'We Grown Now' Finds the Poetry but Loses the Grit
"A place is the people," flashes on a black screen at the end of 'We Grown Now,' Minhal Baig's third feature film. This message drives
Leina Gabra•May 8, 2024
music reviews Archive
Mach-Hommy and Kaytranada Do It Again on "#RICHAXXHAITIAN"
Moments in which Kaytranada provides production to an MC determined to give it nothing less than their most charged-up delivery remain enti
Calum Slingerland•May 8, 2024Dehd Crack the Code on 'Poetry'
There's nothing better than witnessing a band hit their stride in real time, and Dehd are doing just that. On their fifth album 'Poetry,'
Dylan Barnabe•May 8, 2024'Dark Matter' Is a Dimension of the Multiverse That Looks Kinda Like All the Other Ones
Multiverses are so hot right now. The idea of a limitless number of parallel dimensions, spinning off from every decision everyone makes
Matthew Simpson •May 7, 2024Knocked Loose Polish Their Blade on 'You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To'
Knocked Loose are something of a love-them-or-hate-them band, or at least a name that comes up often in pedantic internet arguments, with ev
Manus Hopkins•May 7, 2024Amen Dunes' 'Death Jokes' Is a Discombobulated Thrill
Many of Damon McMahon's releases under the Amen Dunes moniker have been marked by a sense of musical and lyrical austerity. Even among the
Tom Piekarski•May 7, 2024Jon McKiel Casts a Hypnotic 'Hex'
Jon McKiel's 2020 album, 'Bobby Joe Hope,' had an incredible backstory, involving a second-hand reel-to-reel recorder full of mysterious
Alex Hudson•May 6, 2024Home Front Did What They Do Best in Toronto
Home Front are one of Canada's best bands, in any genre, full stop, period. Hailing from Edmonton, Home Front was formed in 2021 by Graeme
Marko Djurdjić•May 6, 2024Death Cab for Cutie and the Postal Service Looked Perfect from Far Away in Toronto
More than a year ago, when Death Cab for Cutie and Postal Service announced their 20th anniversary tours celebrating their most beloved
Allie Gregory•May 6, 2024Hot Docs 2024: 'Daughter of Genghis' Has an Upsetting, Inspiring Character Arc
Daughter of Genghis is a documentary following a mother and son through seven years of their lives — but it displays such a fascinating
Alex Hudson•May 6, 2024Dua Lipa's Enthusiasm and Jerry Seinfeld's Cameo Couldn't Redeem a Nonsensical 'SNL'
Despite Dua Lipa's effervescence and enthusiasm, 'Saturday Night Live' had a schedule of sketches that were particularly surreal and random
Vish Khanna•May 5, 2024Jessica Pratt Lights Up the Dark on 'Here in the Pitch'
It's been hard to find the words for Jessica Pratt's 'Here in the Pitch.' Even now, I feel more like I'm scrambling against time than saying
Kaelen Bell•May 3, 2024'The Fall Guy' Falls Just Short of Great
With the release of 'The Fall Guy,' summer blockbuster season has officially begun. Beautiful, personable leads? Check. Quippy meta humour?
Rachel Ho•May 2, 2024Camera Obscura Find a Way Forward on 'Look to the East, Look to the West'
On 'Look to the East, Look to the West,' Camera Obscura's first new material in over a decade, the Scottish quintet recapture the melodic
Dylan Barnabe•May 2, 2024Beams' 'Requiem for a Planet' Is a Stirring Swan Song
The end of the world has come, or at least it has for Beams. The Toronto-based psych-folk band's concept album 'Requiem for a Planet' tells
Emma Schuster•May 2, 2024Sabrina Carpenter's "Espresso" Is Addictive
Last night, my partner — who loves music but rarely keeps up with new releases — said to me with total confidence, "Oh yeah, they were
Sydney Brasil•May 1, 2024Laufey Was More Than Just Vibes in Toronto
How do you make a Laufey set interesting? When the highs are unassuming bossa nova bops and the lows are ballads gentle as falling snow, ho
Rachel Evangeline Chiong•May 1, 2024Charlotte Day Wilson Creates New Hues on 'Cyan Blue'
Charlotte Day Wilson stands out among the coterie of modern torch singers in part because she has largely self-produced her music, includin
Nicholas Sokic•May 1, 2024Though 'Grand Theft Hamlet' Be Madness, Yet There Is Method In't
English teachers absolutely love anything that makes classic literature seem cool to young people. Someone rapping 'The Canterbury Tales'?
