music reviews

Jonah Yano Made Thought Tangible at Highlands Music Festival

Camp Walden, September 27

PUBLISHED Oct 1, 2024

The music at Highlands Music Festival is carefully scheduled at three stages littered across Camp Walden. There is the Main Stage...

Skratch Bastid and Friends Brought the Bounce to POP Montreal

Marche des Possible, September 28

PUBLISHED Sep 30, 2024

At the top of his set at Skratch Bastid's BBQ cookout, DJ Nu-Mark hilariously recollected having "bottles thrown on me by Green Day ...

Nabihah Iqbal Was a Dream at POP Montreal

Rialto Theatre, September 28

PUBLISHED Sep 30, 2024

I was excited to settle down and witness what I considered one of POP Montreal 2024's strongest bookings — London-born producer, songwriter...

Naima Bock's 'Below a Massive Dark Land' Hides a Universe of Light

Exclaim! Staff Picks

PUBLISHED Sep 30, 2024

The title of Naima Bock's sophomore record is a bit of a misnomer — the immense, looming weight of a phrase like 'Below a Great Dark Land'...

Leif Vollebekk Speaks to the Past on 'Revelation'

PUBLISHED Sep 27, 2024

For some artists, the songwriting muse visits through acts of conscious collaboration. For Leif Vollebekk, the solitude of the...

Mustafa Takes a Profound Journey on 'Dunya'

PUBLISHED Sep 27, 2024

'Dunya,' Mustafa's full-length debut, roughly translates from Arabic to "the world in all its flaws." And to be sure, there is an entire...

The Hives Were Electrifying in Toronto

History, September 16

PUBLISHED Sep 27, 2024

When the Hives broke through in the early 2000s with their breakneck take on garage punk, it should have come as a surprise to no one...

PJ Harvey Created a Singular Now in Toronto

History, September 25

PUBLISHED Sep 26, 2024

There was a subtle dissonance at the outset of PJ Harvey's Wednesday night show in Toronto; the crowd at History seemed struck by some...