Resa Saffa Park - Big Little Lions - Disgusting Sisters - Rosina Cove - Living Hour - Lottie McLeod

Photo - Henriette Sagjord

Resa Saffa Park - Standing Still.

Emerging cinematic indie singer/songwriter Resa Saffa Park releases her new single 'Standing Still', the latest glimpse of her forthcoming album Kendra, out 6 November via Ja. Group. Wrapped in smoky production, softly echoing guitars and an unhurried groove, 'Standing Still' wrestles with inertia, slowly gathering emotional tension. 

Speaking about the song, Resa Saffa Park said: "Standing Still is a song about the fear of stagnation and a fading sense of self-worth. It's about how even simple things can start to feel threatening when you lose movement and direction."

A graduate of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, Resa returned to her home city of Oslo to write her new album Kendra. Written largely in her apartment over the course of a year, the album finds her paying closer attention to the people around her. Across twelve songs, she keeps returning to the same question: "how do we understand ourselves through other people?"

Cinematic indie steeped in jazz, trip-hop, noir-pop and soul, Resa Saffa Park's music sits at a distinctive intersection of influences, in the orbit of Tamino, Michelle Gurevich and Portishead, with inspiration drawn from Billie Holiday, Chet Baker, Nirvana, Mitski and Julia Jacklin.

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Big Little Lions - No One Is Mad At You.

Big Little Lions continue to release monthly singles & Beehive Candy are starting to run out of new things to say, except they are on one incredible roll of creativity this year. September's song is for anyone who has the underlying feeling that they are trouble and someone is mad at them. It's nice to be reminded that this is probably not the case and we hope this will give the listeners a break from any critical self talk.

For those new to them... Big Little Lions are an award winning duo who were born out of a collaboration that won them a JUNO Award in 2014. Since then they have been cranking out infectious folk pop songs that are jam-packed with emotion and tight harmonies that sound like the product of two people working side-by-side instead of living in different countries. 

They have released 7 albums to date, which have garnered them awards and nominations including the CFMA Ensemble of the Year, Independent Music Awards Americana Sing of the Year and John Lennon Songwriting Competition Song of the Year. Their critically acclaimed music has appeared on the CBC’s Top 20 and featured on shows like q and Vinyl Cafe. The duo consists of Paul Otten and Helen Austin, both hugely prolific songwriters - their music has been placed in hundreds of movie trailers, ads, network TV shows.

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Photo - Pierpaolo Saccomandi

Disgusting Sisters - Waste Of Space.

Disgusting Sisters have just shared the new single "Waste Of Space" taken from their upcoming debut album Skin & Blisters, which will be released October 30 on Source Records. "Waste Of Space" is another slice of intrigue that explores the world of Disgusting Sisters. As ever with Disgusting Sisters, influences span electro to emo but the horror and the humor are always evident. 

On the new single, Disgusting Sisters say - “'Waste of Space' is about forgetting someone after a breakup, like your brain is a hard drive that’s run out of storage. All the unused data gets wiped and the memories are gone. You were never worth the upgrade - you were just a waste of space"

Skin and Blisters: a record that comes good on all the tongue-in-cheek, slightly gruesome yet perpetually entertaining promise that their name - partly a homage to Succession’s Disgusting Brothers; partly a reference to the “bad sisters from Cinderella because we kind of feel like them on stage” - suggests. Across 10 tracks, the pair aim their lasers at hopeless exes and sugar daddies; productivity punishers and the sad drudge of the 9-5. Their delivery is riddled with deadpan absurdity, but at their core, Disgusting Sisters mean every word. “I hope people can relate to the songs because they really come from inside us,” says Josephine. “All the lyrics are inspired by real moments. We're not trying to pretend and I think that's what makes us kind of fresh - we're just being ourselves.”

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Photo -Travis Nesbitt

Rosina Cove - Kenwood.
 
Rosina Cove is an Edmonton, Alberta-based musical collective led by singer-songwriter Peter Stone and close friends Vicky Berg and Drew Malcolm that offers unpretentious Canadiana with a big heart. Debuting in 2023 with the album Someday We Will Make It There, the group is now poised to release the follow-up, Left Of Me, at the start of 2027.

The first single, “Kenwood,” is a prime example of Rosina Cove’s instantly engaging sound, with its blend of bright jangle-pop and breezy folk-rock, highlighted by expressive harmonies and sparkling production, courtesy of Harry Gregg, also a member of Juno nominees Second Hand Dreamcar. Peter Stone describes it as a song about unexpectedly finding love in the aftermath of an abusive relationship.

“‘Kenwood’ is a reflection on how new love is sometimes built one small moment at a time,” he says. “Learning how someone takes their coffee, sharing stories over cider, listening to records together, and slowly discovering what it feels like to be safe in another person’s presence. What begins as a slow dance of companionship becomes connection, and connection becomes a place to breathe, to soften, and to begin healing from the trauma of what came before.”

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Photo - Lucas Pingitore

Living Hour - Magnet (EP).

Winnipeg's indie rock quintet, Living Hour release their  Magnet EP, this week via Keeled Scales / Paper Bag Records. The four-track release is a collection of b-sides and previously unearthed demos channelled from the work on Someday is Today (2022), and 2025's Internal Drone Infinity, which is one of ten Canadian albums nominated for The Meridian Prize, being awarded next weekend, as part of BreakOut West. The quintet shares a dreamy visualizer for lulling EP track, “Good Afternoon.”

The bundle of phrases that make up the EP are from an incubation period of a lot of TV, projecting movies for work, and general dissociative activities. “I was thinking about how people are magnets if they want to be. Attracting what they think about most, interact with or watch on screens,” says lead singer and lyricist, Sam Sarty. The band previewed with the EP's title-track “Magnet” earlier this month, and Sam expands more on “Half Can,” noting; “At the beginning of the song, I get the image in my mind about a flat, straight ahead, snowy, dark highway going for infinity converging to an ominous black point, high beams flashing sheets of snow blowing across the cement in front of a truck.”

