LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Generations), A New Local Punk Band, And More!!

Today's post wraps up this busy slate of weekend concert previews (one also being a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT), along with some assorted recent notes, but let's lead off with a new local band and album all at once!

We have a new local ska punk band to add to our band links, namely A.S.D.P.! Short for "Adam Smith Death Parade", they surfaced with a Bandcamp page on Wednesday, and while they're new to our formal coverage, we did allude to them in the summer when they played at the private Go Skate Day replacement concert in July (remember when it was rained out?). They were also scheduled to open for Krang at The Distraction in September before the venue closed indefinitely following the fire code stuff at the Ripcordz concert. Describing their genre as "crackrocksteady", they are fronted by Hails guitarist and Agnosticism frontman Mikhal Muto (credited as "Châ"), alongside Sault Side Squad/ex-Stoned To Deaf bassist William Jordan Wardlaw (a.k.a. "Glistening Williard") and Spaceship Opening drummer Ralph Barber (or "Just Ralph"). If you gleaned from the Bandcamp page's existence that they have music out there, you're right, as A.S.D.P. released their debut EP "Atom Bombs & Lemonade" on Wednesday!

Ralph told me on Facebook that the album has three bonus covers (of Leftover Crack's "One Dead Cop", No Cash's "Kill Yer Parents", and The Suburbanists' "Wait Around"), but they are exclusive to the paid copy of the album, which costs $7. It's a short listen (the seven originals run for just 14 minutes), but it's encouraging to already see studio material from A.S.D.P., even if its review around here won't be until mid-2026 due to our extensive new album backlog! No word on if we'll see A.S.D.P. on social media otherwise (members don't seem to be eager to get Facebook pages going for most of their current bands), but stay tuned for more updates and content from this new ska band when things go public!

Next up, let's resume this weekend's concert previews, starting with local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations' return to The Water Tower Pub for one night only TONIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, drummer Tony Santoro announced the gig via the band's Facebook group two weeks ago, and while I listed it in our concert calendar, the idea of adding it to a post slipped me by at the time. If there's a planned final show or two for 2025, I don't know, but if you like Generations' old school rock action, you won't want to miss TONIGHT's show in the event that this is it for the year! This will be their Water Tower Pub debut with new guitarist Joe Miller, after having guest guitarist Michael Yurich when they last played there early last month (and still no public word what the "special surprise" that night was). Whether or not they have a carol or two in mind TONIGHT, this one-nighter is at 8:00 PM with a 19+ age limit and no cover. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Generations live!

Also, let's wrap up this weekend's hard rock previews at Misty's Fifties, where veteran local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will set up shop once again for a matinee concert TODAY! After skipping last week in his lengthy run of Saturday matinee concerts at the Second Line West nightclub, Tym is back today for his fifth such show there in the past six weeks, and he will be back once more for 2025 next week. Hopefully Tym gets a solid pre-Christmas turnout for his hard rocking covers from his extensive setlist once again later on! While we're on the subject, it looks like Tym's planned New Year's Eve concert at The Fraternal Order of Eagles Club has been quietly cancelled, as per its removal from his Eagles Club shows' batch Facebook event page. A reason for the cancellation wasn't announced, but hopefully we see Tym back in Steelton in the new year!

As for today's Misty's matinee, it takes place at 4:00 PM as always, with a presumed 19+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details on this and next week's Misty's concerts, and for a preview, here he is live a couple years back! 

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

 

• Welsh punk/alternative quartet James & The Cold Gun have been added as the final openers for most of Mammoth's North American tour early next year, the Kewadin Casino date in Sault Michigan on March 28th included. Fun lively sound that adds some genre diversity to the hard rock action in three months, and how often do bands from Wales play here? Get your tickets A.S.A.P. for what should be a solid concert!
• Sault Ontario classic/hard rock cover quartet Quite Frankly have announced the addition of Blind River folk musician Linsaey Hartford-White (a.k.a. Linsaey L.W.) as their new frontwoman, replacing Haley Alopaeus. A reason for Haley's departure was not announced, but hopefully things were amicable, and that we see her out there again soon, as she is a talented singer! Some readers may recall seeing Linsaey open the Riffs For Rememberance memorial concert for Victoria Childs at Soo Blaster in October, and it will be interesting to see how she fits in with Quite Frankly in 2026!
• Local punk quartet Room 206 will no longer be playing at next week's 1990s punk reunion concert at Soo Blaster, as per co-promoter/P.R.O.D. guitarist Christian Foisy on the Facebook event page yesterday. Their exit was "due to unavoidable circumstances", and while Christian didn't elaborate, note that Brad does live out of town. Hopefully Room 206 resurface down the road when able! Online page-less metal quintet The Sault Side Squad will replace them on the bill as the 8:00 PM opening band, with P.R.O.D., members of The Spigots, Fist Magnet, and Ha!ls following in that order. This will still be a huge night, so visit the above links for more on next week's festivities!

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

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Fist Magnet, Tarnished, And Quite Frankly!!)

This Saturday afternoon post is devoted to new LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, ll with a seasonal and/or charitable flourish, so here's what you should know on both sides of the border!

