LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Quite Frankly), New Videos, And Much More!!

Today's post got delayed due to some computer maintenance, but within, we have new videos, assorted shorter updates, and leading off, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Quite Frankly will return to DeMarco's Boots & Saddles Roadhouse in Prince Township on Saturday, October 3rd! Fans last saw this talented foursome at this deep-in-the-west end nightclub back in March, but they were active with multiple gigs in city limits through the summer, most recently at Gateway Casino in mid-August. The band did acknowledge that they are "taking a little break this September", so if you're up for the 20 minute drive west or will already be out that direction, keep their Boots & Saddles show in mind for early next month! Linsaey, Frank, Harley, and Joe will take the stage there on October 3rd at 8:00 PM, this is a 19+ concert, and there is no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and stay tuned for details on Quite Frankly's return to the Soo! 

Next up, here's some new videos, and we'll start with a rare live clip of local ska/crust punk quartet ASDP, courtesy of their Instagram page! As best as I can tell, this comes from their set opening for Danger Box in early July at the private house party venue Unnecessary Noise, and it features Mikhal, Tucker, William, and Ralph covering No Cash's "Kill Yer Parents" (as seen on the paid copies of their debut album "Atom Bombs & Lemonade"). Filmed by "Brad Sux", the video is thankfully both horizontal and of the full song, while also giving us a good look at Unnecessary Noise and a clearly happy & engaged crowd. Honestly, to me, this song sounds better and more impactful live than with the lo-fi studio production. I know Mikhal likes that aesthetic, but if you want to hear Adam Smith Death Parade at full power with no fidelity limitations, live may be the way to do it. Unfortunately, I think ASDP turned off external embedding of their videos, so give it a look above!

Also today, here's a new video from Sault Michigan hard rock trio Crush's Facebook page! Before sharing photos from their downstate gig at Bemo's Bar in Bay City (which looked like it went over well), the guys posted a parody sitcom opening credits video themed after Friends, complete with the theme song. I won't spoil what happens, but it's a loose (if fountain-less) parody of the original intro, with the guys hamming it up in amusingly happy ways. One assumes that the teaser that they're actually working on a sitcom is in jest, but you never quite know with Crush, so give this a watch below!

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:

 

• This is more punk-adjacent, but I thought I'd mention that The Speak Easy at Algoma University will be hosting "Panic! At The Drag Show" on Saturday night. While not a proper concert, it will feature local drag performers and an overall emo/scene theme, including a contest for the best dressed attendee and flash tattoos. If only we could get a reunion of The Crossed, Deter, or A Fall From Innocence to really top this off! See above for more on what should be an interesting theme night for drag fans and 2000s emo fans!
• Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 have shared two different "Stories" on Facebook this week featuring videos of them at both Wolf Fests. The instantly vanishing videos included one of frontwoman Jess Amadio letting the fans sing the chorus of a song at last year's event, while the other saw them covering Walk The Moon's "Shut Up & Dance" at this past Saturday's Wolf Fest II. I really wish that these were permanent videos that I could link to and share here (let alone longer and not vertical at that), but keep an eye out if you see them pop up on your Facebook news feed! 
• Speaking of Wolf Fest, SooToday's James Hopkin was in attendance for Northern Superior Brewing Co,'s second-year fall festival at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, posting this article about it on Sunday! While not a review of the bands, James noted the "party-like atmosphere", and included photos of the 49th Field Regiment band & The Hustle Brothers' sets among his event photos. The article also has interview remarks with Northern Superior co-owner Jeff DiCorpo, who was optimistic about that day's weather, noted that 3,800(!) people stopped by last year, and that he hopes to expand Wolf Fest to two days. Good article, so give it a read above!

 

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Wolf Fest II) & The Hails Art Hub Concert Preview!!

Before we begin this weekend's concert previews, I wanted to apologize for missing an acoustic concert at Beck's Bar on Tuesday that was headlined by the revival of The T.R.I.P., the sporadically seen acoustic side project of cousins/ex-Double Down bandmates Joel & Beej Syrette! Their late-era bandmate Dan Beaupre joined them on Tuesday for this pool night-concert (regardless of what happened with Double Down, Ric was never in The T.R.I.P.). I'm assuming that this wasn't musically far off from Double Down (being unplugged aside), and I do apologize for missing it, but we'll let you know if they get social media or play more public gigs!

This weekend looks to be a busy one for hard rock fans, buoyed by some late announcements this week, so we'll look at one big one today plus two shows that did have prior notice, with remaining Saturday-Sunday gigs to follow. We'll start with a big LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for SATURDAY NIGHT, as Wolf Fest II goes down on SATURDAY NIGHT at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion! Apologies for the short notice, as hosts Northern Superior Brewing Co. only finally announced the lineup in a permanently accessible location on their Facebook page last week, when I couldn't slot it into a news post in time to cover it before it became the week of the event. Alas, Northern Superior had teased the event without going into great detail via "Stories", memes, and hype posts for the last few weeks, and some performers had shared the lineup in their own "Stories", but nothing finite and sourceable. I get maybe doing it like this for year #1, but why again when the basic intent is the same?

