Starpainter wears their influences on their sleeves, showcasing songwriting craftsmanship and an affinity for classic folk rock and alt-country tones.

Their upcoming release, Blood In The Snow, further develops a signature sound established on their debut record last year – roomy drums, melodic bass lines, tightly woven guitars and organs – subtly incorporating new sonic elements, such as nylon-string guitar, upright piano, mellotron flutes.

The EP features three interpretations of one track in order to tell three versions of one story set in a semi-fictional small town that bears a resemblance to singer-songwriter Joel Stretch’s upbringing in Alberta.

Hear “Blood In The Snow #3”: 

“[Blood In The Snow #3] is trying to deliver the delirious and bittersweet feeling of hanging on to something that used to be good but has become unhealthy,” explains Stretch.

“Everything has gone wrong at once, but you just go out and drink and hang with your friends and try to forget about it for a while instead of dealing with anything – darkness looms in the periphery but you choose to ignore it.”

Featured by AltPress as an ‘artist you need to hear,’ Mylo Quinn comes to life in the form of melancholy lyrics, emotional soundscapes, and undeniable honesty. Presented via a blended approach of r&b, trap, indie-pop, and alternative elements the artist calls “dread-pop,” Mylo Quinn is as much a sonic exploration as it is the result of musical therapy. 

“Drift” is part of a larger story of substance abuse that upcoming debut EP Light tells, addressing a tendency to self-destruct when life gets difficult or emotionally overwhelming. The release marks the one-year anniversary of his decision to quit drinking, and holds space for us to take a look at what it means to temporarily find peace—even at our own expense.

Willie Stratton picked up the guitar at age twelve and started writing songs soon after. A brief obsession with the banjo led to his first album, released in 2011, followed by his 2016 oddball alt country record, Della Rosa.

Stratton has now landed firmly on an old time country vibe with strong contemporary lyrics and a smooth baritone vocal, reminiscent of Roy Orbison. 

His new single, “Need Your Love,” is a rowdy, riff heavy country rock track that follows the story of two people who want to break out of the confines of their current world and experience something new and more daring.

Stratton shares:

Today I’m sharing with you “Need Your Love,” a song that captures the live vibe of my band: upbeat, rowdy, and very old school. I was inspired to make something new with that greasy, slightly satanic energy of rock and roll’s past.

My single has that rowdy, angsty mood of being young and restless as we follow two people who want to break out of the confines of their current world and experience something more daring.

Discover Willie Stratton

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Joseph Dubuc-Lavoie has that special touch. Working out of his own studio where he creates heartfelt electronic music as Many Masks, Joseph is ready to share his new album, The Elevator, with the world.

Fitting with its name, the collection of songs is something you just have to roll with. Picture an elevator with a mind of its own. The more you try to exercise control over it, the less it cooperates. The Elevator makes peace with the fact that we have no real control over the world. 

Many Masks shares:

The harder you try to control The Elevator the harder it becomes, at least in my experience. My new album out today is making peace with the fact that we have no real control over the world and the universe we reside in.

The album’s title track is about being haunted by someone from your past. 

For some reason this one person from my past has kept coming up in my dreams even though I have not talked with them in over ten years. 

I theorized that making a song about it might free me from it, but I can safely say that it did not.

She turned my heart into an elevator.

The truth is that I think my heart always was an elevator, she just made me realize it.

Thank you taking the time to listen,

The Detours provide an authentic spin on alternative and pop rock in Toronto’s indie circuit. Catchy narrative lyrics accompany diverse musical influences that flow through rhythmic punk-influenced riffs.

Preparing to take their sound in an exciting new direction for the return of live music, “Tell Me” is their most ambitious project yet. A reminder to push forward and keep your head up, the latest single is about battling with doubt and working towards self-discovery.

Check out the video filmed in a continuous take that brings the audience on the journey of crafting a song, from writing and rehearsing, to performing: https://youtu.be/igJ8nkkyPp0

East ­Coast­ hospitality meets knock-­your-­teeth-­out personality with Like A Motorcycle. The rockers are re­igniting the flame in the cynical hearts of seasoned punks, indoctrinating the teenage oddball children of terrified suburbanites, and inviting a morbid curiosity from everyone in between who haven’t dwelled in the grimy recesses of society… but would totally go to the afterparty.

LAM’s new single, “122 Hours Of Fear,” is a cover from 70’s LA punk band The Screamers who, despite cult-esque fame, never actually recorded/released a studio album. The song outlines the hijacking of Lufthansa flight 181 in 1977 and is sung from the point of view of a hostage.