Being mature used to be an antithesis to rock and roll, but no more with folk rocker John Stamp and his soaring new single, “Airplane Mode”.

A fifty-something year old on a whim, you can hear the energy of a satisfied, fulfilled lifetime of helping others in his works... Which would make sense, as he successfully ran a social care company until he was recently fifty-something-else, he shares.

As a music lover, Stamp also had the opportunity to see a ton of concerts around the world — which led to his collaboration with Sheryl Crow’s touring guitarist, Peter Stroud.

Check out “Airplane Mode” on YouTube here:

When a particular 2018 show left Stamp’s jaw on the floor when it came to Stroud’s playing, he reached out to the musician via social media in regards to his project. Stroud was, at the time, and like many of us, stuck at home, and therefore evermore happy to partake.

Chicago-based indie singer/songwriter Jennifer Hall leans into empathy and compassion with the release of this, the newest single “SFA”.

Long-time fans of Hall will instantly distinguish the new track as having a softer lilt to the songbird’s vocals than previous releases. There’s a classic, bass-driven vibe to “SFA,” smooth on its cut, while Hall’s perfectly timed vocals give leverage to the overall tone of the track;  where once she soared to effortless heights with an infinitely booming instrument, “SFA” steps back into a decidedly softer, more muted undertone. Hall recognizes the track showcases her deviating away from her sound of yesteryears, pushing play in a forward momentum. “It really needed a different kind of touch, vocally speaking,” Hall says. “Different from how I’m used to singing, with lots of power and volume.

“’SFA’ called for softness, and singing that was still full of feeling — but also gentle. It felt really great to sing in this way. I felt like I had opened a new door and found another way to express myself vocally, like I was really letting in the softness.”

Check out “SFA” on YouTube here:

Genre-defying singer/songwriter and spoken word artist Elina Filice has returned with her third release of the year — an infectiously groovy tune called “Everything About You.”

Available now, Filice this time enlists the help of friend and groove-master, Neolithic. The pair met while studying at BIMM Dublin, and have collaborated on projects and performances over the years.

“Everything About You” features a laid-back beat, jazzy guitar licks, and a stuck-in-your-head chorus. Sprinkled with hooks and layered vocals, the thoughtful lyrics are coupled with intricate production and a surprise acapella outro.

“This song is about when love gets hard,” Filice shares. “It’s realizing that love goes through seasons, and even the less shiny things about someone or a relationship are still your favourite parts.

“All of the imperfections make up a perfect whole.”

Simply put: rarely do you come across a globally heralded, multi-award winning female veteran of the music industry who continues to be a ground-breaking, ceiling-shattering revolutionary in all she does for three decades, and counting.

But such is the case for Canadian electronic music scene queen Melleefresh as she toasts her landmark and visionary 25 year tenure helming Play Records — and even longer as a veritable artistic force to be reckoned with in her own right.

Deemed “one of the pivotal figures in North American dance music” by Clash Magazine, the Toronto-based EDM dynamo has been a prominent avant-garde performance artist for the last 30 years.

Linked above are 16+ pages of deeply entrenched, wildly fascinating Canadian industry lore (think crossover tales of: deadmau5, Kevin Hearn pre-Barenaked Ladies, Peaches, Atom Egoyan, The Tragically Hip, Fashion Cares, an arrested ‘Care Bear’ on the front page of The Sun…)

And yet, the candid collection barely scratches the surface of the insightful tales this iconic artist and businesswoman can speak to.

At over 130,000+ streams, Canadian producer Mellow Fields is back to haunt your dreams with this, his new single, “Gemini Rising”.

The track starts with electronic beats rising to a swell before making way for sweet, ethereal vocals from featured artist, Jenny Palacios, that light up the song’s compelling poetry. Mellow Fields — aka Michael David’s — rhythms are irresistible and, together with Palacios’ lead and harmony vocals in a mesmerizing stream of lyrics, her singing floats above them like a butterfly.

