GWNtertainment #12 by Jaimie Vernon

The real world news is mostly depressing and self-defeating so we won’t dwell on it right now. Instead, let’s get to all the great new Canadian music that’s filling up our ear holes this week.

* Anti-apathy song “I Go Blind” by 54.50 has been inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. Though the song stems from the band’s 1986 self-titled release on Warner Music, the world came to know the song from the Hootie & The Blowfish cover version featured on the Friends TV show soundtrack in 1994.

* Veteran Canadian musician Ronney Abramson announced this week that her two 1970s albums Stowaway and Jukebox Of Paris were re-issued on March 31st by  P-Vine Records in Japan.

* Former MPP, and guitarist for Toronto punk act L’Etranger, Andrew Cash posted on Facebook this week, “Super excited and proud to announce today that I’ll be continuing the work of raising the issues and the voices of independent arts and culture workers and indie music entrepreneurs as Canadian Independent Music Association(CIMA)’s new President and CEO.”

* Serge Fiori and Simon Leclerc, along with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, have released a 140 minute symphonic musical interpretation of songs from their old group Harmonium. The production is available on CD, vinyl, and digital formats. https://www.harmoniumsymphonique.com/

* Neil Young’s Young Shakespeare, a rare and historic acoustic performance recorded in 1971, is now available on CD, DVD, LP and streaming platforms. Also included is concert footage of the earliest live performance of Young known to exist. Speaking of Neil Young, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young’s second album, Déjà Vu, has been newly re-mastered for a deluxe 4CD/1 LP set, and features three discs of outtakes, demos, and alternate takes from the original recording sessions – most are previously unreleased. Available May 14.

* Toronto poet/musician Robert Priest has finally released his 80s album entitled Joy Junkie 88. The album, which was shelved unexpectedly, featured Alannah Myles on backing vocals. Her and Priest’s guitarist Kurt Schefter would leave for Alannah’s highly successful solo career less than a year later. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0moYG6csaw

* SNFU, featuring the late punk poet vocalist Chi Pig, will get a deluxe re-issue of their second album ‘If You Swear You’ll Catch No Fish’ with previously unreleased bonus tracks.

* Award-winning, Toronto-based artist, trumpeter, composer, and world-traveler Mike Field has a new video to accompany his latest single “Rocket.” It explores another genre – pop rock – which is a change from the jazz he is known for.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqDJR2y3HI0

* Penticton, British Columbia singer/songwriter Howard Lee Naylor recently released his album Songs From Isolation in October. From it, he has a new single/video for the song “Sweet Janine.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qmxVqY3K1c

* Maurice Weeks has dropped “No Matter What” featuring Swifty McVay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrYCzP6qxCg

* Crown Lands’ follow-up to their magnum Rushness single last month “Context: Fearless Pt.1” is the title track to their new album Right Way Back. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3b8n56ABz4

* Tamara Williamson has teamed up with vocalist Kevin Ker for an original song entitled “Rain Rain Rain.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekAIjd7OObM

* French-Canadian Blackened Death Metal gurus Empire de Mu have released their newest single/video “Ruins of Lemuria” from the album Spiritual Demise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9zraT6NAlc

* Paul Saunders has released his new 12-song album entitled It’s About Time. It’s available on Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/album/57kxB3oamOWFxD49Yzm45A

* At 200,000+ streams across digital platforms, chart-topping Canadian rockers from Northumberland, BigMotorGasoline, have released theor sophomore album entitled The Way Things Used To Be, and new video for single “Whiskey Down.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmscGENeRuk

* Check out “Island Home In the Salish Sea” by Vancouver Island’s CW & The Motormen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1kvGOv60ok

* Producer/multi-instrumentalist Daniel Lanois has a new album Heavy Sun and accompanying single/video entitled “Under The Heavy Sun.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrXDf-3ZpWg

* Ottawa Valley hard rockers WolfGrove are coming at us with their newest single/video “Nomad.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zs0ir2l8mkg

* Canadian R & B Neo-soul and Afro-beat artist Zenesoul (aka Angie Akhinagba) has a new single called “That Love.” When I first heard the beat from my producer, Larumadeit, I instantly thought of that nostalgic type of love people had in the past. Think: 90s Black love culture found in movies, family TV shows, and R & B music of the time.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q–wz0yvgcI

* Toronto singer/songwriter Steve Paul Simms’ most recent album Ingrid And The Messenger Boy was released in December of 2020. From it comes the new single “Blues For Back Alley John.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW2K74MP-Dg

* Enchanted by the stars above, Canadian pop-R&B chanteuse Aieysha Haws captivates with this, her sophomore single, “Zodiac Signs.” Says the Toronto-based singer, “I’m inspired by astrology and, while there are people who do and do not believe in it, it was important to me to create a sense of belonging for everyone in this song,” she continues. “I want listeners to be happy and feel good about themselves.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCHAF267K5s

* Toronto’s TOVI has released the title track from his forthcoming EP entitled “Hard Feelings.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evIjrdWdpVY

* Following the success of their latest single “World’s A Bitch” with Rough Trade’s Carole Pope, Church of Trees has finally released their new 10-song full length album featuring the song entitled Pause. https://churchoftrees.bandcamp.com/album/pause

* GWN covered Douglas Von Irvin’s Carnival single “Ultra Man” back in February. The duo returns with a new power pop single entitled “Punk Rock Heart” from their forthcoming EP due in May 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgUN8a5QWFQ