I'd be getting the word out on who's playing, what's going on, and so forth with a lot more than ten days' notice! Nevertheless, Wolf Fest II (as hyped by Jan from Jan's Not Movin'!) is Northern Superior's second annual fall concert festival to give back to the community for their support, and there will be an eclectic array of local vendors (even barbers and an arcade!), plus beer tents, food, and of course, music. Things will be headlined by Toronto-based Coldplay tribute band The Coldplay Show, and while I can't pretend to be a fan of Coldplay, it is definitely a change of pace from tribute bands that usually come here. They do sound like the real deal, so keep them in mind! A band schedule hasn't been posted, but seven local groups will be opening, including two SMS-leaning acts, namely classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 (returning from last year) and alt-rock/punk cover sextet BookcluB (whose "Story" of the poster teased the lineup for me last month).

Also playing on SATURDAY are local Red Hot Chili Peppers and Tragically Hip tribute bands Mellowship Slinky and The Luxury, while indie rock band Jupiter Marvelous (who also played last year) and jazz cover group The Hustle Brothers will also take the stage under the big tent. "The Howling" will begin at 3:00 PM on SATURDAY with The Royal Canadian Army's 49th Field Regiment pipe & drum band, similar to how a Royal Canadian Navy band kicked off Wolf Fest I. Last year's lineup had five bands, so I couldn't ballpark when set times will be, but 2025 headliners The Killer Hooks played at 8:15 PM. Like last year, admission to Wolf Fest on SATURDAY is via donation to the Alzheimer Society of Sault Ste. Marie, and I have not seen firm reference to age limits. While the Pavilion's tent is acknowledged, 9&10 News is currently calling for scattered showers and thunderstorms that day, along with a high temperature of 23°.

The low temperature on SATURDAY is forecasted at 13°. I presume Wolf Fest will go on rain or shine thanks to the tent, but I do hope that they have most of the activities under the tent too (we don't need the mechanical bull shorting out!). In spite of promotional choices that I wouldn't have made, Wolf Fest II sounds like a fun time for fans of live music, craft beer, and local businesses, so consider heading to The Roberta Bondar Pavilion on SATURDAY now that you again have the answer to the question: What is Wolf Fest? Visit the above links for more details, and here's Silent 9 live last year!

Finally for weekend concert preview post #1, we'll head to The Art Hub At Spring (at 504 Queen Street East), where local hardcore punk/crossover thrash trio Hails will take the stage TOMORROW NIGHT! This "hardcore hometown throwdown" is part of frontman Brenton "B.G." Ellis' takeover of The Art Hub this month, following the kickoff of his Audio/Visual Eviscerate art exhibition there last week (running through next Saturday), and this all mirrors a similar residency that he and Ha!ls had there in 2023. In what could arguably be the heaviest concert to ever take place at the former Big Brothers headquarters, Hails will be joined by ska punk quartet ASDP (led by former Ha!ls guitarist Mikhal Muto) and the recently resurfaced local extreme metal quintet With Gunfire (featuring new Hails guitarist Anthony Orazietti and ASDP bassist William Wardlaw). Lot of close connections here, so the camaraderie should be neat alone!

This all ages concert has an admission fee of $10 or "pay what you can", and the concert starts at 7:00 PM tomorrow. If you want some explosive original-leaning action this weekend, this is your best bet, and hopefully the relatively intimate Art Hub space can contain the three bands, as it did when Brent hosted last week's Autopilot concert! Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Ha!ls live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Led By Zeppelin, Bone Yard 225, Generations, and Tarnished previews in our next weekend concert preview post! Thanks everyone!

Downtown Street Party #3 Info, New Live Concert Videos, And More!!

I hope everyone's Labour Day long weekend is starting on the right foot! Today on the SMS, we have new live videos from three different acts plus some related updates, but first, here's early info on what to expect for a downtown concert event later this month!

Initial details on the third and final Downtown Street Party for Queen Street East in 2026 have been announced via You Belong SSM's Facebook page! We already knew that it would take place on Thursday, September 17th on a closed section at the western end of Queen East from Dennis Street to Gore Street (bus terminal onward), and things will likely be similar in scope to street party #1 from June, as there's no doubling up due to forest fire smoke cancellations. Expect family entertainment, a kids zone, a vendor market at Queen & Tancred, businesses open along the way, beverage gardens, and much more, and the likely cooler temperatures will appeal to many as well! Live music will return, but unlike the last two parties, organizers have yet to make a distinction on where specific artists are playing, other than saying that there will be two stages, one per block. Local/Barrie alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith is the only SMS-amenable act confirmed here.

Mike (presumably with his Big Finish Band) will be joined somewhere that day by country singer/guitarists Brian Tremblay and Jeffrey Wright, jazz group The Hustle Brothers, Dustcovers frontman "Just" Tom Peer (who played with Mike & crew on The Canopy last month), "and more". I'm not calling this as a concert yet, as I don't have a firm location for where everyone is performing, but keep things in mind over the next couple of weeks! For the record, no artists announced for this party were scheduled for the cancelled July party, so that musical lineup was sadly a complete wash. Visit the above links for current details on the last street party!

Next up, here's some recent live concert videos, starting with a video of Toronto-based Kiss tribute band Destroyer's headlining concert at the first annual Prince Fest last week! This was filmed by Mike Blair of 705Live Sound Co., who were running sound for the festival outside of DeMarco's Boots & Saddles Roadhouse in Prince Township that night. The not-quite 1 minute long video sees Destroyer playing the Kiss classic "Rock & Roll All Nite" with an uncredited special guest helping on vocals. A comment on the Facebook upload suggests that he could be named Frank but I can't confirm anything beyond that. How Frank(?) got to sing on stage, I don't know, but it's a solid cover for what we do hear! I wouldn't have done the "pan from the soundboard to the stage" thing that Mike likes doing though, as it gave too much away about crowd levels in the field. Give 705Live's Destroyer video a watch for yourselves below!

