A good old fashioned weekend concert preview post is now live on the SMS, and it includes some SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS on both sides of the border, one recently familiar, and one with a bigger scale, all told. As well, we have some news on a prolific local cover band's new weekly role that will be familiar for long-time fans, so here's what you should know!
Local hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will play his third solo headlining concert at The Mike Case Memorial Stage at The Trading Post TOMORROW NIGHT! Apologies for the short notice, Tym only announced this show via it's Facebook event page on Sunday, though this date did have two more days' word than last week's show there. Given how quickly Tym's dates at The Trading Post's outdoor concert stage have piled up (this will be his third show there in four weeks), he's clearly making a good impression, and it's great to see Tym finding a new locale to play concerts are frequently in this late stage of the pandemic! Like Tym's two shows at 1332 Great Northern Road last month, TOMORROW'S date is a 2 hour set at 7:00 PM with no cover charge or age limit. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Tym live!
Next up, let's head to Sault Michigan, where local hard rock trio Tarnished are rocking The Northern Pines Lounge at the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT as previously announced, but that's not all for them this weekend, as they will also play outside of Crooked Music at 540 Ashmun Street THIS SATURDAY as the closing act during the local music store's slate of live musicians during the returning Sidewalk Sales event! Again, apologies for the short notice on Sidewalk Sales, Crooked Music only announced who was performing on their Facebook page on Monday. Tarnished have confirmed that they will be the headliners at 3:00 PM, and while they didn't specify if this would be a two-man acoustic set or not, their current three-piece lineup is pictured in event advertising. That said, the other acts are all acoustic leaning, so who else is playing on SATURDAY?
The apparent performance order also includes Rudyard Musicians Festival regular Kevin Blakeney at 2:00 PM (he does cover some grunge/alternative songs), while Project 906 singer Billy Bernier & guitarist Joe Jenkins will play a rare acoustic duo set at 1:00 PM. Nice to see them 906 back in the Soo for the first time since the pandemic begin, even without Dustin & Gary, so don't bypass their set! The preceding artists are all solo, including former Pick-Me-Ups frontman Trevor "T.S." Yake at 12:00 PM (no word on if his modern day music is punk-leaning), ex-Inspid Brutality guitarist Tyler Dettloff's current blues project at 11:00 AM, and classic rock/country musician Annis George leading off at 10:00 AM. Crooked Music's Sidewalk Sales Serenade is FREE & ALL AGES, snacks of some kind will also be available, and consider shopping at the store and at other participating local merchants on SATURDAY!
As for Tarnished's Kewadin dates in St. Ignace, attendees will be able to see Alex, Nathan, and Josh in more traditional setting delivering their usual hard rocking covers and originals for gathered fans, so don't miss out there either! Those shows are tomorrow and Saturday night at 9:00 PM with 21+ age limits and no cover charges, and both there and at Crooked Music, please respect either venue's current social distancing/mask protocols where applicable to ensure everyone's safety. Click here and visit the above links for more details on all three dates, and here's Tarnished live!
Finally, this isn't a full fledged concert per say, but Sault Ontario classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck began hosting the weekly Thursday open mic nights at Reggie's West last week, and night #2 of their run there begins tonight! Now, this isn't a new concept for Terry Eaton-featured local band, as their predecessors Mourning Wood did host a brief series of open mic nights at The Rednecks Saloon in 2015, but this time, it's not a brand new thing for this venue, as blues rock cover trio Mojo had been hosting the Thursday jam nights at Reggie's West successfully for a few years. However, Mojo have moved their open mic nights downtown to Reggie's Place (I don't know if that was their call, the venue's, or both), so Soundcheck have stepped in to keep the open mic nights going at The Reggievelt. That said, historically, I don't cover open mic nights as concerts on the SMS.
By design, these events allow for an unknown number of outside performers, either joining the house band or by themselves, and if things are busy enough, there's no guarantee that the house band will even play much. Still, open mic nights are fun and a good way for musicians to play on stage without the usual stress, and you'll likely see Soundcheck tackle some hard hitting classic covers in between time, so keep their second open mic night in mind for tonight at around 9:00 PM! 19+, no cover. That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
Today's post is all-Sault Michigan based, and it includes an upcoming album, new videos from two sources, and the rest of this weekend's concert previews, including a SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERT! Without any further adieu, here's what you need to know!
