LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906, Unfortunate Sun, And Double Down), And New Videos!!

As promised, let's round up the rest of this weekend's hard rock concert previews along with some new live videos, so here's what you should know (mostly from Sault Michigan), starting with LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, mostly SHORT NOTICE ones!

Local hard rock cover quartet Unfortunate Sun will return to The Merchants Bar for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced this show on their Facebook page on Tuesday (The Merch never acknowledged it on social media, as usual). You'd think that Unfortunate Sun would have given this more of a push, as TOMORROW'S concert will actually be their final gig with singer Skip Parish, who is retiring from the band for unannounced reasons. This is the second lineup departure in under two months for Unfortunate Sun, following bassist Tony Rogers' exit in January, with the band playing just three gigs with new bassist Brett Blackwood in the fold before announcing that Skip is leaving too. From their predecessors Fake Chow to today, Skip has been a strong presence on vocals, and hopefully TOMORROW's show is a fitting sendoff!

In their post announcing Skip's departure, they said that Jody, Jason, and Brett are "not going anywhere" and to "stay tuned for the next chapter". We'll let you know when more on their further plans is announced! Everything goes down TOMORROW at The Merch at 9:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Unfortunate Sun live!

Next up, local blues/hard rock cover quintet Project 906 will return to Hulbert Happy Hour in Hulbert Township for one night only TOMORROW NIGHT themselves! Again, apologies for the short notice, the band also only announced this show on their Facebook page on Tuesday (and given the weather forecast, you may not want to bring an AI-generated snowmombile to the bar for it). Last seen at Hulbert Happy Hour five months ago during a poker run, TOMORROW'S show will be their first anywhere since rocking The Strongs Tavern last week. Of course, drummer Jason VanLuven is playing in the Soo TOMORROW with Unfortunate Sun, who get priority when the two bands have conflicting dates, but 906 have not announced whether there will be a guest fill-in drummer or not (but they have played shows with hand drummer Brian Duford as the sole percussionist in the past, so they won't be out of luck regardless).

You can enjoy Project 906's hard rocking cover slate TOMORROW at 8:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no cover charge. See the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's a brand new video of the guys at The Strongs Tavern in Eckerman last week/month! This clip from their Facebook page sees the guys covering the end of Guns N' Roses' "Paradise City", which really tests Billy's vocal range, but he hangs in there well! Alas, this video is A. partial, B. very blue (blame the tavern's lighting), and C. vertical (oh so much ceiling here), but it's a fun performance for what we do get, so give it a watch below, and don't miss the Hulbert action TOMORROW NIGHT!

In one more show announcement, let's take a brief detour to Sault Ontario, where local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down will return to The Water Tower Pub on Saturday, March 28th! This show was announced via the venue's March concert calendar, and Separate Wayz TONIGHT aside, is the only new hard rock-leaning show revealed thusly. The pub didn't post a monthly calendar online last month, and January's seemed extremely rushed, so it's good to see the Great Northern Road nightclub putting the regular one up for March! Joel, Beej, Dan, and Ric will rock out at month's end with no cover, a 19+ age limit, and an 8:00 PM start time, and as the venue hosts different nightly bands, classic/pop rock veterans Encore are playing there on Friday the 27th. Visit the above links for more details, and while we're on the subject, here's a newly uploaded video from Double Down's Facebook page of them live with a special guest!

As you may recall, Double Down welcomed former Quite Frankly singer Jack "Jacklyn Hyde" Alisat as a guest for a handful of gigs last summer, including a Beck's Bar date that I don't believe the band ever officially confirmed she would be singing at. While the video description alluded to Cher, the video itself actually sees Double Down and Jack covering Daft Punk & Pharrell Williams' "Get Lucky", which is a surprisingly modern and poppy cover for them. The extremely dark foreground lighting isn't ideal, but at least this was filmed horizontally, and it's a fun cover with strong vocals, so give it a watch below, and don't miss the guys back at Beck's tomorrow night!

Finally for today, let's head back to Sault Michigan for some new videos from a band who isn't playing live this weekend, namely hard rock quartet The Nameless! On January 4th, the band shared videos from drummer Jamie Costner's personal Facebook page of them at a private event the previous day, where they were filmed on a stationary camera covering Blur's "Song 2", The Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Otherside", the end of Guns N' Roses' "It's So Easy" (with bassist Mike East on vocals), Chevelle's "Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)", and as embedded below, Papa Roach's "Last Resort". Most of the videos are incomplete, and alas, all five were shot vertically, but things were framed as well as they could have been given that, even though Josh is largely blocking Jamie from view. Solid work all around, and they should use Mike's vocals more, as we don't hear him leading songs often, just the end of "It's So Easy" a couple of times on video. Give these a watch above & below!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906), Weekend Concert Previews, And More!!

Our first weekend concert previews of October 2025 are here, so let's dive in with some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, one on SHORT NOTICE! Saturday's Tym Morrison concert and Sunday's Ikons of Rock concert will be in our next news post, so don't worry, they are hitting the site soon!

Sault Michigan hard/blues rock quintet Project 906 will return to Hulbert Happy Hour in Hulbert Township for one night only on SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced this gig via their Facebook page on Monday. Believe it or not, this will be Project 906's first show at the 10402 South Maple Street nightclub since February 2022, and thusly their first there with Jason VanLuven and Brian Duford on percussion, but there is a reason for this return booking beyond just rocking out. SATURDAY is the Hulbert Freedom Festival's ATV Poker Run, with 906 serving as the night cap to the day's events, so definitely visit the official Facebook event page for the poker run's details. Meanwhile, one of the stops for the poker run is Huck's Pub & Grill in Rudyard, and they'll be hosting Project 906 on Friday, October 31st for their Halloween party, as announced on the bar's Facebook page yesterday!

