Music

9 awesome places to find new music online

by Mark Teo

There’s no way around it: Musical discovery is hard, and the best way to do it is by spending thousands and thousands of hours exploring the unknown. Sadly, most of us don’t have that luxury. Instead, along with all the time we spend digging around Bandcamp and Soundcloud and whatever streaming service we’re signed up for, we rely on blogs to help us filter through the neverending stream of songs. Here are nine of our favourites.

 

Weird Canada

Weird Canada needs no introduction. But here goes anyhow: The brainchild of ex-Edmonton campus radio director Aaron Levin has gone from subcultural institution to indisputable Canadian cultural pillar—and it’s not slowing down anytime soon. Their contributions are hard to list succinctly; WC has served as a conduit between basement and spotlight for countless artists (think: Grimes, Braids, and Sean Nicholas Savage), used a FACTOR grant to establish a distro (staying consistent with their belief that arts funding should support infrastructure, not individuals), delved nose-first into non-musical culture (like their wonderful Ex Libris section, which scours Canada’s literary underground), and they’ve changed the national lexicon forever (see: the fact that I borrowed a Levin word like “druidic” in this story). WC have become, in their verbiage, the lizard overlords of Canadian music discovery—and for that, we’re thankful.

 

Silent Shout

If Silent Shout’s social media directory feels comprehensive, it’s because it is: They’ve listed contacts for everyone they’ve covered on their rising blog, and they’re mainstays in Canada’s independent electronic scene. That’s largely because the blog is run by the Silent Shout DJs—including Berlin-Toronto producer Digits, who we love—whose parties have earned sizeable notoriety in Hogtown. Yet don’t expect straight party fare from their blog; their focus largely falls left of centre and canvasses the entire country.  If you follow their posting regularly enough, you’ll notice they give equal attention to the chilled-out electro of CFCF to the firestarting R&B of Bizzarh. And that’s a good thing.

 

Calgary Cassette Preservation Society

The Calgary Cassette Preservations Society’s goal is singular: It archives all of the city’s cassette releases and, by proxy, serves as a nerve centre for its music scene. Accordingly, there are plenty of obscure gems to found here—old-school Cancon enthusiasts will surely delight at the sight of Huevos Rancheros rarities; clean-cut coremen will find music by Aram Arslanian in his formative days; those obsessed with Calgary’s current scene will be delighted to grab releases by, say, Telstar Drugs. The site is comprehensive, exhausting, and combines the cassette collections of numerous city lifers—so we recommend just diving in.

 

Hero Hill

If you’re like us—and you like blogs that contain loads of written insight—then you probably already love Hero Hill. The longstanding Maritime blog, run by Bryan Acker and Shane Nadeau, has long been considered the nation’s best, and that’s because they approach music like so few critics do: Thoughtfully and with an even hand. It helps, too, that they’re willing to tackle everything from metal to hip hop, but given their location, their true forte lies in Halifax’s music scene—they’re often the first outlet to cover whatever’s being churned out at the Khyber, making them an invaluable entry into one of Canada’s most fascinating music communities.

 

Gold Soundz

Gold Soundz’s founder, Marc Z. Gold, is now based in Tel Aviv, but his beloved blog began in Toronto, where he organized shows, craft fairs, and more. Accordingly, expect Gold Soundz to cover the type of music you’d expect to hear blared at a zine expo—much of it is of the D.I.Y. variety, much of it is good, and almost all of it is obscure. (But isn’t that what we’re here for, anyhow?) And Gold’s pop-cultural commentary is also worth the price of admission alone. Not only will he spotlight local up-and-comers, but unlike so many Canadian music websites, he’s also not afraid to pitch his voice into broader musical conversations—which is why he’ll cover Austin’s Zorch right alongside Phedre.

 

Halifax Collect:

Halifax Collect isn’t based on the East Coast anymore—technically, it’s run by an Icelander in Toronto—but it still remains one of the country’s best, if unheralded, sources for hardcore, punk, and metal reviews. Though the focus isn’t strictly Canadian, there’s plenty of Northernly fare on the site, with topics ranging from LP reviews, to film essays, to interviews. An added bonus: Halifax Collect’s contributors span the globe, so expect to see live reviews from Portland and Iceland. A must for anyone remotely interested in heavy music.

 

Argue Job

The crew behind Old Ugly Records—Joe Gurba, a.k.a. The Joe, uke-pop dude Doug Hoyer, sparse folkster Tyler Butler, and more—are longstanding participants in Edmonton’s excellent D.I.Y. pop scene. No surprise, then, that they’re excellent musical curators too. They, along with several other contributors, combine for Argue Job, a wonderful blog that mines the Canadian underground for hidden gems. Their obvious forte lies in the Prairies and the West Coast—not surprising, given their location—but the blog also does a wonderful job curating oddities from the Eastern parts on the nation, too. Argue Job, too, proves just as diverse as Old Ugly’s roster: Expect to see sparse electronic fare, folk, and dream pop posts nestled side by side.

 

Chipped Hip

If you’re a follower of Exclaim!—and you really should be—you’ll surely be familiar with Alex Hudson, who’s one of publication’s main news writers. It’s Hudson’s job to be on top of everything new and Canadian, and if we’re to believe his mp3 blog, Chipped Hip, he’s very good at his job. Unlike his main gig, Chipped Hip explores Hudson’s personal tastes—and being a Vancouverite, he also provides a window into Rain City’s music scene. Hudson’s tastes decidedly veer towards indie rock (which is evident in this post detailing his Polaris picks), but if that’s your game, you’ll find few better blogs in Canada.

 

Said the Gramophone

Of all the websites listed, few treat their craft with as much affection as Said the Gramophone. No surprise, really—their M.O. is to showcase “really good songs” posted “out of love.” Thankfully, not only do its curators have excellent taste, but they’re excellent writers, as well: Sean Michaels, its most celebrated name, is a novelist, while Jordan Himelfarb is a section editor at the Toronto Star. Our favourite STG contrib, however, is Dan Beirne, whose strangely poetic entries read less like record reviews, more like philosophical reflections.

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