Day.
The other three bands are all younger local groups, including acoustic roots/ska collective Unorganized Township (who you may remember from the 2019 Fringe North festival), punk quartet Vanity First (in their public concert debut, though note that they have not updated their Facebook page in almost three months), and hard rock quartet Raincourt (in their first show outside of White Pines C&VS). Nice diverse lineup that should set the tone for the extreme sports action well! Admission is free for this all ages concert, which begins at 4:00 PM one week from Tuesday, expected to end at 9:00 PM. Sounds like a fun time, so definitely see above for details!
Also, let's head to Soo Blaster, where Toronto pop punk quartet Wasting Time will make their local concert debut on Wednesday, June 29th! Wasting Time have been active in the Southern Ontario scene since 2017, and their upbeat brand of modern skate and pop punk will definitely appeal to genre fans with its spontaneity and energy, so definitely give them and their new album "Once More Without Feeling" a listen to see what they bring to the table! Young local classic hard rock quartet The Uncanny Valley will open in their first public concert of 2022 following their late withdrawal from the Clusterfolk Festival in April (more on that soon, if belatedly), and while they're not a perfect genre match to the headliners, The Uncanny Valley's talents and raw potential will be on full display, as fans will have seen at Soo Blaster in October! This is the fourth stop on Wasting Time's Bite Fight Tour of Canada this summer.
Tickets for this show run for $15 in advance (presumably at the venue, I haven't seen a link to buy them online) or $20 at the door. This is a 19+ event as far as I know, and doors open at 8:00 PM. Hopefully things wrap up somewhat early given that there are only two bands and it is a Wednesday night, but visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and if you like skate punk, definitely consider coming to Soo Blaster on the 29th!
Finally, here's a very big story for local punk fans, as The Northwest's long awaited third EP "All In" was released yesterday! The indie/punk quintet put the EP out on Spotify as expected, as well as on Apple Music, but crucially, it is on sale for digital download via their Bandcamp page for $7, so it is officially in line for a formal review on the SMS! No word on physical copies, but your first chance to see if they exist would be at the Elliott Brood show at LopLops next Friday. Produced at Unsalted Audio by Pointless bandmates Dustin Goodall & Bill Priddle (with Dustin engineering and mixing solo), "All In" was mastered by Bryan Lowe at Joao Carvalho Mastering (where Id Iota's EP was mastered too), and the album artwork was made by frontman Wayne Watkins' old Small Town Rivals bandmate Jesse Nelson and prolific local punk musician/Cross Dog bassist Mark Rand.
The EP has six songs, including the three preview singles and three previously unreleased songs named "Unsober October", "Lights", and "Walls". It's great to finally see "All In" on sale and available to stream for free if you are so inclined, but when will we be reviewing the EP on the site? Honestly, it won't be until August, as this month is already set for Chase Wigmore's new album, while Sykotyk Rampage's surprise new album is ahead in July due to it going on sale sooner. We'll go all in on "All In" in a couple months, but give the whole thing a listen above! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news on the site next week! Thanks everyone!
Before we get this month's YouTube Channel Profile on the site, let's wrap up this weekend's concert previews, with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, a solo project's new updates, and some local news articles to round things out. Just as a heads-up, our New Year's Eve concert previews will hit the site on Sunday or Monday. Now, here's what you should know!
Local party metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty will play their first public show of 2020 on Friday, January 31st when they join other competitors in this year's The Soo's Got Talent competition at The Machine Shop to help kick off the Bon Soo Winter Carnival! Quietly announced via this image on relevant Facebook pages on Sunday, this special concert will not take place on the official opening night (which is on February 1st), but this will be a fine appetizer before all of the action fully begins. Four of this year's finalists will take the stage, including all three podium finishers, they being singer/guitarist Adrian Sullivan, vocalist Juliana Regan, and The A.A. themselves, while fellow finalists The Dancing Divas will get their own encore on this night too. While not credited in the image, a comment from The Soo's Got Talent's own Facebook page indicates that the women's vocal group The Lock Cities Chorus of the Sweet Adelines will also perform on the 31st.
