Not A Leap Year Party & Project 906 Previews, Plus Double Down & Tym Morrison Videos!!

As promised, here's the rest of this weekend's hard rock concert previews, and in case you were wondering, the late replacement band at The Esquire Club was covered in an update to yesterday's post below this one, Along with this weekend's remaining heavier shows, we also have new videos from acts not playing live imminently, so here's what you should know!

We'll start with in Michigan for this post, as Sault Ste. Marie blues/hard rock cover quintet Project 906 will play at The Strongs Tavern in Eckerman TOMORROW NIGHT! Historically a favourite venue for the 906 crew despite not playing a public concert there since July, tomorrow's show will be the first from Billy, Joe, Dustin, Jason, and Brian since rocking the Snowsfest weekend at Snow's Bar & Grill in Cedarville two weeks ago. Hopefully there's a solid crowd beating the winter blues in Eckerman tomorrow for Project 906's entertaining blend of hard rock covers, and there's lots of videos online to sample what they bring to the table! As usual for their trips an hour west to Eckerman, tomorrow's Strongs Tavern concert is an 8:00 PM affair with a 21+ age limit and no cover charge. Visit the above link for more details on Project 906's Strongs concert tomorrow night, and for a preview, here they are live last year!

Next up, if you've missed a multi-band concert in Sault Ontario in recent months, this might fit the bill, as local promoters Underground Events SSM are hosting a "Not A Leap Year Party" TOMORROW NIGHT! While this is a house party concert (something I usually don't cover due to their not-usually-public nature), this is a publically advertised event on Bruce Street with an admission fee and 19+ age limit, and while they don't give the exact address, there will be balloons outside the locale so you know where to go! Specifically, the venue is being called "Mellow D's Basement", which is an allusion to the former pop-up venue Mellow D's Underground. Six acts will gather in said basement tomorrow, including new local ska punk trio A.S.D.P. (in their first concert set since releasing their debut album "Atom Bombs & Lemonade"), party metal trio The Apocalypse Afterparty, and online page-less space rock duo The Spaceship Opening (featuring A.S.D.P. drummer Ralph Barber).

As well, three solo acoustic acts will be playing tomorrow, namely Sylo frontman Eli Russell, folk singer/guitarist Gimiiwan Ikwe, and former Vanity First frontman Andrew Keith (Beggs). Promoted by A.S.D.P. frontman/Apocalypse Afterparty bassist Mikhal "Châ" Muto, this show has a $10 cover charge (or "suggested donation"), and doors open at 5:00 PM. An intriguing event for sure, especially as these six acts do not collectively update social media much, so come to Bruce Street tomorrow for all of the action, and look for the balloons! See above for more details, and here's The A.A. live!

Also today, let's talk about two acts that aren't playing this weekend, but have new videos to share, starting with classic/hard rock cover quartet Double Down! As you may recall, they played their first show with bassist Dan Beaupre in six months this past weekend at The Water Tower Pub, and while there are videos from the show on their Facebook page, both of them have guest performers. One is a cover of Traffic's "Dear Mr. Fantasy" (possibly the Big Sugar version) with guitarist Joel Syrette on vocals and RPM's Joseph Bertrand on drums in place of Ric Datson. Still a relatively original cover choice as local bands go, and the guys do a good job with it! Joseph shows his stuff well behind the kit too, and don't bypass RPM, they have developed a good following with their own classic rock covers! The other video is embedded below, and it features the return of Mid Life Crysis bassist Lori Reinholtz, who was Dan's "stunt double" for most of his absence.

Thanked for helping Double Down out with this Cameo video by musician/social media personality Joey Breaux, Lori did two songs last week as a guest singer, with the filmed one being Joan Jett & The Blackhearts' "I Hate Myself For Loving You" (yes, Ric was back on drums here). While both videos are sadly vertical and incomplete, they are unique in that guitarist Beej Syrette filmed them with a headcam while performing, so we got to see his direct point of view on both videos. The audio quality is kinda tinny on both, but you sure get a different view of everything this way, and it'd be interesting to see Beej (let alone other local musicians) do this more! Check both videos out!

Finally for today, let's talk about local hard rock/metal solo musician Tym Morrison, who is taking a break from concerts until at least late March while he heals up from a broken pinky finger. He's not staying musically idle though, as he has posted four original songs to his YouTube channel in the past two weeks! All have accompanying music videos featuring assorted linked video clips, though be advised that some feature apparent generative AI. One song is an instrumental metal song named "Moon Patrol" that you may remember as being planned for his unreleased second album. The other three seem to be new, and the only one to exceed two minutes is "Jesus Save Me", which leans heavily into his faith. It is a lyric video if you wanna sing along! The other two new tracks are secular, including a comedy rock song named "Liar Liar Pants On Fire", which is about who the title suggests!

Embedded below is his new metal instrumental "Frantic Delay". It's good to see some heavy new music from Tym, who gets to let loose on these tracks and shred to his standards (granted, I assume these all predate his broken finger), and his singing voice is put to good use on the two songs with lyrics! Note that only "Jesus Save Me" even cracks 2 minutes in length. Give Tym's new songs/videos a look above and below, and we'll let you know if he has more material to post before he returns to the stage!

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

Details On The Fox 104.3's Saturday-Sunday On-Air Schedule!!

