The complete entertainment lineup for this weekend's Poutine Feast was finally unveiled via the Sault Ste. Marie Downtown Association's Facebook page courtesy of this "Reel" on Tuesday, and as a result, we have a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, as local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard will headline day #3 of the festival outside of the Ermatinger Clergue National Historic Site THIS SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, the lineup was only announced on Tuesday, and Bone Yard didn't confirm their involvement until posting on their Facebook page about it yesterday. Perhaps they are truly a late addition, I don't know, but this comes within their previously announced Jay's Piston Broke Pub weekend gigs (previews forthcoming), so they'll be headlining downtown at 6:00 PM before heading west in time for their 9:30 PM gig there.
Hopefully this first of two Canada Day gigs goes well for Greg, Alex, and Warren on SATURDAY NIGHT! That day's other entertainment is not entirely musical, with dancers from the Northern Ontario Latin-Hispanic Association performing at 5:00 PM, not unlike what you may have seen at Multiculturalism Day yesterday. Acoustic cross-genre collective Gimiiwan & The Clouds (misspelled as "Gimmewan" in the lineup "Reel") appear to be the middle act at 3:00 PM, fresh off of their Summer Moon Festival set, while magician Ryan McFarling will wow the audience with tricks at 2:00 PM. Local folk solo musician Brian Tremblay (yes, the Face To Face concert video is coming!) will open on Saturday at 11:00 AM, which is also when the Canada Day program at the Poutine Feast begins. SATURDAY'S festivities are FREE & ALL AGES outside of the Old Stone House at 800 Bay Street until 9:00 PM.
Of course, the poutine and other food/drinks will cost (not to mention wares at the on-site vendor market), and with loads of food trucks that day and every day from Thursday-Sunday offering up many kinds of poutine for your delectation, this should be a fun way to spend your Canada Day! VIP tickets to skip the lines are available for $40 at this link if so desired. Be advised that 9&10 News is calling for a 40% chance of rain showers on SATURDAY with a high temperature of 19°. Visit the above links for more details, and here's Bone Yard live!
The other nights with hard rock bands were already announced by the bands in question, so they're not "new" to us, but the complete lineups are, so who else can you see at this year's Poutine Feast? We already knew that local funk/hard rock cover sextet The Wyld Stallyns would be headlining TOMORROW'S opening night of the festival at 6:00 PM, a nice promotion following being the Thursday curtain jerkers last year, so keep their fun and fan-friendly covers in mind! The middle act tomorrow will not be a band, rather the belly dancing troupe Jewels Of The Oasis, who take the stage at 5:00 PM. In a partial reprise of the Oktoberfest lineup last year, The Stallyns will be joined on tomorrow's bill by traditional German band Nein German Guys, who are the first scheduled entertainment act at 2:00 PM despite the Thursday program beginning at 11:00 PM. Again, attendance tomorrow is FREE & ALL AGES!
9&10 News is calling for mostly cloudy skies with a high of 21° and a 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms, so definitely keep that in mind. Clearly, the Poutine Feast organizers are easing into things this year (especially given that there are five entertainment acts on SATURDAY), but the Stallyns, the Jewels of the Oasis, and the German Guys should deliver their own distinct brands of entertainment to go along with your poutine tomorrow, and yes, The Wyld Stallyns should have a few heavier cuts! See above for more details, and here's The Wyld Stallyns live!
Friday's bill is the only one without a (known) hard rock band, and will feature new local disco tribute band The Saturday Nights (featuring Wyld Stallyns singer Christina Speers) as the 5:30 PM headliners alongside a mystery act named Aje (A.J.E.?) who I know absolutely nothing about. Their set is at 2:00 PM, implying that they're a musical act given the 3 hour block, but let us know if you can confirm who they are! Classic rock veterans Angry Joe & The Growlers will kick off day #2 at 11:00 PM, which has the same ground rules and timeframes as the day before and after. 9&10 News is calling for similar weather (50% chance of rain/storms), but with a higher peak temperature of 23° Celsius.
Finally for today's all-Poutine Feast preview post, we'll look at the closing day's program on SUNDAY, where the previously announced Handsome Sandwich will continue their upward momentum with a set full of alternative and hard rock originals from their "Deconstructed" album and beyond! I wonder which food truck makes the most handsome sandwich? The band's own promotion erroneously gave a 4:00 PM start time despite the Sunday program ending at 6:00 PM, and the schedule above confirms that they will take the stage at 2:30 PM. The all-musical openers on Sunday include a joint set from recent Northern Echoes openers Juliana Regan & Blair St. John at 1:00 PM and young local pop singer Tianna Legacy at 11:00 AM. Not heavier in style, but there's a lot of talent from both Juliana & Blair and Tianna, so don't bypass them! While things end sooner on Sunday, this is still FREE & ALL AGES (VIP passes aside).
9&10 News is calling for mostly cloudy conditions with the lowest chance of rain during the festival (20%), plus high temperatures of 21°. SMS diehards will likely only hear stuff on our radar during Handsome Sandwich's set, but everyone on Sunday has skills in their instruments and genres, so don't miss out on all of the closing day's musical entertainment! See above for more on all four days of this year's Poutine Feast, and here's Handsome Sandwich live in concert last summer!
That's all for now, but look for Canada Day weekend concert previews that don't involve poutine next! Thanks everyone!
All video post on this Tuesday evening, including some recent concert videos from both the Soo and out of town, along with an apology for a recent missed show, but let's lead off with videos from two different bands at the same major venue in recent weeks!
