808 State Transmission Suite

Published Oct 08, 2019

In the late '80s and early '90s, 808 State helped pioneer British electronica with a trio of LPs, influencing pioneering artists like Aphex...

Operators / Legal Vertigo Club Saw, Ottawa ON, October 4

Published Oct 05, 2019

As bandleader of Operators and co-songwriter in Wolf Parade, Dan Boeckner has toured non-stop over the last half-decade, playing at least on...

Gaby Moreno & Van Dyke Parks ¡Spangled!

Published Oct 01, 2019

Even if you neglected to listen to a single lyric, ¡Spangled! still comes off as a powerful political statement. Performed by 37-year old Gu...

The New Pornographers In the Morse Code of Brake Lights

Published Sep 24, 2019

In the past half-decade, the New Pornographers have enjoyed a return to form. Surprisingly, bandleader Carl Newman has achieved this by movi...

Fly Pan Am C'est ça

Published Sep 18, 2019

On their first album in 15 years, Fly Pan Am return wiser and more established by coming off wilder and less structured. Once known as an of...

Robert Plant & the Sensational Space Shifters CityFolk Festival, Ottawa ON, September 15

Published Sep 16, 2019

Before Robert Plant took the stage to close off Ottawa's four-day CityFolk Festival, the former Led Zeppelin frontman asked security to make...

Fly Pan Am Are Inspired and Full of Ideas on New Album 'C'est ça'

Published Sep 16, 2019

After a 13-year hiatus, Fly Pan Am have reformed — or, as they would put it, drifted back together. Speaking with Exclaim! ahead of the rele...

SQÜRL The Dead Don't Die

Published Sep 10, 2019

Just as his deadpan zombie comedy, The Dead Don't Die, left critics baffled, Jim Jarmusch's soundtrack for the 2019 film contains a number o...

Joan Shelley Had to Let Go for New Album 'Like the River Loves the Sea' to Flow Out

Published Aug 29, 2019

Joan Shelley might seem like an easy artist to understand; she's a folkie from Louisville whom, for close to a decade, has crafted thoughtfu...

The Futureheads Powers

Published Aug 27, 2019

Of all the dance-punk acts of the mid-'00s, it seemed as if the Futureheads ended up being the ones who just couldn't move forward; eight ye...

Joan Shelley Like the River Loves the Sea

Published Aug 27, 2019

The secret to Joan Shelley's appeal is how she makes collaboration sound so intimate and singular. On her seventh solo LP, Like the River Lo...

Paranoid London PL

Published Aug 27, 2019

On their self-titled debut, Paranoid London expertly followed the blueprint laid out by Chicago house — craft personality-rich beats and fin...

Shawn Mendes / Alessia Cara Canadian Tire Centre, Kanata ON, August 18

Published Aug 19, 2019

In the pop music world, word is that Shawn Mendes has been known to put on one of the most electrifying live performances around, eschewing...

Florist Emily Alone

Published Jul 24, 2019

Over their first two LPs, Brooklyn quartet Florist have often been described as crafting beautifully intimate music; Emily Alone doubles dow...

Snoop Dogg Ottawa Bluesfest, Ottawa ON, July 13

Published Jul 14, 2019

With 16 studio albums and 26 years under his belt, it's surprising to see that Snoop Dogg has only five top ten "lead artist" hits to his na...

Guided By Voices Ottawa Bluesfest, Ottawa ON, July 12

Published Jul 13, 2019

Returning to Ottawa for the second time in three years, Guided By Voices seemed to have gained a fervent following in the nation's capital t...

​The Psychedelic Furs RBC Bluesfest, Ottawa ON, July 7

Published Jul 08, 2019

Having not released an album of new material since 1991's World Outside, the Psychedelic Furs' latest live tour is tailor-made for the festi...

PUP RBC Bluesfest, Ottawa ON, July 6

Published Jul 07, 2019

"This is not the ideal situation, to see PUP in a giant field, but you guys are doing great!"   Standing before the thousand or so fans wh...

U.S. Girls Ottawa Bluesfest, Ottawa ON, July 4

Published Jul 05, 2019

As the masses flocked to the main stage to watch alt-radio favourites Chvrches and Alt-J kick off the first night of the ten-day Ottawa Blue...

Special Request Bedroom Tapes

Published Jun 27, 2019

In perhaps the most mundane reason for a "lost album" ever, Bedroom Tapes, the second of four LPs that Special Request (aka Paul Woolford) w...