Today on the SMS, we're outlining the weekend schedule on The Fox 104.3 FM, which is quite different than what listeners to CJQM will be accustomed to from Monday-Friday! Remember, there is no "Shows" tab on the station's website yet, but the schedule is more or less verbatim to what you'll hear on Q92 in Sudbury and their sister stations in North Bay, Timmins, and Kingston. After spending much of Saturday mornings on autoplay music rotation, the first scheduled program of the day is This Year In Rock, which airs from 11:00 AM-12:00 PM with a re-airing from 6:00-7:00 PM. Hosted by Adam Kane of 92.1 CITI in Winnipeg, he looks at ten notable rock songs from a given calendar year, while he also outlines historical events and milestones from the year in question, often with a Canadian slant. The local premiere episode from January 11th was on 1976, while this Saturday's episode focused on 1978.

This show is roughly comparable in purpose to the syndicated Time Warp with Bill St. James on Sault Michigan's Rock 101, though Time Warp is four hours long and has more of a sonic collage of audio clips beyond just songs (also, the two shows do not conflict, as Time Warp runs on Saturdays from 6:00-10:00 AM). I like hearing more modern tunes than what This Year In Rock has focused on so far, but classic rock fans should be into it, and Adam's trivia and facts add some spice! From 12:00-6:00 PM on Saturdays, you'll hear Dan Koo (the Country 104.3 holdover in the 2:00-6:00 PM weekday timeslot) back in the booth, and after the This Year In Rock replay at 6:00 PM, the last scheduled program on Saturdays from 7:00-9:00 PM is The Biggs & Barr Show with Pastey Jamie, the Ottawa-based zoo crew show heard on The Fox weeknights from 6:00-8:00. Less unique programming, but there's lots to enjoy for rock fans!

For the record, Biggs & Barr were followed on Saturday the 11th by the syndicated Greg Beharrell Show from 9:00 PM-2:00 AM, but Greg's show has not visibly resurfaced on the former Q104 since that night. If you liked what you heard on the first three nights after the format change, or are curious as to how Greg is on air, click here to find his current affiliates!

Lastly for the regular schedule on The Fox 104.3 is the biggest diversion of all, as Sundays there are Classic Rock Sundays! From 6:00 AM until midnight, CJQM and their sister rock stations devote 18 consecutive hours to music almost entirely from the 1960s-1980s, which will please classic rock fans and former The Bear listeners to no end! In terms of scheduled programming, Sunday's first show (from 9:00 AM-12:00 PM) is the Church Of Rock, which is hosted by Cosmo Grant out of CHEZ 106 in Ottawa. This program is loosely themed around being an actual Sunday church service, with Cosmo's "sermons" being trivia and context on certain songs. Informative program with a good range of classics, and I even heard a couple of 1950s songs on air during the Church of Rock! Note that the show's first hour does run opposite the last hour of The Chop Shop with Steve Black on Rock 101, in case you're planning what to hear.

From 12:00-8:00 PM on Classic Rock Sundays, DJs are in the booth, with the first being "Big" Kris Bawden (a.k.a. BK) until 4:00 PM. BK isn't otherwise an on-air personality on The Fox or Q92, but he is also out of CHEZ in Ottawa. The Fox's weekday afternoon DJ Lew MacDonald takes over from 4:00-8:00, and he is definitely well tuned to classic rock, as he also hosts the Classic Rock Lunch from 12:00-1:00 PM on weekdays. The last scheduled program of the weekend is the Sunday Night Vinyl Series, which airs at 8:00 PM and seems to have a somewhat variable end time. Each week, host Howard Manshein (also out of CITI in Winnipeg) plays a notable rock album in full, from front to back, while adding trivia and context before and afterwards, as well as at the midpoint when the vinyl would be flipped over from side A to side B (nice touch!) For the local premiere episode, the album played was Rush's "Moving Pictures".

Last night's album was Van Halen's 1978 self-titled debut, and if you noticed that both albums were by the band who was spotlighted with their very own "week" of coverage and extra songs played on air, you're not alone! I don't know whether the Sunday Night Vinyl Series selection is made prior to or as a result of what band gets the weekly focus, but keep that in mind going forward! It does go head to head with the second hour of the modern hard rock-focused hardDrive with Lou Brutus on Rock 101, so make note of that as well. Beyond the possibility of the Sunday Night Vinyl Series album being post-1989, I did catch at least one instance of a 1990s song being played during Classic Rock Sunday (Colin James' 1990 hit "Just Came Back" was definitely played one week ago), so the 1960s-1980s focus isn't 100% ironclad. Personally speaking, I honestly prefer The Fox's general rotation to Classic Rock Sundays, but there are still lots of good tunes then!

Myself, I do want to hear modern stuff along with older songs, but 18 hours of classic rock will have a lot of appeal for many listeners, especially with the Canadian content factor. If you want songs from the 1990s or this millennium though, you'll have to tune in before 6:00 AM Sundays, or wait until Monday. Barring future programming changes or hosts/DJs coming & going, this concludes our look at The Fox 104.3's on-air schedule, so hopefully this helps give a better look at what you're hearing on Sault Ontario's new rock station, and whether you're all-in on The Fox or if you like bopping between it and Rock 101 or any other stations as songs/shows dictate, enjoy this new variety on the local dial! Thanks everyone!