Chris was not in the closest seating section, but he had a good central view of the stage and fans ahead of him, which especially works to the benefit of "Amigo" with all of the clapping in time with the song mid-way through! The audio on heavier stretches can be scratchy, which is nothing new, but softer parts come through nicely, and fans of The Glorious Sons should take to all of these videos, which you can watch above & below!
Next up, here's the latest from young local hard rock quartet Raincourt, and first off, I do have to apologize for missing a concert of theirs, as they played a publically attendable concert at the aforementioned Sault Community Theatre Centre this past Wednesday! The humongous venue is explained by it being on the campus of White Pines Collegiate & Vocational School (which Raincourt's members currently attend), and White Pines has been hosting a Coffee House concert series there during the 2021-22 school year, with last week's being their semester-closing event, including a show for students only at 1:00 PM and a show open to everyone at 7:00 PM. The main attractions were The White Pines Concert Band and their Mustang Sally-esque school group The Pine Tones (who feature all of the guys from Raincourt), but other student artists performed, including Raincourt proper. I profusely apologize for missing this show, hopefully it was a huge hit!
If you missed this event, never fear, as a video of Raincourt (sans face masks!) covering The Beatles' "Come Together" was uploaded to their Facebook page on Friday. Solid cover from a nice and close angle, with Elijah showing some nice grit & swagger with his vocals and stage presence, and everyone has a strong handle on this classic rock favourite! Give it a watch below, and apologies again for missing the White Pines Coffee House show last week on here!
Note that in the song introductions, J.D. first calls the band "Jack Spades" still (old habits die hard?), but later acknowledges that they used to be "Jack Spades SSM" before relocating. This set will be very familiar for local Jack Spades fans, as nothing here wasn't seen in their local sets in 2019, only the venue and two new faces will be different. Great video quality with multiple camera angles and a nice crooked angle of the stage and front row fans, and Daniel Rodbard & Tyler Reiner compliment J.D. & Daniel nicely here and on the new Toronto clip! More videos are teased to be forthcoming, but give all of these a look above & below!
Finally, here are three videos of new local acoustic hard rock duo Short & Sweet's opening set for Parabol at Soo Blaster this past weekend! Uploaded to frontman Cory Murchison's YouTube channel yesterday, these feature him and bandmate/fellow Skeyes of Seven alum Kyle Sweet covering Breaking Benjamin's "Forget It", Slipknot's "Vermilion Pt. 2", and as embedded below, a stripped down version of his old Sense of Truth song "Anything At All". Despite some jittery camera work, the videos are nicely angled and capture Cory and Kyle in a good element with some strong vocal & guitar work, and they'd definitely be added to our links if they got a Facebook page or something! Give these a watch above & below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
As promised, let's wrap up this weekend's slate of concert previews with a Saturday night trifecta, thankfully all with advance notice! For our previews of tonight's Tym Morrison show, this weekend's Soundcheck concerts, and the now-concluded Goo Goo Dolls/Cheap Trick show, check out yesterday's post. Now, here's what you should know to wrap up an unusually busy weekend!
We'll start in Hulbert Township, Michigan, where Sault Ste. Marie hard rock trio Tarnished are advertised to return to Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast for one night only TOMORROW! I will advise that, while this show is the final advertised concert on Tarnished's summer concert schedule on Facebook, the band proper has not updated their Facebook page in over two weeks, and Hulbert House have also not promoted it publically on Facebook as of late. If we get public confirmation that this show is not taking place, we will let you know, but as it's still advertised by the band, we'll proceed as normal. While this will be Tarnished's first show since their St. Ignace Kewadin gigs two weeks ago, and their first Hulbert appearance since the AMVETS rally there last month, you may recall that they were slated to open for Gunnar & The Grizzly Boys in a cancelled outdoor show there last week.
Hopefully all's well in Tarnished's camp and at Hulbert House, as this would be a fine way to end their summer concert calendar via their hard rocking originals and covers! If past Hulbert gigs are any indication, tomorrow's show will likely be a 6:00 or 7:00 PM affair with no cover charge or age limit, but I don't know if it'd be on the outdoor stage or in the B&B proper (the weather forecast looks good for tomorrow, in any event). Of course, please follow any social distancing guidelines in place at Hulbert House too. Follow the links above for more updates, and here's Tarnished live!
Next up, let's head north to Sault Ontario, where local funk/hard rock quintet The Wyld Stallyns will headline the Entomica Insectarium's summer 2021 social fundraiser concert at The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre TOMORROW NIGHT! Subtitled "Let's 'Mis-Bee-Hive', Come Out & Jive" (and held on National Honey Bee Day), this special event will be the first Bushplane Museum concert we've covered in two years, and will serve as a fun way to support the bug lab's work in the community and local businesses in general. Attendees can expect food and drinks from established local vendors, plus kids activities, a bee costume contest so visit the official Facebook event page and Entomica's Facebook page for full details on these aspects of the show. The Wyld Stallyns will be the heaviest and final band of the night, closing things at 11:00 PM in their fourth concert of the year & with their new lineup, while veteran local entertainer Tim Murphy will precede them at 10:30 PM, performing (likely in drag) as "Ms. Beehive".
