Lily Frost - Jaelee Roberts - Toilet Rats - Old Crow Medicine Show

Lily Frost - More Love.

On her new single “More Love,” Toronto’s Lily Frost continues to display her musical versatility with a song that gets to the core of how many of us are feeling about the current state of the world. Over a hypnotic sonic backdrop, Frost shares the simple and direct message encapsulated in the song’s title, with the intent to make us all think about what we could be doing better to improve the lives of those around us.

“‘More Love’ is a spell,” Lily says. “It is a calling in of what I want more of and a releasing of what I want less of. I chose the word ‘less’ instead of ‘fewer’ as poetic license to keep the language simple and direct. Mitch Willer created a syncopated beat in the chorus and sang with me to give the song more edge, while the verses return to a hypnotic call-and-release feeling. The song became, in the end, an anti-war, pro-peace spell for the world and each individual toward themselves and others. I send it out from my heart in this time of global distress.” Over the past three decades, Lily Frost has journeyed through the ever-evolving landscape of music and art with poetic instinct and fearless reinvention.

After five years of touring up and down the west coast in various outfits, Lily signed as a solo artist with Nettwerk Records in 2001 for the album Lunamarium. She returned to Toronto in 2004 where she released six critically acclaimed albums on Aporia Records and toured internationally. Her songs have been widely synced in film and television, including the film Crazy/Beautiful and the television show Grey’s Anatomy, earning her recognition for her cinematic writing and vintage-modern sound.

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Jaelee Roberts - I’m Putting You Out of My Misery.

“‘I’m Putting You Out of My Misery’ is one of those songs that stopped me in my tracks the first time I heard it,” says Jaelee Roberts of her latest single — and first new music since last year’s full-length sophomore album, Let Me Be Lonely. “Terry Herd wrote an incredible song, and I fell in love with it right away. To me, it strikes the perfect balance between that hard-driving traditional sound and a touch of contemporary bluegrass, and I absolutely love how everything came together in the studio. I’ve always enjoyed a song with a little bit of attitude, and this one definitely delivers!”

Backed by a stellar crew — Ron Stewart (Seldom Scene) on banjo; guitarist Tony Wray; Alan Bartram (Travelin’ McCourys, Del McCoury Band) on bass; award-winning fiddler Michael Cleveland, and acclaimed multi-instrumentalist Justin Moses (mandolin, dobro), with Zack Arnold (Rhonda Vincent & the Rage) adding harmony vocals — Roberts tackles the quintessentially bluegrass combination of up-tempo music and downbeat lyrics (including a bit of classic wordplay for good measures) with her signature compelling verve: Woke up today with a heavy heart - The weight of the world is tearin’ me apart - Memories callin' they won't let me stay - So I'm packin' my bags and leavin' today..

“I’m truly proud of how the track turned out,” says Roberts, “and I’m so thankful to each of these amazing musicians for being part of it. I hope you all enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed recording it!”

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Photo - Joe Vaughan

Toilet Rats - Shimmy.

Minneapolis' Toilet Rats shares "Shimmy," a new wave-inspired dancefloor jam that is perfectly postured for this Summer's "Goth Nights." "Shimmy" was mixed by Sean O'Keefe (Motion City Soundtrack, Beach Bunny, Fallout Boy) and mastered by Kris Johnson (Jayhawks, Gramma).

"Shimmy' is a heart-on-sleeve new wave romp written after arriving on the other side of an illness and surgery," says Tommy Ratz. "I wanted to dance with my friends post-recovery, even if we didn't know any good moves. Ultimately, it's an uplifting bop about checking in on your friends, 'cause people did that for me. Everyone needs a boost sometimes. Think Breakfast Club meets The Cure."

Five years deep, and Toilet Rats have never sounded bigger. Black Cats, the groups third LP on Steadfast Records and Sweet Cheetah Records spans 14 tracks of fuzz, synths, drum machines, moody '80s college rock, punk scorchers, and new wave dance floor slammers, all recorded during a period of real disruption.

If you dig songs about ghouls, calamity, surviving illness, and showing up for each other, this album is sure to find a welcome home in your collection. Black Cats sees release on June 26.

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Photo - Ed Rode

Old Crow Medicine Show - Last American Waltz" feat. Molly Tuttle.