2023: A Look Back In The Year Of Local Metal, Hard Rock, And Punk

Happy New Year! I apologize for this only hitting the site now, but our year-in-review posts always take a long time to go back through the year that was, so I can catalogue the big events in the local metal, hard rock, and punk scene from pillar to post, and while I'm usually good to get it up on December 31st, time got away from me this year. Everything is done now though, and I hope I got to the biggest and most notable stories, events, and shows of last year, so here's our look back at 2023 on the SMS!

With the pandemic fading even more into the past, we had an even stronger lineup of touring metal, hard rock, and punk bands in Sault Ontario and area this year, including the likes of AMY/DC, B.A. Johnston, Bed Of Roses, Big Wreck, Cory Marks, Darsombra, The Dayglo Abortions, Destroyer, Josey Scott's Saliva, K-Man & The 45s, The Merves, Queen: It's A Kinda Magic, Random Killing, The Ripcordz, and Sponge all gracing a local stage in 2023! Local concert goers could check out multiple bands at events like Rotaryfest, Toystock, The Northern Vibe Festival, and Lopstock, while newer and unfamiliar venues like The Art Hub At Spring, Broers Jansen, The Distraction, The Loft, and The Queen of Hearts Club gave artists some welcomed options to book gigs at last year. Also last year: Storm Rausch won The Soo's Got Talent, four of Mikey Hawdon's past/present bands gathered at Soo Blaster in November in honour of his wedding, ...

...LopLops Lounge welcomed the 12 20 Musicians of Christmas last week, The Sault Community Theatre Centre hosted the Soo Soundcheck & Northern Echoes concerts in June, Mike Haggith joined forces with Brian Tremblay for the Face To Face storytellers' concert in May, and The Apocalypse Afterparty gave another metal shot in the arm to the Madchild and Robbie G rap concerts at Soo Blaster. Look for even more big concerts in Sault Ontario and area in the year ahead!

Sault Michigan and the Eastern Upper Peninsula had a quieter but still eventful year that was arguably peaked early when Pop Evil returned to The Dreammakers Theater at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino in March alongside special guests The Word Alive & Avoid. That was the only heavier Dreammakers Theater show last year, but fans could also see touring acts like The Almas, Cell Rush, Fyrbird, Ledhead, Overdrive Orchestra, Peril, Redburn, The Rock Show, Scarkazm, and Scotty Austin on regional stages. One of the big events of 2023 was the first ever battle of the bands at Lake Superior State University (won by new punk quartet The Sole Aggressors), the first event of its kind in either of the Twin Saults since the pandemic began! Fans could also check out the true public local debut of Heavy Lies The Crown at The 2nd Street Music Festival in St. Ignace in August, as well as many one-band gigs across the year!

In terms of general news events, fans got to see official music videos released from bands like Handsome Sandwich, Heavy Lies The Crown, Spades GT, Jonesy Land, and The Uncanny Valley, while the first three of those bands, Bone Yard, The Northwest, and Tarnished all hit the road for tour dates outside of the Soo area. Now in his new hometown of Barrie, Mike Haggith launched his own indie label MorningStar Records, with local artists signing on to the artist-friendly imprint as the year progressed, 2023 saw the passing of ex-415E drummer Tony Hubbard and Destroilet frontman Mike Hull, the cancellation of the Just Leppard/Saturday Night Special concert, the postponement of Skid Row & Buckcherry's Sault Michigan date, Mike Haggith's freak knee dislocation on stage at Rotaryfest, and the withdrawals of Tantric and a reunited Frightlight from concerts this year, but we also saw the opening of the downtown plaza, ...

...the huge multi-band private concert at Robbie's Church in Leeburn, Soundcheck guitarist Terry Eaton's Great Northern Opry induction, the return of The Rockstar Bar as an occasional live venue, and the debut of Sault Noir into the local concert promotion game. I'm sure 2024 will be just as, if not more eventful, for musicians in the Twin Saults!

As evidenced by our lack of archival album reviews in 2023, last year saw no shortage of album releases by local metal, hard rock, and punk bands! The year was bookended by two new albums from "the original crash band" Sykotyk Rampage, namely "Genius Mushrooms With Thoughts Of The Stoned Ape" & "69", while early year albums also included the C.T.W./Molten Imp split "Pyrolytic Punishment", Mike McCleary's instrumental EP "Fallout From Midnight Tides", and No Funeral's self-titled EP. Handsome Sandwich's long-hyped debut "Deconstructed" went on sale in May, soon followed by Convergence's debut EP "One", Jonesy Land's singer/songwriter-influenced debut "Zoom-Out", and Jack Spades GT's latest "Sewer City Radio". The summer also gave us rapper Bold Noize's debut punk album "God Save Me", new punk trio Ha!ls' debut EP "Rock and Rolls", and of course, Mike Haggith's long awaited studio album "All The Best In All You Do", including its limited "Rose Edition".

With a new EP from Convergence already on sale, and a teased EP from Handsome Sandwich already in the works, 2024 promises to be another good year for new studio material from heavier local musicians, so be sure to support these and other original local musicians' new & existing music by buying or streaming it where possible!