Classic rock veterans Mustang Heart will hit the stage at 9:30 PM (expect at least one heavier cut from them), while newer local country musician Jeffrey Wright will look to make an impact with a set at 8:30 PM. Dueling local jazz collectives will take the stage during the kid-friendly opening half of the fundraiser, including The Northern Jazz Ensemble at 6:45 PM, and the confusingly named Josh Norling Jazz Ensemble leading off at 5:00 PM. An unidentified DJ will also spin tune between bands. Admission is $5 for this all ages event, which should be a winner for the bug lab and attendees all around, but of course, please respect and follow any social distancing and public health guidelines at the Bushplane Museum to ensure that everyone has a safe time, especially given that this is an all ages event with children's activities. See above for more details, and here's The Wyld Stallyns live!
Lastly for known hard rock concerts in the Sault Ste. Marie area this weekend, local garage/hard rock quartet The Uncanny Valley will make their Rockstar Bar debut with a one-night-only concert TOMORROW NIGHT! This will be this rising young band's second show of the year following their Rotaryfest set last month, as well as their second public date with new bassist Brendan Bertrand. Of course, The Uncanny Valley are also the last of the four live bands announced for The Algonquin Hotel's upstairs nightclub's return to live music in August 2021, so will more be coming soon? Time will tell, but enjoy this promising quartet's classic-inspired originals tomorrow! A 8:00 PM start time is advertised for this 19+ concert, which has no announced age limit, but again, please be mindful of any and all social distancing measures (and wear your mask!) Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's The Uncanny Valley live!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post of some kind by Monday! Thanks everyone!
After publishing six posts in six days last week, things have crashed back to Earth more or less in terms of news and notes, but if you're interested in new content from the Sault Michigan-area, then today's post will be up your alley! It includes a surprise lineup departure, new videos, and a preview of a concert this weekend, so here's what you should know!
With news slowing down again in the wake of the Kewadin Casino schedule announcement and the beginning of Stage 2 in Ontario, I'm opting to post this weekend concert preview slightly early to ensure that steady content on the SMS is maintained. That said, if you're in the Eastern Upper Peninsula, look for Sault Ste. Marie hard rock trio Tarnished back at their recent favourite local venue (Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast in Hulbert Township) THIS SATURDAY NIGHT! This is a special concert tied into an American Veterans motorcycle gathering that you can get full details on via the Facebook event page, and there are events relating to that all weekend, including a bonfire and unspecified separate musicians on Friday. Hulbert House did not announce if Tarnished's show on Saturday would be outdoors or indoors, but again, if the weather's good, why not take advantage of their proper stage?
Admission is $50 for the weekend and includes camping priviliges at the Hulbert House site, and while Tarnished's concert is included with admission, inquire within if you want to ask about attending just the concert itself. I assume they'd prefer attendees be related to AMVETS or motorcycling, but you never know! Tarnished will be on at 7:00 PM on Saturday, and if you are up for a trip over the Mackinac Bridge, they will also be playing in Mackinaw City on Friday night, so click here for more details on that. See above for more information on their Hulbert gig on Saturday, and for a preview, here's some new videos of Alex, Nathan, and Josh from their set in Grand Marais this past Saturday! While not promoted much on Facebook, this outdoor show two hours west of the Soo was filmed for two 45 seconds-long videos posted on Tarnished's Facebook page, so what can you see here?
These videos show covers of Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band's "Old Time Rock & Roll", and as embedded below, Van Halen's "Ain't Talkin' Bout Love", which I chose to embed as it's both a heavier cover and it's filmed in a normal landscape orientation. Both are well done covers that put Alex's strong melodic singing to good use, and it's just a shame that the filmer wasn't closer to the stage (let alone filming vertically for the Seger cover). Give both videos a look above and below, and don't miss Tarnished in Hulbert on Saturday if you're attending the AMVETS gathering!
Next up, here's a new video from Heavy Lies The Crown guitarist Ted Olson's YouTube channel, this time of a short new instrumental original track named "Kitten Cat Shark Attack"! Well, Shark Week is coming up, perhaps this is getting an early jump on things? Despite the thumbnail, there's no kittens or sharks to be seen, it's just Ted playing a very heavy progressive metal song with his headless guitar. I'll admit, this is one of my favourite of Ted's solo tracks so far, the brutal technicality is great, and the new lighting/camera setup works to it's advantage! Give Ted's new video a watch below!
Finally, we have some surprising news out of Sault Michigan, as new local hard rock quartet Rhythm & Brews have surprisingly parted ways with bassist Chris Leask before they could even debut at The Rapids Lounge this past weekend. The band did not elaborate on their Facebook page,
but Chris revealed on his personal Facebook page that he left for
medical reasons that will impair his ability to play bass, though it is nothing life-threatening. Given the
non-public source, I won't elaborate here, but Chris has been a frequent presence in our Sault Michigan coverage with bands like Power Slug and Highway 63, and hopefully his condition
improves so he can return to the stage down the road! A new Facebook photo posted by the band from their debut weekend shows the bassist they brought in at least for those gigs, and I may be wrong on this, but he looks like Brett Blackwood, who played in guitarist Chris Hubbard's prior hard rock band 415E from 2019-2020.
In any event, Rhythm & Brews have not publically confirmed a permanent replacement for Chris, let alone acknowledged his departure in writing, but they don't have any other Kewadin Casino gigs advertised in 2021, so there may not necessarily be a rush either. We'll keep you posted when more rolls in from Rhythm & Brews' camp, but that's all for today, and stay tuned for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile next, barring any late notice concert announcements! Thanks everyone!
We have a bounty of big updates and show announcements ahead, so let's start cutting some of that down with today's post, which is devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS in Sault Michigan and St. Ignace! Yes, concerts are good to go in The Great Lakes State, and it's definitely showing with some of the news ahead, so here's what you should know from both a prominent young hard rock band, as well as a huge touring concert later this summer!
