Sled Island Edition Part 3
We are getting very excited about the quickly approaching Sled Island Music Festival. Cups N Cakes has been partnering with this amazing festival for many years and like always, the CnC Team will be in Calgary to take in as many shows as possible. Leading up to the festival you will see some special coverage on the site that will be highlighting a ton of the acts playing this year. That coverage continues today with a special edition of the Quick Picks that focuses on four new releases from acts playing in Calgary from June 17th-22nd. Time to start getting pumped!
SAMWOY - Even Sad Boys Like To Have Fun
The sophomore album from Montreal’s SAMWOY has turned the would-be solo endeavour of Sam Woywitka into a visible collaboration, effectively making SAMWOY a proper band now. This record showcases this approach and makes for Woywitka’s breakthrough album. Post-punk, hip-hop, synth-pop, and skate-punk collide from track to track to make a truly engaging and entertaining listen. From the post-punk guitar jabs of “Poison”, to the 808 beats and autotuned rap-like verses of “Sub In The Trunk”, to the francophone lethargic crooning over a symphony of swirling synths on “Si vous trouvez cela je suis au ciel”, this record has endless sounds and styles to explore. Dive in and pick your favourite SAMWOY genre-take on Friday night at Pin-Bar.
Bibi Club - Feu de garde (les braises)
I’ve been having difficulties quantifying what it is that has me coming back to the new album from Bibi Club, the Montreal duo of Adèle Trottier-Rivard and Nicolas Basque. Their previous work never grabbed me in the same way but on Feu de garde (les braises), I’ve found myself enamoured with their sound. I keep coming back to the idea of calling this a delicate alt-pop record. It has an unstated beauty that sounds effortless from afar but extraordinarily precise and deliberate upon deep dive listening experiences. It’s about finding beauty in everyday life, about understanding the significance of the mundane moments. I can’t get enough and am planning to be in the crowd on Saturday at the BLOX Arts Centre.
Aladean Kheroufi - All The Same
Edmonton’s favourite collaborator, producer and soul-crooner returns with two gorgeous tracks of heart-on-sleeve lyrics that boast such a mature, sage-like air that you expect them to be coming from a wise old elder-type. Aladean Kheroufi is not that… I mean... he may be wise, but he’s certainly not old and when you see him on stage, he does not come off as serious in any way. He’s fun, energetic and has a personality that differs from his soulful songs ranging from devastating heartbreak to growth-achieving acceptance. Perhaps this musical project is his therapy that allows him to be so darn charming while on stage and while meeting folks after the show. Go see him to understand how captivating he can be on Wednesday night at The Legion.
Annie-Claude Deschênes - “Main de Fer”
Annie-Claude Deschênes is becoming Canadian indie royalty. Known best for her work in Duchess Says and also recently reviving her prior band PYPY (also playing at Sled), in 2024 Deschênes set out solo and crafted a Polaris recognized dance album that leaned into new-wave and post-punk aesthetics while clearly keeping the danceability factor front and centre. It was one of the very few dance albums that has gripped my attention over the past decade and she followed that up at the end of April with a gem of a track called “Main de Fer”. Heavy reverbed vocals over fast beats and wispy slashes of synthetic high hats and buzz-saw blasts make a unique industrial setting for this electro-dance banger. Unfortunately for out of owners (like me) Annie-Claude Deschênes plays the wrap-up show on Sunday night at Palomino.