Reunited local classic/hard rock cover quartet Quite Frankly will play their first public concert in 15 years on Friday, October 24th, but not in Sault Ste. Marie. Rather, they'll be making the hour's drive east to Bruce Mines to play a special Down Syndrome awareness fundraiser concert at Kosmos Pizza there! The restaurant and their Thessalon sister location are both hosting fundraisers that weekend (Thessalon's is the following day), with a goal of raising $5,000 for Down Syndrome Awareness Month. Despite implying that they'd be pulling double duty on the Thessalon branch's Facebook page, Quite Frankly bassist Harley Syrette confirmed with me that they are only playing in Bruce Mines on the 24th, though regardless, Thessalon is outside of our coverage range. Either way, kudos to Haley, Frank, Harley, and Joe for rocking out for a wonderful cause in two weeks, and if you're up for a drive or live east of the Soo, keep these two gigs in mind to show your support!

Kosmos Pizza is located in downtown Bruce Mines right along Highway 17, located in front of The Bavarian Inn and just past the turnoff for Cunningham Street, so it's extremely hard to miss it. The concert on the 24th will begin at 6:00 PM, there are no stated age limits, and while a cover charge isn't advertised, obviously consider donating to the cause and/or buying something to eat/drink while there. Visit the above links for more details!

Next up, add another Halloween concert onto the schedule, as Sault Michigan classic metal/hard rock quartet Tarnished will return to The Driftwood Sports Bar in St. Ignace for that venue's Halloween party on Friday, October 31st! The fourth time this year that Alex, Josh, Chris, and Ron have played at 590 North State Street, this will be Tarnished's first show of any kind since their trifecta of St. Ignace shows during the Richard Crane Memorial Truck Show last month, with one of those also being at The Driftwood. For the spooky festivities in three weeks, fans can expect a costume contest with a best prize award and hourly prize giveaways, plus "thrilling music, haunted vibes, and dancing till dawn". Maybe you can dance until dawn, but the concert proper is blocked from 9:30 PM-1:00 AM, with a 21+ age limit and no announced cover charge. Tarnished should be in strong rocking form for Halloween night, so see the above links for more details on this concert!

Finally for this all-new concert post, we have a huge show for the holiday season for fans of the 1990s Sault Ontario punk scene, as three big names from that era will reunite on Saturday, December 27th at Soo Blaster! The headliners are a reunion of Fist Magnet, the hardcore punk band featuring future Gatgas frontman Garry Ingram that were a local staple in the early-mid 1990s, as typified by Destroilet's covers of theirs throughout their run. The show will actually be an ARCH Hospice fundraiser in memory of late Fist Magnet guitarist Chuck Ayotte, who lost his battle with pancreatic cancer in 2018, and while I'm surprised it's taken this long to do a tribute concert, it will be a blast seeing Fist Magnet back after Christmas! No word on how their lineup will look beyond Garry though. Skate punk quartet Room 206 will return to Soo Blaster for their second gig of 2025 here, after headlining drummer Allan Watson's public stag & doe concert at the same venue in April.

Who would have guessed that Mike, Dave, Brad, and Al would play twice this year after a two decade+ layoff? Given the circumstances, I'll still treat this is as a one-off gig, but it would be neat to see Room 206 do more in 2026! In one more throwback to the Windsor Park era and the Going Underground book, fellow 1990s punk band The Spigots will play their first public concert in decades here, and while media from their heyday is understandably slight (is their cassette online at all?), their song "Beer Goggles" from a compilation CD is on YouTube. No word on how their lineup will look (click here to see some former members), but if you were around in the 1990s at local punk shows, The Spigots' reunion will add to things well! Local openers will include the debuting P.R.O.D. (short for "punk rock overdose"), a new band from former Destroilet guitarist Christian Foisy. Good to see him back out there!

We don't know much on P.R.O.D. yet, and as best as I can tell, their only online presence is via this Soundcloud page, which features three original songs. More punk based than Detroilet but with good attitude and catchy riffs from what I heard, and it'll be interesting to learn more on P.R.O.D. when things go public! Local crossover thrash quartet Hails (whose frontman Brenton Ellis started out in the local scene in the mid-late 1990s) will open the proceedings on December 27th, so don't bypass them either! This licsenced (sic) and all ages concert will have doors opening at 7:00 PM, and admission will be $15 in advance or $20 at the door, so send a message to Christian, his old Destroilet bandmate John Conway, or Room 206 drummer Mikey Hawdon (the credited promoters on the Facebook event page) if you want to send an e-transfer for an advance ticket early.

The high school yearbook-themed poster says that they'll only be on sale at The Rad Zone, contradicting the event page description. If you were at all into the local punk scene in the mid-1990s, this will be a must-attend show on December 27th, and with the holiday season still in effect, when else will you be able to attract so many familiar faces back home to do something like this? I'm about a decade behind the curve for local scene eras, but I know how important these three bands were back then and beyond, so don't miss out on what will be a huge concert at year's end! Visit the above links for more details on all three of these upcoming shows, and stay tuned for more news and notes soon! Thanks everyone!

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Room 206

It's now time for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, as we again shine a light on a randomly selected local metal, hard rock, or punk band of the past, in order to feature and promote them and their run for modern readers! This month's choice is quite a notable one for punk fans around in the 1990s and early 2000s, so here's what you should know on them!