Local hard rock trio Tarnished have announced some new regional concert dates for August! The band revealed an updated summer concert schedule on their Facebook page on Thursday, which includes new dates outside of our coverage range in Newberry yesterday and in Grand Marais on July 3rd. Oddly, neither has a listed venue, despite the Newberry gig being on two days notice and never being plugged by the band on Facebook otherwise. In terms of the new dates that are within a one hour's drive of the Soo, Tarnished will now apparently return to The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on Friday, August 6th & Saturday, August 7th, marking their second weekend engagement there in a four week span! This isn't all for Alex, Nathan, and Josh under the Kewadin umbrella, as the casino has finally announced their concert schedules at their regional lounges for the second half of 2021, as weekly live music will resume in five days!
While not yet advertised by Tarnished, The Northern Pines Lounge's official schedule confirms Tarnished's prior announcement of dates there on July 16th & 17th and August 6th-7th, but they also list Tarnished as playing Friday & Saturday nighters there on September 17th & 18th, so now fans in St. Ignace and area have six opportunities to see Tarnished live in the back half of 2021! Don't worry, Saultites, Tarnished will also make their Rapids Lounge debut at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino on Friday, November 12th & Saturday, November 13th, so while dates there are less and further away, you'll get your Soo Kewadin fix of Tarnished in time! Yes, The Rapids Lounge's official schedule is out too and booked solid through year's end. Finally for new Tarnished dates, they will return to The Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast in Hulbert Township for a one-nighter on Saturday August 21st!
Coming one week after they open for Gunnar & The Grizzly Boys there, it's not yet clear whether it'll be an outdoor gig too or indoors, but with the summer still on then, I'd be surprised if they weren't on their proper stage! Assuming it's similar to their Summer Rock Party show there, expect a 6:00 PM start time, and a cover charge or age limit wasn't announced. Meanwhile, the Kewadin dates at both locales are all 9:00 PM events with 21+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the above links for current and continuing details, and hopefully Tarnished's hard rocking sound proves to be a hit this summer!
There is a lot to get to from the Kewadin Casino lounge umbrella, but before we get back there, here's a big outdoor concert hitting the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on Thursday, August 19th, as Rockford, Illinois hard rock/power pop quartet Cheap Trick play their first local date since July 2019 when they open for Buffalo alternative rock band The Goo Goo Dolls! Of course, readers should recognize both bands, with Cheap Trick being Rock & Roll Hall of Famers off the strength of classic songs like "I Want You To Want Me", "Reach Out", and "The Flame", while The Goo Goo Dolls had steady mainstream success in the 1990s & 2000s with hits like "Name", "Iris", and "Slide", and while I personally feel that Cheap Trick are more obvious headliners, there's a nice swath of music to enjoy for many fans! Yes, this is outdoors, much like 2017's Great White/Lita Ford show there.
This concert is sponsored by Glen Arbor radio station Classic Rock: The Bear (yes, formerly heard locally on 97.9 FM), which currently simulcasts to the St. Ignace area via WWSS 95.3 out of Tuscarora Township. You can pick up The Bear in Sault Ste. Marie with the right antenna and/or location, but the St. Ignace locale and Lower Peninsula station sponsor seem like a good way for Kewadin Casino to bring back major touring bands before the Canadian border is opened. If you can't cater to and get ticket money from Sault Ontario, why not aim for rock fans in the tip of the mitt that are able to attend? A 7:00 PM start time is in effect for this concert, which has no advertised age limit, though face masks may be required to attend (check back for further details on that front.) Tickets run for $85 (first 10 rows), $75 (rows 11-30), or $50 (general admission on the lawn), and can be bought at this link, at 1-800-KEWADIN, or at the in-person box office.
I'm not a huge fan of either The Goo Goo Dolls or Cheap Trick, but both bands have a lot of hits to offer, and it's great to see Cheap Trick back in the E.U.P. for their fourth time, at least (having played the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino in 2001, 2014, and 2019), and hopefully this is a great show with great summer weather! Stay tuned for updates if they roll in, and we will have much more from Sault Michigan and the new Kewadin Casino lounge schedule later this week! Thanks everyone!
I had originally planned for a new post to go live tomorrow, but as we have LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, one on very SHORT NOTICE, let's get it up here on this Saturday morning! Those new dates make up the first half of this episode, while we'll wrap up with a newly discovered radio show that heavily discusses local metal music, so here's what you should know!
Sault Michigan hard rock trio Tarnished have announced a slate of summer concerts through mid-July, so where can you see Alex, Nathan, and Josh next? How does TODAY sound?! Tarnished will be pre-race entertainment at the Rock The Locks 5K (not 4K) race in Sault Ste. Marie, with their set slated to begin at 5:55 PM at/near the race's starting line at Brady Park on East Water Street. Obvious apologies for the short notice, Tarnished only acknowledged this date on their Facebook page yesterday, and I did not find a recent reference from the Rock The Locks organizers towards their involvement on social media. Given the setting, I wouldn't be surprised if this was an Alex/Josh acoustic set, but Tarnished weren't specific. The day of may be too late to try and newly register for the run, but click here for full details on how to attend in any fashion, and this is definitely an all ages event. Hopefully the show and run go well for all involved!
