January 2, 2018—We polled our crew and asked for a list of things that inspired them over the last year. What came back obviously skews toward music but also includes insight from the contributors. The results are diverse, though there is always room for improvement, and we try to shine a light on some self-released and DIY. If you were…
December 4, 2017—“Turn Into Vapour is a summation of everything the Halifax indie scene can offer. The lyrics are smart but unselfconscious, the music ambitious without burying the pop hooks and the production clean but retaining a raw edge. Early standouts include “Got Caught” and “Allyson Got Robbed” with its memorable refrain, “get your goddamn hands of off…
December 1, 2017—The Shivering Songs festival is extremely pleased to add an impressive slew of artists to its 2018 line-up: Timber Timbre, Reeny Smith, Fiver, Laurie Brown‘s Pondercast taping with Joshua Van Tassel, and Motherhood, as well as Bob Mersereau, Mike Trask, Julie Aubé, Camille Delean, Loic April, and The Montgomery Street Band. Now celebrating its eighth edition, Shivering Songs runs January…
November 22, 2017—Beauty in the Tension, the fifth studio album from New Brunswick songwriting quartet The Olympic Symphonium, will be released in February 2018. It is the result of rural isolation, small comforts, and inspiration in the form of two pairs of ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ pajama pants. For six days last winter, the band holed up in the legendary Old…
November 21, 2017—Artist, musician, producer, and sound explorer Jay Crocker has won an Emerging Artist Recognition Award from Arts Nova Scotia for his BIBELOT instrument/installation piece. The award was handed out this weekend as part of the Creative Nova Scotia Awards Gala in Halifax, NS. “Part instrument, part installation, BIBELOT is a self-composing set of sixteen ceiling mounted music boxes with custom-built drives, loops, lights, and amps. Creating a sanctuary…
November 21, 2017—Tim Tracey has been silently creating some of the darkest stop-motion videos from a small studio above an Army Navy surplus store in Halifax. He’s collaborated with Joshua Van Tassel on his award-winning shorts Kreb and DataMine, the latter of which premiered last year at TIFF. We’re very pleased to share with you the video for DoubleTooth‘s song When You Need A Helmet from their…
October 28, 2017—“There are plenty of chances taken on the album, from folk and country sounds, through to songs that almost seem as though they’re constructed from dueling breakbeats. Importantly though, I never felt like I was listening to an experiment, that organic base mentioned in the quote above ensures that each song manages to keep a…
October 7, 2017—In collaboration with our friends at Ottawa’s The Record Centre, we are delighted to announce that Gianna Lauren‘s third full-length, M o v i n g P a r t s, is now available on vinyl. Limited to 300 copies, the album is pressed on 180g black vinyl and comes with a download postcard redeemable three times. Her…
October 6, 2017—We have our most handsome collection of music yet! Interpretations of horses, drawn by various artists on the roster, adorn the CD sampler that will now come with every physical order until we run out. Featuring new songs from Michael Feuerstack and The Olympic Symphonium, a live track of Paper Beat Scissors with orchestral accompaniment, a new piece of music from Isador, and a cover of Hall &…
September 18, 2017—Only weeks ago, many music fans across Canada mourned the loss of one of The Signal, one of CBC Radio‘s most beloved shows. Have you heard the good news though? Laurie is continuing with radio through her new Pondercast, which has listeners intrigued since the inaugural episode. Listen to episode 01 The music might have something…
September 15, 2017—Since the first Sleepless Nights release in 2004, there have been two constants in the band: the steadfast artistic vision and direction of Aaron Wallace, and a gentleman named Keith Hamilton. Read more… Catch Sleepless Nights live: September 14 – Fredericton, NB: The Capital September 15 – Yarmouth, NS: The Red Knight September 16 – Halifax, NS: The Seahorse Sleepless Nights – Keith Hamilton ..Listen on Bandcamp, Spotify, Apple // Order Digital “good time punk…
September 15, 2017—We’re continuing Revue performances into Eastern Canada this fall with shows in Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal among others. This event is part of a series of unique shows we’ve been presenting all year in various venues across the country celebrating our 10th anniversary. The event will feature four acts from our roster: Michael Feuerstack, Gianna Lauren, Paper Beat Scissors, and Dan Misha Goldman…
September 1, 2017—After an initial tour overseas last fall, JOYFULTALK will return to Europe next week to take part in Copenhagen’s Sonic Festival. Now in its sixth year, Sonic invites a number of composers, sound artists, and performers to participate in the festival with the only stipulation being they use some sort of amplification and/or electronics. The duo will then travel…
September 1, 2017—After six years, Sleepless Nights are back with a new single, Crystal Mountains, and the announcement of a new EP. In case you aren’t familiar, in the mid-aughts Sleepless Nights carved out their reputation as one of thehardest working bands on the East Coast of Canada. By their final tours in 2009, when the group was put on indefinite hiatus, Sleepless Nights were playing an entire new, unreleased…
August 18, 2017—While streaming remains a contentious issue within the music industry, we’ve got some good news to report on the subject from from our sister label Backward Music. As part of the compilation Backward Music vol.1, Tim Crabtree‘s song ‘Renamed’ now has more than 1 Million streams through Spotify. For an instrumental composition, this is quite a feat. The song begins with ambient guitar swells that soon transition to a chopped piano…
August 18, 2017—“avant garde, rhythmic, and hypnotic percussion” – Overblown UK “Harrison’s expansive auditory vision blends symphonic structures with sampled cymbal sounds and a touch of 80s synth pop” – Grid City Magazine i/Variations is four part project by Toronto percussionist Greg Harrison (aka grej) where each musical work navigates through a physical and emotive journey that features manipulated cymbals and a Roland…
July 28, 2017—The Miramichi Country Music Opry in New Brunswick Thanks Bill! Recording in Blackville, New Brunswick Sound engineer Marc “Chops” Arsenault Don’t worry…we didgerididn’t Mic’ing technique with Matt Blurry Petunia When the power goes out, you play poker to pass the time. BBQ mishap Sorry Ed! Could have been MUCH worse if you had cut through the…
June 11, 2017—grej is the solo project and performing pseudonym of Greg Harrison, a Canadian-based percussionist specializing in classical minimalism and electronic music. Next month we’ll be releasing an EP of compositions created for modern dance, which you can preview from the video below. Watch the i/Variations teaser trailer // Pre-Order EP The majority of the record was commissioned by…
May 17, 2017—We’re continuing our Revue performances into Eastern Canada this fall with a show at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa mid-October. This event is part of a series of unique shows we’ve been presenting all year in various venues across the country celebrating our 10th anniversary. The event will feature four acts from our roster:…
May 17, 2017— We’ve got advance streams on both sides of the Atlantic for Paper Beat Scissors’ new EP through both CBC and Germany’s Visions Magazine. Here’s what they had to say about the record: “a tight, six-song collection…Crabtree’s hypnotic voice leads you through each song, mapping out what this new project has made him question over the last…