Loss can be wrenching, no matter who is no longer in our lives, and Brandon, MB-based singer-songwriter Doug MacNaughton provides reassurance and a salve in his new single “So Lost Without You” from his forthcoming album Old Enough To Know Better.

The song starts out shimmery, and then morphs into an introspective ’70s-tinged folk-pop ballad. The sadness is overlaid with a marching, sunny optimism as MacNaughton lays out his grief:

You were here for the best days of my life
Now you’re gone, I don’t know what to say
I lift my eyes, I just see darkness all around
The world was brighter in the days we stood
Together

He searches his heart for a way to keep going and finds a well of internal optimism. “Fear shouts – but love whispers and is heard,” he sings. “Fear doubts – but love whispers and I’m reassured.”

Watch “So Lost Without Out” on YouTube here:

Okotoks, Alberta-based country-rock and blues band The Prairie Dogz announce the release of their new single, “Almost See the Sun,” this month. The song is a hard-driving, heartfelt exploration of how to cope with the feelings of isolation and lack of connection that have no-doubt plagued many over the past few years.  Check it out on YouTube:

The song’s narrator “finds himself in a dystopian world, in a society suffering from years of oppression,” vocalist and co-writer Keith Hambrook says. “He sees the loss of hope on peoples’ faces but finds solace and peace by seeing the woman he loves. He gains a brighter perspective because of his connection with her.” It’s that holding out for hope of a happier future that keeps him going in bleak times, with the hard-rock riffs and rhythms bolstering the emotional lyrics.

Canadian rock duo The Manic Boys and Girls Club consists of co-fronts and siblings Bela and Fernando Ferreira, whose haunting music is a mix of her vocals and his harmony blended with synth, guitar, and undertones of rock and pop. Their personal, introspective lyrics are informed by the pair’s upbringing as strict Catholics in rural Portugal. “The Manic Boys and Girls Club is more than a band,” they explain. “It is an escape from the submissive existence that was reality, an escape from the disposable music packaged for the masses, and an escape for any misfit looking to join the club.”

“We’ll Be Fine” the latest single from their acclaimed self-titled EP, the collection of five songs recounts the two loners’ experiences touring in a van, as well as interpersonal relationships. “Every song starts with a lyric and a melody,” they say. “No matter how it is produced, every one of our songs can be a lullaby.” Check it out on YouTube here:

Multi-award-nominated Indigenous singer/songwriter Mike Bern brings us his rooted indigenous folk rock sounds with his new album 'Ancestors' released on March 14.

Listen to “no words for goodbyes” on YouTube here:

Mike creates a sound that uniquely blends husky rock-style vocals and traditional folk acoustic melodies with hints of drawling Southern Gospel. He takes his inspiration from musicians like Frankie Miller, Chris Otepka, and Ben Schneider, which is evident in his music's pure and heartfelt sound and the stories in his lyrics. Whether it's the raw emotion from the words he uses or the way he harmonizes with the music, Mike's music captures a sense of pain and vulnerability that is both authentic and moving.

Love is simultaneously simple and highly complex, and Barbadian soul/R&B artist Keisha Christian takes us on a journey through its highs, lows, and intricacies on her new album 360 Love.

Keisha Christian is a Barbadian soul/R&B vocalist who has been singing from as far back as she can remember. At the age of nine, she entered and won her first National Singing Competition in 1992, becoming both the youngest and the first female contestant to ever win. Now Keisha has embarked on a new journey with Billboard-charting pianist/producer Eddie Bullen and his company Thunder Dome Sounds in Toronto, in a move to transcend borders with her upcoming album 360 Love.

Relationships are supposed to be a two-way street and when you feel like you are drowning in that partnership, then it’s time to get out and move on. Female classic rock sensation Emily Mac exposes those truths on her newly released single, “Kills Me To Love You.”

Check out “Kills Me To Love You” on YouTube here:

"Kills Me To Love You" begins with a thunderous blast of drums bringing electric shock through the listener's ears, combining Emily’s powerful, yet husky vocal prowess and rebellious energy. You can hear the conviction of sheer vulnerability in her vocals when the song opens as she shouts, “F--K your games. All I do is lose. Your love is fake. And your lips are loose. All you do is take. I gave it all to you. Now I’m done playing. The Devils muse.” 

