Just in time for the Easter and Solstice holidays, Sonic Butterfly features Star Goes Nova in this moving spiritual piece.
An unusual giant instrument, Sonic Butterfly is an acoustic harp with strings, at minimum 60ft long, that span out over the audience, transforming buildings and natural environments into a stunning, immersive musical instrument. Listeners describe it “like being inside YoYo Ma’s cello.”
Star Goes Nova, an electronica composer known for blending genres, in a feat of recording engineering, captures the giant harp and adds piano against a cathedral ambiance, creating images of a medieval Spring dance amongst the strings.
Hear the newly awakened butterfly alight amongst the starburst of Easter, Solstice, May Day and all of the Spring celebrations.
“Eye” has a simple and hypnotic melody that builds up slowly with the addition of various layers of electronic beats and sounds, leading to a climactic and satisfying drop. The vocals are delicate and ethereal, adding a spiritual quality to the track. The lyrics are abstract and poetic, creating a sense of mystery and introspection.
The production of the song is impressive, with a great attention to detail and a careful balance between different elements. The electronic beats are crisp and dynamic, while the atmospheric sounds are immersive and transportive. The mix is clean and spacious, allowing each element to shine without overwhelming the others.
“I’ve always thought of myself as an intrinsic soul, finding meaning in space and time and thought,” says Star Goes Nova. “I create epic stories that combine real instruments with electronica, transcending past and future, told through my 115 year old piano, power drums and deep bass music. These sonic manifestations are empathic spaces to stargaze, gather personal power or share thoughts from other worlds.”
Coming off the hype of her recent release “Under Me,” Lexy Panterra is back with her alluring new single “Depend on You”- now available on all digital streaming platforms. Taking a full 180 from her previous track, “Depend on You” showcases Panterra’s versatile vocal abilities in a slow R&B tune.
In “Depend On You,” Lexy sings about the intense connection she shares with her lover, but instead of relying on clichéd metaphors and generic lyrics, she uses vivid imagery and poetic language to convey the raw passion and emotion of the relationship. The lyrics are both sensual and vulnerable, exploring the complexities of love and intimacy in a refreshingly honest way.
Being released in two unique versions, Pt.1 and Pt.2, “Depend on You- Pt.1” is a slow and sultry track, while Pt.2 is a high-energy electronic remix that will make you want to dance the night away. Adding another layer of interest to the song, Pt.2 will be released exclusively as an NFT through the innovative platform Sound XYZ, making it a one-of-a-kind collectible item for fans of Lexy and electronic music scene. As an intimate and provocative R&B track, Pt.1 demonstrates Panterra’s distinctive voice and lyrical word play, alongside Pt.2; a tune perfect for performing her impressive dance skills that have garnered her a massive following on social media and made her a force to be reckoned with in the music industry.
With this release, listeners are set to experience two versions of a tune that are as bold and innovative as Lexy is as a multifaceted performer, with so much more to come. The track that showcases Lexy’s talent as a singer, songwriter, and producer and with its two unique versions and an exclusive NFT release, it’s a must listen for fans of R&B and electronic music alike.
Toronto’s Velvet Beach have been on an upward trajectory since their debut single release last September. They were honoured to be a part of Exclaim!’s Class of 2023 show back in January and are excited to finally release their debut album The Dream. A culmination of nearly three years of work, The Dream showcases the eclectic mix of dream pop and shoe gaze that has come to define Velvet Beach’s live sound so far.
Of particular note is “Uncertainty,” a driving yet ethereal ballad that pushes the bounds of Velvet Beach’s songwriting so far. Inspired by Kate Bush and “Hounds of Love,” the band wanted to create an homage to her work but that was also distinctively Velvet Beach. The song combines nostalgia, melancholy and the feelings that accompany coping with insecurity.
Stay tuned for future releases, including live recordings of the Class of 2023 show as well as live off the floor recordings of some of the album’s best songs.
Ways In Waves is the brainchild of Brian Raine, a multi-instrumentalist and music producer originally from Yellowknife but currently living out of Edmonton. With malleable form and the spirit of experimentation at its core, the group began as a live duo before expanding to a five piece live band with Raine picking up vocals as well as guitar and keys parts.
Raine has chosen to focus the sound of the project into a tighter, brighter, more aggressive sound. Combining aspects of rock, art-pop, and electronic music together into a mixture that propels the listener through controlled chaos. “Who In War” uses the previous single “Everything Taken” as a starting point, and pushes the layering of textures and instruments toward an intentional maximalism. The bombastic and surreal build of the song culminates in an explosive cacophony that sounds like a celebration during an air raid.
Written from the perspective of someone who is perpetually online and begins to think they can change the world all by themselves, ultimately developing a god complex.
Renowned Canadian singer-songwriter, Tara MacLean, wrote “Let Her Feel The Rain” following a breakup at the age of 19 which was deeply affecting.