Alex Hudson•May 1, 2024Mdou Moctar's 'Funeral for Justice' Is a Fiery Affair
Admittedly, Mdou Moctar and I got off on the wrong foot. Having grown up with East African parents with no affinity for FM radio, many a
Matthew Teklemariam•Apr 30, 2024Thom Yorke's 'Confidenza' Score Is a Welcome Consolation for Radiohead Fans
Despite drummer Phil Selway's periodic reassurances, my personal theory is that Radiohead are done for good. This isn't based on any inside
Alex Hudson•Apr 30, 2024Hot Docs 2024: 'Fire Tower' Lacks Storytelling Spark, but the Canadian Wildness Is Stunning
There are a slightly more than a hundred manned fire towers in Canada, each of them occupied by someone who spends six months per year in
Alex Hudson•Apr 30, 2024Six Organs of Admittance Turns Back the Clock on 'Time Is Glass'
Most writing about Ben Chasny's long-running project as Six Organs of Admittance features an obligatory mention of David Keenan's 2003 arti
Eric Hill•Apr 29, 2024Hovvdy Are Growing but Grounded on Their Self-Titled Album
When a band well into their career self-titles their album, you know they're trying to make some sort of statement. For Hovvdy, their fifth
Chris Gee•Apr 26, 2024Bullion Takes Centre Stage on 'Affection'
Nathan Jenkins’s work as Bullion is unmistakable but easily subsumed — his burbling, ‘80s-influenced production
Kaelen Bell•Apr 26, 2024Corridor's 'Mimi' Is Total Ear Candy
As the first — and to date only — Francophone band signed to Sub Pop, Corridor are ambassadors of sorts for Québécois music. It's easy to
Alex Hudson•Apr 25, 2024Justice Ditch the Clutter on 'Hyperdrama'
If you're talking about French disco-funk and you're not talking about Daft Punk, you're probably talking about Justice. Few have challenge
Luke Pearson•Apr 25, 2024Zendaya Serves and Slays in 'Challengers'
"You don't know what tennis is... It's a relationship," Zendaya's Tashi says with gusto when she first meets fellow tennis players — and be
Marriska Fernandes•Apr 25, 2024Hot Docs 2024: 'Secret Mall Apartment' Turns a Childlike Fantasy into a Commentary on Capitalism
"People live in a secret apartment in the mall" is a perfect elevator pitch — both a potent metaphor for the struggle of living under
Alex Hudson•Apr 25, 2024Nilüfer Yanya Does It Again on "Like I Say (I runaway)"
How does she do it? Scroll through any given comment section under Nilüfer Yanya's new single or peruse the tweets ecstatically spreading
Kaelen Bell•Apr 24, 2024Waxahatchee Was a Fledgling Legend in Toronto
With the haze of the full moon just breaking through the clouds in Toronto on Tuesday evening, Massey Hall prepared for a fledgling legend
Allie Gregory•Apr 24, 2024Hot Docs 2024: 'Seguridad' Considers the Heartache of Family Secrets
The nuances of art, humanity and allegiance show themselves throughout 'Seguridad' in its visuals and narrative. The film by Newfoundland
Rachel Ho•Apr 24, 2024Ellis Is Adrift on 'no place that feels like'
A line in "what i know now," one of the singles from Linnea Siggelkow's sophomore album as Ellis, has stuck to my side like a bur
Megan LaPierre•Apr 24, 2024'Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story' Gives Music Docs a Good Name
There aren't many artists today with enough history — and heart — to support a four-part documentary miniseries. So many music docs come ou
Sarah Bea•Apr 24, 2024'Humane' Is a Promising Start for Another Cronenberg
