This week’s featured neighbourhood food bank is another Parkdale institution doing good work at the gritty street level. Please help if you can.

Yelp Food Bank
797 Dundas St W, Toronto · 416-203-3011 Opens Tues.10 AM

Back from the undead comes popular Toronto hairband Sven Gali. Leading the charge, the single “Now” off their soon come EP entitled “3” due out June 12. Known for their fusion of 80s screaming hard rock and 90s blazing metal, the new EP is their long-awaited follow up to 1995's "In Wire" and 1992's gold-selling and Juno Award nominated self-titled debut album released on BMG Music Canada that featured hits “Under The Influence” and “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore”.

“3” features two previous released singles “Kill The Lies” (2018) and “You Won’t Break Me” (2019) both produced by David Bendeth (Paramore, Breaking Benjamin, Bring Me The Horizon) along with new tracks “Now” and “Hurt” produced by Jon Howard (Threat Signal).

Releasing a song/album is really like making a movie but on a smaller scale.

In a movie production, the director’s job is to get the whole team to embrace his/her vision. Of course, they take advice from different experts like the lighting director that comes with suggestions and then the director makes that part of the vision. In the background, you have the producers that do the financial decisions. The vision cannot go over budget. Still, in the end, the director’s job is to make the vision clear.

In music, that job is the artist's job. Sometimes they know, like an actor, they can direct a movie. But not any actor can be a director. Same in music in many ways, artists might not be suitable to make these decisions. Still, in the part that you release DIY, you are forced to be the director that makes decisions.

Right, this week spotlighting food banks in Parkdale in Toronto, another high poverty location with perennially under stocked food banks. Please give what you can and best way to do so, go out and buy groceries at a local store and take them to your neighbourhood food bank. If you do contribute, let me know which one and where and I’ll give you and the food bank a shout out. Thanks.

Parkdale Community Food Bank 
1499 Queen St W, Toronto, ON M6R 1A3
Open Wednesday to Saturday 11-3:30 p.m.
Currently, hours are changeable. (416) 532-2375

Fort York Food Bank 
380 College St, Toronto, ON M5T 1S6
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 9a.m.–2p.m. Hours may differ Phone: (416) 203-3011

Into the music we go. When it comes to describing the indie-folk undertaking that is Canadian artist Noble Son — aka Adam Kirschner, singer/songwriter, actor, and VFV (very familiar voice) — his new single “Sad Dumb Lovesick Young Kid,” and album Life Isn’t Fun, I’d say it’s one that’s generating a lotta media, usually thick with hyperbole.

Or any of the band members either! Sure, people meet at the job but there is a reason that bigger firms have rules that it’s forbidden to have relationships between employees. Ok, the music industry doesn’t have that but you should see it that way anyways.

I had an artist that was produced by her boyfriend. They did not meet on the job. They had been a couple for a long time so it became kind of natural that they started doing some music together. He naturally produced her first EP and album. Things were going quite well and a record label came onboard. They were very enthusiastic but felt the music had to step up. “Why don’t hire a good producer?”

She got stuck between a rock and a hard place. Go home and tell her boyfriend that his producer career wouldn’t be moving forward with her career? Or that he wasn’t good enough? It just became mission impossible. Every time the subject came up at the record label meetings she avoided the topic. The record label just took it that as she was a diva and didn’t see their new super-producer as cool enough. After a couple of meetings, the record label was not so enthusiastic about their new signing any longer.

Everybody holding strong in keeping yourself to yourself and keeping your distance? As I mentioned last week, Toronto food banks are at their ramen’s end trying to keep their clients fed and are mighty grateful for whatever little help we can give.

You can give all donations to the Central Daily Food Bank 191 New Toronto St. services, among others, Allan Gardens Food Bank at St.Luke’s United Church SE corner Sherbourne & Carlton. Thursday & Friday 1-3.30 PM.This location serves one of Toronto’s most vulnerable and neglected populations.

Alternative indie rock band, Stellar Ash, comprised of band members Dave, Dave, & Not Dave combines 90s alternative elements with a fresh take on Canadian power rock and the result is unique, yet familiar. A big sound for a small band, with a chemistry rarely found in bands so newly formed. 

If you missed it here are the links for Part 1 and Part 2 for this series:
cashboxcanada.ca/features-music/im-seeking-artist-wants-break-big-part-1/3890
cashboxcanada.ca/features-music/im-seeking-artist-wants-break-big-part-2/3896

Here is Part 3 what I need to break an artist worldwide. If you have read part one and part two here on Cashbox and you think I’m mean to artists, well you are not up for the task so stop reading and go back to your normal daily job, you are like Harry, Harry doesn't mind, if he doesn't  make the scene. He's got a daytime job, he's doing alright!