* Mike Plume’s new album Lonesome Stretch of Highway is out and features the single/video “Remember To Forget.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRc5OjbBocs

* Violinist/composer and member of Arcade Fire, Sarah Neufeld is offering up her third solo album, Detritus, as a pre-order to be released later in the month. Place your order here and get two bonus tracks immediately. https://sarahneufeld.bandcamp.com/album/detritus

* The latest EP release by Downchild bassist and Maple Blues Awards musical director Gary Kendall is entitled Dusty & Pearl Revisited – Volume One and finds the journeyman producer/composer digging back into his catalog to remix, and re-master tracks from this 2004 release. The CD remix was handled by L. Stu Young and features Jay Douglas, Suzie Vinnick, Judy Brown, John Mays, Johnny Wright, John Dickie and more. It can be found on all popular digital services. Check out the video for the track “Don’t Be Sad.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlWcJCXGK7E

* Indie-rock super group TUNS has a new album entitle Duly Noted. The group of friends who’ve known each other since the 1990s is comprised of Matt Murphy on guitar (The Super Friendz, Flashing Lights), Mike O’Neill on bass (Inbreds/solo artist) and Chris Murphy on drums (Sloan). The album is available in digital or physical formats: https://tunsband.bandcamp.com/

* Montreal’s THe LYONZ – Terrell McLeod Richardson & Anthony Salvo – have returned with help from Ceilidh Webster with a song called “Push the Way.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S497S96yHT0

* Deanna Faye’s new single is “Reassure” from her break-out EP ‘Good To You’ which was released in January. Says Faye of the song, “I’d been walking around the city and on hiking trails aimlessly,” she shares. “I noticed these tagged pillars that always stood out to me as being a cool piece of architecture. This is a song that illustrates the ebbs and flows. Ultimately, in a healthy relationship, the pillars still stand strong, but they are always just the perfect distance apart to keep the structure sound.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkwCtVfHyYg

* Infinite-Lane Highway has dropped a double album on CD and streaming services called Night Cab. The first single/video is “You’re So You.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgtSEIKMgRY

* Lense is back with another new video track entitled “Painting Walls.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VfBUjgutoM

* Fernie, British Columbia country singer/songwriter Shelley Lynch has a new one called “Make It To Memphis” from her album Happiness Isn’t The Destination…It’s The Journey. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqTTedF-1cY

* Dani Nash has released her new self-titled album in a full-on collaboration with producer Peter Elkas – who co-wrote the 10 tunes with this exciting voice from Canada. You can grab digital or vinyl here: https://daninashmusic.bandcamp.com/

* The Farewell Stanleys most recent album is The Bottom Floor. The latest single/video from the record is “I’m Okay.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgL4inM9RVA

* The Canadian Celtic Choir, directed by Paul Grambo, is pleased to offer a playlist of five recently recorded Irish songs. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_wLSoIezacfIonFZkzYAXnpT9BqtcL4U

* Frank Patrick, an Edmonton-born/Toronto-based adult contemporary musician, has released a new video for his emotionally-charged single, “Mercy” featuring harmonized backup vocals from singer Rebecca Campbell. “Mercy” was written by Frank months after the beginning of the global health crisis. He describes it as a “prayer for these fragile times.” Going in-depth, Frank says, “[it] was written from one man’s observations, feelings, and sense of loss about the complexities of the COVID-19 crisis by bringing it all down to one simple statement: ‘Please tell me there’s still mercy here.’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lbla_b5Dwg

* The latest to land from the multi-talented Caardia – sisters Celia and Annie Siriopoulos – is the single “Over You.” The song is a “representation of the vulnerability one can have when having feelings for someone,” Annie shares. “It brings up the fear of  [a] ‘new feeling’ and the unknown.” The duo have also started their own radio show, aptly named The Caardia Show, on Agape Greek Radio, and are co-founders and co-organizers of Youth Jam TO, an annual music festival in Toronto hosting 2,500+ attendees, as well as being public speakers with Kill It With Kindness, an anti-bullying initiative. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4ZwXZSYxXs

It’s been a year since Saskatoon native Folk singer/songwriter Paul Kuzbik released his breakthrough debut, Still Love. Now he’s back with a taste of his forthcoming album The Miracle of Being with the release of his lead-off single and video, “Diamonds.” The album is due in September 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbEa4c0T_DE

* Former Esquires vocalist and guitarist Don Norman has a version of Marty Robinson’s “A White Sport Coat & A Pink Carnation” available on his Bandcamp page.
https://donnorman.bandcamp.com/track/a-white-sport-coat-a-pink-carnation

* Megan Minty from Oakville has been posting acoustic videos from home over on her YouTube channel. This week she takes on Billie Eilish’s “Everything I Wanted.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIxsGDb-wcY

* GWN would like to toot its own horn for a change. After 13 years away from the recording scene your blog  author, Jaimie Vernon, returns with a cover version of Tears For Fears’ “Pale Shelter” – a fitting title for a recording made in COVID isolation. Check it out on Bandcamp: https://bullseyecanada.bandcamp.com/track/pale-shelter-pandemo-mix

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Keep up the fight!
Jaimie Vernon, 2021

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Jaimie “Captain CanCon” Vernon has been president of the on again/off-again Bullseye Records of Canada since 1985. He wrote and published Great White Noise magazine in the ‘90s, has been a musician for 41 years, and recently discovered he’s been happily married for 24 years. He is also the author of The Canadian Pop Music Encyclopedia and editor of “Sunny Days: The Skip Prokop Story.” Available through Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Jaimie+Vernon