Songs of the Week: January 12 - 18, 2026

“Evie” by Holy Fuck

Holy fuck, Holy Fuck is back! After a few years hiatus, the electronic band is back together with not only a brand new song, but a new album and tour announced!

The new single “Evie” shows they haven’t missed a beat with it’s infectious groove, and you can check out the video below which shows the group playing the song live in studio.

You can pick up Event Beat when it drops on March 27, while their tour kicks off in April, and includes a show here in Vancouver on May 8th at The Pearl!

• Kirk

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“Overtime” by Jody Glenham

Jody Glenham has been a stalwart of the Vancouver music scene for years, and on April 24th, she’s reminding everyone she’s Still Here with a brand new EP.

The announcement came with her latest single, “Overtime”, a slow-burn which builds to a big finish as Jody achingly asks, “Are you in love?”

Check out the video directed by Wayne Moreheart below, and you can catch Jody with Rempel and Dawson Gool at The Heatley on February 14th!

• Kirk

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“Keep Out Of The Storm” by The Sheepdogs

We’re just over a month and a bit away from the latest offering from The Sheepdogs!
Their new album Keep Out Of The Storm drops on February 27th, and last week they released the title track.

The song has slow verses the flow into rockin’, guitar-driven choruses - which reminded me of something, and I eventually landed on “Heart and Soul” by Huey Lewis and The News, hah!
Of the single, lead singer Ewin Curie says: “We’re all trying to weather the storms in our lives…finding shelter, love, hope. This song is about that search, and the belief that rock ’n’ roll can still be a sanctuary.”

The band has released headlining dates across Canada, but no Vancouver stop has been set yet, so we’ll be keeping an eye out.

• Christine

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“Cut My Bangs” by Miesha and The Spanks

Miesha and The Spanks are back with their first single since their 2023 album Unconditional Love In Hi-Fi (and winning the 2024 WCMA for Breakout Artist of the Year!)

“Cut My Bangs” is a as high energy and rockin’ as you’d expect from the duo, with singer Miesha Louie saying the song is loosely based on meeting her husband, but also symbolizes a fresh start. She elaborates, “When you cut your bangs, you know you’re over everything, ready to move on. I wrote it to commemorate a time in my life where I cut out what I didn't want anymore, and let myself stumble into something better than I ever could have expected to find. Make the hard decision to let go, and give space for something good to come in.”

2026 marks the ten year anniversary of when Miesha Louie and drummer Sean Hamilton started working together, so hopefully we’ll be hearing more in the year to come!

• Kirk

Songs of the Week: January 05 - 11, 2025

“Rain” by Shad

Super exciting week in Shad-land! There’s a new music video for the song “Rain” off his latest album Start Anew and he’s about to embark on a tour supporting the record and celebrating 20 years of music.

First up, the video for “Rain” (which features my favourite line from the album “Don’t need to reign like a royal, we just need rain on the soil”) was filmed by Sam Tudor while they were both up in the Yukon for the Dawson City Music Festival.

Of the song Shad says: ““Rain” feels pretty light on its feet but it’s actually a deep one for me because the inspiration goes back to a couple years before I even made my first album: I saw a vision of a man with an ocean within himself that needed to rain down and nourish the land, or else it threatened to drown him from the inside out. I interpreted the vision as a simple metaphor for the importance of releasing our creative self-expression. And also a reminder that the purpose is always service!”

This Saturday, Shad kicks off his tour here in Vancouver at the Hollywood Theatre and I can’t wait to hear all the new music live!

• Christine

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“Horizontal Rain” by Total Fucking Darkness

Total Fucking Darkness has been giving us a steady drip of new music over the last year, and they’re kicking off the new year with some “Horizontal Rain”.

The new track is as gritty as it is hypnotic, with the band saying it’s “a throwback to the grimy bare-bulbed basement illegal raves that your mum and dad told you about when you were little. This is party music for troubled times, little ones. Have you looked around recently? Let yourself go.”