Living Hour transforms the passage of time into something both urgent and sacred. Anchored by Sam Sarty’s vivid lyricism, shaped by years as a projectionist conjuring stories in a dark theater, the band explores the quiet magic hidden in everyday life. The band drifts between dreamy noise rock, folky slowcore, and fuzzy indie-pop, coining a genre all their own: “yearn-core.” With wistful vocals, textural distortion, and poetic detail, Living Hour capture the ache of memory, the mess of feeling, and the beauty in what remains. 


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Photo - Ghina Sari

Lottie McLeod - The Boathouse (EP).

Following an intimate launch party at its namesake venue yesterday, Magan-djin/Brisbane-based singer-songwriter Lottie McLeod now shares her long-awaited The Boathouse EP via ABC Music, a intimate coming-of-age "for people who love to feel deeply" drawing from indie, alt-pop, folk and beyond - signalling a young artist coming out of her shell, stepping into the confidence to follow her own path and express herself openly, making McLeod's much-praised ability to make the personal feel universal stronger than ever. 

It arrives ahead of a newly-announced London headline date in December presented by Joy Promotions expanding her headline EP tour kicking off in October across so-called VIC, NSW & QLD with her hometown date expanding venue due to a rapid sell-out, and off the back of a nomination for the Emerging Artist Award via Australian Women In Music Awards plus mammoth support announcements with The Tullamarines and Peter Garrett & The Alter Egos across November - all live dates below. 

Featuring alt/folk-pop focus track + video 'Thomas' as well as previous singles triple j's #1-most-played track 'Wednesdays at the Waterloo', 'Sunburnt', and 'Important To You', The Boathouse EP is out now via ABC Music.


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Big Little Lions - V.V. Lightbody - Kelly Hunt - Kate Prascher - Tony Fox - Brodie Christ - Jessica Lorraine

Big Little Lions - My Home.

Big Little Lions, continue to release monthly singles with 'My Home' released yesterday. July's song is a heartwarming tune about finding the person who makes everything feel like home.

Big Little Lions are an award winning duo who were born out of a collaboration that won them a JUNO Award in 2014. Since then they have been cranking out infectious folk pop songs that are jam-packed with emotion and tight harmonies that sound like the product of two people working side-by-side instead of living in different countries. 

They have released 7 albums to date, which have garnered them awards and nominations including the CFMA Ensemble of the Year, Independent Music Awards Americana Sing of the Year and John Lennon Songwriting Competition Song of the Year. Their critically acclaimed music has appeared on the CBC’s Top 20 and featured on shows like q and Vinyl Cafe. The duo consists of Paul Otten and Helen Austin, both hugely prolific songwriters - their music has been placed in hundreds of movie trailers, ads, network TV shows.

Their live show is quite the spectacle with Paul playing drums, bass and keyboard all while singing lead vocals. Helen, who is no slacker either, sings, plays guitar and foot percussion. They use every limb, and then some, to make two people sound like a full band. 

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Photo - Shannon Marks

V.V. Lightbody - Practice Smiling.

Chicago songwriter & multi-instrumentalist V.V. Lightbody just shared "Practice Smiling" as she announces her new LP Period Piece (due Oct 9 Via Egghunt Records). We are told "I always imagined "Practice Smiling" opening up Period Piece because it so clearly hits one of the major themes of the album, which I like to describe as "loosening up the life corset".  I started writing this song when I went to my first rock show in Chicago after things had opened back up in 2021. Everyone was remembering how to be together in a room again – it was exhilarating and stressful." 

"Does my smile look okay? How do I order a drink? I felt stiff, but eager to settle in. I danced with abandon after the show and ended up throwing out my back when I took off my sweater. In that moment, I so clearly felt the passage of time and a surprising nervousness that had built up in my mind and body, forcing me to reassess my social confidence which I feel like I am still gaining back. This song also touches on a frustration I have with the current state of live music, where getting people to leave the comfort of their home and come to a show feels like an increasingly difficult task." 

Notably, Period Piece also marks Lightbody’s debut as a lead producer on her own album – a dazzling and welcome emergence. With layers of perfectly tucked backing vocals, swirling guitars in harmony, chugging bass lines, and romantic, melodic flutes, Lightbody has crafted a playful and pristinely recorded collection of indie-folk songs, veering between 70s Brazilian samba and contemporary electro-pop. Think, Cate Le Bon strolling through an overgrown meadow. Dave Vettraino provided additional production and mixing support, and Lightbody called in a robust team of friends to contribute throughout, including Macie Stewart, Sam Cantor, Emma Hospelhorn, Jack Henry Lickerman, and Cassandra Jenkins.

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Photo - makemade

Kelly Hunt - Clouds.

Memphis artist Kelly Hunt has announced a new album 'Requiem for a Sleepless Night,' out September 18 on Compass Records. Produced by Dirk Powell (Joan Baez, Rhiannon Giddens, Eric Clapton), Hunt's third full-length is largely inspired by the mental tangles of a fitful night. The songs radiate with a stunning fragility—cracked-open, tender, and swirling like an insomniac’s mind. 

On her most modern work to date, Hunt lets an open-tuned guitar guide the sound, adorned with harmonies courtesy of Amelia Powell. Artfully bridging traditional and contemporary influences, ‘Requiem…’ calls eclectic comparisons to the likes of Gillian Welch, Anaïs Mitchell, and Laura Marling.  

Kelly Hunt shares: "I crave long drives through the plains, the infinity of sky unfolding as far as eye can see. I do my best thinking on long, uncomplicated country roads where my mind has the chance to straighten out and run free. I wrote “Clouds” on one such dead-ahead drive through the Midwest—late summer afternoon, storm brewing. I’d been driving for hours, lost in thought, when my eyes suddenly focused on what looked like mountains rising in the distance. I quickly realized they were only clouds—a string of thunderheads weighing heavily on the horizon with all the seeming concreteness of a mountain range. The fleeting shock of this moment got me thinking about the power of illusions, how real illusory things can feel at times, and of our capacity to both create and dismantle stumbling blocks in our own minds."

