Most of us know what living on the “wrong side of the tracks” means, but how many of us realize the role social injustice often plays in who lives there? Prolific Guelph, ON-based folk singer-songwriter James Gordon examines this, taking a deeper look into humanity’s widening chasms, pulling no punches in the process, in this, his new single, “The Great Divide”.

“There’s a railroad track near my house that divides the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’,” he notes. “It’s the same in many towns.

“It got me thinking about all the different ‘divisions’ we’ve created in our society,” he continues. “Economic, racial, class, etc... The song ‘The Great Divide’ came from this observation.”

Check out “The Great Divide” on YouTube here:

England’s fate-crossed rock duo Libre Stone lay it all on the line when it comes to the release of their new full-length album and title single, “Mark of Cain”.

Check out the YouTube of “Mark of Cain” here:

The 11-song strong release follows their debut EP, Wrecking Ball, and lands as a passion project they were forced to create remotely due to a global-wide pandemic.

The pair met at a Tears for Fears fan group gathering, and found commonality and mutual ground within each other from their first encounter. “Dion Smith and I got chatting and he told me he played a bit of guitar — which was an outright lie,” Julian Orzabal recalls of their first interactions. “He plays a lot of guitar, and plays it very well.

Love affairs, personal epiphanies, floods of memories, messy situations... Every life story can become inspiration for a song, and Canadian folk-rock artist Erika Lamon is distilling such moments into her forthcoming album, and new single “Catch the Light”.

Confronting the world at a pandemic standstill gave Lamon and her co-writer, producer, and husband, Max Nolet, the desire to set creativity in motion and record an album. The result is the Kingston-based singer-songwriter’s first full length, and FACTOR funded effort, Hues — set to arrive May 27, 2022.

Fittingly, the album recording process began in 2020 with Lamon sitting in the middle of her home studio with “lyrics from the last few years strewn about me on the floor,” she recalls.

“I asked myself: ‘what songs am I really excited about? Cutting it down to fifteen songs was tough.”

Then, as inspiration would strike, Lamon and Nolet would write new songs, cutting that initial list even more.

Two months after the release of his upbeat comeback single “Still,” Hollow River — a Canadian pop-punk rapper by the name of Mark MacDonald — has released a rocking new tune called “September.”

Available now, the song lands alongside a simple but gorgeous animated lyric video which pulls you right into the musician’s mind.

Watch “September” on YouTube here:

Though MacDonald is known well for fusing his rapping abilities with his passion for pop-punk music, this brand-new three-minute, 20 second spanning track is quite a departure from his initial approach. He abandons the rap, for a classic early 2000s-sounding vocal take; think Blink-182 and Good Charlotte!

Pulsing with vibrancy and gritty instrumentation — not to mention, coupled with a sense of melancholy to deliver a sonically nostalgic experience — Regina, SK’s alt-shoegazers Celia’s Dream comes out swinging with their debut single, “You”.

“You” is an atypical love song with a minimalist lyrical approach that expresses the complexities of true romance in a way only Saskatchewan-based breakthrough band Celia’s Dream can.

Watch and listen to “You” on YouTube here:

“Known like the ocean,
You, you,
Breathing like we’ve come undone,
You, you”

Sometimes, all it takes is an invitation to get out on the dancefloor, and there’s no turning one down from Carolina Lopez, who keeps it muy caliente with this, her new single “El Latin Dance”.

A little bit of Cumbia mixed with a driving hip-hop beat, “El Latin Dance” is a summons to dance — no matter your culture, and no matter how shy you might typically be.

“This Latin song only has one rule: to dance,” Lopez says, before assuring, “and I promise – you don't need to be an expert…

“Just feel it, let the music in, and let's go to dance!”

It’s a super-sexy jam, with the drums and bass as the stars, while Lopez positively purrs, mostly in Spanish. The sole line she sings in English is “I told him, ‘Let’s go to dance.’”

Check out the great video of “El Latin Dance” on YouTube here:

There’s something about a bad breakup that can make you want to anesthetize yourself into temporary oblivion, and country singer/songwriter Carroll Love’s new single, “More Than 90 Proof” — available now — handles that urge with honesty and humour.

A pop-country jam with energetic electric guitars and head-bopping beats, Love sings about putting a woman on a pedestal only for her to leave him for another dude. And now he doesn’t need to whoop it up at a Friday-night bonfire or to tailgate with his friends; he needs blissful silence and that good ol’ “More Than 90 Proof.”

Watch the video for “More Than 90 Proof” on YouTube here:

“I knew I wanted to make a song that hits hard and cuts deep, but is also enjoyable,” Love says. And we all know that place: when things are dark, but we can still laugh about it — albeit bitterly.

Inuk pop-rap artist Aocelyn ascends to her rightful throne with the unveiling of her new single and video, “I Wish I Was a King”.

