For Montreal-based band GreyGold, they have dedicated this year to releasing powerful singles one by one with accompanying music videos. The songs are a lead up to an EP, titled Sad Hope, but are focused on giving each single the attention it deserves.

According to bassist Stephane Roy, they always start with a riff. That is how their first single, “Waterfall” came to fruition - a specific guitar pattern heard at the beginning of the song. Lead guitarist Alexandre Blais came up with the idea, and the band tried tweaking it for nearly three months before drummer and vocalist Michael Trudel found the vocal melody.

With her latest EP, Hey Anna, Anna Shoemaker crafted a love letter to her inner child with five dazzling tracks.

She said that the EP is about learning to be intuitive and dealing with heartbreak and anxiety despite being too young to fully grasp the meaning.

“It’s interesting,” she said. “I think when you’re writing about personal experiences you learn a lot and it feels cathartic but you don’t exactly know what you’re learning in the moment. I know that sounds weird but for me it usually hits me at a later date. I’ll be like, “omg I am still so mad about that” or “wow I’m finally over that” but in the moment it just feels good to be writing.”

She describes the EP as a self-analysis, saying that it is easier to blame others instead of taking responsibility. The three singles released prior to the EP - “Holly”, “I Think I” and “666” - gave listeners a glimpse into the story she wanted to tell with Hey Anna. By rounding out the EP with the title track and “ADHD”, she knew that this final track listing was a no-brainer.

Shoemaker credits her debut album, Everything is Fine (I’m Only on Fire), for pushing her to step outside of her comfort zone for this batch of songs.

“I think I learned so much making my debut album that it was exciting for me to sort of step into some of that and take on more roles in the creation of a lot of this music,” she said. “Also getting to work with [indie rock project] Blonder was so great, I’m such a fan of him as a producer and artist and we had so much fun writing together.”

She not only challenged herself during the creation of this EP, but she challenged herself as an individual. By writing what was important to her in that moment, she was able to make something that can resonate with listeners in an extremely raw way.

“I hope they know it’s okay to feel all your feelings all the time if that’s what you need,” she said. “I honestly pride myself in how dramatic I can be - I think it can be a good thing to explore your emotions and let everything out! Better out than in!”

Photo courtesy of Dana Gorab

Hello there! I’m Jere from Heathen Hearts, and was asked to tell you about a show that has made me cry.

I have to tell you that I’ve probably never actually cried at a show, but this one was pretty special in all aspects of aggressive music and the metallic hardcore scene in Finland. To myself, as a young guitar-playing fan, this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience with all these bands I looked up to. And still do.

The year was 2014, and Impericon’s Never Say Die! tour was landing in Finland, into a legendary venue called Nosturi (gone but not forgotten) in Finland’s capital, Helsinki. The lineup was mental: Terror, Comeback Kid, Stick To Your Guns, Obey The Brave, More Than A Thousand, No Bragging Rights and Capsize. Terror, Comeback Kid and Obey The Brave had made an indelible impact on this young guitarist looking for his place in the world.

It was in mid-November, so the weather was getting quite chilly in Finland. My best friend and I were eagerly waiting for this day to come after buying the tickets. We were not sure if the event was sold out, but very close at least, and while we were freezing our asses off in the waiting line it was one of the most exciting moments of my life to wait for the doors to open as well as for my friend.

A couple of the first bands we watched from the bar, getting in the mood before the main acts. If I remember correctly, the running order was Obey the Brave, Comeback Kid, Stick To Your Guns and Terror, which all of them exploded the roof from its place in their own way. During those bands, the whole venue was a giant mosh pit/dance arena and you could really see that the whole small scene of metallic hardcore fans was there, sweating, dancing and just letting loose.

In Finland though, stage dives are/were not allowed, though some of us had the chance to do that behind security’s back. Very nice! It was an evening that I think anyone participating cannot forget. One of the best musical memories ever, it was a night of community and belonging. Good times.

When Jay Van Raalte released their live acoustic EP, Record Stop Sessions, the song “The Road Ahead” was a sneak peek into the completed-but-not-yet-released album, Something More and Kind of Less. Now, the album is finally available.

Although “The Road Ahead” has already become a fan favorite, between hearing it on the EP and seeing it live at shows for the last year, it is their second single that has gotten an unexpected response.

“Achtung” was a different song from the start. It is the only song to date that Van Raalte used a drum loop as the primary percussion instrument instead of a live drummer. While they normally use a loop during the production of the song and remove it to record a live sound, this specific loop was too good to pass up. The rest of the production snowballed from there.

“It just felt fresh compared to everything else we had been working on,” they said.

The lyrics were also approached differently. Although Van Raalte always tries to be honest in their writing, they admit that sometimes they get caught up in the craft of fitting words together or making sure they float seamlessly. This time around, the lyrics are direct and as honest as they can be.

The music video for “Achtung” also ended up just as different. The process was something they had never really tackled before, and came with a lot of restraints. That didn’t stop them from coming up with a concept that they really loved: a pseudo-lyric video written on a bathroom mirror.