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Photo - Sander Randall

Kate Prascher - They Will Fall Down.

Kate Prascher has released the third single from her highly anticipated sophomore album ‘Sunday Afternoon,’ out August 28 on First City Artists (Alexa Rose, Carly King). Described by Prascher as “an apocalyptic waltz,” it’s one of the album’s gentlest offerings. “It’s also about intimacy scaled up to include movement of the moon, the stars and the sun,” she continues, “with images of big endings and closeness to others, without much clarity on which one of those is bad and which is good.” Her musings on the sky sparkle over moving strings, the sound of submission to the uncanny experience of being alive: La da di da.

Kate Prascher was raised in Memphis, a childhood steeped in spiritual storytelling. “Where I’m from, it’s expected for the people in your life who’ve passed to show up again, one way or another,” she says. In adulthood, she carried that experience to New York City and embraced the lively vibrance of the city’s Bluegrass scene, taking mandolin lessons from Michael Daves and joining open sessions at staple venues like The Jalopy, Mona's, Sunny's. Prascher wrote about half the songs on ‘Sunday Afternoon’ while she was living in Brooklyn—the rest, after she left. 

“I’m interested in how environment informs identity,” she shares. “Leaving New York was a reckoning for me. I moved there out of ambition. If I left, could I still consider myself ambitious?” Now based upstate, she’s grateful for the opportunity to answer that question. “My life is less about chasing one thing, and more about grounded rituals, the practices of work and creation. I can hear myself more clearly. I know what I want to say.” 

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Tony Fox - I'm Wrecked.

The new single, "I'm Wrecked", was released a week ago so Beehive Candy is doing a little catching up on this one, in our opinion it's worth sharing and it's taken from the forthcoming debut album Holy Dancing Girls, released on 26th September.

Tony Fox are difficult to categorise, which is one of the reasons we fell in love with them. Their music blends punk, psych and poetry into something raw, honest and entirely their own. "I'm Wrecked" is a song about grief and remembrance, but it's ultimately uplifting—a reminder that the people we lose remain part of us. It's emotionally direct without ever feeling overworked or sentimental.

Mark Perry (Alternative TV / Sniffin' Glue) perhaps described the band best: "Grooving like The Velvets, live in '69, with Patti on vocals." The album itself is a wonderfully DIY affair, made with heart rather than budget, where that spirit shines through every track.

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Brodie Christ - 16 & 9 Lives.

Toronto songwriter Brodie Christ shares “16 & 9 Lives,” an uplifting and defiant alternative Canadiana single that questions the stories we inherit, repeat, and use to define ourselves. Built around warm acoustic instrumentation, conversational lyricism, and a reflective country-tinged sound, the track explores memory, identity, and the freedom that comes from realizing we are not bound to the versions of ourselves we once believed were permanent.

At its core, “16 & 9 Lives” examines the unreliable narratives we create about our own past. The song reflects on how memories are shaped by the moments when we need them most, and how the stories we tell about who we were can become limiting if we allow them to define who we are now. “Your memories betray you,” Brodie explains. “You were not as kind, as cool, as embarrassing, as wild, or as ugly as you thought you were.”

The song found its meaning after an unexpected moment of reflection at Brodie’s high school reunion. Returning to a place filled with old stories and familiar faces, he found himself reconsidering how people hold onto the past.

“Stories were recounted to me over that weekend – some flattering, some embarrassing, some prideful,” he shares. “All of them were lies, or at best exaggerations. I decided I wasn’t interested in being defined by any of it, and it was incredibly liberating.”

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Jessica Lorraine - The Passenger Seat.

Ever since picking up a guitar at age 13, Victorian singer-songwriter, Jessica Lorraine, has displayed tenacity and hard work to follow her music dream. Her family has played a huge role in where her music has taken her. As a surprise, she wrote “The Passenger Seat”, as special thank you gift to these early champions.

“The Passenger Seat is a song I wanted to write for a long time, a dedication to my family who have always been my biggest support”, says Jessica. “I wanted to surprise my family with a song to thank them for all their support and guidance. I’ve come so far - not only in my music journey - but in my personal life too, and that has been thanks to my family”, she says. “We really don’t say ‘Thank you, I love you’ to the closest to us enough, this song is for them. Dedicated to the thousands of kilometres we’ve travelled together for my music, literally and metaphorically.”

Hailing from the Goulburn Valley region of Victoria, Jessica showcases a rich, earthy and emotional intensity in her gorgeous vocals. Her introspective lyrics and warmth have a knack of drawing you into her orbit, offering a space for connection through story and song.

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Lynn Hollyfield - Big Little Lions - Penny Lane Pickets - Michael Kelly - Mama's Broke - Strange Plants - 64 Funnycars

Lynn Hollyfield - Blindspot.

We have the new folk single and music video “Blindspot” from award-winning singer-songwriter Lynn Hollyfield. The poignant song, “Blindspot” was written after losing a family member and a friend to the fentanyl crisis. She shares, “Afterwards, I couldn’t help but wonder if I had been truly open and caring when I was with them. Was there anything I could have done to help them? I’ll never know and it’s one of those hard life lessons - too little too late." The single was produced by Grammy-nominated Seth Glier. 

Blend a beautiful alto voice, crisp acoustic guitar, and a heartfelt perspective on the world, and you have Lynn Hollyfield. Known for her warm stage presence and emotionally rich songs, she connects effortlessly with audiences. Writing in a contemporary folk style, Lynn weaves in jazz-influenced chords and bluesy guitar alongside passionate vocals, think Mary Chapin Carpenter meets Bonnie Raitt with a touch of George Gershwin. The result is her own distinctive voice, witty, soulful, and reflective.

