BUD is a solo project that was started by singer/songwriter, Omar Elkhatib, in his hometown of Waterloo, Ontario. At a glance, BUD can be described as a happy-go-lucky approach to reviving the charm of rock n’ roll, whether that be metaphorically and sonically.
The groovy and tight take on rock that is “Nowhere” was influenced by a huge identity crisis that Omar had upon moving out away from home for the first time.
Reflecting on the situation in the wider world too, “Nowhere” asks instead of being jaded, how can we make it a better place for ourselves and others?
Toronto punk-rock quartet Sham Family are loud in all the right directions and pure-heartedly ambitious in several other “right” directions you haven’t thought of yet. The forced break that was 2020 gave the band time to labour away in their practice space, honing in on and perfecting their sound.
Hostile new single, “This Blue Mob,” is a seething anti-police screed written in the wake of the George Floyd murder. It’s a protest song that calls out cops for what they are – a dangerous mob.
Watch share the official music video, a cheeky play on copaganda, via YouTubenow.
My sophomore EP was inspired by really dark times in 2020 when I went into a cocoon of loneliness and self-pity. When I emerged, I had 117 in my hand and a renewed sense of self.
“who i am”started out as a journal entry that I wrote during the lockdown. I was feeling very isolated, as we all did. More than that, I realized that on some level I had always felt that way. Like the people in my life that were closest to me didn’t actually know me very well, and in this song I come to terms with the fact that moving on from these relationships was a very real, and very scary, possibility.
Hear “who i am” and 117 below.
I want you to know the real me. This is the most honest I’ve ever been in my music, and the most true to myself. These songs are written about things that I wasn’t able to say out loud until I got to know myself a little better. I have a theory that you find a new version of yourself every 7-10 years, and 117 is your introduction to that person.
Ben Sures is a storyteller. On his poignant, natural-sounding acoustic tenth album, The Story That Lived Here, the Edmonton-based songwriter, guitarist and author sings stories told to him by friends and fans and songs written by his own heart – including “End Of The World.”
This track is an earnest folk song, buoyed by gentle mandolin and strings, which captures Sures’ acceptance of the new reality which we experienced at the onset of the pandemic.
Sures combines lighthearted nihilism with bemused empathy and a self-awareness that brings hope and comfort.
Ben Sures shares:
“When things started to shut down and everyone was washing their groceries spring before last and things felt very uncertain, I was hovering between the hell and the humour of it.
I started to consider what was important to me and if there was anything I really wanted if this was the end of the world – ooh I thought, a cinnamon bun would be nice and with a plague looming who’s thinking about calories?.
So began the writing of my new single, “End Of The World,” which charts the initial reaction of panic through to an acceptance of the new reality we have been experiencing throughout the last couple years.
This song is taken from The Story That Lived Here, a collection of stories collected from conversations with friends and strangers, as well as from my own heart and imagination..
I have tried to tap into those things we feel but don’t get off our chest, so by the concluding lines of “End Of The World,” I decide to ‘spill the beans’.
Talia Keys is a foot-stomping, jaw-dropping soul-funk-rock n’ roll heavy hitting artist. Advocating for human rights Talia uses her music to convey a message of growth, awareness, and love. Promoting compassion and respect for our Earth and one another. “Music is very healing. If I can inspire just one person a show, I feel I am doing something right!” The latest single “Ain’t Got Time For This,” is vibrant rock piece that is laced with a dash of soul. With bold and bright horns that surround Talia’s voice, the song comes together like a musical explosion that will have you craving more.
Talia shares of the single:”Ain’t Got Time For This” is my new single about the importance of living in the NOW! We can’t keep wasting our time with distractions while the world is burning. I also have personal elements as I always do in my songs, this time about addiction. Having lost my dad to an overdose, the opioid epidemic and general treatment of drug users in this country has got to change. It’s not fair that Billionaires rule and pay no consequences and struggling parents and children are left to survive. It’s a call to action. I also believe in the American dream and many immigrants come here to have a better life and let’s face it, our country isn’t kind to them. So the line “Built on Dreams, we are here to stay” is about the dreamers and their parents who suffered and struggled to get them a better life. My partner is an immigrant, and seeing how hard it was for her to get citizenship I can only imagine what many people go through.
Robbie Vonn’s “Hopeless Memories” is a remarkable collaboration that mixes the talent of artists from across the globe. Cinematic, evocative, and wickedly experimental, the three-song EP ranges from the most sonic elements of glitchy electronic textures to the purest sound of cellos and flamenco guitars. Profound and wistful reflections are evident in the lyrics of the bittersweet track “If I”, with an orchestral interlude that wouldn’t feel out of place at a theatrical performance.
Featuring yearning vocals soaring above layered melodies, the futuristic sonata “Sundown” is an aural phantasm that’ll have the listener conceptualizing a lone figure crossing a desert on Mars. Meanwhile, the melancholy Elven-like vocals in “Glowing Butterfly”, layered over a muted bass techno backbone, constructs a video game fantasy with unexpected turns throughout the song. “Hopeless Memories” and its powerful art it’s a magical ride throughout the experiences of life.
This EP not only blends electronica with the sound of smooth and sweeping strings with digital dreamscapes, but also futuristic compositions of fantasy with timeless ear candy. The EP combines the grace of the classical world with the infectiousness of the dream-pop landscape and it does so effortlessly in Hopeless Memories.
Juliet Lyons’ vocals transform this EP from a simple collection of songs by serenading the listener with such delicacy, to adding eloquence and elegance in such a particular way when she has industrial sonic sounds as her backdrop.
Vonn does a phenomenal job creating a feeling and allowing us to feel what he feels and see what he sees and does so in a way that brings us to a whole other world that we want to keep going to again and again.
Modern Mystery 