TFD is the “long incubated and (arguably) the mildly problematic musical brainchild” of Torquil Campbell (from Stars), Stephen Ramsay (of Young Galaxy) and Tom McFall ( who’s worked with U2, REM, and Bloc Party), and here’s hoping they continue dropping tracks all year long.

• Kirk

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“At All” by Status/Non-Status

Anishinaabe musician and artist Adam Sturgeon has been involved in so many projects over the years, from the collective WHOOP-Szo (which became Status/Non-Status) to joining forces with Daniel Monkman of Zoon to create the Polaris shortlisted record by OMBIIGIZI.

Now Status/Non-Status is back with a new album titled Big Changes, which features new players and tons of guests, including on the first single “At All” which has contributions from Zoon, as well as Kevin Drew.

Sturgeon says the track is a: “self explanatory examination. I was starting to feel really disillusioned at the time of writing this song. Confused about the state of music and the complex world we are living in; the grind to make each day work. I decided to disappear, bunker down at home, stay in, write songs about it and invite my friends over to visit and play along. I wrote over 40 songs and this was one of the first to come out of me."
From this description and the one of the album itself, it seems extremely fitting for the times we’re living in, and I can’t wait to hear more of what this album has in store.

• Christine

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“Cuckoo” by Larkk

A month ahead of her debut album, we got the latest single from Larkk, the solo project of Dear Rouge’s Danielle McTaggart.

“Cuckoo” is a sweeping song that starts dark and moody before swelling to a grand, orchestral swell, and definitely my favourite of the singles released so far.

I’m looking forward to hearing more when Cinders drops on February 13!

• Kirk

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“Weather Girl” by Fleur Electra

The Toronto (via Saskatchewan) dream pop singer Fleur Electra has announced a brand new EP, along side the new single, “Weather Girl”.

The track is a sweet and uplifting song about friendship, with Anna Klein saying it “is one, if not the, truest of love songs I’ve ever written. It’s about my platonic love for my best friend, and the story of us. It’s a charming, pure-hearted tune heavily inspired by yacht rock and my inner child. This song has an essence of youth, and nostalgic demeanor. It’s imaginative in its visual imagery, and so accurately represents the way I feel about the one-of-a-kind relationship that we share. Additionally, it was important to me to create an atmosphere where people might feel free to let their own inner child wander into a moment of blissful sentiment.”

Have a listen below, and check out the new EP, Strike the Match, when it’s out on February 27.

• Kirk

Songs of the Week: Holiday Edition 2025

“A Christmas Song” by Dan Mangan

Dan Mangan is adding to his holiday repertoire with “A Christmas Song”, a slightly meta track that is full of heart and honesty, with Mangan explaining it “actually feels like how Christmas feels.”

He elaborates: “Christmas music thrives on nostalgia. As much as I do love a lot of Christmas music, I’ve always felt a bit disconnected from it - like there’s this overzealous desire to telegraph a seasonal elation that isn’t quite realistic. It can feel disingenuous or superficial. Somewhere between childhood and adulthood, we get caught between our desire to feel that mythological glow and the imperfect nature of real life in the present. Sometimes Christmas feels bittersweet, and that’s just part of it. I’ve often been asked if I’d consider writing ‘a Christmas song’, so I decided to write an honest one.”

• Kirk

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“A Very Merry Christmas” by Jill Barber

Jill Barber is no stranger to Christmas music, and this year she’s finally releasing a full album with A Holly Jolly Jill Barber Christmas.

The album ranges from old classics like “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” (a duet with her big brother Matthew Barber) and a sultry “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” to some originals, including “A Very Merry Christmas”, which you can listen to below!

So if you want to jazz up your holidays, you can A Holly Jolly Jill Barber Christmas now!

• Kirk

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“California Christmas” by Bryan Adams & Friends

This song is giving MAJOR Beach Boys Christmas Album vibes.

