Summer 2022 guide: 14 albums you need to hear

Summer has arrived, and with it, the promise of free time, leisurely strolls, pool parties and escapes to the countryside — pursuits that can all benefit from a rotation of fresh tunes.

Canada's musicians are ready to oblige with a steady stream of new releases over the coming weeks. Read on for our guide to the Canadian albums we think you need to hear for summer 2022, listed by release date.

Artist: Ansley Simpson
Album: She Fell From the Sky
Release date: June 21 

Anishinaabe singer-songwriter Ansley Simpson is back with their sophomore album dropping on the solstice, and while songs from She Fell From the Sky can be enjoyed separately, they're best listened to together, keeping true to the narrative thread that Simpson has so carefully crafted. The album is inspired by Gizhiigokwe, or Sky Woman, who originally fell from the sky to birth this world. Over Simpson's 11-track epic, Gizhiigokwe is "asked the impossible task of falling once more from the sky to fix the mess we are in," according to Simpson's Instagram post. Swaying from meditative strumming ("Migration") to driving folk-rock ("The Wake"), this lush album, woven together by Simpson's powerful voice, features many a collaborator, including Heather Kirby (bass), Joshua Van Tassel (drums, percussion), Cris Derksen (cello) and Mkomiikaa Smith Simpson (jingle dress), to name just a few. That She Fell From the Sky arrives on National Indigenous Peoples Day underscores its message of rebirth and change — and that cover art by Christi Belcourt is a perfect match. — Holly Gordon

Artist: Louis Lortie
Album: Chopin, Vol. 7 
Release date: July 1 

Louis Lortie's Chopin series for Chandos Records is the gift that keeps on giving. For the seventh volume, he plays pieces with a nationalistic bent, spanning the chronology of Chopin's output. From the composer's early years, there's the lesser-known Rondo à la Mazur, which foreshadowed all the mazurkas he would later write, as well as the Boléro, Op. 19, which capitalized on the 1830s Parisian fad for all things Spanish. Lortie also plays Chopin's Tarantelle, composed in response to the popularity of Italian opera at the time. But of course, Poland was closest to Chopin's heart, and Lortie honours that heritage with four sets of mazurkas and the Op. 53 Polonaise. Look forward to a performance that balances jaw-dropping dexterity and velvet sonorities with soulful introspection. — Robert Rowat

Artist: Metric
Album: Formentera 
Release date: July 8 

When you Google Formentera, you are immediately greeted with photos of bright blue seas. It's an idyllic location that Metric's Emily Haines and Jimmy Shaw had written down as a "dream destination" they wanted to travel to in 2020. Instead, the two were in the woods just north of Toronto for many months that year constructing a new recording studio; Formentera soon became as imaginary as our pre-pandemic lives. This uncertain period became a formative influence on the songs that came pouring into Formentera, the Toronto rock band's eighth studio album. Lead single "All Comes Crashing" is described by the band as an "end-of-days banger" about the loved ones you want to be with when catastrophe strikes, while the 10-minute opus "Doomscroller" digs into our collective digital anxiety around the news cycle. Instead of sinking deeper into our worries, it is Metric's hope that the band's synth-pop offerings can be equal parts balm and dance-fuelled distraction that will bring us together in the near future. — Melody Lau 

Artist: Rachel Bobbitt
Album: The Ceiling Could Collapse
Release date: July 15

"Every woman I've ever talked to is in some amount of pain, almost all the time," singer-songwriter Rachel Bobbitt says. "That could be physical pain, emotional pain, familial pain, but it's there in cycles." Despite this sad reality and life's guaranteed unpredictability — as her forthcoming EP title suggests, the ceiling could collapse at any time — Rachel Bobbitt's latest collection is a steady hand held out in a shaky, patriarchal world. The Toronto-based, Nova Scotia-raised artist layers her vocals over melancholic, trodding guitar melodies — à la contemporary bedroom-rock heroines Phoebe Bridgers and Snail Mail — unraveling generational trauma and outdated ideologies in an effort to put one foot in front of the other. Produced by longtime collaborator and equally impressive Canadian musician Justice Der, and mixed by Grammy nominee Jorge Elbrecht, the contemplative questions asked and answered on The Ceiling Could Collapse signal Bobbitt's undoubted arrival. — Jess Huddleston

Artists: Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Chamber Orchestra of Europe
Album: Beethoven: the Symphonies
Release date: July 15

