New Music

Hailing from Guelph, ON, Royal Castles are Katrin Sawatzky, Jordan Gabriel and AJ Johnson. Together they blend riffy guitar licks, wooly bass, and ear-candified harmonies to create their own sound of nostalgic but contemporary garage-power-pop. The band’s sophomore album, Just The Hits, was released in 2021 and recorded at North Of Princess Studio with producer Zane Whitfield (Glorious Sons, Blue Stones). 

Royal Castles have partnered again with Whitfield and are in the midst of releasing five new songs towards an EP entitled Singles Night, set for release on April 19th. “Stage Fright” can be paralyzing if you let it, but it can also act as a fuel to make you push past something that scares you. That’s what the third release ahead of Singles Night  is about – fearing something or someone and pushing past to harness that nervous energy.

The Neighbourhood Watch’s story-driven blend of folk and indie rock pulls on a personal experience with chronic illness and expresses that story in a way that resonates with people who are struggling with all kinds of illnesses – mental or physical. The Toronto band’s upcoming fourth album is a meditation on family, illness, and loving what life gives you nonetheless.

New single, “Bones,” was inspired by the fun, garage-rock inspired indie rock anthems that have become popular across Spotify in the last few years: the Backseat Lovers, Briston Maroney, and some earlier Cage the Elephant tracks served as major musical inspirations. “Bones” is a song about relapse and how your body can feel it coming on. The intuition that your body is about to give out again, after a prolonged period of health and stability. Touching on this idea of bodily intuition, “Bones” taps into that feeling and lets it be a guide. 

Sam Weber is a Canadian musician known for his distinctive style that blends elements of folk, rock, and Americana. 

A perceptive and compelling singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist in the vein of Jackson Browne, The Band, The Wood Brothers and Gillian Welch, Weber has been touring independently and internationally with his band since 2013 — just after he scored a glowing profile in Guitar Player magazine. 

Years spent refining songs at home in North Saanich, BC, working in studios in Los Angeles, and gigging relentlessly across Canada and throughout the western US have honed Weber’s craft to a fine point.

Leading into spring 2024, Weber is sharing “Hey Hey,” a song whose tumbling percussion and introspective acoustic guitar serve to articulate and realize the concept that “the truth always rises to the surface,” Weber explains. 

Described as, “a multi-genre marvel,” Kellie Loder (they/them) is a JUNO Award nominated singer-songwriter who began their musical journey on the shores of Newfoundland & Labrador, lending to their unmatched songwriting prowess, and distinctive blend of folk, Americana and indie pop influences. Kellie‘s signature sound coupled with their magnetic stage presence has earned them notable accolades including, “Songwriter of the Year,” and “Fan’s Choice Entertainer of the Year” at the 2023 East Coast Music Awards, and placed as first-runner-up on Canada’s Got Talent (2022).