Samuel Johnson

is a percussionist, composer, and producer. Loida’s musical curiosity and open-mindedness has propelled him towards a wide-range of sounds, genres, and artistic endeavours. His thirst to participate in and experience this range of sounds is partly a product of Loida’s synesthesia. Music is a full-body experience for him, with sounds often invoking involuntary sensations of colour, texture, or even taste.

His album, Giverny, is a new age, indie classical collection of songs. During songwriting, he had the realisation that memories often come to us before we even remember, and similarly that’s how songwriting/composing feels – that they have been laying dormant until they feel it’s time to appear. With this album, Loida was influenced by French philosophy, arts, and music, from his time visiting, creating, and meeting people there.
Picture listening to the focus track, “December Dreams” – Loida’s version of the movie score to the blissful cinematic moment of the ice dance in Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands.

“On a snowy December night in Boston many years ago now, I found myself in a basement apartment in Somerville, heartbroken…” says Loida. “I needed peace, comfort, and to remember joy which is what this song brings me.”

Listen in here: https://open.spotify.com/album/5MFkaVcymmZrRBNnPER78t more

Brave New World is the uncommonly rich, joyous and exhilarating second album from Toronto singer/songwriter Erin Hunt that defies categorization while freely exploring the deepest yearnings of the human condition. A profoundly musical record built for headphone listening – to sit back, fire up a fatty and disappear into – but also perfect to blast over speakers, to groove to, until the music stops you in your tracks.

The album closer (and fourth single), “Won’t Give Up” is perhaps Erin and her band at its most dynamic and explosive – underpinning the lyric of resilience and faith – then perfectly matching the powerful, insistent refrain that typifies the spirit and drive and exuberance of the whole record: “We don’t give up, we don’t give up, we don’t give up.”
“This was probably the most difficult song I’ve ever written,” says Erin. “I was intent on writing it in a typical pop arrangement (which I usually don’t stray too far from) but the song just refused to go there. I kept trying to force it into being something it wasn’t and that’s why it took so long… Now I just shake my head at how stupid that would have been – it’s truly my favourite track on the album and my favourite song I’ve ever written.”

Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0pryjc79kM more

The classic Bakersfield sound shines in “I Know How,” Shane Ghostkeeper’s new single “inspired by the chance to redeem a lifetime of terrible dancing as a dedication to the craft for my upcoming wedding with the love of my life.” The music video was conceptualized and directed by fiancée Sarah Houle.

Fans of independent Canadian music will likely recognize the name Shane Ghostkeeper from his namesake project GHOSTKEEPER, a band that has been responsible for some of the more thrilling music to emerge from Alberta during the last 15 years. But while his parent band trades in a highly unique, left-of-centre approach to indie rock, this new project is a deeply reverential tribute to the music he absorbed while growing up in the Northern Alberta Métis communities of Paddle Prairie, High Level, and Rocky Lane. “The concept of this record,” he says, “is to present, as a gift to my people, an exploration of the country & western and roots records they surrounded me with since childhood.” Songs For My People is truly a family affair, slated for release on July 28, 2023 via Victory Pool Records.

Watch it here: https://youtu.be/OxGqpfCd18c more

Life can be bittersweet. Jesse Adams’ music captures that elusive state somewhere between defeat and resolve, misery and joy. After experiencing disparate moments of bliss and devastation, Jesse reached back into her childhood diary of songs, yanked them from their resting place, and revisited each from a more mature perspective.

Her fierce new song, “Gravity,” has been 16 years in the making. She started writing this song when she was seven years old with her friend Sara Bandkohal, and finished it later in adulthood after rewriting some lyrics and melodies.

Jesse explains her inspiration for the song: “Life isn’t stagnant. Just when you think you’re winning, you lose and vice versa. It’s unpredictable. It’s out of our control like gravity.”
Jesse worked with music video director Saad Sheikh to envision a dark but shiny atmosphere with various imperfect and morally gray characters. It was also a great opportunity for Jesse to show off her skills as a trained dancer and actress.

Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSmw2RwYsHc

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Emm Gryner’s album, Business & Pleasure is a celebration of the Detroit radio scene and the music that shaped her childhood. From Motown, jazz and pop, to Steely Dan, Fleetwood Mac and the Doobies, Business & Pleasure is infused with the sunshine soul and stellar playing of the late 70s and early 80s.

This new collection of songs, produced by Fred Mollin and written with poet Michael Holmes, embody a take on yacht rock that sails deep into the 2020s and introduce the world to a bold new character: a powerful woman whose passion, presence, conviction, humor and grace serves to unite the world in music, joy and love, once again.

Focus track “Loose Wig” was inspired by a Rolling Stone article about Donald Fagen “keeping his sense of humour” in isolation. The song title was one of the phrases that Donald used in this particular article to describe a political figure. The groovy song is Emm’s way of staying positive amidst the hopelessness.

“Each song on the album has a different story,” says Emm. “We are conveying the renewing feeling of the 70s and 80s, when life was not so on-demand – when musicianship and studio cats reigned supreme.”

Listen in here: https://open.spotify.com/album/1hkLAWlSxjVutsPqcZG9HG?si=peza5LnASvO4Thh06mJ1Cw&nd=1 more