Lynn has been writing songs since her teenage years, growing up on Staten Island, NY, surrounded by a wide range of musical influences, from jazz greats like Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra to artists like The Beatles and Neil Young. She began performing locally at a young age and later gained recognition as part of the duo Hollyfield & Spruill, appearing at festivals such as the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival.

After launching her solo career, Lynn released several acclaimed albums, including LAYERS (2010), IN THE BALANCE (2014), and LOOK UP (2024), earning national and international airplay along with multiple songwriting awards including being listed in the Top Artists/ Top Albums for the International Folk Alliance. During the pandemic, she also published a children’s book, The Tree, The Ship and Me, with its accompanying song recognized as a finalist in the Mid-Atlantic Songwriting Contest.

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Big Little Lions - They Say It Builds Character.

As multi award winning cross border duo, Big Little Lions are going to be releasing monthly singles this year Beehive Candy who are genuine fans of their sumptuous music will just rinse and repeat their background again this month. Big Little Lions are a duo who were born out of a collaboration that won them a JUNO Award in 2014. Since then they have been cranking out infectious folk pop songs that are jam-packed with emotion and tight harmonies that sound like the product of two people working side-by-side instead of living in different countries. 

They have released 7 albums to date, which have garnered them awards and nominations including the CFMA Ensemble of the Year, Independent Music Awards Americana Sing of the Year and John Lennon Songwriting Competition Song of the Year. Their critically acclaimed music has appeared on the CBC’s Top 20 and featured on shows like q and Vinyl Cafe. The duo consists of Paul Otten and Helen Austin, both hugely prolific songwriters - their music has been placed in hundreds of movie trailers, ads, network TV shows.

Their live show is quite the spectacle with Paul playing drums, bass and keyboard all while singing lead vocals. Helen, who is no slacker either, sings, plays guitar and foot percussion. They use every limb, and then some, to make two people sound like a full band.

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Penny Lane Pickets - Penny Lane Pickets / The Dawning (feat. The Rocksteady Crackers).

What if The Beatles grew up in the 90s California punk scene? Meet the Penny Lane Pickets. Straight out of Santa Cruz, the Penny Lane Pickets are here to bridge the gap between a 184 BPM moshpit and a 60s pop melody. Led by the grit of Jax Miller and the driving, distorted walking bass of Sky Bennett, this four-piece is fulfilling their lifelong dream: crashing the legendary Epitaph/Hellcat Records sound head-first into the timeless songwriting of Lennon & McCartney.

Produced and mixed by Sam Dekker, their sound is a high-energy explosion. It’s got the frantic, distorted soul of Rancid and The Suicide Machines, the brass-heavy punch of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, melodic hooks of Goldfinger and the soaring infectious energy of The Interrupters.

But look closer, and you’ll hear the "secret sauce": psych-rock textures and 60s pop-inspired choruses that refuse to leave your head. With a powerhouse brass section (featuring the Rocksteady Crackers) providing the fire, the Pickets deliver a sound that is as much about the "Penny Lane" harmonies as it is about the "Ruby Soho" attitude. This debut single serves as a high-octane prelude to their upcoming full-length album, Copper & Chrome, set to drop on December 18th.

Penny Lane Pickets · Penny Lane Pickets

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Michael Kelly - Anyway (Album).

Michael Kelly is a singer, songwriter, picker and performer. His new album, Anyway, encompasses a wide range of musical influences expressed from a well-honed folk, blues and bluegrass sensibility. He worked the D.C. club circuit early in his career and at one point, took a job at a celebrated Georgetown music venue where he would take money at the door, run inside to re-stock the bar, change clothes to perform a short opening set, then re-stock the bar and head back out to the door. 

He recalls, “Oddly enough, the change of clothes threw people off and only rarely did anyone recognize me as the opening act, although the bands and the regulars were always super supportive.” On-line lessons with Nashville icon Russ Barenberg helped develop a more melodic guitar approach and led to a deeper dive into bluegrass, which included workshops, festivals and wide-ranging cadre of mentors. 

Songs on Anyway include One Good Friend and Joseph, which placed first at the New Song Festival in Winfield, Kansas, in 2024 and 2025, respectively, and Chesapeake Waterman, which placed first at the Common Ground on the Hill Acoustic Roots 2024 songwriting competition. 

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Mama's Broke - The Nameless.

Mama’s Broke, the Nova Scotian duo of Amy Lou Keeler and Lisa Maria announce their new album, Reunion, out August 28 via Free Dirt Records and Forward Music Group and share the latest single, “The Nameless.” Building on their JUNO-nominated album Narrow Line (2022), which saw the pair invited to perform on the legendary NPR Tiny Desk, Reunion reflects a world coming apart in plain sight, tracing fractured communities, the erosion of shared ground, and the growing awareness that the systems we were taught to trust no longer hold or deliver the promises they were meant to keep. The songs don’t preach or prescribe; they reflect, holding up a mirror and leaving space for something else to take shape.

“The Nameless” are the women who are often reduced, in memory and history, to narrow, simplified roles,” explains the band, “their complexity stripped away in favour of labels they are expected to embody, whether flawlessly or tragically.” 

“The Nameless” presents four archetypes: the “scorned lover”, defined only by the man who left her rather than her own life; the “callous mother” judged by her perceived failures without regard for her struggles; the victim of domestic violence, absorbed into statistics while attention and sympathy lingers on the perpetrator; and the missing daughter, whose story evokes a place like the Highway of Tears, where many women, disproportionately Indigenous, have vanished. The headlines, demographic headings and acronyms will never convey the full story of a life, or the true weight of the violence that women face every day.

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Strange Plants - Time Killing.

Continuing upon this year’s previous releases, “Lay Your Mind” and “Ground Falls Away,” Strange Plants share “Time Killing,” a contemplative and expansive psych-rock single that blends atmospheric textures with a sense of quiet, underlying tension. Wistful and immersive, the track leans into themes of existential reflection and the slow passage of time, capturing the feeling of moving through life’s routines while something deeper simmers beneath the surface.

