Enchanters are a throwback to the old school, thumpin’ garage rock. Based in Toronto, this power trio are inspired by legends such as The Stooges and The Damned. They have new 7” releases planned for 2020 including this track “Firetruck”. This is a high energy tune with shredding guitars and fuzzy bass licks. Crank this up and take it for a ride. You can enjoy this tune and many other rippin’ rock n’ rollers at Lee’s Palace on Friday December 6th when Enchanters opens up for Danko Jones at Lee’s Palace. – Kris Gies
Cherry Hooker – Glam Punks Rockin’ The Powder Box Release Party at Bovine 11.30
Fuzzed and Buzzed is releasing a new box set of 7” singles including Toronto glam-punks Cherry Hooker. They have a high energy sound with crunchy guitars and wild vocals. You can see their jaw dropping, dazzling performance at the Bovine Sex Club on Saturday November 30th when they release a brand new track “City Sidewalkin” at The Powder Box Release Party along with Head and Witchrot. Get a feel for their sound with a previously released single “Puddle Deep”. – Kris Gies
Witchrot – Heavy Doom Single “Dug Your Grave”, Bovine 11.30
One of the heavier tunes I’ve heard in a while is from Toronto stoner rockers Witchrot. "Dug Your Grave" was recorded and produced by Tallies’ Dylan Frankland. We’re talking powerful vocals and heavy ass guitars. The bulk of the song trudges along at a doom metal pace before ending in full shred mode. The guitar work reminds me of Priestess but Witchrot brings it with a bad ass female singer. They will be playing The Powder Box Release Party at Bovine Sex Club on Saturday November 30th with Head and Cherry Hooker. – Kris Gies
Joseph Mcdonald – Excellent New Roots Record “Human Dogs”
Joseph Mcdonald hails from rural Ontario and creates music that represents the countryside perfectly. He just released a new record “Human Dogs” which opens with the title track. It’s a pleasant sounding roots tune with a nice melody and acoustic guitar. The album features some excellent pedal steel work that’ll make you wanna cry. I recommend listening to Human Dogs and it will help you escape the busy city life. Mcdonald’s main inspirations are Willie Nelson, John Prine and Roger Miller and you can’t go wrong with any of those selections. “Human Dogs” available now! – Kris Gies
Uncola – New Psych Single “Cactus Throat”, Monarch Tavern 12.13
Uncola are a new group in the ever growing Toronto psych scene. They have released their debut single “Cactus Throat”. This lo-fi track features excellent vocals with a perfect amount of echo and reverb. The vocals bring a nice contrast to the noisy garage sound of the instruments. The rhythm section drives this song while the guitar is free to make all kinds of sweet sustaining noises. Uncola will be playing The Monarch Tavern on Friday December 13th along with Wine Lips and BBQ Pope in support of The Effens LP Release Party. – Kris Gies
Shallow Waves – Noisy Garage Rock Release Party at The Cameron House 11.22
Shallow Waves combine elements of surf, pysch and garage for a wonderfully noisy sound. This Toronto band sounds like they are shattering their amps on the latest single “Dust”. This track appears on their album “Parallel States of Consciousness”. It is an in-your-face stoner track that’ll take you for a ride around your mind. They are hosting a release party for this album on November 22nd at Cameron House along with Psychic Void, Wave of Terror and Dark Trip. – Kris Gies
Fine Motor Control – Shoegaze/Brit-Rock Combo, Bovine Sex Club 11.16
Fine Motor Control are a 4 piece group based in Toronto. Their sound is a solid combination psychedelic shoegaze and contemporary brit-rock. They started rocking together in 2018 and have released one album thus far. This self-titled album begins with “Radio My TV” which gives a solid understanding of this band’s style. It’s a rockin’ tune with plenty of shoegaze noise all while not losing the vocals in the mix. Fine Motor Control are opening for LA’s Goon on Tuesday November 19th at Bovine Sex Club. Sicayda and Foreign Moon are also on the bill. – Kris Gies
Plain Jade – Psychedelic Debut “Anagram”, Horseshoe 11.17
Plain Jade are a throwback psychedelic band from Toronto lead by Cameron Brown along with Tom Valkanas, Rachel Gerry, Chris Rikkerink and Charlie Wear. They released their debut single earlier this year titled “Anagram”. This tune really feels like it was from the 60’s with the reverb filled jangly guitar. It has a grittiness to it while not losing any sonic quality. The lead guitar has some surfy vibes and the extra percussion adds a great element to the track. Plain Jade will be opening up for Mikal Cronin as well as Shannon Lay on November 17th at the Horseshoe Tavern. – Kris Gies
Jimbo – Crank Up the Fuzz on New EP “Where the Vultures Gather”
Kingston psych-rockers Jimbo are back with a new EP “Where the Vultures Gather”. The first track rips right off the hop. “Mamawawa” has the fuzz cranked all the way up for the opening riff. The verse smooths out with a rolling bassline and laid back vocals. The fuzz can’t be silenced for long though as it fires back up and your head will bang with approval. The solo is an absolute shredder too! “Where the Vultures Gather” is available on their bandcamp page now! Jimbo rocks The Monarch Tavern on Saturday November 16th along with Kiss the Fish and Joe Mcleod. – Kris Gies
Meldrvm – Electronic Based Single “For Me”
Meldrvm originally hails from Scarborough, Ontario. This eclectic new artist has an album on the way at the end of this year with one single already released. “For Me” is an electronic based tune with many different layers involved. It contains some slacker influences not too far away from Mac Demarco but with less sloppy guitar and some wilder synthesizer work. If you are looking for something different; this might be it. – Kris Gies
Glitter Party – Fuzzy Slackers Debut Album
Glitter Party are bringin’ some dirty fuzzy glitter to the Toronto slacker scene. Their debut self-titled album was released in August of this year and features the previously released singles “Moonrise” and “Orange Paint”. The latter is a thumpin’ noise rock track that has about equal influences from modern California garage rock as well as 80’s pop rock. It could go either way depending on the grit level. In this case, it’s very gritty. Grab some Glitter Party on their bandcamp page! – Kris Gies
The Crowleys – Jangly New Psych Single “Clarice”
The Crowleys are a psychedelic pop-rock band from Hamilton. They have figured out a way to effectively master that lo-fi garage sound while keeping the quality high and melodies catchy. Their new single “Clarice” has duel vocals and a medium paced jangle. The lyrics touch on “the uncertainty within yourself when dealing with mental health issues”. The Crowleys play This Ain’t Hollywood in Hamilton on November 6th along with Hot Garbage and Simply Saucer. – Kris Gies