As you might expect for a Halloween concert, Huck's will be hosting costume contests at month's end, with the best overall, funniest, and best couples' costumes winning prizes. Good to start seeing another Halloween concert on the schedule, so stay tuned for more as spooky season continues! Project 906 will bring the hard rock on SATURDAY at 8:00 PM and on Halloween at 9:00 PM, neither show has an announced cover charge (you don't have to register for the Poker Run to come to Hulbert), and these are 21+ events. See above for more details, and here's Project 906 live!

Next up, we'll head north to Sault Ste. Marie, where San Francisco hair metal quintet Night Ranger will headline at The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino TOMORROW NIGHT! The first of two 1980s glam metal concerts at the Soo Kewadin this fall, Night Ranger will be rocking the casino for the first time in over 12 years tomorrow, and they will remain very familiar to local rock fans from their hit songs "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" and "Sister Christian", among others. With more classic songs, three new albums, and a switch from Joel Hoekstra to Keri Kelli on guitar, hopefully they deliver a solid night of glam metal action for fans tomorrow! Santa Monica glam rock duo Nelson (of "(Can't Live Without Your) Love & Affection" fame) will open tomorrow with an acoustic set, so come out early for Matthew & Gunnar setting the tone with some unplugged rock!

Tickets for this all ages concert are still on sale at this link, at 1-800-KEWADIN, or at the in-person box office. Limited seats are still available for $80 in rows 1-10 and $70 for seats further back, but the vast majority of tickets are sold, so act now if you haven't already just in case. VIP passes with extra perks are also available online if you are so inclined. This should be a fun night of 1980s metal action for you Hair Scare fans, so visit the above links for more details on this Rock 101-sponsored concert, and for a preview, here's Night Ranger live in the Soo in 2013!

Also this weekend, let's head to Sault Ontario for a special memorial concert on SATURDAY NIGHT at Soo Blaster, as local musicians will gather that night for Riffs For Rememberance: A Memorial For Tori! The show is in honour of Victoria Childs, an avid local music fan who suddenly passed away last month at the age of 34. Victoria was my ex-girlfriend and was a great person & mother who I actually met at Oddfellows Hall punk concerts in 2005 when we were in high school, and I know she would be absolutely thrilled that friends and musicians were coming together to pay their respects like this! Local party metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty (featuring her cousin Mikhal Muto) will headline on Saturday, and it was Paul & Amanda's idea to host a tribute concert to her, so all kudos to them for taking the initiative like this! A very diverse lineup will also include three solo artists.

These include her friend Gimiiwan Ikwe, country cover veteran Leslie Cook, and folk singer/guitarist Linsaey L.W. while the last mystery act is Bards With Beards. Paul told me that they're a new band from HeadF1rst drummer Anthony Boudreau, but I don't have any other information on them at press time. We'll know more on Saturday! This all ages event has doors opening at 7:30 PM, and admission will be $5, with all proceeds going to Hope House - Club 84, a psychosocial rehab program for those with mental illness, and who helped and supported Victoria in times of need. Visit the official Facebook event page for more on what should be a great night in Victoria's memory (I'll absolutely be there), and here's The A.A. live!

Finally, I wanted to acknowledge advertised shows for this weekend that I have doubts are on as scheduled. When local classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down announced their fall calendar a few months ago, this included a return to Reggie's Place for concerts tomorrow & Saturday night (here is their Facebook event page). However, if you were following the social media promotion for Bone Yard 225's shows there last week, there was a lot of teased finality regarding the gigs. Bone Yard are alive and well (they'll be at The Esquire Club next week), but band members, attendees, and the venue dropped a number of Facebook hints towards Reggie's ending or closing in some form or fashion, with your local 225 saying that this would be their "last weekend playing there" on September 26th. What we do know is that last week's shows marked the five year anniversary of Reggie's under Randy Lapossie's management, but is he opting out after that long?

No one has come right out and said what was going on at 458 Queen Street East, but regardless, Double Down haven't newly promoted this weekend's Reggie's dates, and the venue hasn't posted on Facebook since Saturday, so with all of that acknowledged, I'm going to treat the Double Down shows as off unless otherwise confirmed. Whether Reggie's is closing, rebranding, or changing operations in some form, we'll let you know when something is firmly and publically said! That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!

Recent News & Updates From Spades GT & Mike Haggith!

Today's post is designed to cover some recent notes and content from two different local acts that eventually moved to Barrie, Ontario, as both have new albums, videos, and other news to touch on that have fell by the wayside in recent weeks. Here's what you should know!

We're definitely behind on recent updates from local/Barrie crossover thrash quintet Spades GT, so what's new to report from their camp? Firstly, we do have more Josey Scott's Saliva videos coming, but there's stuff before and since that we haven't even hinted at from the former Jack Spades yet! One year to the day after playing Spiderfest in Meyersburg on the same weekend as Random Killing, the two bands (both fronted by Saultite vocalists) joined forces at The Atria in Oshawa last night, so how's that for another hardcore homecoming from afar? Following their already announced gigs in Cambridge and Toronto, the band (minus Jay) made their way home to the Soo for the Josey Scott's Saliva concert on June 24th, and while that was the de facto release party for us, the actual release party will take place tonight at The Queens Nightclub in Barrie, over a month after "Sewer City Radio" came out!