Also today, here's the latest updates from local alt-hard rock band Riverside Stasis, who may be remaining a quartet following Liam Dinsmore's departure, as their Facebook page's description now calls them "a a four piece indie, blues/pop rock band". We'll let you know if they add a new second guitarist though! The Handsome Sandwich/HeadFirst successors announced via this vertical video from The Northern Vibe Festival in Ophir that they now have official t-shirts on sale, and you can see the band opening the box of shirts to sell for the first time there. No word on if using The Pixies' "Where Is My Mind?" as backing music was a hint to anything, but the black shirts feature the band's new logo in white. Given where the river flows in the logo, it does look like "Riverside Stassis" to me, but buy yours at their next shows! The band has also confirmed last month's venue announcement that they'll be opening for The Lazys at Blaster Powerhouse on October 9th!

This adds to what should be a fun night of varied hard rock stylings next month, and The Lazys are very much a known commodity on Canadian rock radio, so click here for more on this concert! Lastly from Tea and the guys, they uploaded their first ever live concert video onto their new YouTube channel on Wednesday, which sees them playing their new original song "Run" at Northern Vibe. Filmed by the aforementioned Mike Haggith, he moved around a lot to get lots of distinct and close angles of Riverside Stasis from all angles on the Forest Stage. Chorus is slightly repetitive, but this is a harder rocker than "The Fool" was, and a really strong video of the full song, so check it out below, and stay tuned for more from Riverside Stasis!

Finally for today, this is a new live video that I considered using for recent concert previews, but seeing as the venue that uploaded it opted to include hard-coded captions in post-production to promote concerts that only happen there, I opted to just share it in a normal post. As you may recall, classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison played two solo headlining acoustic gigs at The Up & Down Lounge on Second Line West a month ago, and for gig #1 on July 31st, the bar/indoor golf lounge's Facebook page shared this video of Tym covering Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Have You Ever Seen The Rain?". Like with the Destroyer video above, this doesn't quite hit 1:00 in length, but the biggest issue is that it's way too zoomed out, complicated by Tym sitting as usual for his solo dates. If you zoomed in to focus on Tym and not the lounge interior, you could even completely crop out the unnecessary caption!

Video choices that I wouldn't have made aside, Tym does well with this CCR classic, so fans of his solo unplugged concerts will appreciate it! The Up & Down Lounge have been cagey at best when plugging who has played at their recent Thursday evening concerts, but we'll let you know if hard rock shows get firmly announced there, and give Tym's promotional video from last month a watch for yourselves below! 

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the SMS next month! Thanks everyone!

Prince Fest, Tarnished, And The Nameless Weekend Concert Previews!!

Let's mow through most of the rest of this weekend's hard rock concert previews today, by looking at Saturday-only Sault Ontario gigs as well as hard rock shows in Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula, which is where we're leading off, so here's what you should know on this Friday morning! Previews of tomorrow's Bone Yard show and frontman Greg Simpson's Sunday matinee gig will be in our next news post.

Local classic/hard rock cover band Tarnished will return to Bay Mills Resort & Casino in Brimley TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT at their new(?) Lakeside Lounge! The last scheduled concerts of any kind for their summer slate there (as per this calendar), Tarnished confirmed on their Facebook page that these will be acoustic concerts featuring just singer/guitarist Alex Traynor and guitarist Josh Fair. This goes in line with the Lakeside Lounge's live music schedule, which has only scheduled solo artists and duos. We'll let you know when they return to the stage fully plugged in with Chris and Ron in tow, let alone with Isaac in Crush! You can enjoy their hard rocking acoustic covers this weekend in Brimley at 8:00 PM both nights with 21+ age limits and no cover, but for unclear reasons, Saturday's show is a half length affair ending at 10:00 PM rather than midnight. See above for more details, and here's Alex & Josh live!

Next up, local hard rock quartet The Nameless are advertised to rock The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Last seen locally at the finale of the Hell To Paradise motorcycle rally elsewhere at the Soo Kewadin last month (with a road trip to Republic in the interim), The Nameless are getting their maiden bookings at The Rapids Lounge just in time, as it is closing this fall in advance of heavy renovations and the construction of a new sports bar opening at the Sault Ste. Marie branch next year. Bands are scheduled through at least the end of September, but of course, we'll let you know if The Rapids Lounge survives past then or closes early (for what it's worth, the band has not posted on their Facebook page in over two weeks). Assuming everything is a go, the hard rock cover action is at 9:00 PM tonight and tomorrow with 21+ age limits and no cover. See above for more details, and here's The Nameless live!

Now north to Sault Ontario, but 20 minutes down Second Line West, as the first annual Prince Fest takes place TOMORROW! To be held at the corner of Second Line and Airport Road in the baseball field adjacent to co-promoters DeMarco's Boots & Saddles Roadhouse, this festival is being well hyped across multiple AI-generated posters on social media, with vendors, family activities, food & drinks, kids entertainment, and on-site baseball and basketball tournaments, so be sure to visit the DeMarco's Facebook page for full non-musical details! The musical portion will be headlined at 9:00 PM by Toronto-based Kiss tribute band Destroyer, who have played here multiple times since the SMS launched (including at the former Soo Blaster three years ago), so it will be good to see their faithful and entertaining take on Kiss' classic catalogue again tomorrow night! Local acoustic punk cover duo Dos Amigos will play the middle set at 7:00 PM.

