At last, we have some YouTube videos to share from Friday night's first annual Superior Festival, and that's the focus of today's post, so what should you know? All courtesy of frequent regional concert filmer Christopher Paci's YouTube channel once again, he filmed 10 videos from the show, including every band save for Sault Ontario openers The Elements and Mourning Wood (not sure why, but they were the opening two bands, so if he was running late, that'd explain it.) Oddly, I haven't heard a whole lot from those bands online concerning how their sets went, and I've only found a single photo from Mourning Wood's set, but to be fair, both bands only sporadically update their Facebook pages. There is some big lineup news to note from Mourning Wood though in time for their next shows, so stay tuned for that later this week! And yes, the festival was held inside The Savoy Bar & Nightclub rather than outside for unannounced reasons, despite the lack of rain on Friday. Maybe it was logistically easier?
Six of Chris' ten videos are of the headliners, Mississippi hard rock quintet Saving Abel, whose videos from the show were of their songs "Addicted", "18 Days", "15 Minutes To Fame", "The Sex Is Good", their set-opener "Ready To Burn", and as embedded below, "Drowning (Face Down)", complete with frontman Scott Austin calling fans to come up closer to the stage. It's odd seeing a platinum selling band like this at a venue like The Savoy, but the more intimate environment is great to interact with the fans, and I like how their sound has gotten a bit heavier since Scott took over on vocals! Good audio, and Chris got a nice close angle of the festivities, so give his videos a look above & below!
Rochester, New York post-hardcore band Lights Out Paris co-headlined on Friday in their second local concert appearance, and Christopher filmed them playing one of their more melodic originals, "Rochester To Rochester". Not bad for the genre, and it's definitely something different compared to what Sault Michigan shows often get, but their more aggressive material had more of an impact on me than this one. Not bad though, so check it out below!
Chris also got two videos of Sault Michigan metal quartet Tantrym Tyme (with debuting second guitarist Michael McLeod) covering Alter Bridge's "Metalingus" and, as embedded below, The Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Dani California". We already featured the band's own clip of the Alter Bridge cover on here yesterday, hence why the Chili Peppers cover is in this post, but I will concede that this song is not a good fit for Tantrym Tyme. They excel on heavier and more melodic songs, and Jacob Hotlen is almost inaudible on vocals here, but their talent still comes through, and give their videos from the Superior Festival a look above and below as well!
Last of Chris' clips from the festival is Muskegon hard rock band Voodoo Theory (in their local concert debut, I believe) covering The Foo Fighters' "Everlong". Not a bad rendition of this Foo Fighters classic, but like above, this cover doesn't fully show their energetic modern hard rock sound seen on their originals. Still solid, so give it a look, and hopefully they're back again!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!
Now, let's dive into the first of this weekend's concert previews in a fairly busy weekend for hard rock and metal concerts! We'll get into the Diemonds, Banned, and Stiffler's Mom shows, plus potential late notice ones, tomorrow, so stay tuned then for them, but today, we have a big debuting festival and some performers with gigs TONIGHT, so here's what you should know!
Local hard rock solo singer/guitarist Tym Morrison's ongoing weekly concerts at Gliss Steak & Seafood and The Harp Bar & Grill are expected to continue this weekend, including matinees at Gliss TONIGHT, TOMORROW, and SATURDAY, and regular nighttime shows at The Harp TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Though yet to be acknowledged on Facebook, his website and SooToday's entertainment page confirm them. Tym's been staying busy in recent months by playing five shows almost every weekend, and it looks like more of the same this week, so if you enjoy his acoustic renditions of hard rock classics, head down to either Gliss or The Harp this weekend for all of his solo action! None of the shows have an announced cover charge (but remember that Gliss is a restaurant), the Harp shows are 19+ and start at 10:00 PM, and the Gliss shows start at 6:00 PM. For more details, visit the above links, and here's Tym live in Heyden a few years back!
Next up, pageless local classic/hard rock quartet RPM will make their Roberta Bondar Pavilion debut TONIGHT as part of the city's annual Summer Concert Series! Yes, the veteran quartet featuring Lindsay Pugh and alumni of his adult music camp will hit the downtown outdoor stage as the third last of 16 bands this summer, and the only one that we cover on the SMS as playing hard rock in any high quantity. RPM are developing well, and though their announced concerts are sporadic at best, consider a trip down to the Pavilion to see them tonight for some entertaining cover favourites! This is a FREE & ALL AGES event, and they'll be playing for two hours starting at 7:00 PM. For more details, visit this link, and here's RPM live!
We'll close this first preview post with the first annual Superior Festival, which goes down TOMORROW NIGHT! Promoted by Superior Entertainment, this Sault Michigan concert event was originally scheduled to take place two weeks ago at Aune-Osborne Park, but after concerns with possible rain (that barely came, for the record) impacting the outdoor festival, promoters postponed it and moved it 5 minutes up the road to The Savoy Bar & Nightclub where it will be held outdoors a'la the venue's Summerfest events (it would be moved indoors if there was inclement weather, but the festival should beat tomorrow's storm forecast.) Fitting a big debuting summer festival, the headliners are Mississippi Mississippi hard/modern rock quintet Saving Abel, best known for hit songs like "Addicted", "The Sex Is Good", and "Drowning (Face Down)", so if you missed Saving Abel at Kewadin Casino in April, here's your next chance! The co-headliners are Rochester, New York post-hardcore quintet Lights Out Paris, who you may recognize from last month's P.O.D. concert.