Local hard rock quartet Project 906 have one more show taking place this weekend, as they'll play a special acoustic set TODAY at 5:00 PM at Crooked Music during the first day of this year's Sidewalk Sales! Apologies again for the short notice, their involvement was only confirmed via a post on their Facebook page last night, with the Ashmun Street music/record store not announcing a performer lineup publically. We've sporadically covered musical involvement in the annual Sidewalk Sales when bands like Free Refill & Tantrym Tyme signalled in advance that they were playing somewhere along Ashmun, so this isn't new territory, but with grim weather reports for any hopes of outdoor music TODAY, Crooked Music are preparing to move things into the store proper, so don't worry, they aren't being rained out! No word on why this will be an acoustic set from Project 906, or if they'll be playing short-handed, but remember that guitarist Joe Jenkins is an instructor at the former Grooves Music.
Of course, if you want to see Project 906 in full electric glory, head to Moloney's Alley TONIGHT for a more typical concert! Again, a performer lineup at Crooked Music has not been publicized, but Project 906 are headlining at 5:00 PM, and I can see co-owner Zac Crook playing solo somewhere between the 9:00 AM start time & 906's set. Lots of music will be had at Crooked Music TODAY, and this is FREE and ALL AGES as one would expect at the sales, so check the above links for more details, click here for complete non-musical details on the sales and related events this weekend, and here's Project 906 live, sort of!
Next up, here are this weekend's final hard rock concert previews (barring another short notice announcement), as local classic/hard rock cover quartet Highway 63 are scheduled to return to The Northern Pines Lounge at the Kewadin Shores Casino in St. Ignace TONIGHT & TOMORROW NIGHT! Last seen over a month ago at the same venue, the Monkey's Uncle successors should have a another solid weekend of fan favourite cover selections in store tonight and/or tomorrow, so if you've missed them lately or want another round, you have two chances this weekend! Note that Kewadin's entertainment page does not list these shows in their concert calendar, but Highway 63's Facebook page has publically acknowledged them a few times, most recently in a comment reply on July 22nd. Tonight and tomorrow's shows have 21+ age limits, no announced cover charges, and 9:00 PM start times. Check the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's some new Highway 63 videos!
Shared to their Facebook page via frontman Henry Switzer's wife/guitarist Nathan Switzer's step-mom Kristina's personal Facebook page late last month, these are practice session videos, including one of Henry singing Styx's "Too Much Time On My Hands" in-studio while testing his sequencer. Embedded below is her video of the guys covering Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love", and while only Henry is visible, the rest of the band is there out of frame (why not turn the camera on it's side?) Solid covers from this talented veteran quartet, and a unique look at them playing in studio rather than on stage, so give them a look above & below!
Also today, here's the latest from Dafter hard rock artist Ken "SweetKenny" Sutton, who has announced that his 22nd official solo album is entitled "The Dogs Are Watching", and it will officially come out on August 18th (two weeks from today!) This is SweetKenny's ninth official album to serve primary intent as an instrumental score for usage in movies, video games, or television, though this one is a return to a score with an conceptual theme, this time about hackers ending excessive oversight from government watchdogs, hence the title. Though it's paid release through Waterfall Records won't occur for two weeks, you can stream all 10 songs via SweetKenny's website. I won't review the album imminently on the site, as we just reviewed Ken's February 2017 album "Epic" in May, but if it fits for a review in November once our 6 month anti-bias buffer clears, you could see it or another newer SweetKenny album then, so keep that timeframe in mind!
While this may not thrill fans hoping for a true follow-up to SweetKenny's most recent traditional hard rock album "In Your Face", this score should be another interesting listen for fans (and potential clients) of his scores, so give it a listen at the above links, and stay tuned for details on it's formal release later this month!
Finally for today, we'll come full circle with some new videos from the aforementioned Crooked Music's Facebook page, as co-owner (and Half Stupid/Plastic alum) Zac Crook is featured testing out new stock at the store by jamming some classic rock in these videos from July 28th. One video features Zac jamming Frank Zappa on a new guitar and amplifier, but embedded below is Zac playing Led Zeppelin's "Over the Hills & Far Away" on a new Martin 12 string guitar. These short videos showcase this talented local musician in fine form, and this is good press for their new gear, so give his videos a look above & below, and stay tuned for more news and notes on The Sault Metal Scene soon! Thanks everyone!
Here's some assorted news and notes for your Saturday, including some cool video finds online relating to a local drummer and a Sault Michigan band, some new material from a local solo artist, and leading things off, a concert relocation, so here's what you need to know!
