Legendary Band Spoons & Guests Team Up with Award-Winning Broadcaster Ted Michaels Team for Mental Health Fundraiser

Fri Jul 29, 2022

In 1980, an intrepid young band from Burlington made "Spoons" a different kind of household word… The Spoons — still featuring the original members Gord Deppe and Sandy Horne — made their mark with hits including "Nova Heart," "Romantic Traffic," "Old Emotions," and "Tell No Lies,” their album Arias & Symphonies would be named one of the 20 Most Influential Albums of the 80s by the Chart Magazine.

Watch Romantic Traffic Spoons here:

Now The Spoons are coming home to the Burlington Performing Arts Center to help in the fight against mental health stigma by taking part in ‘The Long Road Back.’ Presented by award-winning broadcaster Ted Michaels and Titan Productions, the event will take place Wednesday, September 28th in support of the Canadian Mental Health Association’s Halton Region Branch.

Are You An Influencer With An Instrument Or An Artist With Social Media?

Fri Jul 22 2022
Peter Åstedt

It’s kind of interesting today that we still don’t know how many accounts are fake on social media. How many songs that are really done by computers then after that are listened to by bot that are computers listening to computers.

It shows off pretty quickly on social media that the number is not really an indication of how good you are. I got an artist with over a million followers on Tiktok and almost a million on Instagram. The music was not even close to good, new, or anything that you would listen to. I wondered a little bit why so many were following this artist must be something other than the music for sure. And yes, it was the account was more about other things than music. The music was there but just like 10% of the feed.

JUNO Winning Powerhouse Crystal Shawanda Announces New Album - Midnight Blues

Fri Jul 22 2022
Crystal Shawanda

JUNO Award-winning powerhouse singer-songwriter Crystal Shawanda is back with a new studio album, Midnight Blues, set for release this September 30th on True North Records. The latest fiery bluesy Americana collection features the first single “How Bad Do You Want It” highlighting her full-throttle raspy voice, unmatched in today’s musical landscape, and an authenticity for the genre dating back to her youth.

Watch the official video here:

“Growing up, all of my favorite music had these breadcrumbs that led me to the blues,” Crystal says. “I often quote Willie Dixon: ‘Blues is the roots and everything else is the fruits.’ Even today's pop music, there's all this influence that derives from the blues. I was just always really attracted to the rawness and the realness of the blues.”

6-Time JUNO Nominee Carol Welsman Interprets and Inspires with New Single “Pick Yourself Up”

Fri Jul 22 2022
Carol Welsman

A song that can be deemed a timeless classic is a member of an elite and limited club for very good reason. They’re the songs that can transcend all the trends, and connect with and captivate listeners across generations. Internationally acclaimed jazz artist Carol Welsman has picked up a very timeless classic, dusted it off, polished it up, and is starting it all over again for a new audience. “Pick Yourself Up”  - check it out on YouTube here:

Americana Rocker Marshall Potts Strives For Healing on Hit New Single “Heaven Or Home”

Fri Jul 22, 2022

Finding a home inside oneself is never an easy task, and making that home inhabitable, much less a heaven, is even harder. Yet Canadian Americana rocker Marshall Potts is up to the task of trying in his thunderous new single “Heaven Or Home” from his album The Storm – watch and listen on YouTube here:

With lush guitars and a roaring stadium sound, “Heaven Or Home” is about an inward journey of intense self-discovery:
Follow your heart it will lead you there
Take a trip inside
Take this time to become aware
Take this time to decide

Legendary Performer, Actor and Activist Tom Jackson Releases New Initiative for Raising Support for the people of Ukraine

Fri Jul 15 2022
Tom Jackson-Photo Credit Chelsea Brooke-Roisum courtesy of the Canadian Red Cross

“Children in Ukraine — and around the world — need to know that this generation stands behind the next” — Tom Jackson

Watch the Red Cross Ukraine Appeal video on YouTube here:

Actor, Singer & Red Cross Ambassador Tom Jackson Releases New Music Special & Fundraising Initiative in Support of Millions of Children Impacted by Conflict in Ukraine with the “Red Cross Ukraine Appeal” Featuring Calgary Philharmonic, Andrea Menard, Mac Shepherd, Christina Martin, Beverley Mahood & More.

