Every so often, I'll re-evaluate what bands do/don't fit our criteria for full coverage on the SMS, hence why bands like Stiffler's Mom, Havadder, The Crossed, and RedD Monkey weren't instantly covered upon our/their inception. Today's post is devoted to one such instance on the classic/hard rock cover spectrum that I've been thinking about adding for a while now, and with concerts starting to ramp up in bookings, let's finally give them more of the coverage they deserve (and expect LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!) To cap things off, we have a new video of a familiar local guitarist in a somewhat unlikely setting, so here's what you should know!
Today's belated addition is veteran local classic/hard rock quartet Obsession, who have been a mainstay of the live circuit since debuting back in 2005! Their current lineup has been intact since 2017, and it features ex-Patches/Domina singer Valerie Powley, former That's Chester/Agave Blue guitarist Gabe Tessaro, ex-Shades of Blue/Rumours bassist/vocalist Jim Michaud (the only remaining original member), and ex-Whiskey River/Redline drummer Steve Porco. Surviving public details on the band's first decade are in short supply nowadays, partly due to their long-time Facebook group being taken down, but former band members at least include singer Lorrie Bolduc (Lorrie Lynn & The Sinners), guitarist Alex Trecroce, and drummer Rich Trevisanut (Bud Shamble). Readers may primarily be familiar from Obsession's ample appearances at nightclubs on weekends, but they have played at multiple major festivals and community events as well!
Notably, Obsession have played at Rotaryfest eleven times, a mark that only three other bands have topped since 2001, with Obsession rocking the main stage each year since 2008 except 2012, 2018, and (obviously) 2020. Their website features lots of band photos, individual member biographies, links to many videos of them live (even a Facebook video interview with SaultOnline's Andy Martens), and an extensive setlist of their covers, which include many heavier cuts from the likes of AC/DC, Joan Jett, Poison, Trooper, The Black Crowes, and numerous other bands (expect Janis Joplin covers too, which goes without saying given Valerie's vocal talents!) In a change of pace from some of their classic rock cover cohorts, Obsession list concert dates on their website's schedule through June.... of2023, so when can you see Valerie, Gabe, Jim, and Steve live next?
Their next advertised gig is at Shooters Downstairs Lounge on Saturday, May 7th at 8:00 PM, followed by appearances in The Esquire Club's Saturday matinee series on May 28th & June 11th, both being 3:00 PM affairs (they just played there yesterday too, FYI). Their next scheduled non-private gigs after that are way ahead in the timeline, as Obsession are booked at The Esquire Club almost monthly from October through next summer, notably all currently scheduled as full weekend sets with 9:30 PM start times, pandemic willing, of course. While I'll hold on listing 2023 gigs in our calendar for now, Obsession are booked at the Second Line East nightclub on October 28th & 29th and then on December 16th & 17th. All of the above shows have no announced cover charges, and all are 19+, but keep an eye out for all ages festival appearances this summer.
While I can't speak for Lorrie-era Obsession, their work with Valerie has consistently been entertaining and impressive, with strong musicianship, an easy rapport with live audiences, and diverse setlist that will appeal to hard rock fans! Plus, having a female lead singer helps them stand out, let alone with Valerie's impressive singing abilities, so don't bypass them for quality live music if you get the chance! See and hear much more from Obsession above, including via their Facebook page & YouTube channel, where this video comes from, featuring them and frequent Rotaryfest guest guitarist Dan Belanger covering Chuck Berry's "Maybellene" last July!
Finally for today, here's a surprise video of a familiar local guitarist in action in a more professional setting than you may expect! As you may know, former Jack Spades/Stegadeth guitarist Tiffany Stocco moved to the Sudbury area in 2019, and while I don't normally discuss musicians' day jobs unless it directly comes up in their interviews or musical career, it does in this case. Tiffany currently works at the Long & McQuade music store in Sudbury, who had the chain before the Northland/Thomas Walls merger ever happened in the Soo, and the Sudbury branch recently began a "Staff Licks" video series on their Facebook page, featuring short clips of employees playing music in the store proper to show off in-stock gear and their own talents,. This video has Tiffany covering the riff for Black Sabbath's "Sweet Leaf" on (fittingly) a Tony Iommi Signature "Monkey" SG Special guitar, before busting out a much faster original riff of her own.
It's a short clip, and not framed ideally for the sake of her performance, but you get a nice sampling of Tiffany's guitar skill and the tone of this guitar, so the video serves a dual purpose! Give it a watch below, and hopefully we hear more music from Tiffany soon!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!