This month Bryan Adams released a Christmas album titled Bryan Adams & Friends: A Great Big Holiday Jam as well as a TV special by the same name.
Musical guests on both include Alessia Cara, Alan Doyle, Barenaked Ladies, Lights, and The Sheepdogs.
The album is comprised of both covers of classic holiday songs, as well as originals like the one below. “California Christmas” dreams of warm weather and an escape from the West Coast Christmas.
Honestly I’d be avoiding the states in favour of maybe Mexico, but I get the sentiment after all this rain.

• Christine

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“Every Ribbon” by Tim Baker

Tim Baker released a new deluxe version of his 2024 album Full Rainbow Of Light with three new additions, including “Every Ribbon” which you can hear below.

The album was everything I’d expect from East Coaster Tim Baker - I had to google what “Tibb’s Eve” was - and was delighted to find out it’s a celebration in NFLD on December 23 kicking off the holidays.

The track “Every Ribbon” is fun but according to Tim…“Actually, it’s quite sad, but wrapped in bright paper so to speak. It’s an idea I’ve loved for a long time, but couldn’t quite get there in time for Full Rainbow of Light. It’s actually unrecognizable from what it was last year, except in concept. It’s a song about someone dreading Christmas, not because they’re some cartoonish Scrooge, but because the good memories of Christmases now gone are too painful to relive.”  

• Christine

Songs of the Week: December 08 - 14, 2025

“The Dogs of God” by Jay Malinowski

Jay Malinowski (one half of Canadian band Bedouin Soundclash) has been working towards releasing his first solo album in over ten years. Under A Landslide Of Stars is set to drop on March 13, 2026 and features the track “The Dogs of God”.

The song came to be after Malinowski appeared on Podsongs, a podcast “where artists interview inspiring people and then write a song inspired by the exchange, provided the catalyst for this evocative piece. In speaking with (Irish philosopher Richard) Kearney about his philosophy of anatheism, or the return to God after God, Malinowski found himself drawn into reflections on doubt, imagination, humor, and the sacredness woven into everyday life.”

Of it Jay says: “Speaking with Richard sent me on an unexpected path. We talked about laughter as a sign of the holy, and his mention of the ‘Dogs of God’ brought back the story of St. Roch, patron saint of dogs. It made me realize how the dogs in my life opened me to mystery and compassion. The song became a tribute to them and to the grace found in loyalty, loss, and love.”

It’s a beautiful Celtic-style song that you can check out below.

• Christine

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“Queen of Nothing” by Softcult

In a little over a month, the sibling duo Softcult will be releasing their debut full length album, and they just released a new single with “Queen Of Nothing”

The dreamy track delves in to deep issues like society’s expectations on women, which vocalist Mercedes Arn-Horn can explain better than me: “This song is about the double standards, harsh judgements, and unrealistic expectations that patriarchal society places on women. We’re expected to be sexy, but only as it applies to the male fantasy; somehow a virgin and a slut. We’re expected to constantly nurture the men in our lives, and shamed if our aspirations exceed becoming wives and mothers. The world demands maturity from us, but discards us when we’re old and “unfuckable”, our value reduced to our ability to attract men. And when we attract men, we’re labeled “whores”. We’re expected to be “cool” and “like one of the guys”, but not too abrasive, loud, or “unladylike.” Our intelligence and our success is tolerated so long as it isn’t too threatening or intimidating to our male counterparts. From unconscious biases to blatant sexism, misogyny and gender violence, women face an impossible amount of discrimination in the world today. And no matter the amount of vitriol or ignorance we endure, we’re still expected to smile. This song is about the realization that these cycles of abuse are bigger than our personal experiences. It’s recognizing the systemic nature of mistreatment and discrimination.”

Have a listen below, and mark January 30th for the release of their album, When a Flower Doesn’t Grow. You can also catch them on tour net year, with some shows of their own as well as supporting Lights! No Vancouver date yet, though…

• Kirk

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“Truest Sound” by Clothesline From Hell

Last week, Clothesline From Hell released the fourth and final single from the upcoming debut LP, Slather On The Honey.