Veteran local metal band Hollow will still have two shows over their one weekend reunion next week, and they won't have to go too far for a new spot for the Saturday concert! The band announced on the Facebook event page yesterday that their concert originally scheduled for August 6th (one week from today) has been moved from The Canadian Nightclub to Bossy's Pub & Grub, which is just seconds down the road. A move for the Saturday show was necessitated due to the flooding at The Canadian two weeks ago, but it's nice to see that they found a conveniently close new spot! We haven't talked much about Bossy's here, but since changing their name from Smack Daddy's Bar & Grill earlier this year, they've gotten more into concert booking, bringing bands like Redundant and Asylum Country there to rock Bossy's on weekends. Add Hollow to the list for this coming Saturday! No other changes have been reported, though the cover charge could be different, as I don't know what cover Bossy's usually has, if any. Get more details at the official Facebook event page! Nice spot for the moved show, but if that date doesn't work for you, remember that Hollow will still be at The Rockstar Bar on Friday night! I hope to be at the show at Bossy's (more convenient for me time and location-wise), and hopefully you guys can also come out for the big reunion shows! Check the above links for more!
Next up, Late & Loud guitarist Brendan Christie has posted three new solo instrumental songs onto his solo project's MySpace page! Unlike the softer "Foot Of This Hill", these are heavier leaning, so here's what you should know! One is called "The March", and it's a slow metal song that does feel like a march is in progress, with some nice driving rhythms and melodies mixed in! It could probably be built on more for a fuller song, but it's very promising! Also new to his page is part 1 of a solo song named "Quantum Mechanix", which is just 69 seconds long, but gives us a cool look at a slower cymbal-heavy metal number! I definitely wanna see where it leads, cause it starts well enough, but there's not a lot to go on with it yet. The other new song is a rough draft called "Shining Down", which feels the most like a complete song of the three, with nice tempo and heaviness changes, and a great guitar solo section! Brendan has some real talent, and it'd be interesting to see him package some of these songs into Late & Loud originals after they returned from their hiatus! Check the above links to give his newest original songs (and more) a listen!
We'll close today with videos, and first, here's some older videos I just came across yesterday of Sault Michigan hard rockers Free Refill! With a summer gig finally popping up for them at the Sugar Island Music Festival, I did some researching to see if they had anything else new online, and I found some videos on their website I'd never seen before! These are actually from the band's set at the annual Sidewalk Sales in Sault Michigan from August 2009, and though they've been on YouTube since shortly afterwards (courtesy of user amourdete's YouTube channel), I've only just seen them now! The videos all feature their former five-piece lineup (including ex-guitarist Tyler Wall), and they're of Free Refill covering Pearl Jam's "Even Flow", AC/DC's "Back In Black", and The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army". The band do a good job overall, though Mary Gilbert's vocals sound forced on "Back In Black". The video quality is odd... it looks clear, but there's odd "purple dot" pixelization that I can't really describe, but the audio works! Nice videos, and it's good to finally see them, as Free Refill footage isn't readily available online. Check the above links for more of these videos, and here's the band's cover of "Even Flow" from 2009's Sidewalk Sales!
And finally, here's a random recent video find featuring As It Stands drummer John Mignacca! This video comes courtesy of the YouTube channel of Dave Hunter, frontman of the local pop punk band For July & owner of idioRECORDS, the former label home of John's old band Out Of The Mouth Of Babes. The video, which was uploaded on Monday, is of John playing a pretty cool drum solo on For July's own drumkit, and it shows John's talents well! They should have him do solos at As It Stands shows more often! However, the video has lots of swearing despite it's 64 second length, so if you're easily offended, take note. Worth a look though to see John laying out a solid drum solo, so check the video out below!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes very soon, including my preview of Monday's Alcoholic White Trash show and much more! Thanks everyone!
Hey gang, this is a surprise auto-post while my computer's being fixed up at Staples. I had too much news to let sit, so I had to get a post in, even if it's while I'm without my computer! This is a packed one, including many updates from Woods of Ypres, a band continuing their search to play here, and to begin, LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!! So here's what you need to know!
Free Refill are back! The young local hard rock band from Sault Michigan will make their long awaited return to the local concert scene for three shows in the next couple of months, which I'm pretty sure are their first since a December talent show performance at Sault Area High School! Not counting talent shows, I think these are their first live concert appearances since last year's departure of guitarist Tyler Wall. It's great to see them back, I wonder where they've been for the first half of the year? The band returns to the stage on August 7th at 4:00 PM as one of the live entertainers at this year's Sidewalk Sales on Ashmun Street! So while you get some great deals from local merchants, you can enjoy some live free music from Free Refill, who are no strangers to playing at Sidewalk Sales! The band will also be among the live entertainers at this year's Sugar Island Music Festival from August 13th-15th! Note that their MySpace page incorrectly says they're playing on the 12th, which is before the festival starts, so they're likely on the 13th. This is an all ages festival on Sugar Island with loads of family activities and many different bands, click here for details! No word on if any other local hard rock/metal bands will be a part, but for what it's worth, Nixxon Dixxon have played this festival in the past.
