“Laughter (Bouquet Version)” by Basia Bulat

Last Friday, Basia Bulat released a companion EP to her latest album Basia's Palace, called Bouquet.

The EP is a collection of acoustic versions of songs from the acclaimed album, stripping them down to just vocals, guitar, and autoharp to give each song a new, emotional rendition. “Laughter” even features an entirely new string arrangement by Kieran Poile.

Basia elaborates, “I loved being able to bring this song, originally written on midi while wearing headphones in the earliest morning hours, all the way across the spectrum of sound into something completely acoustic and to my folk beginnings. The lyrics describe running through the mud with my very young daughters, “looking for the first blooms of the spring”. It is not only what I was literally doing at the time or writing the song, but also the spirit I try to keep with me all the time: looking for the first beautiful moments of life and light peeking out through the dark, and celebrating that they made it through.”

You can see a live performance of “Laughter (Bouquet Version)” below, or check out the entire EP, which is absolutely gorgeous!

Kirk

“38 Years Old” (Tragically Hip Cover) by Cabin Fever

Just got back from camping last week, and one of my music staples while I’m out in the woods is my Tragically Hip playlist.
August 20th was the 10 year anniversary of their last show (how it’s been 10 years already, I don’t know) and to mark that Ontario’s Cabin Fever covered their track “38 Years Old”.
It’s a dark and haunting version, which fits the subject matter of the song.

Singer/guitarist Kyle Faulkner says:
“Onstage, we always treasure our rare opportunities to cover and pay tribute to some of our favourite songs and artists, especially when we’re able to put our own spin on the style. ‘38 Years Old’ is such a staple of Canadiana, and an almost sacred object from one of this country’s most revered bands, that changing a single note almost felt blasphemous; however, something about the lyrics, the story they were telling, just seemed to haunt my thoughts whenever I’d listen to it or play it. There’s a tragic tale in those words, and slowing down and scaling back the musical feel of the instruments really seems to bring the heartache and shame to the forefront. We feel honoured to humbly submit our take on one of Canada’s greatest works of art.”

Christine

“East of Anything” by True Mountain Laurel

Speaking of new albums out Friday, the duo of Haley Blais and Sam Lynch just released the first album under True Mountain Laurel, and celebrated by releasing a new video for “East of Anything”.

The song is a fantastic example of their two voices blending over gentle guitar & violin, and the duo explains it was “our first whack at co-writing together. This song sat in such a magical middle place between each of our songwriting and musical tendencies. We silently danced around the subject of who would ‘get the song’ for a little while before we realized it belonged exactly where it was; that was the inception of True Mountain Laurel.”

You can pick up the album, Angel So Bad, out now, and catch them across the country this fall, including a show here in Vancouver at St. James Square on November 12th!

Kirk

“Bluebells” by Thunder Queens

Thunder Queens are giving us another peek at their upcoming album with their latest single, “Bluebells”.

The new track is as catchy and upbeat as you would expect from the trio, with the band sharing, “Recording 'Bluebells' was a very fun and different kind of creative process compared to all the other songs, since we wrote it almost completely the night before we headed into the studio to record it with Dave Schiffman. There was little time to overthink the lyrics, and we were excited to get it recorded.”

Have a listen and make sure to grab their sophomore album, Deep Below, when it’s out on September 24 via Victory Pool Records.

Kirk

“Ouroboros” by Self-Cut Bangs

Calgary five-piece Self-Cut Bangs recently announced their latest album, Growth Spurts, and dropped a video for the first single, “Ouroboros”, a chaotic rocker.

The new album came together with all five members of the band contributing, and Cayley Petsche explains “This first single, ‘Ouroboros,’ is, appropriately, the first song our new line-up wrote together. It started coming together within the first minutes of our very first rehearsal; a testament to the instant chemistry the band holds. It’s a song that touches on the complex feelings tied to the beauty of creating life and the death and re-birth of the self in doing so. The chorus mantra ‘the all is one’ paired with the snake imagery symbolizes the unity of all matter and eternal cyclic transformation.”

Check out the video, directed by band member Shawn Petsche, below and mark October 16th for the release of Growth Spurts!

Kirk