No idea why they didn't time a release party with the actual on-sale date of June 2nd, but better late than never! Spades GT, guitarist Daniel Horton's other band The Fast Life, and fellow Barrie punk band Kill/Death Radio are playing this event, which also coincides with the release of their "Final Girl" music video, details forthcoming. Good luck tonight, of course! In another new GTA concert announcement, Spades GT will open for No Signal at Inside Skatepark in St. Catharines on Saturday, July 22nd (details here), while they & The Fast Life will both be opening for Hamilton death metal band Death Perception on Saturday, July 29th at The Killroom in Hamilton. Should be good shows if you're in the area! All other updates since have been in the form of *sigh* "Reels", including two teaser clips of the "Final Girl" music video (linked here and here), with the latter edited more like a horror movie trailer, which is very fitting.

The letterboxing of the widescreen music video is not ideal whatsoever in the vertical "Reels" format, but the wait is almost over! As of this writing, the video is not live yet but we'll give that its own feature in an upcoming post. The last "Reel" was to promote yesterday's Random Killing show, featuring drummer Tyler Reiner and singer J.D. Pearce plugging it from a pool, if you can believe it. Can't embed them externally, so give them a watch above, and stay tuned for more from Spades GT in the near future!

Next up, here's some recent updates from local/Barrie alt-hard rock musician Mike Haggith, starting with a video interview with him that I've put off for way too long! On June 8th, Mike was one of the remote guests on the first episode of The S.W.A. Happy Hour (S.W.A. stands for Songwriters Anonymous), an interview series hosted out of New York by musicians Dominick Torregrossa and Chris Lane Sr. that you can see episodes of at this link. Mike is not the only guest, but he is an S.W.A. member, so there was familiarity with him & his music from the hosts. Mike's segment begins about 26 minutes into the 2+ hour livestream, and includes a full airing of his "Carousel" lyric video, which more or less premiered here before it went public. At 31 minutes or so, Mike pops in for a 45 minute interview, where he discusses the lyric video & song, his involvement with Songwriters Anonymous, his own songwriting process, ...

... the lyrical choices & thematic sensibilities in "Carousel" and other songs, his upcoming album "All The Best In All You Do", guest guitarist Hetriani's appearance on it, Mike's musical journey from Windsor to the Soo to Thompson, his musical influences, whether he listens to stuff like he actually plays, and his recording process, before playing "Carousel" again so they can re-analyze the song again with the benefit of what Mike has said. The interview ends with some summative and fan-submitted questions, plus plugs for Mike's current and upcoming music links. Not a bad interview at all, and the ultra-focus on songwriting will be appealing to some, especially compared to some of his other interview/guest appearances on similar webshows! That interview is embedded below, but just to get some other recent notes covered on here, this image is in fact the "All The Best In All You Do" album cover, despite the lack of any credits.

This is something that wasn't immediately clear when it first popped up on Mike's social media channels, but this means it will be his first album since he moved from Windsor to not have his name or the album name on the front. You can now pre-order "A.T.B.I.A.Y.D." for $10 on Bandcamp (no sign yet of the teased bonus songs for Bandcamp buyers only), but if you'd rather wait for the official on-sale date, that is Thursday, coinciding with his opening set at Rotaryfest Stage 1! Stay tuned for more from Mike soon, and here's his S.W.A. Happy Hour interview!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 906), Peril Concert Previews, And Treble Charger on MuchMusic!!

For the first time in 2022, we have a new post that is not 3 days from the previous one! Not necessarily because news is perking up, but because there's actually a pair of concerts to preview this weekend, obviously not in Ontario though given the current restrictions (though we'll have more on the new re-opening timeline on the site soon.) Alongside those previews, we have a very cool video upload with a prominent local band, but leading off, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month!

Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Project 906 will return to Hulbert Happy Hour in nearby Hulbert Township for one night only on Friday, February 18th! This will be Project 906's first gig at this venue since way back in 2019, as well as their first show of 2022, and their second concert set with new drummer Odin Osogwin. However, this is actually a rescheduling of a concert originally planned for this past Saturday. While we did miss it for coverage on the SMS when  the Facebook event page went up two weeks ago, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the show to be postponed five weeks, with news breaking in a post on the event page on January 12th. There's no partial lockdown in Michigan right now like in Ontario, but clearly some venues are still being very cautious, and hopefully things are sufficiently quieted down by Presidents Day weekend! Expect a 9:00 PM start time, 21+ age limit, and no cover.

And as usual, please respect and follow any public health and safety measures in effect at Hulbert Happy Hour (at 10402 South Maple Street) to ensure everyone has a safe and happy time next month. It's a shame that the pandemic cost this show its original date, but the omicron variant is what it is and everyone's adjusting however they can, so hopefully next month's date sticks! Visit the above links for more details, and stay tuned for updates from the Project 906 camp as we get them!

Next up, while Project 906's show this month was postponed, we do finally have weekend concert previews for the first time in 2022, as Traverse City classic metal trio Peril will return to The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! As best as I can tell, Kewadin have not been cancelling concerts due to omicron, but please adhere to any and all public health and safety guidelines posted at the lounge/casino if you come out this weekend. This weekend's shows are Peril's first anywhere in 2022, and their first in Sault Ste. Marie since February 2020, and while they did return to the E.U.P. with St. Ignace Kewadin gigs in the fall, it's probably pretty obvious why they haven't played in the Soo in almost two years. It'll be great to see Jeff, Adam, and Brooks back at The Rapids Lounge this weekend, so keep these rare gigs in mind!

Peril are not scheduled to return to either Kewadin branch in the first quarter of 2022 after this weekend, but their sister band Scarkazm will be at The Northern Pines Lounge in St. Ignace in March, pandemic willing. Peril's Rapids Lounge gigs this weekend have 9:00 PM start times, no cover charges, and 21+ age limits. See above for more details, and here's Peril live!

