Staff Picks

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  Sham Family Search for Truth on "Modern Myth"

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Mar 11, 2024

  Recorded and produced by Holy Fuck's Graham Walsh, the Toronto band's first release since 2022 is a magnetic return...

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  Blunt Chunks Wrestles with Expectation on "High Hopes"

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Mar 6, 2024

  Expectation will be the death of me. I think I’ve known this for a while; whether it’s what I unconsciously find myself expecting of others...

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  Zsela Makes a Glorious Return on "Fire Excape"

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Mar 5, 2024

  Zsela’s comeback single (and her first for new label home Mexican Summer) is far and away the best thing she’s ever done...

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  Hua Li 化力 Looks for the Real Thing on "Sanctions of the Heart"

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Mar 1, 2024

  “Sanctions of the Heart” takes Hua Li on the journey for a love that builds her up rather than knocks her down...

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  Shabaka Dives Into the Feeling on "End of Innocence"

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Mar 1, 2024

  On the opening track of Shabaka's forthcoming album, a clarinet — the first instrument he learned to play — feels out a plaintive lead line...

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  Apollo Ghosts Find Comfort Despite Crisis on Surprise Mini-Album 'Amethyst'

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Feb 23, 2024

  Vancouver underground heroes Apollo Ghosts have always specialized in bringing humour and sweetness to difficult subject matter...

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  Kneecap Are Great Craic on "Sick in the Head"

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Feb 21, 2024

  Translate the Irish bars on "Sick in the Head" and you'll gain a greater view of this anthem of resilience in facing mental exhaustion...

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  Vampire Weekend Capture the Pains of Aging on "Capricorn" and "Gen-X Cops"

  Exclaim! Staff Picks

  PUBLISHED Feb 16, 2024

  A colleague and I have an ongoing discussion about "homework bands" — that is, artists who competently make music that objectively ticks al...