As for the other newly unveiled Tarnished dates, their next two announced shows will be outside of our coverage area, including a return to The Erickson Center For The Arts in Curtis (90 minutes west of the Soo) on June 30th, followed by a show in Mackinaw City in the Lower Peninsula on July 9th, venue unlisted. Their next truly local date will be a return to the Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast in Hulbert Township on Saturday, July 10th at 7:00 PM (cover charge and age limit not stated), though the band has not specified whether it will be indoors like their four-piece gigs from the spring, or if it will be on their outdoor stage once again. We'll let you know if the band or venue elaborates! The final new gigs will reportedly see Tarnished hit The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on Friday, July 16th & Saturday, July 17th, which seem to indicate that Kewadin is resuming concert bookings at their on-site lounges this summer!
For full disclosure, Kewadin Casino's website has not announced a live date schedule for the Rapids or Northern Pines Lounges at press time, but clearly Tarnished are confident about these bookings, or else why plug them? Assuming nothing goes awry, these would be 9:00 PM events with 21+ age limits and no cover charges. Visit the above links for more details, don't miss them TONIGHT at the Rock The Locks 5K, and here's Tarnished live!
Finally for today, let's look at an internet episode that aired on Sault Ontario internet radio station The Borderline back in April as part of station owner Adrian Vilaca's Smart As Trees podcast, entitled "Jimmie Chiverelli & A Sault Metal Story"! Given the title and some of the discussion, I just wanted to clarify that while I love the idea of the episode, I knew nothing about it until now (if I had, it wouldn't have taken me two months to cover it here!) The guest of honour is former Kalle Mattson drummer Jimmie Chiverelli, who metalheads may recognize as the original drummer for defunct local progressive/death metal band Gates of Winter (then credited as James Chiverelli), and he definitely maintained his genre love despite his later local music work! The 67 minute podcast starts with Adrian & Jimmie discussing the origin of metal in general and in the Soo, and the first played song is an early local metal example, Amethyst's song "Snakeye Strut" from their "Innocent As Hell" CD.
Next, Jimmie talks about his introduction to heavy metal music, how he learned drums, his early band experience, how Gates of Winter formed in the early 2000s (I never knew Mike Yakasovich from Northwest factored into their origin), and the earliest demo recordings that Jimmie recorded with Yak and Bryan Belleau, complete with part of "Into The Chapel" being played on air. They next talk about Gates of Winter's self-titled 2005 demo (which I still find is underrated), which notably featured programmed drums rather than his own live recordings, and Jimmie also discusses their early gigs, often at Madison's Pub and The Oddfellows Hall at that time period. After noting how he discovered new metal music in the early-mid 2000s, Jimmie discussed his first major live metal concerts in the Twin Saults, and discovering Woods of Ypres when they toured here early in their existence.
Adrian and Jimmie discuss some other contemporary local metal bands from the mid-2000s next, like Soldiers of Misfortune & Fitswitch, as well as loyalty to extreme metal subgenres, and the connection of metal to classical music, even playing Metallica's cover of "The Ecstasy of Gold". Afterwards, Jimmie talks about metal's modern trajectory and the classic throwback bands that have popped up, while also discussing other local acts like Garden of Bedlam, The Bear Hunters, and Pillory, as well as the demands of playing in a metal band, and his stockade of filmed concert footage from his tenure in Gates of Winter. The interview closes with what Jimmie's done (musically & otherwise) since leaving Kalle Mattson in 2011, and suggestions that Jimmie should host a metal show of some kind on The Borderline, before wrapping up by playing "Far Gone" from the 2005 Gates of Winter demo.
This was an entertaining listen, and Adrian gave Jimmie lots of space to offer his own personal thoughts and experiences, both as a musician and genre fan! Jimmie came across as eloquent, humble, and appreciative, and I like that the backing incidental music wasn't as loud as it can sometimes be for Sev's Cellar episodes. I wish I had knew about this episode before now, but give it a listen at the above links, especially for the early Gates of Winter insight, as that band is definitely missed around here! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next week! Thanks everyone!
We have a new news post to check out on this warm Tuesday, and while we're half focusing on videos from a recent Sault Michigan concert, let's stay in Sault Ontario to start, courtesy of a new teaser video and a newly added solo project to our full coverage! Here's what you should know!
We have a new local solo musician to add to our local band links, namely Kush Wood (real name Kristien Woodcock), an alternative/grunge musician who has actually had his solo Facebook page up and running since 2015! Apologies for the delay in finally rolling Kush Wood into our band links, of course, but let's make up for lost time! Kristien is not familiar from past local bands, but you may have first heard of him via his run of grunge and alternative-leaning unplugged videos posted to his YouTube channel through 2017 (partially uploaded when he was working in Costa Rica), plus his entry into the Stone Temple Pilots singer contest that you can still hear on Soundcloud. In March 2020, Kush Wood returned with long hair after a three year public hiatus, and has continued posting new and re-recorded videos and original singles over the past year, with many now available on digital platforms like Spotify, Bandcamp, and Apple Music.
The grunge influence is very prevalent in Kush Wood's originals, and while Kristien seems to have Scott Weiland as a vocal inspiration, his own songs are closer in spirit to "Jar of Flies"-era Alice In Chains, if more optimistic. Production can be a work in progress, especially with the obvious drum programming, but Kush Wood is on to something, and it's nice hearing a grunge-inspired solo act like this around here! Give Kush Wood a listen above, and here's his video for "Love Replace This"!