“I noticed that I felt numb, and I went and laid outside on the grass at night in the rain, and just let it fall on me. I just needed to feel it, to feel the pain, and then let the rain wash it away. And it did. I wrote this song when I came inside, still wet and muddy. This was the song that made me realize that music was going to save my life,” explains MacLean.
Decades later, MacLean has reimagined the song with layered background vocals and strings evocative of the lush environment which she calls home in the Pacific Northwest.
“In so many ways the song is about rebirth,” says MacLean. When it came time to shoot the video for “Let Her Feel The Rain,” MacLean returned to her ‘nest’ on Salt Spring Island to perform the song, complete with hair and makeup done by her children.
“Let Her Feel The Rain” is taken from Tara MacLean’s upcoming new album, Sparrow, released on March 31st.
Reimagining 10 tracks from her catalogue, the album is the companion soundtrack to Song of the Sparrow, MacLean’s debut memoir with HarperCollins which is out now, exploring the transformative power of music in her life.
Coming off the high of his recent hypnotic single “Monkeys,” gaming music legend TheFatRat, popularly known for his immense online following of over ten million fans, has released his new single “Out Of The Rain.” The irresistibly hopeful new single features vocals from breakout alternative electronic singer-songwriter Shiah Maisel and culminates with an exciting brass-filled ending.
The tune begins to reveal the much anticipated beginning to his epic saga and is now available on all DSPs and streaming services, and is free to use on Social Media like YouTube and Twitch, true to TheFatRat’s tradition to make his songs available for creators without the hassle of demonetization.
With his second release of the year, the go-to-artist for Esports brands like ESL and Dreamhack has returned with an inspiring single dedicated to people going through a hard time. “Out Of The Rain” is a song that acknowledges our continued perseverance, even when things get hard. Fans may have noticed that the artwork of TheFatRat’s releases are connected and tell a cohesive story. Now, “Out Of The Rain” and the following songs will provide fans with the much anticipated beginning of this epic saga both through the artworks and the lyrics telling the story of two siblings; a girl with her younger brother, living under dire circumstances in the slums of a futuristic city, hoping for a better life.
“It’s a song about hope…We all have been in circumstances that feel unbearable but at the same time impossible to escape from. The song is about how you keep going and stay alive in such situations.” – TheFatRat
Known for his production and leadership in the gaming community, with his music being used in popular video games like the top-grossing Dota 2, Rocket League, Rolling Sky and Game For Peace, you can instantly hear the subtle influences of his tried and true sounds on the track. Opening with a bubbly beat paired with a lighthearted drum sequence, the diverse sounds lead to a one of a kind listening experience as the song goes on. As the energy of the music escalates, the bass drop approaches and listeners get the feeling that if this was a video game they are preparing for the boss battle. “The hardest part in “Out Of The Rain” were the drums,” said TheFatRat. “The drums in the first demo were ok, but didn’t quite have the bounce I was looking for. I ended up working over two weeks, full time, every single day to get them right.”
With Queens, NY born alt-electronic singer-songwriter Shiah Maisel’s strong vocals accompanying the beat, listeners are exposed to a truly unique audio-sensory moment across the song. Shiah has amassed over 110 million streams on Spotify alone through his very diverse music including popular songs like “Really Love You” feat. AFROJACK, “Not Coming Home Tonight,”, and collaborations with Laidback Luke, Kayzo & more.
“When Christian first showed me the song, I instantly knew these lyrics were ones that I wanted to sing. With such a deep and inspirational message that many can relate to, the world is in a vulnerable place, and the hope the song brings is very needed today…I’ve looked up to [him] for many years, and to be able to record with Chris in the studio was a dream come true. Everything flowed perfectly, and I’m so excited to inspire the world with this special song.” – Shiah Maisel
TheFatRat started 2023 off with a surprise, giving fans his own deep vocals on the long awaited track “Monkeys.” He capped 2022 with his December release of “Back one Day” featuring NEFFEX, the vocal version of his globally trending instrumental “Xenogenesis,” which had accumulated over 250 million TikTok views and participation from celebrities such as Nick Kroll on The Tonight Show, Lil Nas X, and massively popular YouTuber Collins Key. Prior to that, TheFatRat released “Ghost Light,” the seductive and saxophone-heavy trap-leaning collaboration with award-winning K-Pop band EVERGLOW. TheFatRat’s highly-anticipated lore-filled debut ten-track album PARALLAX was released in September 2021. As is still a tradition, each song from the album was premiered on YouTube followed by an interactive Discord chat hosted by TheFatRat with collaborators and thousands of his fans. The album, artwork, and lyrics from PARALLAX tell their own cohesive story filled with imaginative characters and fantasy settings that have been referenced in his past projects, with each single sharing new chapters of the story. This lore is a huge interest for his rabid fans, who speculated wildly on online forums about the meaning of each release and guessing what was coming next.
Modern Mystery 
You must be logged in to post a comment.