2023 was a good year for new and debuting hard rock and punk acts, and Sault Michigan was particularly busy in this regard late last year, with punk quartet The Sole Aggressors, hard rock quartet Double Jack, and Dafter-based singer/guitarist Molly Escherich stealing the podium spots at Lake Superior State University's battle of the bands over their far more established competition! Sault Ontario was hardly lacking either, with Generations, Double Down, Silent 9, HeadFirst, and (briefly) The Nostalgic Band all debuting on the weekend nightclub cover circuit in 2023 with many more shows between most of them to come. Also in 2023: Vanity First side project Ha!ls and Nebraska Arms successors Honest Work launched for local punk fans, Hollow Sky and Mitch Sirie's Sir Hell solo project brought some new extreme metal to the table, and Sneaky Pete successors Kickstart debuted at Toystock. Look for more updates from these and other new acts in the new year!

Another year saw lineup changes, additions, and departures in many local bands with none hit harder than Sault Michigan's Tarnished, with Nathan Webber and Isaac Royer breaking off in August to form Double Jack, with Tarnished adding Parker Talentino and carrying on as a trio ever since. Elsewhere in the E.U.P.: Jason VanLuven replaced Odin Osogwin on drums with Project 906, Marquita Bernard succeeded Rachel Mender as Theatre of Night's singer, Chris Leask returned to Rhythm & Brews in lieu of Brent Blackwood, and guitarist Christian Thanasiu left Heavy Lies The Crown. In Sault Ontario (well, Barrie), Spades GT confirmed the additions of James Roy Daley and (sometimes) Jay Sarrazin to their expanded lineup as they continued taking over the GTA. Also on the Canadian side: Jim Michaud replaced Paul Belair as Soundcheck's bassist, Tony Kajnar took over for Brandon Ruch on guitar in Generations, ...

...Mikhal Muto restored a second bassist to The Apocalypse Afterparty, Richard Fullerton returned to That's Chester for their Rotaryfest reunion in lieu of Greg Simpson, and the also-reunited Fuller swapped Nathan Sauve out for David Peredun behind the drumkit. These and a few other bands saw the revolving door for their lineups in 2023!

As far as defunct and inactive bands go in 2023, none made a larger exit from the local scene than Sault Ontario classic/hard rock cover quartet Obsession, who ended their 18 year run in February due to guitarist Gabe Tessaro's retirement from full-time bands, with the other members splintering off into Soundcheck and Silent 9. Most other bands to be moved to our inactive links this year (or are on the verge of it) did not announce a formal dissolution, but notable names to quietly fade out of activity this year include punk projects These Magnificent Tentacles and Forever Will Be, death metal quintet Exploring Detritus, rising young hard rock band Sylo (née Raincourt), and Foo Fighters tribute band The Soo Fighters, among others. Bands like No Funeral, The Bearded Lounge, The Uncanny Valley, and PROV3RB5 are also on our radar for being publically inactive for 6+ months. Here's hoping that these musicians stay active in some form or fashion!

As always for our year-end posts, we'll look at comebacks and reunions to wrap things up, and no event had a bigger public splash than The Inner City Surfers' reunion at Soo Blaster in November, and 2000s punk fans had even more to enjoy a month later when Fuller reunited at LopLops over the holidays (with The Gambit playing their first show in a year as openers!). That's Chester also returned for a one-off reunion set at Rotaryfest in July, while The Bear Hunters returned after a couple years' hiatus this summer, and punk trio Redundant ended a similarly long break at this year's Toystock. The former Jack Spades (GT), Theatre of Night, and The Karstens played their first Sault Ste. Marie concerts post-pandemic last year, while Galactic Alignment returned after a near decade long hiatus, Kraken Mara were reborn as Convergence, and they even brought former State of Misery singer Steve Rhodes back to a local radar as a session vocalist on select material!

2023 was an improvement for concerts and activity over every year preceding it in the 2020s, and here's hoping that the upward momentum continues in 2024 and beyond! I apologize again for the delay in this post making it online, but hopefully it refreshes some good memories of last year, and we'll resume normal operations on the site next! Thanks everyon!

2022: A Look Back In The Year Of Local Metal, Hard Rock, And Punk

As always, let's end the year for our last post of 2022 by looking back at the year that was for The Sault Metal Scene! 2022 got off to a quiet start out of COVID-19 pandemic-related necessity, as a partial lockdown in January and a rollback in indoor capacity measures ground most Sault Ontario concerts to a halt until March. Since then however, things have slowly gotten better, aided by the end of vaccine passports in February and indoor mask mandates in March, and while we're not back to where we were in 2019, this was our busiest year for positive news since then!

This was evidenced by touring acts to play in Sault Ontario and area this year, including names like The AC/DC Show, Alien To The Ignorant, B.A. Johnston, Blessed, Crush, The Glorious Sons, Gutter Creek, Just Leppard, The Killer Dwarfs, Marianas Trench, Pyramid Theorem, Sandman, Taming Sari, The Trews, and White Cowbell Oklahoma, not to mention two Queen tribute bands two months apart! Rotaryfest (Stages 1 and 2) and Toystock both returned to their full pre-pandemic splendor, while The Northern Vibe Festival returned with another stacked lineup in August, the long-delayed Glambition fundraiser finally took place, and the Clusterfolk Music Festival was reborn with a dual focus on music videos and young band promotion. Rap/rock hybrid shows also gained prominence via the multiple $onny Vybe$ benefit concerts and The Apocalypse Afterparty's involvement in rap gigs at Soo Blaster.