“Truest Sound” is the album’s closer, capping it off with an understated intensity. Adam LaFramboise elaborates the song is “a quiet closer, indebted to a lineage of final songs that are stripped back acoustic moments. A poignant note for the album to finish with, the title itself refers to the silence that comes after conflicts have been aired.”

The album is out on January 16th next year, and you can check out the new single below!

• Kirk

Songs of the Week: December 01 - 07, 2025

“Blossom Tree” by Milk & Bone

Canadian duo Milk & Bone have released their new, Chromeo-produced album A Little Lucky!

I’ve been following the singles as they’ve been released, waiting for the whole album with bated breath, and I’m excited it’s finally here. After connecting with Chromeo following a JUNO win in 2019, and then dealing with the pandemic of it all, it’s finally here for us to listen to.

While I dive into the new album, check out the latest single and music video “Blossom Tree” - of which the duo says: “The video feels nostalgic to us. Escaping the city, leaving everything behind for a second, just to end up in the middle of nowhere. Taking a beat from everyday life, from hardships, from pain. And existing in our own little world for a moment. To recenter ourselves and one another, and to start anew. Stronger. Together.”

• Christine

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“Andy Warhol” by Plain Mister Smith

You may know Plain Mister Smith as the former guitarist of Moev, or maybe even as a cellist with the Vancouver Philharmonic Orchestra, but he recently dropped the single “Andy Warhol” which features backing vocals from both Leeroy Stagger and Krystle Dos Santos!

Plain Mister Smith shared: “I met Andy Warhol many years ago at the New Music Seminar in New York. He was pretty chill and serene or seemed that way. He was quoted to have said “So What this, So What that”? which is about the most Zen thing you could ever say. ‘Andy Warhol’ the song, is about trying to be super Soto Zen, trying to be cool and so nothing phases you but really, you’re just a chaotic mess of a human, no matter what you do…….”

You can hear the song below, or grab the album now (which also features Jordan Klassen and Jocelyn Price on other songs!)

• Kirk

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“Lover’s Spit” (Broken Social Scene cover) by Kylie V

I love a good cover, and all of my favourites involve the artist putting their own spin on the song while keeping the spirit. And that’s what Kylie V did this week with the Broken Social Scene classic “Lover’s Spit”.

The cover was released along with an acoustic version of their song “Year of the Rabbit” and you can have a listen below!

• Kirk

Songs of the Week: November 24 - 30, 2025

“All Night, All Night, All Night” by David Vertesi

It’s been fifteen years since David Vertesi released his acclaimed debut album Cardiography, and this past week he celebrated the anniversary by releasing a brand new acoustic version of it!

The whole album was already incredible heartfelt, but the stripped down versions of each song really amplify the emotions, as heard in “All Night, All Night, All Night” which features Hannah Georgas on vocals.

Vertesi explains, “I often think about Cardiography as a heartbreak record, but upon re-recording it I realized there’s more to it than that. It sprung from a time when I was learning how to love. The lessons can be painful, but also beautiful. ‘All Night, All Night, All Night’ paints a picture of young love. I wrote this song about sneaking out at night to go sleep over at my then girlfriend’s house and imagining my Dad waking up to discover I wasn’t home. In an album that focuses a lot on heart break, this song means even more, as it is a reminder of what we are fighting for as well as what is lost when things don’t I work out. My dear friend Hannah Georgas lent her vocals to the original album and I’m so grateful to have her back again on these acoustic versions so many years later.”

Have a listen below, and pick up the album anywhere you get music. He’s also playing a release show in Vancouver at The Gallery @ Artech on December 7th, and I am absolutely devastated that I can’t make it, so I hope you can!

• Kirk

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“Apple” by Rae Spoon

I got super excited when the press release saying “Rae Spoon returns to country music” and then I saw the words “cover” and “Charlie XCX” and I couldn’t click the link fast enough.