The song’s origin traces back to a period of heavy literary influence. “At the risk of sounding absurdly pretentious, I was reading a lot of Charles Bukowski at the time,” explains songwriter Matt Brannon. “So it created a sort of temporary supercharged nihilism.” That perspective shaped the song’s core idea; a meditation on time, purpose, and the subtle weight of existence.

Built around a rich, retro-psychedelic sound palette, “Time Killing” unfolds with layered instrumentation and tonal contrast. Trippy string arrangements intertwine with shimmering lap steel, creating a unique sonic blend that sets the track apart within the band’s catalogue. The result is a sound that feels both expansive and grounded; classic in influence yet exploratory in execution.

The recording process brought together a striking group of collaborators. Loel Campbell (Wintersleep, Billy Talent) contributed drums, while Christine Bougie (Bahamas) added lap steel and Drew Jurecka (Dua Lipa) arranged the song’s sweeping strings. The track was mixed by Chris Shaw and co-produced alongside JUNO Award-winning producer Michael Phillip Wojewoda, further elevating its textured, cinematic feel.

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64 Funnycars - Happy Go Lucky (Album)

After decades out of print, 64 Funnycars’ cult college rock debut Happy Go Lucky finally returned May 27 through 604 Records. Originally released at the tail end of Canada’s late 80s campus radio boom, the record captured a band that never aimed for cool detachment or punk orthodoxy, instead leaning hard into melody, momentum and the simple thrill of making people move. Nearly four decades later, Happy Go Lucky still sounds remarkably alive in its looseness and charm.

The band formed in 1987 through UVic campus radio circles, bonded by a shared love of groups like Young Fresh Fellows, Hoodoo Gurus, Buzzcocks and The Replacements, bands where hooks and personality mattered just as much as volume. While much of Victoria’s reputation at the time centered around heavier and more abrasive acts, 64 Funnycars carved out their own space, blending power pop, melodic punk and jangly college rock into something energetic, playful and unpretentious. Songs moved fast, choruses arrived early and the energy always felt slightly on the verge of tipping over.

That unpredictability became central to the band’s identity at Harpo’s, the legendary Victoria venue that helped define the Pacific Northwest underground touring circuit through the 80s and early 90s. Long before they became festival headliners, bands like Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Blind Melon and No Doubt came through the room, and the Funnycars quickly became part of that same ecosystem. Their sets thrived on joyful chaos: no fixed setlists, rotating lead vocals and an anything-can-happen atmosphere that made even local shows feel electric. The band later joked that they were “the chess club on tour,” a line that captured both their self-awareness and total lack of rock-star pretension.


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Big Little Lions - Hannah Scott - Hurtsfall - Les Flâneurs - Laura Adeline - Alex Hall - Astari Nite

Big Little Lions - Finish What You Started.

Multi award winning cross border duo, Big Little Lions are going to be releasing monthly singles, which is good news for Beehive Candy as they have been consistently delivering creative and exceptional songs for over a decade.  Big Little Lions are a duo who were born out of a collaboration that won them a JUNO Award in 2014. Since then they have been cranking out infectious folk pop songs that are jam-packed with emotion and tight harmonies that sound like the product of two people working side-by-side instead of living in different countries. 

They have released 7 albums to date, which have garnered them awards and nominations including the CFMA Ensemble of the Year, Independent Music Awards Americana Sing of the Year and John Lennon Songwriting Competition Song of the Year. Their critically acclaimed music has appeared on the CBC’s Top 20 and featured on shows like q and Vinyl Cafe. The duo consists of Paul Otten and Helen Austin, both hugely prolific songwriters - their music has been placed in hundreds of movie trailers, ads, network TV shows.

Their live show is quite the spectacle with Paul playing drums, bass and keyboard all while singing lead vocals. Helen, who is no slacker either, sings, plays guitar and foot percussion. They use every limb, and then some, to make two people sound like a full band.

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Hannah Scott - Sitting In The Dark.

Some background on this notable (to say the least) song from Hannah Scott "I wrote this song in early 2022 about my experiences of renting in London over a fifteen-year period. The song captures the final two weeks I spent in a studio flat in Ealing without working lights - just one example of the challenges I faced despite spending well into six figures on rent."

Some background: “Your music moved me to tears.” This is the refrain contemporary folk artist Hannah Scott regularly hears as she leaves the stage. The best stories make us feel deeply and in the 15 years she has been writing and performing, Hannah has become an exceptional storyteller. Her music is shaped by human connections, with family, in all its chaos and glory, sitting at the heart of her work. Her lyrics are powerful and poignant, and her voice feels strangely familiar, though you can’t quite put your finger on why. Her writing may be deeply personal but her music has a universal appeal that goes beyond the melodies you catch yourself humming in the days after listening to her songs.

The connection she builds with her audiences is most evident in the stories shared by audience members after her performances: the woman whose elderly mother lost a sibling in childhood and is moved to tears by Boy In The Frame; the young father who, upon hearing My Dad & I, realises he wants to spend more time with his small children; the adoptive parents who, like Hannah as a step-parent, may not have been the first person to hold their child, but Love You Like I Did. A deep-rooted desire for this connection has always been the driving force behind her songwriting and live performances.

Hannah Scott · Sitting In The Dark

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Hurtsfall - Memento Mori.

Memento Mori, is the new single from Nottingham darkwave/post-punk trio Hurtsfall (out 1 May). Built around a driving post-punk bass line and brooding synth textures, Memento Mori explores the tension between intimacy and impermanence, that moment where connection is overshadowed by the awareness that everything is temporary. With a vocal that moves between restraint and release, it balances gothic atmosphere with a direct emotional edge.

Hurtsfall write and produce independently in Nottingham and have become a recognised presence on the UK alternative scene, with recent performances at Dot to Dot Festival, Whitby Goth Weekend, and Infest. They have shared stages with Ghost Dance, Skeletal Family, Miranda Sex Garden, and Aurelio Voltaire. Upcoming shows include appearances alongside Pink Turns Blue and The March Violets, as well as a festival slot at Darker Days.