Let's head north to Canada now, as another archive video of inactive Sault Ontario/Toronto indie/punk band Treble Charger on television has surfaced on YouTube, this time from the 2001 installment of MuchMusic's old Snow Job outdoor concert festival! In case you forgot, Snow Job was held annually from at least 1993-2002, and featured (mostly) Canadian bands & musicians performing outdoors at a Canadian ski resort to a live audience and on TV proper. In March 2001, MuchMusic held Snow Job at Sun Peaks Resort in British Columbia, with Treble Charger joining Our Lady Peace, Shaggy, and Crazy Town as that year's featured acts. If you want more info on Snow Job 2001, visit the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine backup of it's old Much website page. Almost 40 minutes of Much footage was uploaded by YouTube user TheLasko45 last week, so there's obviously a lot to take in!

Yes, Treble Charger footage from Snow Job 2001 was already uploaded by YouTube user tiffanyminx11 over a decade ago, but her videos only add up to 19 minutes, and are mislabeled by one year. The video proper (which features two vintage MuchMusic commercial breaks!) sees Treble Charger as the first band to play that year, and they were introduced by then-MuchMusic VJ Bradford How. Set-wise, Treble Charger played "How She Died", "Cheat Away", "Friend of Mine", "Favourite Worst Enemy" (preceded by Bradford asking Greig and Trevor about the song's inspiration while on the slopes), "Brand New Low", "Business" (preceded by the band snowboarding), "More's The Pity", "Mercury Smile", and "American Psycho". If you're into watching old commercials, the breaks are at 6:51 & 22:06. I don't know about you guys, but I had a lot of fun watching this set back!

This long of a Treble Charger concert video is cool enough (tape hiss excepted), but what put things over the top are the visuals and special elements that an outdoor winter concert at a ski resort provides, from the mountain scenery to snowboarders doing their thing behind the stage to Rosie wearing a ski helmet & goggles, and even a challenge during "Brand New Low" for a fan to chug 4 bottles of ginger ale during the song! I don't know what the temperature in Sun Peaks was that day, but I didn't see anyone's breath, so I doubt it was as cold as the Soo has been over the last week! Definitely worth a watch for Treble Charger and old school MuchMusic fans, so check it out for yourself below!

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

A New Local Band, Tarnished Concert Preview & Updates, And Much More!!

I've got another new news post for your guys on this Friday morning, and it's packed with a lot of shorter stories from the last little while, plus a concert preview and related updates, and leading off, a brand new addition to our band links! Here's what you should know!

We have a new local hard rock band to add to our active Sault Ontario band links, and they are named Dealing Without! Details are minimal on this band so far, but they have a promising lineup, including Isolation Sessions/ex-Half Past bandmates Jordan Rains and Arthur Lacasse on vocals & guitar respectively, alongside former Big Mistake guitarist Rick Atkins and ex-Fitswitch drummer Larry Mousseau. A bassist has not been brought on board yet, but Arthur had posted in the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday looking for one (they do have a jam spot.) Message Art at this link or above for details! It's not yet clear if Dealing Without's existence will mean anything negative towards The Isolation Sessions' status, though note that they did post on Facebook as recently as January, and remember that their nature & inception were very tied into the pandemic.

Sonic inspirations with Half Past's final lineups will be easy to make re: Dealing Without, but time will tell how they truly look and sound. Will they jump in on the social distance-regulated concert scene where available, or will their live debut wait until things are more opened up? Time will tell, but this lineup has the chops! Stay tuned to their Facebook page for more updates on Dealing Without when they rolls in!

Next up, here's a rare weekend concert preview, as Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished (minus Nathan) will perform publically in Hulbert Township for the first time TOMORROW NIGHT at The Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast! A new venue for us, this bed & breakfast at 9920 South North Hulbert Road has hosted a few live bands in recent months, and hopefully will serve to be a solid venue for Alex & Josh's unplugged cover attack! If you're up for the hour-long drive west to Hulbert, this show has no announced age limit or cover charge, and a 9:00 PM start time. While we're on the subject, Tarnished will also be taking a rare road trip outside of our coverage range to Traverse City today for a show at The Workshop Brewing Company (details here), and will be appearing again on The Eagle 95.1 with Tim Ellis again at 9:10 AM today for the exclusive public debut of their new single "SDR&R"!

Pre-orders for the single will proceed after the interview, though availability of it beyond the FM dial is to be confirmed. Tarnished are definitely staying busy this weekend, so follow along with all of their upcoming activities on their Facebook page or above, and to preview tomorrow's Hulbert Happy Hour gig, here's Alex & Josh live!

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

 

• I have removed Sault Ontario death/trance metal solo project Black Cloud from our band links again due to the unfortunate deletion of their known online pages & media for unannounced reasons at some point in the last couple of months. Black Cloud had previously done this in late 2019, before returning with new pages that were updated from February-July of last year. Peytan has definite potential in extreme metal, and hopefully we see Black Cloud return (again) in some form again down the road!
• I have replaced the link for local goregrind solo project Crucify The Whore from their surprisingly deleted Facebook page to their Bandcamp page. As far as I can tell, C.T.W. are still active, as their other social media accounts are still up, and have been updated as recently as January, though it's worth noting that C.T.W.'s deleted page was previously Tyler's cybergrind project Malignant Neoplasm's page after the closure of their original page. Maybe it was taken down due to content flags, given their very polarizing imagery & subject matter? In any event, we'll let you know when Tyler has new music updates from any of his projects!
• Hard rock musician Mike McCleary has been moved to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity, last being seen posting a single on Bandcamp in February 2020. A quickly prolific addition to our coverage, Mike released a number of digital albums to Bandcamp in the late 2010s, often dealing lyrically in his own mental health battles & national politics, but his public profile sharply decreased in 2019 due to personal concerns, including the deletion of his Facebook page & two of his more political albums. Mike's a talented guy, and hopefully he resumes his original music again in the future!
• Local post-punk duo Orange are "coming back, baby!", as per their Facebook page on Tuesday. Featuring Telephone & Address' Christopher Shoust on drums alongside Ohio-based guitarist Matt Zook, Orange initially reunited in 2014 for studio work and album plans, but aside from some Soundcloud postings, nothing came of it until their last proper public update in March 2015. Good to see Orange back after six years, and they are back in our active links!
  
