Spoken word artist, author, and mental health advocate Mikey Tableman, has launched his first EP, “My Manic Maze,” an ambitious multimedia project out today, Friday, July 10th through EQUATOR. 

A blended spoken word EP, cinematic visual experience, and live performance series, My Manic Maze transforms Tableman’s personal experiences working as a leader in nightlife and festivals with addiction, trauma, burnout, and recovery into an immersive journey designed to spark conversation and encourage vulnerability through musical poetry, storytelling, and art that turns his personal struggles into thoughtfully woven, collective understanding. 

“My Manic Maze is a deeply personal undertaking I’m sharing. It’s a storytelling project that explores the complexity of the mind. The highs and lows, the spirals, the questions, the growth. It’s not about diagnosing or labeling. It’s about making people feel seen inside their own internal chaos. The initiative blends poetry, narrative, and visual elements to create something immersive and reflective.” – Mikey Tableman 

In early June, Tableman premiered the EP’s first release, “The Tea,” during “The Alchemy,” a live event showcase Los Angeles, produced by Tableman’s wellness- creative platform A Mind’s Pursuit 501c3, in association with Critical Breakdown and The Juice Joint. Serving as his creative stories introduction, the track explores the often invisible realities of social anxiety, overthinking, and the exhausting pressure to appear okay while struggling internally. Layered with the darker parts of his psyche juxtaposed through cinematic production and spoken word storytelling, the piece sets the emotional tone for the larger journey audiences will experience throughout My Manic Maze. 

The second single, “Down The Rabbit Hole” released June 26th, continuing the downward spiral into his mind, while the third release “Santiago” arrives simultaneously, supported by a highly cinematic music video. These follow-up releases explore the journey of healing, self-forgiveness, and learning to make peace with the parts of ourselves we once tried to escape. Through vulnerable storytelling and emotionally driven spoken word, the track embraces the reality that healing is not linear, but a daily choice to keep moving forward, accept the struggle, and finally choose yourself. 

Alongside the music releases, Tableman will also launch, “My Manic Maze,” the book. A  biographical, poetry laden journey surrounding his identity, relationships, emotional wellness, daily purpose, and modern masculinity. The book will be available in print and audio through online retailers on July 28th. 

Rather than existing solely as an album or a book, Tableman invites audiences to experience My Manic Maze through multiple forms of expression. By combining spoken word, memoir-style storytelling, with music, poetry, film, and visual art, the project explores the complexity of mental health through radical honesty and emotional transparency. As awareness surrounding mental health continues to grow, Tableman’s story has arrived as a reminder that vulnerability can be a catalyst for connection, healing, and hope. 

My Manic Maze – the EP is out today, July 10.

Winnipeg-based artist Zach Riley shares “Wasting Away,” an upbeat and emotionally charged pop-rock single that captures the desire to leave everything behind and disappear somewhere new with the person you love most. Blending energetic hooks with driving guitars and sun-soaked production, the track transforms emotional overwhelm into a liberating anthem built for open roads, warm nights, and fresh starts.

At its core, “Wasting Away” explores the universal fantasy of escape; the urge to run from the weight of everyday life and start over somewhere unfamiliar. “I’m sure a lot of people get that feeling at some point in their life to just pick up everything and run away to a place where nobody knows who you are,” Zach explains. “Life can get overwhelming a lot of the time and the idea of starting over can be really enticing.”

The song began through an unexpected collaboration with producer Auston Beeding, who initially discovered Zach through Instagram. Bonding quickly over a shared love for artists like The Band CAMINO, the pair found an immediate creative chemistry that shaped the track’s effortless energy. “He basically already had all the instrumentation ready to go so all I needed to do was write a melody and lyrics,” Zach shares. “The song almost came together too easily.”

That natural momentum remains embedded throughout the recording. Built around bright pop melodies, energetic rhythms, and explosive rock guitars, “Wasting Away” leans fully into its carefree emotional atmosphere without losing the vulnerability underneath.  “It’s got a very upbeat, poppy vibe but with loud rock guitars in the chorus,” Zach explains. “It just gives it that summery vibe that makes you want to be outside in the sun.”

“Wasting Away” will appear on Zach’s upcoming EP, a project unified less by strict narrative than by a shared emotional and sonic atmosphere. “Even though the lyrics to some are happier than others, they all sort of have that summery vibe to them,” he says.