They weren't in the competition, but they are a talented veteran ensemble! Note as well that The Apocalypse Afterparty did launch a search via the Musicians Wanted Facebook group earlier this month to find a temporary fill-in for either Paul or Alice (the member wasn't specified) on bass due to apparent health problems. I have no idea if they found a replacement yet, let alone if they'd still be needed by January 31st, but message the band above if you want more details! A start time and cover charge are to be confirmed, but I assume this will be all ages. Visit the above links for more details on this talented musician showcase as they roll in!
Next up, here's this weekend's last remaining hard rock or (in this case) punk concert preview, as online page-less punk quartet The Cover-Up will return to the stage TOMORROW NIGHT when they headline the "Punk Rock Xmas" show at LopLops Lounge! Last seen at this venue a year ago, this will be this supergroup's first show anywhere since Go Skate Day, and it sees them take on the moniker You First & The Givee Givees for the night. I still hope that's a temporary name to reflect the punk covers theme tomorrow, but regardless, the music will be top notch for genre fans! New local punk cover quartet The Sick Sons will play their second LopLops date of the holidays with an opening set here, and with their own stacked lineup of prominent local punk musicians, you know they'll set the tone nicely! A $7 cover is in effect for this 19+ show, which has a 10:00 PM start time. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The (former?) Cover-Up live!
Also today, here's the latest (and admittedly overdue) updates from local extreme metal solo project Awokest, who have largely taken a public back seat to project leader Chase Wigmore's eponymous music in recent months, but what's new under this name? Well, in late July, Chase said that he was planning to include Awokest material in an unidentified 7 inch vinyl split release, though as the image reveals, his contribution was way longer than the alotted space. We haven't heard any public follow-through on that since, but on October 17th, Awokest released a free "album" to their label Blood Shed Productions' YouTube channel, entitled "With Focused Psychosis I Wrote This". The 80 minute collection of songs does not feature any credited song names or a track order, but this 4:27 preview video from August features the first two songs, and his half hour long track "Anima Sola" is on the final product. The music on offer has a heavy dose of death metal, techno influences, samples, and noise rock, so fans of Chase's heavier output will be right at home. Give the free album a listen below!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items, all related to recent SooToday articles with an SMS relevance to the topics, which are all courtesy of newer contributor and veteran local musician Chris Belsito. As usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or business name:
Cover-Up/Rising Tide frontman Dustin Jones is featured in this new article (posted yesterday), which heavily focuses on his personal struggles and rehabilitation in recent years, with the musical talk largely revolving around his Toronto punk supergroup The Conspirators, who have a new album nearing a release. Very informative look at Dustin's life and evolution as of late, so definitely give it a look above, and give The Conspirators a listen too!
Last month, Chris also spotlighted local concert promoter Elise Nelson of Girl Friday Productions for this article on her work putting on shows and what she's done in the community in the late 2010s. Girl Friday have put on a handful of shows featuring SMS-covered acts, including this year's B.A. Johnston show and prior concerts headlined by Dany Laj & The Looks, FYI. Elise is doing great work locally, and the article is effective at outlining all of the relevant bullet points, so check it out above as well!
In October, Chris posted this article about the local music store Mister Disc and the popular Facebook group it spawned, which features reminiscences by store/group owner Todd Gordon about his time as a local business owner and music aficionado, which carried into the group, which Todd has expanded far beyond a meeting place for store regulars into a group where music fans can interact and discuss the music they love. The Mister Disc group is a great spot to hear new songs and meet like-minded fans in a safe space, so give it and Chris' article a look above!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile on the site next! Thanks everyone!
Before we dive into this weekend's concert previews, we have a bunch of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS to tackle today, including one on SHORT NOTICE, with an attached Thursday concert preview for convenience sake given that the same band is involved. Here's what you should know!
Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Tarnished will make their Moloney's Alley debut THIS SATURDAY NIGHT, following the expected continuation of their "every Thursday" matinee run at Biggby Coffee TOMORROW! Apologies for the short notice on SATURDAY'S concert, the band only announced it via it's Facebook event page on Monday. We haven't covered concerts at this popular 227 West Portage Avenue nightclub since Project 906 played here over two years ago, and while there is no apparent special event attached to this concert, Tarnished should deliver a hard hitting night of covers here on SATURDAY, so keep this one in mind! Of course, Alex (and company?) will precede that tomorrow at Biggby Coffee for tips & coffee, so if you want some acoustic jams in the afternoon, you know where to go! That is a 12:00 PM gig with no cover or age limits, while SATURDAY'S Moloney's Alley concert is at 9:00 PM with no cover and a 21+ age limit.
Visit the above links for more on both shows, and for a preview, we have two Facebook videos from Tarnished's three shows at The Double D Bar & Grill at Dondee Lanes last week to share! One was shared from bassist Josh Fair's girlfriend Olivia Eden's personal Facebook page, and features her guesting on a cover of The 4 Non Blondes' "What's Up". Vertical camera angle aside, it's a well done cover, if against type, and Olivia has a good voice! Embedded below is the band's own upload of them covering Metallica's "For Whom The Bell Tolls", and while Alex's vocals are nearly inaudible, this is well shot and the twin guitar attack is used nicely! Give these a look above & below!
Next up, Sault Ontario classic/hard rock cover quintet Fluid 5ive will reportedly return to The New American Pub for one night only on Friday, December 13th! Their last announced show of 2019 (remember that their Facebook page hasn't been updated since September), this will be Fluid 5ive's first concert at The New A since their Saturday matinee to end November, and this should be another fine opportunity to see their hard rocking take on classic hits you don't see covered often elsewhere! Remember, they are not playing the next day due to The New American's weekly karaoke nights. As usual for New A Friday night cover bookings, expect this to be a 19+ event with no cover charge and an 8:00 PM start time. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for new video footage of theirs soon!
Also, we have two big holiday-season punk concerts at LopLops Lounge to take in later this month, both courtesy of Tidal Records, and the first of them takes place on Saturday, December 21st, to be headlined by local Celtic punk quintet Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide! This will be The Tide's first public concert since Rotaryfest in July, but it will be just their second indoor concert of 2019, following their St. Patrick's Day show at LopLops. With their forthcoming studio album still in progress, what kinds of new music will we hear from Dustin and company for this pre-Christmas bash? Be at LopLops in a couple of weeks to find out! Funk/hard rock quartet The Elements will open in a rare LopLops appearance, marking their first show since Halloween, and first non-tribute set since the Oh!No festival in September. As fans who saw them last month can attest, The Elements do know their way around punk covers, and they should provide a fine compliment on the 21st, so don't bypass their set!
This 19+ concert has a $10 cover charge and a 10:00 PM start time. Punk fans won't want to bypass this talented double bill four nights before Christmas, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details!
One week later, punk fans will want to return to LopLops, where Tide bandmates Dustin Jones & Marshall Jaaskelainen will bring their online page-less punk cover quartet The Cover-Up back for a headlining concert on Saturday, December 28th! This will be this group's first public concert since Go Skate Day in June, and their first LopLops date since their pre-Christmas show here in 2018, and it's great to see the guys back out there! Event advertising is billing the headliners under a new name, You First & The Givee Givees, and you can probably guess the inspiration for it. If we're being perfectly honest, I really hope that's a temporary name to reflect the 1990s/2000s punk cover theme of the show, as it's not catchy, it feels forced, and it has been done locally already (remember when the now-defunct HTs debuted as You First & The Passive Aggressives?) Speaking of The HTs, frontman Lucas Schmiedendorf's current punk quartet The Sick Sons will open on the 28th.
Despite their continued lack of an online page, The Sick Sons have been gaining in prominence in recent months, and their talented veteran take on the genre will be a great match! Billed as "Punk Rock Xmas" despite being held 3 days after the 25th, this is also a 10:00 PM concert with a 19+ age limit, but the cover charge is $7, lower than on the 21st. We have a nice string of Saturday night punk action in store at LopLops later this month, so visit the official Facebook event page for this show and the above links for much more on both of these concerts! That's all for today, but stay tuned for the rest of our weekend concert previews tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
In what may be our last news post of July 2019, we are tackling some new YouTube video discoveries (some more belated than others), but leading off, here's a preview of a special Wednesday night concert for you punk fans!
