Thursday, October 10, 2013

This Weekend's Sault Ontario Metal/Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

In our second post of the day, we're previewing this weekend's slate of metal & hard rock concerts! All are in Sault Ontario (at least, for ones that I can confirm at present), but if any across the river (or any short notice ones in general) turn up, we'll have them here tomorrow or Saturday! There's a pair of big multi-band concerts with very different aims and sounds in store, but we'll start with a new acoustic solo gig, so read on below for the previews, and check out this month's Defunct Local Band Profiles in the post below this one! (Updated on Friday at 12:18 AM)

Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison will return to The Roadhouse Bar & Grill ("Roadhouse" is officially one word now) TOMORROW NIGHT! Despite earlier word confirming tomorrow's date, this show was publically advertised on it's Facebook event page as taking place tonight, but it's since been confirmed there that this is a Friday night show as usual, so apologies for any confusion! Tym's acoustic hard rock and metal covers are always a welcome sight at a local venue, and if you can't make the Ray Brown benefit tomorrow night (more on that in a second), you can still see Tym somewhere in the next few days! TOMORROW's show has a 19+ age limit, and there isn't an announced cover charge, but for more details, checl the above links! Keep the return of Tym's solo act in mind for tomorrow night if you're up for some acoustic rock action in the East End, and for a preview, here's Tym covering Heart's "Alone" at Mill Square!



Also this weekend, a variety of local musicians will gather for a bittersweet benefit/tribute show TOMORROW NIGHT at The Verdi Hall to honour local drummer Ray Brown (formerly of The Chosen and some past heavier local bands), who is currently battling cancer in the lungs & liver, and was given only a few months to live last month. As a result, his friends and fellow local musicians have banded together to help raise money to cover his final expenses, and to help him and his family out and honour him as a person and musician. A pasta dinner will be provided for attendees at 7:00 PM tomorrow, while there will be raffles, a door prize, and games to help the cause, so visit the Facebook event page for full details on the non-musical entertainment. Confirmed bands for tomorrow night include local rock cover band Boxcar Junction (formerly Cleveland Steamer), newer local hard rock quintet The Thrill Junkies, alternative hard rockers Lucky 13, fellow hard rock quartet Griphook, Obsession singer Valerie Powley and some unidentified friends, and the aforementioned Tym Morrison (who will also be playing in between breaks.)

Local punk trio Redundant were also confirmed initially for the event, but have dropped out due to drummer Rick White's ongoing recovery from last month's hospitalization. His brother & bandmate James had suggested that his other band Caveman Morrison could fill in, but this hasn't been confirmed by event organizers. Also note that this event was moved from The Canadian Nightclub last month following the major flooding that took place there, and it was bumped from Saturday to Friday due to The Verdi Hall not booking events on the actual Thanksgiving weekend. Advance ticket sales closed yesterday, but you can still get one at the door for $25 IF you inform an administrator of the Facebook event page linked above so they can hold your ticket (also, there's no announced age limits.) Check the above links for more details! I don't know Ray personally, but I know he's a very talented musician and a good guy who's been hit hard by cancer, and it's just sad that news like this is what draws everyone together.

I just hope it's a huge success to help his family through a very trying time, and I know Ray will enjoy and be grateful for everyone's help as a result! On the musical side of things, this event really reminds me of Toystock from last year given it's base of veteran cover bands, so there should be a solid assortment of proven talent to entertain everyone and give Ray his due! Check the above links for more details on this very special event, and for a preview, here's Lucky 13 covering The Stone Temple Pilots last year!




Finally for the known hard rock concerts this weekend, a rare concert on the outskirts of Sault Ontario goes down THIS SATURDAY when new local concert promotion agency Oh! Right Arm! Promotions host The Big Loonie Bus Show, a metal concert at La Cucina (the bar underneath Bucci's Place) in nearby Echo Bay, right near the big loonie! As recently hyped with video interviews with half of the announced bands, the bands playing on Saturday include local sludge/stoner metal trio AlgomA (in just their fourth show & third public concert), popular local death metal quartets The Bear Hunters & Crimson Crusade, and local hardcore punk quintet Destroilet (in a rare show for them with no out of town headliners), while the Facebook event page still hypes a "special secret attraction" to perform as well. Note that most of the bands have new material to debut, so there's more reason to attend! Besides the unique location in Echo Bay (40 minutes east of the Soo), another unique angle is that promoters will be renting a bus to trek fans to and from La Cucina for free on Saturday night!

Drop-off and pick-up will take place outside of the Station Mall Wal-Mart and at the front entrance of the Wellington Square Mall (the earlier Wendy's/Tim Hortons spot on Great Northern is no longer planned), so if you can't/don't want to drive, or want to take a unique ride to and from this very heavy show, keep it in mind! Tickets for this 19+ show (complete with a chocolate loonie) are still available at The Rad Zone or through AlgomA members (with free delivery!) for $10, but the price jumps to $11.50 at the door, regardless of your method for getting to Echo Bay. For more details, and to get your tickets, check the above links! I know Oh! Right Arm! are really hoping that this show's a huge hit, and will encourage more concerts in Echo Bay, so take advantage of the unique location and the party bus to not miss out! Besides, with new material and that surprise band, why not go? I've got family coming up from London that night, so I can't confirm my attendance yet, but make this show a hit, the promoters deserve it and they've put in a lot of work to make this a brutal and unique concert! For a preview, here's AlgomA live at The Rosie in June!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and any late notice concert alerts shortly! Thanks everyone!

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