Today Old Crow Medicine Show shares the gorgeous new single "Last American Waltz" feat. Molly Tuttle, the latest from the band's upcoming album Union Made which releases on June 5 with Hartland Records via Firebird Music. Accompanied by a music video filmed in the dancehall of Nashville's American Legion, "Last American Waltz" unfolds with the kind of warmth and emotional resonance that has long defined American roots music.

"'Last American Waltz' is a love song to America in 3/4 time," says bandleader Ketch Secor. "We wanted it to feel timeless - the kind of song that could drift across a dancehall floor at midnight or echo through an old American Legion hall after the lights come up. Having Molly Tuttle join us on this track brought even more heart and soul to the recording.”

"Last American Waltz" follows the band's previous single "My Side Of The Mountain," a generation-spanning collaboration co-written by Secor, Tuttle and Luke Combs, and featuring bluegrass legends Del McCoury and Ronnie McCoury. The song has garnered early attention from The Bluegrass Situation, Relix, Whiskey Riff, MusicRow, AmericanaUK and more. Produced by longtime bandmember Morgan Jahnig and recorded in the band's own East Nashville studio, Union Made is Old Crow Medicine Show's most collaborative project to date, featuring appearances from nearly a dozen guests including Maggie Rose, Turnpike Troubadours' Evan Felker, Jesse Welles, Lee Oskar, John Carter Cash and Ana Cristina Cash. 

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Lily Frost - Bird Streets - Mathis Akengin ft. Claire Passard - The Steel Wheels

Lily Frost - Cure For Loneliness.

Since the late 1990s, Toronto singer/songwriter Lily Frost has built an impressive body of work that spans pop in nearly all its forms, from vintage to contemporary. On top of that, Lily’s dynamic performing skills and impeccable personal style have cemented her status as one of Toronto’s most beloved musical artists.

Lily is now excited to announce that she has partnered with New York-based KMG Distribution and The Royalty Network to reissue two of her recent acclaimed independent albums, 2019’s Retro-Moderne and 2022’s Decompression. As well, she is sharing the single “Cure For Loneliness,” a jaunty western swing ditty, co-written with Eleni Mandel, and featuring Toronto twang master Nichol Robertson. Lily is celebrating all of this news with a Toronto show on Wed. Sept. 24 at Sauce on Danforth.

Lily’s new partnerships will bring greater international exposure to Retro-Moderne and Decompression, while generating further opportunities for song placements, an area in which she has enjoyed great past success. In 2001, Lily’s song “Who Am I?” appeared on the Crazy/Beautiful soundtrack, and in 2009 she was nominated for a Gemini Award for co-writing “All I Ever Wanted To Be,” the theme for the CBC television series Being Erica. Lily’s songs have also been heard in the shows Grey’s Anatomy, Charmed, Felicity, Stargate SG-1, Workin’ Moms, as well as in commercials for Chevrolet and Hudson’s Bay.

However, Lily is thrilled by the prospect of audiences (re)discovering Retro-Moderne and Decompression, two collections that display the full range of her songwriting abilities. The former shines with infectious hooks, while the latter is grounded in heartfelt alt-country.

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Bird Streets - Run For Our Lives.

Brooklyn's Bird Streets (John Brodeur) is thrilled to present the latest single from their forthcoming album The Escape Artist. "Run For Our Lives" is pop-rock in the classic sense, overflowing with vocal and guitar hooks, and sporting a chorus that will stick in your frontal lobe for days to come. Recorded in Los Angeles with producer Jason Falkner, "Run For Our Lives" is the third single in advance of the new record, following the introspective folk-pop of "It's A Start," and the driving rock noir of "Mistaker."

Brodeur says, “Run For Our Lives has roots in the late ‘90s. I had the first few verses but could never figure out where to go from there–I tried probably a dozen different choruses over the years. I showed it to Jason when we were auditioning material for the record, and he offered up some chords and a melody. It was one of those chocolate-and-peanut-butter moments–his chorus was exactly what the song needed."

