The Radiation Flowers, Tempête Solaire, The Gus Moberg Travesty, and No Museums
The Radiation Flowers - Too Much To Dream
Let’s just say it, not many in Canada rival The Radiation Flowers when it comes to psychedelia. The prairie provinces already know this, we hear everything hurled at us from Toronto and Montreal but they don’t get wind of our best… Their loss I guess. This Saskatoon band has been at it for well over a decade and have inspired countless prairie kids to dive into the psych genre. On Too Much To Dream, they deliver eight tracks that fuse psych with grunge and shoegaze, creating warm and fuzzy tunes that will wrap you up in a cozy, sonic sensual bliss. Six years was a long time to wait but The Radiation Flowers do not disappoint on Too Much To Dream.
Tempête Solaire - La précession des équinoxes
What an incredible listen! Sit down with headphones and soak in every note from Tempête Solaire’s highly ambitious double EP, La précession des équinoxes. This Montreal trio sounds massive as they continue to expand on their sound from their debut EP, 2024s Heliospheric Dialogues. I see them called a free-jazz band a lot but toss that idea aside for a minute. These eight tracks feature gigantic post-rock crescendos, hypnotic krautrock grooves, odd avant-garde timing, and psychedelic bliss. The different genres sweep in and out throughout the runtime and make every second of La précession des équinoxes a dense and rewarding listening experience.
The Gus Moberg Travesty - Stray Bullet Navigation
Although it’s not a “go-to” genre for me, I do love jazz. I especially love when artists modernize the genre in some unique way. Jazz heads that balk at this idea can stick it up their you-know-what's in their stale jazz rooms that pine for the days when people gave a shit. Thing is, people do still give a shit if you bring a new idea to the iconic genre like Gus Moberg has done on his debut album as The Gus Moberg Travesty. He brought in a heavy-hitting rhythm section of Jonathan McCaslin and Jeff Gammon to allow himself to explore rock n roll guitar through a jazz lens. The result is a refreshing reimagining for the 21st century.
No Museums - While I'm Still Warm
How does a musical project garner a cult following if the artist in question never plays live. I’m constantly curious how Michael Betmanis’ recording project No Museums has gathered such buzz. From my hometown of Edmonton, I can confidently say that I’ve never seen No Museums play a gig, yet I know this project as if I’d seen them a dozen times. I suppose it’s just that the fuzzy, lofi-pop gems that Betmanis crafts are just that good. His latest album dropped on January 1st and it’s no exception. Dense layers of slightly scuzzy textures crafted by a slew of different instruments never sound off putting due to the sharp, pop melodies on display. Another gem in the No Museums catalogue.