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Room 206

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie/Toronto, Ontario

Genre: Punk

Lineup:

Mike Yorke (Totally Confused), vocals/guitar
Dave Bahun (The Inner City Surfers), guitar
Brad Lacell (The Role Models), bass
Allan Watson (BookcluB), drums

Audio/Video: Room 206 released their only album "2 Innies & 1 Outie" on cassette tape in 1994, and while that release is long out of print, Mikey Hawdon (a fan of Room 206 and frequent bandmate of their alumni) re-released the album on vinyl and to major streaming services in December of 2021 via his inactive boutique label Soolebrity Records. Outside of that release, they contributed an original named "Good Enuff" to Barely Legal Records' compilation CD "Punk: The Next Generation" in 1995, and later still, "Last Stance" on 2003's Tidal Records compilation "Junk In The Trunk", and they had many other unreleased songs, notably including "I'll Be Around" (a.k.a. "Sit & Drool"). Their full reunion set at Soo Blaster in April of this year can be seen here, but here's a rare video of them covering Fugazi's "Waiting Room" at the former Princess Theater in February 1995!

Info/Analysis: First active in the mid-late 1990s, and originally comprised of then-St. Mary's College classmates, Room 206 became one of the more prominent local punk bands of the era, as documented in Paolo Colasacco's book "Going Underground", where they played numerous local gigs and opened for the likes of The Ripcordz and SNFU. Adding Dave Bahun on guitar after their debut tape came out in 1994, Room 206 later moved to Toronto to collectively pursue their music career, but as is common for local bands from the 1990s, there isn't much media online today to document their run as it happened (though they have more than most of their contemporaries). Aside from their brief studio reunion in 2003, Room 206 took a 2+ decades long stage hiatus, ending when they reunited to play at Allan's stag & doe in April 2025, though the "2 Innies & 1 Outie" re-release helped bring their name back out into the limelight a few years prior.

Members' collective work in bands like The Inner City Surfers, Brad Example & The Role Models, and BookcluB has more modern documentation, but Room 206 carved a strong niche with their high energy skate punk attack in the 1990s on songs like "I'm Feelin' Fine" & "My Trip", with some welcome dalliances into power pop and alternative on some tracks, and they would have been a highlight of any local punk gig of the time! Hopefully their reunion gig in April isn't the absolute last time we see Room 206, as they still have a lot of drawing power and talent to go around!

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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! For the first time this year, we'll actually be looking at a Sault Michigan band in this series next, namely the recently dissolved punk band The Sole Aggressors, so watch for that profile on or around October 10th, and for more weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Nameless & Silent 9!!)

While nowhere near as busy as what we saw locally in July, things are definitely busier locally for hard rock concerts this weekend, and we will have to stretch out our weekend concert previews to two posts as a result. As such, this weekend's Heavy Lies The Crown, Generations, and Tarnished shows will feature in tomorrow's post. Here's what you should know otherwise, starting with SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS! 

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 have a busy weekend ahead, and it starts TOMORROW NIGHT when they return to The Tap Room at Northern Superior Brewing Co., followed by the featured headliners slot at the annual Laird Fair outside of town on SATURDAY NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice on both fronts, the band only announced both dates on their Facebook page on Monday, though they have been advertised for the Laird Fair in their own promotional materials before then. TOMORROW'S show is the second late notice one in as many weeks from an SMS-amenable band at the Tap Room, and is a bit of a surprise booking from Jess, Ryan, Paul, and Steve, as they normally take the summer off from standard nightclub shows, only playing festivals and private bookings then. In fact, while we're on the subject, they'll be back at the Tap Room on Saturday, September 27th as well!

That show was quietly confirmed on their website's concert calendar, and we'll wait on other public shows there for now due to the later scheduling but they will be more active publically this fall. As far as I can tell, there's no raison d'etre for TOMORROW'S brief pause of their summer break from bar shows, but the fun classic and hard rock covers will be in full swing at Northern Superior, especially at a venue better known for acoustic acts! TOMORROW'S and next month's shows are at 8:00 PM with 19+ age limits and no cover. As for the Laird Fair (a.k.a. the North Shore Agricultural Fair), Silent 9 are this year's headlining band, taking over for the now-defunct Soundcheck on SATURDAY NIGHT! The Friday band slot this year was replaced by karaoke. Loads of family friendly entertainment is in store in Laird (outside of Echo Bay), both for farming and agricultural events and for games and activities, so be sure to visit the fair's Facebook page for the complete schedule!

Silent 9 will set up shop on SATURDAY NIGHT under the covered (but not entirely indoors) stage at the fairground site at Lake George Road East once again, which bodes well for the rainy weather forecast, but do follow your preferred weather forecast for updates on Laird Fair events like this (9&10 News is calling for a high of 27° that night). The concert proper is a licensed 19+ event at 9:00 PM, and admission to the concert is included with fair passes, which run for $10 for the day and $20 for the full weekend. Visit the above links for more on Silent 9's busy short notice weekend, and for a preview, here they are live last year!

Next up, let's skip over to Michigan for another new confirmation, as local hard rock quartet The Nameless will debut at The Goetzville Tavern in nearby Goetzville on SATURDAY NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, this show was only announced by the band on their Facebook page on Sunday, though the venue has been plugging this show on their Facebook page since last month. Stalwart Agricultural Fair aside, this is the first standard concert that we've covered in Goetzville (outside of Pickford) since 2014, believe it or not. The Goetzville Tavern may be better known to local readers as Yooperman's Bar & Grill, and it re-opened under its new name and ownership in April at 18017 East M-48. Concerts have sporadically taken place there since last month, with The Nameless being the first heavier-leaning act there, so welcome them to a new locale an hour south of here in style on SATURDAY!

