Shaped by two decades of work as a climbing arborist, London, ON’s Fraser Teeple approaches music like a tradesman: he respects the strong tradition he stands within, and works carefully and with dedication to master the skill of telling a story, creating an image, or crafting a melody.

His upcoming album, We Built a Fire, sees Fraser collaborate with producer Matthew Johnston at Slow Magic to create a record that is at once ethereal and rooted, dirty and clean. Something that feels built in the tradition of songwriters like Bonnie Raitt and Bruce Springsteen, but sounds completely like itself: northern, soulful, gritty, rural, well-traveled, honest, desperate, hurt, generous, hopeful, warm.

Listen to “Went Off” HERE.I wrote this song after watching people in my neighbourhood – the decaying east end of a middle class city – end up carrying the judgment of the people around them, through some brutal match of choice and bad luck. – Fraser Teeple

Following the release of collaborative LP, Always By Your Side, in March 2024, the survivor-led Bracebridge, Ontario-based project, Chorus of Courage, is sharing new music featuring Cait Alexander.

Alexander penned “Two People” following a horrific experience where her ex-boyfriend nearly murdered her. 

This song was written immediately after the shattering of my life. Following a violent act of abuse, writing music was the only thing that made sense to me. [“Two People”] captures the entire spectrum of emotion that is often part of the abuse cycle. There’s an intimacy at the start and ending of the track, and the journey within is unpredictable and layered with intention and intensity. – Cait Alexander

The stripped back piano and voice of this song relays lyrics that capture an intimacy, juxtaposed with raucous and distorted guitar which represent the extremity and chaos of an abusive pattern. 

Ontario’s Unknown Voidz was founded by Zan Khan who recruited Ryan “Gooby” Goonoo on the drums and Jon Couzelis on bass. Together, the band was previously signed to Spuds Records and has gone on to play across Ontario and in Montreal, QC. The band will open for Being Dead on an upcoming Ontario tour to promote their second EP, Deception By My Side.

Deception By My Side is Unknown Voidz’s first studio recorded EP. Produced by Toronto scene pillars Keegan Porter and Ty Begley at Metrolab Studios, it features noticeably more mature and honest songwriting compared to the trio’s debut. The EP was partially written during COVID lockdowns and speaks on mental health/life problems.

Lead single, “Lack of Everything,” is titled in regards to the person who inspired its creation. Zan wrote it in an angry state of mind while realizing that he was being taken advantage of and used by someone who did not reciprocate empathy or support. 

Sarah Swire is a multi-disciplinary artist with work spanning across stage, screen and television. As an actor, Swire is known for The Boys, Anna and the Apocalypse, Murdoch Mysteries, the upcoming Apple TV+ thriller The Last Frontier and Hallmark’s new drama Ripple (the latter two both set for release in 2025). Swire is an art-rock songwriter and storyteller who often incorporates original monologues and word art into their live performance.

Their 2023 debut album, Sister Swire, was produced by Joel Plaskett in Dartmouth, NS. Swire has also toured and performed theatre internationally and has arranged and composed original music for the BBC, Avalon Arts and The National Theatre of Scotland. After graduating from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, they toured with the band Belle and Sebastian and choreographed shows at Radio City Music Hall, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Scotland’s Olympic Hydro Stadium and Glastonbury Music Festival.

“Tight!” and “The Fish Song” are Swire‘s newest singles following Sister Swire. Full of beefheart-ian lyricism and Burroughs-esque word art, these songs mark a shift in their songwriting and build off the fiction driven narratives heard on Sister Swire‘s “I Shot The President” or “She’s Screaming.” Reminiscent of early Nick Cave records, they are inspired by strange fiction from authors like Joy Williams, Tom Robbins, Lewis Carroll and Ishmeal Reed.

