Lesley Pike’s upcoming album, Wild, focuses on the resilience that comes after pain. Ahead of its October 28th release, she is sharing “Paper Thin,” written with folk duo The Dunwells, a fragile yet hopeful reflection on a couple’s fight that Pike overheard while staying at a hotel one night in Leeds, England.
‘Oh god, have I ever sounded like this?’ Pike asked herself as she tried to catch some sleep. The next morning, her and The Dunwells set out to write a song which feels tender but also quite optimistic and hopeful.
Delicate lap steel guitar and Pike’s vocal at the forefront tell a story of comparison and the shifting perceptions of conflict that come from overhearing such a personal row between strangers.
We still have now what we had then, but it feels a little cold.
What got underneath our skin that keeps us from living in the full?
Like a magic gramophone found during a stay at a desert compound, the dusk-tinged songs of Kue Varo & the Only Hopes are ethereal yet immediate, shrouded in mist but immediately distinct. The titular Varo leads the group with lyrics, vocals, guitar and more, but her trusty Only Hopes help bring to life the music that carries her grit-marked, dramatic vocals through your ears and into your soul.
“Feelin’ Lucky” paints a picture of the ebbs and flows of a really good day, all leading to a climactic release and repeat. There’s motivation and liberation through fearless fun and pleasure, pulling the threads of fortune a little closer, weaving them into reality. The song ends with a cathartic scream of “Nothing can stop me now!” at the top of Varo’s lungs, leading to a psychedelic climax.
Russel Broom produced this track along with the two others that the band will be releasing. Each track will be released in alignment with the next three new moons – a time of resetting when the veils between realities are at their thinnest.
Happy For No Reason is a band that is the antithesis of their name. The band based out of Portland Oregon celebrate every single one of life’s precious moments as two of their members are literally happy to be alive. Comprising of Jo Alexis (vocals and percussion), Neil Goldstein (guitar), and Mark Pritchard (flute), the founding members of Happy For No Reason navigate the rich waters of Jazzy Folk with a pinch of rock, a dash of soul, and even a touch of Bossa Nova.
Their jazzy folk rock single “Canaries (Hot Summer Night)” was revived from Neil and Jo’s early music careers. Neil wrote this chord progression with a jazz band in 1974 and Jo wrote the lyrics in 1991. They put them together one night in 2015 to make the song we hear now. It’s an example of how many of their songs came together.
“The lyrics are about my boyfriend who was working in Harlem at the time and I went to visit him knowing we might break up,” says Jo. “Breaking up when you are still in love is painful but the song has turned into a raucous uptempo sing-along, like the rat pack with a female lead!”
They finished recording, mixing, and making the music video during the pandemic. A friend of Jo’s told suggested the lead vocals were initially too aggressive. So, Jo bought a new microphone and redid her parts, also learning how to use Logic, the DAW (digital audio work station) and spent many hours comping the flute and piano solos.
Their video for “Canaries(Hot Summer Night)” depicts the band on a steampunk style ship, captained by Jo. They are on a mission to catch a canary. The ship and crew are eventually wrecked and never catch the canary. It’s a metaphor for self-destruction, you want something so bad that you’re willing to ignore red flags.
We spoke with Jo Alexis about the video:
Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically in this way?
We didn’t actually choose it but trusted the animator to come up with something fabulous! I saw one of his videos on YouTube and looked him up. He does a combination of live action and animation and I thought it would be amazing for this song!
What was the inspiration behind this video?
Honestly, we gave Christian Bolorinos, our director/animator/producer complete creative freedom on this so all of the ideas were his and we showed up in costume and followed direction. He is SUCH a joy to work with and has an incredible sense of humor! I was delighted with the result and so was the wonder world. The video has acquired 136k views on Facebook and is also a favorite on my YouTube channel.
What was the process of making this video?
The process was so much fun! We rented a studio in Portland and showed up in steampunk outfits(during the pandemic so we wore masks except when shooting!). We shot the music video in Portland but our director, animator and script writer, Christian Bolorinos, was in Barcelona. So we FaceTimed with him during the shoot which actually worked out really well! He directed us from Spain and we just followed his directions. I rented boat props like a steering wheel and a nautical telescope and of course, ropes. We used a fan to make it look as if we were in a terrible storm. Here are some cool pics of our shoot with the band in steampunk costumes.
Jackson Welchner is an up-and-coming vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and arranger/producer based out of Toronto. Singer of jazz, classical, folk, and improvised genres, Jackson always strives to “serve the music.”
“When UR” is an ode to all the friendships that drift apart for months, sometimes years, but when you eventually reconnect it’s as if things had never changed. That joy is what Jackson aims to share in this song.
The original song was written in 2016 as a piece for Jazz Choir, and it was his first attempt at writing something pop-y and catchy. His goal with this song was to write a pop song that wove together three equidistant key centres as seamlessly as possible. The song ended up being in A♭ major, with the verse starting in C and then halfway pivoting to E major.
The saxophone solo was improvised by the masterful Patrick Smith, one of Toronto’s best young sax players. The solo you hear on the track was done in one take!
“Writing this song taught me that I can infuse nerdy jazz ideas into a fun, accessible pop-like song,” says Jackson. “Sometimes that’s hard to do, but it’s a reminder that it CAN be done. Melody is key to all of it!”
Our most fundamental questions—about how to exist in this world we share, and how best to love the people we love—so often keep us awake at the end of the day, at a loss for answers. From the plaintive opening notes of David Myles’ new album, It’s Only a Little Loneliness, the New Brunswick-based songwriter testifies that he’s no exception.
Myles puts together a mesmerizing take on one of country music’s greatest songs—Jimmy Work’s 1955 heartbreaker “Making Believe”—which addresses those feelings that bubble up when you just can’t get over a lover leaving, even though you know it’s the end.
Myles drifts straight into a daydream with the help of Joshua Van Tassel’s intricate rhythms and Asa Brosius’ sweeping pedal steel. Halifax-based songwriter Rose Cousins’ harmonies envelop Myles’ vocals as both singers descend deeper into the reverie, confessing: “I’ll spend my lifetime loving you and making believe.”
Watch and share the video for the song here:
The collaboration of dear friends are featured all over the album—driving home that important sentiment: we need each other to get through, even if it’s just a little loneliness. In a way, It’s Only a Little Loneliness is a follow-up to the instrumental album That Tall Distance (2021). He asks questions about religion, the mystery of relationships, love and confusion and loneliness.
“It’s the kind of thing you say to yourself when you’re feeling a bit down: ‘It’s only a little loneliness,’” says Myles. “But then at the same time, you know—it’s actually quite a big thing. It’s overwhelming. You try to tell yourself it’s not a big deal but it feels quite fundamental. And you realize, ‘I need people. I need a community. I need my friends. I need my family.”
Golden Feather is a project started by Steve Kiely and Brad Germain, inspired by their love of the Grateful Dead, The Allman Brothers Band, and other bands that like to jam and take the listeners on a musical journey. The group was set to play its first show in March 2020 when the global pandemic hit, suddenly ending all hopes of live performance. Brad and Steve, along with bassist Ronson and guitarist Chris Wheeler, worked on songs remotely and recorded their debut album Light On Water. Not long after that album’s November 2020 release, Gareth Inkster joined the group on keys to complete the definitive lineup that makes up the band today.
The band’s followup Now & ThenEP was self-produced and recorded live off-the-floor at a barn turned studio dubbed Heaven. Title track, “You’ve Been On My Mind,” was written by Brad for his childhood best friend. While their lives diverged in their 20’s, this song is a way to continue to send peace and love to him. If you miss someone, let them know.
Modern Mystery 
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