Imagine a Bosch-esque garden of psychedelic flowers, blooming in a realm of eclectic delights. In the centre of the hyperreal chaos is Hua Li 化力, the only “half-Chinese, half-militant, half-rapper of your heart,” back with her most ambitious and personal record to date, ripe fruit falls but not in your mouth (March 27th).

“Part Time Muses” is an earthy, opalescent diss-track, recounting slept-on pleasures and near misses. The bones of this song were written at the Banff Centre on a beautiful Kawai grand piano. Hua Li 化力 had been starting her days playing pieces by Chopin and Ravel and weaved a melody over an impressionistic, chromatic piano line that is referenced in the incisive synth lines you hear now.

What emerged were soulful verses about longing and limerence and the story of a love triangle gone wrong. Her producer, Alex Thibault (a.k.a. Gloze), picked up on the 90s influences and created a lush, contemporary take on Timbaland and Aaliyah.

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

This is a song about learning to let go and accept the ephemeral nature of certain relationships. Not everyone is meant to be in your life forever and some people can create a long lasting impact in a short moment. When I wrote this song I was in a period of longing but when I look back at the circumstances that fuelled these lyrics I deeply appreciate all the inspiration the subject of the song provided me in the few months we were intertwined. These themes of letting go, having gratitude, and appreciating my past are central to the album on which the song appears, so it felt important to create a visual for this piece that is a microcosm of the larger body of work. 

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

I play a somewhat delusional and desperate adult dressed up as a prom queen. I tear down Montréal’s Plaza St. Hubert, a hub for wedding dress and prom gown stores, looking longingly at the romantic merchandise around me, trying to find the “prom date” that’s right for me. Director Yang Shi was inspired by 90s nostalgia and wanted to draw on a 90s teen movie aesthetic to reflect the sonic elements of the song that draw on that era. The icy-blue backdrop compliments both the aesthetic references we were working with and symbolizes the cold and elusive nature of our deepest yearnings. 

3. What was the process of making this video?

Anytime I work with Yang the process is easy and joyful. We met to chat about the song and I gave her carte blanche on concepts for the video as long as they were possible within our tight budget. She came back with the idea of shooting Plaza St. Hubert which I loved because it’s truly one of my favourite Montreal oddities. I brought director of photography Evan Shay onto the project – I know him as a musician through the jazz and beatmaker communities in Montreal but I knew about his alter-ego as an amazing videographer and always wanted to work with him in that capacity. We shot the video on one extremely cold day in December but despite the low temperatures we kept each other warm with positive attitudes, jokes and supportive energy.

“The video was directed by Yang Shi who is a brilliant director in Montreal,” says Hua Li 化力. “She heard the delulu longing in the lyrics and came up with the idea of having me embody this as a 30-some-year old prom queen. We shot in Plaza St. Hubert, which is one of my favourite Montreal oddities.”

As a Prince Edward Island-born songwriter, guitarist, and producer, Logan Richard’s beckoning melodies have swiftly risen to prominence in the Canadian music scene. Likewise, sisters Moira & Claire write lighthearted, indie folk-pop songs that appeal to East and West Coasters and everyone in between. Together, the three have teamed up to write the duet, “Unrequited Love Blues.”

This song is about two people that love each other, but don’t know that the other person feels the way that they do. The song itself was inspired by the tragic idea of unrequited love, and the idea that it will never be anything more.

It originally began as an acoustic song, but after working with producer Colin Buchanan, he encouraged Logan and Moira & Claire to give it a try as a pop bop. Having several elements return in the last chorus (vocals from bridge, chorus, guitar solo) all overlapping and intertwining acts as a representation of the two unrequited lovers’ thoughts colliding. There is no emotional wall separating the two anymore, and the listener is left with an overflow of thoughts and emotions.

Moira & Claire were fans of Logan and covered his song “Lover Again” back in 2019. Logan was delighted to hear someone cover his song for the first time, and since then, they’ve been friends. 
“This is a very special song for us as it is our first released collaboration with another artist,” say Moira & Claire. “It is extra special that the collaboration is with someone who we’ve looked up to for many years prior.”

Ottawa’s Laurence DaNova assures that “even after trauma, we survive” on the ‘90s trip-hop anthem, “Resurfacing.”

“‘Resurfacing’ represents a journey towards self-discovery, reconciliation, and escapism,” DaNova explains about the nostalgia-invoking track. “It’s written as a metaphorical narrative of finding solace in an underwater world – a symbolic safe haven, away from the struggles and suffering of the land above.”

The music video was filmed in Ontario on Chantry Island within their 150-year-old lighthouse and the lighthouse keeper’s inn, and throughout the Tobermory area.

Catchy pop act The Dream Eaters are vocalist Elizabeth LeBaron, originally from Calgary, and singer/songwriter Jake Zavracky, originally from Boston. The duo met while working at the same bar in the Gowanus neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY, and have evolved from a dream pop band into a full-on video art project. 

Having recently released the song “mood pills,” The Dream Eaters are following up with an anthemic new track. “Subhuman” was born out of Jake’s observations of the struggle for transgender rights. It looks into the mind of a person who is yearning for acceptance, but who is committed to their individuality and staying true to themselves. Featuring a driving beat, the melodic single is available to stream + share now.The official music video portrays Elizabeth and Jake as two goths in their high school yearbook photos. It demonstrates what it’s like to feel rejected for being different, while still craving validation and love.

After more than a decade-long retreat from recording and performing, singer/songwriter Allen Dobb is returning with a new album on February 9th. Alone Together draws from characters, stories, and landscapes that are part of Allen’s experience working as a range management specialist in the interior of British Columbia.

The third single, “Black and White 1912,” tells the moving story of an old cowboy who travels back in time through a black and white photograph that was taken in 1912. The melodies are carried by acoustic and electric guitars, mandolin, lap steel, piano, and other instruments in tasteful arrangements that always create just the right sonic space for Allen’s intimate and soulful vocals. 

Alone Together was produced and mixed by Allen’s brother and close collaborator Cameron Dobb, resulting in warmth and authenticity that harkens back to some of the classic country sounds of the 1970s. At the same time, it has its own currency, steeped in their own rural roots growing up on a farm in northwestern Alberta near the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. In his early years, Allen left the family farm to attend college in Wyoming and Washington State, finding time to play cowboy dances and participate in collegiate rodeo along the way. 

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.”