While the term “Hookup” is 21st-century parlance for fleeting romance, singer-songwriter Lara Taubman’s new single of the same name wastes little time evoking the groovy ‘60s and ‘70s with a funk-infused bassline and crystal vocals reminiscent of Grace Slick.

The song opens with a question: “Was it just a hookup, didn’t you feel my heart” that then becomes a harmonizing hook — taking us on a psychological journey of the morning after.

Free love, in this case, isn’t so freeing. The narrator’s lover assures her there will be no regrets, and then she, presumably, never hears from him again. The song is personal, inspired by a time when Lara was waiting for a text from a man she had recently hooked up with. “It’s about the risky high dives I took in my intimate relationships, gambling with hope as my best hand,” she said.

As Lara sat facing the dread that this particular hookup wasn’t what she had hoped it was, she decided to use it as creative inspiration. “I wrote the song in one sitting,” she said. “Driven by that first line and a mountain of yearning, despair and anxiety.”

Check out “Hookup” on YouTube here:

“Man I Love” combines Mena's past musical influences, in conjunction with a spiritual and emotional connection to Indigenous culture. The combination of “Southern Rock” with Indigenous influences, satisfies a longing for those with Native ancestry. As such, “Man I Love” presents an inspirational step toward the cutting edge sound of this accomplished performer.

“Man I Love” relates to not only the loss of love, but loss of friends to suicide,” as Mena explains. “I put the pain into song.”

Expressed beautifully, and with deep emotion, is the understandable sense of loss of not only what was, but what might have been.

Players on the track include Producer Mark Muir, who also played guitar and bass, Roy Nichol (April Wine) on drums, Pamela Cumming plays the violin, Duncan Gillis is on the flute, and Steve McAlear added Native percussion. The track was engineered by the  world-renowned Ron Nevison.

https://soundcloud.com/gerry-young-684327208/mena-hardy-the-man-i-love-radio-edit-1

Set to inspire a magical dance of nature spirits celebrating the change of seasons,  award-winning Canadian group ViVA Trio have released their stunning first foray into folk music with new single, “Solstice Jig”.

As the latest preview of their forthcoming concept album, “Solstice Jig” offers a light hearted, upbeat tune featuring star violinist Vasil Popadiuk alongside Trio members Anna Bateman, Erin Fisher, and Katya Tchoubar. Inspired by Irish jigs, Enya, as well as a series of Canadian and Celtic folk artists, the song lilts with pagan, celtic magic and nature-inspired lyrics.

Check out “Solstice Jig” on YouTube Here:

“We’re dipping our toes into the deep traditions of folk music, and loving it!” Anna shares.

“‘Solstice Jig’ is a more let-your-hair-loose kind of track for us,” Erin adds.

There is something about Theo Ogundipe that is worth getting to know... And with one listen to this multifaceted indie-soul musician’s new single, “Y” that notion is easily confirmed.

It’s easy to tell that “Y” is rich with emotional vulnerability, easily explained in that Theo Ogundipe has always “been a lover of music and a musician at heart.”

Check out “Y” here on YouTube:

Ogundipe’s fusion of several genres including soul, hip hop, indie, and RnB is inspired “by his life growing up in the diaspora” — referring to his home Nigeria in West Africa, and his transition to the United Kingdom as a child. Citing influences like Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, and Motown, it becomes clear where Theo Ogundipe's mind is when writing music.

From the page to the stage, fantasy has become reality for Canadian roots-rock band Downtown Exit, and this, their intimate, acoustic cover of Neil Young’s “After the Goldrush”.

Watch and listen to “After the Goldrush” on YouTube here:

Until now, Downtown Exit has solely existed as the fictional 1970s-era band, Levi Jaxon and The Downtown Exit; it’s the moniker #1 best-selling author Glenn Dixon created for his new book, Bootleg Stardust.

Also a musician and songwriter, Dixon and his real-life band of top notch, Calgary-based musicians and songwriters, usually known as the Barrel Dogs, wrote and recorded seven songs as a soundtrack for the book — including this era-faithful cover of Young’s classic, and its timeless message.

Classically influenced and a compelling listen, Canadian orchestral pop-rock band Daniel Monte have unveiled their newest video and single from their debut LP, Familiar; “S.O.S. and Send” is available now!

Mostly inspired by Beethoven and Brahms, the Toronto-area group are known for taking special care incorporating classical music elements into their songs — and hard-rock style “S.O.S. and Send” lands no differently.

“There’s a little nod to Bach in the violin solo section,” lead singer Daniel Monte reveals. “I played a G minor arpeggio figure going down the range of the violin, which was also famously used by Bach at the beginning of the Presto in G minor.”

It’s a witchy world of rumours, stories, gossip, and telephone games. And for Canadian indie sensation Astrid Tanton, it’s about clearing everything at once on this, her new single and video, “Jury” — available now.

Fresh from her breakthrough debut EP, From My Eyes, “Jury” comes from a place of learning and hurt, the Toronto-based artist explains. Her message is ageless — there is their version, your version, and... Somewhere in the middle is the truth.