Loplops Lounge also resumed hosting in-person concerts in 2022, while Handsome Sandwich made multiple appearances during The Soo's Got Talent, Dryer Fire brought a wide array of genres to their Wilson Street temporary venue, and an impressive lineup of local musicians performed at Outspoken Brewing's second annual Oktoberfest at The Machine Shop. It's a slow process to get back to where we had them before March 2020, but this year had a lot of positive events if you looked for them!

Sault Michigan and the Eastern Upper Peninsula were not lacking for an uptick in concerts and live gigging bands in 2022 either, with The Dreammakers Theatre at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino hosting two high profile metal concerts this year, starting with the oft delayed Black Label Society concert on May 6th (with Nita Strauss opening!), followed by Steel Panther's holiday season return show on November 26th. Both were surely aided by the end of the PCR test requirement for Canadian travellers, of course. Touring hard rock bands like Fyrbird, Overdrive Orchestra, Peril, Scarkazm, Spun, and Sunspot made their way to the E.U.P. for multiple dates in 2022, while locals Buddy Repperton & The Camaros and The Nameless debuted at the former Back Door in April, and cover mainstays like Tarnished, Project 906, 415E, and Rhythm & Brews were also seen. Look for much more from hard rock bands in the 12 months ahead.

Pandemic and concerts aside, a lot of important news stories happened in the local scene this year. For concert venues, Reggie Daigle put the wheels in motion to divest his two concert venues, with Reggie's West becoming Jay's Piston Broke Pub and Reggie's Place itself being up for sale. The Oddfellows Hall sold years after ceasing concert promotion in the late 2010s, while The Rockstar Bar put concerts on an indefinite hiatus in June, and The New A and The Canadian both closed, but Shooters Downstairs Lounge opened their concert floodgates, and The Esquire Club resumed nighttime bookings this fall. Local acts like Heavy Lies The Crown, Theatre of Night, Spades GT, Obsession, The Northwest, The Uncanny Valley, Soundcheck, and Tarnished hit the road for gigs outside of our area, with The Northwest's profile beyond the Soo really expanding with press features and airplay on non-local radio stations and even on NHL telecasts last season!

Also this year: the Kim Mitchell and Anvil concerts were cancelled, Metal Morpheus aired its final first-run episodes on The Borderline, Mikey & His Uke relocated to the Soo while continuing their impressive slate of cover videos, Jonesy Land continued their push with multiple music videos, the Marconi Meets World festival debuted this summer, Fort Creek hosted two instrument raffles for charity, and Sault Michigan's Tarnished performed on a float during their Fourth of July parade. With things getting busier in 2022, the outward growth should continue next year, for better or worse!

2022 was a big year for local album releases from heavier and punk bands, as evidenced by 11 of our 12 monthly reviews this year being of new albums from late 2021 onward! While not sold on CD, the biggest in scope would arguably be indie/punk quintet The Northwest's third EP "All In", which got a strong reception here & afar after its release in June! These Magnificent Tentacles, Vanity (First), and Forever Will Be also put out their debut digital EPs for fans on the punk spectrum, while Chase Wigmore, Molten Imp, and the re-emerged Sykotyk Rampage enjoyed a busy 2022 with multiple new album releases this year alone. Metalheads could enjoy local progressive metal project PROV3RB5' debut EP "What Dreams May Come" and Theatre of Night's new Christmas-laden re-release "Dreams of Winter", while The Uncanny Valley factored into this year's Clusterfolk compilation tape. Here's to more new local albums next year!

An intriguing crop of new local metal, hard rock, and punk bands emerged in 2022, if with a surprising lack of online pages for them to promote themselves with. The highest profile one may be new alternative/punk supergroup Bookclub, whose Oktoberfest debut and recent LopLops gig have let the Surfers-laden quintet get off on the right foot! Fans have also welcomed new local metal trio The BAG and Jamie Vincent's new noise duo No Funeral to the stage this year, while the already launched Vanity First and Sylo (née Raincourt) played their first public gigs outside of White Pines, Suicide Kings successors Ravencore debuted at Toystock, and two Skeyes of Seven alums brought the acoustic Short & Sweet to Parabol's return concert. Also, Sault Michigan welcomed both Buddy Repperton & The Camaros and The Nameless to the stage at Three One Three on Ashmun in April. Look for much more from these bands in 2023!

With 2022 being a busier year in general, there was even more lineup changes therein, and none saw more overhaul than the revived Exploring Detritus, with guitarist Dan Souliere adding Ryan St. Pierre, Justin Lam, a returning Anthony Boudreau, and (briefly) Mitch Sirie for their revival. Mitch also was part of the expansion of These Magnificent Tentacles from a duo to a quintet, with his long-time bandmate Johnny Belanger and half of Gnaeus joining Brent & Steve too this summer, and Mitch & Johnny also formed half of the revived Soo Fighters this fall. The Wyld Stallyns confirmed Alex White, Derek Turner, and long-time guest Josh Norling in their expanded six-piece lineup, while 3/5ths of Heavy Lies The Crown was swapped out, with Brandon & Ted now joined by younger St. Ignace-based musicians. Of course, the now-Barrie based (Jack) Spades GT saw J.D. Pearce & Daniel Horton round out their new lineup with GTA musicians.