With Memento Mori, Hurtsfall continue to refine their blend of darkwave atmosphere and emotional immediacy — a sound rooted in tradition but reaching toward something more immediate and human.

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Les Flâneurs - Pretty in the Dark.

'Pretty in the Dark' the new single for producer Alessandro Marchetti's project Les Flâneurs is a nocturnal synth-pop track about trying to feel beautiful even when everything inside and around you feels unstable. Moving through dim lights, crowded rooms, and quiet inner tension, it captures the fragile balance between confidence and vulnerability. Beneath its shimmering synths lies a subtle resistance: a way of holding onto yourself while the world blurs, judges, or pulls you down. It’s about finding a personal light in the dark because not everything is perfect, and in spite of it.

For Pretty in the Dark video, Marchetti choose and obtained to syncronize Night Market, a 2023 2D animated short film created by Yingyu Zhu, Chenyi Zhu, and Xinyu Sun from the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in the USA. They are a three-person director team, Chenyi Zhu is responsible for animation, Yingyu Zhu and Chenyi Zhu are responsible for character design, Xinyu Sun and Yingyu Zhu is responsible for the scene design. The film tells the story of a young girl with cancer who finds escape from her isolated hospital life by following glowing butterflies into a magical, vibrant night market. The short explores with delicacy and dreamlikeness themes of illness, imagination, and hope.

Les Flâneurs is the project of the musician and producer Alessandro Marchetti. His first album A Long Season (2020) was played in countless nations around the world and got rave reviews and appreciation. Afterwards, the project entered a phase of exploration. The new album Afterglow, to be released in 2026,  arrives after six years of research, experimentation, and collaboration — a slow process shaped by mood, instinct, and artistic necessity rather than industry timing. Alex Marchetti is the creative mind behind the project. He writes, records, arranges, mixes, and produces the music, shaping every detail of the sound. Les Flâneurs is not conceived as a live act, but as a studio-driven project, in which atmosphere, texture, and emotional depth are central.

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Photo - Jordenne Mills

Laura Adeline - Acquainted.

Like slipping into a soft-focus daydream you don’t want to leave, Naarm/Melbourne-based artist Laura Adeline creates a sweet escape in her new single ‘Acquainted’, out Friday, May 1. Silky and smooth, this tune is Laura's latest addition to her velvety and intimate R&B catalogue. With her vulnerable storytelling, interlaced with textured beats and smooth synthesisers, Laura Adeline remains authentic and vibrant. Receiving considerable endorsement from Triple J, Triple J Unearthed, and Apple Music for previous singles 'Curbside' and '501s' and included in publications The AU Review, AAA Backstage, Stereofox and more, Laura is back with a more stripped-back and experimental version of herself. 

‘Acquainted’ draws from a mix of studio-written lyrics and journal entries pulled from years of personal notes, tracing the lingering confusion, anger, remorse and regret that can follow long after a relationship ends. Speaking on the track, Laura shares: 

“Acquainted is about looking back on something and thinking that I wish this person the best… but I’m actually still mad. But then they probably have the right to be mad at me, too… but I've changed. Have they changed? I don’t want to ever see them again, but if I do… I hope I can find out. And then this process repeats itself.”
  
Intoxicatingly lustrous, ‘Acquainted’ drifts through a floaty, daydream-like haze, supported by a fusion of R&B and alternative pop threaded together with modern funk sensibilities to offer a refined, minimalist sound. Underpinned by subtle electric drums, laid-back bass and reverb-soaked guitar parts, Laura's rich, mesmerizing vocals stand out beautifully.

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Photo - Robert Chavers

Alex Hall - Turn This Love Around (EP).

Nashville-based singer-songwriter Alex Hall has released his star-studded new EP Turn This Love Around. Boasting collaborations with Vince Gill, Tenille Townes and Mae Estes, the five-song collection finds Hall embracing creative freedom as an independent artist, with vulnerable love songs that don’t shy away from the turmoil of everyday life.

“The Turn This Love Around EP is a project about love, growth, the highs and lows of it all, and everything in between,” says Hall. “It touches on my experience with sobriety, the work it takes to build a strong marriage, and stepping into a different side of myself as a songwriter. When it came time to record, I went in a different direction – rather than bringing in the usual top session players in Nashville, I made the record in the studio with close friends I’ve shared the stage with over the years. I think that gave it more of my own fingerprint. It was also really special to have friends like Mae Estes, Tenille Townes, and Vince Gill be part of it. I’m a huge fan of all three, and I’m grateful to make music alongside them.”

Townes, who teamed up with Hall and Gill on the uplifting title track, says: “I love this song so much and I will always smile looking back at the day at Vince’s studio when we all wrote this. The stories shared and the time together talking about the heart of music is something I’ll always carry with me. So glad this song found us that day, and what a joy to be a part of this release! Alex is one of my favourite voices to sing with and a friend I’ve known in this community for a long time, and having a song with the legendary Vince Gill is an absolute dream.”

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Astari Nite - Medications In Bloom (EP).

Astari Nite has just announced the release of their new EP, Medications In Bloom. With themes of validation, self-preservation, romance, glamour and decay running throughout the release, Astari Nite encourages the listener to wear the brightest lipstick, laugh the loudest, be brave and find courage to stand up for yourself. Find positivity in negativity. Open the door and say good morning to strangers. Medications In Bloom inspires and motivates acceptance. Everyone deserves to be loved.
 
Commenting on the Ep's title, vocalist, Mychael Ghost reveals: “My mother has not been doing well for quite some time. My life for the past four and a half years consists of doctor visits, chatting with nurses, buying her flowers that make me sneeze, my mind wandering about childhood memories while holding her hand. Nevertheless, whenever her prescription is re-filled, I’m quickly notified. One day I received that reassuring alert and thought to myself, YAY, “Medications In Bloom” again.”