Capping off their busy weekend of three shows in three days, hopefully Dustin & Mikey have a solid audience west of the Soo tomorrow evening! Frequently seen Boots & Saddles performer Mike Robitaille will kick off the music with an acoustic country set at 5:00 PM, and both local openers are blocked for two hours apiece. While Prince Fest is an all ages event beginning at 12:00 PM, organizers have clarified that only the first five hours have free admission. The three musical acts will have a separate ticketed admission of $35, which is up $15 from Destroyer's show here in 2023, but remember that that wasn't part of a festival. Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for 19-23° temperatures during the band portion of Prince Fest and mostly cloudy skies, plus a slight chance of rain early in Destroyer's set. Keep tabs with your preferred weather forecasts for potential updates. It will be mostly cloudy in the afternoon too with a high of 24°.

Should be a fun time if you're out east or are up for a drive (if not quite as nice for sky conditions as The Northern Vibe Festival will get 90 minutes east), and between Destroyer's well known take on Kiss' hit singles, Dos Amigos' unplugged punk covers, and Mike's own talents, music fans will have a little something to like regardless of genre preference! Visit the above links for much more on what to expect outside of the Boots & Saddles on Sunday, and here's Destroyer live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Bone Yard/Greg Simpson previews and more next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Prince Fest), The Next LSSU Battle Of The Bands, And New Videos!!

In what will be a productive day re: knocking items off of our backlog that began building up last month, we have another packed news post today, including new videos from two bands seen on stage together earlier this month, initial details on a returning annual battle of the bands, and leading off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for a new regional festival. Here's what you should know on this warm Tuesday evening!

A debuting summer concert festival in Prince Township (20 minutes west of the Soo) named Prince Fest goes down on Saturday, August 29th, and it will be headlined by Toronto-based Kiss tribute band Destroyer! While this is being co-promoted by DeMarco's Boots & Saddles Roadhouse at 2667 Second Line West, Prince Fest will be an outdoor event in the adjacent baseball field at the corner of Second Line and Airport Road. Along with live music, advertising so far (the AI-generated posters linked here & here) indicates that there will also be local food and craft vendors, a beer garden, children's activities, at least one food truck, an on-site barbecue, a baseball tournament, and 3-on-3 basketball. More updates are sure to follow! Destroyer are by far the best known touring Kiss tribute to Sault Ste. Marie fans, having played here at least 6 times in the last 15 years, most recently at the former Soo Blaster in October 2023.

Good to see their faithful take on the Kiss back catalogue here again, if a little further west than you may expect! Local support will come by way of acoustic punk duo Dos Amigos and country rock solo musician Mike Robitaille, who has frequently played at the Boots & Saddles. Prince Fest is expected to run from 12:00-7:00 PM, it is absolutely all ages, and I have not seen any reference to a cover charge or ticket fee. 705Live Sound Co. will be on hand here too. Why not add one more community festival before the summer ends, and it's neat that one is happening so far west, so hopefully Prince Fest is a big hit at month's end! Visit the above links for more details!

Next up, get ready, as the fourth annual Lake Superior State University Battle of the Bands returns to Sault Michigan on Thursday, October 22nd! Now, the official advertising on LSSU's Arts Center's page erroneously lists this as the third annual battle there, even though this is 100% year 4 (The Sole Aggressors won in 2023, Molly & The Other Guys won in 2024, and The Dynamic Duo won last year), so hopefully that gets fixed in time for the Facebook promotion to begin. Thanks to generous sponsorship, this year's LSSU Battle will have the biggest prize purse yet, as after three years of $150 and $50 gift cards for first & second place, there will be prizes of $1,000, $500, and $250 for first-third place! If the same as the last two years, judges (primarily made up of LSSU faculty) will assess the competitors, who will each have 15 minute sets to compete this fall. The past three LSSU battles had six or seven acts apiece, though 2024 was once slated to have eight.

Video auditions are now being submitted at this link, and while last year's battle curiously only had solo artists and duos, the raised cash prizes should ensure a wider swath of artist submissions. We'll let you know when the official competitor lineup is announced, but could The Dynamic Duo attempt to repeat as champions where the prior winners didn't? Admission for general attendees will be $10 USD ($5 for kids 10 and under), and yes, this is a Thursday nighter, as the previous three LSSU Battles also were. Two EUP battles of the bands in a three month span with $1,000 top prizes ain't a raw deal, so visit the above links for more details, and click here to buy tickets!

We'll head back to Sault Ontario for the back half of today's post to look at some new videos, starting with the first 2026 concert videos from local space/hard rock duo The Spaceship Opening! On August 1st, Andrew and Ralph played their first show of the year when they opened for 5 Dollar Bribe at a multi-local band concert at Blaster Powerhouse, and they shared photos from it the next day to their Facebook page. While they teased that "videos (are coming) soon", only one has followed since, a video shot by an attendee named Kayla of them playing "a little ET cover". Whether they mean ET: The Extra Terrestrial or not, I can't identify the 22 seconds of music being played here, but the chugging riff sounds good, and being a duo, they are better framed for the vertical dimensions! I'd still have zoomed in a bit more though. Give this a look below, and hopefully The Spaceship Opening have more videos soon!

