Absolutely Free Absolutely_Free Arts & Crafts There is something magical about music that is both experimental and easy to dance to. Think Animal Collective, Dan Deacon, Caribou, or Doldrums. These are artists who know how to open your mind [...]
Stars No One Is Lost ATO The Montreal-based quintet Stars return two years after their album The North with a simpler, tighter, and mostly upbeat collection of music with their latest entry No One is Lost. The opening selection “From the Night” [...]
Shakey Graves And The War Came Dualtone Music Group And The War Came, the latest release by Shakey Graves, is a tremendously powerful piece of folk revival. While many folk singers suffer from penning albums that seem bland and uninteresting [...]
Elizabeth Shepherd Signal Indepenent/Linus Entertainment With The Signal, pianist and singer/songwriter Elizabeth Shepherd creates contemporary jazz that is high on both rhythmic sensibilities and lyrical content. She has a knack of making [...]
July Talk For Your Bloodshot Eyes Sleepless Records July Talk’s 2013 self-titled debut album crackles with energy and seethes with sexuality, largely fuelled by the tension between band leaders Peter Dreimanis and Leah Fay. Since then, in [...]
Lenny Breau LA Bootleg 1984 Guitar Archives/Linus Entertainment Thirty years ago, in August of 1984, jazz guitar legend Lenny Breau was found dead – apparently murdered. The mystery remains unsolved. Two months earlier, executive producer [...]
Emilia E Current Records Ever since Emilia came out last year with “Closer All The Time” from her impressive 4-track EP Flying Colors, I have been anticipating her new music and now the wait is over. Simply titled E, this exciting new 10-song [...]
Jennifer Castle Pink City Idée Fixe Queen of her Castle! This Canadian folk singer-songwriter based in Toronto returns with her second full-length studio release, Pink City. This 10-track gentle beauty represents a pomp of folk that Castle [...]
Deborah Ledon Diving For Pearls Independent In her debut record, Vancouver native Deborah Ledon brings a very smooth, laid back and sensual take on adult contemporary Latin Jazz that is infused with creative arrangements, clear vocals, and [...]
Shovels & Rope Swimmin’ Time Dualtone No matter how many times you listen to “After The Storm,” you’ll still get goosebumps and have to stop everything you’re doing. The fourth song on Swimmin’ Time, the latest release from the [...]
The New Pornographers Brill Bruisers Last Gang Entertainment The New Pornographers have a shot at winning the 2015 Polaris music prize. Their latest release Brill Bruisers is a catchy album; “a celebration album,” bubbling over but not over [...]
Elephant Stone The Three Poisons Hidden Pony Records Elephant Stone’s new album The Three Poisons, continues to be a musical fusion of East meets West, but above all else, it is a beautiful blending of artistic maturity and discovery. [...]
Alvvays Alvvays Royal Mountain Records If Alvvays’ (pronounced “Always”) music sounds familiar, that’s because you’ve heard this band in The Smiths, The Beach Boys, Beach House, Magnetic Fields, Best Coast and Camera Obscura. The Toronto-based [...]
Pennywise Yesterdays Epitaph Records Pennywise, the punk legends from Southern California, have just released their eleventh studio album, Yesterdays. As of 2013, this album marks 25 years of Pennywise. The album includes many songs that were [...]
Skrillex & Kill The Noise Recess Remixes Asylum Meh. The remixes were meh. At first, when I saw Fatman Scoop AND Skrillex, I was excited to turn up the volume and just indulge in ear candy. But about 1:37 seconds through the first song, I [...]
Every Time I Die From Parts Unknown Epitaph Records Low expectations would not be among the most common prior to the release of Every Time I Die’s seventh studio album, From Parts Unknown. All of the properties were in place for one [...]
Thought Beneath Film Cartographers MapleMusic Recordings/Fontana North The thoughts that lie beneath the film, the thin veil of disguise, are not always what they seem. So it is with Thought Beneath Film’s Cartographers. It would [...]
White Lung Deep Fantasy Deranged Records Canadian punk band, White Lung, released their third studio album entitled Deep Fantasy. Hailing from Vancouver, White Lung showcases that a group of three women (and their male guitarist) can create [...]
Bob Mould Beauty & Ruin Merge Records Bob Mould’s eleventh solo album by and large finds him sounding rejuvenated. Opener “Low Season” has growling, brooding guitars in the manner of his classic Black Sheets of Rain album. It’s [...]
Peter Murphy Lion Nettwerk Music Group More than 30 years have passed since his Bauhaus days and now Peter Murphy is back three years after his last solo album with Lion, his tenth solo album. He is still dealing in commanding gothic [...]
Stan Getz/Joao Gilberto Getz/Gilberto (Extended Edition) Verve/Universal 50 years ago, tenor saxophonist Stan Getz collaborated with Brazilian singer and guitarist Joao Gilberto, his wife Astrud Gilberto and pianist/composer Antonio Carlos [...]
Coldplay Ghost Stories Warner Records Canada One’s heart may beat faster while envisioning what could have been; Coldplay’s sixth studio album Ghost Stories tells the sombre tale of lead singer Chris Martin’s personal life and his ending [...]
Buddy Rich The Solos Lightyear Entertainment Buddy Rich was heralded as one of the great jazz drummers of all time. What was even more amazing is that he admitted to not even practicing or honing his craft after performances or during [...]
The Black Keys Turn Blue Nonesuch Records What would happen if Pink Floyd tried to make a blues record? Thanks to The Black Keys and their latest release, Turn Blue, listeners can now imagine such an album. The hard rocking duo have dialed back [...]