Medications In Bloom is available on limited edition compact disc and on all major digital outlets worldwide. Astari Nite is known for blending elements of alternative, post-punk and new wave, resulting in a distinctive dark / glam alt sound. Their style is reminiscent of classic alternative bands like Clan of Xymox and Placebo.


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Big Little Lions - Victoria Akua - The Shootouts - Taylor Rae - Esther Rose

Big Little Lions - Nothing Makes Sense Anymore.

Nothing Makes Sense Anymore examines the disturbing new political world in which we are living, trying to understand the madness. The song also pleads for us to keep connecting with each other, to help each other through the daily barrage of new absurdity.

Big Little Lions are an award winning duo who were born out of a collaboration that won them a JUNO Award in 2014. Since then they have been cranking out infectious folk pop songs that are jam-packed with emotion and tight harmonies that sound like the product of two people working side-by-side instead of living in different countries.

They have released 6 albums to date, which have garnered them awards and nominations including the CFMA Ensemble of the Year, Independent Music Awards Americana Sing of the Year and John Lennon Songwriting Competition Song of the Year. Their critically acclaimed music has appeared on the CBC’s Top 20 and featured on shows like q and Vinyl Cafe. The duo consists of Paul Otten and Helen Austin, both hugely prolific songwriters - their music has been placed in hundreds of movie trailers, ads, network TV shows.

Their live show is quite the spectacle with Paul playing drums, bass and keyboard all while singing lead vocals. Helen, who is no slacker either, sings, plays guitar and foot percussion. They use every limb, and then some, to make two people sound like a full band. Their music has been dubbed by Mariposa Folk Festival as ‘a blissful marriage of new folk and sophisticated pop’, and is packed with emotion and tight harmonies.

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Photo - Camilla Vodstrup Øverup

Victoria Akua - Surrender.

We are really pleased to feature Victoria Akua's new single released today for the simple reason that we think it's absolutely exquisite! Victoria Akua on her new single: "It is so easy to get caught up in fears and desires - and both is related to the past and the future, and as I see it, it takes us away from where life is happening - in this moment! “I want to let life surprise me, instead of trying to figure it all out”. This sentence has come to me many times, especially in situations where I’ve been trying to control the outcome — it helps me relax and trust more. Life just feels so much more joyful, creative and alive with that sense of openness to it."

Victoria's music is based on her own journey, which began at a young age, searching for more balance and a deeper peace and understanding within herself. In a hectic world where it is so easy to be pulled in many directions, she wants to find ways to stay centered with an open heart in the hope that her music can support others on their own paths. 

The intention of the music is to have a nourishing, calming and healing effect. Music that comes from the heart and that reflects and creates inner peace, trust and self-love - and connects us. Her music is inspired by the rhythms and cycles of nature, healthy and nurturing connections between people and creating spaces for expression, creativity and loving energy. Through the simplicity of the music, the listener is invited directly into a calm cocoon where breathing becomes deeper and the mind can rest.

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The Shootouts - Trampoline (feat: Lindsay Lou).

Akron, Ohio’s Rustbelt Americana torchbearers, The Shootouts, have announced the May 30th release of their new album Switchback on Transoceanic Records. The forthcoming collection finds the band refining their sound by incorporating elements of roots rock and bluegrass while maintaining their traditional country sensibilities. Their infectious first single, “Trampoline,” featuring ethereal guest vocals from Lindsay Lou is an exciting taste of what's to follow, it's really that good!.

Recorded in Nashville, TN, The Shootouts brought in Dan Knobler (Allison Russell, Lake Street Dive, Bahamas), to produce, mix, and co-engineer Switchback. The collaboration was exactly what the three band members (Ryan Humbert / lead vocals & rhythm guitar; Emily Bates / backing vocals & acoustic guitar; and Brian Poston / lead guitar) had hoped for: someone who shared their vision and brought fresh ideas to the group. The result is the natural progression of a seasoned band whose sound continues to evolve without losing its identity.

Switchback opens with “Trampoline,” followed by the high-energy rocker “The Other Side of My Life.” Lou, Sam Bush, and Mickey Raphael lend their talents to an original take on the 80s pop classic “Only You” by UK duo Yazoo (aka Yaz in North America).

Two country legends accompany Humbert on vocals, starting with Rodney Crowell on the country folk-infused “Half a World Away,” and Vince Gill on an electrifying rendition of “I’ll Be Damned,” a song he penned and recorded as a member of Pure Prairie League in 1980. “Only Good at Goodbye” features a guest vocal by singer/songwriter Logan Ledger, with the renowned Russ Pahl on pedal steel.

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Photo - Barbara FG

Taylor Rae - Telluride (feat. Sierra Hull).

Austin-based singer/songwriter Taylor Rae unveiled today her new single “Telluride” featuring a guest appearance by Grammy-nominated artist Sierra Hull. The latest to release off her new album The Void (due out April 18th), the track arrives on the heels of her debut at SXSW, which prompted NPR Music to name her on their Best of SXSW 2025 list. With a bluegrass-tinge and steady groove, “Telluride” is a windows-down, road-wary anthem that calls to mind the likes of Petty’s “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” or Zeppelin’s “Going to California.” It was featured on Relix who raved “‘Telluride’ is easy listening and an ideal track for a journey on the road or of the heart.”

"I should start by saying that I have never been to Telluride,” stated Rae. “I have, however, been to just about every other corner of that state, and have driven through the Southwest Region of the United States countless times. This song seed came while on a radio tour through Colorado, which ended right before the weekend of Telluride Bluegrass Festival, and I remember feeling so bummed that I wasn't attending. Feeling left out, behind in life, and alone, I drove myself back home to Austin and finished the bulk of the song in the driver's seat. Living life on the road allows much time for contemplation, processing, and accepting. It can be addicting because of this, referenced in the line 'time stands still on the road.' Who wouldn’t be addicted to time standing still? For that reason, it gets overwhelming coming off the road. Things seem to move at a lightning speed making it hard for someone like me, who has a hard time with transitions, to ride the wave.”

