New Music

princefarming, the solo project of singer, guitarist, and songwriter Michael Wynn (Vicky von Vicky, Melted Wings), shares Bleeding Star, a three-track EP that reaches more than 15 years into the past to revisit a formative chapter of his songwriting. Bringing together newly remixed and remastered versions of two early favourites alongside a previously unreleased title track written during the same period, the EP gives Wynn an opportunity to reconsider songs he once overlooked and finally put them into the world on his own terms.

“For a long time, I didn’t think anything of these songs,” Wynn admits. “It was only recently that I started listening again. I don’t think they are my best work, but I do think they have promise, and I thought they should be ‘out there.’”

Arriving alongside the EP is lead single “You Win The Trophy,” a driving, off-kilter alternative track that turns its attention toward the mythology of Hollywood success. Written from the perspective of someone watching another person pursue dreams of becoming an actor or musician in Los Angeles, the song gradually reveals a darker undercurrent, as ambition gives way to the possibility of excess, addiction, disappointment, and eventual burnout.

Listen to Bleeding Star in full feat. “You Win The Trophy” HERE.

Rather than being built around one overarching narrative, Bleeding Star offers a snapshot of the recurring ideas that have long fascinated Wynn as a songwriter. “Signals” takes the form of a breakup song, the previously unreleased “Bleeding Star” looks outward toward existential questions and humanity’s place in the universe, while “You Win The Trophy” represents his tendency to find songs in quirky, unexpected subjects.

Originally recorded at home using GarageBand, the songs retain the exploratory DIY spirit of their beginnings. Wynn revisited the recordings with additional vocal and guitar parts before enlisting Nixon Boyd to remix the material, allowing the songs to retain the character of their original performances while giving them renewed depth and clarity.

That process reflects Wynn’s broader approach to songwriting. Rather than forcing himself into a routine, ideas tend to simply “show up,” often beginning as fragments captured in voice memos. His subject matter can be similarly spontaneous, drawn toward odd occurrences, everyday observations, or stream-of-consciousness ideas that might otherwise go unnoticed.

On “You Win The Trophy,” that instinct becomes a cautionary story about the pursuit of success. While the song initially follows someone dreaming of making it in Los Angeles, its perspective comes from someone watching that dream begin to unravel. The narrator never entirely condemns the ambition at its centre; instead, Wynn leaves room for the idea that seemingly impossible dreams are still worth having, provided they do not consume the person pursuing them.

Musically, Wynn underscores that tension through driving single-note guitar lines and dissonant rhythm chords, drawing inspiration from the taut, angular guitar language of bands like Interpol. The alternative and indie framework gives the track forward momentum even as its lyrics complicate the ostensibly uplifting promise contained in its title.

Toronto singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Maya Killtron returns with “Touch This Body,” a playful, groove-soaked new single that explores one of pop music’s most overlooked subjects: keeping romance alive after the honeymoon phase. Blending post-disco, funk, soul, contemporary R&B, neo-soul, and quiet storm influences, the track captures the confidence, chemistry, and intentional effort required to keep long-term love feeling exciting years after the first spark.

While countless love songs celebrate new attraction or heartbreak, “Touch This Body” turns its attention to what happens after the butterflies settle. Inspired by Maya’s own reflections on lasting relationships, the song embraces the reality that intimacy doesn’t simply sustain itself. It evolves, requiring playfulness, vulnerability, and the willingness to rediscover one another.

Listen to “Touch This Body” HERE. Watch the official video HERE.

“It’s about what you have to do to keep things exciting and sexy, even when all you wanna do is sit in your cozies all day and watch Game of Thrones,” Maya explains. “Long-term love succeeds when you feel safe and secure, but there’s still excitement that comes from unpredictability and the danger of making fun, bad decisions.”

The song’s title arrives with equal parts confidence and humour. Less a literal invitation than a playful provocation, “Touch This Body” recalls the swagger of new romance while acknowledging the comfort that only years together can create. Rather than longing for the past, Maya asks whether it’s possible to reclaim that early electricity without sacrificing the security that time has built.

“It’s about bringing back the confidence and sexual energy of when you first started dating with the comfort of years of inside jokes together,” Maya says.

That perspective makes “Touch This Body” a refreshing departure from the familiar narratives that dominate contemporary pop and R&B. Instead of idealizing beginnings or endings, Maya celebrates the complicated middle: the Costco trips, the grey sweatpants, and the everyday work of choosing one another again and again. The result is a song that acknowledges the challenges of commitment without ever losing its sense of joy.

Musically, “Touch This Body” channels the infectious spirit of post-disco icons while embracing modern production. Co-written alongside newly Grammy–winning producer HiFiLo, the track draws inspiration from Sheila E., balancing sophisticated musicianship with irresistible dancefloor energy. HiFiLo’s expansive synth arrangements and rhythmic instincts provided the perfect counterpart to Maya’s playful songwriting, creating a sound that feels both timeless and unmistakably current.

