Toronto-based artist KERUB dives headfirst into memory, fear, and the uneasy pull of nostalgia on their mesmerizing new album, APHANTASIA. Blending lush indie electronica with philosophical depth and glitchy, dream-like textures, the album is a raw exploration of queerness, childhood, and trying to build a future when you can’t always picture one. Haunting lead single, “Calm,” captures the aftermath of panic in striking detail – that delicate moment when your heart finally slows and you’re left alone with the wreckage.

Written partially as a master’s thesis, “Calm” began in a haze of bodily awareness after KERUB‘s first panic attack, unpacking what it means to be so far from home, trying to stay grounded in a new city. Relocation from the West Coast to Toronto sparked reflections on connections left behind and those newly formed – woven through late-night phone calls, breathless arguments, and moments of quiet dissociation. With intimate vocals and instrumentals designed to feel both familiar and uncannily synthetic, “Calm” becomes a soft yet unflinching look at vulnerability, rendered with voyeuristic tenderness.

Across APHANTASIA, KERUB builds on this tension. Inspired by Nietzsche’s concept of the Eternal Return – an endless loop of life repeating itself – the album critiques the comforting but dangerous pull of early 2000s nostalgia. It’s at once a personal meditation on growing up queer in suburban Vancouver and a broader challenge to hauntology’s cultural recycling, asking: what if we’re doomed to relive it all? And what might it mean to claw out a new home anyway?

Emmy-winning musician Little Bihlman (Scot Bihlman)’s new single “Fade Away” jhas ust debuted as the very first release on V13 Music, the new label from V13 Media Group.

“Fade Away” is a stripped-down, emotionally charged track that hits with the weight of experience. It carries the sound of an artist who’s lived the highs, lows, and long nights of a music career — and has come out the other side with something real to say. Bihlman describes it best himself:

“Fade Away carries the weight of long nights on the road, empty green rooms, cramped vans, missed calls, and fleeting highs, the real stuff that fuels a lifetime in music. And yet there’s a looseness to it. A freedom. You can hear it in the way the drums snap, the way his voice rides the edge of each phrase. It’s not about proving anything. It’s about telling the truth.”

Known for his work with Grinder Blues and The Bihlman Bros., Bihlman has performed with the likes of John Fogerty, BB King, Jelly Roll, and Trey Anastasio, and his music has been featured in over 30 TV placements including Sons of Anarchy and Burn Notice. His sound blends blues grit, heartland rock, and a raw Americana spirit he calls “motorcycle poetry for truth-seekers.”

“Fade Away” is the first taste of his upcoming solo album Heavy Head (produced by Miles Fulwider), arriving in 2025 alongside new drops from his vintage-Americana apparel line, Hillbilly Royalty.

Montreal-born, Gabriola Island, BC-based composer, vocalist, and meditation guide Mark Fenster returns with “Rising Embers,” a glowing, introspective new track from his just-released album, Serenity Sessions, Vol. 1—a deeply personal collection of sound journeys and guided meditations designed to restore calm, connection, and clarity for the listeners.

Driven by multicultural instrumentation, gentle orchestral textures, and a sense of spiritual movement, “Rising Embers” conjures the quiet beauty of a campfire’s final glow—each ember lifting into the night as a symbol of trust, release, and transformation. The piece invites the listener to follow a path of rising emotion and soft realization, repeated yet evolving, landing in a space of gratitude and peace.

“Sitting by a glowing campfire, feeling the warmth, absorbing the calm, watching tiny embers lift and fall to the sky, as if letting go, completing the experience and flowing back to the source. This is how I feel when I realize I’ve made the leap, I’m ok, and all is well now that I’ve believed and trusted and seen the beauty behind the blast,” says Fenster.

“‘Rising Embers’ is the musical version of this experience… Ultimately to the calming place of grateful acceptance and realization that there is so much good and so much for which to be grateful. Sometimes it’s just hiding in plain sight, like the rising embers from a campfire.”

