Music That Got Us Through the Winter of Early 2015 – CMB Picks

From the beginning of the year to the spring equinox, a whole bunch of Canadian music was released to make our ears happy. Just in terms of LPs, there were 128! We have listened to everything and settled on our picks. These winter 2015 releases of albums, EPs, songs, and MVs were the ones we couldn’t get enough of and are happy to share them with you.

In terms of LPs, the Portrait of Ludovico Einaudi by Angele Dubeau and La Pieta proved to be classical music at its best. Elliot Maginot’s Young Old Everything In Between is an album that sets the standard for any aspiring singer songwriter with beautifully crafted, rich, folky treats. Jerome Miniere’s Une Ile, worth buying as a whole, is a quirky, fun electropop ride. Alternative rock didn’t get much better than Savvie’s Night Eyes. Scott Shea’s gorgeous Let It Storm gave us roots music to die for. There is no question that Beatrice Deer had the season’s finest EP, Fox, an eclectic brew of savory pop-rock.

Singles that bowled us over included Carly Rae Jepsen’s golden delight “I Really Like You”, Ryan Stewart produced dancefloor thumper “Spotlight” by Every Last Chance featuring the exquisite vocals of Crystalyne’s Marissa Dattoli, Jean Leloup’s delicious novelty rock anthem “Willie”, Navert’s progressive gem “Ma Chanson”, and pop-rock charmer “Aime/pardonne” by Tremblay. We would also add tracks from the aforementioned albums: “Still Alive” by Elliot Maginot and “Gravity” by Savvie. We’ll let you decide on the best track from the Miniere, Shea, and Deer albums. Although we cannot classify it as Canadian, we sneak in the honourable mention of “Lighthouse” by Emmalyn Estrada and G.R.L.

In the realm of music videos, there is no question that Carly Rae Jepsen’s “I Really Like You” with Tom Hanks was a standout. We also liked Ariane Moffatt’s eye pleasing “Debout”.

Headlines for Mid June 2015

Shawn Hook Strikes Gold

British Columbian pop star Shawn Hook has scored his first gold single as “Sound of Your Heart” hit the 40,000 purchase mark. Shawn’s new album Analog Love is out now, and he will be presenting at the MMVAs this weekend.

Ed Sheeran Surprises a Young Singer at West Edmonton Mall

British superstar Ed Sheeran emerged from a record shop at West Edmonton Mall when he heard 13-year-old Sydney Bourbeau singing one of his songs on stage. He stunned her when he walked onto the stage and joined her. Ed will be co-hosting the MMVAs this weekend in Toronto.

Jess Moskaluke and Wes Mack Open for Shania Twain in Winnipeg

Saskatchewan’s Jess Moskaluke, CCMA recipient of female artist of the year, surprised country fans in Winnipeg when she joined Alberta’s Wes Mack opening for superstar Shania Twain. The latter still holds the record for the best-selling country music album of all time, Come On Over. Her shoes are going to be difficult to fill, but we believe Jess can do it.

Mia Martina Tops CanCon BDS Top 40

Mia Martina’s latest single “Beast” is the top CanCon single on Top 40 radio, at #9 this week. Mia will be performing at the MMVAs this weekend, and her second album (self-titled) is out now. Generally speaking, Canadian broadcasters have been cold-shouldering Canadian female recording artists in 2015, so Mia’s accomplishment is that more incredible.

The Weeknd Owns the Top 3 CanCon Singles on the Hot 100

With his new single, “Can’t Feel My Face” debuting on the Billboard Hot 100 at #13, the Weeknd owns the top 3 CanCon spots on the chart, the other two being “Earned It” (#15) and “The Hills” (#17). The Weeknd will also be performing at the MMVAs.

We leave you with the brand new music video from Elliot Maginot for track “Still Alive” from excellent album Young Old Everything In Between released back in February.

Elliot Maginot Takes Care of the Young, Old, and Everything In Between

Montreal newcomer Elliot Maginot has delivered a brilliant album entitled Young / Old / Everything . In . Between. Although you may hear elements of Half Moon Run, The Grapes of Wrath, and even Men at Work, the singer-songwriter has sculpted a style he can call his own. Besnard Lakes producer Jace Lasek helped add some dreamy ambiance into things. The music is sophisticated and beautiful; check out for example “Still Alive”. We have embedded the MV for lead single “Monsters at War” which will give you a taste.  iTunes

Selected New Releases, 10 February 2015

Heads up! The quality of music on this week’s releases is even better than usual. Del Bel is a collective from Toronto/Guelph. The new self-titled album is very good with cinematic, alternative music that would serve as fitting soundtrack for a noir, spy flick. Hard rock, 4-time JUNO nominated outfit Danko Jones is back with Fire Music. Hearts is the latest album from Calgary alt-pop duo Sidney York. The highly anticipated debut album Kings of Nowhere from Toronto rock band The Mohrs is finally out! Singer-songwriter Savannah Leigh Wellman from Vancouver, under project name Savvie, gets the alt-rock going on excellent new album Night Eyes.

Montreal based artist Vernier, is the invention of songstress Gen Vernier Blouin. Album Things We Do For Love is described by the artist as “melancholy grunge pop” and another winner this week. While on tour in Europe, platinum 3-time JUNO nominee Pierre Lapointe swung into a Paris studio and recorded a batch of songs, mainly piano and voice. The result is the beautiful Paris tristesse. Neuville, QC’s Carotté gives us something different by combining fiddles and folk music with punk on new album Punklore et trashdition. Lynn Lake, MB’s Tom Cochrane needs no intro. The diamond 8-time JUNO winner delivers his first offering in nine years, Take It Home. Finally, Montreal’s Elliot Maginot churns out an alternative, folky, artistic charmer, Young/Old/Everything.In.Between.

This week’s single releases include Shawn Desman’s “Victoria”, Dean Brody’s “Upside Down”, Tyler Shaw’s “House of Cards”, and Bryan Finlay’s “Rich”.

Enjoy the music!