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

Tight is a stream-of-consciousness poem I wrote in my parent’s kitchen ages ago. It’s the final installment of a larger piece of writing, a 3 part EP called “That Time I Took Too Much Acid And Saw Josh Tillman” which is a musical retelling of literally just that. I felt ‘Tight!’ had legs as a solo piece and wanted to pitch it to the ether while keeping the full three-song cycle for live performances only. I make music to make movies or to explore visual ideas. I feel they are two sides of the coin/expressive process. For ‘Tight!’ I was keen on DIY animation. It’s B-Side, ‘The Fish Song’, I desperately wanted to build a giant kaleidoscope. Link to The Fish Song Here: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRpqZfz0szo)

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

I love Eric Stephen Martin’s illustrations and wanted to incorporate them somehow. Eric plays electric guitar and synth with me, and having him animate over the video felt like a complimentary collaboration to go along with the tunage. I’m hell-bent on keeping our live performances as a duo, not only for practical purposes but because I think it’s an interesting limitation: how can 2 people make as much noise as possible with as little equipment as possible?

3.What was the process of making this video?

Suuuuper simple: we booked a couple of hours in a local venue and called up our pals Nicole Cecile Holland and Autumn Cox to help film. I then did five takes of improvised movement. I knew the bulk of the work would be in editing. I didn’t want it to feel too polished, and the inconsistencies in the footage created interesting offerings to edit with. Eric nailed it with the animation. Nicole and Autumn nailed it with the lighting. A SPLENDID ORDEAL INDEED.

Both “Tight!” and “The Fish Song” are in the vein of a style Swire has been exploring, performing original monologues to a live underscore by Eric Stephen Martin and recorded at Fang Recording Studios. Martin plays guitar on “Tight!” along with Joel Plaskett stepping in for an afternoon, playing the mellotron and helping shape the growing madness in both the tracks.

I wanted to make as much noise as possible with an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar and a kick drum. I don’t know what the genre of “Tight!” is, or “The Fish Song.” They exist somewhere in the uncanny valley. Anti-Genre? Singer-Songwriter, Art Rock? Spaghetti-Doom-Folk? – Sarah Swire

With a story stretching back to the 70’s San Francisco punk scene, Jean Caffeine made the scene, made a zine, and played drums in an all-female band called the Urge, sharing stages with The Zeros, The Avengers, The Dils, X. In the 80’s, Jean moved to NYC and hit the underground scene dj-ing in clubs and drumming in Pulsallama, a 7-13 piece all-female percussion ensemble who opened shows for The Clash. In 2016, the group was sampled by rapper Danny Brown on his song, “Dance in the Water.” Sundaze Records released a Pulallama record in 2020. 

A move to Austin put her centre stage in Jean Caffeine’s All-Nite Truckstop where she leaned heavily into cowpunk and Americana. She shifted from drummer to songwriter/front person and played roadhouses and coffee houses, sharing stages with Lucinda Williams, Townes Van Zandt, Brian Jonestown Massacre and Mojo Nixon.

(Sub)-genre fluid, Jean Caffeine blends indie, retro-pop, punk, folk, rock and roots, served up with big smiles and the occasional growl. “Mammogram,” is a shift from much of Jean’s music. “It’s moodier and spookier because mammograms are a nightmare,” she explains. That’s why Jean is releasing this single in time for Halloween. But “Mammogram” is also funny: part humorous novelty song, part PSA for breast health.

Listen to “Mammogram” HERE. Watch the official music video HERE.

Jean calls her band, featured on the track, Male Order Brides. It’s Jon Nottarthomas (Ian McGlagan) on guitar, Zack Humphrey (Megafauna) on drums, Josh Robins (Invincible Czars) on bass with Jean on electrified acoustic guitar and vocals. Much of the video is borrowed from a silent film called Häxan by Benjamin Christensen, a hybrid documentary and live action picture about witchcraft in the Middle Ages. The film of the woman on the trapeze is by the inventor, Thomas Edison. 

Jean is also a visual artist and educator.  This winter, Jean participated in an art residency and pop-up exhibition, Excesso de Grasas, at El Sur in Mexico City.If  you look carefully, you can see Jean as “Roadkill” in Slacker. As a visual artist, she contributed animation to the film Waking Life, both films by Rick Linklater.
But seriously, mammograms save lives and women need them. With toxins in our air, food and water, breast cancer is no longer only a middle-aged woman’s issue. More young women are being diagnosed with breast cancer. So if you have breasts – get one! – Jean Caffeine