The Nameless take the stage on SATURDAY at 7:00 PM with a 21+ age limit and no announced cover charge. Note that The Goetzville Tavern technically closes at 10:00 PM nightly, but they will clearly extend their hours for concerts if need be, and The Nameless are advertised to play until 11:00 PM. The official Facebook event page strongly hints that the show will be outdoors under a tent, so given that, 9&10 News is calling for a 70% chance of rain on SATURDAY dipping to 40% at night, with temperatures expected in the mid-high 70s (a high of 27° Celsius). I have no idea if they have provisions to postpone the show or move it indoors due to rain, so follow The Goetzville Tavern and/or the band on social media for updates if you are all concerned. Otherwise, visit the above links for more details on the hard rock action in Goetzville on SATURDAY NIGHT, and here's The Nameless live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for the rest of this weekend's hard rock concert previews next! Thanks everyone! 

A Missed Concert Apology, More Ripcordz Cancellation Fallout, And New Videos!!

Before we dive into what is looking like a little busier concert weekend in the Twin Saults, let's look at some news and notes from both sides of the border, including new video uploads, updates on a major recent concert cancellation, and more, so here's what you should know!

To lead off this post, I wanted to apologize for a missed concert in this past weekend's round of previews. Given how slight last weekend's hard rock/punk slate was, knowing about this one would have been extremely optimal! This past Saturday, local acoustic punk duo Dos Amigos returned to Northern Superior Brewing Co.'s on-site Tap Room for a one-nighter, after playing their third announced show there in June, but unfortunately, the venue only plugged the gig on their Facebook page that morning and it completely slipped us by. On Dos Amigos' end, the BookcluB side project also never acknowledged the booking on their Facebook page prior. I profusely apologize for missing this show regardless, but acoustic acts do well at the unique setting of the Tap Room, and hopefully Mikey & Dustin had a good show on Saturday! Actually, we can see if they did for ourselves now, as they shared a video from the concert the following day!

The first public video on Dos Amigos' Facebook page (and their first post there of any kind in almost four months), the video sees Mikey & Dustin covering Rancid's "Roots Radical" and doing a solid job of adapting it to a two man unplugged setting! I wish the filmer got more than 24 seconds, but everything sounds and looks good at the Tap Room. and the vertical camera angle isn't as objectionable because both guys are in frame without issue. Give it a watch below, and apologies again for missing this show in last weekend's previews, I'd have happily covered it with even a day's notice!

Next up, here's more on the mid-show cancellation of last month's Ripcordz concert at The Distraction in Sault Ontario! In a follow-up article on SooToday on July 30th, Sault Fire Services public education officer Aaron Gravelle confirmed that the show was cancelled following "a fire safety complaint", with police and fire crews determining that the basement space didn't have sufficient fire/life safety measures in place, and was thusly not approved for use as a concert venue. Fire Services and the city's building division will reportedly work with The Distraction towards ensuring "future building compliance", but whether this means that concerts will return to the East Street nightclub and when, I don't know. In the article, Ripcordz frontman Paul Gott is interviewed in text and in an attached video by contributor and former Honest Job frontman Drew Armstrong, where Paul praised the Soo and small concert venues like The Distraction.

Despite the cancellation, Paul was cordial and respectful on camera about the abbreviated concert and the local scene, let alone the younger generation of punk fans and musicians, and it's a good watch for fans! Unfortunately, I can't embed videos directly embedded onto SooToday (this isn't from YouTube) on the SMS, but give it a watch above, and it includes black & white photos from the local openers' sets!

Finally, let's zip over to Sault Michigan for some relatively rare videos of local classic/hard rock quartet Tarnished's current lineup in action! These actually come from the Fourth of July parade in the Soo last month, where Alex, Josh, Chris, and Ron performed on a float once again (the band as a whole has done this for at least three years now). At least two people posted their own copies of the half hour-long parade route to YouTube, one being user onewxone, who was stationed beside the Ashmun Street Bridge. In his video, Tarnished become audible 24:30 into the 30 minute video (which was edited slightly in post-production to reduce the dead air between floats). While in earshot, Tarnished were covering The Go-Gos' "We Got The Beat" and while you only see them on camera for about 25 seconds, you can hear them at varying levels of clarity for two minutes before and afterwards.

Click here to jump straight to Tarnished's spot in the parade, but I won't embed that particular video here because of the sharp stationary angle of the procession. Embedded below is the parade video shot by Sunshine Gregory, who was filming further down the route at the corner of Ashmun and West Portage Avenue, capturing the procession with more of a side view, and not on a tripod. In Sunshine's video, you can first hear Ron's drumming at 24:17, and the guys are covering Twisted Sister's "We're Not Gonna Take It" at this juncture. Like they did for at least part of last year's July 4th parade, Alex & Josh walked alongside the float while both cameras were rolling, with Chris and Ron performing on the float itself, and you get a better view of that in Sunshine's video given her placement en route. Here, Tarnished are only on camera for 16 seconds, but Sunshine was moving her camera around to better capture what an attendee might see.