The Chamber Orchestra of Europe and conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin (who's an honorary member of the ensemble) have already released the complete symphonies of Mendelssohn and Schumann and five operas by Mozart to great acclaim. They're back after a COVID-related delay with this new set of all nine symphonies by Beethoven, surely the most iconic body of work in the orchestral repertoire. "I'm interested in how Beethoven's music can surprise us today," says Nézet-Séguin in the promotional material. "Our interpretation should make the audience feel as if they were hearing this music for the first time." An ambitious goal, but local press praised the "highly focused communication between conductor and orchestra" when they performed these symphonies in July 2021 at the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, where the set was recorded, and they make a convincing case with the slow movement from Symphony No. 7. — RR

Artist: Aquakultre
Album: Don't Trip
Release date: July 22 

Aquakultre may have started as a solo artist, but his releases have become increasingly collaborative, celebratory affairs — the Polaris longlisted Legacy, featuring Big Budi Band; Bleeding Gums Murphy with producer DJ Uncle Fester — and upcoming album Don't Trip is the peak of that communal spirit. Featuring more than 20 guests, including fellow Halifax artists Chudi Harris, Zamani and Owen O'Sound Lee as well as Toronto rapper Phoenix Pagliacci and R&B singer Tafari Anthony, Don't Trip is a block party of music that's deeply personal to Aquakultre, given name Lance Sampson, who originally imagined this as a five-song EP inspired by the beginning of his relationship with partner and artist Julia Hutt. 

"This album is totally posse'd out," Sampson said in a press release. "Ideas kept flowing, so I tried to get as many artists involved that I've made relationships with over the years as possible. A lot of COVID-era art encapsulates the difficult times we're living through, but I wanted to flip the script and get back to dancing and having fun." With inspiration coming from "every era of R&B," trust us when we say the breezy title track is just a taste of what's to come. — HG 

Artist: The Sadies
Album: Colder Streams
Release date: July 22

World-weary and exhausted but still trying every damn day — is there a more relatable state of existence in 2022? This is the vibe of "All the Good," the first single from the Sadies' forthcoming album, Colder Streams. The song is so real — recognizing yourself in the lyrics, the rhythm of your own aimless heartbeat in the glorious ramble-and-amble instrumentation — the relief of it all sneaks up on you.

There's also a welcome wryness to the vulnerability in "All the Good," a trademark of the Sadies' songwriting over the band's discography. This album, the group's 11th, will be the last one with founding member Dallas Good, who died suddenly this past February. His loss is tremendous; even casual fans of the Sadies know that his presence filled up the notes and words of every song. A particular pleasure is the witty and withering "anti-bio" Good wrote after recording wrapped in 2021. It opens with: "Colder Streams is, by far, the best record that has ever been made by anyone. Ever." No arguments here, Mr. Good. — Andrea Warner 

Artist: Mariel Buckley
Album: Everywhere I Used to Be
Release date: Aug. 12

The best kinds of road songs are the ones where you can feel the miles disappearing under every note. Mariel Buckley's "Shooting at the Moon," the first single from her second album, Everywhere I Used to Be, captures the realities of the road from the opening notes. The music moves with an almost relentless momentum, and Buckley wastes no time setting the scene: "I've played in motel bars, dingy lounges with dirty floors/ wueen of the one-star room/ every night it seems I'm living someone else's dream/ can I have one, too?" It's a rhetorical question from a narrator who isn't necessarily Buckley, but the answer is a resounding yes. I don't know if it's Buckley's dream to be an essential new voice in Canadian music, but she is. Everywhere I Used to Be should prove that. — AW 

Artists: Neil Swainson Quintet
Album: Fire in the West
Release date: Aug. 19

"I don't want to change the world, but if I could change somebody's life in a little way, I'm happy with that." In the promotional material for his new album, Fire in the West, bassist Neil Swainson may be understating the impact his quintet will surely have on Canada's jazz landscape. Uniting a stellar, bi-coastal cohort of modern jazz practitioners — Brad Turner on trumpet, Kelly Jefferson on saxophone, Renee Rosnes on piano and Lewis Nash on drums — the album presents 10 Swainson originals that, while complex, "are not going to sound like a math lesson or anything," Swainson jokes. Full of praise for his bandmates, he says "they're capable of transcending the difficulties or the simplicities of the music and making it an emotional experience." What more could you wish for? — RR

Artist: Johnny Orlando
Album: all the things that could go wrong 
Release date: Aug. 19 