Finally for today, let's look at some new videos from the aforementioned 5 Dollar Bribe, who spent some time posting some non-concert videos to their Facebook page in late July and into this month that largely call to mind their pre-debut viral/comedy uploads on Instagram. To promote the aforementioned August 1st concert at the former Soo Blaster, drummer Chase Chapman starred in this video from July 28th where he demoed a kickflip, and had some help from "Jimbo Jenkins". Watch the video to find out who "Jimbo" is! Another video followed two days later that started with an attempted cover of the intro of Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O Mine" before abruptly phasing to waking up in a field where Jayce and Tyler were, and beyond plugging the Soo Blaster show, I'll let you decipher what happened next! The day of the show, they posted an episode of "Dwayne's World" (one guess as to what they're parodying) where Chase was a guest of Dwayne and Garth(?) to promote the band and concert. 

Always good to see homages to classic SNL, even if needlessly letterboxed into vertical dimensions despite being a square video! Lastly, on July 31st, they covered At The Drive-In's "Patterns Against User" with Jayce on lead vocals, though for one reason or another, I can't embed it here. The level of covers that 5 Dollar Bribe will source from is always impressive, especially for their age, and they have a good tight sound on this post-hardcore deep cut, even if the video quality itself is fairly blurry. As it's apparently unembeddable, here's the "Dwayne's World" video, but give all of 5 Dollar Bribe's new uploads a watch at the above links!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Poutine Feast), New Videos, And Hails Updates!!

Before we kick off our likely last news post of June 2026, just a heads up that Sault Michigan classic/hard rock cover band Tarnished had to cancel their St. Ignace Car Show matinee gig on Saturday, as per their Facebook page 22 minutes prior to showtime. A reason wasn't given, but Alex & Josh still played their acoustic Bay Mills gig that night, so Chris and/or Ron being unavailable could explain things. Disappointing given the timing, but Tarnished will return to St. Ignace for an outdoor Music By The Bay concert on September 5th! Now, here's a Canada Day SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT and more recent news and notes from the last little while!

Local punk/alternative cover sextet BookcluB and their sister acoustic punk cover duo Dos Amigos will reportedly both be among the lineup on WEDNESDAY at The Downtown Plaza as part of the opening Canada Day program for this year's Poutine Feast! Apologies for the short notice, we only caught lineup details for this year in the batch post promoting the touring poutine festival on Facebook (only the paid advertisement version lists any scheduled musical performers, not the static promotional images shared as permanent posts). After 2025 had a reduced music lineup that was never announced on social media, we at least know some of the 2026 performers, with BookcluB and Dos Amigos (neither of which have corroborated the Poutine Feast advertising) joining new local southern/indie rock quartet Eli Russell & The River Fools and classic rock veterans RPM on WEDNESDAY.

Also teased are "...and more!", but who they are isn't known, let alone the timeslots, or the entire Thursday music lineup beyond Jay Case, but we will touch on the Friday program in our next weekend concert previews. Expect games, family entertainment, other vendors, and of course, lots of touring poutine food trucks on WEDNESDAY through Sunday at the plaza, so click here for full details on the daily themes! Poutine Feast is on daily from 11:00 AM-9:00 PM, this is absolutely FREE & ALL AGES (food purchases aside), and 9&10 News is calling for partly-mostly cloudy skies, with temperatures ranging from 25-30°, so prepare accordingly for the heat. Visit the above links for more details, and here's BookcluB live at the plaza!

Next up, here's the first public video that I can actually embed here (not a "Story") from local ska punk/"crackrocksteady" quartet A.S.D.P. in concert! The band still doesn't have a formal social media page outside of Bandcamp, but this was uploaded to drummer "Just" Ralph Barber's personal Facebook page yesterday, and then publically shared to frontman Mikhal Muto's promotion agency Underground Events SSM's Facebook page. This comes from the all-local concert that they headlined at Blaster Powerhouse this past Saturday, and this may not be representative of Adam Smith Death Parade's general sound for two reasons. One is that it's not a ska punk song (rather a cover of Pennywise's "Bro Hymn"), but also because this doesn't just have Mikhal, Tucker, William, and Ralph on stage. No, everyone is on stage, from members of other bands that night (Chris Nielsen and Spencer MacGillivray among them) to other fans and friends.

If you know anything about "Bro Hymn", the community aspect adds a lot, and it's great to see everyone having a blast in what I can only assume is the last song of the night! The attendee who filmed this (I recognize him but don't know his name off hand) unfortunately shot this vertically and only for a minute, but it's a fun watch, and I wonder who brought the balloons? Check it out below, and hopefully some more public videos of A.S.D.P. surface, even without a Facebook page of their own!

Also today, here's the latest from Mikhal's old hardcore punk band Hails, who announced the addition of With Gunfire/ex-Jack Spades guitarist Anthony Orazietti to their lineup on June 3rd, replacing Carmen Muto (Mikhal's cousin). A reason for the switch was not publically announced, but Carmen didn't immediately leave when Mikhal did at the end of 2025, and he has since been confirmed as the new lead guitarist of the aforementioned BookcluB, so follow them for his next live outings. Anthony is a talented and underrated shredder, so hopefully he bolsters the ranks well with Brent & Keegan going forward! While Ha!ls' first local date of the year and with Anthony will be at the Ripcordz concert at Beck's Bar on July 18th, they will actually debut the new lineup on Friday, July 10th at the conveniently named Dock Ellis sports bar in Toronto, which will be a headlining date alongside three bands from the GTA.