And Tanton isn’t afraid to expose it.

“There’s a reason people always say there’s two sides to a story,” she says. “People will twist and tell a story to benefit themselves.

“‘Jury’ explores that relationship of being placed as the ‘villain’ or the ‘bad guy’ in a story.

“The concept behind the ‘Jury’ video follows myself and ‘the jury,’” Tanton continues, offering a behind-the-scenes take of her visual counterpart of the track. “The jury represents not only people who are being told a one-sided story, but the intrusive thoughts that can follow you when you are constantly being painted as the bad guy.

Check out “Jury” on YouTube here:

Heavy percussion and a groove-saturated bass line set psych-rocker Rise Carmine’s latest single up as the sexy, 70s-esque low-fi electric gem it’s destined to be; “Be The Only One”.

The latest to land ahead of the Toronto-based artist’s forthcoming debut, No Coup For Anyone, the release’s GRAMMY-winning powerhouse producer Dave Schiffman’s (Weezer, PUP, Vampire Weekend) craftsmanship is on full display: a tightly woven intro, a crushing hook, and a sizzling fade, magnificently mingled with frontman Liam Colbert’s smart lyrics, and incendiary vox.

“Be The Only One” is a staring competition; look away and you might miss what’s to come next from the full EP.

Check out “Be The Only One” on YouTube here:

Sometimes the best things about summer are the most simple: the smell of dew in the grass, a charge in the night air, and infinite stars in a clear sky. And Nobeton, ON’s singer-songwriter Matt Morson captures these modest joys, and more, with his new single “Tailgate Patio”.

Get up and dance to “Tailgate Patio” on YouTube here:

or

Give a listen on Spotify here:
https://open.spotify.com/track/2OaHfH398zUmNDn7gJjSAf?si=077aa934c0544422&nd=1

Canadian rocker Kevin Towill may have planted his roots in the punk community, but it's his expressive, electric guitar-laden new EP, After The Party Is Over that showcases the depths of his ability to bend genres and colour outside the lines.

Check out After The Party Is Over on YouTube here:

Kicking off with lead track, "The Contemporary American Dream", the Calgary-based artist's move to write a solo album followed Towill's decision to re-prioritize his '9-5' life, shifting focus from working solely at a gig he picked up when his former punk outfit, The Reckless Heroes, disbanded in 2017 and gravitating back to music. 

“Music was far too important and self-identifying to abandon completely,” he explains; knowing that music was a lifeline to the air he breathes, Towill set out to lay the tracks of his breakthrough solo project.

Diving even deeper into his realest, rawest, and most realized artistic self yet, Canadian contemporary pop, R&B and soul artist Ezra Jordan releases his new single, “dollarama”.

“This song was written during one of my lowest points during the pandemic,” Ezra shares. “I was suffering from a pretty significant depressive episode, my plans to move to LA had been derailed, and I had lost my job and moved back with my parents.

“I took stock of my life, my relationships, my friends, and my own self-image, and tried to figure out where this empty feeling was coming from.

“Out of that, I wrote ‘dollarama.’”

Check out “dollarama” on YouTube here:

While Canadians were largely at loose ends self-isolating during the lengthy series of pandemic-related lockdowns, prolific folk singer/songwriter James Gordon hunkered down and got busy creating his 40th album, When I Stayed Home.

That’s right; Four. Zero.

And the timely 13-track full-length release also features Gordon’s powerful musical response to the national residential school tragedies with the song, “We’ll Bring You Home.”

Listen and watch the poignant single “We’ll Bring You Home” on YouTube here:
https://youtu.be/5D4cAXqSjZg

The arrival of COVID-19 — and the fear, uncertainty, and disruption it brought with it — initially affected Gordon, like many of us, negatively. Since the Guelph, Ontario based artist has toured all over the globe relentlessly since his twenties, being stuck at home was depressing… At least, for a while.

Two months after the release of their debut studio album, Daydreaming, Connecticut-based pop/rock duo View19 are celebrating the summer with a brand-new single, “Big Night Out” .

Give a listen to “Big Night Out” here on YouTube:

Just as its name implies, “Big Night Out” is an upbeat track about going out on the town and having fun. Whether that’s dancing to music, hitting a patio, or being out with your family, friends, or dearly-loved ones, View19 just wants their fans to celebrate the (hopefully) soon-to-be forgotten COVID-19 pandemic.

To help relay that message, the listener is met with a consistently groovy pop bassline which calls back to the mid-1970s disco era. Along the way, you’re met with a multitude of different keyboard and synth sounds which perfectly complement the soothing backup vocals of View19 songwriters and co-founders, Sean Lorden and Lorenzo Biscotto.

Multi-award nominated Canadian tour de force velours has lifted the curtain on her newest single, “Whatever That Means”.

Check out “Whatever That Means” on YouTube here:

A follow-up to her breakthrough debut EP, Identity, the bilingual Canadian songstress with velvety vox strikes the chord between progressive rock and alternative pop — all the while, her lyricism sparked with emotion, laced with authenticity and emphatically raw in its delivery.