Next up, here's a very brief teaser video for something that local party metal band The Apocalypse Afterparty were recording with Shit Liver frontman Josh Penno's Spacebag Productions in March. Uploaded to drummer Amanda Stanghetta's personal Facebook page and subsequently shared publically to the band's own Facebook page, this features frontman/Amanda's husband Paul covering Saul Williams' "List of Demands (Reparations)" in a bathroom, with Josh manning a very professional camera at a close angle. No one else is playing the song proper in this 13 second clip, but given the setting, there might not be room for everyone anyway! If this is going to be a professional multi-angle video of this cover, other band members will have been shot separately, but so far, I don't believe it's out yet. We'll let you know when/if the video is released, but give Amanda's teaser clip a watch below!
Let's head to the Sault Michigan area to close, via new live videos of local hard rock trio Tarnished's "summer rock party" concert outside of Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast in nearby Hulbert Township on Saturday night! The venue's Facebook page uploaded or live-streamed five videos of Tarnished's set, which allow us to see their outdoor stage setup, which will also be used for their set opening for Gunnar & The Grizzly Boys in August. Looks professional enough to do the job, though it's placement sideways along the slope of a hill is definitely an interesting visual! As for the videos proper, two are from later in the night from a closer zoom of the stage, with Tarnished covering Seether's "Remedy" and Poison's "Every Rose Has It's Thorn". The other three are in daylight and are thankfully much longer, including covers of Kenny Wayne Shepherd's "Blue On Black" and Everlast's "What It's Like".
The other video is over 9 minutes long and captures songs from near the start of their set, including the end of frontman Alex Traynor's solo track "Life Is Made Of Lies" and covers of The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army" and Queen's "Another One Bites The Dust". This video has definite audio quality difficulties, so I'd be embedding another one here, if Hulbert House hadn't blocked external embedding of these videos, alas. Given that the two full songs in the 9 minute clip are very bass heavy, who is playing bass in Tarnished now? Alex himself (and on a five string bass, no less!) It is surprising to see him not on guitar, but if him switching instruments allows them to play live short term, go for it! Unfortunately, only the Everlast cover is on a horizontal camera angle, but the filmers do zoom in and get closer to the stage on the other clips. Performance-wise, Tarnished are on their game!
Despite not having a high turnout (remember, the band didn't plug this date until Wednesday, and Hulbert is an hour's drive west), they're in good spirits and clearly happy to be back on an E.U.P. stage for the first time since March! And again, this will be a preview of what to expect when they play Hulbert House's outdoor stage again in August, pandemic willing. Give these videos a look via the links above, and that's all for today, but look for our next Defunct Local Band Profile by Friday! Thanks everyone!
Well, this is a rare sight: two posts in a two day span! I wasn't planning to have anything new on the site today, but surprisingly, a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT dropped into my lap courtesy of a prominent Sault Michigan band, so I cobbled together stuff I was saving for next week to fill this post out. There are some Sault Ontario topics to get to, including a new album release and more, but we're mostly staying in the E.U.P. here via some new videos and that concert, so here's what you should know!
Local hard rock trio Tarnished will return to Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast (well, outside of it) in nearby Hulbert Township TONIGHT for a special "summer rock party" concert! Apologies for the short notice, the band only announced the event via this poster on Wednesday, but the venue had posted the Facebook event page for it over a month ago. While I'm surprised Tarnished waited until this week to plug the event, I should have caught Hulbert House's own event page before now, and I profusely apologize for that! Tarnished have played a few shows downstate in the interim, but this will be their first publically advertised local concert since March (also at Hulbert House), and this will mark their first E.U.P. date since the departure of bassist Donald Alexander. As per this low-res photo from their concert in Vandalia last week, it looks like Josh is still on drums, but I can't tell whether someone's playing bass instead of guitar or not.
As best as I can tell, Tarnished are the only band playing TONIGHT, and with no lockdown order in Michigan, why not come out to see some live hard rock, let alone outdoors! Be advised that 9&10 News is calling for isolated thunderstorms in Hulbert around 10:00 PM. TONIGHT'S all ages concert has a 6:00 PM start time, a $15 cover charge, and takes place outside of the B&B at 9920 South North Hulbert Road. Concerts, let alone outdoor ones, have been rare for obvious reasons in recent months, so if you can make the drive west, don't miss Tarnished under the stars TONIGHT, and here they are live!
Next up, defunct Sault Ontario classic metal quartet Late & Loud are back (kinda) with a new album.... kinda! While the band proper did dissolve following their two standalone reunion gigs in 2014, with members largely moving out of town at least temporarily, they obviously remained friends, as evidenced by the creation of their role playing game podcast Late & Legends last fall. I'm not super knowledged about D&D-style role playing games, but clearly the guys know their stuff and have made up a detailed fantasy world and characters to work with, and you can get links on their website towards audio and video episodes of their exploits in Renlan. Much to my surprise, the podcast has led to the release of a "new" album in April entitled "Late & Legends 1" that is on sale for $5 on the Late & Loud Bandcamp page, marking their first album since 2013's "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal" reissue!
Honestly, this is more of a score than a proper album, compiling backing music heard in the podcast proper, so expect something more along the lines of SweetKenny's late-period albums than a true sequel to "Heavy Rockin' Hard Metal". Still, it does feature 12 new instrumental compositions, six each by guitarists Brendan Christie & Jonathan Tiberi, though I don't know if Benn or Josh contributed to the recording sessions. As this is technically a new Late & Loud album, it is eligible for a review on the SMS (perhaps this month?!), but in any event, give the podcast and/or album a listen, watch the pilot below, and Late & Loud are surprisingly back in our active band links!
