Vicky von Vicky is a Toronto indie rock band that originated in the late 1990s, featuring Michael Wynn (Melted Wings) on guitar and vocals, Rolston Miller on bass, and Tom Nesbitt (The Others) on guitar. Vicky von Vicky‘s distinctive sound draws inspiration from punk, grunge, classic rock, and rock, soul and hip-hop. However, their music is not a genre mash-up. They delve into themes of love, loss, and life experiences, expressing themselves with candidness, vulnerability and a big serving of humour. The result is Vicky von Vicky‘s music.

After almost two decades, the band reunited in 2019, paying tribute to their late friend and former bandmate Andrew Pricesmith. This “second chance” allowed Vicky von Vicky to regroup and return to the Toronto music scene with a renewed focus.

Their uplifting new EP, Broken Chairs, was mostly written in the week Michael Wynn was laid off from his full time job. Some of these melodies came straight from his dreams, and together with producer Nixon Boyd (Hollerado, Dizzy), they put together this rocking, five track EP.

The focus track “Be Still My Heart” is about someone talking to their soul or heart, and getting them to try to calm down or take stock of where they are in life. In some ways the narrator has not been true to themselves, i.e. the separation from their heart and what makes them human.

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

“Be Still My Heart” is a song that came to me in May 2020, it didn’t take long to write the lyrics and the music came quite quickly. At the time, I don’t think I really had a theme or realized what the song was about, i wrote the words first as a kind of ode to my heart and thanking it for hanging in there.  But then after reading the lyrics and realizing what I was singing, it sort of all kind of came together and realized the meaning, and the analogies i was making.

To visualize this song was a no-brainer. I mean, I have done all the other songs so why not this one? This is the last song of our EP that needed a video and to visualize in some way.

The song seems to be about someone reflecting on how they have lived their life and are regretting the choices they made, ie not being true to themselves or what was in their heart.  I am a huge fan of the Pixies and i felt some parts were inspired by them in this as well.

I like writing songs about the heart, it is an amazing organ! Also the various visuals and metaphors around it i find very intriguing.

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

I had visualized an arm holding a heart for sometime but as soon as i started looking for photos the metallic/robotic theme started to reveal itself to me and i felt it would make compelling imagery.

And in the end the robotic arm holding what seems to be an antique robotic heart had the most impact to me, especially when the hand holds the heart by a chain.  Its up to the viewer to decide if the robotic arm is a robot holding their own heart or someone or something else’s.

3. What was the process of making this video?

Making this video started pretty simply,  i began weighing ideas and visuals and then through a process of elimination i started seeing what i could get away with visually and if i was able to satisfy my own critiques.  In this case i just wanted to move around the song’s poster with the lyrics leading the way around using Ken Burns like movements.  

Having a deadline also helps sometimes, usually i am doing these things at the last minute!  I have always enjoyed painting and graphic design, pretty much self taught.  And i love the journey and problem solving aspect to it. Same with song writing.  It’s a sort of obsession, but in a good way.

Songwriter Michael Wynn envisioned the narrator as someone who once deemed making money as their primary focus and had lost sight of the important things. Making money may have been the most important thing in this narrator’s life in “Be Still My Heart,” but they soon realize that money means nothing when you are no longer around.

Award-winning power duo Campbell & Johnston are a soulful blend of vintage blues-rock, roots and folk with a modern twist. Trading off lead vocals, harmonies and guitar solos, the two are a musical yin and yang, captivating audiences with raw emotion and heartfelt authenticity. Whether experiencing their performance as an acoustic duo, or with their full electric band, the chemistry is palpable and the musicianship is top-notch. 

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness all led towards their album, Paisley Hearts, setting the stage for a jam-packed year of touring ahead. The new collection is centered around love and loss, regret, righteousness…and smoking hash and drinking coffee. Focus track, “Don’t Get Down (On a Good Thing),” serves as a “tongue and cheek reminder that this too shall pass, and a war of attrition can only be won one way, by staying the course,” says Johnston.

“Don’t Get Down (On a Good Thing)” is an upbeat soul rock jam reminiscent of Sly and The Family Stone and the Hendrixian ways of days gone by.

Veteran Toronto singer-songwriter and 4x JUNO nominee Julian Taylor has an upbeat and bluesy new slice of his upcoming album, Pathways (out September 27th), to share. 

“Running Away” juxtaposes the weary Americana of lead single “Weighing Down” with a driving piece of blues rock which tries to outrun hurt and pain instead of facing it head on.

“All my life I’ve been a huge rural blues fan,” explains Julian. “My grandfather used to spin old blues records like Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee when I was a kid so that kind of rockabilly country blues groove lives inside me. I would say that [this] song is inspired by the blues music that came out of plantation fields.”

This song was produced by Colin Linden and the version you hear today is the first take recorded live off of the floor, capturing the electrifying spark of a rollicking and soulful full band groove. 

Award-winning new wave Canadian band The Pukka Orchestra was formed in 1979 by lead vocalist/guitarist/main songwriter Graeme Williamson and vocalists/guitarists/co-songwriters Neil Chapman and Tony Duggan-Smith. Based in Toronto in the ‘80s and ‘90s, they became an important and revered contributor to the Queen Street music scene of that era.

After a two decade hiatus, The Pukka Orchestra completed a new album – Chaos Is Come Again (Pacemaker/Cadence Records, March 2024) – of updated, reworked, remixed tracks, remastered posthumously after the death of Williamson. The original tracks were made available only to friends and local fans and now, Chaos Is Come Again is widely available. Stream here and purchase here.

“If we don’t care about our world and those in it, then chaos has come again” is the album’s resonant theme. “Weekend (Come Alive!)” ushers it in with an intense dance groove and reckless guitar solo, combating injustice in life with positivity.

“Graeme’s words were inspired by his experience working in the sub-basement of a government building in Toronto and eagerly anticipating the upcoming weekend to have a real life for a couple of days before returning to the mundane grind. While shooting the music video, a helicopter pilot friend of ours took us up to shoot some scenes in his chopper. Thinking it would be a cool thing to do, he gave the controls over to Graeme who, not realizing how delicate the joystick was, sent it into a near death spin that Robert had to recover from. Hearts were pounding!” –Neil Chapman, The Pukka Orchestra’s vocalist and guitarist

Luella is the musical project of 20 year old Kingston/Montreal-based artist Liv Whitfield. Her soulful dream-pop sound is most notable for its catchy baselines, crisp vocals, and honest lyrics. 2022 brought the release of her debut album, Luna, produced in collaboration with her father, Zane Whitfield, at North of Princess Studio (Glorious Sons, Kathleen Edwards, Blue Stones). Luella’s sophomore album, Summer Bummer, is a testament to her final years of girlhood; bolder with a newfound confidence all while staying true to her trademark vulnerability. A fusion of earnest lyrics and warm melodies, Luella captures the bittersweet essence of fleeting summers and the complexities of first love and inevitable heartbreak.

In her new single, “Peach Ginger Tea,” Luella is comparing her past relationship to an ice cold glass of peach ginger tea. The idea always sounds lovely on a scorching hot summer afternoon, but after a couple of sips, you realize it’s never been all that sweet and this hot summer weather isn’t going to last forever. 

“The lyrics draw back to a time I was dating ‘the perfect guy,” says Luella. “He was incredibly attractive, with a genuine kindness that stood out from others and yet I couldn’t shake the fact we lacked a deeper connection. It seemed as though we only loved the idea of each other. I felt terrible for admitting it, and spent a summer distracting myself with the newfound freedoms of my late teens, trying to find ways to romanticize the relationship I was unhappy in.”