Also this year: Warren Reville joined (and Brad Stephen & Ric Datson left) the stripped down Bone Yard, Jessica Amadio replaced Valerie Powley as Obsession's singer, Rafael Medeira joined the now five-piece Handsome Sandwich on bass, Bill Brouillard replaced Matt Sibilo on guitar in Fort Creek, and Raine Rancourt left his own namesake band Raincourt (now Sylo). Hopefully all of these changes prove successful for these bands, and that the former members rebound in other projects!

Things have picked up in the scene, but we're still not back to pre-pandemic rates, and it does show in the bands we said goodbye to in 2022, with only one major heavier band (power rock quintet Re:Born) firmly announcing their dissolution in February, without ever emerging from their pandemic hiatus despite their announced lineup additions. However, a handful of familiar bands were moved to our inactive band links after last being heard from late last year, including death metal favourites The Bear Hunters, Buckcherry openers Bad Chug, and punk trio Redundant. Horror punk quintet Frightlight fell inactive with Chris Thompson's passing and J.D.'s move to Barrie in 2021, and notable bands like Parabol, Tripod The Dog, and Sault Michigan's 415E, Buddy Repperton & The Camaros, and The Nameless have all been publically dormant since the spring. Fingers crossed that we haven't heard the absolute last from these bands!

Like in prior year-in-review posts, we'll end with comebacks and reunions, and with things opening up more than ever, we weren't lacking in this area! For bands in concert, The Northern Vibe Festival saw the returns of Jack Spades (now Spades GT), A Dire Setback, and The Soo Fighters after spending a year or more off the local stage, while fellow Northern Vibe performers The Cover-Up had already returned at this year's returning Go Skateboarding Day festivities. Mike Haggith, Parabol, Slumshine, and The Sick Sons (renamed The Gambit) all came back after a year+ away, while (The) Northwest made their own full comeback from the pandemic, and Heavy Lies The Crown did the same while almost exclusively playing in Michigan's Lower Peninsula. This year also saw the rebirth of Great West Falls as Forever Will Be and solo original project Stone Smyth, and the return of Downtown Street Parties, among other returns this year!

2022 was an eventful year, even if things weren't quite at the levels we might be used to from the 2010s, but it's only up from here... right? Have a Happy New Year, please drink responsibly if you're going out, and we'll see you guys back on the SMS next week (and next year!) Thanks everyone!

2019: A Preview & What To Watch Out For!!

Happy New Year, everyone! After a quieter year than usual for events, concerts, and SMS posts, I'm hopeful that 2019 will be even busier and more impactful, and this annual year kick-off post will explore things we know are on the horizon for the 12 months ahead, and what we might see. Without any further adieu, what can you look forward to in the new year?

In terms of new concerts, two big concerts have been announced already for the spring, starting with the return of Windsor hard rock trio The Tea Party on March 27th at The Machine Shop, and this should be another huge hit for them! Tickets are available at this link or at the box office for $40. Then, we will see hair metal notables The Killer Dwarfs make their return to Sault Ontario at Soo Blaster on April 27th alongside local openers to be announced, and tickets are also on sale at this link for $24.50, with higher VIP/meet & greet packages also available. Other currently announced hard rock concerts in the area are of the weekend bar cover variety, including the return of 415E to the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino on January 11th & 12th, plus St. Ignace Kewadin stops from Highway 63 & Peril later this month. Also, look for Tym Morrison's long-term Gliss Restaurant engagement to continue as usual this year, plus occasional gigs at The Roadhouse Bar & Grill, with more details on each coming later this week.

Regarding concerts that aren't publically announced yet, look for heavier and punk bands to potentially return for annual events like Rotaryfest (Stages 1 & 2), Toystock, J.D. Pearce's annual Halloween Party, The Northern Vibe Festival, The Sky's The Limit, Go Skateboarding Day, the Oh!No festival in Leeburn, and The Soo's Got Talent, but questions remain. Will Rotaryfest try a "Rewind" theme again? Could The Fishbowl Festival return elsewhere following The Gore Street Cafe's closure? Will teased CD release concerts from some notable bands finally take place? Sault Michigan should see live music return via The Sugar Island Music Festival and Rudyard Musicians Festival, but will hard rock acts be on their bills again? Follow sources like the SMS, SooToday, Sault Online, the Sault Music News Letter Facebook page, and other social media outlets in the coming months for more on this year's slate of hard rock, metal, and punk concerts in the Twin Saults and surrounding area!

Finally, we'll close with new albums, and there's always a lot to look for each year! 2018 was especially stacked for new album releases from heavier local acts, but will 2019 measure up? In our next "Where Are The New Albums?" post (coming tomorrow), you can read up on the current release statuses of announced albums from local acts like A Dire Setback, The Bear Hunters, Electric Church, The Elements, Gates of Winter, Id Iota, Mike Haggith, Mike Vincent, Pillory, Skeyes of Seven, The Sorrow Fields, and Telephone & Address. How many of these will finally see a paid release in the new year? What kind of releases will we see from Tyler Gibson and Chase Wigmore-led projects and other Blood Shed Productions collaborators? How many score and/or traditional albums does SweetKenny have lined up for 2019? What new albums could be announced from other acts, and will our 13 month streak of consecutive new CD reviews continue this month? Stay tuned!

