Alex Mason is a Canadian singer-songwriter based in Toronto, Ontario. His songs are dark, anthemic, quiet and dynamic, like dredging up the bones of things that sit at the bottom of lakes. Raised in rural Ontario, he moved to Toronto after completing his degree in English Literature and decided he’d rather put his words in songs than essays.

Whether solo or with his full band, his voice and songs bring a fresh energy and lyricism to Canadian music. After 3 EPs, he is currently preparing his first full length LP, Ghost of the Great Lakes, inspired in part by Virginia Woolf’s 1927 novel “To The Lighthouse” and the life lived that has brought him here.

“In mid 2016 not long after having moved to Toronto, I was really struggling in my career and trying to write songs about genuine hope,” said Mason. “I had a conversation with a friend at work about what it meant to overcome failure and she told me that many people pursue something, whether it be a passion or a career, and get to a middle point where they give up, and are doomed to keep finding new fixations and repeating the process, always giving up in this middle period where they plateau.

“It takes working through this ‘desert,’ sitting with the pain, being stranded alone, to come out on the other side. I ran home with words in my head, picked up the guitar and wrote this song almost immediately.”

During the making of “Dark Days” and the rest of the songs for this upcoming record, a big part of the sound of the album involved a delay pedal called the Deluxe Memory Man by Electro-Harmonix. For “Dark Days” in particular, a lot of guitar parts have this analog echo on them, creating an ethereal wash. 

The older units in particular are really sought after, as popularized by so many bands such as Radiohead and many others. After losing his Mom mid-way through the recording process for this album, Mason’s old bandmates and producer banded together to purchase one of these units for him and it’s the same sound you hear on the delayed guitar parts in this song. The pedal given to Mason was also used on the record “Suffer Summer” by Chastity, recorded at the same studio.

The critically acclaimed Toronto blues-rock singer Jake Chisholm is back with a love song. “Keep Me Warm” is a sultry strut through the nightlights of love. Sweet and lowdown, cool and confident, it finds it and keeps it. Something is going on and it feels good.

“Keep Me Warm” is about that beautiful, sweet and warm feeling you get when you surrender to love. It’s a wish that the person you give your heart to will honour and repay the love given with love in return.

Sonically, Jake Chisholm and his crew tried to recreate the tingly feelings of anticipation, and the trailing feeling of lasting euphoria after a love connection by using sounds to mimic the layers of emotion rising and falling during these sensual moments.

Emerging singer-songwriter Madison Galloway has built a reputation as a road warrior, performing at acclaimed festivals across her home province of Ontario, including Mariposa Folk Festival, Riverfest Elora, and RBC Bluesfest. 

One of three winners of CBC Toyota Searchlight 2022’s Fan Choice, Madison is sharing “Open Your Eyes,” a 70s inspired rock song which reflects on the issues facing the world today and calls on the need for community and society-wide change.

Produced by Ross Hayes Citrullo, Galloway’s assertive vocals and melodic guitar playing is framed by interlocking organ and drums, creating a rollicking call to action.