Also today, here's another new original song from Heavy Lies The Crown guitarist Ted Olson's YouTube channel on Tuesday! Entitled "Devoured", this is a collaboration that the St. Ignace product made with Darien Deilami, an Oklahoma-based metal vocalist from the band Xeropthalmia (among others). Given the long distance, it's surprising that the final product is only 73 seconds, but it's a brutal death metal track while it lasts, and Darien's brutal vocals fit very well (there's even a lyric track on the video if you want to try and sing along!) Give "Devoured" a listen for yourselves below!
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:
The Buckcherry-headlined concert at Soo Blaster in Sault Ontario has been rescheduled once again, this time to Tuesday, October 19th, as per a quiet update to the Facebook event page. Organizers and bands haven't made a massive deal of the new date yet, perhaps due to the uncertainty on the border and if normal concerts will have the go-ahead in the province by then, but optimistically, I have listed the new date on the site. Fingers crossed that things will be more opened up by the fall! If you do want tickets for the new date, or to inquire about refunds, click here.
St. Ignace, Michigan progressive metal band Heavy Lies The Crown teased on their Facebook page last week that they are in "talks of a music video for a new song that has never been heard yet", but followed that up a day later by apologizing for not posting lately (despite the previous day's post), saying that "things have happened recently that has changed our route a little." Nothing too detailed has followed since, just vague teasers, but hopefully all is well in their camp!
The rescheduled Queen: It's A Kinda Magic tribute concert at the Sault Community Theatre Centre in Sault Ontario did not take place on Wednesday for obvious reasons, but it has been rescheduled once again, as their website's tour schedule now lists it as taking place on Sunday, May 22nd, 2022. Surely, we won't have to worry about lockdowns and social distancing by next spring.... right?! Again, fingers crossed, and the new date is listed on the site! Yes, tickets are on sale at this link.
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site next week! Thanks everyone!
As promised, here's a bunch of LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for your Thursday night reading, now that concerts on both sides of the border have the go-ahead in a limited basis once again! Leading off are a pair of SHORT NOTICE gigs for the weekend ahead, so here's what you should know!
Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will play their first public concerts of 2021 TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT when they return to Reggie's Place on Queen Street East! Apologies for the short notice, these dates were only announced via their Facebook event page on Saturday. One of the few heavier local bands to play live dates with pandemic restrictions, you may recall seeing Terry, Cameron, Paul, and Glen at both Reggie's branches last fall (most recently at Reggie's West in December), so this looks like Soundcheck are picking up where they left off now that concerts can take place again, even in this form. If you're up for some hard and classic rock hits, and likely country cuts given the locale, head to the downtown Reggie's TOMORROW & SATURDAY! These are 19+ events with no cover charges and early start times of 8:00 PM, as venues do have to close earlier right now.
Of course, Reggie's and other local concert venues that are choosing to host bands will be subject to similar social distancing limitations as they had last fall, so expect capacity limits, spaced out seating, early closing times, and mask requirements where stated. If you can brave all that, Soundcheck will await TOMORROW & SATURDAY! See above for more details, and here's Soundcheck in action live at Reggie's West last year!
Next up, Sault Michigan hard rock band Tarnished (minus Nathan) will make their Hulbert Township debut on Saturday, March 13th when Alex Traynor & Josh Fair bring their two-man acoustic show to... The Hulbert House Bed & Breakfast?! This is the first show we've covered in Hulbert (an hour west of the Soo) since Project 906's pre-pandemic gigs at Hulbert Happy Hour, and while the venue is definitely atypical of where you'd normally see Tarnished play, so was Biggby Coffee before their weekly series there! The Hulbert House (at 9920 South North Hulbert Road) has hosted sparing live concerts that they have documented on their Facebook page, and hopefully Alex & Josh deliver a fun set for gathered fans in a couple of weeks A 9:00 PM start time is in effect for this concert, which has no cover charge, and while this doesn't strike me as a 21+ event, you may want to enquire within.
And it goes without saying, please respect The Hulbert House's social distancing regulations, whatever they happen to be come March 13th, to keep yourself and everyone else safe. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for much more from Tarnished soon!
Also, let's head back to Sault Ontario, as local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will return to the aforementioned Reggie's Place for his second announced solo concert of 2021 on Sunday, March 21st as part of their Sunday matinee series! Tym has announced more dates for there on his personal Facebook page, but we'll hold off on those until they receive a public confirmation. Next month's gig will be Tym's first solo date since rocking Reggie's Place this past Sunday, and while the early timeslot isn't normal for him, the Sunday matinee timeslot is par for the course at Reggie's. Expect a 19+ age limit, 3:00 PM start time, no cover, and very similar social distancing measures unless things appreciably improve in the next three weeks. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page, and stay tuned for more from Tym when publicized!
Finally, local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek will end their own pandemic-induced break when they return to Reggie's West (the former Roosevelt Hotel) for gigs on Friday, March 26th & Saturday, March 27th! Surprising that they're waiting so long to play following the resumption of limited concerts, but a post on their Facebook page from the 14th did note that bassist Robin "Bones" Lee was injured, albeit still rehearsing. These will be Fort Creek's first concerts since their Christmas Cheer fundraisers at the Reggievelt back in November, and after a four month layoff, hopefully they shake off the rust and deliver some more fan favourite rock and roll for the crowd, however limited it may be, next month! The band is also planning to give away some merchandise over this weekend, so if you want some of the swag they've been promoting on Facebook, there you go!