There’s something about an unexpected pick for a cover song, especially with a vastly different genre of music…it’s like hearing it for the first time again.
Here’s what Rae had to say about it:
“I wanted to do a country cover of a pop song as part of the process of returning to making country music. I spent Brat Summer reconnecting with Berlin and it was really healing after I hadn't been able to travel for many years. I love Charli XCX and I thought that ‘Apple’ was such a strong song that it would be great in any genre. I love making both country and electronic music, so it felt like a great fit.”

I’ll be on the lookout for the rest of their new music!

• Christine

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“i was ill, you were wrong” by TRAITRS

Toronto coldwave duo TRAITRS are back after a four year hiatus! Earlier this year they released the single “Burn In Heaven”, and now they have a brand new one with “i was ill, you were wrong”

It's a moody, synthy track with vocalist & guitarist Shawn Tucker explaining, “I felt that song connected me to everything and everyone, it is the one thing we all share and have in common. It is also a wake up call to live the life you want to live. We only have one chance at this so go dance in the rain.”

Have a listen to the song below, and check out the new album Possessor when it's out on March 13th, 2026

• Kirk

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“Two Step To Forget” by Johnny 99

We fiiiiiiinally have the new album from John Sponarski’s project Johnny 99!

Mr. Lonely is a collection of old singles and five new songs from John and his backing bandmates from City and Colour, as well as contributions on backing vocals from Georgia Harmer, and fiddle from Kendal Carson.

The tracks are billed as “country music that was made to dance to, whilst shedding a few tears as well” and the latest single “Two Step To Forget” is definitely on the dance end with choreography and everything in the music video.

Johnny’s playing a release show in Toronto this week, but hopefully there will be a Vancouver dates in the future.

• Christine

Songs of the Week: November 17 - 23, 2025

“You Get Me By” by MOONRIIVR

New MOONRIIVR alert!

I can’t believe it’s already been almost two years since their debut album, Volume 1, and I’m so excited to get new material.
“You Get Me By”, according to lead singer Gavin Gardner is “an attempt to hold up a mirror and offer the same empathy to myself that I would offer a friend navigating the challenges of self and identity. My mind creates boundaries for who I think others expect me to be, when hopefully they just want me to be free.”

There’s no other word on any upcoming album, but the band is about to do some touring in Europe with the Rural Alberta Advantage (THAT would be a fun show), so hopefully upon their return we’ll get some more info!

• Christine

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“Devastation’s Bliss” by Larkk

Last week, Larkk not only released their latest single, but also announced a debut album!

“Devastation’s Bliss” is a haunting piano-driven number from the solo project of Dear Rouge’s Danielle McTaggart, and is the latest in a string of singles that we now know will culminate in the release of Cinders on February 13, 2026.

Have a listen below!

• Kirk

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“Margaret” by Elliot C Way

Following up his previous single from this year “Fool’s Gold” Vancouver’s Elliot C Way has released a new track titled “Margaret”, a song about his grandparents, Margaret and Nelson Beattie:
“It tells the true story of their decades-long love, and their shared life in rural Ontario that was filled with hard-won moments of resilience and devotion. At its heart, the song is a tribute to his grandmother and her quiet battle with MS, a disease that slowly changed the shape of their lives but never broke their bond. It’s also a testament to his Grampap, as told from his perspective, and his unwavering love as he stood by her side through the difficult years.

Whenever Elliot visited them on their Uxbridge, Ontario hay farm, he got to witness the kind of rural, hardworking life that made a profound impact on him at a young age—hot, muggy summers with fireflies and iced tea, and unforgettable Christmas gatherings that included hockey games on frozen ponds and snowmobile rides in the deep cold. As Elliot describes, “My grandpa was the patriarch of the family and a man larger than life. He was a humble farmer, a handyman, and the kind of father and husband any man would hope to be. I saw first-hand the power of his love for my grandmother in the care he gave her until the very end.””

It’s a beautiful and sweet ballad that you can hear live in Vancouver on the 26th of November at the WISE Hall, or the 19th of December at Green Auto!