To end a quieter but eventful month, here's a new news post that mostly takes us to the Sault Michigan area for recent news, positive and negative alike. Here's what you should know!
Hopes of more indoor concerts taking place in Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula in the near term have taken a hit, as Governor Gretchen Whitmer has signed executive orders that will limit indoor gatherings to 10 or fewer people in the state as of today, including in the U.P. and Northern Michigan regions. As well, nightclubs and bars in the state are now restricted from indoor service if they earn 70% or more of their income from alcohol sales. Read more on the executive orders at this link or your preferred state news services. Obviously, this is a step backwards, but if you've been following local or Detroit news as of late, you will know that COVID-19 cases are rising in Michigan, so this is to try and slow the spread of the virus once again. Noting that this is the SMS, I won't comment further on the non-musical aspects of the pandemic, other than to remind everyone to stay safe, wear your face masks, and use common sense out there.
Given how the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the local concert calendar, this news won't affect too much in the way of announced hard rock concerts, but we can confirm that the planned Spun-headlined
concerts at The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino next weekend have been cancelled, as per their their Facebook event page. Publically, a reason wasn't given for the cancellations, but I do know that they were called off before Governor Whitmer's announcement, as they had announced on Sunday that they would be playing an outdoor benefit gig in
northern Wisconsin next weekend. Also, note that the Marquette hard rock quartet weren't prior Kewadin regulars, but hopefully Spun come back when the
time is right! As of this writing, Kewadin's entertainment page still says they will "tentatively" resume their live concert schedule next month.
Lastly, what does this mean for Tarnished's planned Rock The Block sequel in the Soo next month? A 10 person limit for social gatherings would theoretically wipe out any indoor crowd, but assuming they were planning to host it at Crooked Music again, would they try and chance it, given that stores are not affected by the executive order? Tarnished have not posted on their Facebook page since before their EP release, but if they confirm a cancellation, postponement, or relocation of the event, we'll let you know. Stay tuned for more relevant updates on the COVID-19 pandemic!
Next up, let's stay in the E.U.P. for the latest from St. Ignace progressive metal band Heavy Lies The Crown's Facebook page! On July 2nd, singer Brandon West was featured in this short video plugging an upcoming interview that he and guitarist Ted Olson would be doing an interview with an Instagram page named Everythingcore. Maybe I am missing something totally obvious, but I have yet to find the posted interview, so either this page isn't the one Brandon meant, or it was yanked after it's live airing. I'll let you know if it surfaces! Five days later, the band shared this 10 minute video of them working in studio on their forthcoming full-length album, though the visuals aren't great, and not because of the vertical camera angle. It almost feels like the video is constantly buffering, and it has a tendency to pause on itself, but the music you hear sounds promising. However, embedded below is the first formal teaser clip from the sessions!
Uploaded to Brandon's YouTube channel, this is set to a parody clip of Brandon as a western movie gunslinger (randomly in what looks like a home under construction), this has a 15 second instrumental segment from their new song "Dead Teeth", which should whet fans' appetites until the full CD is on sale! Give it a watch/listen below, and stay tuned for more updates from Heavy Lies The Crown in the near future!
Finally for today, here are three assorted shorter Sault Ontario news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by business or artist name:
Over six months after announcing the big move, the local Long & McQuade music store opened in it's new location at 647 MacDonald Avenue (the former Northshore Sports & Auto site) on Monday, July 20th. As well publicized online, Northland Music and the Thomas Walls School of Music merged operations last year in order to become the local branch of the national music/lesson store chain, and now they have a bigger (if more eastern) storefront. Be sure to check out Long & McQuade to see what they have to offer!
Reggie's Place will reportedly be re-opening under new ownership in the near future, as per their Facebook page! The popular 458 Queen Street East nightclub abruptly closed in September of last year (just four months after re-opening following the 2017 fire upstairs), and while Reggie Daigle himself has sold this location, it will retain the Reggie's name, and it has a new logo designed by Destroilet's Matt Waples. There are a lot of unknowns yet, not just because of the pandemic, but will concerts remain country-centric (Soundcheck aside) when they can host them? Stay tuned!
Local metal guitarist Shane Desjardins is again looking to jam with other musicians, as per his newest posting on his Musicians Wanted Facebook group from Tuesday. Readers there and here may recall his search for musicians to jam and write with in May 2019, and you can hear his old music recordings on his YouTube channel. He has clear talent, so message Shane at this link or above for details!
That's all for this month, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!