At first, they thought their two-sink bathroom was going to pose a problem. Is it something that should be addressed? The more they thought about it, however, the more they realized that it could be part of the story. It becomes an ironic turn as the song was originally written about a specific, non-romantic partner, but the music video turns it into a more recent breakup and how the two sinks went from daily use to dormant.

“I was really touched that this thing that was just an accident working around a constraint ended up being the thing that people connected with the most,” they said. “It was a way to bring this song into my present moment, because so much has changed in my life since the time that I was writing it and the time that I was recording it, and having that music video be rooted in things that have happened more recently definitely gave a new angle to this song that didn’t exist before.”

So much of this album was new experiences for Van Raalte, from investing in a home studio to encouraging collaboration during the creation process. It taught them the importance of having other perspectives and trusting that someone else can not only envision their final project but keep them on the right track. They adopted an attitude of letting each song be what it wants to be and doing whatever it takes to accomplish that.

“The biggest is that I need to trust my own instinct,” they said. “Whether that’s redoing something because I know it’s not right, even if nobody else can hear the thing that’s upsetting me, or whether it’s knowing that I need help in finding the right people that I trust that enhance the process.”

Something More and Kind of Less was meant to be an orphan’s album - songs that never made it onto a previous album but were too good to keep to themselves. However, the longer they worked on producing the older songs, the more new songs were written along the way.

“It is a pretty diverse album which was somewhat intentional,” they said. “I feel very strongly, especially with these songs that came from such a different time period, that I wanted to let each one be what it wanted to be and not try to force them all into the same sonic palette.”

While some of these songs might be older than others, playing them back feels like stepping into a time machine. The lyrics might not resonate as much as they did in that exact moment, but there are new memories to attach to them. Maybe it’s a guitar solo that is their guitarist’s favorite. Maybe a fan gave their interpretation of the lyrics and it has taken on a whole new meaning.

“It’s become like a little scrapbook of all of the people that I get to work with and the moments that I have making it,” they said.

Creating this album was such a learning experience for Van Raalte, and they are so thrilled that this “orphan’s album” became much more than that. Now these orphan songs belong to the world, and have made their own home.

During the summer of 2020, Nashville-based pairing Homes At Night spent their days outdoors. Between floating in the river and bonfires with friends, it was the perfect way to spend their summer during a time of major uncertainty. It also became the inspiration for their single, “Midwest Summer”.

“The idea for this song is kind of a reflection of the experiences we were having around the time we wrote the song,” they said. “It felt like we were having somewhat of a summer break like you used to have in grade school. [We] think the nostalgia for that part of all of our lives and the weird experience of reliving those feelings in adulthood really set the stage for that song.”

Although it didn’t feel like it in the moment, the summer of 2020 became very prolific with the amount of music they were creating. Focusing on their music and making memories with their core friend group became the inspiration for their next batch of songs.

The duo, consisting of songwriters Hank Compton and Askel Coe, said that “Midwest Summer” feels like two songs fused together. It tells the story of two former lovers visiting their hometown at the same time, and their journey of discovering if the nostalgia of it all is worth falling in love again.

The song is meant to be played in the car, windows down, feeling the humidity of a summer night. They both love a summer anthem, citing “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry, “Friday I’m In Love” by The Cure and “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” by Tears for Fears as some of their favorites.

“[We] think there’s definitely a formula for summer anthems, but it’s probably a little different in each genre… There definitely has to be some anthemic sing-along quality to it. Something that makes you feel nostalgic.”

They brought that nostalgic, sing-along quality to their tour this summer with acts such as Saint Motel and Arts Fishing Club. They enjoyed witnessing the audience’s reactions to their new songs, especially when they had the opportunity to perform “Midwest Summer” in the actual Midwest. The ability to watch in real time as someone hears and relishes in a new song is incredibly validating.

When asked about the message they hope listeners take away from “Midwest Summer”, they said that an individualized interpretation is what makes music so unique.

“A fun part about making art is that you can’t control what people take away from what you make,” they said. “If anything, [we] hope that this song is a warm hug to people and reminds them of good memories they have.”

Music has been the thing that picks me up - or rather gets down on the floor with me - when I fall down. It is the same reason we are all so drawn to its vibrational force. Over the years, different projects have helped me explore my identity.

My latest single, “Healing Tears”, is an expression of my journey in sexual healing and discovery. It’s about cry-cumming. The first time I had an orgasm it made me cry; it was a scary, overwhelming wave. I didn’t know what was happening to me and I received flashes of images and memories. A sense of imprisonment from the past. The second time inspired this song, when I was with a person who had the understanding and compassion to hold space for my grief and joy. In the more recent past, it is a fountain which readily pours when it feels called to.

