Ribbon Skirt - PENSACOLA
Ribbon Skirt continues to be a stunning act of musical artistry and lyrical prowess that has picked up on the following behind their debut release and leaned on it to enhance it. You can tell that PENSACOLA turns up the notch on what made Bite Down one of the highlights of 2025, whether it is in the textured noise, the vocal dynamism, or the melodic composition. This only makes me all the more excited to see what Ribbon Skirt has coming up next for them.
Dust Cwaine - Twin Lakes
it is a delight to see one of Vancouver’s finest bless us with a sophomore release. Dust Cwaine (aka. I-am-not-giving -more-than-this-drag-name-cuz-I-am-not-a-cop) has a considerable following tied to their almost decade long drag career, but I want to stress that the fact that they are just as much a musician shouldn’t get buried under the layers of make-up, mascara, and blush.
Franco Rossino - #2
Franco Rossino, who’s previous album, #1, is packed with brilliantly sardonic folk-punk earworms that rail mercilessly against the day to day minutiae of small town hierarchies, garnering him a devoted club of fervent fans, most of whom now sit in the front row, giddy with excitement.
Alix Fernz - Symphonie publicitaire sous influence
Have you ever heard of the legend of Montreal's Bermuda Triangle? It’s a place where it’s always 2:15 am, a perfect time to drink with the same culprits, pretend you will find the love of your life, show off your best look and smoke cigarette after cigarette on the dirty concrete. You might even cross paths with a crazy wacko vampire with bleached hair and chromosome damage, who makes music that sounds like it's from hell. That must be Alexandre Fournier, also known as Alix Fernz.
Camilla Sparksss - ICU RUN
This is certainly not your mom’s pop. It has the experimental edge that has characterized a lot of what is now known as hyperpop. With production and mixing choices evocative of acts like Arca, Skrillex, Robyn, FKA twigs, and Sega Bodega, Camilla Sparksss has delivered one of the most interesting albums to come out in Canada this year.
Yoo II avec Nolan Potter - Yoo Doo Right, Population II, and Nolan Potter
Navigating the music industry can sometimes feel like an expedition, where every opportunity to find good recording conditions and analog gear serves the fight for survival. The road can sometimes be unforgiving and when it comes to certain things in life, you only get one chance. You must be ready for any hit-or-miss moments. The new album Yoo II avec Nolan Potter is the result of one of those moments.
King of Foxes - Hall of Shame
As soon as the album kicks off, the titular track which lyrically jumps into the contradictions and spirals of self-consciousness as the track switches from a soft guitar instrumental to a full pop punk arrangement getting things really going. The intensity of this track shows off what King of Foxes is about in this album with its midwestern pop punk sensibilities and expressive intensity.
JayWood - Leo Negro
Leo Negro paints a portrait of a multifaceted artist who has grown over the course of his output, and provides a reminder that creating space to express the myriad aspects of oneself usually enables the best art-making. Here the result is an interesting and soulful album that is even greater than the sum of its parts.
The Planet Smashers - On the Dancefloor
On The Dancefloor succeeds in the most fundamental way that Ska music can; it’s fun. It makes you want to party, to dance in your seat with no concern that your neighbor’s lit cigarette has fallen square in your lap. I had fun listening to On The Dancefloor, and you would too. Buy it from Bandcamp because Spotify is scum.
Georgia Harmer - Eye of the Storm
As an album that allows dust to settle in creaking floor boards, the rocking of chairs, and homey untreated acoustics, Eye of the Storm is an invitation to a personal space, almost confessional in scope.
Tebby & The Heavy - Heavy Afternoon
The toughest part about starting this review is the syntax. Is it Tebby & The Heavy? Tebby And The Heavy? Depending what website you’re looking at, or what artwork, both options can be found. One of life’s mysteries, I suppose. I have a fondness for a nice “&” so I will stick with that. Regardless of what you call them, the Edmonton three-piece’s debut full-length Heavy Afternoon, needs no such deliberation - the album just straight up rips.
NO JOY - Bugland
There is an air of naturalist mysticism to Bugland that White-Gluz openly embraces with her depiction of the titular Bugland as a place of safety withdrawn away from the accelerated state of the music industry and capitalist demand which White-Gluz looks at with suspicion. Bugland takes what Motherhood was able to accomplish for White-Gluz’s creative development while adding collaboration to the mix to help bring out more out of that artistic direction.
Ada Lea - when i paint my masterpiece
Just as folk hero Maud Lewis’ tiny coastal cottage became her best known work of art, so, too, does Ada Lea’s daily life in the Mile End become the considered artwork itself. The album illustrates that with every friendship loved and lost, every Bunz trade secured, every street corner crossed, every kettle set to whistle, Levy is indeed painting her masterpiece.
Overdrive II Oblivion - Red Shift Tape Vol. 1
The first 24 seconds of side one of Red Shift Tape Vol. 1, the first tape from Overdrive II Oblivion, leaves an impression. For those 24 seconds, there is nothing but bass. At 0:01, the track begins abruptly with a bassline that is filthy dirty. It feels like the track starts in the middle of an idea. It’s heavy. Like, HEAVY. Heavy and rough. Jagged and uneven. Imperfect. It’s relentless and tone-setting. It’s 24 seconds and it feels like forever. Every second of it is rustic and beautiful.
Pig Pen - Mental Madness
There is something special about a band of friends exploring mental health, shared anxieties and finding joy in shared catharsis. Obviously, every member of this supergroup is rather busy with their regular gigs. Romano’s outfit tours relentlessly and releases new music at a remarkable pace; Alexisonfire is an active concern again; and The Bear was picked up for a 5th season, to say nothing of the growing Matheson restaurant empire. That said, if an opportunity presents itself for Pig Pen to make another record, I really hope they do.
KERUB - APHANTASIA
"With this snapshot of what you can find in the deconstructive worlds that KERUB fleshes out, I encourage people to give APHANTASIA a shot since it is their most accessible yet ambitious release yet. This is a producer that you will see expanding their already prolific catalogue and getting more deeply involved in other people’s work”
palace oaks - insular mountains
palace oaks has delivered an incredible debut record with insular mountains. Having seen the progression of Young’s work over the years, the qualitative leap in this latest release is quite impressive and she should be commended for the strides she has taken in her D.I.Y. spirit.
Rick White - Again
White’s brand of psychedelia has always leaned rural — not in genre, but in spirit. Again carries that same energy: songs that feel found rather than written, cracked open in a moment of solitude and preserved like amber. There’s no grand statement here, and there doesn’t need to be. Just one of Canada’s most enduring songwriters getting on a roll and riding it until the wheels fall off.
Bloodshot Bill - So Fed Up
On So Fed Up, Bill coughs, wheezes, sneezes and sputters 12 tracks of grit, grease, and sleaze into our olfactory. And it smells, dare I say, quite good.
Still Depths - Like Hell!
Like Hell! is an album that can appeal to listeners who are fans of wide-ranging artists such as indie rock like Car Seat Headrest and LCD Soundsystem, queercore like An Albatross or The Blood Brothers, or other fellow noise punks like Black Eyes.