Song of the Day: November 22, 2018 - "Jessica Don't Like Rock 'n' Roll" by Autogramm

When you get an email from a band that tout members from the likes of Black Mountain, Destroyer, Blood Meridian, The Spitfires, Black Halos, and Hard Drugs, you’re more than likely going to take a listen!

Autogramm is a Vancouver band with musicians (former and current) from the above bands, and their first single "Jessica Don't Like Rock 'n' Roll" gave me definite Go-Gos vibes.

And if you think the song has 80s vibes, wait until you see the video for it below…

Song of the Day: November 18, 2018 - "starlight" by nêhiyawak

I saw nêhiyawak for the first time during Break Out West last month and was blown away!

They just released a new song on Friday (Nov 16) that coincided with the day Louis Riel was hanged in 1885 after confederation.
The band “has chosen important dates in the creation of the sovereign nation referred to as Canada to release music from the starlight collection (the new EP - due out Nov 27). These dates were also important to the fragmentation of indigenous nationhood of which the effects are still felt today.”

The title track is below, and of it, lead vocalist Kris Harper says this:
“starlight shines a torch into the shadows of colonial ideologies. What is erasure? How is it manifest in society? What are the depths man will go to to hush the perspective of others? When tools of erasure are put to use on aspects of particular cultures, they are also applied to society as a whole. What are the symptoms and affects of these attempts at extinguishing culture? Recognition of the forms and techniques that impact indigenous, POC, LGBTQ, and our mothers, sisters, and daughters assist in the reformation and reparations sought by survivors in our day. The education of this is nêhiyawak's endurance on starlight.”…

Check it out!:

Song of the Day: November 17, 2018 - "Spooky Christmas" by Mariah Scary and The Ghoulish Cauldrons

And now for something completely different…

I knew we’d start getting new Christmas music soon, but was not expecting this one to be the first to land in my inbox.

Mariah Scary and The Ghoulish Cauldrons (MSATGC for short), is Steve Bays (Mounties, Hot Hot Heat), and Cary Pratt (Mounties, Prairie Cat), and while the theme might be different, it has all the catchy elements of those two wonderful musicians.

The idea is: a Halloween theme band that only writes songs about non-Halloween holidays - and the first song released is titled “Spooky Christmas”.

So get into, what I can only imagine would be, the Goth-y Christmas Spirit, and sing-along with lines like “The only presence I feel, is a dark one”…get it?

Song of the Day: November 16, 2018 - "NYC" by HIGHS

All last week HIGHS has been teasing new music after a few years of silence, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting it!

The new single came out today and it is definitely a JAM and I’ve listened to it several times this morning already. “NYC” reminded me immediately of a few things (or maybe it’s just HIGHS, since it’s been so long). But I saw it was produced by Cayne McKenzie of We Are The City, so that influence definitely comes through…

Give it a listen, and I’m going to sit an eagerly await the next song…or info on an album, or a tour?!…I missed this band.

Song(s) of the Day: November 15, 2018 - "Cascadia" & "Wake Up" by Said The Whale

There’s a lot to unpack here, so lets go!

First, Said The Whale just announced (unless, like me, you caught it in the video for “UnAmerican”!) the release date for their album Cascadia - February 8, 2019.

Next, we got TWO singles today, the title track “Cascadia” and the first track on the album “Wake Up”…and videos for both, which I’ll post below.

They released the first of a mini-docu-series on the band, which features keyboardist Jaycelyn (and her fantastic cooking - seriously… follow her insta account - and very cute dog Whiskey) also posted below.

And one more note, you’re going to want to call this number: 1-855-C4S-CDIA <—- you’ll learn even more than I can tell you here.

Song of the Day: November 12, 2018 - "Gold Digger" by Wil

Sometimes if I see a new song that’s titled the same as a popular song, I’ll think “that would be great if it was a cover”, but they rarely are. Until now.

I never would have even considered Wil covering Kanye, but his version of “Gold Digger” is a great interpretation, infused with a rootsy southern soul feel.

The cover is actually the first in a series of covers Wil is planning to release, saying they will be a collection of “songs that truly impacted or moved me no matter the genre they were born from. And so, consider this project my way of paying homage to the original artists whose music inspired me ... an endeavour that I hope continues onward as I am and have always been a true fan of all types of music."

Check it out below!

Song of the Day: November 11, 2018 - "Belleville Blues" by Murray Lightburn

Regular readers may remember The Dears are one of my favourite bands, so I was very excited to hear Murray A Lightburn has another album in the works.

Hear Me Out is the followup to ‘013s Mass:Light and drops next February. Murray says the album is about “grown-up stuff. Having kids, having to sustain careers and sustain relationships, finding that thing that keeps you together in the midst of other circumstances that could tear you apart. The reason why the album's called Hear Me Out, is it’s not only about expressing yourself, but listening too. Being able to communicate in a relationship is utterly crucial, if you're gonna survive anything.”

If the first single, “Belleville Blues” is any indication, the album is going to be gorgeous, and I can’t wait.

Song of the Day: November 10, 2018 - "Challenger" by Mike Edel

Another new single from Mike Edel came out this week!

The song, “Challenger”, and recounts the space shuttle tragedy, and of the track, Mike says that it:

”…presents a moment in a time when the world felt out of control, and left us with a collective sense of confusion and disorientation. Sometimes in life we are faced with events that just make the stakes feel a little higher. In these moments, we are presented with a choice: do we resign and despair, or do we with courage, embrace hope? ‘Challenger’ doesn’t provide an answer but rather takes us to the edge of this moment, to a threshold, and leaves us with the question: ‘How do I take this, how do I carry the news? What is the future if this is now?”

Check it out below!