Revelstoke, BC alternative rock band PICKLE JUICE share their sophomore EP, The Whiteroom, released alongside lead single “Back 40,” a turbulent and emotionally charged collection that captures the band stepping fully into their identity. Blending indie rock hooks, garage rock grit, and explosive alt-rock energy, the project channels themes of loss, uncertainty, addiction, and personal transformation into something loud, restless, and cathartic.

Following their debut EP, PICKLE JUICE resisted the urge to immediately jump into a full-length album. Instead, The Whiteroom became an opportunity to dig deeper into their chemistry as collaborators and songwriters. “It feels like a snapshot of the band finding its identity and becoming more confident in what PICKLE JUICE actually is,” they share.

Recorded over the course of a dedicated week in studio with producer David Ziehr, The Whiteroom marks the first time the band approached a project as a complete body of work rather than isolated singles. That process allowed them to focus on how the songs connected emotionally and sonically, shaping a record that feels cohesive while still embracing the unpredictability at the core of their sound.

Thematically, The Whiteroom explores the struggle to see clearly while navigating emotional chaos. The title itself references a snowboarding term describing the moment when heavy powder blinds your vision entirely, leaving you at the mercy of momentum and instinct. “It captures the themes of the songs pretty well,” the band explains. “The loss of clarity, reality, and control.”

At the centre of the release is “Back 40,” an energetic and emotionally volatile indie rock track that reframes heartbreak as a reckoning with your former self. Written during a period of personal transition, the song reflects the disorienting experience of grieving parts of your identity while trying to accept change. “It genuinely felt like I was grieving a part of myself while also trying to reassure myself that things were going to be okay,” vocalist Tim van der Krogt shares.

Musically, “Back 40” leans fully into the band’s chaotic live energy. Packed with sharp dynamic shifts, roaring guitars, and relentless momentum, the track balances tightly wound tension with explosive release. One standout moment arrives in the song’s climactic solo section, where the bass and lead guitar weave around each other before colliding into a high-energy finish. “Whenever they play it I feel like an audience member,” Tim says. “Fully captivated by what’s happening on stage.”

That same intensity shaped the recording process. While tracking vocals late into the night, PICKLE JUICE struggled to capture the emotional weight of the verses, which sit at the very bottom of Tim’s vocal range. After hours of frustration, they abandoned the session and returned the next morning. “I came in first thing the next day, we hit record, and got it in one take.”

Victoria, BC indie rock outfit The Bankes Brothers share “Aaliyah,” a warm and melodic new single that transforms personal devotion into something universally resonant. Built around fingerpicked acoustic guitars, soaring melodies, and heartfelt lyricism, the track captures the feeling of holding onto hope while navigating distance, uncertainty, and the passage of time. Equal parts intimate and uplifting, “Aaliyah” finds the band leaning into one of their most emotionally sincere recordings to date.

The song began long before its title arrived. Written initially around a series of chords and evolving song sections, “Aaliyah” existed without a clear centrepiece for quite some time. A temporary lyric, “farewell Maria,” occupied the space where the hook would eventually land, but never felt quite right.

“It wasn’t until my girlfriend was saying how she wished she had been named Aaliyah because it’s such a beautiful name that it clicked and it all came together,” Nelson Bankes explains. “In the end, the song is dedicated to her.”

At its core, “Aaliyah” reflects the optimism that has long guided The Bankes Brothers’ songwriting. While many of their songs grapple with uncertainty, growth, and change, they often arrive at a place of resilience rather than defeat.

“Writing music has always been a very therapeutic thing for me,” Nelson shares. “I hope that people listen to most of the songs and get the sense that they’re optimistic. There’s enough bad emotions in the world. We try not to put more out there.”

That warmth extends into the recording process itself. Working alongside acclaimed producer Gus van Go, the band searched extensively for the right acoustic guitar tone to anchor the song’s delicate fingerpicked arrangement. After cycling through several instruments, the answer arrived unexpectedly.

“We probably went through two or three different clean sounding acoustics before Gus pulled an old Gibson off his shelf with dusty old strings,” Nelson recalls. “That slightly muted sound felt perfect for this song. Like playing the family guitar with strings that haven’t been changed in 10 years.”