• Last week, The Soo's Got Talent posted on their Facebook page to say that they're "looking into going virtual", and asked fans what they thought about the idea. We all know why the multi-week local talent competition didn't take place last fall, and with lingering uncertainty even with vaccines beginning to roll out, hosting the 2021 installment online may make sense to bring The Soo's Got Talent back in the near term. Stay tuned for updates!
  
• Veteran ska/hard rock trio Tripod The Dog have been moved to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity. The fan favourite band has not been seen since rocking The Esquire Club on February 9th of last year, though the pandemic & their lack of a recent online page are both acknowledged. After a successful reunion set at Rotaryfest in 2018, frontman Mark Oliverio brought Tripod The Dog back full-time in 2019 on the local bar cover circuit, though gigs were spaced out moreso than other contemporaries. Hopefully we'll see Mark and the Amendolas back at it when concerts as normal can return!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 906), Toystock VIII Preview, And More!!

Let's get a new news post up on this Saturday night, and given that there is a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT leading off, it's not a moment too soon! That said, we do have our promised Toystock preview to round things out, plus some more assorted stories from the last while. With all of that said, here is what you should know!

Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 will return to the stage TONIGHT at Hulbert Happy Hour in nearby Hulbert Township (obviously!) Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced this show via it's Facebook event page less than an hour ago, and while they did acknowledge there that this was concert was "very late notice", the venue's Facebook page had announced it on Wednesday. This will be Project 906's first announced concert since the Rudyard Musicians Festival in August, just their fifth in the past 9 months, and their first show at Hulbert Happy Hour since December 2018. We haven't seen as much activity from Project 906 this year due to members' own personal lives, but it's great to see them back out there TONIGHT, even with the late notice! As usual for their headlining bar shows, TONIGHT's affair is a 21+, 9:00 PM affair with no cover charge. See the above links for more details, and here's Project 906 live earlier this year!

Next up, and in what could be considered the kickoff to the Christmas concert season in Sault Ontario, the eighth annual Toystock fundraiser event goes down TOMORROW at The Grand Gardens North! Since it's inaugural installment in 2012, this (Choose) Maxx Entertainment-promoted concert has seen loads of toy, food, and monetary donations to Christmas Cheer, and expect more of the seasonal good will tomorrow,  with the Stuff-A-Bus on site once again to collect all of the goods for those in need. Aside from the musical performers, expect to see Mr. Bon Soo, princesses, and both Santa & Mrs. Claus on hand to meet the kids, while there will be face painting, a photo booth, a kids play area, and even video games. Click here for all non-musical details! As for the bands, Toystock VIII will again welcome 10 bands in 10 hours for tomorrow's festivities, though unlike last year, the roster for this year is half devoted to Toystock newcomers, largely on the younger side.

Local country rock cover quartet Bone Yard will headline at 9:00 PM in their eighth Toystock appearance total and seventh consecutive time, while two event newcomers will precede them in strong timeslots, namely power rock quartet Re:Born at 8:00 PM and the recently busy Fluid 5ive at 7:00 PM. Fellow classic/hard rockers Soundcheck will hit the stage for a third straight Toystock at 6:00 PM, though no word yet on if they'll have a fill-in singer again or if they'll play as a trio (and yes, Glen Thomas is again donating refurbished drum kits to a few lucky young attendees!) Local country musician Brendan Hodgson will return from 2018 with a set at 5:00 PM, following a pair of debuting acts, including pop rock quartet L!me at 4:00 PM and singer Kaitlyn Parr (who I know little about) at 3:00 PM. For a fourth straight year, a group of unidentified Case's Music students will hit the stage at 2:00 PM, while classic country duo The Jeff & Jeff Show return for a third year of their own at 1:00 PM.

Finally, Soo's Got Talent semifinalist Cameron Oliver will open with a solo performance at 12:00 PM. Toystock VIII is, as usual, an ALL AGES event with admission via a Christmas cheer donation (toys, non-perishable food, or money.) This is another great lineup of music and family friendly entertainment donating their time for a wonderful cause, so kudos to Greg and everyone at Maxx Entertainment for putting this on once again, and hopefully The Grand Gardens North is hopping in a good way tomorrow! Visit the Facebook event page and the above links for more details, and here's Bone Yard tackling a hard rock cover live!



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

• On Sunday, revived Sault Michigan hard rock solo project Hubbard posted a photo of a drum kit to their Facebook page, saying that it was "time to record drums." This appears to confirm that Chris has indeed resumed (restarted?) work on his debut solo album, but with new postings there tending to be sporadic with not much to say, how fast will we hear updates from the 415E guitarist's camp?
• Sault Ontario metal solo musician and Bear Hunters alum Mike Vincent is looking for a drummer for his new band project, who apparently play pop and punk rock (I presume Mike's on guitar.) Interesting change from his usual pace, but if you're interested in trying out, message Mike at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Thursday!
• Over two years after posting a drummer search on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group for a band project, young local guitarist Rainey Rancourt is again on the hunt, this time for a 14-18 year old vocalist. The band he's working on already has the other musicians enlisted, and they play metal & punk covers and originals. If you are interested, message Rainey at this link or via his group post from November 15th for more information!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more recent concert video footage on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Winkstinger & Project 906), Plus New Videos!!