With two short films and a successful career in photography under her belt, it was only a matter of time before Caitlin Cronenberg — of the
Karlie Rogers•Apr 23, 2024d'Eon Cleverly Channels Bygone Eras on "Figurine"
d'Eon conjured remarkable feeling through arrangements of digital chamber instruments on 2021's 'Rhododendron' (an album we hope you didn't
Calum Slingerland•Apr 23, 2024St. Vincent Is Emboldened by Oblivion on 'All Born Screaming'
"Am I the only one in the only world?" Annie Clark sang in a panic 10 years ago, her question dying with a muted thud against the desert
Kaelen Bell•Apr 23, 2024Cloud Nothings' 'Final Summer' Is Confidently Familiar
Cloud Nothings aren't quite famous enough to be a proper "legacy band," a term normally associated with nostalgia acts offering older fans
Alex Hudson•Apr 22, 2024Taylor Swift's 'The Tortured Poets Department' Is Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing
Taylor Swift has self-mythologized her career arc as a series of "Eras," where each of her albums has its own unique aesthetic — a sound
Alex Hudson•Apr 22, 2024Chastity Was Voiceless but Vivid in Winnipeg
The one who belonged most at Chastity's Friday night Winnipeg show was the kid standing by himself smoking a cigarette 15, maybe
Myles Tiessen•Apr 20, 2024Nicki Minaj Got By on Good Will in Toronto
Showcased on a series of screens were animated images of Chun Li, one of Nicki Minaj's many personas, dressed in a medieval knight's armour
Veracia Ankrah•Apr 19, 2024'Abigail' Brings Nasty Fun Back to Horror
With competitors like NEON, A24 and Blumhouse currently going toe-to-toe-to-toe in the prestige horror arena, the genre space sometimes
Josh Korngut•Apr 19, 2024µ-Ziq Gets Back to the Bangers with "Hyper Daddy"
Free your mind from the pretentiousness of "IDM" and embrace the "weird bangers" of 'Grush,' Mike Paradinas's forthcoming album as µ-Ziq
Calum Slingerland•Apr 18, 2024Antichrist Siege Machine Are Relentless Explorers on 'Vengeance of Eternal Fire'
War metal, bestial black, blackened death metal: these are all apt generic descriptors for Richmond, Virginia's 'Antichrist Siege Machine'
Marko Djurdjić•Apr 18, 2024Pearl Jam Make a Case for Sticking Around on 'Dark Matter'
If we're using the long-outdated framework of criticism as consumer guide, then a review of the latest Pearl Jam record is largely irreleva
Nicholas Sokic•Apr 18, 2024Martha Skye Murphy's "Need" Pulses Like an Ember in Ice
If there's one thing you can expect from Martha Skye Murphy, it's that she'll leave you a little dizzy, your feet sliding even on solid
Kaelen Bell•Apr 17, 2024BIG|BRAVE Conjure Primordial Magic on 'A Chaos of Flowers'
There is no other band that intersects the ecstatic and the hopeless quite like BIG|BRAVE. Their songs veer between spiritual
Anthony Boire•Apr 17, 2024Watching 'Conan O'Brien Must Go,' It's an Honour Just to Be Along for the Ride
As the Jimmys, a Seth, a Stephen and a John continue to lead the charge on the overcrowded late night circuit, it's safe to say the talk
Rachel Ho•Apr 17, 2024'Sasquatch Sunset' Has Big Feet, Little Laughs
Inspired by Sasquatch lore and the infamous 1967 Patterson-Gimlin film that has fascinated them since childhood, directors/brothers
Vanessa Sanginiti•Apr 17, 2024claire rousay Is Vexing and Vulnerable on 'sentiment'
What if life was a mixtape? Rather than shared collections of beats and rhymes, claire rousay curates the sounds of objects
Eric Hill•Apr 16, 2024