Life changes without your permission, and the world doesn’t ask for your input when it behaves as it does. Berner Trail’s response? “Sleep Till The Afternoon.” Check it out on YouTube here:

In the latest single from the Scarborough-born, Toronto-raised rock trio, Berner Trail unleashes about the unending transformations the song, the band, and everything around them are always experiencing.

In 2015, Spencer Desilva and Aaron Lusch launched Berner Trail. The duo eventually grew to three, then expanded to four, was five for a short period, and later retracted back to three in 2020 with a new bass player: Nate Murray. Desilva, Lusch, and Murray have stood together since.

It’s been a chaotic history for the band, and this song’s skeleton was around for most of it.

Everyone wants love that makes them feel secure and happy. Embodying this desire is Montreal producer-songwriter AZËE and his new single "Close Your Eyes", which features vocals from singer J.O.Y.

Check out "Close Your Eyes" on YouTube here:

The song opens with J.O.Y's soothing vocals as he asks the listener to not give up and have faith in love as they lay down to rest. J.O.Y.'s vocals are accompanied by encouraging lyrics and an upbeat, dreamy EDM beat that encourages the listener to dance and relax.

"Yea the world is not over yet
Forget all we need for now
If I say I’m going your way
I won’t let you down for now
I know it's hard just close your eyes
I won’t be gone I’ll stay tonight"

Responding to what the UN dubbed the "Shadow Pandemic," Bath, Ontario-based band Aruna & the Sirens have released an anthem calling attention to the global surge in gender-based violence.

Check it out on YouTube here:

"Have You Seen My Sister?" starts strong with powerhouse vocals from songwriter Aruna Antonella Handa with harmonies by band members Alejandra Ballon, Caitlin Holland, and Lindsay McDonald. The song's first line is a call to action: Won't you remind me to wonder who's missing from the corridors of privilege?"

Listen on Spotify here: open.spotify.com/track/2x8eXOMVIygC9THhsGDjWK?si=ae4b1d79daec457d&nd=1

They say time can heal a broken heart, but sometimes the pain can seem like too much to bear. Nobody knows this more than Pittsburgh based singer-songwriter Valentina Cherico as she laments in her new single "Teach Me How To Love Again." Check it out on YouTube here:

A gentle piano and Cherico's soft and vulnerable vocals start the song off as she looks back on the heartbreak she has endured and wonders if it will ever end. Once the pre-chorus hits, Cherico's vocals take on a beautiful tone that leads into the chorus that asks how she will know when true love finds her.

"My heart can't take no more
I open one more door
But nobody's there

How will I know?
How will I feel
When the time is right for me"

Everything can look fine on the outside, however, it’s what’s truly happening on the inside that matters most. The talented classical artist, Tonia Cianciulli, shares her own experiences of internal struggle on her newly released single, “Thousand Cries.” Check it out on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBFGMTJcEXg&feature=youtu.be

The Newfoundland-born, Toronto-based singer and songwriter paints a beautiful, yet realistic picture of what her life was and is currently like as she moves through life the best she can, while dealing with painful and emotional struggles.

“Gone Ain't Really Gone”, like many other country songs, was inspired by a truck; but not just any truck, an old truck that my grandfather used to own before he passed that's still memorable to this day. It's funny to think how objects can tell us so much about a person. Those stories and experiences don't just disappear when that person leaves us. My dad was telling me a story over Christmas about this baby blue truck my grandfather used to drive; I took that story to my next writing session with Rich Cloke and Elias Edlund.

Listen to “Gone Ain’t Really Gone”on YouTube here:

It can be very difficult to live life on life’s terms, and so Guelph, ON-based blues artist David Deacon gives us a dose of gentle reality on his humbly philosophical song “Arc of Life” – check it out on YouTube here:

An introspective, wailing guitar ballad sung in Deacon’s signature gravely tone, “Arc of Life” encourages the listener to examine the life they’ve lived without vanity, without artifice, and with a mature, and ultimately peaceful, acceptance.

It’s the arc of life
A bright or darkened star
It’s our mark on life
What’s done is what we are
What’s done is what we are

Some breakups are mutual, some crush you, and some have you wishing the other would just go away as fast as possible. The last kind was the inspiration behind Dany Horovitz’s latest single, “Don’t Look To Me.” Check it out on YouTube here:

The first single on the Canadian singer-songwriter’s upcoming album, Phanerorhyme, “Don’t Look To Me” combines a catchy chorus and up-tempo melody with lyrics that describe someone very ready to move on from their significant other.

“Here we are stuck in old routine
I’ve had enough, do you know what I mean
You call me lover, you call me friend
I tell you I’m broken, you ask me to bend”

Everyday life is a wonder. Ottawa-based Canadian folk singer-songwriter, Christine Graves knows this well. In her new single "Keep this in Mind" an ironic perspective emerges about life and a reality that we don't get everything we dream of experiencing "before we're done".

The results are both simple and sublime, throughout the album "Everyday Life" and "Keep this in Mind" is here to serve as a musical blessing upon all those who look back on a life and ask 'did I do enough good?'

"During the pandemic, working in a mental health hospital catapulted me into intensely writing again," she says. "Believing that my gift of making music is an important healing tool is a lesson learned from the hardships we all faced in COVID times."

The album is not, however, a "COVID album," she is quick to add, though "that might come next." The album represents works from before, during, and "after" COVID, and the message of "Keep This In Mind" about finding the beauty in the mundane is about as timeless as you can get.

You’ve got to love what you do and draw inspiration from whatever drives you to be the best you can be. The love and passion for music and the art of songwriting is clearly defined by the brilliant indie-folk rock star, Aaron Wylder on his newly released single, “Don’t Let Me Down.” Check it out on YouTube here:

The Cayman Island-born, Victoria, BC-based indie-folk sensation has once again blessed our ears with this new soulful and raw introspective track that can be heard on the just-released Adventure Songs EP.

The song kicks off with a poetic and acoustic melody that instantly puts you in an upbeat mood as the soothing sound of Wyler’s voice guides you on a musical journey. “I’m looking for the sun to shine. I’m looking for words to rhyme. Oh don’t let me down. Some days I feel like. Only way that I’ll survive. Is with a guitar in hand.”

The grief from losing a loved one can often feel unbearable, but those small moments where we still sense that person’s presence in our lives can offer great comfort. Toronto-based folk-rock songstress Kari Lyn captures this duality of melancholy and comfort in her reflective new single “Anyways”. Check out YouTube:

With countrified guitar, soothing harmonies, and her straightforward vocal delivery, “Anyways” deals with the unexpected death of Kari Lyn’s father in 2017 when she was living in Australia, halfway around the world from her native PEI.

“Taking that 30-hour flight home was the hardest thing I’ve ever been through,” she says, “but when I returned home, the biggest thing anyone said was how proud my father was about my traveling and the fact that I was following my dreams.”

“Where Did You Go”, the new single by Ottawa, Ontario based Victa, is a masterful piece of poignant pop production. Check it out on YouTube here:

It’s a song about love, loss and heartbreak, as Victa sings over a gently strummed acoustic guitar weaved together with a catchy, afrobeat rhythm. Victa’s melodic vocal delivery lays bare the singer’s pain and confusion, as he wonders why his relationship has fallen apart.

“Where did you go?” he pleads, longing for her return and painting a vivid picture of his loneliness. He’s loved and lost before and isn’t ready to let yet another one get away.

“We were never just friends
I'm too fly to hold you down
But I hope that you stick around
Cause’ I’ve been hurt before“

The Maple Blues Band is back, and groovier than ever as they get set to drop another bluesy classic with their newest single, “Savona Shuffle” with the music video produced directed by 30-year Canadian Blues legend and recent Maple Blues Drummer of the Year winner, Jim Casson featuring all band members making cameo appearances.

Check out “Savona Shuffle” on YouTube here:

Led by musical director and bassist, Gary Kendall, and joined by an all-star cast of proud Canadian musicians – Savona Shuffle is featured on their newly released debut album, “Let’s Go,” a 10-track instrumental record that will be sure to get listeners tapping their feet and nodding their heads throughout the album’s playlist.

Montreal-based folk-pop artist Silka Weil combines unapologetic sexiness with raw vulnerability on her jangly, electric-infused new single “Unsatisfied” – available now – telling a complex story of evolving emotions.  Check it out on YouTube here:

Weil’s voice captures the perfect amount of Stevie Nicks huskiness, and “Unsatisfied” doesn’t recount a narrative so much as it captures a heady cocktail of emotions in the aftermath of a story. It’s driving and soaring, with a slinky, gritty, slightly psychedelic sensibility. Lyrically, there’s shame and anger, but also jolts of naked desire:
Sometimes I feel unreachable
But if you break me I might fall
Sometimes I’m good yes I can walk
Sometimes I just need to crawl
So push me up against the wall