You can hear Tarnished finish the song, so they're audible in this parade video for about 80 seconds. The guys sound good on both covers, and Alex was definitely having fun engaging with the crowd from what was captured! If you're curious, the Independence Day parade actually featured two bands, as the E-Free Church's Sault Ste. Marie campus had contemporary Christian performers on their float, which rode down midway through the parade. They had a camera of their own rolling for their own parade video on the float itself, which gives a unique view from the other side, but check out the full parade and Tarnished's performances there above and below!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Full Set Videos From Room 206 & The Inner City Surfers' Recent Reunion Concert!!

If you missed the Room 206/The Inner City Surfers reunion concert for Room 206 drummer Allan Watson's stag-and-doe at Soo Blaster on April 5th, then good news, as bassist Brad "Example" Lacell posted full set videos of both bands onto his YouTube channel! This is not unlike when Brad had a camera rolling for The Surfers' reunion in 2023 for drummer Mikey Hawdon's public stag-and-doe concert, but this time, Brad got both bands on film, and from a much better angle than the partially obscured side-stage video last time. No, Brad didn't upload a video of BookcluB's opening set. While Room 206 did reunite to record a song on Tidal Records' "Junk In The Trunk" compilation in 2003, Brad said that they were live here "for the first time in 33 years". I want to say that that is a slight exaggeration, but it's certainly been multiple decades! They closed the night, but with Brad not transcribing the setlist, what all did they play?

The 66 minutes-long video begins a few minutes before Room 206 actually began, with the MC's introduction coming in at the one minute mark, including frontman Mike Yorke's brief rendition of "Happy Birthday, Big Diesel" in honour of attendee Mike Denisch. The proper set begins at the 3:22 mark with "My Trip", "Anyways", a cover of Sebadoh's "S. Soup", "Ride My Rocketship Of Love", covers of The Pixies' "Head On" and The Smashing Pumpkins' "Today", "Pretentious", "I'm Feelin' Fine", and "Garden Of Life", before some surprise covers of Tool's "Opiate" and Rage Against The Machine's "Bullet In The Head". After a shout-out from Inner City Surfers drummer Mikey Hawdon (whose local boutique label re-issued Room 206's 1994 cassette tape on vinyl), the guys played their original "Nature Calls" alongside a young guest guitarist named Skyler (I think), though I don't know his full identity off hand.

The core four members of Room 206 then played "Pretend To Be", before they invited the aforementioned Mikey Hawdon on stage to join in on guitar and backing vocals for "Good Enuff" & "I'll Be Around", the bonus songs from the vinyl re-release that Mikey performed on with guest musicians. The guys and Mikey closed the set with a cover of Fugazi's "Waiting Room", with the last two minutes of the video featuring thank yous and everyone wrapping things up. Strong set with faithfully performed renditions of Room 206's classic songs, and Mike, Dave, Brad, and Al haven't lost a step! The audio quality is better than the video quality though, as the visuals are very soft and kinda blurry, while the video was accidentally shot and uploaded while mirrored (the stage logos give it away). I am a little surprised that Room 206 didn't tackle "Last Stance", but all of "2 Innies & An Outie" made the cut, as well as a lot of unexpected covers.

Whether it takes another three decades or so for Room 206 to play another reunion concert, I can't say, but hopefully we do see them again, as they had a fun and very nostalgic night last month to help celebrate Allan and Audrey's nuptials, and if you missed out on the action at Soo Blaster, then relive their headlining set for yourselves below!

As for The Inner City Surfers, Brad's stationary camera (slowly moved to a central vantage point early on) captured their 57 minutes-long co-headlining set, and it starts with their rendition of "The Mexican Hat Dance", which is a common set opener or interlude of theirs. As it often does, it leads into their own original "Won't Belong", followed by "Screwed", "Pickin' From The Country", "Rollin", "Been Done", "Never Ender Bender", "Get High", and their cover of Stompin' Tom Connors' "Algoma Central No. 69". The Surfers introduced Room 206 drummer (and Mikey & Dustin's BookcluB bandmate) Allan Watson during that cover, after which he joined them behind the kit for a Mikey-sung rendition of The Beastie Boys' "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)". Mikey returned to drums for the rest of the set, which included "Grab My Pen", "Here's To The Days", "Booze N' Doobs", and "The Quest".

The latter was again extended to 9 minutes with 1980s covers from acts like Dire Straits and Corey Hart, so that was another fun way to cap things off! Setlist-wise, this Surfers gig was very similar to their 2023 stag-and-doe set, albeit with a re-arranged order, less cover interludes, and "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" & "Commandments" replaced by the Stompin' Tom cover and "Rollin", a very rare instance of the I.C.S. playing a song from their oft-forgotten 2004 CD "Time To Travel On". While still fuzzy and mirrored, this is a quality look at Dustin, Dave, Brad, and Mikey tearing through many of their best loved classics, so local punk fans won't want to miss the latest Surfers reunion set embedded below!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!

The Dodge This Concert Preview, Headf1rst Updates, And More News & Notes!!

Here's a surprise news post on this Saturday evening! This came together quickly because of a show that completely slipped me by for this weekend's hard rock concert previews despite covering it when first announced on here, so rounding things out, we have new updates from a prominent local band, and lots of shorter updates. Let's get things rolling before the hockey game!

