Combining the natural beauty of West Coast Canada with London, England’s urban forest, Connor Roff‘s luminous music embraces and showcases his dual nationality. He’s not afraid to explore the depths of both the light and the dark or combine genres such as alternative pop, folk, RnB, and even electronic. Connor‘s songs and melodies reflect and celebrate his yoga teaching practice and passionate advocacy for the LGBT+ community. 

His song, “Somewhere Green” is inspired by our disconnection with mother nature – especially in the western world with corporate capitalism, colonialism and greed. Connor and his producer James Turner worked on the song internationally across waters via video call and email. For one of the finishing touches, they added some sounds of birds recorded from their phones in Vancouver and London, UK.

“So much of this album and this song was inspired by nature,” says Connor. “Not our separateness from it, but our belonging and connectedness to Mother Earth and all things around us. Society, crony capitalism and colonialism has tried to make us forget this, I don’t think intentionally, but from a wounded place. I believe it’s our work as humans to show up and reconnect with Mother Nature, starting with ourselves and how we show up daily. How we show up for each other and the world around us. Never underestimate the healing power of nature.”

Vancouver’s Slightest Clue (Malcolm McLaren, Hannah Kruse, Sean Ries, Nick Sciarretta) is like the secret after-school project of four kids who would have passed each other without a glance in the hallway at school, but once they’re plugged in and ready to play their distinct blend of post-punk, alternative rock, and dark pop, all bets are off. 

Dressed up in sultry post-punk stylings reminiscent of Arctic Monkeys’ AM, “Why Can’t I Call You” is the final single to be shared from the band’s forthcoming Carousel EP before it’s officially released on February 9th. Inspired by songwriter McLaren’s crush on a person he couldn’t pursue, the song is rife with hooks and vocals that emulate the likes of Grian Chatten (Fontaines D.C.) and Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys).

M’Grasker is a coven of humanoid meat sacks forged in the Vats of Creation by Dr. Gorp. Their mission: to Rock. However, they are also permitted to Roll. Human terminology might define them as a “band,” however they would be more accurately described as Biological Property of M’Graskorp Unlimited Enterprises and Subsidiaries of the GlanGlan Group. M’Graskorp’s renowned legal team compelled Jesse Turnbull (Taurus Music) and Dave Monks (of Tokyo Police Club) to engineer and produce their forthcoming self-titled album, due this year.

They present a psychedelic symphony in the form of “Kiss & Smoke Weed,” an amorous and trippy song that pays homage to the twin pillars of human joy: a kiss, the sweet interlocking of souls, and the goij, the herb that unravels the mind’s knotty woes. Imagine the harmonic convergence of lips meeting ‘twixt loving gazes and the effervescent dance of goij smoke waltzing through the air. Its intoxicating groove offers a kaleidoscope of sounds, accompanied by a phantasmagoria of color and love.

Much of M’Grasker’s DNA was salvaged from the backstage areas and bathrooms of seedy Toronto music venues and transferred via Scienetic Quantum Hurtlage to the M’Graskorp Labs, located just beyond Space and Time (and slightly to the left). There, the illustrious Dr. Gorp folded the DNA into his patented bio-muck through perverse osmosis, adding a large scoop of adrenaline and dashes of other substances that can’t be named, much less comprehended. 
After releasing their ‘curt’ 69-track EP Under the Righteous Sky in 2022, the band endured a brief transmogrification when canine DNA entered the Vats, resulting in the dog-themed follow-up Must Love Doggy in 2023.

In the spring of 2023, the rock quartet Kojak entered the studio of acclaimed folk musician and producer David James Allen to record what was initially intended to be a single tune. Little did they know that this encounter would mark the beginning of a liberating creative process that unraveled a full LP. The self-titled album, Kojak, which will be released through Allen‘s label Littleknown Records, showcases the culmination of Kojak‘s evolution and dedication to their craft and high energy and at times heavy sound.

“Midnight” is a song about hanging on to a moment, or night in this case, as long as you can, as futile as that can be. One of those nights where you don’t want it to end, whether it be that you’re having a good time, or you don’t want to see what the morning brings. It’s just as much about enjoying the current time/moment, as it is about avoiding what is about to come the next day. The song also ties in with a yet-to-be-released song, “Wake Up When The Morning Comes.”

1. Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically? 

We had Midnight scheduled for our second single release of this album. it has a groove to it and we thought we could make something work and have some fun with it. The song itself is all about enjoying the moment and being present. So that’s what we did filming it. 

2. What was the inspiration behind this video (visuals, storyline, etc.)? 

Harry came up with the idea to do silhouettes. We tried to make it a retro feel good video that keeps you engaged throughout with its blink and you’ll miss it scene. 

3. What was the process of making this video?

Our friend Trevor Harris is the owner of Dialogue Creative and we reached out to him to ask if he wanted to film and edit a short music video, thankfully he said yes. We took a bunch of takes just having fun with the track playing, and Trevor edited it all together. It only took a short amount of time but a whole lot of fun. “Every summer, [guitarist/vocalist] Donny‘s family hosts the annual Tait Volleyball Tournament where the entire party starts enjoying beverages around 10 or 11,” drummer Mitch Cory explains the inspiration for the song. “The day passes by quickly and we all find ourselves feeling pretty loose. Whether it be us, a friend, or a friend of a friend, someone is bound to be battling to keep the party going and not fall asleep on the lawn.”