The key to any young artist's success is taking their time to discover who they are and what they want to sound like. Oftentimes, the wait is worth it. Toronto pop star Johnny Orlando has been releasing music for an entire decade now, but the now 19-year-old is finally ready to drop his debut album this year, titled all the things that could go wrong — and from the sound of its title, it feels like Orlando has wisely thought over his every move in the music industry. The album will tackle themes of anxiety, pressures of social media, and relationships; a genuine portrayal of teenage life and coming-of-age publicly. For those who have followed his career over the years, now feels like the ideal time for Orlando to make a big statement: his musical identity has grown immensely, and his recent string of singles have proven that he's finally found a groove somewhere between EDM-inspired bops and heartfelt pop melodies. And nothing will be more convincing than his latest single, "Blur," a song-of-the-summer contender that will have you unabashedly hitting repeat for months to come. — ML

Artist: Bibi Club
Album: Le soleil et la mer
Release date: Aug. 26

Couple Adèle Trottier-Rivard and Nicolas Basque have been making "living room party music" since they released their first self-titled EP as Bibi Club back in 2019. The Montreal duo's name comes from their living room discothèque, where they invite their loved ones, affectionately referred to as "bibis," to come and dance. Trottier-Rivard and Basque make music that doesn't necessarily act as an escape from the everyday but rather finds a way to fit perfectly within it. Le soleil et la mer, their debut album, was written and produced in stolen moments, when the couple found time to create outside of raising children. Trottier-Rivard sings occasionally with Basque's band Plants and Animals, but Bibi Club is where her siren-like voice shines front and centre. The album is full of songs that grip you unsuspectingly, from the guitar-driven pop of "Femme Lady" to the synth-heavy disco" of "La nuit." The balmy sounds and clever word play hit you slowly then all at once, and suddenly you're engulfed in a sonic world that feels as familiar as a warm hug. It's an incredibly intimate record that feels celebratory of life's tiny wins, but also leaves space to wallow in the hardships. — Kelsey Adams 

Artist: Nuela Charles 
Album: TBA 
Release date: late summer 

In a recent interview with SOCAN, soul/pop artist Nuela Charles reflected on her career: "I feel like I kind of lost myself the last 10 years trying to do Nuela Charles. Like, 'Who am I without the music?'" The answer to that, funnily enough, can be found on the songs off her upcoming album, her followup to 2019's Melt. Charles' introspection, which has led to themes of self-empowerment and standing in one's power instead of dimming yourself for others, has made for some of the singer's best and most confident singles yet, including "Awakening" and the irresistible groove of "Worthy." To be 10 years into a career is a testament to Charles' perseverance, but to make music that is only getting bigger and better is a unique skill that very few musicians possess. — ML

Artist: Carly Rae Jepsen
Album: TBA 
Release date: TBA

Carly Rae Jepsen's "Western Wind" quickly made it onto our songs-of-the-summer list after its May release, but it's the only taste we have of what's to come from the B.C.-born singer's imminent sixth album. On a billboard advertising the new Rostam-produced track, Jepsen posted a phone number for fans to call, with a pre-recorded message on the other end: "​​Hello. You've reached the Carly Rae Jepsen hotline. Text me here to stay in the loop on all the kinds of things: new music, tour, secrets that I haven't even come up with yet. News… no, wait, there will be no news. Sorry. But there will be music for sure," she said. With new tour dates announced for the fall, including Toronto and Montreal dates, we can only hope Jepsen will have a new pop-perfect soundtrack for the end of this summer season. — HG

Artist: Roy Woods
Album: Mixed Emotions
Release date: TBA

Mixed Emotions promises to be Roy Woods' most open and honest project to date. The Toronto singer and rapper has been working on it, and himself, for four years, and the 13 songs reflect that he's still parsing through some things internally. The first single, "Insecure," is about a dysfunctional relationship, one that Woods can't seem to let go of: "Need me more than ever, I can't leave her." His lofty falsetto adds to his vulnerability, and as he pleads with his girl to sever ties with her ex, he sounds more worried than demanding, like she's holding all the cards. The song was co-written with Boobie, JulsTheWulf and Harv, frequent collaborators of Summer Walker and Justin Bieber.

The album will be Woods' first full-length since 2017's Say Less, the debut that cemented him as a force to be reckoned with in Canadian R&B. Mixed Emotions balances itself between lightness and fun and darker, moodier introspective moments. Woods conceived of the album to help himself process, not necessarily focused on creating the sounds "I think listeners might want," as he explained in a statement. He shared that the new album is " the intro to a new chapter of Roy Woods: not just musically, but how I see life, how I perceive my place in the world. What I've gained and what I've lost: lovers, friends, family, my struggles with the concept of self." — KA