Before we dive into this weekend's concert previews, here's a stacked local news post for your Wednesday night delectation, and it includes some assorted updates from the last while, and leading off, two big LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS for both sides of the border! Here's what you should know!
Los Angeles groove metal quartet Black Label Society will make their local concert debut on Friday, March 13th when they headline at The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino! Fronted by long-time Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde, B.L.S. have forged a loyal following in the past two decades with well received songs like "Stillborn", "Parade of the Dead", "My Dying Time", and many others, and with their hard hitting, leather-clad brand of metal and Zakk's considerable guitar skill in tow, you know they'll melt many faces in the E.U.P., this coming spring! Tampa, Florida death metal legends Obituary will open in their own local debut, and they have 35 years of brutality to unleash here, including cuts from one of the best selling death metal albums of all time, 1992's "The End Complete." It's awesome to see the Tardy brothers and company on a local stage, so don't bypass their set either!
This stop on Black Label Society's North American Crusade Tour will be opened by Portland sludge/death metal quartet Lord Dying, whose own technical approach and aggressive material should provide a welcome appetizer in three months! I am unsure if there is a specific local promoter putting this on, but at press time, it's not credited to Allstar Promotions on social media. Tickets for this all ages, 7:00 PM concert run for a flat $27.50, as this is a standing room only concert without seats. They go on sale this Friday at 10:00 AM at this link, at 1-800-KEWADIN, and at the in-person box office, and visit the official Facebook event page for further details. I have had the privilege of seeing B.L.S. live in Detroit multiple times, and they are a great live band with loads of familiar originals, and with ticket prices like this, I hope this show does well so that more extreme metal hits the American side of the border down the line. Get your tickets on Friday, as this concert should sell quickly!
Next up, here's another big new show announcement for March 2020, and it's very surprising in different ways, as acclaimed Coquitlam, B.C. alternative rock musician and political activist Matthew Good will return to Sault Ontario on Thursday, March 26th at The Sault Community Theatre Center! This will be the former Matthew Good Band frontman's first local stop since his acoustic Speak Easy show here in October 2007, which had a.... mixed reception, to put it mildly. If you want to relive that story from both sides, click here, but I don't want to dredge up the ill feelings or take sides. I just hope that this concert is better received by both Matt and the audience alike! Of course, Matthew has multiple gold records in Canada from his later, more varied solo work like "Weapon" "Born Losers", and his new CD "Moving Walls", but he still plays many M.G.B. songs live, including such heavier classics as "Hello Time Bomb" & "Load Me Up". It'll be cool to see him and a full band again locally, a'la his 2005 show at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion and his prior Band gigs here, which I know went well!
Opening locally is Halifax pop musician Ria Mae, who has been gaining in prominence on the Canadian charts with singles like "Clothes Off" & "Bend", and she should provide an interesting genre contrast in March! Presented by SL Concerts, this all ages concert has a 7:30 PM start time, and tickets run for $44 plus fees and taxes. They also go on sale Friday morning, albeit at 10:45 AM, and can be bought at this link, at (705) 945-7299, and at the Station Mall's Community Theatre Box Office. In spite of the divisive back-and-forth in 2007, I'm glad to see Matthew coming back to the Soo after over 12 years, so visit the official Facebook event page for more details!
Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by business name:
The merger of Northland Music and Thomas Walls School of Music into a local branch of the Long & McQuade music store chain will take place as soon as the spring at 647 MacDonald Avenue, the former home of Northshore Sports & Auto and Bazaar & Novelty. For now, both stores remain open with lessons and Long & McQuade stock availability, before they both formally merge into the larger east end location. Sounds like a great location for the expanded operations, so click here to check out SooToday's recent coverage of the merger and "new" store!
The Rad Zone has found it's new home, as the local used record/video game/book/etc. store will move from The Wellington Square Mall in the new year to the old Foch Cleaners building at 721 Queen Street East, near Coch's Corner, as revealed in this Facebook video. A more central, downtown location without mall rent seems to make sense, and I hope Monk and company find continued success there! For now, The Rad Zone remains open at the mall, with continuing close-out sales throughout the holidays before they move, so click here for details on that front!
Apologies for the delay in this making the site, but journalist & writer Ernest Skinner left SaultOnline in February for a new gig with Wawa-News.com, and his columns (Rock Talk included) went with him to the new site. Unfortunately, SaultOnline took down all of his old articles under any banner title afterward, but he has continued anew at Wawa-News.com with even more interviews with notable metal and hard rock musicians, plus Soo Greyhounds coverage. Click here to read his recent articles and interviews there, and the Rock Talk link on the SMS is updated as such!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!