The result is a recording that feels nostalgic and lived-in, perfectly complementing the song’s emotional core. Even its smallest details carry personal significance. One of Nelson’s favourite lyrics, “northeastern winds I’ll ride till then,” quietly references his girlfriend’s surname, serving as a subtle Easter egg hidden within the song’s broader themes of longing and devotion.

While “Aaliyah” stands comfortably on its own, it also offers an early glimpse into the band’s next creative chapter. Alongside several other songs from their forthcoming work, the single showcases an artistic maturity and confidence that reflects years of growth both on and off the stage.

London, ON-based folk artist Willem James Cowan shares “Back to the City,” a sparse and emotionally heavy folk single that captures the strange disorientation of returning to a place once tied to love, comfort, and identity after everything connected to it has changed. Anchored by little more than voice and acoustic guitar, the track transforms post-breakup displacement into something deeply intimate and quietly devastating.

Written after Willem moved back in with his parents following the end of a long-term relationship, “Back to the City” reflects on revisiting Toronto after years spent building a life there with a partner. What was once familiar suddenly felt cold, distant, and emotionally unrecognizable.

“This song is about the feeling you get when you return to a place that you called home for so long, but now feels completely foreign,” Willem explains. “I still remember the lingering anxiety and dread that would well up inside me as I drove past the apartment buildings that line the Gardiner Expressway.”

At its core, “Back to the City” explores how memory reshapes physical spaces. The comfort and warmth once associated with a city become buried beneath grief and emotional residue, transforming everyday landmarks into reminders of absence and change. “It’s amazing how the good memories and feelings you associate with a place can be completely smothered by the bad,” he says.

The recording process mirrors that emotional directness. After unsuccessfully attempting fuller arrangements, Willem ultimately returned to the simplest version of the song: one live off the floor take featuring only voice and acoustic guitar, alongside a handful of subtle guitar swells added afterward.

“I think the sparseness serves the song much more,” Willem shares. “‘Back to the City’ is about loneliness, loss, and discomfort, and I think that shines through with just a voice and acoustic guitar.”

The single closes Willem’s upcoming album, What Should Happen Next?, out at the end of summer 2026: a collection of songs centred around loss, growth, transition, and the uncertainty of moving forward. As the final track, it functions less like resolution and more like quiet acceptance, sitting with discomfort rather than trying to outrun it.

Toronto artist and producer ARK IDENTITY (Noah Mroueh) shares “Social Dopamine,” a gritty 90s-inspired alternative single that examines the addictive pull of online validation and the slow erosion of self that can come with it. Blending fuzzed-out indie rock textures with emotionally direct songwriting, the track captures the tension between who we are and the carefully curated versions of ourselves we project into the world.

Written about the constant search for approval through social media, “Social Dopamine” explores the strange cycle of external validation that has become second nature for so many. “We’ve all curated our personas online so heavily. We’ve become so consumed by how we’re perceived that we start to lose touch with who we actually are,” Noah explains. At the heart of the song is the fleeting rush that comes with attention, a momentary high that quickly disappears, only to be chased again.

“Social Dopamine” also marks the beginning of a larger chapter. The single serves as the title track to ARK IDENTITY’s upcoming EP, sitting at the centre of a new body of work that expands the sonic and emotional world Noah has been building.

The title itself gets to the core of that feeling. “It’s about that short-lived high we get from seeking attention and the approval of others,” Noah says. “It becomes addictive, a sort of ‘Social Dopamine’ hit that we keep chasing. But it never really satisfies anything deeper, so the cycle just keeps repeating.”

The songwriting process unfolded instinctively alongside co-writer Philippe Andre. Beginning with the lyrics, the pair built the track around emotional honesty rather than polish. “The lyrics came first, and then we tried to make something that felt honest, raw, and emotionally true to the words,” Noah explains.

Production-wise, ARK IDENTITY leaned into a distinctly 90s alternative palette, drawing influence from Nirvana, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Beck. Dirty guitars, fuzzed-out bass, and imperfect drums give the song its worn-in, human edge. Rather than sanding away those rough corners, Noah embraced them. “We didn’t want it to feel overly polished,” he says. “The imperfections make it feel more human, which fits the message of the song.”