Hails are a ripping live act that fans of Brent's past work as a frontman will take to with ease, and it's great to see that their six month+ break from the stage is winding down, so if you won't be in Toronto in two weeks for the new lineup's soft launch, don't miss out on the new Ha!ls lineup with The Ripcordz the following week (on Rotaryfest Saturday, even!)

Finally for today, here's some updates from local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9! The band is in the midst of their annual summer break from nightclub concerts, instead focusing on festivals and private events, but even given that, this is a quiet stretch for them, as their only public booking in Sault Ste. Marie until the fall was at Throttle Fest at Runway Park on Saturday, June 20th. If you want to get a glimpse of how the set at the outdoor motorcross/mud drag event looked, then here's a (sadly) vertical clip of Jess, Ryan, Paul, and Steve covering Twisted Sister's "We're Not Gonna Take It" late in the concert, as per their Facebook page the following day. Silent 9 were playing on a flatbed trailer at Runway Park, and there was an active crowd rocking out at this point in the night, if perhaps with a few bugs. The video is only 20 seconds long, but what we hear is well performed!

Note that the thumbnail image is from much earlier in the set for one reason or another (the video was 100% shot at nighttime), and as such, I do think that the stage lighting on the trailer made Silent 9 look too purple, especially in contrast to the outdoorsy locale, but you shouldn't be expecting Bell Border Jam II either. The description of the video does imply that Silent 9 will be back for Throttle Fest II next year, but with no Rotaryfest or Giovanni's sets this month (or anywhere else), local fans won't be able to see Silent 9 again at a public event until September, unless you wanna drive to Thessalon or White River. Give this new video clip a watch below!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news, updates, and concert previews as we enter the month of July! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Silent 9, Soundcheck, And Generations) & Weekend Concert Previews!!

Before we begin our latest round of weekend concert previews, just a heads up that the planned Dr. Feelgood concert at The Sault Community Theatre Centre has quietly been cancelled, as per the deletion of its ticket page from the S.C.T.C. website. I have not seen any public statement on a reason for the cancellation, but $61 adult tickets can't have encouraged sales, White Pines theater or not. Contact Miles Management or the local box office if you still haven't gotten a refund for purchased tickets. Dr. Feelgood deliver the goods for Motley Crue and hair metal fans, and hopefully they try here again!

This preview post will go into most of the weekend's hard rock shows, but due to the amount, I'll hold the Go Skateboarding Day and Quite Frankly concerts for our next post. Most of today's are SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, and we'll start at Jay's Piston Broke Pub, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return for concerts TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the shows were only announced on the venue's Facebook page yesterday, creatively by sharing the AI-generated poster for their shows there last month, which didn't have date-specific details. Fresh off of their sister band Separate Wayz' shows at Reggie's last week, TOMORROW & SATURDAY'S concerts are not advertised to be "epic crossover" shows either, but as we saw last week, you never quite know when Nicole will turn up at a Soundcheck-only gig, and vice versa for Travis with Separate Wayz!

In the realm of Facebook "Story" videos, you may have seen one from their last show at Beck's Bar from that venue featuring Soundcheck covering Billy Squier's "Everybody Wants You" with Travis on vocals, but alas, "Story" videos disappear forever after being seen once or twice. Will they perform it again TOMORROW or SATURDAY? Find out at the former Reggie's West! These are 9:30 PM concerts with 19+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Soundcheck live!

Next up, local classic/hard rock cover veterans Generations will play an hour-long set as part of Minelli's 75th anniversary Italian Celebration on SATURDAY! Again, apologies for the short notice, the band only confirmed their involvement via their Facebook group on Tuesday, and the schedule was only released yesterday. To celebrate 75 years of Minelli's as an Italian restaurant in the Soo (currently based out of The Marconi Multicultural Events Centre at 450 Albert Street West), this one day festival on SATURDAY will celebrate Minelli's and give back to the community, including vendors, games, raffles, kids activities, food and drinks, and of course, live music. Not counting the DJ playing that night, there is a four band matinee program on SATURDAY, with Generations co-headlining at 3:00 PM. Local country musician Matt Tarantini will be last up at 4:30 PM, with the Elettra Marconi Society Choir performing at 2:00 PM, and classic rock mainstays RPM kicking things off with a 2 hour block at 12:00 PM, so there's a lot for many tastes!

To be held in The Marconi Hall's parking lot from noon until 10:00 PM, this is a free & all ages event, but food and drink tickets will be on site if you're so inclined. 75 years is quite a milestone, so kudos to Julie and the rest of the family and staff for sticking with Minelli's for all these years, and hopefully Generations and the other musical performers set the right notes on SATURDAY! As the concert is outdoors, 9&10 News is calling for partly cloudy weather on SATURDAY with a high of 20° and a low of 7°, and rain is unlikely. Visit the official Facebook event page and the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Generations live!

Also this weekend, fellow local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 will head west to Runway Park to serve as musical entertainment at Throttle Fest on SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies again for the short notice, we knew that they were scheduled to play at Runway Park via their website's concert calendar, but firm confirmation about the event proper only crossed my radar this week. Surprisingly their only public show in city limits this summer (they're not playing at Rotaryfest), Silent 9 will help close out Throttle Fest, a drag racing & mud bog festival taking place at the 573 Airport Road dirt racing venue that is most famous in a concert context for hosting the Bell Border Jam festival in 2008. Along with racing to take part in and watch, there will be a food truck and beer tent on site, tattoos, on-site camping, and more, so click here for fuller details on what to expect! Silent 9 are scheduled to perform from 7:00-11:00 PM on SATURDAY NIGHT.