My apologies for the delay in this preview making the SMS, but local acoustic hard rock duo Dodge This will hit the stage TONIGHT at The Dive Gastro Pub! We had covered these shows when first announced by the venue on April 3rd, but they completely slipped me by among other posts and previews this weekend, not helped by the fact that they haven't updated their Facebook page this month at all. At least I got to it with time to spare, and apologies again for the late preview! This will be Dodge This' first publically advertised concert since they rocked The Water Tower Pub just over a month ago, and comes three weeks after they dropped out of their planned April 5th date in "The Naughty Corner" (Tym Morrison replaced them on short notice), though singer/guitarist Jason Taillefer did play a solo date at The Dive in the interim. Good to see Dodge This back, and hopefully Jay & Jamie deliver lots of fun rocking covers!

Note that The Dive did not reference occasional percussionist Jeff July (Jamie's brother) in their newest Facebook plug for tonight's event, which has a 9:30 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Dodge This live!

Next up, here's the latest from local hard rock quintet Headf1rst, which isn't a typo, as they have officially replaced the letter I with a number 1 in their name! This goes along with their official logo anyway, but the name change appears to be similar to that of Bone Yard 225: Keep the existing branding but make it more unique to distinguish themselves from similarly named groups elsewhere. Works well enough for me, but when will Facebook update the band name? Yesterday, Headf1rst released the first single from next month's sophomore album "Road Trippin'" to major streaming services, with the song in question being "Slay The Dragon", which is "a passion filled, action-packed joy ride" conceived by bassist Claire Jeffrey. This was produced by Treble Charger's Bill Priddle (who guests on additional guitar) and was recorded at Unsalted Audio with mixing by Dustin Goodall, who has also been working with Convergence in recent weeks.

Another teaser clip for the album, song to be clarified, can be heard in this Facebook "Reel"  hyping a "listening party" to be live streamed on Vintage Games N' Junque's Facebook page on Tuesday featuring select material from "Road Trippin'" and the bands opening for Headf1rst at the release party/Steel City Collector Con pre-party on May 3rd, plus an interview with Headf1rst. That should be interesting, so stay tuned for more on that next week! The cover art for "Road Trippin'" can be seen above in Facebook advertising for a raffle at the Soo Blaster-hosted concert, where winners will win all three acts' newest albums. Exciting times for Headf1rst, so see above for more details, and here's "Slay The Dragon"!

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

 

• I have removed local punk band F.F.B. from our inactive band links due to the quiet deletion of their Facebook page, which was their only known social media account. A revival of a 1999-2000 band featuring Telephone & Address' Christopher Shoust and Damjan "Spider Fingerz" Binda, F.F.B. had reunited in 2016 to release a film about the band's original 1999-2000 run and put out their unreleased studio material, but there was little follow-up on these plans. Hopefully we hear more from Chris, Damjan, and Kyle in time!
• In their first Facebook post in over a month, local southern hard rock quartet Fort Creek revealed yesterday that they are "currently plugging away at what will be our second release", namely an original song named "Sweet Rosie" that will serve as their first "full band song", as opposed to the acoustic "One For The Road". Good to hear that the guys are busy behind the scenes, and we'll let you know when more on this song and/or their long-gestating debut album come out! Also, is "Sweet Rosie" a reference to the former Roosevelt Hotel? We'll know for sure soon!
• This year's Fringe North Festival has been postponed due to "unexpectedly diminshed leadership capacity and reduced funding", as per the festival's Facebook page. While not a SMS-amenable haven, occasional punk acts have performed the diverse & multicultural arts festival, which had been held in August at the Sault Ste. Marie Museum post-pandemic (with punk solo act Slumshine being most prominent in our coverage there). In its stead, Fringe North will instead host a "New Works Series" in conjunction with the Museum, and we await details on what this will entail, let alone if the Fringe North of old will return in 2026. Hopefully things work out regardless!
• As of April 6th, new local industrial metal solo act The Realignment Project had finished recording their second EP "The Frustration Sessions", as per updates to their Facebook page, and as of April 18th, project leader Matt Hicks was "waiting for the EP to hit streaming services" while also working on lyric videos for YouTube for its songs. A sample for the lyric video of the song "Static" was shared in this Facebook "Reel" (unembeddable as always), but I'll hold comment pending the EP's eventual release. Things can come together very fast for a one man band like this, so stay tuned for more on The Realignment Project's sophomore release!
• At the Room 206-headlined reunion concert at Soo Blaster earlier this month, they were indeed represented by their classic lineup (Mike Yorke, Brad "Example" Lacell, and Allan Watson) alongside guitarist Dave Bahun, who wasn't on "2 Innies & An Outie" but performed with them in later concerts and material, and also joined Brad in The Inner City Surfers that night. Our source is photos from SooToday's Donna Hopper's Facebook photo album from the concert, featuring 54 shots from the night's punk festivities, albeit all black & white. Great pictures as always from Donna, and stay tuned for more from this huge reunion show next week!
• Last week, local classic/hard rock cover quartet Silent 9 shared a "Reel" of them covering Poison's "Nothing But A Good Time" at Northern Superior Brewing Co.'s Tap Room on April 12th onto their Facebook page! The short, vertical, and unembeddable trappings of "Reels" aside, Silent 9 sound good in this brief clip while it lasts, and you get a nice view of the unique staging at they have at the downtown craft brewery here, so give it a watch above, and don't miss Silent 9 at The Esquire Club in two weeks!