The song lands ahead of the 22-year-old Nunavut-based songwriter, vocalist and freestyler’s forthcoming debut album, Lovely, set to arrive this November 5th via Iqaluit-based record label, Hitmakerz.

Check out “I Wish I Was A King” on YouTube Here:

An extremely unique artist who has overcome many challenges, including housing insecurity and extensive bullying throughout her life, Jocelyn Arreak — and nom de plume, Aocelyn (pronounced “aw-slin) — hope to help others avoid the bullying that she experienced.

Canadian band Astral Gates’ refined classic rock style effortlessly seduces the ear and demonstrates their grasp of groove with this, their gritty new single, “Behave”.

The final single off the highly anticipated EP II, “Behave” is about a woman who always gets what she wants. Using her charms, she takes complete control of every aspect of her mind and body in an expression of pure feministic freedom. There is nothing this femme fatale won’t do in this tale of female empowerment that seamlessly weaves itself within the hypnotic tone of “Behave.”

Watch “Behave” on YouTube here:

The latest musical effort by Astral Gates is a unique blend of meticulous audio refinement and their mature songwriting style. “Behave” is a sonic whirlwind with international appeal, evoking bands who have influenced their sound, such as the Arctic Monkeys and Queens of The Stone Age.

With rich, velvety vox ablaze amidst a sense of passion and playfulness, Toronto singer/songwriter Miss Lia’s new single “Animal Type” captures the carnal charge around setting sights on who you want.

Written in Miss Lia’s unique fashion — a confident, inspired, spontaneous type of lyricism — the song’s origins are rooted in the pop-R&B artist’s penchant for emotionally-driven songwriting that pulls on both past experiences and in-the-moment feelings.

“For ‘Animal Type,’ I was getting ready to go out, and started ‘feeling myself’ — confident and sexy — like an empowered woman,” she recalls. “The vibe just came to me… I was watching myself in the mirror and started singing the melody of the intro. I came up with the first verse and chorus at that moment, and left them unchanged.”

Check out “Animal Type” on YouTube here:

Wait, is that a screeching halt to the sonic vibe of 2021? Or have we just “Blacked Out”? Maybe it’s a bit of both, or at least seems that way when you blare the speakers on the debut drop from Canadian Rockers The Manic Boys and Girls Club — available now!

“’Blacked Out’ is a cry for help disguised as an upbeat dance floor banger,” The Manic Boys and Girls Club admits. “We're lost, overmedicated, depressed and hiding behind bathroom selfies, late nights, and lip gloss.

Watch “Blacked Out: here:

Award-winning Canadian female vocal group ViVA Trio are “Wild and Free” in this, their stunning, cinematic new single.

Check out “Wild and Free” here:

Multi-Platinum Producer Ryan Louder (Dua Lipa, Dido) co-wrote and produced “Wild and Free” with ViVA Trio members Anna Bateman, Erin Fisher, and Katya Tchoubar. “This song is an expression of our new direction, and is such an exciting collaboration!” Anna shares.

“Yes!” Katya agrees. “We can do vocal fireworks all day but, for this album, we wanted to create a more ethereal quality. By collaborating with Ryan Louder on this song, our vision for this new sound came to life.”

Sunny and sad; freakish and beautiful; all can exist simultaneously, as deftly shown by Swedish indie art-pop artist they owe us in new single, “I’m Your Biggest Fan”.

Fresh from they owe us’ new sophomore album, KRAM, “I’m Your Biggest Fan” starts out noisy — complete with driving drumbeats and clanging cymbals, and then suddenly turns lo-fi and melodic.

Check out “I’m Your Biggest Fan” here:

It’s a California sound that evokes a Polaroid kind of day: colorful, and bright, and timeless, while welcomingly hazy at the edges. There’s an ease to it, the feeling of lying in the sand and not having to go anywhere; meandering piano, some oohh-la-la harmonies, and some horns, for good measure.

“I mean the title says it all,” he said. “That warm, energized rush you get when you are floored by a person, a place, a song.

Singer/songwriter, actress, and humanitarian Sonia Aimy grabs audiences hands and ushers them on a deep dive through her childhood roots and straight into her soul in this, her new album and single of the same name, ”Reconnect”.

Offering introspective and intimate glimpses into her creative heart, Reconnect exudes Sonia Aimy’s signature dynamic sound — a blend of afro-jazz, afrobeat, highlife, and elements of the African griot call-and-response tradition “in a string of easy flowing, yet virtuosic performances.”

Watch ”Reconnect” here:

The release is a reflection of the Nigerian-born and Toronto-based multi-talented artist’s recent sentiments around feeling overwhelmingly stuck, having constantly been on the move, touring the world to spread her influence and creativity.

Singer/Songwriter Mike Vitale is here to usher you “Home” with the release of his new single, and album — ϕ — both available now.

