Fresh off last year’s breakout debut release, Canadian alt indie folk rocker Oliver James Brooks has “Set Free” a new message for the masses with 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.”

Watch the video of ‘Set Free’ here:
https://youtu.be/gNOWwjPjSow

“Set Free” is the second new single for Brooks since his 2019 take-notice debut, A Turn in the Bend. Written and mostly recorded while living in Brooklyn, New York, the eight-track LP quickly cemented the singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist's ability to capture and creatively express nuance in an intuitive, layered and carefully considered way.

Sandy Horne ( bass, vocals) and Gord Deppe ( guitar vocals) are two of the most under-rated and best players in Canadian music history.

Being the only band in Canada that Nile Rogers chose to produce an album and EP is history-making enough but to continue a 40-year career by releasing a new record that speaks to their growth as musicians and a band; still relevant to their fans and making new fans worldwide is pretty cool.

I am from Montreal, where while at Chom-FM, I played every Spoons record ever made and the Quebec audience loved them. The latest offering from The Spoons features their best collection of songs since "Arias and Symphony".

Full of hooks, cool fun tunes and great production by Sandy's husband Jeff, if you were ever a Spoons fan you will not be disappointed but pleasantly surprised by the songs and production.

Canadian folk singer/songwriter Raina Krangle shares a song straight from her dreams in “My Beautiful Dear” — available now!

The track was recently selected as a finalist in the 2020 Blues & Roots Radio’s International Song Contest, and is the premiere single off her forthcoming album, Headbangers - A Musical Recovery From Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

On the surface, Krangle’s inspiration for “My Beautiful Dear” is endearing in itself; the storytelling lyricist draws on her parent’s 54-year long love story and her childhood in a house where Bruce Cockburn’s “All the Diamonds” was the harmonized lullaby of choice.

But to understand why “My Beautiful Dream” is even more poignant to Krangle, it’s to know it stems from her recovery from a traumatic brain injury (TBI) just under a year ago.

“The injury happened while I was at work as an educator,” she says of the accident. “From there, my road to recovery included lots of yoga, nature walks, photography, meditation, and journaling.

Halifax-based folk and dance-pop artist Jont is encouraging that “all of us together can change the way the world works.”

And so goes the call to action in his new single, “I Think It Could Be Possible” — and resulting cover song invitation. 

“So many people seem to think things are so bad right now and are giving up hope that we can have any positive impact on our world,” he says. “I say, don’t get swept away by disempowering goals of changing the collective chaos caused by humanity. 

“Instead,” he continues, “affect positive change on the world around you right now by changing how you relate to the world… By addressing the inequality you see every day around you… By healing the wounded parts of you that stop you from being as loving and kind as happy as you would like to be… 

“If everyone did that, imagine what our world would be like.” 

For her second album on True North Records, Nashville-based singer Crystal Shawanda has channelled the spirit and strength of blues greats such as Etta James and Koko Taylor, paired with a contemporary delivery that makes the 10 tracks on Church House Blues a rousing testament to her powerful vocal and songwriting abilities.  

 Recorded at several Nashville area studios, Crystal Shawanda says that the recording sessions for Church House blues allowed her to express herself without feeling like anyone was looking over her shoulder. “This is the most I’ve ever loved an album out of everything I’ve ever done,” she offers. “This is really who I am. It’s my most definitive album yet. All these songs reflect different aspects of who I am. It’s putting a finger on that definitively. I’m not trying to prove anything. I’m just being me. I’m done with trying to fit in.”

Ahead of their US tour, Saskatoon, SK’s indie/alternative rock trio, has shared a new music video for the title track of their latest album Afterglow.

Over the last few years, Canadian alternative rock band Autopilot has become a staple in the Saskatoon indie music scene. Known for their thoughtful lyrics, powerful hooks, dynamic stage show, and obsessive hard work, they somehow seem to effortlessly walk the line between passionate art and massive appeal. Over the course of 3 full-length records, and one EP, they’ve become road warriors, touring relentlessly across Canada and the US. They’ve been praised for their tireless work ethic by publications like Canadian Musician Magazine, who called them “quite possibly one of the hardest working bands in the country.” 

With the video by Paul Abderrahim, the track itself was produced by Bizar and POG (Bon Enfant Production, Shawondasee), with the mix by POG and mastering by Benjamin Joubert.

First formed in the mid-2010s, Bizar embodied one — and just one — singular, overarching goal for frontman Alexis.

“Hit music only,” he recalls.

From there, he dedicated himself to “1000 hours” of looking for the perfect chorus, crafting creative paths between pop and every genre possible. His love for puns is on full display within many of the French lyrics, and, on his latest and sophomore EP, 2019’s Greatest Hits II, there’s even a tribute to the six months he spent in Brazil with the Portuguese lyrics of “Eu Ela.”

“Making a song always starts in my bedroom, focusing on melodies with a guitar or synth,” Alexis shares. “Once I’ve got a decent demo, I visit POG to make it shiny and add weird noises.