Here's some news and updates for your Sunday evening reading, and these include some new video uploads from each side of the border, and leading off, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for near the end of the year!

Local death metal quartet Winkstinger will return to the stage for the first time since Oh!No II on Thursday, December 27th when they make their Soo Blaster debut at that night's live Christmas show from local rap promoters True North Talent Entertainment! As Six, Two, Oh. and Blood Shed Productions have done in the past, this is a hybrid genre event with rappers on the same bill as rock bands, so if you like such a mixture, this would be a fun way to take it in after Christmas! The advertised headliners are T.N.T. rappers and co-owners Ryan "RRated" Derasp and Chuck "Kid Majick" Charrette, as well as Toronto rapper Gilly Gadan, while local openers will feature Winkstinger alongside surf rock quartet The Dynowaves, and a stacked suite of local rappers, including (but maybe not limited to) Trace Prince, DQ, Cyriouss, Mikey Thomas, Reeder, and Sawbe. There's some very familiar names here for followers of hip-hop locally, so visit above for more info on the performers!

Doors open at 10:00 PM on the 27th for this 19+ concert, which has $10 advance tickets, $15 at the door, or $150 VIP tickets for table seating for 5 and a complimentary bottle of champagne (how's that for a deal?!) Contact the venue or the phone numbers listed at the Facebook event page for details on advance admission. This sounds like an intriguing event with some high production value for your belated Christmas enjoyment, with Winkstinger and The Dynowaves adding their own diverse rock spin on the rap menagerie, so visit the above links for more info, and Soo Blaster has finally been added to our local venue listings!

Next up, Sault Michigan hard/blues rock cover quartet Project 906 will return to Hulbert Happy Hour in nearby Hulbert Township for one night only on Saturday, December 29th! Technically, the venue wasn't confirmed when they plugged the show on their Facebook page on Friday, but the shared photo is from there, so it's heavily implied if nothing else. This will be Project 906's first concert since playing at The Strongs Tavern on November 10th, a show that we regrettably missed for coverage on the site last month, despite being plugged by 906 earlier that week. I profusely apologize for missing it, hopefully it won't happen again, but I also hope that it as a hit for the band and fans alike! As for the Hulbert gig in two weeks, fans there have been waiting 7 months for a Project 906 return, so if you're up for a hard rocking night of tunes, keep this one in mind! A 9:00 PM start time, 21+ age limit, and no cover are all in effect. Visit the above links for more details!

Also today, let's stay in the E.U.P., as local classical metal band Theatre of Night live-streamed another of their Christmas tour dates to their Facebook page, this time their headlining gig at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino branch last night! This will help you visualize the venue with it's table seating configuration early on, and it's great to see a large turnout, even with extra formality! The video proper is 1 hour and 46 minutes in length, but the first 20 minutes or so is just setup and people sitting down, before 10 or so minutes of speakers talking about The Lions Club, their charitable aims, and what to expect from Theatre of Night. Structurally, their set proper is basically identical to what we saw in the Grand Rapids live stream, which isn't a surprise considering the pre-recorded introductions and conceptual nature, so visit the post below this one for a breakdown of the song order. However, the Sault's live stream is an improvement in some ways!

This time, the filmer zoomed the camera in a lot more to get a better look at Theatre of Night themselves, the audio is a little clearer, and the larger crowd compared to Grand Rapids helps give a better ambiance and reception to the songs on offer. Fans of heavier T.S.O.-style Christmas carols will definitely want to check out Theatre of Night's 2018 tour live streams above and below, and if they do this at their Holland tour finale next week, we will let you know!



Finally, let's head back to Sault Ontario for a new original song from prolific local solo musician Tym Morrison! Believe it or not, this is his first posting of new material on his original YouTube channel in four years, so if you've missed new rock material from Tym as of late, don't bypass this one! The song is called "Living on Mars", which is about moving to the big red planet, and it has a solid heavy groove with a steady structure, but Tym sounds like he's forcing his lower register verse singing a little. Nice to hear new original material from him though, so give it a listen below, and don't miss Tym at Gliss this weekend and next!



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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Project 906), Fluid 5ive Concert Preview, And Much More!!

I was going to put this post up tomorrow, but with LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS that I don't want to put off for a week, we'll double up on this Thursday! Along with those new dates, we have this weekend's remaining hard rock concert preview (and a related lineup change), and the latest from prolific studio projects on both sides of the border, so here's what you should know!

Sault Michigan blues/hard rock quartet Project 906 have a busy weekend ahead, as they'll return to The Superior Cafe for a solo concert on Friday, May 18th (one week from tomorrow), plus a return to Hulbert Happy Hour in nearby Hulbert on Saturday the 19th! Their recent sets at the former venue's musician competitions and showcase aside, these will be Project 906's first solo concerts since March, when they made their Hulbert debut. This talented E.U.P. group should have some solid nights of hard rocking covers in store both here and 54 minutes west of here next weekend, so keep both shows in mind! Note that Project 906's own plug of the Friday show on their Facebook page indicates that the show will take place in Bird Eye Outfitters (the hunting/outdoors store on the same complex), but I would assume that they're returning to The Superior Cafe rather than playing inside the store proper.