Check out “Gemini Rising” on YouTube here:

It's a track that goes from soft to insistent, kinetic to moody, still to emotional, and back.

Funk-rock four-piece Nightfly want to know “Who’s In” when it comes to this, their swingin’ and groove-infused new R&B single.

In layman’s terms, “Who’s In?” is five minutes of straight-up good vibes, and a must-listen for anyone feeling extra stuck inside during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Give a watch and listen to “Who’s In” on YouTube here:

The R&B-inspired track is the latest to land from the Florida-based quartet’s recent three-track EP, But Wait, There’s More (2021). Driven by a jazzy combo of piano licks, bass grooves, and buttery guitar melodies from lead guitarist Whitey Bryan’s beautiful and aged Fender Telecaster (as seen in the music video), the funk doesn’t stop start to finish.

Canadian rockers Cigar Club are storming the scene with this brooding, bone-chilling, goosebump-inducing new single, “Like White Flats in Winter”.

The song lands ahead of the Toronto-based band’s forthcoming and highly-anticipated debut album, Day, Now, and serves as yet another pitch-perfect introduction to the crew, offering you a little bit of everything and more.

“Like White Flats in Winter” is the third and latest single from the upcoming record, and quite possibly the band’s most unique to date. It kicks off with a simple, yet catchy, chord progression, which is accompanied by the longing vocal phrases of frontman Trev Coughlin — which instills a powerful feeling of sadness and doom within the listener.

Check out “Like White Flats in Winter” here:

Award-winning reggae rock-pop duo Black Creek Reign continue to ride the wave of recent critical acclaim with this, the release of their newest single, “Run Away”.

Check out Run Away by Black Creek Reign with The Band Destiny & Login here:

Echoing calls to a lover to pick up and take off for a night, and teeming with sweet thoughts and island vibes, the track features Black Creek Reign members Darren Armoogam and Lex Stultz alongside collaborations with fellow Toronto-based crossover group, The Band Destiny, and Caribbean artist, Logun.

“Reggae is a genre that’s been near and dear to our hearts since our inception,” Armoogam shares. “It’s energetic, vibrant, calming, and can even be political at the same time.

There’s a ‘beauty in tragedy’ and ‘dreaminess to heartache’ that Canadian multi-instrumentalist Esther Spiegelman — and group Let’s Be Giants — weave into their encapsulating new single, “I Don’t Mind”.

Landing ahead of the Montreal-based band’s forthcoming album, Fade In / Fade Out, the song features simple lyrics with a profound message; Spiegelman both implores you to listen, and also hear what she’s feeling, what she’s wishing, and what she's needing. Drawing on the nostalgia of 90s soundscapes — think Liz Phair asking Dolores O’Riordan to the dance, only to find out that Mazzy Starr was the opening band — “I Don’t Mind” lulls you into memories of heartbreak, but with an air of hope that you’ll survive this, too.

Having fronted several outfits over her tenure as a singer/songwriter, it was Spiegelman’s assembly of Let’s Be Giants where she found her niche. After recruiting Jeremie Dallaire on guitar, Matt Wozniak on bass, and Simon Pesant on drums, songs Spiegelman had started penning began to take a life form all their own.

Canadian pop-rock singer/songwriter Robert Corbett sets a nostalgic scene with this, his new synth-laden love song, “Drive85”

His sixth single, the Toronto-based artist uses the song to usher audiences on, not only a metaphorical musical journey, but one of the highs and lows of being in love too.

Check out “Drive85” on YouTube here:

Though the sonic elements of this spacey love song might inspire a happy-go-lucky feeling, the lyrical content is much deeper than it may seem on the first spin; Corbett reveals its creation spawned from the concept of trying to navigate one’s way through the denial of being in a great relationship — one that’s almost-ethereal — and the fear of heartbreak. “If you don’t put yourself out there, it’ll never work,” he considers. “Facing the possibility of heartache and loss is worth the gamble of potentially gaining real love.