Their other new concert will be on September 25th on Portage Avenue on the outdoor stage that will be setup for this year's Oktoberfest! Still don't get why Oktoberfest is held in September, but hey, can't argue with beer and bratwurst no matter the month! Again, this is a free all ages event, like the rest of their scheduled shows. This one and the Sugar Island Festival performance are at 9:00 PM. Odd to see just outdoor festival gigs, but it's better than nothing! It's great to finally see Free Refill back on the scene, check out the above links for more concert details and stuff from the band!
Next up, we have loads of updates from Woods of Ypres as they near the end of their North American tour, so here's what you should know! Firstly, the third entry in bassist Shane Madden's tour diary is now up at this location, and it's another good read, as he chronicles the band's tour dates from San Diego, California to San Marcos, Texas! He details the summer heat of the American Southwest, the band's experiences in their shows down there, the mistaken belief that they covered Sentenced, the varying levels of competent promotion, and the various partying and fun goings on as the tour continues! Another good read with new concert photos and mid-tour sights, check it out here! Also, before we get to new videos, I have good news and bad news on the Woods of Ypres front. The bad news is that their tour van's windows were smashed last night during a stop in Brooklyn following their New York City concert last night. Their GPS and other items were stolen, but thankfully none of their gear, so the tour continues! Shades of the Adversarium incident from last August in Vancouver, or their windshield demolition from their drive to Thunder Bay on this tour? Well, nice to see them trucking along! The good news comes from a tweet from London, Ontario music video company Handshake Inc., who posted the following on Twitter on Wednesday:
we will be shaving @DavidYpresand make him jump off a cliff for the Woods of Ypres video shoot this weekend.
Catch that? A Woods of Ypres video shoot! Awesome to see, I've been hoping for a new Woods of Ypres music video since they released their video for "The Northern Cold"! Man, that was back when David Gold has long hair and the band used keyboards! Too bad that David's shaving for the video, he has a Varg Vikernes-vibe that's very metal right now! Still, seeing a new Woods of Ypres music video will be awesome, I wonder which song they'll choose?
Speaking of videos, there's plenty of new videos online from recent Woods of Ypres concerts! Two are from drummer Evan Madden's YouTube channel, again both from the "drum cam" angle! Both are of the same songs "The Shams of Optimism" and "Crossing The 45th Parallel", the first of which went up 6 days ago! It was from their San Marcos show, and though the video quality is excellent, it cuts off after 7:23 due to a full camera card, so I'll upload the other one, but view it here! The other is from their Houston show. It's darker, but no worse musically, they're great songs, and you get a better view of the rest of the band! I've embedded it below, along with one more Woods of Ypres video! The other one I'm embedding comes from the band's Philadelphia concert, and is one of EIGHT concert videos uploaded by YouTube user impaledonafence1! The videos are VERY dark, but they're widescreen and have very clear audio of what is most of the band's set that night, if not all of it! For the sake of variety, and for it's obvious local connection, I've uploaded the video of the band playing "Your Ontario Town Is A Burial Ground" below as well, so check out the new Woods videos!
Finally for today, a metal band still wants to play a show in Sault Ontario! Vancouver drone metal duo Ahna are still hoping for a local booking, and they need YOUR HELP! Singer/bassist Graham contacted me on MySpace to look for some help getting a show here for either September 28th or October 27th. He told me that they didn't have any luck directly contacting venues for help to get a show here, so the call is out again! If you work at a venue, book shows, are interested in booking shows, or just like Ahna's music and would like to help, contact the band on MySpace TODAY! Ahna have a very unique sound that I detailed back in March when I first told you about them, they have no guitarist, they play very slow and heavy metal that I really can't effectively describe without doing them an injustice. Check them out on MySpace and see what you think, cause we definitely don't get this kind of stuff very often! Let's help Ahna out, I'd love to see them here, I can't be alone!
That's definitely all for today, but saying that my computer's back, I WILL have a new post on Saturday before I head downtown! I hope to see you guys at Foggy Notions and/or at The Rotaryfest Second Stage outside of The Grand Theater! Frightlight and other acts are rocking out for an awesome cause, and Garden of Bedlam are ending Rotaryfest with a bang, and I'll be at both tomorrow! See you guys there tomorrow night, I should have reviews and other goodies on Sunday!
