New Music Thursday

“Life’s not a promise, let the wild orchids grow,” a friend told Michel Neray on the phone in the hospital. The friend had been emergency airlifted to the hospital, and at the time, they weren’t even sure he was gonna make it. It reminded Michel that we should all do what makes us happy when we can, without waiting for a day that may never come.

For singer-songwriter Michel Neray, that means taking a week-long motorcycle trip on the “Brothers’ Ride” across the country and state lines. Many times, a brother will extend an invite to another to join them on the trip, but more often than not, an excuse always seems to surface.

That’s what inspired his Americana-influenced song, “Let the Wild Orchids Grow.” It’s his reminder to himself and others that you can’t take this lifetime for granted.

Alex Pulec (frontman of The Nursery and The Ruby Spirit) steps into his solo project, Alex Exists. His music is inspired by absurdism, hyper surrealism and optimistic nihilism with an acid tongue firmly planted in his cheek. He is fascinated by pop culture and ego. The signature of Alex’s creative work is his unique sonic touches, drum heavy rhythms and classic “pop through a blender” melodies. 

His mischievous song, “With A Bang,” sounds like a spaghetti western meets spy film theme song about two ex-lovers who are out for revenge – a neo-western, disco twang romp, if you will. It explores the feeling of short and cataclysmic quick burn relationships – those of which are doomed from the start, and celebrates them as spontaneous, messy, fun and chaotic. 

It’s an irreverent dance song about celebrating the end of something in a flamboyant and over-the-top way. All throughout, the deep clear twang of a baritone guitar rings through. 

Victoria Staff writes music for the same reasons that we all run and bake and hang out with friends and family – it makes us feel better. Writing music has always supported her through mental health issues, and it gave her a way to process complex emotions at a really young age. She writes music to help herself, and she shares it to help other people. 

In her nostalgic song “Olive and Ruby,” Victoria yearns to go back to a place that has closed down – her favourite coffee shop in Vancouver. 

Lost In Japan hits the ground running following the partial release of sophomore LP, Night Talks. In their ‘five years young’ of being a band, they have opened for Canadian powerhouses such as Born Ruffians, Hollerado & Yukon Blonde, and won major contests like Top Pop Artist by London Music Awards (2022), Fan Favourite by City of London (2021), 98.1 Classic Rock Contest (2020), and Jim Beam Talent Search (2019).

As they gear up to unveil Night Talks: Pt. 2, they have released “Won’t Let You,” a song about not accepting the harsh truths we all need to face sometimes. Getting lost in some other distraction to ignore the hard task of acceptance.