Midnight Channel surprises longtime listeners with their first-ever vocal track, “Must Be Nice” – a dreamy, rhythm-forward blend of bossa nova melancholy, delusional romanticism, and subtle frustration. With vocals by Geneva Murphy, the Lethbridge-based jazz collective explores what it feels like to be left behind in love and how powerful it is when someone finally sees you.

“Must Be Nice” is a love song about how hard it is to even get a date – let alone meet people who see you. It’s a reflection on that third-wheel feeling from high school, when everyone around you seems to be finding connection, and you’re stuck focusing on all the “self-work” people tell you to do. It’s about longing, being left out, and how powerful it is when you finally do meet someone.

The song is lush and layered, blending soft Latin grooves with warped jazz harmony, cuíca and berimbau percussion, and a moody, meditative vocal performance. Guitarist Austin Phillips flips his strings upside down – literally – to craft piano-like voicings, while Matthew Erdmann’s production channels cosmic textures using a Yamaha YC-30 portamento strip, à la Sun Ra. The result is a richly expressive, emotionally off-kilter song about the ache of watching connection happen around you and wondering when it’ll be your turn.

Hip hop icon and multi-platinum artist Kardinal Offishall is following up his brand new return to music, the Jamaican Reggae and Dancehall influenced “LET EM OUT,” with a decidedly sultry followup, the Amapiano and Afrobeats imbued “SOAK.”

“LET EM OUT” and “SOAK” are both taken from the multi-platinum artist’s long awaited and highly anticipated EP, Everyday, Sometimes.

Featuring TV and platinum music star Rotimi and newcomer Ocean Banks, “SOAK” brings us to a place where we leave behind our insecurities and embrace our inner sexy.

It’s a feel-good anthem made to move your body and lift the vibes all summer long.

“In a time when real connection feels rare and true sensuality is harder than ever to experience, enter the summer banger ‘SOAK’!” shares Kardinal, who also works as a Global A&R Executive at Def Jam Records, helping to shape the sound and direction of today’s music. 

Inspired by Toronto house parties, block parties, clubs and Caribana, “SOAK,” is a languid dip in the pool at the height of humidity and in true intimacy.

ABOUT KARDINAL OFFISHALL:

With a career spanning over two decades, from early underground classics like “Ol’ Time Killin’” all the way to hit singles like “Dangerous” featuring Akon – that made him the first Canadian rapper in history to land in the Top 5 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart – Kardinal’s laundry list of notable collaborations with superstars including Rihanna, Drake, Lady Gaga, Daniel Caesar, Ludacris, and exclusive music being featured on a Dave Chappelle Netflix comedy special, has placed his catalogue in the upper echelon of urban music performers of today.

Kardinal’s first official release since 2019, “LET EM OUT,” came after years of achievements that include an honorary Doctorate from York University, hosting Canada’s Got Talent alongside stars like Howie Mandel and Shania Twain, and a UWI Luminary award, to name a few.  A true multi-hyphenate — artist, producer, executive, and cultural architect — he’s been a voice for the streets, a leader in boardrooms, and a relentless champion for artists and communities alike. 

Award-winning East Coast artist Carolina East returns with a stunning live version of her 2021 single “Until You Are Sorry,” offering a raw, emotionally charged performance that highlights her commanding voice and magnetic stage presence.

“‘Until You Are Sorry’ was born from the quiet strength it takes to walk away from someone who refuses to take accountability,” East shares. “It’s about loving yourself enough to wait for the apology you know you deserve.”

Originally recorded for a TV special in Halifax, NS, during the height of the pandemic, this version captures East at a career-defining moment – performing live alongside Alan Doyle and the Beautiful Band, an experience she describes as “a dream come true.”

“This recording has become one of my favourites,” she says. “It was one of the first times I truly felt myself on stage – like I belonged up there with those incredible musicians. I’m so proud to finally share it with the world.”

Mixed by Cory Tetford, the live cut brings a fresh energy and emotional clarity to the track, bridging the intimate and the epic.