Saskatchewan "post-gar(b)age-punk" duo The Faps will return to Sault Ste. Marie TOMORROW NIGHT when they rock Dryer Fire's pop-up summer venue at 123 Bruce Street! The second stop on The Faps' current Ontario tour, this will be Blair & Skyler's sixth local concert appearance, and first since rocking The New A in April, though this gig at Dryer Fire's temporary homefront may represent new ground for many fans of theirs. With their intense, fan-engaging, and often intriguingly dressed live show making many local fans in the last few years, hopefully the mid-week placement doesn't scare off too many possible attendees! Local surf rock instrumental quartet The Dynowaves (featuring Brent "Slumshine" Ellis from April's Faps show) will open tomorrow's proceedings with their own proficient and unique originals, so don't miss them either! Promoted in-house by Dryer Fire, this is an ALL AGES concert with a $10 cover and a 7:00 PM start time.
While the Wednesday evening scheduling is unfortunate, The Faps are a proven attraction locally now, and their hard hitting minimalist punk attack should attract new and old fans alike at Dryer Fire tomorrow, so don't miss out on this show if you can help it! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The Faps live!
Next up, here's some surprising new discoveries: More video footage from the Steel Panther concert at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino back in December! One video was only posted online in June, as filmed by attendee Brad Madigan for his YouTube channel, marking his first upload from a local concert. This captures the first 15 minutes of the Los Angeles glam/comedy metal quartet's headlining set, which (after a sampled recording of Van Halen's "Everybody Wants Some") featured their songs "Eyes of a Panther" and "Goin' In The Backdoor", before bantering, joking, and jamming for the remainder of the clip. Musically, Steel Panther (and guest bassist Spyder) sound like their usual entertaining and ribald self, which definitely extends into the post-song bantering, and the impressive crowd is certainly on board! Brad got a great front row view of the band and audience, with only a speaker on stage breaking things up.
I don't know what took so long to post this video online, but if you love hair metal and enjoy very adult humour, Steel Panther will be right up your alley, and this video captures them in their element, so give it a look below!
The other belated Steel Panther video comes from attendee Brandan Penno, whose video of Steel Panther covering Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train" is his only upload on YouTube to date, as posted in April. Clever and amusing touch having frontman Michael Starr perform while dressed as Ozzy himself and acting like him on stage, even seeming addled and confused like he often came across on The Osbournes. The cover's solid and lively, and Brandan got a nice zoomed-in view of the front of the stage, so give it a look below also!
Finally, here's SooToday's brief video feature from last month's Go Skateboarding Day festivities at Queen Elizabeth Park in Sault Ontario, as posted onto SooToday staffer (and ex-Garden of Bedlam drummer) Derek Turner's YouTube channel! I have no idea why this isn't on SooToday's proper channel. As was the case in their prior video features from this annual event, there's no audio of any bands, as skateboarding is the focus, though you do briefly see The Cover-Up playing atop the big ramp 22 seconds in. Derek himself does not feature on camera, but the video features co-organizer and Id Iota frontman Christian Lemay promoting the event and it's goals in a one-sided interview, though given his long-time association with Shaw TV, it is very odd to see him holding a SooToday microphone. Go Skate Day is a great event to promote skateboarding with new and old athletes alike, and hopefully this year's installment was a hit as usual! Give SooToday's video a look below, and here's to 2020!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews and more very shortly! Thanks everyone!
Another busy weekend of hard rock and punk concerts is upon us, so here's what you should know to start! To spread things out and not overload this post, our preview of this weekend's Scarkazm shows in St. Ignace, Michigan will be in our next post, but don't worry, they are coming! Now, here's what you should know on the Canadian side of the border, starting with a handful of SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!
Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Reggie's Place on Queen Street East for a second straight weekend with shows TONIGHT, TOMORROW, and SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, these concerts were only announced via their Facebook event page yesterday, but at least we had enough notice to plug them all on here beforehand, unlike last week! With the popular downtown nightclub back up and running, it's not a surprise to see Soundcheck back with rare non-country concerts there, but with two full weekends in as many weeks (even with Thursday nighters), are they making up for 2 years of lost time? Notably, the event page reveals that ex-Phatstick frontman Jason Taillefer will be filling in for a vacationing Paul Belair TONIGHT, TOMORROW, and SATURDAY, with his presence noted for at least a few weeks. Fans may recall seeing Jason back on a local stage this year with scattered solo gigs as it was.