Project 906's Sault show next Friday has an early 8:00 PM start time with no announced age limits or cover charges, while their Saturday nighter in Hulbert next week has a 9:00 PM start time, no cover, and a 21+ age limit. Click here and visit the above links for more details, and don't miss Project 906 back on a solo stage (or two) next weekend!

Next up, here's our preview of THIS SATURDAY NIGHT'S Fluid 5ive concert, as the new-ish hard/classic rock quartet will play their second live concert at The Rockstar Bar in Sault Ontario, and third total! This will be Fluid 5ive's first stop at this venue since February, and with that concert reportedly having a packed attendance, here's hoping for more of the same from this hard rocking outfit on Saturday! Note that the band has not plugged this show on their Facebook page at press time, but it was confirmed via the venue's Facebook event page and this SooToday classified ad, which confirms a surprising lineup change too, as keyboardist Rob Irving has moved to guitar in place of Joseph Miller, who is "no longer associated with our band". A reason was not stated publically for Joseph's departure, and while announcing it in a classified ad isn't typical, hopefully nothing too serious happened, and that we see Joe in a new band down the road!

No word on how Rob will sound on guitar on Saturday (and beyond?), but if this is a permanent move with no new members added, is a name change to Fluid 4our in order? In any event, Saturday night's concert has no announced cover charge, a 19+ age limit, and a start time of 9:00 PM, but I'd bank on the band not actually playing their first song until 10:00 or later. Visit the above links for more details on what should be a solid concert, and when videos surface to share on here, we'll let you know!

Also today, here's the latest from local hard rock solo artist Mike McCleary, so what's he been up to as of late? After taking a month off from public updates starting in mid-March, Mike resurfaced on his Facebook page on April 24th by sharing a feature on his music from the website Jammerzine (brief but well written!), while also revealing that his music would soon be added to the playlists of some online radio stations, and sharing a new original song from his Soundcloud page named "The Great Musical Landscape", which is punk-inspired with eclectic instrumentation, and worth a listen for long-time fans of his! Mike revealed last week that his new goal is "to release as much music as possible this year", and a new album is coming "soon", while he also teased plans to resume playing acoustic concert sets and possibly finding full time live band members. As well, Mike has made all of his past local albums available on a "pay what you can" model on Bandcamp.

There is more to acknowledge from Mike's Facebook page, particularly a new video, but to spread things out, I'll hold that for an upcoming post. It's nice to see that Mike is staying active with his music and has some big plans in the works, so be sure to follow him at the above links, and consider buying his albums to help support Mental Health Week!

Finally for today, here's a pair of new videos from Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night's Facebook page, both shared from keyboardist Craig Harrison's personal Facebook page yesterday! These feature Craig jamming with a guest guitarist/bassist named Luke Bernard, who I don't know anything about musically, but he's a fine musician on these two clips! Both hew very close to Theatre of Night's established orchestral and symphonic base, with one video featuring Luke on the acoustic guitar and Craig on keyboard, and the one embedded below featuring Luke on bass and Craig on an effects board on a tablet. The former video is more ethereal and deliberate, and it's not helped by a shorter run-time and Craig generally blocking Luke from view, hence why the second video is featured here. I'm not quite sure that the dog on the futon likes the performance below, but it has a nice melodic ambiance, and you get a solid view of Craig's effects application also!

Is Luke joining Theatre of Night's lineup for live concerts, or are the musical similarities to their studio work just a coincidence? Either way, these are nicely done and will definitely please existing T.O.N. fans, so check these videos out above and below, and stay tuned for more when updates roll in!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new video-heavy post on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: The Eleventh Hour

As usual for the 10th of a month, here's our latest Defunct Local Band Profile on the site! This monthly feature spotlights one or two local bands (one this month) that, while no longer a publically functioning act, deserves a look back at their run and accomplishments! Once again, this month's band was randomly selected, and with Sault Michigan in our rotation for the first time in 2018, here's what you should know on this month's pick!
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The Eleventh Hour

Genre: Hardcore/Metal/Punk

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan

Members: (Members not in their last full lineup in italics. Note that Sean Hanson was credited as their "mascot and cowbell player" back in 2012, but I don't believe he was a formal band member as such.)

Sean Roush (Chained Memories), vocals
Josh North, guitar/formerly bass
Joseph Farrish, bass
Joseph North (7/47), drums

Gus Burgos, harsh vocals
Cathy Burgos, clean vocals/keyboard
Zach Howe, clean vocals
Cody Reed (Hoist The Sails, Analog Deficiency), guitar 
Matt Randazzo, bass 
Alex Boyer, bass

Audio/Video: Material on the their now-deleted first Facebook page included short song samples and vocal demos by Sean Roush, and teasers at an eventual all-original set with songs like "The Weeping Angels". After relaunching in late 2013, The Eleventh Hour announced plans to record an EP named "Eyes of the Wretched", which would have featured a song named "I Have A Voice" (lyrics even made its way to their new Facebook page), as well as later teasing a softer, punk-based cover selection in 2014 ranging from All Time Low to Paramore to Wolfmother . That said, only two songs tied to this band are known to be public nowadays: a vocal/piano selection by ex-singer Cathy Burgos from November 2013, and this scratchy but solid instrumental guitar demo by Josh North from earlier that year!