There is a certain otherworldly quality to my production and I think that can reflect, in this context, the great unknown within sexuality. Practices like kink can hold containers for exploration. Both verbal and nonverbal consent discourses are vital in defining what is on or off the table and what we like. Nevertheless, there is a huge well of discovery laying in the sexual realm. Sexual desire and pleasure need not be a fixed thing but can be a shifting, evolving terrain.

I’ve often felt the pressure to label, define, quantify and qualify my sexuality in order to prove my queerness - part of the strange reality of being bi/pan in the kind of world we live in. After years of processing both my sexual trauma as well as my internalized heterosexism, I feel at ease knowing that my sexuality is not static but rather shifting and evolving.

Inspired by her love of The Divine Feminine, tarot cards, divination, hidden secrets and listening to one’s own intuition, Crystal Joilena’s single “The High Priestess” explores spiritual awakenings, shadow work, connecting with one’s higher self, and the truths and secrets behind the false representations of all things.

“When you think of a high priestess, you think of the Queen of secrets and a powerful femme who is in control of her own identity,” Joilena said. “That is what I consider my higher self, and I am a balance of my higher self and shadow self… Everyone has a shadow. The key is being able to have a balance between dark and light.”

She continues, “The High Priestess speaks about struggling with so many things in life, many ten of swords moments, many tower moments, but still coming out of each debilitating moment with learning experiences and ready to get up and try again anyway with a hopeful mindset that someday, if you work hard enough and stay positive, things will have a different outcome. She is a beacon of hope for all women and femmes who identify with her. Sometimes the shadow self can get in the way of that. We are susceptible to so much overthinking, anxiety and intrusive thoughts. It can get harder to see which way to go, harder to trust our intuition and the way feels like it’s closing in on us; that’s where the higher self comes in to pull out all of those swords and show us the way to go.”

The creation process of “The High Priestess” took a few years as it originally started out with completely different lyrics. With the help of producers Farhan Tanvir and Randy Pasquarella, it eventually made its way to the final version.

Joilena admits to being a perfectionist in the studio. She recognizes that it can be frustrating to others in the studio with her, but she finds the vocal recordings to be the most challenging aspect for her. Once the song is finally completed, numerous takes later, and is exactly how she envisioned it, that is when she feels the most accomplished.

Not only does the song explore spiritual elements, but it became Joilena’s own personal diss track against the music industry. The distrust, hidden agendas and ability to steal work without providing credit is all something she has experienced and struggled with. It can cause distraction, inability to stay grounded or find the power to change the narrative.

“There were many times when I felt like giving up, but knew that music is my calling in life and I could never,” she said.

All of those feelings and emotions are valid, and is why she hopes listeners take away some inspiration to chase their goals no matter what setbacks may arise.

“Bad times are temporary and life always gets better, even if it feels like it’s taking a while and the trials and tribulations are extreme,” she said. “I hope that femmes never forget their worth or let anyone try to change or define them. They are The Divine Feminine and hold so much power, more than they could ever realize, and their potential is limitless.”

Singer and songwriter Laila Kharouba remembers attending a show in Toronto when a familiar face appeared in the crowd. This familiar face was also a performer, and the two spent the night catching up. At one point the conversation brought up this familiar face liking girls and asking Kharouba if she could take her on a date. This moment in time ultimately became the origin story of Laila’s single, “I Like Girls”.

“It caught me super off guard in that moment,” Kharouba said. “I ultimately said yes, but not without 1,000 different versions of my life flashing before my eyes first. This was the moment where I really started to think about my sexuality and how I’ve never really been entirely straight, but just had never put a label on it.”

She shared the moments of that night with her friend, Monica Spiering, and they thought it was an exciting idea for a song.

“The story itself just held such a magical, exciting energy, so we got together to start writing it,” she said. “When I first proposed ‘I Like Girls’ as the hook, we both laughed. It sounded too on-the-nose and too simple to work. But within seconds we realized that it did in fact work. It was pretty cool.”

After writing the first iteration of the song, they took it to producers and collaborators Jon Pike and Brandon Pero. Parts were rewritten and the instrumentals were created before much of it was recorded at Pero’s home studio.

The most challenging aspect of creating “I Like Girls” was that it sort of forced Kharouba to explore untapped territory.

“I had never written about being interested in girls, so in a way this song was a semi-coming out for me,” she said. “For a while I was really nervous that the song didn’t have a clear enough take on my sexuality, and that its exploratory narrative would be laughed at or deemed illegitimate. But then I realized that we had written my truth, and I decided that’s what people want to hear and will resonate with.”

With its cheerful and vibrant production, “I Like Girls” seamlessly blends shimmering pop elements with an undeniable groove, creating an irresistible sonic landscape that invites listeners to dance and embrace their true selves.

“I hope listeners take away the idea that you can explore your sexuality and identity while having fun doing so, and not feeling like you need to fit into any specific box or camp,” Kharouba said.

That night in Toronto had a major impact on Laila Kharouba’s life, and also inspired music that she can be proud of. “I Like Girls” was her opportunity to be honest with herself and those around her, as well as encourage anyone else to take that same opportunity.