LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Tym Morrison) & This Weekend's Hard Rock & Punk Concert Previews!!

November is here, so let's kick off this new month with our first weekend concert previews for it! There's a fair amount of live hard rock and punk action this weekend, including a couple of touring bands from out east, but first, here's some LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, some on SHORT NOTICE!

With another month upon us, let's add former Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison's latest solo concerts at Gliss Steak & Seafood to our concert listings, including stops at the Quality Inn's house restaurant TONIGHT, TOMORROW, and SATURDAY, followed by expected gigs on November 9th-11th, 16th-18th, 23rd-25th, and 30th-December 2nd! Apologies for the short notice on this weekend's shows, we again waited for Facebook confirmation before calling them, which came earlier this week on their Facebook event page. With increased Mark's gigs also on his schedule, Tym's keeping very busy with acoustic matinee gigs at local restaurants, and with his extensive setlist and long-standing talent, fans will have lots of chances to see Tym live this month, so keep his November Gliss gigs in mind! We will touch on the rest of Tym's December gigs next month, as is the case when his Gliss schedule straddles two months on one weekend.

As usual for Tym's long term run at Gliss, expect 6:00 PM start times TONIGHT, TOMORROW, SATURDAY, and through December 2nd, and while these shows do not have stated cover charges or age limits, remember that this is a restaurant. Check the above links for details, and here's Tym live!

Next up, we'll move to previously announced concerts, starting with the local debut of Montreal alternative metal quartet Special Ops TOMORROW NIGHT when they rock The Rockstar Bar! Featuring a catchy, radio friendly, but metal-injected sound that should appeal to many fans, Special Ops are touring in support of their new EP "Baby Take It All", so give them a listen and consider coming out as their tour run winds down! Local indie/hard rock quartet Vol. will open in their first non-acoustic show with new keyboardist Mikaela Murtonen, so if you're curious to hear how she sounds with the guys, head down to The Rockstar Bar tomorrow to find out! Original plans called for alt-punk quartet A Dire Setback and then death metal standouts The Bear Hunters to fill the third band slot, but both have dropped out of this show, with Vol. frontman Steve Edwards citing "unforeseen circumstances" for The Bear Hunters' exit on the Facebook event page. Hopefully nothing bad happened!

As for A Dire Setback, there have been rumblings of a recent lineup change that may have contributed to their withdrawal, but the band themselves have not formally announced anything at press time. In any event, Steve is looking for a replacement band on short notice for tomorrow night, so message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post on Tuesday if you're interested in playing! A $10 cover charge is in effect for this 19+ concert, which goes down tomorrow at 9:30 PM. Check the above links for more details, and here's Special Ops live!



In a brief detour to the Upper Peninsula, fans can check out Kinross, Michigan classic/hard rock trio Banned live at The Northern Pines Lounge at the Kewadin Shores Casino in St. Ignace TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! These shows come just one week following their short notice St. Ignace gigs last week, so if you couldn't make it to those, at least these had lots of advance word! As of this writing, these are also Banned's last advertised Northern Pines Lounge shows of 2017, with only a Soo Kewadin stop in December also scheduled, so keep tabs on their Facebook page for word on potential shows elsewhere. Alex, Wayne, and Don should have another fine weekend of classic and hard rock covers in store for fans, so don't miss out this weekend at 9:00 PM both nights! These are both 21+ shows with no announced cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and here's Banned live!



Finally for this weekend's currently announced metal, hard rock, and/or punk concerts, we'll head back to Sault Ontario for the local debut of St. John's, Newfoundland post-punk quartet Incredible Woman THIS SATURDAY NIGHT at LopLops Lounge! An early stop on their Canadian tour this month, this indie-tinged noise rock outfit will bring an intriguing blend of punk to LopLops on Saturday night, in what should be a fun concert to help kick off the month, so don't miss this one if you can help it! As of this writing, a potential local opening band has not been announced. A 9:00 PM start time is likely for this 19+ concert, which likely has a $5 cover charge, as is usually the case for this venue. Visit the Facebook event page for more details, and here's Incredible Woman live!



That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Incredible Woman), The Faps Concert Preview, And Much More!!

Here's another news post for your Saturday morning reading, so what's contained in this one? A few assorted recent notes, some new videos, and a special Monday night concert preview, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for early next month!