I'm hopeful that 2019 will be even bigger, better, and more eventful than 2018, so stay tuned to the SMS as we cover everything that goes down in local metal, hard rock, and punk, and look for our first news post and weekend concert previews of the year in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

2015: A Look Back In The Year Of Local Metal, Hard Rock, And Punk

As has become an annual tradition at the SMS, here's our retrospective post on the past year, as 2015 had a lot of huge moments, good and bad, to reflect on from local metal, hard rock, and punk bands, concerts, and albums! I hope I touched on every major event this year, but it's a tall order to sum everything up like this, so read on below to look back on what happened in the local scenes during the year that was!

We'll start with the latest major concerts at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino, which was largely quiet on the hard rock side of things during the second half of the year, but had lots going on earlier in the year! On April 3rd, Superior Entertainment jumped into the concert promotion game by bringing hard rock notables Saving Abel back to the Soo alongside Saginaw's Redburn and local country singer Missy Zenker, while the returning Allstar Promotions ended a lengthy hiatus this spring, including via the Europe/Black Star Riders concert there on April 23rd, the only major 1980s-era metal show of the year in Sault Michigan. June 21st brought us touring Rush tribute band Lotus Land, while July saw two huge shows in just a week, including the massive show featuring P.O.D., Hoobastank, Fuel, Lights Out Paris, Redburn, and the reunited I.S.O.M. on July 3rd, while July 10th gave us the return of Canada's own Theory of a Deadman with openers Shaman's Harvest and locals Ten Kings. There was lots to be excited about earlier this year, and here's to much more in 2016!

We saw many more huge concerts in 2015, and in Sault Ontario alone, we welcomed notable out of town bands like Aggressive Acoustic, Anvil, Benighted, Biipiigwan, Caym, Diemonds, Evilheart, Exes For Eyes, Fuck The Facts, Gatgas, The Golers, K'Man & The 45s, One Bad Son, The Ripcordz, and SNFU to town for concerts this year, among many others. Among other big concerts this year: Treble Charger came home to headline at The Machine Shop in February, while That's Chester provided the house music for the live stage production of The Who's Tommy there in November. We also saw two battles of the bands in March of this year at The Speak Easy & Canadian Nightclub, with post-punk quartet Gnaeus winning both to continue their local ascent! Also this year: J.D. Pearce hosted the Gonqshow summer concert series, yearly events like Toystock, Lopstock, Rotaryfest, and the Swampstravaganza returned, The Emergency Festival moved to Rocky DiPietro Field, and The Northern Vibe Festival neatly filled Hempfest's shoes in Ophir, among other big concerts of the past year!

Outside of the Kewadin Casino umbrella, the Sault Michigan/Eastern Upper Peninsula area had a light but eventful year that saw it's peak with the first annual Superior Festival at The Savoy Bar & Nightclub on August 21st, which attracted a big crowd (despite date & venue shuffling) to see Saving Abel & Lights Out Paris once again, alongside a handful of notable openers, including two bands from Sault Ontario! We lost LemmaFest after a 4 year run, but The Sugar Island Festival also kept the concert schedule rolling, as did a number of local dates by out of town favourites like Nudge, Peril, Scarkazm, and Paul Burns' new Wisconsin-based project Dystraction. Numerous local bands also made their mark this year, including classic/hard rock notables Banned & Highway 63, the fast rising 415E & Tantrym Tyme, hard charging veterans Power Slug, and the now-defunct Ten Kings, and not to mention, I.S.O.M.'s reunion in July. There's a lot of promise across the border, and here's to an even bigger year ahead!

This past year was very eventful overall for the local metal, hard rock, and punk scenes, and bands like AlgomA, The Pixo Control, and Shit Liver spread the wealth by commencing their first formal tours, while bands like Dustin Jones & The Rising Tide, The Elements, Jack Spades, and even Rotopsy hit the road in their own right! Much of the summer was notably consumed by the fight to save (or end) the Sault Downtown Association, which caused summer concerts to be cancelled or relocated, and it remains to be seen how things will look next year. Also this year: the Twin City Sound & second Speak Easy Battles of the Bands were postponed, Music Depot closed it's doors, and Brian Davie left Rock 101, while Local2 debuted the Bare webseries, Six Two Oh debuted punk rock bingo, The Canadian Nightclub brought live weekend cover bands back (if briefly), the Club Princess restoration continued, fans rallied to support Havadder drummer Scott McLurg & his family after a sudden heart attack, and Northwest made a deep run in CBC's Searchlight competition, among other big news events in the past twelve months!

Unfortunately, 2015 saw a number of deaths of people who were influential in the local hard rock scene, with arguably the widest reaching being that of Mike Case, the late Case's Music founder, influential music instructor, and country musician who passed away after a lengthy cancer battle in April, followed by former Foggy Notions co-owner & bartender Patrick Casey just a week later. The following month, we lost former Half Past frontman Luke LeBlanc at just 42 years of age, while fans and friends mourned the loss of former Chronic Demonic singer & Shadowthrone guitarist Sabrina Pelchat in October, with a tribute concert held in her name last month. And finally, we suddenly lost That's Chester/Agave Blue guitarist Eugene Orlando last month at just 56 years old, and just weeks removed from his involvement in the live production of The Who's Tommy. It was definitely sad to lose so many familiar faces this year, but hopefully everyone can remember the good times and great memories that they gave us!