The Worst Thing Is Your Song Is Mediocre

Fri Jul 15 2022
Peter Åstedt

We take in submissions for our radio station Cashboxradio from several places. We get a lot of submissions from PR companies and radio promoters. Professional people that know how to present a song. Then we also take in songs through different webpages like submit hub where you pay a little to get the station to hear your song but are also guaranteed to get some feedback on the song even if we don’t choose it.

OSHEAGA Booker Nick Farkas on The Science Of The Poster, Eminem and Food

Fri Jul 15 2022
OSHEAGA Booker Nick Farkas on The Science Of The Poster, Eminem and Food

The 15th anniversary of the OSHEAGA Music and Arts Festival presented by Bell in collaboration with Coors Light is set to be one of the biggest parties of the decade. Montreal's Parc Jean-Drapeau, one of the greatest festival sites in North America, will be host to a much-anticipated and unrivaled festival experience from July 29 to 31, 2022. In addition to headlining sets from Arcade Fire, Future, Dua Lipa, and more, music fans can expect a stellar lineup featuring massive star power and the best of the new music vanguard from around the globe, in a state-of-the-art setting overlooking the gorgeous Montreal skyline.

For over 2 years, fans have been waiting for a chance to let loose and enjoy their best festival life - and Osheaga's 15th anniversary is sure to deliver that dose of excitement!

To celebrate, Osheaga’s booking agent Nick Farkas developed a podcast talking about the history of the festival, and a LOT of insider information on what it takes to stick around for a decade-and-a-half:  open.spotify.com/episode/1Ywo6KSTbyPoAgrkVAuRFu

The 5th Annual Oshawa Music Awards Announce This Year's Nominees

Fri Jul 15 2022
Oshawa Music Awards

Celebrating Music in Durham Region, the 2022 OMAs Take Place September 29th

Public Voting is Open Now - theomas.ca/

Under wraps no more, the Oshawa Music Awards have announced this year’s nominees! 

Marking its fifth year celebrating music in Durham Region, the 2022 OMAs are set to take place Thursday, September 29th, and will honour artists across multiple categories — including Songwriter of the Year, Album of the Year, Emerging Artist or Band of the Year, Durham Song of the Year, and Music Teacher of the Year, to name a few. 

Launched in 2018, previous Oshawa Music Award recipients include Shawn Mendes, Crown Lands, Tania Joy, Three Mile Islanders, Zaftig, Skye Wallace, Hollowsage, and Mogens Galberg; returning OMA winners Lindsay Schoolcraft and Gal George Gjurin are also up for 2022 nods. 

“Our list of 2022 nominees demonstrates once again that Durham Region is front row to so many incredibly talented artists,” OMA Co-Director Julius Allan Rondilla says. “Our arts scene is home to some of the nation’s best.”

Francine Honey Releases Great Post-Pandemic Reunion in New Single, “One Big Party”

Fri Jul 15 2022
Francine Honey Releases Great Post-Pandemic Reunion in New Single, “One Big Party”

There’s nothing like getting together with friends you haven’t seen in forever, and Ottawa-based Americana artist Francine Honey bottles the excitement of a wild, all-out reconnecting of pals in her new single and video, “One Big Party”.

Check out “One Big Party” on YouTube here:

Rocking and rollicking with a driving rhythm and a singalong chorus, “One Big Party” is an ode to the reunions we’ve all been longing for during the pandemic — as well as reunions of every kind.

“I had my group of high school friends in mind when I wrote it,” Honey shares. “We reconnected at a high school reunion some years ago and have gotten together regularly since then. Our parties almost always involve being outside around a fire and howling at the moon by the end of the night!”