Watch Bizar – Goudja here https://youtu.be/akx9dpNMWYI

Produced by Young Kxge and with visuals by Wifey, the track is Blacklite District’s second to be released in 2020 — with “Over This” landing before it. With songs stacking over 250 million streams across across all platforms, “Falling” adds to the music man’s growing roster of previous projects, including mixtapes Souled Out (2019), Through the Ages (2018), Instant Gratification (2017), and To Whom It May Concern (2016). His first official album is set for release later this year.

“I make songs from real life experiences, and based on the real things I’ve been through” says the artist of the track and his creative direction at large. “I feel like I’m writing the best music of my career so far, and the music is really developing into a defined sound.

“Falling” is a great example of where I want to be in terms of sound and feeling,” he continues. “The song is real, raw, and emotional.
“I’ll let the music do the talking.”

Watch “‘Falling” here:
https://youtu.be/MQl3ddt9eXE

This week was supposed to be a busy one for Amadeus. They were booked to play in front of music business professionals from around the world at the Mastering the Music Business Conference and Showcase Festival. Like almost all other events, it got cancelled. So Amadeus decided to have their concert online, from their rehearsal room, for the whole world to enjoy. 

Amadeus has been working hard for more than a month. Xenti Runceanu, the band's composer, and producer finished writing and arranging the songs. Andreea, Patricia, Bianca, and Laura rehearsed daily. Amadeus' showcase at MMB was supposed to be a big step in the quartet's artistic evolution. They were ready to showcase their brand new, never heard before songs from their future album.

These are songs that express the current personalities of the four Amadeus members like no other songs have done it before: strong, independent women in love with playing music together, on their instruments.

Ontario-based indie rock singer/songwriter Craig Dougan harkens the daily experience of some 7,000 people who call Nunavut’s remote capital home in his newly minted single, “Iqaluit” — available now!

“The music was done first, and the lyrics came after,” he recalls of the songwriting process. “The video essentially became a storyboard for the song.”

Inspiration and the songwriting process was almost meditative in its origins for Dougan this time around, with the subject matter coming to him with a sense of ease — eyes closed, quiet on his couch. “I went into a deep concentration and kept asking myself, ‘what should I write about?’” he shares. “A few minutes later, the word ‘Nunavut’ popped into my head.”

From there, the song started to spring to life, taking on the feeling of a research project as he dove headfirst into learning the lighter side of day-to-day life for the residents of Canada’s northernmost capital city.

Canadian alt. wave, art pop indie artist Kendal Thompson (literally) exercises her acting chops in this, her latest video for “Not UR Girl”.

Watch “Not UR Girl” here:
https://youtu.be/CygZOXq4vic

“The song was born from a place of gaining back my power,” she shares. “It helped me understand that my happiness relied on belonging to no one other than myself.”

“Not UR Girl” is Thompson’s latest from her most recent album, Ok Cool. The deeply personal collection of songs picks up where previous single, “Human Feel” — and its exploration of universal love and acceptance of both one’s self and others — leaves off, and serves as a welcome follow-up to her take-notice debut EP, One, and feature in John Orpheus’ song, “BUTTAHFLY.”

The new single "Home" by the acclaimed Swedish folk/Singer-Songwriter Simon Alexander has been released today and added to Spotify New Music today in Germany, Switzerland, Norway,Denmark & Iceland as well as Spotify editorial playlists "Hangover Friendly" and "New Talent"

Alexander has had mentions in  Influential blogs as TONSPION.DE - museek.de - altitude - dansendeberen - popmuzik.se - Gas Mask Magazine - CashBox Canada

On the heels of his successful EP "In The Rust”, the single “Home” is sure to make new airwaves happen for this singer/songwriter sensation.

Watch “Home” here:
https://youtu.be/DucuRX9RraQ

Simon Alexander, a Swedish singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Simon Alexander emerged in 2017 with the self-released debut EP ’Won't Be Found’, breathing new air into the modern folk scene.

What happens when you mix the passion for Roots, Rockabilly and Gypsy music with the love for Americana, Country and Jazz music? You get a whole new genre called "Gypsybilly" created by THE VIGNATIS. This aurally and visually colourful Los Angeles based Franco-American duo is dynamic, with performances that charter audiences on a journey from nostalgic times to the unknown future. They defy classification yet cover a gamut of genres forming a unique musical alloy of Neo Roots Alt. Americana Swing. They innovatively fuse American/European traditions, musicianship and a sense of humour cleverly expressed in the music and lyrics of their songs. 

The Vignatis are gearing up for a new 4th album release of their Gypsybilly originals slated for May 15, 2020, entitled "Red, White & Blue - Gypsybilly Vol. 4". This album is sure to get anyone excited to load up the car complete with a picnic basket, cooler, blankets and hit the highway for that long summer road trip.

Award-winning BC Country Music Female Artist of the Year Ajaye Jardine has released a new video for her good vibe track, “Fill It Up Again”.

Watch “Fill It Up Again” here:
https://youtu.be/DkQFpd_XEgY

With over 100,000 streams and counting, the song is the latest to shine off the Richmond, BC-based country/roots/pop artist’s award-nominated debut album, Midnight & Bourbon.