You need charisma. (Not really, we can work on that as well.) Yes, you will be someone else. But know who artists really are. Dolly Parton is not Dolly Parton. And the girl next door will never break big like Dolly Parton. Still, I have the knowledge where to find all the people to get these things right. Sometimes an artist is a persona, quite often really.

Hey, everybody safe so far? How many are going just a tad squirrely? That’s cool, just don’t go hoarding food like you’re a squirrel stashing nuts. Think of the other squirrelies. Heck, if it’s at all possible donate to your local food bank. They need us more than ever.

Here we go with one that has the makings of a genuine comer. Toronto-based folk rocker Oliver James Brooks has set free “Set Free” a new message for the masses and his latest single — available now.

“This song was written in response to the current state of our planet,” he shares of the track and its origins. “The turmoil in which we live has reached an unfathomable level… Some days it becomes unbearable to even exist.

“It was on one of those very days that ‘Set Free’ was written.”

Here is the next round of what I need to break you big. You read Part 1 in Cashbox Canada last week, if you didn’t catch it you can find it here:
cashboxcanada.ca/features-music/im-seeking-artist-wants-break-big-part-1/3890

 In Part 1, I stated the fact that we need good songs. But we can get them if you can't write them. You need to fit the team, do what we tell you and don't really question it. The money issue....and now over to the patience.

Canadian country music artist Thomas Wade began his career as the lead singer of the group Thomas Wade & Wayward, which presented a debut album in 1996. An impressive, seven singles were released including two Top-10’s “Zero to Sixty” and “She’s Getting Serious” as well as the number #1 video “Lying Here With You”. The group received seven CCMA awards and were nominated for three Juno Awards for Best Country Group or Duo.

Thomas began his solo career in 2000 with Shoreline Records and debuted his first album, Lucky 13 with 5 singles released including the Top-10 “Running Away with You”.  With a previous impressive music chart history, and basically being a household name in the country circuit, Lucky 13 showed that Thomas Wade still had what it takes to stay current and have hits.

Need a getup and shakedown start The Sensations ‘Let Me In’

NYC punk/rock ‘n’ roll band WyldLife, and it’s so nice to hear there are still such things, have debuted "Automatic" the current single off upcoming fourth album ‘Year Of The Snake’, which will be released on April 17 via Steven Van Zandt’s Wicked Cool Records.

The track was both inspired by The Jesus and Mary Chain and named after one of their albums and features harmony vocals by friend of the band Sasha Cibic, the first woman to guest on a WyldLife song.

After 30 years working with major stars (yes, I worked with four of the twenty most streamed songs worldwide) and with small upcoming acts (I have started two of the biggest showcase conferences in Scandinavia). I know how to make an artist successful and get them to be a major star.

The problem is not how to know how to do it. The problem is to be able find the raw material to mold an artist to become that star. In many cases right now the industry just takes chances. Throw out a hundred artists and then see what sticks and how long we can take them and then dump them when they get tired. That is not how you build a new Michael Jackson or Queen. And the industry knows that. The fact is that the new industry has a hard time to find the material, because it’s trying to hold for a longer race. 

What do I look for then? In three story episodes,  I will try to explain that. Because I just can see that hundreds of artists right now think they are the ones I’m looking for. But like Carly Simon sang, You’re so vain. Here is the criteria.

Coming in with ‘St. James Infirmary’ from the Speakeasies Swing Band

Why do everything just halfway? What’s the point of going to a just one day on a four-day conference? Why just write a perfect song and then record it on an 8 track recorder with the worst possible sound? Or not having an ok song and then enter Abbey Road and think they will fix the problem.

If you can’t afford the whole thing. Either don’t do it or put everything on the same level. I don’t  know how many times I have had an artist approaching me with a recording for 10,000 dollars and I ask how much you will spend on PR? And they have spent all their budget on their recording.

Or artists that take all their money going on a showcase festival and can only stay there the one night they play with no one else to pick up the contacts. And they spent all their money so they can’t even follow up any opportunity the festival actually gives them.

Too many don’t really get things done in full. They cut corners and think it will work. And, it’s actually doing the full job is the things that actually get you somewhere, the half-done job is just a waste of money.

This week Talking Heads sets the tone with ‘Life During Wartime’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jShMQw2H2cM

Here’s some fresh material, mostly of a sturdy, we-will-not-be moved sensibility, ideal for keeping self-isolated spirits up. Leading the charge, Philadelphia rock quartet Soraia with just out new album 'Dig Your Roots' via Steven Van Zandt's label Wicked Cool Records.

Stream 'Dig Your Roots' here: https://orcd.co/digyourroots.

Stream/download the latest single "Superman Is Gone" here: https://orcd.co/supermanisgone.