Spring raining down with new Sask. music releases
Chris Picks Music is a weekly playlist of songs that have aired on CBC Radio's Morning Edition
It's a spring flood! Just before the music festival season begins, the creative dams are bursting and a number of Saskatchewan artists have released a wave of great new music.
Kacy and Clayton, the folk/roots cousins from Wood Mountain, Sask., have a new album in the works. It's due out in October but in advance of this they've released its title-track "Carrying On," which offers up the hype-free essentials we've come to expect from this duo. It's as brilliant as a well-patinated family treasure.
"Here's the thing about time: it changes just about everything for the worse and for the better." That lyric is from the latest pre-release single "The Change It Brings" from Saskatoon band Close Talker. Their new album How Do We Stay Here? is due out at the end of August. This early offering has a clarity and smoothness in its production that washes over the listener, creating a sense of positive direction and momentum.
As a solo artist, singer-songwriter Andy Shauf has attracted a lot of attention over the past three to four years, but did you know he's also been in a band for the past 10? Foxwarren is comprised of him and his childhood friends Dallas Bryson and the Kissick brothers, Darryl and Avery. They've finally released their debut album, the self-titled Foxwarren. I've added the lead-off track, "To Be," to the playlist.
Regina based electro-pop artist Amber Goodwyn, a.k.a Natural Sympathies, has a new album in the works, which is due out later this year. Her pre-release single "Hello" is a song she sat down to write as a personal reflection on her experience with postpartum depression. During the process she was also faced with the reality of taking care of her own mother in the final week of her life. In its simplicity, "Hello" conveys a call for help without a feeling of powerlessness in moving forward.
Saskatchewan based hip-hop/R&B duo Samurai Champs have released their debut album, Cabernet Sauvignon. Their très smooth new single "Poseidon" sets a mood and makes its way onto the playlist.
Regina singer-songwriter Ava Wild calls her new single "Balloons for You" "a toast to growing up." It begins as a whimsical stroll that dances and meanders its way into becoming a New Orleans-style parade. If your mood needs to be taken outside for a walk today, give it a listen.
If you prefer the simpler things in life but still demand only the best, husband and wife duo Jen and John have released a new album — II (two as a Roman numeral) — that features only their two voices and two guitars performing seven well-crafted songs. I've added the lead-off track "I Don't Need the Sunshine" to my playlist this week but will certainly be adding more in the future.
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