Sault Michigan Hard Rock Concert Video Showcase!!

Let's tackle some recent videos from bands from or playing in Sault Michigan in today's post, and we'll start with long awaited public videos from the Night Ranger-headlined concert at The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino on October 3rd! In the immediate aftermath, videos weren't quick to surface online, but the ever-prolific Christopher Paci was in attendance for this one, and he finally uploaded his videos from the show to his extensive YouTube channel on Friday. No word why these took a month (let alone if he was across for the Trixter show), but better late than never! Chris filmed twelve videos at the show, nine coming from the headlining San Francisco hair metal quintet's set, where they played "(You Can Still) Rock In America", "Sentimental Street", "The Secret Of My Success", a cover of Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train", their own self-titled song, a cover of bassist Jack Blades' old band Damn Yankees' "High Enough", ...

..."When You Close Your Eyes", "Don't Tell Me You Love Me", and as embedded below, "Sister Christian". While definitely not in the center section and filming from a sharp vantage point, Chris is by no means far from the action, and he zooms in well to capture Night Ranger's return to the Soo! This version of their biggest hit is extended to 8+ minutes, and while the vocals are a little quavery at points (the heavier songs from this show come across better), fans are definitely into it! Note that drummer Kelly Keagy plays live with his kit sideways, so you can see him actually drumming from a straight-on angle (not unlike Stryper). Good stuff, so check out Night Ranger's new Kewadin videos above & below!

Next up, Chris also filmed three videos of opening Santa Monica glam rock duo Nelson, who performed acoustic sets on this tour. Matthew & Gunnar were filmed at the Soo Kewadin playing "After The Rain", "(Can't Live Without Your) Love & Affection", and as embedded below, "Two Heads Are Better Than One" (which they co-wrote for Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure but was credited to the band name Power Tool). A hard rock band touring in acoustic mode only isn't unheard of for The Dreammaker's Theatre (i.e. Godsmack, Mr. Big), and while there will be a bit of an adjustment, their vocals have held up well over the years, and a reserved performance is well captured for audio with this camera, so give these a watch also!

Let's shift focus to local bands for this post's second half, starting with newly publicized videos from last month's third annual Lake Superior State University Battle of the Bands! When I recapped the battle results on the site, I noted that local hard rock/punk band About:Blank's short-handed acoustic set has a video filmed that was uploaded to personal Facebook accounts, and was thusly not shared here because of that. Well, the guys uploaded it (and two more videos) to their Facebook page last week! The video that I knew was uploaded privately saw Parker & Kade (no Nathan) playing their new original "Unfazed", and it is embedded below, but the two other videos saw them play "Infest My Mind" and "Run & Hide". Parker & Kade are really dwarfed as an unplugged duo on the cavernous Arts Center stage, so much so that I won't even complain that these videos are vertical, because everything's in frame!

Effectively, the lack of electric instruments and Nathan made this a reprise of Parker's solo set from last year's battle, just now with percussion, but the songs on offer here are promising, and I do like the grungier ambiance to "Unfazed" that would be well suited to their full presentation. Check everything out above & below, and stay tuned for more from About:Blank!

If you were hoping to see Nathan Webber, good news, as we're closing with videos of his hard rock cover band Exit 808's "Fright Night On The Bay" post-Halloween concert at The Back Bay Grill & Games at Bay Mills Resort & Casino in Brimley, with eleven videos from that gig now uploaded to guest singer Molly Escherich's Facebook page! Most have Molly taking over for Amy Beach on vocals, with her and Dillion Semasky splitting or alternating vocals on covers of Eminem & Rihanna's "The Monster", Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O Mine" (also filmed by a second camera), AC/DC's "TNT", Alice In Chains' "Man In The Box" (which was also filmed twice), Volbeat's "A Monster's Hand", Green Day's "Brain Stew", and Lit's "My Own Worst Enemy". Molly & Amy joined forces to cover Joan Jett & The Blackhearts' "I Love Rock & Roll" and Journey's "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)".