It's great to see Jason playing live again now that he's back home, and hopefully his bass work is on level! Note that Soundcheck's Reggie's West gigs earlier this month were with guest bassist Cory Valentine, a Sault native who recently played in the Southern Ontario cover band Southern Belle, and hopefully his appearances were well received! Thanks to drummer Glen Thomas for the information. As for TONIGHT, TOMORROW, and SATURDAY at the downtown Reggie's, expect 10:00 PM start times, no cover charges, and 19+ age limits. See above for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!
Next up, local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns will return to The Whiskey Barrel on Gore Street for another headlining concert TOMORROW NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced via it's Facebook event page on Tuesday. For the past couple of months, The Stallyns have exclusively played at The Whiskey Barrel, so if you enjoy Jesse and the Speers' varied and often heavy cover selection, you'll have to head to the former Konoba Tapas location, and TOMORROW will provide more of the same live entertainment from this fan favourite unplugged group! As usual for Wyld Stallyns shows at this venue, a 9:00 PM start time is advertised for TOMORROW NIGHT, there's no announced cover charge, and I'd expect a 19+ age limit given the timing. See above for more details, and here's The Wyld Stallyns live at The Whiskey Barrel earlier this year!
Moving to previously announced concerts, let's next head to Queen Elizabeth Park outside of the John Rhodes Center, as Tidal Records will host their seventh annual local Go Skateboarding Day festivities TOMORROW! Yes, the independent label are once again championing this yearly day honouring extreme sports, and skaters of all ages are encouraged to come down to the local skatepark for a day full of demonstrations, contests, vendors, a "low budget barbeque" and family friendly camaraderie! Visit Tidal's Facebook page for complete details on the non-musical activities. For a fifth straight year, local musicians will take the stage for the Go Skate Day festivities, and as usual, the performer roster is largely comprised of event newcomers, with only online page-less punk quartet The Cover-Up (featuring promoter Dustin Jones) returning from last, or any, year. The advertised headliners are funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, so hopefully they warm up well with this set before Rob & Jesse head down to The Whiskey Barrel for the Wyld Stallyns show!
Remaining performers will include Distillers tribute band Coral Fang and surf rock instrumental rockers The Dynowaves, so don't bypass their sets either! This FREE & ALL AGES event has a 4:00 PM start time, and luckily, they are calling for a nice summer day tomorrow, so hopefully things go off without a hitch. With four entertaining bands atop the half pipe once again this year, hopefully this is the biggest and best Go Skate Day yet, so see above for more details, and here's The Cover-Up live earlier this year!
We'll close today's Sault Ontario weekend concert previews with the ongoing weekly concert slate from prolific local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison, who is only scheduled for two shows at press time this weekend, both at Gliss Restaurant as standard TOMORROW & SATURDAY! After last week's surprise Sunday matinee at La Terraza Franzisi in Richards Landing, this is looking like a return to Tym's usual scheduling of two dinner-time shows at the Spring Street restaurant this weekend, but if he surprises us with another St. Joseph Island trip this weekend, we'll let you know. Of course, Tym's prolific and proficient setlist should provide ample entertainment for Gliss regulars and fans alike, so don't miss either show there over these two nights! As usual, expect these concerts to have 6:00 PM start times, no announced cover charges, and no age limits, but mind the locale. Click here for more details, and here's Tym live a few years back!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Scarkazm previews and more on the site next! Thanks everyone!
Before we begin today's post, I wanted to apologize for a missed concert, as local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns played at The Whiskey Barrel on Gore Street last Friday, which was announced last Thursday on their Facebook page but slipped us by entirely for our weekend concert previews. I profusely apologize, but hopefully it was a great show, and we will work harder not to miss future Stallyns shows there! Now, today's post features this weekend's (few) hard rock concert previews, new video finds, and leading off, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for later this month!