For velours, the effort to seek refuge through empathy captivates and fascinates audiences alike. She doesn’t shy away from sharing – from lining the walls of her lyrics with the truth. In fact, she fashions her artistry from laying it all to bear – for better or worse; and the resolve that comes from being truly vulnerable.

With a speakeasy style that lulls listeners into an entranced state, Inuk hip-hop artist Shauna Seeteenak releases her powerful and spine-chilling new single, “See The Light”.

The song serves as a preview to her forthcoming debut album, Therapy Sessions. The release sees Seeteenak focus her music on telling her truths, and shining light on the struggles that Inuit people face in Canada — a humble cause, and often a very dark and sobering reality.

Shrouded in uplifting pop-piano chords and dance-worthy bass lines, these “truths,” as Seeteenak calls them, include “mental health, sobriety, breaking stereotypes, overcoming barriers, surviving the north, and trying to heal.”

Featuring lines like ‘you can change your life if you pick up where you left it,’ and ‘life would be easy, life would be perfect, but then, believe me, it wouldn’t be worth it,’ Seeteenak has audiences right where she wants them: inspired and emboldened, ready to be uplifted into greatness.

In keeping their promise to deliver a new flavour of rock, Canadian band Rogue Proxy continues to be an infectious conduit for music with this, their latest single, “She Turned Around”.

“She Turned Around” is a song about “about simple things done just right.” Turns out, however, combining classic rock elements with a sophisticated, ever-changing AI engine turned out to be... Not so simple? “She Turned Around was inspired by literally having a girl turn around to say goodbye,” the band shares, noting that one of the co-fronts’ two-year-old daughter had done so as the pair of friends-turned-band leads were wrapping up a video call working through new ideas.

Check out “She Turned Around” On YouTube here:

Stony Plain Records announces an October 22 release date for Pinky’s Blues, the new album from award-winning blues guitarist/singer Sue Foley. Featuring several Sue Foley originals, as well as songs from some of her favorite blues and roots artists, Pinky’s Blues was recorded at Fire Station Studios in San Marcos, Texas. Joining Sue Foley (guitar, vocals) for the recording sessions were Jon Penner (bass), Chris “Whipper” Layton (drums) and Mike Flanigin (Hammond B3 organ), who also produced the album.

To support the release of her new disc, Foley will embark on an extensive tour schedule that includes both an official showcase at the upcoming September Americana Music Conference in Nashville, as well as a set at the Kessler Day Party Showcase during the conference.

Foley also shot videos for three songs from the new album that were directed by Tim Hardiman, who directed the latest Black Keys video.

Contagious and hard-hitting as a dancehall track, new single “Whine Masta” is inspired by talented and boundary-defying Toronto-based dancehall and R&B artist Omega Mighty’s Jamaican / Bajan heritage.

And with plenty of electronic strings, deep punching bass, and an infectious melody, “Whine Masta” is sure to get audiences on their feet and feeling good. The deliciously fantastic new single was conceptualized after Omega Mighty found herself drawn to creating a song that would promote confidence and sensuality. With that idea fresh in her mind, Omega Mighty recalls she “really wanted to push the boundaries with the beauty looks.

Check out “Whine Masta” on YouTube here:

“As a beauty professional,” she continues, “I always want to incorporate clean beauty elements with non-traditional elements…”

Set to savour the fruits of summer, Canadian hip hop/reggae/calypso artist Fokus is serving up his brand-new single, “Sweet Tooth”.

“As a Dancehall, Reggae and R&B artist looking to make music that will encourage my listeners to dance, I purposely made the concept of ‘Sweet Tooth’ very simple,” Fokus explains. “Basically, I portray my thoughts and observations of that woman who stands out in the crowd when going to the club, a party/jam, or what West Indians call a ‘fete’.

“In my lyrics, I explain how the woman who stands out in my eyes is one who is very subtle,” he continues. “One who is not trying too hard with her hair and makeup, but one who embraces her natural beauty, and does not care about what others think about her. She is there to enjoy herself, not to be judged or disrespected. This is the type of female I tend to crave for, in all romantic and intimate ways… Hence, my ‘Sweet Tooth’.”

Check out “Sweet Tooth” on YouTube:

Proving again that Florida-based Morning Trips will not be confined to a genre, the boundless energy of the Florida four-piece flows through their latest release, “We Have No Time (For Now)”.

“We Have No Time (For Now)” shape shifts the group’s defined songwriting ability, and carves an electro-pop vibe capable of inviting you to the dance floor. The track follows their previous effort, “Assault” — a pulsating exploration into dark, heavy industrial metal with a subsequent music video slapped with an 18+ warning label.

Check out “We Have No Time (For Now)” on YouTube here:

“We have a lot of exciting concepts and visuals planned for what will be our first formal EPs,” the band explains. “We are a guitar band at heart, but in our minds, we’re redefining what it means to make guitar-driven music in 2021 when the modern world is so hyper and phonetical.