Blue Sky Miners are a six piece band from Toronto that I would drop into the Americana category. Despite their location they find influences in the Rocky Mountains and the desert to combine for a folk sound that is more bad ass than the standard. The band member’s origins stretch across the whole country which brings many different regions together for their uniquely Canadian sound. They are headlining an Exclaim Class of 2019 show at Lee’s Palace on January 18^th alongside Olivia & The Creepy Crawlies, Dan Edmonds and Katie Mcbride. – Kris Gies

Originally from Ghana; Kojo Easy Damptey combines soul, funk, hip hop and I hear some jazz influences in his latest track “Giants”. This is the title track from his upcoming album which to him “builds on the tradition of resistance and resilience that people of color around the world have shown in the fight to combat the ill effects of colonization.” “Giants” is available now on bandcamp! – Kris Gies

Max Bornstein is a multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter from Toronto. Max is a member of Toronto indie-rock crew Goodbye Honolulu. He has just released his latest solo single “Dance Bar” last month. This laid back tune has catchy melodies laying nicely with the crystal clear guitars giving the tune a mature feel. It kinda gives me vacation vibes…or maybe it’s just cold here and I’d rather be on a beach right now. Stay tuned for Max’s next solo gig and in the meantime you can see Goodbye Honolulu live on December 15^th in Toronto at the Bain Co-Op Community Center. – Kris Gies

This garage-pop group from Toronto have been on an absolute roll lately. Tallies have recently signed with Kanine Records, toured the USA and now announced the upcoming release of their self-titled debut album. They released a video for their latest single “Mother”. This track is very catchy with its reverby surf inspired guitar along with singer Sarah Cogan’s dreamy vocals and melodies. The new album will be released on January 11^th. Stay tuned for release party details… – Kris Gies

Here’s a very cool psychedelic blues rock band from Montreal. They also might be from the past as their greasy lo-fi sound was born in the days of the Stooges. The Shake Well Brothers released a 3 song EP last Christmas Eve so naturally it opens with a song titled “Hanukkah Tabarnak”. It’s a chaotic instrumental to set the tone of the quick and in-your-face record. The got some great tones and riffs goin’ on but I’ll admit that even just a little bit of vocals would really tie the record together. Either way just crank it up and enjoy. – Kris Gies

Candice Sand is a pop singer/songwriter originally from Saskatchewan. She is now based in Toronto and has released a brand new music video. “Just So You Know” is a spacious yet thumpin’ pop song full of emotion. It’s actually that spaciousness that in my mind sets this song apart from other songs in this genre. It gives you room to really get into the song and enjoy her voice and lyrics. She has a few performances around the GTA in November and December which you can see here! – Kris Gies

Dirty Work is a 3 piece straight up street punk band. They scream Oi! and don’t care about you. They have the energy of all the old school punk bands from the 70s and 80s. Their new record “In The West End” was released earlier this month and consists of 12 ripper punk tunes. Get in, get dirty, get out. Crank up the opening track “Ready To Go” and enjoy the cameo appearance from two legends at the very beginning. Dirty Work plays Coalition on Friday November 16 with Dayglo Abortions and The Nasties. – Kris Gies

6 piece band from Toronto named after a legendary vehicle (perhaps once owned by Jon Voight). Lebarons blend together all different kinds of folk, alt-country and Americana into a very pleasant sound. They just released a brand new record “Summer of Death” which they describe as “the sound of highways in the night, and passing cars in the rain; these are the sounds the restless hears when everything else grows quiet.” That description perfectly fits the opening track “Long Highway”. Lebarons host their record release party on Saturday November 10^th at the Dakota Tavern alongside The Old Salts and United Snakes. – Kris Gies

Onionface is a rock n’ rollin trio from the Nation’s Capital. To me they’re like a grunge band with progressive influences and some fuzz cranked all the way up. Their bass player Calvin McCormick has a custom amp and pedal company (McCormick Analog) which must be a nice bonus to always have new top notch gear to try out. Their most recent record came out last year titled “Roll Over, Dog…And Run!” The opening track "Goodbye, Take Care" fires it up nicely with some influences from The Meat Puppets and The smalls. Onionface are regulars in the Toronto scene and can be witnessed live at Sneaky Dee’s on November 17^th with Dirty Rick and Blackened Blues. – Kris Gies

Pretty is a groovy psych four piece band from Toronto. They blend all kinds of surf and garage influences into their keyboard laden psychadelia. Their latest record “Plastic Music for Plastic People” was released last month and kicks off with a catchy tune called “By The Beach”. This tune is more fun that actually being at the beach. The vocals are drenched in reverb and the extra percussion adds a nice element too. “Plastic Music for Plastic People” available now on bandcamp and everywhere else. – Kris Gies

This 4 piece indie-surf band have released a brand new single. Fade Awaays bring the noise with their surfy garage jams and drunken sing along choruses. “Get Along” is just that. A song to listen to while getting day drunk, preferably outdoors. This tune is a taste of what’s to come from these slacker rockers. Fade Awaays will be performing at Supermarket in Kensington Market for Indie Week on November 8th. – Kris Gies

Dilly Dally exploded a couple years back with their hit tune “Desire” from the album “Sore”. They toured the world for a long time off that record then got quiet for a bit. Luckily it was a productive quiet and they have just released their follow up record “Heaven” which features this tune “Doom”. It begins with a dark, slow pace and a heartbeat like drum beat. The track ends up blending those eerie vibes along with catchy grunge driven melodies. If anything could be a mix of Nirvana and Alice in Chains this would be it. Dilly Dally comes home to Toronto to play Lee’s Palace on December 6^th. – Kris Gies