We’re confident the current year is 2021, but one listen to Canadian rockers The Great Fuss and their new single and video for “Hairbrain,” and… It’s hard to not double-check the calendar!

An homage to yesteryear’s pulsing piano melodies and indelible electric guitar riffs, this Saskatoon-based four-piece goes for a generational collision, capturing a decidedly 60s vibe within a new-age kaleidoscope of rhythm and lyrics on the track.

On “Hairbrain,” the band explodes with chiding questions, including scathing sentiments like ‘You think you know what I’m after? I’ve seen your kind, it’s clear that you’re a disaster.’

Laced with low-fi pop rock riffs that earworm their way into your consciousness, the track’s accompanying music video showcases the band interspersed with places of travel, dimly lit, brightly coloured, black and white, in and out of focus.

Check out “Hairbrain” on YouTube here:

It’s ‘the thrill of the chase’ in this cut from California songwriter Bobbo Byrnes as he weaves yarn on the tale of a van of young American dudes ready to tear up the stage, night after night, in Canada.

Byrnes quickly sets the scene from the first sentence: crossing the border, passing by Niagara, and heading to Toronto to play a host of sets at some of the nation’s finest clubs along the troubadour passageway.

Byrnes chants, “chasing rock and roll for the rest of our lives.”

And aren’t we all.

In his signature melodic fashion, Byrnes observes the nightly pastime of many-a-rocker: winning over patrons and audiences alike, finding inspiration at the sound of a Blue Rodeo album, seeking refuge on the floor of hotel rooms for a few moments of rest, and doing it all again the following night.

What “Chasing Rock and Roll” provides the listener with is an insight audiences rarely get to see; the song delivers the inside track on the path to stardom for a band that kicks it nightly on the stage. Suddenly privy to the goings-on behind the curtain instead of dancing in front of it, Byrnes offers audiences a lyrical “backstage pass.”

Award-winning and Internationally acclaimed Canadian female vocal group ViVA Trio are set to summon audiences out to sea with this, their stunning new single, “Siren Song”.

Give a listen here on YouTube here:

The three-piece’s two sopranos Anna Bateman and Katya Tchoubar, along with mezzo-soprano Erin Fisher, discovered a rare silver lining in the interruption of their international touring schedule due to COVID-19; the newly-freed up time meant they could create some new musical masterpieces to follow their breakthrough debut, Nothing Else Matters.

Telling the ancient sailor’s tale of the ‘Siren’s’ hypnotic voice and powerful lure, “Siren Song” instantly surrounds, haunting and hypnotizing from start to finish between its electronic mixing and multi-layered vocal mastery.

Breezy Canadian folk-rock duo Robinson Kirby are off to “Find A Way” when it comes to lost affections in this, their heartwarming love-quest of a new single and video — available now

Freshly pressed from their 2021 seven-track album offering, Little Dreams, the rhythm section of “Find A Way” instills a sense of beautiful calm, reminiscent of a gentle stream while the satiny vocal tones send the listener floating through the song with a feeling of warming assurance.

The song features a graceful, echoey twang of the electric guitar, and its solo, along with the slide of the lap steel, tie the instrumentation together seamlessly. These elements combined create a serene audible flow that contrasts the turbulence surrounding the song’s theme based on the uncertainty of lasting love.

Love may be blind, but we can always find our way through. These sentiments are suggested by the lyrics: ‘I don’t look at you the same, since we played the losing game, but I will try and find my way.’

Check out “Find A Way” on YouTube here:

Top 10 charting Canadian folk-rocker Chris Ronald muses aloud in this, his new single “City Girl”.

Check out “City Girl” on YouTube here:

Rife with Ronald’s signature sound and Songwriter of the Year-nominated lyricism, the song serves as the first preview for the Vancouver-based artist’s forthcoming emotionally expansive album, Light & Dark (Borealis Records).