Tidal Records will host their seventh annual Go Skateboarding Day festivities on Friday, June 21st at Queen Elizabeth Park outside of the John Rhodes Center, and for a fifth straight year, local bands are on the docket! As finally revealed on their Facebook page this morning, local skateboarders can come down to the skatepark next Friday for skateboarding demonstrations, vendors, refreshments, and more family friendly entertainment as usual, so if you're a past Go Skate Day participant or new to the event, you may want to circle this on your calendars! Musically speaking, this outdoor concert event (presumably back atop the half pipe) has a mostly different lineup from last year, as is usually the case, but online page-less local punk quartet The Cover-Up will join The Din as just the second band to play in consecutive years. Next week, they'll be joined by headlining funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, Distillers tribute band Coral Fang, and surf rock instrumentalists The Dynowaves, all in their Go Skate Day debuts.
Solid lineup of punk and alternative sounds that should provide an ideal soundtrack for the skate action, and hopefully the weather holds out for everything! This FREE & ALL AGES event takes place at a special 4:00 PM start time next Friday, and (Choose) Maxx Entertainment will apparently be handling sound for the day. Another fun lineup of music and extreme sports is just over a week away, so don't miss out on all of the action next week, and visit the above links for more details on next week's events!
Next up, let's take a detour to Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula, as local blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 have announced just their third public show of the year, which will see them return to The Strongs Tavern in nearby Eckerman on Saturday, June 29th! This concert was first announced on their Facebook page on Monday, where the band acknowledged their public hiatus since their last shows in February, blaming it on personal life matters (i.e. new houses, babies, and jobs for their members), but they do have some openings for shows this summer. In a somewhat unusual move, the guys revealed four Fridays in June (including next Friday) & August, plus Sunday, August 25th that they're looking to get shows booked on, and to contact them if you can help set anything up. Hopefully they get some concerts scheduled, it's been too long, but in the interim, they will be back at The Strongs Tavern in a couple of weeks, so you know where to go if you've missed Project 906 over the spring!
The Strongs show on June 29th will be a 10:00 PM affair with no announced cover charge and a 21+ age limit. It's great to see that Dustin, Joe, Billy, and Tommy are still active with the band, but alas, personal lives can throw a wrench into any band's plans, even if they're all positive. At least we'll be seeing Project 906 in a couple of weeks, and see above for more details!
Also today, here's our preview of (surprisingly) this weekend's only publically announced hard rock shows in the Soo area, barring any late notice confirmations, as Sault Ontario hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will continue his long-term arrangement at Gliss Restaurant with solo acoustic concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY! No nighttime shows elsewhere this weekend, so if you want to take in Tym's prolific and proficient brand of classic and hard rock covers, you'll need to come by the Spring Street restaurant around dinner time over these two days. With Tym's well tested and fan approved sound, this should be another solid weekend of live entertainment, so don't miss out tomorrow or on Saturday! As usual for Tym's Gliss shows, expect 6:00 PM start times, no cover charges, and no age limits, but remember that this is a formal sit-down restaurant, not a nightclub. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Tym live!
Finally for today, here's three belateds video hyping up Sunday's Anvil concert at Soo Blaster, and I apologize for these being late, Facebook videos can fly under the radar very easily, especially from sources you don't expect. Soo Blaster's Facebook page posted three videos to hype the Anvil show up last month, confirming the promotional involvement of Thunder Bay's Loffredo & Associates in the process, with the first video being a commercial for Anvil's local and Thunder Bay shows, as set to videos of vintage and modern Anvil, plus teasing a contest to win tickets. The third video is totally devoted to the Soo show, serving as a commercial for just Sunday night's festivities, as set to the "Badass Rock 'N Roll" music video. Tucked in between is the video embedded below, which features an audio recording of Anvil frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow hyping up the concert, oddly over top of a photo of Lars Ulrich. Short but to the point, hopefully this helped get some tickets sold, and give all three a look above and below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post of some kind tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
Tonight's post is entirely devoted to videos from last week's Joni Radford memorial concert (a.k.a. Punk Rock Princess Fest) at The Algonquin Hotel, as Christopher Paci was on hand to film most bands for his excellent YouTube channel! These were uploaded earlier this week, and Chris got footage of every act except Coral Fang downstairs and Northwest upstairs, which I presume are causalities of the split level format. This was tricky to juggle, so I won't pass judgment on Chris not filming them. To spread things out, I'll hold coverage of Chris' Stegadeth video from The Algonquin Pub half for a future post, but we'll start today with three videos from headlining punk quartet The Cover-Up, who he filmed covering NOFX's "Linoleum", The Supersuckers' "Pretty Fucked Up" (they titled it, not me!), and as embedded below, Social Distortion's "Nickels & Dimes". The audio can be scratchy, but Chris has a good high angle of thi fan favourite (but online page-less) band in action!