 

That's all for now, but stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next, for sure! Thanks everyone!

Tidal Records' "Junk In The Trunk" Compilation CD Review!!

It's now time for our 190th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and with nothing brand new on sale this month from heavier or punk acts from the area, let's take a dip into the archives for an album that I've surprisingly never talked about in great detail here. In honour of this month's Room 206 reunion concert at Soo Blaster, this review is of "Junk In The Trunk", a December 2003 compilation album put out by the original punk-centric version of Tidal Records, the indie label led by Inner City Surfers frontman/Bookclub bassist Dustin Jones. The first CD release from Tidal, this was produced and engineered by Dustin and his long-time bandmate Dave "soanso" Bahun, with mixing by Eric Harry and mastering done at Umbrella Sound Studios in Toronto. This punk-leaning compilation features songs from five bands featuring local talent (one being Room 206), each contributing 1-3 songs apiece, as well as a title track featuring multiple musicians and a bonus track.

Unfortunately, the liner notes for the CD do not list complete performer credits on each song, just who wrote them, but Dave and fellow Surfers mainstay Mikey Hawdon (on drums) are credited for "guest appearances on various tracks". I won't assume who is/isn't on given songs unless I'm very certain, but expect commonalities from local punk musicians of the late 1990s and early 2000s. "Junk In The Trunk" has been out of print for over 20 years, but the CD cost $15 at the time. A YouTube copy has been online for three years, but it has bare bones information, two songs mistakenly cut off, and no bonus track, so I have re-posted the whole thing on the SMS' YouTube channel, and songs below are linked to the copies in that upload. No copyright infringement is intended whatsoever, all credit goes to the original musicians! With eleven songs running for about 36 minutes, let's take a long overdue look at the junk in Tidal Records 1.0's trunk! 

Apologies in advance for any errors on band particulars, I wasn't following local bands yet in 2003. This album is opened by Brad Example & The Role Models, the band led by Surfers bassist Brad "Example" Lacell, which was sporadically active from at least 2003-2014 before his move out of town. Mel Radke and Brad's Love & Rehab bandmate Alexis Mantello are credited for providing backing vocals on their lone offering on this CD, namely "365", which was once re-recorded for MySpace in 2006. If you're familiar with the grittier, bluesier songs on Surfers albums with Brad singing, you'll be right at home on this song, which has a country ambiance to the guitar work while still having a punk edge, plus well suited lyrics. The backing vocals do somewhat clutter the sound when implemented, but it's a tight number that fans of Brad's solo material will get a kick out of, and it's nice to hear a Role Models studio track again!

Brad returns next for the first of three offerings by his Toronto punk band Love & Rehab, who (at the time) also featured singer/guitarist Mike Theriault and drummer Alexis Mantello, all originally from the Soo. Modern readers may recall Love & Rehab for their reunion set at The Inner City Surfers' own reunion concert at LopLops in August 2019, and from a PositiveSoo article at the time. Mike & Alexis wrote their contributions to "Junk In The Trunk", with the first being "Moonshiner", which is a somewhat laid back power pop number with a catchy guitar riff. I'd have really boosted Mike's vocals in the mix, as his vocals are not very prominent beneath the instruments, but this is a fun track for what it is, and the talent is definitely on display to write a song that sticks in your head with strong melodies! If only Mike's singing was louder. Third up on the CD is Dustin Jones' Toronto-based punk band Sideblinder, who had a more prominent run in the GTA from 2008-2013 that did receive some light attention in SMS posts.

While Sideblinder featured Salads alumni in their lineup during that later run, I don't 100% know who joined Dustin in this band as of 2003. Their first of two songs here is "Banished", and there will be obvious Inner City Surfers comparisons here with Dustin at the mic, but this is more of a direct punk number without their folksy influences, so if you like the punk sides of the Surfers, don't bypass this one. Again, guitar melodies shine here, and it's a well written number that calls to mind Dustin's prolific local band work while standing on its own, and the percussion is solid while it lasts too! Fourth up are The Varsity Street Kids, a rock band led by former Bombed Squad/Big Kahunas guitarist Pat Suriano, who is the only credited writer for their two offerings on this album, and also designed the album artwork. No other 100% confirmed band member credits are given, but Dustin is definitely helping on backing vocals, at the very least.

Their first song here is also the longest on "Junk In The Trunk", namely the 6+ minutes-long "On The Cusp". Tidal compared Pat's music here to that of Dinosaur Jr. at the time, and you do get some of that on this laid back, deliberately paced alt-rock with some of the easiest lyrics yet to actually pay attention to. Pat's downbeat but pointed lead vocals suit the song's pacing, and while not at the pace and energy of earlier punk-leaning songs, but the chorus is really overdone, and I don't think this song really needed to be as long as it is, as it does get repetitive. Nice change of pace though, and it's have been interesting to hear this band more had they lived into The Sault Metal Scene's inception! We hit the halfway point next with the return of Love & Rehab, whose second song here is named "Change". A rollicking and way more punk-inspired number than "Moonshiner" was, this again suffers in the mix, but not just vocally, as the instrumentation is really muddled.