Legendary Artist Myles Goodwyn Releases Solo Album “Long Pants”

Fri Jul 15, 2022

A true artist must create. It's not just a desire it's a must. It's their oxygen, their life blood, it's their raison d'être. Canadian icon Myles Goodwyn has written enough hits and memorable songs in his career to be able to sit back and look at his body of work and take a well- deserved rest. He's written enough songs to make him Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame worthy and it's surprising that he hasn't been recognized by the Hall as of yet. 

But Goodwyn continues to write, record and tour with his band, April Wine, his blues group and his acoustic trio show, Just Between You and Me, and now a brand new solo album, 'Long Pants', has just dropped, no pun intended, and it's a gem. It's a little different from what you've heard before from Goodwyn, a side of him that will appeal to his current fans and garner this legendary icon a whole new audience.

Meet New Country Music Artist Travis VanderHorst!

Fri Jul 08 2022
Meet New Country Music Artist Travis VanderHorst!

Travis VanderHorst is a country music artist that has the perfect vocal blend of traditional country music and today’s fresh sound. His voice will draw you in and leave you wanting more. Born in 1994 in Orlando, Florida, Travis spent much of his younger years in a small town of Bellevue, Ohio.

This is where Travis was introduced to the traditional country music sound of artists like Randy Travis, Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt and many others.

Check out All the Time on YouTube here:

Celebrating the 30th Anniversary Legendary Monkey House Release New Album “Remember the Audio”

Fri Jul 08 2022
Monkey House

The world has changed a great deal since 1992, when Don Breithaupt first collected an album’s worth of his irresistibly hooky and jazzy pop songs and formed Monkey House.  Since then, the talented and prolific Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter, composer, arranger and producer has stamped the band’s Kurt Vonnegut moniker on five albums of original material, including Headquarters (2012), Left (2016) and Friday (2019), the latter a blazing tour de force which topped the iTunes jazz chart and went to # 11 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Albums chart.

Check out “Muddy River Rising” here on YouTube:

You Need To Understand Critics Today

Fri Jul 08 2022
Peter Åstedt

I have previously written about the new technology that allows musicians to just sit home in front of a computer and create songs. To understand the best songs in the world, you must understand how they are done and that is far from doing everything yourself.

Today you can easily do a song a week (I bet some think they can do a song a day) get it online and send it out to all the corners of the world. A bit like just throwing it against the wall to see if it sticks.

I got into this fun conversation on Submithub the other day. I got a very mediocre song sent to me. It’s a party progressive rock with supposedly uplifting lyrics. For me, it sounded like Christian rock that you hear  in bad elevators in Texas. Just the intro of the song was like thirty-five seconds with just a guitar the whole time. I was already bored at ten seconds. Since I am required to send feedback on Submithub I wrote the following:

“The intro is a bit too long it takes almost 30 sec before something happens. The hook is not strong enough.”

 Since I’m nice enough to also let the artist respond, I got this response.

Future Echoes does Norrköping Music Day again 25 of August, 2022 in Norrköping, Sweden

Fri Jul 08 2022
Future Echoes

During the pandemic, we created a smaller version of Future Echoes called Norrköping Music Day 2021. It was a great event, so we decided to keep the event and develop it further.

Norrköping Music Day is like an upstart to Future Echoes. The event is free, and we are educating people that want to get into the business on how a showcase festival works, and what to do to make the most of a showcase festival. This is the place to learn how it all works for free. The event will be on Hallarna in Norrköping, where we had our past festivals.

We have three panels with big international speakers during the day. In the evening we have three to four acts playing.

We are aiming the event at the music industry that is in the Norrköping area, but we hope that people from other places that want to mingle with both local and international industry professionals who are in attendance. It’s a good start to understanding how to navigate Future Echoes or any other bigger showcase festival.