The Rockstar Bar crowd's definitely into these covers, judging by the sing-along vocals, and the band has a strong grasp of these punk classics, so fans of The Cover-Up and Dustin and company's back catalog should definitely give these videos a look above & below!
Next up, Chris shot three videos of local hardcore punk veterans Destroilet's return set at The Rockstar Bar, including their original song "Eternal Fire", this song I can't immediately identify (which was shot in the vertical camera angle), and as embedded below, "iBomb". Notably, this song is one of two that night to feature impromptu guest vocals from ex-Detroit/Maximum RNR frontman Brenton Ellis, who is still listed on Destroilet's Facebook biography as their co-vocalist, but didn't participate in the full set like he did for much of 2015. No word if he's still a band member or not, but the dual attack of hardcore punk vocals came through very well here and on "Murderers"! Destroilet's ferocious old school attack was more than welcomed back this past weekend, and the raucous crowd reception made it clear that they were missed locally, and you can see that for yourself via Chris' solid videos above & below!
In a brief detour downstairs to The Algonquin Pub (a.k.a. Spin Nightclub), Chris filmed that floor's headlining punk/metal quintet Jack Spades playing most of their original "Fear Corps" last week, albeit on a vertical camera angle. In spite of that, the video proper is from a nice placement at the corner of the stage, and J.D. Pearce's vocals are clear as day on this well performed rendition! Give it a look below!
We'll close today with the opening band on The Rockstar Bar's lineup, namely funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, who Chris filmed playing their original song "G20". The vantage point here is the furthest of all of his videos, so it's not an optimal view of Rob, Jesse, James, and Jonas in action, but the alternating laid back and faster paced music comes through fine for fans of their ska punk material, so give The Elements' video a look below also!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for Chris' video of Stegadeth last week, and much more, in the coming days! Thanks everyone!
It's now time to continue our review of Saturday night's Punk Rock Princess Fest at The Algonquin Hotel, specifically the upstairs lineup at The Rockstar Bar! For my thoughts on the general aspects of the Joni Radford memorial concerts and the bands playing downstairs at The Algonquin Pub, plus videos of those acts, visit the post below this one. Also, just a reminder that due to the simultaneous straddled concerts going on both floors, I did miss portions of the first two bands' sets, so if I missed any Joni tributes or big surprises while I was downstairs, I do apologize.
The first band up on Saturday at The Rockstar Bar was local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements, who delivered a fun set full of originals and select covers! If you don't see much of The Elements outside of their tribute sets or live band karaoke gigs, you may be surprised to hear that the majority of their set was comprised of originals like "G20" and their new song "Riptide", but they did throw in some Primus and Red Hot Chili Peppers covers early. I don't know how much progress has came on their prior album plans, but the originals remain promising, often skewing to their heavier instincts. Rob Speers' casual aggression suits their songs well, James White's bass work was solid, and Jesse and Jonas always have great chemistry. Solid set overall from The Elements, and if you were downstairs, at least you got to see Rob & Jesse with Jack Spades later on that night!
