As originally published by Kyle Mullin on Exclaim!On the cover, he's cradling his kid, chains gleaming on their otherwise bare skin. And some of the lyrics on Tory Lanez's new album therein, The New Toronto 3, capture the essence of its stark cover art. "P.A.I.N," for instance, finds Lanez rapping and…
NOBRO Prove Themselves as Canadian Punk Icons on ‘Sick Hustle’ (News or Reviews)
As originally published by Eva Zhu on Exclaim!NOBRO are the kind of band people picture in their heads when they think about rad women in punk. The Montreal-based punk quartet got their name from how they would turn down offers from dudes who wanted to join their band. Sick Hustle…
Peach Pit Deliver a Warm, Familiar Embrace on ‘You and Your Friends’ (News or Reviews)
As originally published by Alex Rodobolski on Exclaim!Peach Pit know what they do best, and they proudly stick to it. Perhaps best described as "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," You and Your Friends doesn't bring anything new to the table, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. With…
Good Looking Friends’ ‘The Light of the Well’ Is Subtly Extraordinary Emo (News or Reviews)
As originally published by Adam Feibel on Exclaim!What an excellently crafted and simply lovely record from this under-the-radar Brooklyn group. At first, Good Looking Friends' second album The Light of the Well might scan as run-of-the-mill Midwest emo, but the record soon unfolds in a multitude of ways that are…
Ron Sexsmith Is at His Most Playful on ‘HERMITAGE’ (News or Reviews)
As originally published by Angela Morrison on Exclaim!Ron Sexsmith's HERMITAGE opens with bright piano and the sounds of birds chirping, immediately introducing the delightful and whimsical tone of the album, his 17th LP since his 1986 debut There's a Way. Since moving from Toronto to Stratford with his wife and children,…
Winnipeg Shoegazers Juniper Bush Are Delightfully Dark on ‘Healing Through a Sonic Figure’ (News or Reviews)
As originally published by Alisha Mughal on Exclaim!Juniper trees look like petrified clouds, shocks of green with branches all reaching towards the sky, but they're short and close to the ground, like landlocked fog. Winnipeg shoegaze band Juniper Bush contain this contradiction, too. In their latest album, Healing Through a…
Caustic Wound Burst Out of the Gate on Debut ‘Death Posture’ (News or Reviews)
As originally published by Brayden Turenne on Exclaim!Like a gibbering psychopath with an intent to harm, freshly formed Caustic Wound have finally been let loose with their debut full-length. Death Posture reflects different, yet still unflinchingly hateful aspects of members from Mortiferum, Fetid and Cerebral Rot as they take their zombified riffs…
RJD2 The Fun Ones (News or Reviews)
The Fun Ones Score:5 With the dawn of CDs came the birth of the record-digging compilation, bringing obscure '70s funk and R&B; to the surface while inspiring artists like Fatboy Slim, the Roots and the Beastie Boys in the process. Three decades later, Ramble Jon Krohn (a.k.a. RJD2) lays down an approximation…
Vril Bad Manners 4 (News or Reviews)
Bad Manners 4 Score:8 German producer Vril's reputation as a purveyor of atmospheric, hard-hitting techno has been growing over the course of a few EPs now, after his debut album Torus unexpectedly dropped like a pallet of steel from two storeys in 2014. A relative unknown at the time, his…
The Strokes The New Abnormal (News or Reviews)
The New Abnormal Score:6 The New Abnormal is an apt descriptor for where the Strokes stand at this point in their career. The band has officially been in this current state – a sometimes dazzling, often frustrating experiment in playing with fan expectation – for longer than they were heralded…
Snotty Nose Rez Kids Born Deadly (News or Reviews)
Born Deadly Score:6 Over the past three years, Snotty Nose Rez Kids have made a name for themselves as a First Nations rap duo known for their exciting stage performances and stadium-like anthems. Though COVID-19 may prevent them from hitting a stage any time soon, it hasn't stopped the release…