Let's tackle a new news post on this Tuesday evening, which mostly reflects some big news regarding two of Sault Ontario's three music stores, but we also have some assorted shorter news and notes, and leading off, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this month!
Local acoustic hard rock trio The Wyld Stallyns will return to The Whiskey Barrel on Gore Street for another night of "funktastic rock" on May 24th, a.k.a. next Friday! After last playing there a couple of Fridays ago (apologies for erroneous plugs of a Tuesday nighter), the Elements side project will return to the former Konoba Tapas location for another night full of fan friendly, crowd participation-encouraged rock covers, with heavy stuff sure to be on offer within! It's great to see that Christina, Rob, and Jesse's unplugged show is going over well at this new downtown venue, and hopefully this is another hit for them next weekend! As was also the case at their last two Whiskey Barrel stops, next Friday's show has a 7:00 PM start time and no announced cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and stay tuned for more show announcements from The Wyld Stallyns when they roll in!
Next up, here's some big news concerning Sault Ontario's music instrument/gear stores, starting with the big announcement yesterday that Northland Music will become the local branch of the Long & McQuade music store chain this fall! As per a news release on their Facebook page, Northland has entered into an agreement with Long & McQuade (Canada's largest musical instrument retailer), after 35 years as a locally owned and operated music store, though owner Mark Mizzi will remain as the local manager, and long-time staffer Bob Croteau will stay on as well. Northland will continue operations under that name through September before officially switching over to the Long & McQuade branding, but over the summer, more stock than ever will arrive at their 312 Queen Street East location, and they will have full access to the parent company's lines, rentals, and financing. More hiring of staff will take place as operations grow, and they are currently accepting resumes.
While things are vague on the topic, it sounds like Northland/Long & McQuade will open up in a larger location this fall, but if I read those allusions correctly, I don't know the new spot. I did notice that the old Blockbuster Video location on Pim Street was undergoing renovations, but that's purely speculation, I have no inside knowledge. Meanwhile, this news will affect one of the Soo's other active music instrument/lesson shops, as the Thomas Walls School of Music at 505 Albert Street East will apparently be merging operations with Northland into the new Long & McQuade location, after almost 60 years of independent operation locally. Thomas Walls himself will be retiring later this year, with instructor & veteran local musician Lindsay Pugh heading up the renamed Long & McQuade Music School. Like Northland, Thomas Walls will remain open in their current home through the summer, and student/lesson programs will remain intact with existing staff.
This is absolutely huge news for local musicians, as Long & McQuade will ensure a much larger selection and wider range of options than Northland or Thomas Walls could offer (as visitors of their Sudbury location may attest), and with hirings expected later this year, this should be a boon to job-seekers as well! None of this affects Case's Music directly, but if their rivals do indeed move, that could help them attract customers who prefer to shop downtown. Stay tuned for much more on the Long & McQuade transition as it comes in, and visit the above links and SooToday for more on this story!
Finally for today, here's three shorter news items from the last
while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist
name:
Local punk/metal quintet Jack Spades and (surprisingly) Shit Liver drummer Matt Baic have quietly been announced as the openers for Calgary punk quintet The River Jacks' headlining concert at The New American Pub
on June 3rd! A rare New A set by Jack Spades, this will be the second
time that guitarist Tiffany Stocco has opened for The River Jacks, after
doing so with Stegadeth in 2017. No word on what form Matt's solo set
will take on though, but will it bear more similarities to Shit Liver or
his St. Catharine's bluegrass band Dirtfight? Time will tell, but visit
the Facebook event page for more!
The third single from local/Thompson, Manitoba alt-hard rock artist Mike Haggith's upcoming CD "Bridges" was released to major music streaming/download platforms on Friday! Entitled "Come On Home", the song is a softer, more downbeat ballad, but I'll hold further comment until our likely review of "Bridges" later this year. Give "Bridges" a listen or buy on services like Spotify, Amazon Music, and iTunes in the meantime!
In a quiet lineup change for the Music 4 Kayge benefit show at The Roberta Bondar Pavilion next Saturday, new local rock band The Tilrays have replaced blues rockers Johnny & The Revelators in the 3:00 PM opening slot, as per this new poster last week. A reason for The Revelators' withdrawal wasn't announced, but hopefully nothing bad happened! I don't know much on The Tilrays sound beyond their decade range for covers, but their lineup includes ex-Stiffler's Mom bandmates Michael Davies & Jon Ferguson, which should get a number of readers' attention! See above for more details!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and updates on the site later this week! Thanks everyone!