• Christine

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“Amour Amour” by Common Holly

Montreal’s Common Holly (aka Brigitte Naggar) just released a cover of the 1970’s Anne Germain song “Amour Amour”

A beautiful and vulnerable version of the song, Brigitte explains: “This song has been in my head since I first encountered it during a film screening in a high school French class. We had the opportunity to watch Peau D'ane, a 1970's fantasy musical belonging to the infamous 'Demy-world' of director Jacques Demy. Between the chromatically whacky music, outrageous themes and whimsical visuals, I haven't been able to get it out of my mind, so a little while ago I adapted the song to guitar. This is my first time singing in French too, which is technically a language I speak, but has never found its way into musical releases until now, so this is also a nod to my home in Quebec and to my French heritage.”

Along with the new cover, she’s also teasing more music for next year, so be sure to keep an ear out!

• Kirk

Songs of the Week: November 10 - 16, 2025

“Right Hand Man” by Katie Tupper

Last week, Katie Tupper announced her debut album Greyhound with the release of her new single “Right Hand Man”

The track showcases her smoky vocals and soulful sound with a funky, upbeat vibe, as Tupper explains “This song is about the weight and pressures someone puts on you in a relationship— when you become someone's only source of happiness and they are vocal about it. It becomes a compromising place to be in and clouds your decision making about the relationship. I am a very independent person and all of my relationships have been independent. This song was about the first time I felt someone acting co-dependent towards me and how difficult I found it.”

Greyhound is out early next year, on January 21, 2026 and you can check out the video for “Right Hand Man” below!

• Kirk

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“Outsider” by Duke & Goldie

Vancouver duo Duke & Goldie have released their new EP Romance And Ramblin’ and announced a cross-country tour, including a show in Vancouver this Thursday November 20th at the Biltmore with Mallory Chipman, and Janky Bungag.

The pair recorded the new album in Vancouver with a bunch of regulars from the Vancouver country scene including Erik P.H. Nielsen who produced the album as well.

The latest single “Outsider” is about the struggle to belong while still being yourself - "I hope that 'Outsider' reminds listeners that being different is really what country music’s all about," says the band.

• Christine

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“Daniel’s Theme” by Luca Fogale

Okay, right off the top I have a confession… I’ve finally started watching The Secret Lives Of Mormon Wives (and by watching, I mean it’s on my laptop while I am editing photos).
Why am I bringing this up here? Well, pretty early on in season one, my head snapped SO HARD toward the laptop because I heard a voice and one of my favourite songs - Luca Fogale’s “I Don’t Wanna Lose You”. Anyways, just wanted to say that was cool.

Luca’s just released a new single (“Daniel’s Theme”) from his upcoming album Challenger, which is due out in January.

“Daniel’s Theme” is a pongnant and quick track (clocking in at just over a minute and a half), and as Luca tells it: “Daniel is an archetype of a man that I have met many times throughout my life; one who has faced hurt and hardship and adversity, but who has carried on with deep strength and kindness. [He] endures through every challenge with quiet resolve and is everyone’s champion. It’s a reminder to myself that I don’t have to let the scars of life dictate how I show up in the world.”

I’m so excited for the new album, and even more excited for his show in Vancouver, right after the release, on January 31st at the Hollywood Theatre.

• Christine

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“What I Don’t Need” by Neil Haverty

Neil Haverty (frontman of Bruce Peninsula) has spent the year releasing a slow drip of new music, and the latest comes with the frenetic new single “What I Don’t Need”

Haverty explains, “The title/refrain are intentionally cagey and avoidant. I’m resistant to being told what to do even if it’s born of love and care for me. When you struggle with decision paralysis, you don’t want to re-litigate the decisions you already managed to make. That said, there’s a lot about oneself that is hard to see personally, but that friends and loved ones can easily spot. This song is about trying to listen to those voices, trying to see yourself as you’re seen and the responsibility to act that sometimes comes with that.”

Have a listen below with the beautiful video from director/animator Luca Tarantini (aka AOK)

• Kirk