There’s bad new and good news. The bad: It’s the end of July, which means summer is already half over. The good: This collection of new Canadian singles and videos will help ease you into August (and everything after). Push the button:
Dan Mangan | Call Me Up High
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Dan Mangan just announced the Being Elsewhere Mix CD, a followup collection to his Juno-nominated album Being Somewhere, bringing together reimagined versions of fan-favourites, covers of Bob Dylan, Damien Jurado, and The Lumineers, and new songs like Call Me Up High. “This collection of music is exciting to me because it lives outside the confined pressures of album cohesion,” he says. “The vision is to embrace the chaos of my differing creative impulses and let them breathe together… Through twists and turns over two and a half years of long-distance production, many songs on Being Somewhere strayed wildly from my initial voice-memo demos. This was an exciting and integral part of the process, but I wanted to indulge my itch to reimagine a few of those songs. At the same time, my hard drive was filling up with other creative projects. I’d recorded a few songs for films and some random covers, as well as the single Say When and then Call Me Up High came out of nowhere and blindsided me — I couldn’t wait for a whole other album cycle to have this song in the world.”
Cuff The Duke | Leaving It All Behind
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “After a 10-year vanishing act, Juno-nominated roots-rockers Cuff The Duke return with Breaking Dawn (due Sept. 6). The album reflects frontman Wayne Petti’s process of coming to terms with his mental health, capturing the stages of his journey. At the same time, the songs themselves offer a sense of relief and catharsis. On the new single Leaving It All Behind, Petti comes to terms with his decision to put the band on hiatus and how that left him scrambling to figure out his next move. “I felt like I failed because music would no longer be my sole focus,” he admits. “The line ‘I bought the lie that I told myself, now it’s coming back to haunt me’ reflects how young musicians can become overconfident, believing their success will never end. But every artist faces ups and downs, and when reality hits, it can be a nightmare. Saying, “I’m getting ahead of it by leaving it all behind,” was the headspace I needed to be in, to move forward as one chapter ended and another began.”
Busty & The Bass | Smoke & The Pine (Breakgrass Version)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Montreal indie collective Busty And The Bass share Smoke & The Pine (The Breakglass Version), the second piece from the collective’s new live off-the-floor video series. The soulful ’70s-style track explores nostalgia and longing amid lush horn arrangements and rich vocal harmonies, enhancing the idea of moments once cherished. Directed by Guillaume Landry, the video is live off the floor and filmed in one shot. The recording, therefore, is slightly altered from the album version and is catered to fit this live, one-shot dynamic. It features horns (including Chris Edmondson on alto sax) and stacked vocal harmonies from Jordan Brown and Mel Pacifico. “The song is an ode to where I’m from in the Pacific Northwest,” says Alistair Blu. “It’s about all of the sensations and nostalgia I feel from my upbringing on Vancouver Island and the mixed emotions of leaving them all behind. It’s about being there with someone you love in the presence of feeling at home.”
Charlotte Day Wilson | My Way (Live In Toronto)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In May, Toronto singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Charlotte Day Wilson released her sophomore album Cyan Blue. Working alongside producers Leon Thomas (SZA, Post Malone) and Jack Rochon (Beyoncé, Daniel Caesar), Day Wilson crafts a smoothly woven cyan tapestry of her eternal influences — thumping gospel piano, warm soul basslines, atmospheric electronics, and penetrating R&B melodies — while showcasing the next evolution of her time-bending songwriting. Since then, she has taken her stunning live show across North America. During performances, she was deeply moved by the audience’s reception to the soul-bearing and poetic My Way. In response, she releases a live video of the track shot by Josh Renaut. Accompanied by Ryan Macdonald on drums, Ian Culley on guitar and Ourielle Auvé on harp, My Way (Live) offers fans a unique opportunity to experience Day Wilson’s refined lyricism and soulful, captivating stage presence.”
We Found A Lovebird | Signal Hill
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Vancouver’s We Found A Lovebird excel at trance-like chiming rock. Since 2009, they’ve released three albums, one EP and eight singles. And since 2020, they’ve released seven singles from their upcoming album With Friends Like These. Their latest, Signal Hill, is a creation coming from multiple sources including a visit to Newfoundland’s Signal Hill. The group often pulls inspiration from iconic people, places and even overheard snippets of conversations. “Signal Hill takes us deep into a Canadian Spy vs. Spy scenario in which you (the listener) are complicit and ultimately found out because of your taste in footwear,” they say. “Musically, Signal Hill captures an urgent vibe also brought forth by the way it was recorded. Everything except the vocals were recorded live off the floor in our studio. We love the energy of four guys in a room going for it. There’s no faking the live interplay.”
Unknown Voidz | Take It As It Is
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Mississauga punks Unknown Voidz were founded by Zan Khan, who recruited Ryan “Gooby” Goonoo, Jon Couzelis and Santiago Cara. Their second EP is due in September. Today, they share the new single Take It As It Is. Mixed by Keegan Porter and recorded at Metrolab Studios, Zan wrote the song about staying true to himself. If people get mad over him living his life and minding his own business? He just says: Take it as it is. Feelings of anger, pain, confusion and desire for self-fulfillment seem to be the fuel for Unknown Voidz. “Zan will often come to us with a lyrical skeleton and some chord progressions and the rest of us will create the optimal context,” says Couzelis. “We try to write parts that we’re excited about. We hate being bored.”
Madam Sad | Ex’s
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Six years ago, Maddison Schreiber (Madam Sad) felt pushed to be a musician out of love and spite, which to this day continues to follow into their art. This upcoming album includes a large amount of work from Evelyn Charlotte Joe, who was also a great source of inspiration. The album documents the feelings Maddison went through during that time, and the feelings they had for Evelyn. The pair spent around two years working on the LP, through which they both suffered from poverty and flare ups with disability. “I think with the colonial state of the world, with post-capitalism and economic failure, many artists are going through heart-wrenching, brain-breaking measures to make the simplest of results, and that’s something we experienced, too,” says Maddison. Unsurprisingly, Ex’s was inspired by growing in relationships and trying for neutrality in feelings after breakups.”
Loryn Taggart | Walls
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Producer and genre-bending singer-songwriter Loryn Taggart took a leap of faith at 16 years old when she left her family’s Prairie home and moved to Toronto (and then Montreal) in the pursuit of a life of music. It wasn’t long until her talents were noticed. She has toured with Donovan Woods and played the role of David Bowie on a tribute tour highlighting his Berlin era. Her latest single Walls brings a wonderful mix of Taggart’s pop and jazz background. The infectious single was inspired by emotions brought on from living with a boyfriend in the same dwelling as his last partner. The entire process behind Walls was created in living rooms. Taggart wrote the song over a Zoom meeting with Toronto songwriters Bryn & Aryss. She created a simple piano riff with some synth, beats and harmonies on Logic and sent it to producer Howie Beck. He would add production to her stems, she would add vocals and harmony to his production.”
Billie Zizi | Everything In Between
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Billie Zizi is continuing to share glimpses of her exquisite upcoming album, the contemplative and dreamy Levitate (due Oct. 25). The Edmonton singer-songwriter has embraced a folkier sound on her latest single Everything In Between. “A bunch of friends had gone through breakups and I was thinking about the multifaceted nature of reality,” Zizi says. “How simultaneously the breakups were challenging but also beautiful and freeing. How they gave it their best shot, which ultimately is all you can ever do in life, and the loss of that relationship led them to a new and beautiful and unexpected delight.” This gentle song focuses on the poetry of its lyrics, embracing roots and Americana music with subtle pedal steel and fingerpicked acoustic guitar.”