Lineup wise, new addition Brad Pringle plays bass on all of these songs aside from "T.N.T.", which had Blaze Beairl on the four strings (I'm to assume he played more often on songs that Molly wasn't singing on). As well, "The Monster" had a costumed guest guitarist in place of Nathan, who waved glowsticks and rocked out from the audience. No definitive word on who he was, but Exit 808 did tease that Project 906's Joe Jenkins would be a guest performer too on this night. Because Dillion's mad scientist costume was still on at that point, I'll embed the Lit cover here, but there's a lot of fun performances on offer, and Molly's developing vocal talents and stage presence are always welcomed! Give these a watch above & below!

That's all for not, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site shortly! 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!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Night Ranger) & Recent Videos & Updates From Sault Michigan!

Kicking off our busiest week of the year is an all-Sault Michigan news post, including an inactive band note, new videos, and more, but leading off, here's a big LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for this fall!

San Francisco hair metal/hard rock quintet Night Ranger will return to Sault Michigan for a headlining concert on Friday, October 3rd at The Dreammakers Theater at the local Kewadin Casino! Hair Scare diehards and 1980s rock fans will have last seen Night Ranger way back in September 2013, and in the 12 years since, they have released three new albums and replaced guitarist Joel Hoekstra with Keri Kelli. Of course, their classic hit singles like "Sister Christian", "Don't Tell Me You Love Me", and "Sentimental Street" remain staples of their setlist, and here's hoping they deliver another entertaining night of rock in three months! Your openers are Santa Monica glam rock duo Nelson (best known for their hits "(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection"  & "After The Rain") in their apparent local debut, but their set in October will be unplugged, so keep that angle in mind in terms of how their classic material will sound this fall!

And yes, don't forget that the Nelson twins are the sons of Ricky Nelson and the grandsons of Ozzie & Harriet Nelson (quite a lineage!). Presented by Rock 101, this all ages concert has an 8:00 PM start time, and admission will start at $60 (much higher than in 2013, but there's been 12 years of inflation since). Public tickets go on sale on Friday, so click here for details on that end, including on VIP packages and meet & greets. Ticket offers will also be made on air on Rock 101 for early birds tuning in, and you can also get tickets from Friday onward at 1-800-KEWADIN or at the in-person box office. This should be another retro rock blast for you hair metal lovers, so visit the above links for more details on this huge show!

Next up, it's been way too long since I've talked about local hard rock cover band Exit 808 on here, so what have they been up to in the past few weeks? Well, before some of that, the band shared a "Reel" on on their Facebook page on June 9th from their set at Drewpalooza 2 in Republic in June of last year (their debut gig with co-vocalist Dillion Semasky). Shot by attendee Courtney Johnson, the video sees everyone (sans Amy and plus a guest backing vocalist) covering Pantera's "Walk" with strong enthusiasm and intensity! Of course, "Reels" are vertical, unembeddable, and unplayable in background tabs, so click here to give it a watch! Exit 808's next proper concert took place at the Walloon Junction Bar & Grill in Walloon Lake on June 14th, which saw the return of Blaze Beairl on bass after he missed their last few gigs dating back to the spring. However, guitarist Alex Zimmerman was on vacation (hopefully that went well!), so who filled in for him?

None other than Project 906 guitarist Joe Jenkins, so kudos to him for making the 2 hour drive for this gig! Former guitarist Nathan Webber also made the trip to fill in on second guitar, while members of Elmira hard rock band Driving Dawn (who played with Exit 808 at the Musicians Unite fundraiser in March) joined in as guests on a few songs here. Two videos were uploaded from the Walloon Lake concert, including this vertical clip of the guys covering the end of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" (look at Joe's guitar solo!), but embedded below is a horizontal video of Exit 808 covering Rage Against The Machine's "Killing In The Name" with Driving Dawn's Danny Grim on guest vocals alongside Dillion (Amy doesn't sing in either clip). While this is by far Rage's most overplayed single, Exit 808 and guests do a good job with this cover, and the rustic cabin motif adds an extra something!

Good stuff from this talented (if well travelled) local band, and if you were wondering why we didn't cover their Merchants Bar show in the Soo yesterday, it's because it was cancelled due to Dillion and Alex having schedule conflicts relating to their day jobs, as per Exit 808's Facebook page on Wednesday. Disappointing for fans (if productive the other way), but unless a new booking is made, their next truly local dates will be at the St. Ignace Kewadin at the start of August, so look for everyone then! Give these new Exit 808 videos a watch above & below, and stay tuned for more!