She continued, “When I met Sierra, I immediately dreamt of her contributing to this song. Before the song was even finished, before recording this album was even in my head, I knew I wanted her to be a part of it. She brought this song to life, and I thought with the bluegrass/Telluride reference, it would just make so much sense to have the mandolin queen herself grace our presence."

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Photo - Char Klein

Esther Rose - Had To.

Esther Rose will release Want on May 2, 2025 via New West Records. The 11-track set was produced by Ross Farbe (of Video Age) and recorded live-to-tape at the Bomb Shelter in Nashville, TN. Want is the anticipated follow up to 2023’s Safe to Run which was met with wide acclaim from The New York Times, Pitchfork, Stereogum, No Depression, and more. The album features appearances by the singer songwriter Dean Johnson as well as members of Video Age, The Deslondes, and Silver Synthetic.

Following the wide-open serenity of Safe to Run, Rose now leans toward confrontational arrangements full of distortion and full-band spontaneity, never sacrificing a classicist’s gift for melody that makes each song instantly memorable. “For me, these songs felt like revelations,” she explains, comparing the record to a memoir, alive with kinetic storytelling and personal insight. Ranging from stark solo performances to grungy blowouts, the album maintains a steady focus while never staying too long in one place. Vivid and bracing, she has made the most adventurous, hardest-hitting record of her career.

Yesterday, Rose shared the video for the album standout “Had To,” which was directed by Anthony Simpkins of GemsOnVHS. She says, “In ‘Had To,’ I examine my relationship with alcohol, and also my relationship with touring. A long time ago, I heard New Orleans legend Washboard Chaz say this: ‘People are always offering musicians exposure. But you can die from too much exposure!’ Since writing this song, I have stopped drinking, but I have not stopped touring.”

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Rodney Cromwell - Tony's Tears - Big Little Lions

Rodney Cromwell - Get Me To Prague / Radagast The Brown.

Rodney Cromwell is the nom-de-plume of Adam Cresswell. Both tracks on this new single were recorded while Cresswell was in his first band SALOON that operated between 1998-2003. Saloon released three albums with Track & Field (UK) and Darla (US). They toured extensively in Europe, supporting the likes of STEREOLAB, ELECTRELANE, QUICKSPACE and OF MONTREAL. They are remembered mostly today for their 3 John Peel Sessions and four Festive 50 entries, including the number one in 2002.

 ‘Get Me To Prague’ was written and recorded in 1999 on a Yamaha four-track tape recorder using a bomtempi organ, casiotone and Moog Rogue. Recorded in a single evening, the track is an exploration into proto-germanic electronica in the style of Ralf & Forian era Kraftwerk.  Taking 22 years to get a mix he was happy with, Cresswell cites this as because “I didn’t like the snare sound.” 

In 2001, Saloon were asked to offer a track for a tribute to a ‘The Lord of The Rings’ album. The rest of the band were less-than enthusiastic, but for Cresswell, for whom the Spectrum computer game of ‘Rings’ had been a formative experience, it was an offer too good to refuse. In lieu of a proper studio, ‘Radagast The Brown’ was composed one Saturday afternoon in 2001, on the bed of his girlfriend’s grandfather, while he was out watching a Reading FC home game. Also recorded in one sitting, the song was made on a minidisc 8-track recorder, using just a Casiotone keyboard and a Korg MS-10 synth. It is another exploration into primitive chiptune electronica, with echoes of Plone, Jean Jacques-Perry or Gershon Kingsley. 

Under his solo guise of Rodney Cromwell he released the LP 'Age of Anxiety' in 2015 and 'Rodney's English Disco' EP in 2018, with coverage in Electronic Sound, NME, Huffington Post, Impose, Paste, Record Collector, BBC6 Music and national RNE3 in Spain, for whom he recorded a live session. The debut album featured in scores of Best of Lists including Electronic Sound and The Electricity Club who named him ‘Most Promising New Act’.  His last single ‘Memory Box’ precedes an album of the same, to be released in March 2022; described as “pure hertz tone glory” by Post-Punk.com, it has had numerous blog features and radio plays, including national play from BBC 6 Music.

Happy Robots Records · RODNEY CROMWELL: Get Me To Prague

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Tony's Tears - Gazing At The Border.

Stockholm synthpop duo Tony's Tears are following up their debut EP that was released earlier this year with the single "Gazing at the Border". It's the first single of the EP "Erasing Diamonds" that is to be released this spring. Tony's Tears saw the light during the pandemic and they are really looking forward to play a real show in their hometown on Xmas day!

Their music can be defined as cinematic indie that is flirting with the 80's together with "suggestive and electronic elements".

Alex och William about the song: The song serves as a scene in a larger story that fits within our upcoming ep "Erasing Diamonds". The text is like a look into an event where one does not quite know what has happened before or after. Which aims to instead directly jump into the middle of the dramatic curve.

Where we’re told about a situation where someone has been taken away and where the self in the song is powerless to do anything about the situation. The song is about a form of "we" and "them" drama. Where there is a superiority and an oppressed side. The sound image is intended a bit like a message from a VHF-radio that sometimes loses its connection and turns into noise with voices in the background and then reconnects again.

Aivaprod · Tony's Tears - Gazing At The Border

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Big Little Lions - From The Storm.

From The Storm is written, recorded and produced by Big Little Lions who are Helen Austin & Paul Otten.The lyrics are reproduced below.

It’s getting late, a chill sets in
You hesitate, you’re wondering
If you should go
You’re so used to icy hands
That follow every frosty glance
You never know

Chorus:
You didn’t bring a coat
But I will keep you warm
I know I can protect you
From the storm 

When the sun starts to shine
It’s still cloudy in your mind
Too scared the forecast might be wrong
So winter holds you
And winter told you
This is where you belong
Chorus.

 


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