Other openers will include young local metal trio Tantrym Tyme in their first publically announced concert of the summer, Muskegon hard rock quartet Voodoo Theory in their local concert debut, and in a bit of a surprise, two Sault Ontario bands, marking rare cross-border appearances by local bands that aren't Touch of Class. Those bands are local funk/hard rock quartet The Elements and classic/hard rock trio Mourning Wood, and though neither band has acknowledged their involvement on their own pages, it's great to see them expanding their presence, and hopefully they make some new fans tomorrow! Note that a number of acts were removed from the lineup when the date and venue changed, those being Integrated System of Machines, Power Slug, Retro Troop, Terry Talentino, and Detroit punk trio Heroes of Charlotte, while early coverage of the festival listed Lonestar, Chump Change, and Missy Zenker as tentative acts, so don't expect to see any of them at The Savoy tomorrow night.
Presented by SooToday & sponsored by Kewadin Casino despite not being held there, the Superior Festival tarting TOMORROW at 7:00 PM, tickets are a flat $25, but previously purchased tickets (including the old discount kids rate) will be honoured upon entry. You can buy them at The Savoy, by phone at (906) 430-5242, or at the door, and yes, minors under 21 can attend if accompanied by an adult. For complete festival details, visit the above links! Though original plans didn't fall into place for the Superior Festival, hopefully this is a huge hit to ensure that it comes back next year! If you love hard and modern rock, be at The Savoy TOMORROW, and here's Saving Abel live!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for more previews and updates shortly! Thanks everyone!
Before we dip back into Rotaryfest fallout, let's touch on some non-Rotaryfest updates today before they fall way behind on us, so what's on the bill for this Tuesday morning? New videos from bands on each side of the border, and leading off, a huge LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for early next month, so here's what you should know!
A long teased outdoor concert festival is now official for Sault Michigan on Saturday, August 8th, as Superior Entertainment are bringing us the first annual Superior Festival that day at the Aune-Osborne Campground at 1225 Riverside Drive! As previously revealed but not yet 100% finalized in this Sault Evening News article, the minds behind the P.O.D. concert will bring back Mississippi hard/modern rock quintet Saving Abel as headliners, following their concert at Kewadin Casino in April, while a stacked and varied lineup of regional and out of town talent is also secured, so who else is on board? In listed order, bands will include local epic metal quintet Integrated System of Machines (in their second show since reuniting), Rochester, New York post-hardcore band Lights Out Paris (who played the P.O.D. show), Muskegon hard rock quartet Voodoo Theory, young local hard rock trio Tantrym Tyme, and veteran local hard rockers Power Slug.
The lineup is rounded out by young Detroit punk trio Heroes of Charlotte, Chump Change frontman Terry Talentino in a solo set, and in the biggest surprise of all, Sault Ontario classic/hard rock trio Mourning Wood, in a rare cross-border set by a local band (Touch of Class aside.) Very encouraging, hopefully more of this can happen! Note that the above Sault Evening News article listed Nashville country band Lonestar, Chump Change proper, and local country/pop artist Missy Zenker as tentative acts for the lineup, but none are listed on the Facebook event page as of this writing. An ALL AGES event at the campground/park by the waterfront and the East Portage Avenue transition to Riverside, the Superior Festival will start at 12:00 PM and run until 11:00 PM at night, though a full schedule of set times is not public yet. The event will have $25 tickets (great deal!) or $10 for youths 15 and under, though if you're 17 or under, you must be accompanied by an adult (bummer for 16 & 17 year olds though.)
Though not being hosted at Kewadin Casino, their website and the in-person box office will have tickets, so head to either to get hooked up, and check the above links for more details! This sounds like a great event, if very ambitious, but hopefully there's a great turnout and weather to match in just under three weeks! If we couldn't get LemmaFest V this year, the Superior Festival will fill the gap just fine, so stay tuned for updates when & if they come in, and get your tickets A.S.A.P.!
We'll close today with new videos, including this new concert video from Sault Michigan hard rock quartet Ten Kings! Filmed during one of their St. Ignace concerts this past weekend at their Kewadin Casino, this was filmed by attendee Dawn Brown and shared on the band's Facebook page on Sunday. Like most of their videos, this is a short one (77 seconds), and mostly spotlights guitarist Joe Jenkins covering Van Halen's classic instrumental "Eruption" (which I assume segued into "You Really Got Me", but the video cuts off before then.) Strongly done, Joe's a clear talent, so give it a look!
Finally for today, we'll close things back in Sault Ontario with a new video from local alternative hard rock trio The Pixo Control, as per their Facebook page last week! Labelled a "Caroline Divine tribute" (complete with members of that band jokingly replying in the comments), it appears to be a short style parody of their sound and live show from Pixo Control members Michael Mikus and Steve Edwards (on drums here), but see what you think below!
That's all for now, but stay tuned for the first of our Rotaryfest fallout posts later today! Thanks everyone!