Info/Analysis: Launching under the Angelic Genocide name in February 2012 (eventually adopting their best known name that fall), The Eleventh Hour were one of the more recent ventures into extreme metal from young Sault Michigan-area performers, with brothers Josh & Joe North the only constant members. A live concert debut was never publically confirmed, and much of their later updates reflected personnel and name changes, with their lineup fluctuating from 4-6 members at varying points. The band briefly became Changing You For Better Days in early 2013, and eventually changed their name to One Hour Till Dawn in early 2014 to coincide with their shift in genre, before settling on When All Fell Silent that July. The last name was ironically apt, as no public updates followed, with the band itself falling silent for good by year's end. With only solo clips surviving from The Eleventh Hour's run, it's hard to comment on the band as a whole, but they had talented musicians and strong ambitions, and it's a shame they could never get far off the ground in the early 2010s!
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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! Next month in this series, we'll return to Sault Ontario for our next randomly selected profile, and for April 2018, we'll be looking at defunct local classic/hard rock quartet (and Soundcheck predecessors) Mourning Wood! Look for that at this time next month, and stay tuned for more news and notes on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Halloween Party), A New Video, And Many Assorted Updates!!

With a new week in full swing, here's a packed news post for your Monday, including lots of assorted recent news & notes, a new jam video, and first, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for the end of October! Here's what you should know!

For the third time in four years, The Algonquin Pub will host J.D. Pearce's 11th annual Halloween Party on Saturday, October 31st! Yes, this show was previously covered on here, but we hadn't officially called it as a concert because the venue wasn't confirmed yet, which J.D. announced on the Facebook event page on Saturday. Fitting choice, seeing as (save for 2013 at The Rosie), this long running Halloween concert event has found a good home at The Gonq, so keep the familiar venue in mind! No word though on if this will be considered as an official Gonqshow series event, as it's currently slated to wrap up the week prior at the Ripcordz concert. A previously announced, the lineup will take on an all-tribute band theme for the first time since 2008, with Toronto extreme metal quartet Caym tackling Metallica, and two local tribute bands (identities to be determined) covering The Misfits and a hybrid of Rancid & NOFX songs.

It's very likely that J.D. will front the Misfits tribute, but will they be existing local bands, or one-off tributes for the occasion? A presentation of Tidal Records, this Halloween party will have a $10 cover charge, 19+ age limit, 10:00 PM start time, and presumably, a costume contest with prizes, so be sure to check the above links for more details! This is a great event for the Halloween season, so stay tuned for updates as they roll in!

Next up, here's an almost 22 minute new jam session video from local grunge/hardcore duo Bad Back! Uploaded to drummer Nathan Sauve's YouTube channel on August 9th (and shot the previous day), the video is somewhat unique among Bad Back jam videos in that frontman Jamie Vincent does not appear to sing at all for the duration, even though there's a microphone to his left (I wonder why?) More of a freewheeling jam that sounds at least partially improvised, it's a solid listen, but that glare through the window is a little much in terms of video clarity. Give it a look below, and don't miss Bad Back TONIGHT at The New A!



Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news items from the last while, including two more inactive band notes. As usual, these are in alphabetical order by band name:

• Local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades have been confirmed as the final opener for the Diemonds-headlined concert at The Rednecks Saloon THIS FRIDAY, as per recent updates on the Facebook event page. This is a bit surprising given that the band previously said they wouldn't play live again until their split CD release party, but they're a fitting choice, as J.D. Pearce & Tiffany Stocco opened for Diemonds with T-Rex Manning two years ago! Stay tuned for our preview of this show later this week!
• Frightlight alum & ex-Fist Fighting Stephen Hawking frontman Jeff DeRose is looking for a drummer for his new "rock/punk/metal" band, as per his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post on Friday. Despite his own drumming background, he's on bass for this band alongside musicians named Mike and Ryan, last names to be confirmed (possibly Ryan McLaughlin from F.F.S.H.?) If you're interested in trying out, message Jeff above or at this link!
• Apologies for this being so late, but newer local grunge/punk duo The Red & Black (featuring Telephone & Address' Chris Shoust & drummer Damjan "Spider Fingerz" Binda) made their live debut at the IRN-headlined concert at The New American Pub on June 21st! Promoters never confirmed that The Red & Black were playing, or if they replaced or played alongside Telephone & Address that night. According to their Facebook page, Damjan came in from Wawa (where he's lived recently) for the show, and it apparently went well despite the two not jamming together any time recently. Good to hear, and hopefully there's more to come!
• We have moved Sault Michigan alternative hard rock trio The Spendthrifts to our inactive links due to a year's inactivity, albeit under their original name Plastic, as they were active far longer & accomplished far more under that name. The Half Stupid successors played a number of notable local concerts after debuting in 2013, but after drummer Paul Burns moved that fall, the band only played at last summer's LemmaFest, before changing their name & falling inactive. I liked what Plastic were doing, but hopefully they turn up again, and best of luck to Zac, Matt, Aaron, and Paul in the future (also, check out Zac Crook's active solo project at this link!)
• After less than a year as the Chinese buffet restaurant Waterfront Legend, the former Docks Riverfront Grill at 89 Foster Drive has change themes once again, and is now The River Cookhouse with a more general menu, though there are plans to bring back the Chinese buffet as a weekend attraction. This new SooToday article on the changes notes that the nightclub area formerly known as Club Current (or Club 89) will now be used as a hall for event hosting like weddings and banquets, which would presumably end concert bookings there if that goes through. Disappointing, but hopefully the new focus does well for them!.
• We've also moved Sault Michigan hardcore band When All Fell Silent to our inactive links, as they haven't posted an update since last summer's name change, after previously going as Angelic Genocide, The Eleventh Hour, Changing You For Better Days, and One Hour Till Dawn at varying points (we'll list them as The Eleventh Hour, which they were the most active under.) Active since 2012, this band has ambitious plans for albums & shows, but like most young extreme Sault Michigan metal bands of recent years, they sadly weren't able to get far off the ground. Best of luck to Sean, Josh, the Josephs, and other former members in the future!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for much more news and updates in the coming days! Thanks everyone!