2015 yielded a number of high profile album releases from local bands as well, with none at a higher scope than the anticipated three-way CD "Fed Up! A Canadian Punk Rock Split" from Montreal's The Ripcordz and local punk/metal standouts Destroilet & Jack Spades! We also saw alternative hard rock trio The Pixo Control release their "Probably Not" CD this month, while the now defunct Haggith released their final albums "Apocalypse II" & "XIV" earlier this year as well, and drummer Mike Haggith put out his newest solo album "The Warinside" in July. Also, Dafter, Michigan's SweetKenny put out numerous new solo albums, Sault Michigan's I.S.O.M. distributed a new disc at their return show, Bad Back released their full length "ALbums", RedD Monkey posthumously released their last album "Opus 2: Untitled", Telephone & Address put out the experimental "Rust Orchid", and Blood Shed Productions sold a number of new demos & digital releases, including an 11-way split CD! Busy year to be sure, and here's to even more in 2016!

While this year was lighter than we have previously seen for new and debuting bands, we did get a solid rookie crop for 2015, with two of the most prominent being pop punk quartet Stereo North and glam/power pop trio Caroline Divine, who've fast carved their own names locally with their own high energy sounds! We also got the now-defunct Ten Kings for an adrenaline dose in the Sault Michigan scene, while 2015 also gave us the Project 421 side project outfit Eclipse, two man alternative duo Infinity Grinder, Habitat Shuffle successors Id Iota (who debuted along with Caroline Divine at the same show in June), young classic/punk trio Leaked, and Steve Mozarowski's new project Faceityoureametalband, who all have a good deal to offer! Also this year: Dullahan brought minimalist black metal to the Soo, Toystock one-off The Rude-Offs reemerged as Killer, and punk duo The Red & Black finally debuted in June. Here's to lasting success in 2016 & beyond!

And as usual, you can expect that a number of bands saw lineup additions, changes, and departures in the last 12 months, with The Apocalypse Afterparty notably shifting from a two man rap/rock band to a half-female quartet with two bassists and an MPC player in short order (and drummer X left afterwards too!) Also this year: The Pixo Control swapped Steve Edwards & Matthew Thibert with Dustin Goodall & the returning Keeghan Rosso, Project 421 brought back singer Curtis McKenzie & replaced drummer Larry Mousseau with Chris Thompson, and Mourning Wood said goodbye to TJ Case & hello to Paul Belair & Glen Thomas for their new four-piece lineup. 2015 also saw Haggith enlist ex-bassist Caleb Cachagee to replace Daniel Horton on guitar, Mike Haggith & The Din replace guitarist Curtis McKenzie with Tammy Hill, Skeyes of Seven replace Jonny Amendola with John Mignacca, Destroilet split with co-singer Brenton Ellis, and Sault Michigan's Tantrym Tyme welcome Michael McLeod on guitar, among other notable lineup changes of 2015!

And yes, we did say goodbye to a number of notable bands this year, including the aforementioned Haggith (for the second & presumed final time), hard rock quartet Beaumont Avenue (formerly The Suicide Kings), and all-female hard rockers The Danger Cats, who all played their final shows in mid-2015, to their fans' dismay. Also this year, we lost Sault Michigan guitarist Joe Jenkins' most recent hard rock cover bands (Exiled & Ten Kings), while Sault Ontario doom/punk trio The Revolution disbanded twice in a few months' time. As well, a number of notable bands have fallen inactive for a lengthy period to end 2015, despite not announcing a breakup or hiatus, including bands like Giwakwa, The Highest of Fives, Id Iota, The Northern Tragedy, The Red & Black, The Strange Coyotes, This Is Your Band On Drugs, and The Thrill Junkies, among others, while the future of That's Chester is also in limbo following Eugene Orlando's passing. Hopefully we see these bands back together or in new projects in the months to come!

However, where we lost some bands, we also welcomed some back to prominence in 2015, with fan favourite extreme metal bands Pillory & Winkstinger both reuniting after prior breakups this fall, and hopefully we see both back on stage in the new year! The same can be said for a pair of bands from Sault Michigan metal musicians Bob Helsten & Art Dietz, who brought back their early 2000s Sault Michigan acoustic band The Creepy Little Coffee People and late 2000s metal band Integrated System of Machines this year to a positive reception. A handful of notable bands ended lengthy hiatuses from the concert stage in 2015 as well, with Treble Charger, Garden of Bedlam, The Billy Bastards, and Skeyes of Seven returning to the local stage for the first time in over a year each, and hopefully there's more in the works! As well: Rotaryfest's Second Stage returned after a year's hiatus at a new home, RedD Monkey held a one-off reunion in Toronto in February, and former Rosie metal night promoters Dismembertainment were revived in Alberta, all among other returns & comebacks this year!

2015 was an eventful year in the local metal, hard rock, and punk scenes, with a lot of big and exciting concerts & moments, and I sincerely hope 2016 is even bigger & better, so join us in the coming year, and I hope you guys liked this look back at the year that was! Stay tuned for our 2016 preview post and much more in short order! Thanks everyone!