Finally for today's all-E.U.P. post, we have a band to surprisingly remove from our active band links, namely local hard rock quartet Dirty Musky. A reason for their apparent demise wasn't publically announced, but their Facebook (and only known online) page was quietly deleted at some point in recent months, which is historically a poor sign for a local band's status. Aside from that, drummer Jamie Costner recently joined The Nameless, who have been playing live more regularly as of late anyway. Publically active for just under two years, Dirty Musky united Jamie with Clownsack and 415E alumni into a talented four-piece with lots of entertaining and sometimes unexpected covers dating back to their debut(?) at the Government Bay Barge Bash in 2023. We had last heard of Dirty Musky publically at the Musicians Unite benefit at Bird's Eye Outfitters in March. Hopefully nothing too serious happened, and that we hear more from Dave, Fran, and Brett soon!

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

The Sky's The Limit's Return On Facebook, Plus Some New Acoustic Performances!!

Let's end another work week with our 54th straight daily post at the SMS, which is again devoted to videos, including a pair of acoustic renditions and the virtual return of a recent annual concert! Here's what you should know!

As you have probably gathered by now, the fifth annual Sky's The Limit fundraiser concert for Children's Mental Health Week did not take place yesterday as planned due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but Algoma Family Services made due with an online installment on their Facebook page! The Sky's The Limit V would have been held at Korah Collegiate last night, but it's a great idea to migrate the event to a Facebook video so that they can continue promoting mental health awareness with the help of talented young local musicians! The 1 hour+ video starts with an introduction by Algoma Family Services CEO Ali Juma where he talks about their mission, what they offer the community even with offices closed, and what music offers to people, and he even plays a bit of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway To Heaven" to start! A.F.S. counsellor and Dell Bros. bassist Marc Williamson returns as the event's MC to introduce acts.

Musicians were not credited in the description, but who all performs in The Sky's The Limit V? The opening act is singer/guitarist Tianna Legacy, who nicely covers Alicia Keys' "Underdog" and Bill Withers' "Lean On Me". Next up is the surprise reunion of Electric Church frontman Spencer Pine & bassist Elijah Nelson, in the first time I've seen them perform together since this event in 2018! Beau has moved out of town, for what it's worth. The guys cover Thrice's "Hurricane" with a nice injection of soul and emotion, followed by the old Electric Church original "Take Me Away". Given how Marc introduced them, I will stop short of moving Electric Church back to our active band links for now, but it's great to see Spencer & Elijah still playing music! L!me frontwoman Madi Schomogyi follows with covers of Miley Cyrus' "The Climb" and Hedley's "Old School" on vocals & keyboard, and she has a good voice on these renditions too!

Next is former Din frontman Mike Haggith, returning to The Sky's The Limit for the first time in three years (recorded from Thompson, of course), and while not in the exact location of his #LockdownLive sets, the performance quality is as high as on those! Mike performs "MorningStar" from his new album "If Ever Comes The Day" (buy it next week!) and "Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost" from his next album after that, "Bridges". Rapper Tristan "Bold Noize" Goslow performs his original songs "Life I Live" and "Glow" from his new album "Noize.", and his rhymes are smooth and effective as usual! The final performer is singer/guitarist Joely Gough, who debuted in this event last year, and she covers Harry Styles' "Watermelon Sugar" and Lana Del Ray's "Happiness Is A Butterfly" with a nice authenticity! Ali returns with closing remarks at the end, and all of the musicians offer thoughts about mental health and their experiences during their segments.

While not ideal compared to the last four years, this Facebook concert helped make lemons out of lemonade, and it's great to see a who's who of top-line performers from past installments back virtually here! Of past Sky's The Limit headline acts, only The Pixo Control were not represented. There's a nice variety of music to check out from these six acts, and lots of honest remarks about mental health as well, so give The Sky's The Limit V a watch!



 We'll close today with a couple of new Facebook videos from Redundant frontman Justin Langlois, as posted to the local punk trio's Facebook page yesterday! These are acoustic renditions of their original songs "That December" and, as embedded below, "Miles Apart", and they sound good in this form factor! Both songs still retain that punk energy, and "Miles Apart" is particularly effective like this, so give both videos a watch above & below!



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