A finalist for the 2016 Ole on The Spot via Anthem Entertainment (previously Ole Publishing), Jardine was nominated for both Record of the Year at the Tennessee Songwriter Association International Awards and multiple BC Country Music Award nominations — in addition to her 2019 win for Female Artist of the Year.

Canadian indie alt-rocker Laszlo is paying retrospective homage to MTV and its stars in his latest single, “Girls on MTV (80s Guy, The Way It Should Be)”.

The song and its lyrical muse take on a whole new meaning when you learn Laszlo grew up in a fundamentalist religious cult, and his access to music — particularly rock music — was a journey all its own.

Quick backstory:  despite not having much in the way of money, Laszlo’s mother had one requirement of her children — piano and violin lessons. While the music of all genres would ultimately play throughout the house, his first CD (Rush’s Farewell to Kings) had to be hidden under his bed and listened to quietly, his ear pressed against the speaker.

Still young and not having the funds for his own guitar, Laszlo was eventually given one from his brother; it had four or five strings, he recalls, and in light of his relentless rock-centric practicing, the family started to come around to his sound.

How do you warm up on frigid frosty Friday in February in Toronto? With some hot music at Toronto’s iconic listening room Hugh’s Room Live. The Western Swing Authority’s return engagement at Hugh’s Room was a show for the ages. The night was a typically cold February night in Hogtown but the searing licks and the powerful vocals and an enthusiastic crowd suddenly made the room Texas Hot.

The Western Swing Authority’s album is called Big Deal and the band is the Real Deal. Every member of this band is at the top of their field in Canadian music, a virtual supergroup. Drummer Jimmy Boudreau puts the swing in Western swing, the bass player for this night was Mark McIntrye filling in Matthew Lima, guitar wizard Paul Chapman is one the best you’ll hear on the other side of border, Ed “Pee Wee Charles” Ringwald on steel guitar has won CCMA’s top award so many times he’s no longer eligible and has inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame and spent 18 years with Gordon Lightfoot, the twin fiddle pairing of Shane Guse and Dan Howlet give WSA that authentic Western swing feel that is so hard to produce on stage.

Toronto alt-pop singer/songwriters Caardia caution the dangers of cell phone and social media dependency in their newest single and video, “The Deep End”.

The second single — and the title track — from their critically acclaimed debut EP, The Deep End, sisters Celia and Annie Siriopoulos penned the song with producer Ryan Guay and Erik Van Wissen.

“‘The Deep End’ is about the dependency people have on cell phones in society today,” Celia offers on the song’s origin. “And the false reality they create for themselves,” Annie adds.

For the song, the Siriopoulos sisters were keen to shine a light on the issue by stressing the importance of wrongly-represented realities and false intimacies of relationships — no matter the context — through a screen. The pair spare no allusive punches staking claim to the severity of the situation, playing out real relationships fragmenting and handcuffs attached to cell phones.

“Not only do people depend on social media, but they fall so far into this false reality that they are unable to escape,” Annie continues. “The video is a visual experience symbolizing how lost and vulnerable people become.”

Canadian electro-pop dynamo Mauve has released her dazzling, must-hear and newest single, “Must Be” — the latest off her recent and award-winning EP, Palette.

To say Mauve delivers a velvety lush voice perfectly folded within her infectiously catchy, light but a layered brand of chill-bop tropical house and RnB beats would be understating just how immersive and engaging the listening experience for this self-produced artist’s work is.

With more than 1,460,000 streams across all platforms — including features on more than 350 influential playlists — the rapidly emerging artist has stacked those stats with good reason; Mauve was nominated for a 2018 Niagara Music Award for “Best New Artist” and her single “Come Around” took top honours at the 2019 InterContinental Music Awards for “Best of North America.”

Canadian country sensation Kelsi Mayne says she made decisions on the fly when it comes to this, her newest single “As I Go” — and the results could not be better. 

“The hook states, ‘I’m gonna make it up As I Go…’ which is precisely what we did when we wrote this song!” Mayne says, recalling the process. “My two brilliant Nashville co-writers, Brett Sheroky and Drew Powell met with me at the end of my long-winded, five-month writing trip in the ‘Music City,’ but we were all drained of ideas.

Canadian jazz-pop artist Katie Ditschun marks a new spot on the music map with the release of “Here We Are” — the latest single off her debut album, Spare Skirt, available now! 

Recorded in Ottawa, and featuring some of Eastern Ontario’s best jazz musicians, the track and album feature Ditschun on vocals, piano, and ukulele — a nod to the singer/songwriter’s self-described style of quirky piano pop meets serious jazz notes and thematic, explorative story-based lyricism. 

“My songs are about relationships — of love, and of those often confused for love,” she explains of the album’s overall notion. “I’m particularly interested in situations where people lack self-knowledge or gain greater awareness about oneself or one’s place in the world.

“‘Here We Are’ speaks to the feeling that there’s some distance between what your life is and how you thought it would turn out, who you thought you’d become, or where you thought you’d be.” 

Watch Katie Ditschun - Here We Are (Official Music Video)
here: https://youtu.be/rUDYNTcQH5E