The vibrant "Run For Our Lives" music video prominently features members of New York-based theatrical dance troupe The Love Show. Shot in the troupe's own Hidden Jewel Box Theater–a performance space constructed inside a defunct Mrs. Field's Cookies shop at Manhattan's Port Authority–the clip finds Brodeur and his band coming face to face with a merry band of kooks. Viewers may notice subtle nods to one or more George Harrison videos.

The Escape Artist, out October 17, is a self-described paranoid guitar-pop record, that "runs the gamut from claustrophobic folk to angular indie-rock to power-pop to punk-rock freakout." Written and recorded during and after the global pandemic, the album touches on themes of fear, isolation, and existential dread, while serving up the indelible melodies and arrangements that have made Bird Streets one of indie-rock's most underrated artists.

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Photo - Hugo Horsin

Mathis Akengin ft. Claire Passard - Mer d'hiver.

There are seas that no longer make waves. In his new single ‘Mer d’hiver’, Mathis Akengin lends his voice to that very sea, joined by the delicate voice of Claire Passard. A winter sea slowed down, dense, almost frozen, where everything seems to be holding its breath. In winter, the sea becomes a metaphor for suspended time, for life slowed down, for what seems asleep yet continues, silently, to transform.

An old sailor whispers: ‘As-tu vu passer l’orage?’ (Did you see the storm pass by?), the question lingers, simple yet devastating. Did we notice the moment when everything shifted? Was it already too late? The piece moves with restraint, between silences and resonances, like a memory one hardly dares to touch.

At the age when his peers were learning to read and write, Mathis Akengin discovered a passion for a different form of expression: the piano. Like many early talents—often referred to as ‘prodigies’ due to their rarity—the young musician entered the Conservatory at the age of six, where he would study for fifteen years, later adding a stint at the Haute Ecole de Musique in Lausanne. His exemplary path confirmed his natural talent.

However, the youngling from Franche-Comté (France) didn’t want to limit himself to classical music. Contemporary music quickly caught his attention. At the age of twelve, he formed his first band and started his first tours. Little did he know that, a few years later, he would join the blues-rock duo Catfish, a band he had once opened for. Projects multiplied. By the age of twenty-five, his list of collaborations was already impressive. Mathis’ keyboards, both in the studio and live, resonate in a variety of formations with sounds ranging from Dead Chic (rock), Eméa (world-soul), Alexandrie (pop), to Neptune Quartet (oriental jazz). Eclectic, Mathis is also a versatile artist. He’s often sought after to arrange albums, always finding new ways to develop his creativity and skills.

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Photo - Monik Geisel

The Steel Wheels - Chase It All Away.

Today, Virginia-based Americana pioneers The Steel Wheels announce the release of their new self-titled LP to coincide with their 20 year anniversary as a band. The LP will come out on CD + vinyl on Oct. 31, but won’t be released to streaming services until next year on March 14, 2026, emphasizing the fan first mentality that has been a hallmark of the band’s since their inception. Today, they’ve also shared new single “Chase It All Away,” which combines a pop melody, a New Orleans style jazz piano, frontman Trent Wagler’s twangy vocals and an expansive fiddle solo for a commentary on the hustle of modern-day life. 

On the new track, Wagler shares: “Hold it all at once. The diagnosis, the beautiful beach, the hard work coming, the lazy afternoon. How do we measure the need of the day? Is it in widgets moved, checklists marked, or in winding paths taken? How do we keep our inner fire burning to keep curious and passionate, without breaking down when life hits us with the unexpected?” 

Their ninth studio album, The Steel Wheels was co-produced by D. James Goodwin (Goose, Bonny Light Horseman, I’m With Her), who mixed the band’s 2019 album Over The Trees. The project was recorded at Goodwin’s new Shenandoah Valley studio during a snowy Virginia winter, and the process was fluid and swift. Sessions were punctuated by peals of laughter and occasional tears as the group embraced vulnerability and leaned into every emotion as it came. The album that resulted captures a band at its creative apex: honoring their roots as a harmony-centric acoustic ensemble but fully leaning into the folk rock that they’ve grown into over the last 20 years. 

On the LP, in typical Steel Wheels fashion, Wagler’s lyrics pose big, philosophical questions that he realizes have no answer. The sneakily profound earworm “Easy” they released last month is a perfect example of that – asking if in this age of technology and accessibility, is everything really easier? 

The Steel Wheels · Chase It All Away

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