Chicago Feeling Stronger Every Day with the Release of New Single, “If This is Goodbye”

Fri Jul 08, 2022

Cover Photo Credit: WLPearce.com

The American band Chicago was formed in ChicagoIllinois, in 1967. The group was initially billed as The Big Thing before calling themselves the Chicago Transit Authority in 1968, and then shortening the name in 1969. The self-described "rock and roll band with horns" blended elements of classical musicjazzR&B, and pop music. They produced numerous top-40 hits throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and continue to record and perform live, most recently setting out on a tour this summer that will also include Al Jardine of Beach Boys fame.

St. John's NFLD Pop Artist Rachel Cousins Dazzles with New “For Myself" Single

Fri Jul 01 2022
St. John's NFLD Pop Artist Rachel Cousins Dazzles with New “For Myself" Single

Multi-award nominated St. John’s, NFLD pop sensation Rachel Cousins dazzles with a resonant new song about moving through the unpredictability of life and finding your happy place with the courageous new single “For Myself”.

Check out “For Myself” on YouTube here:

An infectiously catchy anthem about self-love, “For Myself” is the eclectic new single from Cousins’ expertly crafted third studio album AURA, which has been making waves since its release earlier this year.

As Cousins persevered through several personal obstacles during the pandemic, the themes surrounding AURA revealed themselves. “These songs show a soft side, a vulnerable side, a fearlessness, and a side that has grown stronger,” says Cousins. The sonic direction of the album is as joyous in its rhythmic arrangement as it is inspired by the positivity of new beginnings.

Toronto Singer-Songwriter Henry Lees Releases “Walking With Fear” in Support of Anxiety Canada

Fri Jul 01 2022
Toronto Singer-Songwriter Henry Lees Releases “Walking With Fear” in Support of Anxiety Canada

Time is the ultimate healer, but music is one of the strongest medicines that can help along the way. Often, all it takes is a song that your mind, heart, and soul connect with to bring relief to whatever may be troublesome. That’s the prescription award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter Henry Lees aims to fill with his very personal but widely relatable new single, “Walking With Fear” released alongside Action Anxiety Day!

Watch and listen to “Walking With Fear” on YouTube here:

An empowering folk-rock anthem built on a bed of beautiful acoustic and electric guitar interplay and a driving, heartbeat rhythm, “Walking with Fear” isn’t about being scared stiff. It’s about feeling those uncomfortable, fearful and anxious emotions and still finding the resolve to stay your course.

The Investment Time Required Of An Artist Is Much Longer Today!

Fri Jul 01 2022
Peter Åstedt

On one of the boards, I’m working on we got into a discussion about how to help DIY artists. Today many artists are DIY much longer than they were twenty years ago. Mainly because the technology today provides a lot of what the midsize record labels were providing in form of knowledge and opportunities. Twenty years ago, it was a tough question to get  distribution, something that today you can get just a click away and reach the whole planet in very little time.

This led to that more of the development is now dependent on the artist. What you can see on the market is also a rise of new people working as consultants to bring in the knowledge that is lost from the midsize labels to the artist. In fact, what the midsize label was providing in form of knowledge and marketing is now available to be bought in the form of a consultant.

This is though not in phase with the development with the DIY artists. They still hear that you should have been signed and developed where they are now, but the truth is that they probably have to develop themselves for at least a couple of years.

Award-winning Artist Julian Taylor releases new single “S.E.E.D.S” from Forthcoming New Album

Fri Jul 01 2022
Julian Taylor

Celebrated Canadian musician Julian Taylor is releasing “S.E.E.D.S,” a new single from his extraordinary sophomore solo album coming in October 2022. The single comes out today on Howling Turtle/Warner Music Canada, and is available on all major platforms. For more information please visit any of the links below or Taylor’s website.

“S.E.E.D.S,” which stands for “Somehow Everyone Eventually Dreams Someday,” was inspired by Taylor waking up to a text that his cousin sent him the morning after the announcement in Kamloops, where 215 uncovered remains of buried Indigenous children were discovered at a former Residential school. Says Taylor, “Her text simply read, George Floyd and Kamloops, with a tear emoji, and following that, ‘They tried to bury us, but they didn’t know we were seeds’.” These very words became the chorus of the song.