“Writing with HiFiLo is always inspiring,” Maya says. “He’ll send me the most advanced demos with soaring synth lines and massive drums paired with a Michael McDonald-style vocal gibberish melody idea on top. Comedy gold.”

That sense of fun extends throughout the production. Beneath the shimmering grooves and lush instrumentation lies a deeper emotional current, one that reflects Maya’s broader artistic philosophy: life’s struggles don’t have to rob us of our ability to dance. “Pain can still make you dance and smile,” she says. “It’s not escapism. It’s facing it all head on with a little swag.”

Toronto alternative artist and producer ARK IDENTITY (Noah Mroueh) releases “SIT,” a defiant, euphoric, and anthemic new wave-inspired alternative pop single that confronts the relentless noise of modern life with an unexpectedly simple message: stop, breathe, and think for yourself. Propulsive rhythms, shimmering synths, and escalating intensity turn exhaustion with political division, social media outrage, and relentless news cycles into a rallying cry for empathy, clarity, and independent thought.

Inspired by the constant barrage of outrage, opinion, and polarization that defines everyday life, “SIT” emerged from Noah’s growing frustration with a world that rarely leaves room for reflection.

“Politics, racism, sexism, social media, people constantly arguing, the news, algorithms,” he explains. “It feels like there’s almost no space to just think for yourself anymore. ‘SIT’ came out of that frustration.”

Listen to “SIT” HERE. Watch “SIT” (Live at Tape) HERE.

That tension lies at the heart of both the song and its title. Short, direct, and almost confrontational, “SIT” initially feels like a command but beneath its sharp exterior lies something far more compassionate. Rather than encouraging passivity, the song reframes stillness as an act of resistance.

“In a world that constantly demands our attention and reaction, choosing to stop, sit still and think for yourself can be the most radical thing you do,” Noah says. “For me, sitting becomes an act of rebellion.”

That central contradiction also shapes the music itself. While the lyrics encourage listeners to slow down and let go, the arrangement does the opposite, building layer upon layer of driving percussion, pulsing rhythms, and soaring alternative pop textures that create an exhilarating sense of forward momentum. The result is a song that feels simultaneously urgent and grounding, mirroring the emotional push-and-pull between external chaos and internal calm.

One of the recording’s defining elements comes from an unexpected source. As the track evolved, Noah incorporated the darbuka, an ancient goblet-shaped hand drum whose distinctive rhythms add another dimension to the song’s propulsion. For Noah, who is half Lebanese, the instrument became more than a sonic choice. “It felt like a subtle way to bring a small piece of my heritage into the song.”

While “SIT” confronts social media overload head-on, it ultimately refuses to become consumed by it. Instead, the song offers something increasingly rare: permission to disconnect, reclaim perspective, and respond with intention rather than impulse.

“Every day, we’re bombarded with something new to worry about,” Noah says. “From the potential threat of AI and political division to social media overload, it’s pulling us further apart, creating anxiety, and encouraging hate. ‘SIT’ is meant as a rallying cry to rise above the noise and division.”

After 16 years, more than a thousand live performances, and a reputation as Canada’s ultimate party band, Dwayne Gretzky is bringing the spirit of their celebrated live show to listeners everywhere. Dwayne’s World Vol. 1 collects 20 standout performances from the band’s wildly popular Dwayne’s World YouTube series into their first-ever live covers album, available digitally September 15 and on limited-edition vinyl September 18.

Recorded completely live off the floor inside a painstakingly recreated Wayne’s World-inspired basement set, the collection captures everything that has made Dwayne Gretzky a beloved live act: infectious energy, remarkable musicianship and an unmistakable joy for celebrating some of the greatest songs ever written.

Singer-songwriter Dan Pallotta shares Children and Ghosts, an intimate new folk/Americana album that offers a contemplative reprieve from the noise and chaos of everyday life. Across nine songs and just 25 minutes, Pallotta meditates on coming and going, existence and absence, memory and impermanence, creating what he describes as “one cozy lullaby made of nine ideas.”

Recorded entirely on an iPhone in his bedroom over two days, Children and Ghosts is deliberately simple in both sound and presentation. Pallotta sat in the same chair, with the same guitar and the same mood, capturing the songs with as little distance as possible between the moment of performance and the listener. All of the songs were played on a 1930s mahogany Martin 2-17 parlor guitar, and the album was purposely mixed in mono to enhance the simplicity, with the reverb mixed in stereo to give it a touch of modernity.

“I’d wanted to make something like this for several years – a simple little record with a simple sound, inspired by old Hank Williams recordings,” Pallotta says. “I made this to be listened to in a quiet space. It’s best on headphones, and most affecting when listened to start to finish.”