Second upstairs was advertised as local indie/punk quintet Northwest, but in a surprise, this was a special unplugged set comprised of just singer/guitarist Wayne Watkins & guitarist Mike Yakasovich. If a reason was publically stated for Greg, Mike Smykacz, and Marc's absences, I was on the bottom floor when it was made, and if I looked slightly confused when I got upstairs, it's because my first thought was that they were just doing a soundcheck! As for their actual set, Wayne and Mike Yak performed all four songs from the new "Songs From 2015-2017" EP, plus "Young & Wild" from their debut, and select non-EP tracks like "Burning It Down". Given Northwest's increased genre variance on their new album, it's not a stretch at all that the guys can handle acoustic versions of their songs well, and the guys were a nice match on vocals! While we had no advance word of the acoustic duo set, everything seemed to go over well!
Co-headlining on Saturday was the long awaited return of local hardcore punk veterans Destroilet, as the "later rather than sooner" countdown finally ran out for their first public concert since the Guy Thiffault memorial concert here over two years ago, and just their second show since the "Fed Up!" split release in the fall of 2015. That all said, Destroilet played like they haven't missed a beat, and much like in their active heyday, they are still a very hard band to photograph! Frontman Mike Hull is still a firecracker, and the times he jumped into the crowd are immeasurable. Delays meant that Destroilet's set did not conflict with the end of Jack Spades' downstairs, and this helped produced the best crowd of the night, and the fest's only true mosh pits to such familiar originals like "End Me", "Eternal Fire", and "Lifer" along with select covers, most notably their set-ending version of The Rebel Spell's "Murderers" in memory of Joni, who sang backing vocals on their studio cover.
Musically speaking, their raw and fast paced attack was in fine form, with John Conway and Christian Foisy's guitar onslaught a constant threat, Adam Larocque was warmed up well following his set with Coral Fang downstairs, and Matt Waples' drumming kept the rhythm in fine form! No, Brent Ellis didn't sing with Detroilet for the majority of their set, but he did join in on (impromptu?) guest vocals on two songs. The fury and emotion was great to see, and here's hoping we see Destroilet again before 2021!
Finally, your headliners of the Punk Rock Princess Fest were online page-less local punk quartet The Cover-Up, marking the first time I've ever seen this band live in any incarnation. I need to see Dustin Jones-fronted bands more often than I do, but if this was any indication, the guys delivered a fun set of familiar modern punk rock hits, and if my ears weren't deceiving me, a few originals? Sonically, The Cover-Up are closer in tone to The Inner City Surfers than The Rising Tide, but with less of a folk/indie influence, with covered bands including Rancid, NOFX, and Weezer, among many others. Arguably the most impressive cover was seeing the guys cover Green Day's "Jesus of Suburbia", all 9+ minutes of it, which I can't recall another local band attempting! Dustin's natural frontman instincts were ever present, even if he was somewhat quiet between songs early, while it was great to see Marco Pedalino again on guitar, and Marshall Jaaskelainen and Aaron Dunn fit in well on bass & drums!
Extra kudos to The Cover-Up as well for playing on without a hitch despite an incident midway through their set, where an attendee was tackled and restrained by security (almost knocking me over), leading to the cops being called to The Algonquin. I have no idea what led to this or what happened afterward, but at least they controlled the situation, and as it doesn't affect local music, I have no further comment. Overall, Punk Rock Princess Fest was a great time for punk fans, and as a tribute to Joni, who could ask for anything more? If she was here, you know she'd be up front rocking out with the rest of us, and kudos to everyone for playing and attending, and to Carrie Suriano and Kat Foisy for putting this event on, as well as other staff and volunteers! No word on if this will return for a sequel a'la Guy Thiffault's tribute shows, but if Saturday was any indication, it'd definitely be a hit if there is one!
The two floor setup was a challenge to maneuver to see all 7 bands, especially as I don't like missing portions of sets, but between careful scheduling, moving slow on the wet stairs, and my new camera case, I managed well and got photos and videos of each band! As this technically was two concerts under one memorial umbrella, I took 170 photos on Saturday (20 of Northwest, 25 of everyone else), and you can check them all out on our Facebook page and at this link. As for upstairs videos, here's The Elements playing "I Need A Friend", 2/5ths of Northwest playing the new track "We Run", Destroilet et al. covering The Rebel Spell's "Murderers", and The Cover-Up playing (their original?) "Modern World"!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the SMS as the week rolls along! Thanks everyone!