General admission is $40 unless you're racing in Throttle Fest events proper (kids 10 and under are free), and gates open for the day's swath of events at 7:30 AM on SATURDAY. Like with the Minelli's festival, the weather forecast currently looks good here as well. Silent 9 should get fans moving with some fun hard rock and general covers to cap off a busy program, so visit the above links for more on Throttle Fest, and here they are live!

Finally for this preview post, we'll close with one more special summer festival (albeit one whose band details weren't on short notice), as local southern rock trio Bone Yard 225 will return as the house band for the annual Queen Street Cruise TOMORROW & SATURDAY! "The Dirty Three" have long served as musical entertainment for this classic car throwback event, with the home base returning to The Roberta Bondar Pavilion all weekend long. As usual, tomorrow's program is headlined by the cruise proper, with your local 225 playing under the tent from 6:30 PM onward, while they will set up shop outside on the boardwalk proper by Montana's from 12:30 PM onward during the show n' shine car show, preceding the awards ceremony to close the weekend. Outside of their concert action, click here for the full weekend itinerary, including appearances by Cristy Lee from All Girls Garage, the Touch-A-Truck, and much more.

Admission is free for general attendees (see above if you intend on registering for the car show or cruise), this is absolutely an all ages event, and while the Saturday forecast is already noted above, tomorrow's forecast is calling for clear skies and temperatures of 13-16° when Greg, Alex, and Warren are slated to be performing, tent acknowledged. If you love classic cars, be you the owner of one or not, don't miss the Cruise this weekend, and if you've missed Bone Yard's full electric show in recent months, they'll be in full force downtown! See above for more details, and here's Bone Yard 22live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Quite Frankly and Go Skate Day previews (and more) next! Thanks everyone!

New Live Concert Cover Videos & More Recent News & Notes!!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our Canadian readers! Before you settle in for turkey and football (assuming you didn't take care of that yesterday), here's an all-Sault Ontario post for the day off, and it's devoted to recent videos and some other updates, so let's get things rolling!

Normally, I would hold this new video of local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down for our next preview of one of their shows (their next publically scheduled gig is on November 21st at The Water Tower Pub), but seeing as it has two guest performers, let's show it off on its own! This comes from one of their gigs at Jay's Piston Broke Pub over this long weekend, in which Mid Life Crysis bassist Lori Reinholtz again sat in for Dan Beaupre, but the guys also welcomed Bourbon Blue singer/guitarist Jules Cote to sing lead on a cover of Oasis' "Don't Look Back In Anger"! Filmed from another high stationary vantage point (if not as straight-on as other past Double Down videos shot like this), this is a soundly handled cover that Oasis fans should like! You can tell that Jules isn't used to singing on stage without a guitar in hand, but his voice fits well enough here, if not hitting as high of notes.

It is worth noting that Bourbon Blue have recently added ex-Re:Born frontman Robert Nevitt as their new lead singer, though Jules remains in the pop rock cover band that he co-founded, so we should still see him on lead and backing vocals where needed. Check out the Syrettes, Ric, Jules, and Lori tackling Oasis this weekend below!

Next up, here's a mild surprise, namely a cover of April Wine's "I Like To Rock" by local indie rock band Jupiter Marvelous! While their original music largely doesn't cross our genre radar, their lineup is entirely comprised of alumni of past local hard rock bands, and they do have the occasional hard rock or punk cover in their live sets (remember when they covered Fall Out Boy at Rotaryfest?). This was filmed for veteran local rock guitarist Mike Cliffe's YouTube channel, one of multiple videos of Jupiter Marvelous that Mike has filmed there, and this was from the band's set at Wolf Fest at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion last month. Most of this Canadian hard rock staple was captured here, with new guitarist Spencer Pine taking on lead vocals, which old Electric Church fans will be sure to appreciate! I'd have had the screen behind the band showing something, but Jupiter Marvelous are a talented and very adaptable band, so give this a watch below!

Also today, here's a new video from local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225's Facebook page last week, which features drummer Greg Simpson heading to his drumkit at his home studio for what he says is "my favourite time". The implication is that he was working on new Bone Yard material, but nothing was explicitly said there. Regardless, he had his coffee ready! Nice little glimpse at the behind the scenes process, and Facebook was not able to content match the Black Label Society song in the background, so give this video a watch below, and stay tuned for more from your local 225!

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

 

• Sporadically seen local deathcore band Bardo have quietly altered their name to Bardos, as per their Facebook page. A reason for pluralizing the name wasn't announced, but note that their only Facebook posts in the past year have been to plug Heavy North Entertainment concerts put on by frontman Tyler St. Amour. The name change would be a sign that they're still active despite not playing an acknowledged public concert in over a year, so we'll have to see what comes out next from Bardos!
• The Facebook event page's description for the 1990s punk reunion concert at Soo Blaster on December 27th had been updated to note that "some original members" of the three reuniting bands will be playing, hinting that Fist Magnet, Room 206, and/or The Spigots may not be fully/officially reuniting here. A discussion thread there from co-promoter/P.R.O.D. guitarist Christian Foisy did shed some light on that, with ex-Spigots guitarist Jeff Nisbet questioning who would be representing that band. Christian added that singer Trevor Harding & bassist Frank Guidocco would be playing in December, so the "some original members" clarification may reflect The Spigots in particular. It will be a must-attend show regardless!
• I have moved local/Toronto indie/punk quartet Treble Charger back to our inactive band links. They last issued a public update or played live when they opened for Everclear at the annual Western Fair in London in September of last year. I will not be commenting on the allegations from October of last year, which are far outside of what I want to cover on here, and do not directly affect our coverage of local music beyond the band's active status.

