We’ve got your weekend tunes all lined up and ready to go – check out the mini reviews and info on the artists, then give these eight tracks a listen and find your new favourites!
Atomic Blonde – “How to be a Woman”
This song grabbed me right away, even though it’s a different style than what we usually feature. The vocals and overall sound are haunting and captivating. This track would be perfect for movies and TV, and if I don’t hear it on a move trailer some day, I’m gonna be surprised. From the Band: “”Hard To Be A Woman” captures the image of a woman in a toxic relationship. When she is pushed too far she begins “brewing the perfect storm”, as the lyrics state. She doesn’t fall easily. She fights for what is right. Eventually, she won’t remain quiet.”
SLOW DOWN SONIC – “Searching”
Here’s a new track from Australia’s SLOW DOWN SONIC. Great alt-rock guitar with accessible melodies and vocals. Definitely one to check out! From the Band: “This is a song about the need for finding one’s place within the daily grind of the working week, the never-ending nagging feeling of “can I be something more?”, the bridges we burn we make along that journey, and the courage to take the step to a more fulfilled life.”
Trashed Ambulance – “Blip on the Radar”
Great punk energy in this track from Canadian band, Trashed Ambulance. It’s fast-paced, catchy, and hard not to dig immediately! From the Band: “Blip on the Radar is a look into the mind of someone battling addiction and depression. Going at it alone in an existence supported by the worst drug dealer of them all… the doctors that feed them pills and false hope. The sky opened up and they finally realized that it was always up to them to dig themselves out of the dirt, and Punk music and sobriety were a means to an end.”
Taxes – “Last Call”
Such a great new song from Taxes – a solid indie-punk alt-rock hybrid with a clean sound, great energy, & memorable melodies. I’d love to see this one live. From the Band: “At its core, new single Last Call from Taxes is actually a love song, but not in the way you might think. Sonically, the Bay-area conglomerate’s dynamism is as intact as it ever was – if not more so. The plucky electric vigor carries through to the rest of their new album Retirement Home, and the music video for Last Call features (among other things) an ax-wielding escaped convict, dead bodies, and Jerry Harrison of The Talking Heads flossing his teeth.”
Sunray Minor – “Aurora”
A beautiful mellow indie rock song here from Sunray Minor – an artist from Montreal who grew up in the GTA and was originally from Caracas, Venezuela. From the Artist: “”Aurora” is a song about finding the light in the darkness, look out for the sun and it is off of Sunray Minor’s upcoming album “One Day, Maybe…” slated for release June 19th. The album is an exploration of discovering love for one self after repeated attempts at finding love in every corner of the world but the one I was sitting in. It’s a concept album in which the sounds selected are all meant to represent objects and people in the universe where the story is being told! It took about 4 years to complete and I’m very happy and proud to release it to the world.”
Buckley’s Angel – “Exit Culture”
This is a really bright and uplifting shoegaze/post punk song taking some of the best 90s sounds from that genre but modernizing them for ’22. From the Band: “Exit Culture is mainly about the inherent contradictions of capitalism in today’s America. It tries to describe the unnamed dread and anxiety we’ve all come to believe is a normal part of life. It is a gritty and driving song that lays out the prediction that all of this will eventually come tumbling down.“
Kav Temperley – “Machines of Love and Grace”
I absolutely love the mood and vocal style of this song. The verses are so pared down, and the energy hits in the chorus – a great mix of rock and indie. This will be stuck in your head long after listening. From the Artist: “The song is about the complex and intimate relationships we have through our phones, seen through the lens of the last two-and-a-half years of the pandemic. Having devices in our hands has allowed us to have dinner with loved ones all over the world, all locked in our houses, and follow every moment of each other’s life; whether we want to or not, it’s often the first thing we see in the morning and the last thing we see before we go to sleep. With the touch of a button, anything and everything is available to us, good and bad.”
Scott Nolan with Glen Burr – “Annabella Street”
Haunting vocals and horns pair so well in this fantastic new collaboration from Scott Nolan and Glenn Buhr. There’s a beautiful simplicity to it, and something reminiscent of watching skilled musicians play smoky underground bars. So great. From the Artist: “Nolan’s new track with Glenn Buhr entitled “Annabella Street” is about the Point Douglas neighborhood in Winnipeg’s North End, which was an infamous red light district in the early 1900’s. While researching some of Winnipeg‘s history, Nolan learned how early Chief of Police John Mcrae was tasked with dealing with a growing problem with prostitution. Mcrae sought out one of the most well-known wet madams of the era and told her if she could contain it to the neighbourhood there would be no interference with the police. They had a list of rules, one of which was that the women must not play the house piano too loudly.”