Check out “Home” here:

When it comes to the album, you don’t have to try and say ϕ, you just need to listen to it. In case you’re wondering, though, it means “Phi” — and it’s a beautiful lullaby that leaves you lingering on each hook.

It’s an LP the roots indie musician from LA has been in the process of creating for nearly a decade; a labour of love that began four years ago in Long Beach, Vitale fuses heart and love and musings on a 12-track full-length that finds him yodeling, to enchanting us with wanderlust — inviting us to spin starry circles in lovers lengths.

“The album is called PHI as this is the Greek letter representing the Golden Ratio,” Vitale explains. “It is an irrational number that goes on forever, just like Pi.

It might be Nano Talrose “falling deeper,” but it’s you, the listener, drowning in the delicate beauty of the emotive indie artist’s latest single and video.

“falling deeper” channels leaning into love; finding it, holding it and allowing oneself to lose the ability to swim in an ocean of passion, fire, and desire. The song breaks out over a pulsing electric riff, before branching off into an electronica, low-fi vibe, and dreamily mashed with the intricacy of Talrose’s exquisite vox.

Check out “falling deeper” on YouTube here:

“The song is very different from all the other songs I’ve made so far, which are usually slower with more heartfelt lyrics and emotion,” Talrose recalls. “‘falling deeper’ has more of a grunge-pop or alt-pop vibe, and I am looking forward to showing people a different side of me as an artist.”

Sometimes you mess up, and a relationship ends. And even though it’s over, you’ve been okay with that, until one day, out of nowhere, that old flame starts haunting your daydreams. Delving deep into this type of deliciously torturous mental scenario is Canadian singer/songwriter Justin Maki and his new single and video, “Close To You”.

A jazzy pop-funk cocktail, “Close To You” tells the story of catching sight of a former lover in a bar, and playing the stare-look away game. The song begins with a guitar riff nearly identical to the iconic opener of Prince’s “Kiss,” and it could very well be an intentional choice on Maki’s part, for he’s about to spend the entirety of the song trying to convince the woman to give him some of her extra time.

Let’s get out of this place
Will you stay?
Will you stay?
I don’t mean to impose
I just want to be, let me
Close to You

Watch the video of “Close To You” here:

When it feels like the light at the end of the tunnel is dim, there always seems to be an artist like Whiarton, ON’s Josh Ritchie ready to walk you through it. Featuring soulful guitar riffs, boisterous vocalizations, and a Hammond keyboard (always a winner), the Canadian pop-rock singer/songwriter does just that, leading audiences on an emotional journey with his new single and album of the same name, Love at the End of the World.

In the face of systemic racism and corruption laced into society, “this record does talk a lot about systemic racism, the greed and brokenness of our society and the pressures of having to fight against all that,” Josh Ritchie shares. “However, it’s not meant to be sad; it’s meant to be a hopeful record that people who care about this kinda stuff can listen to when they feel alone or feel like giving up.

“This record is for all of us who feel,” he continues, and “to remind us that there actually is some love even at the end of the world.”

Watch Love at the End of the World here:

The black and white keys on a piano. Heads and tails on a coin. Yin and yang. Just like these opposing halves that create a whole, life would not be complete without both its highs and lows. Multi-award winning contemporary jazz artist Fiona Ross reflects the full emotional spectrum of this thing called life with her highly anticipated new album, Red Flags and High Heels, and its satisfyingly scathing lead single, “You Are Like Poison”.

Watch You Are Like Poison” here:

With her fifth studio album landing after Ross being named among the 100 Alternative Power Music List for 2020 by shesaid.so, the internationally acclaimed, London-based vocalist, pianist, composer, producer and journalist has garnered experience and expertise to cast a wide net to capture the dark, light and much of what lies between in this personal and very relatable new collection.

Canadian artist Cmagic5 is set to aid and abet audiences to get over their exes in this sizzling new power-pop single and video, “Dancing on My Heart”.

Landing hot on the heels of her highly acclaimed 2021 breakthrough debut, Ready To Run, the sizzling new song underscores the emotional precariousness of the “moving on” phase while showcasing the Toronto-based multi-talented singer/songwriter, actor, and dancer’s soaring, soulful vocals and magnetic, mesmerizing energy.

“In a fun and playful way, it’s about holding your ex responsible for your inability to move on,” Cmagic5 explains. “It’s about that part after falling out of a relationship, and the frustration that develops when you’re avoiding falling in love with the same person all over again because you know they’re not the one for you.

Check out “Dancing on My Heart” on YouTube here: youtube.com/watch?v=BmXs840Dcfo

“But, hey! It happens!” she winks. “Have you ever been in love? It’s almost as if your ex is your guilty pleasure. That’s why it’s summed up in the line ‘I keep giving in and that’s my crime.’”