It's not a bad song at all though, and for my musical tastes, it's more of an intense, in-your-face track from Love & Rehab with effective guitar moments and strong drumming! I just wish the parts came together more individually and that it was easier to really pick out Mike's vocals, which haven't been problems with the other bands on offer. The last of the five unique bands here is next, namely local punk staples Room 206, whose only song here ("Last Stance") was their first new song release in about eight years, but I don't believe this particular reunion lasted very long. Singer/guitarist Mike Yorke and bassist Brad Lacell are your credited writers here, while guitarist Dave Bahun and drummer Allan Watson likely rounded things out in terms of their lineup. By far the most intense punk song on offer, fans of skate punk will be right at home with Mike's melodic yet edged vocals, chugging bass, and quick paced verses, so Room 206 fans will have no worries!

Dave gets the best chance to shine yet on "Last Stance" via one of his trademark guitar solos, something that punk needs more of in general. Definitely a highlight for me on "Junk In The Trunk", and yes, we will have video footage from their reunion concert earlier this month in an upcoming news post! The next three songs are all from returnees from the album's first half, starting with Sideblinder's second song "Split End", which is a much more reserved track than "Banished" that does call to mind softer Surfers and Rising Tide songs, but with more of an alternative rock bent, almost like it was written with rock radio in mind. The louder and fuller chorus does feel more distinct from his bigger bands in particular, and the drumming is really good throughout! A solid change of pace if you wanted to hear a Dustin-fronted band with less of an emphasis on folk or punk, so don't bypass it on this stacked compilation disc!

The Varsity Street Kids' second song is next, namely "Deep Breaths", and this is a much faster and shorter song than "On The Cusp", but still harbours Pat's somewhat maudlin and low singing. There is definitely more of a punk influence here (I was kinda reminded of Husker Du a bit), and the song definitely feels more at home with its discmates than the previous, complete with a brief guitar solo, but the vocals will be an acquired taste compared to the music. Good stuff though! The last song on this CD from a credited band is Love & Rehab's third and final song, namely "The Ruiner", which takes a lot more cues from Brad's solo music than their first two, with a country-inspired guitar riff and pacing. While not ideal for my musical preferences, this song has by far Mike's clearest vocals, so that counts for a lot! At the same time, his higher vocal range is not a clean fit on a classic country/blues number.

"The Ruiner" is just aching for Brad's gravelly delivery, and I wouldn't be against hearing him do a solo version of it nowadays. Not a bad song for genre fans, but aside from the better vocal mix, it's not really for me. The last credited song is the album's title track "Junk In The Trunk", which was recorded by a supergroup of then-Tidal Records artists who appear elsewhere on this CD. The three credited writers are Dustin Jones, Mike Theriault, and Al Watson, but the credited performers are simply given as "Many". Gauging this against the nine full-band songs is pointless because this is an extremely loose and carefree acoustic jam with performers simultaneously singing on this casual acoustic jam. This would play well as a night-ending song to have a beer or two with, and you really have to take it for what it is, so it's fun in that way! Lots of cross-talk and background discussion too, but the song does probably run a minute or two too long, as it kind of loses its way late.

Still, this is a pleasant closer that fans and friends of the original Tidal Records and Surfers-adjacent bands will definitely enjoy at base level! A 63 seconds-long bonus track rounds out the CD and is not advertised on the physical copies. It has an answering machine message of what sounds like a sped up song played by an ice cream truck while someone interjects with brief dialogue, saying what sounds like "You won't" a few times, and ending with "That's right". I really don't know what to make of this, and I assume I'm missing some type of inside joke from 2003, but look for the bonus track at the end of the disc!

So, what are my final thoughts on "Junk In The Trunk"? I liked it for the most part, and it captures a window in time into what The Inner City Surfers were up to in other bands and projects during their early run! The original Tidal Records didn't last very long (they first fell inactive in 2005 before Dustin relaunched the label with a less punk-centric focus in 2013), but they had a strong core talent roster at the time, with all five included bands offering up entertaining original music for this compilation. Room 206's skate punk song was my favourite, while Sideblinder will definitely be a fun listen for fans of Dustin's bands, Brad & The Role Models kept things familiar for fans of Brad's modern Atikokan-era solo music, Love & Rehab showed good diversity on their three cuts, and The Varsity Street Kids put Pat's unique vocals to good use on two very different songs, so there's a lot to like from these five bands!

The title track is a fun little farewell/summative number for fans of this era/rotation of bands too, but don't rate it 100% against the preceding cuts. In terms of issues... the vocal mix on Love & Rehab's first two songs was far from ideal, "On The Cusp" was way too long, I really didn't get the bonus track at all, and I'd have tried to have more of an even split of bands on the final copy (as in, have everyone perform two songs, or give one of Love & Rehab's slots to Room 206 or The Role Models). At the same time, a Surfers song may have helped the retrospective awareness of "Junk In The Trunk", but the focus was put on newer and reunited bands, and it was a good idea (even if the liner notes don't have full credits). This now-rare compilation is a strong album of cuts from the early days of Tidal Records, so definitely give it a listen at the above links, and I hope you liked this month's CD review!

Next month, we will we will return back to 2025 for a brand new album review, as we'll next look at HeadFirst's second album "Road Trippin'", which comes out at its release party on May 3rd! Look for that next month, and for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!