With over a year into the global pandemic, the social exhaustion of trying to get by in everyday life has never been so prominent. It’s a comfort to know, however, that this experience is a collective one. Nova Scotia natives Hillsburn have penned the soundtrack to this collective fatigue with their new album, Slipping Away. Continue reading Hillsburn Chronicles Everyday Heartache on ‘Slipping Away’
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The Backstays Go from Brooding to Bubbly with Experimental Sounds on ‘Tributaries’
Not to immediately dive into Tributaries, the new release from Saint John quintet The Backstays, with needless ambiguities, but this is an album that travels on vibes. Co-produced by Romesh Thavanathan of Hey Rosetta!, Tributaries is a big mood album, better gulped than sipped. The band kicks off with a sense of brooding, dominated by Keith Whipple’s bass and Serenna Chapman’s keys, for a slow burn spanning not just songs but the entire album. Continue reading The Backstays Go from Brooding to Bubbly with Experimental Sounds on ‘Tributaries’
Gabrielle Papillon Prepares for the Plunge Ahead of European Tour with ‘Last Deep Breath’
When Gabrielle Papillon released “Last Deep Breath” as part of her 2019 album Shout, she likely wasn’t intending for it to be interpreted so literally. Two years later, a significant world event, and a video including an anxiety-ridden woman struggling to leave the house, and this call to arms hits a bit differently. Continue reading Gabrielle Papillon Prepares for the Plunge Ahead of European Tour with ‘Last Deep Breath’
Death & Dirges: Terra Spencer on How To Avoid Going Quietly Into That Good Night
Hopefully, this does not come as a shock to anyone, but sooner or later, you’re going to die. The how and why of it might leave a little wiggle room but, without exception, you and everyone you know will eventually shuffle off this mortal coil. It’s something of an inevitability. The good news: what happens next is largely up to you.
That’s not a pitch designed to entice you into whatever brand of afterlife awaits you in the hereafter, but another kind of immortality altogether.
Terra Spencer is already well known as a Nova Scotian folksinger. In certain circles, however, she’s known for an entirely different skillset: seeing people off into the sunset of their lives as a funeral director. Spencer says that those two worlds are overlapping with the increasing popularity of “legacy songs”: bespoke anthems to help the deceased and deceasing make their final exeunt while avoiding going gentle — or at least not going quietly — into that good night. Continue reading Death & Dirges: Terra Spencer on How To Avoid Going Quietly Into That Good Night
Ian Janes Takes a Stand for Artist Compensation with ‘Episode 5’
It’s no secret that the pandemic has had adverse effects on our favorite musicians and artists alike; this has led to many artists speaking out against how the music industry and streaming services make a profit while the artists themselves struggle to keep up. In an industry where live performance is necessary to keep the lights on–but has been near impossible for over a year—it’s understandable to begin to wonder how such a system was ever allowed. For Ian Janes, this was a challenge to meet head-on. Continue reading Ian Janes Takes a Stand for Artist Compensation with ‘Episode 5’