 

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Bone Yard 225 & Oktoberfest) And More Weekend Concert Previews!!

Let's keep the weekend concert previews rolling on this Thursday evening with more concert action in downtown Sault Ste. Marie, particularly from two concurrent outdoor community festivals promoted by local breweries. One is a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, and we have more new dates to touch on, so here's what you should know for concert preview post #2!

Make it two Oktoberfests that local alternative/punk cover supergroup Bookclub are playing at this fall, as they have been added to the lineup for SATURDAY'S Outspoken Brewing-hosted Oktoberfest street party on Queen Street East! Apologies for the short notice, the band was only confirmed for the festivities on Outspoken's Facebook page on Monday (they were obviously the "more TBA" when the brewery first announced the street party on September 4th, and there are no other punk/hard rock-leaning bands scheduled). Still riding the momentum from the Forever Seger concert earlier this month, BookcluB should be a fine and crowd pleasing fit on Queen Street (closed between Elgin and Bruce) on SATURDAY evening, so don't miss this stacked sextet then! It is worth noting that guitarist Brandon Ruch was present with the band at Forever Seger despite his announced move to Barrie, and he is pictured in the Oktoberfest advertising.

I don't know what's Brandon's status with BookcluB is going forward, but we'll let you know when/if we learn who was playing guitar with Mikey and crew on SATURDAY! BookcluB are slotted in the middle on SATURDAY at 5:30 PM, with local DJ/EDM duo Flummoxx closing the festivities at 10:30 PM, and indie rock quartet Lucy's Diner (the former Hollow Heads) scheduled in between at 8:00 PM. Local polka band Nein German Guys (who are also playing at Soo Falls' Oktoberfest at The Machine Shop with BookcluB on October 18th) will keep the Oktoberfest vibes rolling at 3:00 PM, and the day begins with folk singer/guitarist and Dustcovers member Tom Peer at 2:00 PM. Beyond the music, there will be lots of games and competitions (with prizes) to take in, plus food, beer (as you'd expect), vendors, and more German-flavoured entertainment, so definitely visit Outspoken Brewing's Facebook page for full details on SATURDAY'S events!

Tickets run for $30 at this link (plus processing fees) and presumably at the gate on SATURDAY. Weather-wise, 9&10 News is calling for a high of 19° with mostly cloudy skies and a 10% chance of rain, which should bode well for Oktoberfest revelers, but do follow up with your preferred local weather outlets for updates closer to. Visit the above links for more on SATURDAY'S first of three Oktoberfest parties in the Soo this fall, and for a preview of all of the action, here's BookcluB live!

Next up, local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 will return to their favourite local stomping grounds (Reggie's Place) TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Two weeks removed from their last stops at Reggie's, "the dirty three" should be in fine spirits with some gritty and in-your-face covers and originals all weekend long, plus with lots of merchandise and hoodie orders in store for fans, so don't bypass this weekend's action if you're up for it! While we're on the subject, Greg, Alex, and Warren have some newly announced dates ahead at The Esquire Club, which resumes hosting live bands this weekend after their summer break, and as per the venue's Facebook page, they'll be back there on on November 7th-8th! The band already announced their Thanksgiving weekend shows there. We'll have more on the other hard rock-leaning new shows at this Second Line West staple in an upcoming post, but it's good to have The Esquire Club hosting concerts again!

Your local 225 are on at 9:30 PM tomorrow and Saturday at Reggie's and for their November dates at The Esquire Club. All four shows are 19+ affairs with no announced cover charges. See above for more on Bone Yard's upcoming concerts, and here they are live!

Finally for weekend concert preview post #2, let's re-answer the viral question: What is Wolf Fest? Running head to head with Oktoberfest for downtown outdoor concert action from a local brewery on SATURDAY, Wolf Fest takes place at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion, and will be hosted by Northern Superior Brewing Co. to help give back to the community and their customers. Along with live music, attendees under the big tent will get to enjoy local vendors and artisans, beer, a charity auction, barbers, tattoo artists, an arcade, and more, so definitely visit Northern Superior's Facebook page for full non-musical details! SMS readers will likely be most drawn to classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 in the 7:00 PM timeslot (their prior scheduling of a Northern Superior show on Saturday was clearly this and not at the Tap Room), but the headliners at 8:15 PM are pop rock cover quartet The Killer Hooks, who do have some heavier covers.

Online page-less local Tragically Hip tribute band The Luxury will take the stage at 5:45 PM, preceded by indie rock band Jupiter Marvelous (led by Killer Hooks frontman Tony Marcello's son Anthony) at 4:30 PM. In a late confirmation, the "special guests TBD" are actually The Royal Canadian Navy Band, believe it or not, so don't miss them leading off Wolf Fest at 3:00 PM! The weather should hold up identically (tent acknowledged) for Wolf Fest, which has admission by donation to the Alzheimer Society of Sault Ste. Marie, which is a wonderful cause. Saultites have a lot of options for live music, beer, and varied entertainment downtown on Saturday, so see above for more on Wolf Fest, and here's Silent 9 live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Double Down and Tym Morrison previews (and more) on the site next! Thanks everyone!