His fifth album release, the 11-track LP is steeped in Ronald’s British roots, poetic song craft, and buttery blend of folk and rock instantly reminiscent of 60s-era revivalists and 70s-era singer-songwriters.

Chinese American pop artist Alex Su stacks the building blocks of love with this, his new single “Jega”.

Drawing some 2012 The Weeknd vibes, he New Jersey-based Su takes audiences on a honeyed journey through the shaky ups and downs of a scenario many have been through: Deep in love, lacking control, carefully investing and building in a relationship… All just to see our efforts, heart, and ego tumble to the ground.

Love can be a playful yet dangerous game and, as the title provides in a clear, almost rough-hewn metaphor, Jenga (the game) is an obsessive and artful combination in concentration, soft movement, careful motions, and general unease. Not to mention, it often ends in a shocking, free-fall of disappointment.

“I love the game of Jenga and, one night, I found similarities between the game and toxic relationships,” he shares. “You keep pulling and hurting each other until the whole thing crumbles down.”

On a quest for emotional peace and grappling with the question “could anything more have been done,” indie rocker Alan Zreczny and his Chicago-based band bluefront deliver this, their newest single and video “High Time”.

“I think the song is about me reaching for an emotional space I have rarely, if ever, achieved,” Zreczny reveals of the song and its inspiration. “Although it was written with a relationship in mind, for me, it could apply whenever there comes a time — sometimes far too long in the making — where a certain kind of peace is achieved.

Check out “High Time” on YouTube here:

Well, with the annual day of ‘unbridled love’ long out of the way, Canadian rockers Dali Van Gogh are soldiering on with a brand new video and release for their favourite “anti-love song”; “Past Crimes”.

The freshly pressed video depicts two lovers at the onset of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic; it serves as an allusion to the stress and turmoil of the last year, and the toll it’s taken on even the closest relationships. It was originally envisioned as a live action story but, after numerous delays due to related restrictions, the band converted the concept into an animated lyric video.

Highlighted with a Tchaikovsky-inspired keyboard line, the song churns through a near-despondent ‘lost love’ narrative and the haunting consequences of old mistakes. The groove-centric duet features bandmates John Scotto and Rachelle Moreau trading lead vox as they’re supported by the rest of the Halifax-based five-piece: drummer Johnny Moore, bassist Lance Hicks, and guitarist Isaac Kent.

Canadian rock singer/songwriter Ethan Flynn steps to a mirrored surface to examine the varying depths of human connection in relation to oneself in this, his new single “Reflection”.

A fitting preview into the Maple, Ontario-based artist’s forthcoming album, The Pumpkin Club, this contemplative and captivating new single steadily carries listeners through a robust stream of sound.

On “Reflection,” oscillating guitar effects create an affable ripple, which is then harnessed by the undulating distortion of Flynn’s flowy voice and accompanying harmonies. When bound with the single’s lyrical themes of transitory relationships — romantic or otherwise — the music feels rich in texture. It’s like a river in song-form due to how effectively these conjoined elements illustrate the transience of our connections with other people, as the current of life carries us from them and them from us.

Check out “Reflection” here on YouTube:

Toronto artist, songwriter and producer David Bray adds another powerful R&B / Neo-Soul track to his repertoire with the release of this, his newest single, “Nothing Left”.

Featuring the outstanding vocals of his long-time collaborative partner Lorraine Reid, “Nothing Left” is the second single from his forthcoming album, Land of Extremes.

A follow-up to his critically acclaimed, internationally heralded and widely played previous single — and premiere preview to the new album — 2020’s “Overdue,” “Nothing Left” wastes no time to spotlight Bray's compelling lyrical flair and ear for musical hooks once again. The song is a devastatingly sensitive take on divorce, and Reid delivers one of the finest R&B performances likely to be heard this year; she stunningly captures the heart and soul of Bray’s striking and poignant lyrics resulting in dramatic, noir imagery.

Watch and listen to “Nothing Left” here on YouTube: