Maple Music

The small island province in the Atlantic gets some recognition in this post with Charlottetown band Lefunk's single "Reflection"!

The instrumentals and smooth vocals of this track are sure to get anybody dancing!

Aaron MacDonald is a lovely musician from the beautiful island of Cape Breton! His new song "What's The Point" was released late last month, and comes with this incredibly fun music video!

I came across Aaron from Music Cape Breton, one of the many new resources recently added to the Music Resources Megathread. Please feel free to check out both the site and the rest of Aaron's music library!

Chief State is a pop-punk band from Vancouver! They recently released The Accoustic EP earlier this month, the latest in a steady line of talent compilations from them.

Check out their website here: https://www.chiefstate.com/

Perhaps a noise warning is in order for this one, but Ninoo is an experimental musician from New Brunswick! This song, ironically titled Calm, is an incredible fast-paced and heavy tune clocking in at just under two minutes.

Portia White was an incredible classical singer who hailed from Truro, Nova Scotia. In spite of the times she lived through, she became a world-renowned performer, being the first Black Canadian to perform on an international level. While she unfortunately passed away in 1968 from cancer, the Government of Canada has since declared here a person of national historical significance, and a music prize has been dedicated in her name to acknowledge outstanding musicans in Nova Scotia who have shaped the culture of the province.

I learned of Portia White after discovering the Canada Black Music Archives, which is an incredible resource for learning about Black music history in Canada. I've added them to the Megathread of resource, but feel free to check them out here!

Gentle bittersweet spleen. Love them

Québec's Harmonium was a force in the '70s prog rock scene, and one of the most popular acts of the decade in their home province. They were pioneers of the prog folk subgenre of progressive rock, incorporating elaborate instrumental sections into their music.

Chibby is a kawaii future bass sideproject of Windsor-based musician Ipsiom! Ipsiom has a far reach in terms of the electronic music he makes, touching on anything from this genre, to hypertrance, and Dubstep.

I'm returning back to Canada in 2 months and you bet your ass this will be blasting during the drive up. I don't plan on living anywhere else for the rest of my life.

Hey all,

I know it's not a huge deal, but figured I'd give a little bit of transparency with the ListenBrainz playlist and something that's come up recently.

A few days ago I shared a track by the name of "Sons of Labrador" by the Gregoire Boys. While I've been trying to keep the playlist in order, getting this track to it's proper place in the playlist had a little bit of a roadblock considering how obscure the album it's from seems to be.

It's more or less normal coming across a situation where a track and the single, EP, or album it's on needs to be added to the MusicBrainz database in order for it to be added to the playlist, that in general is no issue and has popped up a few times beforehand, such as when adding Photoromance by BeLI, Well Oh Well by Cousin Harley, or Nalligigakku by Joey Nowyuk to the playlist.

However, the issue that came up with Sons of Labrador was that the release, Puamun, has never seemed to have a full digital release before. Sons of Labrador is the only track available off the album on Nikamowin, and beyond that and the fact it was released on CD, no information online. I needed to ask in the MusicBrainz Matrix room how to add a release I didn't know the tracklist for, and thankfully they helped me input the limited data into the database properly.

If anything this ordeal goes to show how much we can neglect music talents here in Canada, especially those in Indigenous communities such as the Gregoire Boys, who hail from a very remote small town in Northern Labrador that can only be accessed by plane.

Hopefully similar situations don't arise in the future, as it would be unfortunate knowing other Canadian music is facing the same fate, but should that be the case, adding the tracks in question to MusicBrainz shouldn't be an issue going forward.

We all love a great concert! Sometimes they can be fun, energetic, and performative. Sometimes they can be enjoyable but a little run-of-the-mill. Unfortunately every now and again, you get one that's bland and boring (looking at you, Bob Dylan).

Which Canadian musicians have you attended a concert or live performance for, and of them, who gives the most fulfilling experience? Discuss below!

The artist in the spotlight this week is none other than Edmonton's very own TARiiiQ!

A hip-hop artist, TARiiiQ delivers strong lyrics in well-constructed verses placed within incredible instrumentals. This especially ties into his Palestinian background, where he has used his music to bring attention to the issues his birthplace faces.

TARiiiQ is unfortunately a prime example of the issues Canadian musicians can face with coverage and discoverability of their music. Despite his incredible wordplay, beats, and passionate performances, TARiiiQ has amassed a limited audience throughout streaming platforms, with less than a thousand subscribers on YouTube, less than 500 followers on SoundCloud, and numbers on Facebook and Instagram that frankly don't do his talent any justice.

Please give his album High Rises, Low Falls a listen at the link below! You're sure to love it.

https://soundcloud.com/tariiiqmusic/sets/spitomology

As always, feel free to suggest artists for next weeks feature below!

BA Johnston is an artist from Hamilton, Ontario known for his satirical songs and energetic live performances. Some songs will be simple acoustic arrangements, as in Canadian Beers or they'll feature synth and drum machines, like I Don't Buy No Government Weed (Still Buying From Steve). Across all tracks, there's BA Johnston's self-deprecating humour and many references to real Canadian culture (like the mention of the camo Alpines in Canadian Beers, this man gets me)

Seriously, if you ever get the chance to see one of his live shows, please do yourself a favour and go! I don't want to share any details because it's best you go in blind. I will say that a BA Johnston show is an unhinged, multi-sensory experience.

Omnivide is a metal band from Moncton, New Brunswick! An incredible metal band, they've been putting out bangers in succession since their formation in 2020.

The Gregoire Boys are a Disco Rock group from Natuashish, Labrador, a remote Innu community in the north of the province only accessible by air. This track is a fun an enjoyable one showcasing their pride in being inhabitants of the land around them, singing in both their native tongue and English.