St. John's, Newfoundland post-punk quartet Incredible Woman will make their local concert debut on Saturday, November 4th when they headline at LopLops Lounge! A unique band whose sound ranges from aggressive noise punk to indie and new-wave inspired melodies, these guys should deliver a fun set at LopLops in two weeks, in the second show of their Canadian tour next month, so keep this one mind! No opening bands have been announced at press time, and it's unclear if any will be added. A 9:00 PM start time is in effect for Incredible Woman's local stop early next month, you must be 19 or older to attend, and a $5 cover charge is likely. This should be a solid concert for punk fans to take in, and is it wrong that I detect a Smiths influence on some of their originals? Don't miss out on all of the action as Incredible Woman hits LopLops on November 4th, and stay tuned for potential updates on this concert if they roll in!

Next up, here's our preview of a special post-weekend concert taking place THIS MONDAY NIGHT, as Saskatoon noise/punk duo The Faps will return to our area for a headlining concert at The New American Pub! An unusually quick encore, this show comes just under two weeks after Skyler & Blair opened for K-Man & The 45s here, but this will mark their first local headlining date since their 2014 stop at The New A. Whether you saw The Faps here before or not, they're worth a listen for a blast of minimalist noise, garage, math, and punk intensity, so don't bypass them on Monday if you can help it! Opening bands were quietly confirmed for this concert just over a week ago, and they will include extreme death metal quartet Winkstinger and Destroilet co-lead singer Brenton Ellis' Slumshine project, though the latter still has no public hints as to genre and sound yet online. Come out to The New A on Monday to hear Slumshine for yourself, plus some of Winkstinger's brutal original onslaught for good measure!

Promoted by Six, Two, Oh. (who also put on The Faps' two prior local gigs),  this 19+ concert has an early start time of 8:00 PM due to the Monday scheduling, and while the cover charge is listed at $5, a "pay what you can" model is also being advertised. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details on this stop on The Faps' Good Tour, and here they are live!



Also today, here's the latest from local hard rock band Halfway Loaded, who we have reverted to that name in our band links, as their announced name change to The Twin City Saints has had no public follow-through. If the name does publically change in the future to that or another name, we'll switch it back! After taking September off from public postings on their Facebook page, Halfway Loaded resurfaced with two new videos last week courtesy of guitarist Shane Biron, including this 10 second clip of him playing a pentatonic riff (it's really solid, albeit short!), but embedded below is a longer black & white video of him covering  Bon Jovi's "Wanted Dead or Alive". Shane and/or the band are "thinking of giving this one a go", and while I'm not a Bon Jovi fan, he plays this one well and with a good tone, even in monochrome! Give Shane's new videos a look above & below, and stay tuned for more from Halfway Loaded when it rolls in!


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

• Bear Hunters guitarist Mitch Sirie is looking for production companies or people that can press physical CDs for smaller or local bands, preferably ones in the Sault Ste. Marie area. While one presumes this search is meant for The Bear Hunters' sophomore album "The Dead Testament', Mitch wasn't specific in the posting. If you want to help, message Mitch at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from Wednesday!
• In another Musicians Wanted group posting from Thursday, Obsession drummer Steve Porco  noted that he's looking for one or two guitarists (preferably one with vocal ability) for a new acoustic band that he's working on, with acts like Bob Seger, Collective Soul, and Kiss cited for covers. Steve has a female lead singer, bassist, and drummer already enlisted, and he doesn't want someone with an ego. No word on if this is an Obsession side project or entirely separate, but if you're interested, message Steve at this link!
• Today's ninth annual Soo Zombie Walk does not appear to be featuring music as a main component for the first time since year #1. While live music of some kind will take place at The Pita Pit mid-walk, the Facebook event page no longer lists music in the pre-walk activities, there's no advertised afterparty again, and the Pita Pit performer(s) have not been announced publically. Disappointing, but hopefully the walk is a hit as usual, and that the zombies get their fill of brains! For what it's worth, Sykotyk Rampage (who played the last 6 Zombie Walks) curiously haven't made a public statement since December of last year.

That's all for today, but stay tuned for much more on The Sault Metal Scene over the coming days! Thanks everyone!