19 March 2023 - Rare Americans - Moving On

"But they're Canadian!"

The rarest of Americans.  Of course, technically, they are - because they live in the Americas.  We in the United States seem to think we have dominion over the term "American", but we really don't. 

Anyway, this young bunch of punks formed in 2018 in Vancouver, and are gaining traction.  This song is a truly a sad song - about a probable breakup.  We've all been there.

But c'mon.  You came here for the animated video.  

18 March 2023 - Jayli Wolf - Child Of The Government (stripped down)

A year ago, I posted the most important thing I've ever posted on this blog. It's less about a great song (and it is GREAT) and more about the Sixties Scoop, a shameful period in Canadian history.

Go read it.

Done?  Good.  Welcome back.  

Now here's a stripped down version of the same song.  For literally any other song, I'd probably have just updated that original post with an extra video.  Not this time.  That post was too perfect and this song is too raw.  

17 March 2023 - Metric - False Dichotomy

The Juno Awards were on Monday.

Canadian band Metric were nominated for a couple of them, including Group of the Year, based in large part on their 2022 album, Formentera, their first in four years (back to that in a second). This was one of the singles off that album, and it's something of a banger in its own right.   While they didn't win, it's still an honour to be nominated.

Just because it took them four years to release anything new does not mean they didn't do anything.  In 2021, they did this thing.  That brought the band to an international spotlight once again, so it made a lot of sense for them to follow it up with something more than a limited pressing vinyl only greatest hits album (they did that, too).  

Back to this song and not anything from a Michael Cera movie.  This continues Metric's history of flashy, modern synth-rock, bringing a unique sound that actually works post-pandemic.

16 March 2023 - Babygirl - Always

Last year, we featured a lot of new music.  One of the most popular posts we featured was by a band called Babygirl.   

We figured we'd check and see if they have any new music, and indeed, they do.  And their sound has gotten deeper and richer - a more mature Babygirl, if you will.  

This song was released a few months ago, and it is a pop-rock cool jam about breaking up and those conflicted feeling that still linger afterwards.  It's mournful and beautiful and bass-heavy, all at the same time.  The video was filmed in your mom's house a vacant house that was owned by a 100-year old woman who probably bought it for $40 in the 1970s (not my joke - it's from the behind the scenes video).  

By the way, the band has a new EP coming in April - you can pre-save it on your favorite streaming service and I'm willing to bet the band would appreciate it.  

15 March 2023 - Lindi Ortega - Tin Star

So this was like five years ago. One of my favorite country singers, Lindi Ortega, was playing my local 250 seat venue.

I was beyond stoked. At the time I was running a country site (after I left WGP and TC) where the writers were more concerned with the comings and goings of Florida Georgia Line or Sam Hunt as opposed to country music of substance like the Turnpike Troubadours or Elizabeth Cook. Needless to say the teaching of new writers was fun, the content, not so much.

That night it was nice to not only see a favorite artist of mine, but to write about her performance which was amazing. And maybe turn someone on to a great country artist...from Canada.

I was fortunate to chat with her after the show. She signed her Tin Star CD for me and we took a picture (which I told her I wanted to use for the review...well and again years later for this blog).

Anyway, Lindi is awesome. She hasn't put out a record in years and I for one would love another one. But until that time comes I'll enjoy her previously released records.

14 March 2023 - Avril Lavigne - Bite Me

You probably know we write this articles in advance.  So, we are writing this not knowing how the Juno Awards went last night - but we are pulling for this song to be Single of the Year as we write this. 

So, if it won, congratulations to Avril.  If it didn't win, SHE WAS ROBBED.

(Update: It did not win.  This did.) (She did win the Fan Choice Award, so that's good)

Let's talk about this song.  Released in late 2021 on Travis Barker's new label (he's drumming on the song as well), it's a throwback to Paramore Lavigne's earlier work - that pop-punk that defined her career for so long.  Clearly, it's an endearing love song that isn't at all angry.

It's also the best thing she's done in a decade. 

The video for the acoustic version of this song is kind of hilarious - with Avril doing dental work with a giant pair of boltcutters.  More interestingly, this extremely angry song works really well as a melancholy ballad.  

The "Tonight Show" live version of this song falls somewhere in the middle of the two versions - keeping both the anger and melancholy.

13 March 2023 - The Weeknd - Sacrifice

The 2023 Juno Award nominations were announced at the end of January.  The Weeknd led all nominations with six. 

The awards are tonight, in Edmonton, hosted by Simu Liu.  The Weeknd, and specifically this song, are predicted to win big. If the predictions are right, we look like geniuses right now.  If they aren't, we're probably going to be posting some Avril Lavigne tomorrow.

Released as a single in January 2022, it reached #11 on the US pop charts, and was a hit all over the world.  Written by the artist and a score of others, including hitmaker Max Martin, the song has a funky sound that evokes memories of Michael Jackson and his style - which clearly influences The Weeknd. Lyrically, it's a typical club banger, talking about the hedonistic nature of the narrator's life.