Similarly to the above downtown Reggie's shows, Fort Creek's west end Reggie's dates are both 19+ affairs with no announced cover charges, and the start time is currently advertised as 7:30 PM. Once again, pandemic restrictions are fluid and could change if things improve in the coming weeks, but regardless, please follow all of the venue's restrictions and capacity limits to ensure a safe environment for the band, staff, and fellow patrons alike. Visit the above links for more details, and stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!
As promised, here is our third of a now-confirmed four weekend concert preview posts on this busy Rotaryfest weekend! Remember, check out our second post from yesterday for previews of Rotaryfest's Stage 1. Today, we're spotlighting most of the other hard rock and punk shows this weekend, but Re:Born's Rockstar Bar show tomorrow night and their Loud & Proud show for Sault Pridefest will be in our second post later today! I'm still waiting for fuller information on the Loud & Proud lineup anyway, but we'll make due if necessary. Now, here's what you should know for most of the rest of the weekend, starting with a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!
We already covered his Downtown Street Party set in yesterday's previews, but fans of his should know by now that this isn't all for Tym Morrison this weekend. The prolific local hard rock solo musician will continue his regular weekly matinee gigs at Gliss Restaurant on Spring Street unabated TONIGHT & TOMORROW, but in a new confirmation, Tym will also be playing a special matinee concert THIS AFTERNOON at... The Old Stone House?! Apologies for the short notice on that gig, Tym only announced it via this Facebook event page yesterday, oddly created through his old band Caveman Morrison's Facebook page. A concert like this at the Ermatinger Clergue National Historic Site at 800 Bay Street may seem very atypical, but Tym did play a (publically unannounced) show there on Canada Day. Both The Old Stone House and Tym himself have not elaborated on if there is a special occasion to warrant a live musician TODAY, but it could be just as simple as tying in the site with Rotaryfest activities downtown.
Of course, Tym's regular Gliss shows should provide more solid dinner-time entertainment if you're up for more of his standard schedule tomorrow and/or Saturday evening! Those shows are at 6:00 PM as usual, but the Old Stone House gig TODAY has a special early start time of 3:00 PM running until before 6:00 PM. As best as I can tell, these are free and all ages shows, but mind the locales. Click here and above for more details, and here's Tym live!
Next up, we'll continue our previews by heading south to Sault Michigan, where local classic/hard rock cover quintet Highway 63 will return for concerts TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT at The Rapids Lounge at the Soo's Kewadin Casino branch! Note that these shows had not been newly promoted by Highway 63 themselves on their Facebook page at press time, but they are listed on Kewadin's entertainment page, so we'll treat them as on unless otherwise stated. While we've seen the new Highway 63 lineup (now featuring Russell Mayer on drums) on two separate weekends in St. Ignace since their relaunch, this will be Highway 63's first concert weekend in Sault Ste. Marie proper with their current lineup. If you're up for lots of hard rocking classic hits from this union of Mamas Boys and Jager alumni, why not come down to The Rapids Lounge this weekend? These are 21+ gigs with 9:00 PM start times and no cover. See above for more details, and here's Highway 63 live!
Finally for this preview post, let's head back to Sault Ontario, where Rotaryfest's original-focused Stage 2 will return for it's fourteenth annual installment TOMORROW! For a fifth straight year, the Second Stage will be on the outdoor stage adjacent to the Art Gallery of Algoma near the Clergue Park home base, but unlike last year's expanded 3 day lineup, everything's condensed to Saturday only again. Presented by SooToday, this year's Stage 2 lineup features 8 original acts, including 5 debuting at the festival, so fans looking for new blood will get it on both stages this year! Your 8:00 PM headliners are local indie rock quartet K.I.C.K. in their third official Stage 2 set, and second headlining appearance here. The Keep It Cool Kids should be riding high off of their recent post-reunion momentum, so don't miss out! That said, the only punk or heavier act this year is 7:00 PM co-headliners Northwest, who'll bring their indie/punk attack back for a second Stage 2 go-around.
After missing last year, it's great to see Wayne, the Mikes, Greg, and Marc back with more of their up-tempo punk originals, so don't miss this increasingly rare set tomorrow evening! Ottawa folk musician Jack Pine (last seen locally at 2018's Northern Vibe Festival) will return to the Soo with a 5:30 PM set, making him just the second out of town act to play Stage 2 in the "Redirected" era. Jazz trio The Peach Thieves (featuring a number of metal/hard rock veterans) will make their festival debut at 4:30 PM, while folk/pop musician Hannah Lindsay will play at 3:30 PM, making her the only returning act from Stage 2 last year. This time, she will have Vol. bassist Shane Storozuk and Electric Church drummer Beau Whitfield backing her up, so keep them in mind as well. Folk/country duo The Crossroad Magdalenes will make their Stage 2 debut at 2:30 PM, replacing Man Feelings due to fire fighting commitments out of town for frontman Tyler Willson (good luck out there!)
Finally, the opening acts tomorrow are two more Stage 2 newcomers, namely alt-pop musician Jillian Katzenback (in her CD release show, even) at 1:30 PM, with DJ Seith's hip hop project Planet Rock leading off with a short set at 1:00 PM. Great lineup for fans of modern indie and alternative music especially, with a dash of punk late as well, so don't miss out on all of the Second Stage action tomorrow! As usual, this is FREE & ALL AGES. Visit the above links for much more details, and for a preview, here's Northwest live!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Re:Born concert previews (Loud & Proud included) later today! Thanks everyone!
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