Author: Emma Cassidy

  • New Olympic Symphonium Streaming on Exclaim!

    A Nice piece in Exclaim! on The Olympic Symphonium’s new album. Stream HERE.

     

    The Olympic Symphonium

    ‘Chance to Fate’ (album stream)

    By Matthew Ritchie

    Since their formation back in 2005, laid-back New Brunswick roots rockers the Olympic Symphonium have gone for gold with three albums’ worth of contemplative indie folk. But, much like Patrick Chan and Elvis Stojko before them, the band aren’t content to simply rest on their laurels. Their fourth full-length effort, Chance to Fate, arrives March 18 through Forward Music Group. Until then, stream the album in full on Exclaim.ca.

    Recorded over four days at the Salty Towers Inn and produced by Joshua Van Tassel (Great Lake Swimmers, David Myles), Chance to Fate finds the atmospheric quartet ruminating on such complex ideas as life, loss, love and spirituality. Starting out with the slow-burning “Seize the Day,” the band mine a treasure trove of mellow folk-rock gold over 11 tracks, providing lap steel-assisted slow jams (“Sacred Son”), sinewy country songs (“Jasper”) and muscular soft rock (“Stronger,” the album’s title-track).

    Hear for yourself by listening to the Olympic Symphonium’s new LP in the player below, which you can find underneath the band’s upcoming tour schedule.

    If you like what you hear, don’t forget to pre-order the album over on the group’s Bandcamp page, which includes an exclusive remix EP featuring Michael Feuerstack (Snailhouse), Tim Crabtree (Paper Beat Scissors) and Joshua Van Tassel.

    Tour dates:

    04/04-05 Charlottetown, PE – East Coast Music Week
    04/11 Quebec City, QC – L’Agitee
    04/12 Toronto, ON – Horseshoe Tavern
    04/13 Toronto, ON – The Piston *
    04/15 Boston, MA – Club Passim
    04/16 Biddleford, ME – The Oak & The Ax
    04/17 Montreal, QC – Casa Del Popolo
    04/18 Ottawa, ON – Pressed
    04/19 Burlington, VT – Nectar’s
    05/01 Saint John, NB – Park Ave. United Church
    05/02 Fredericton, NB – Wilmot United Church
    05/03 Halifax, NS – Sonic Temple
    05/16 St. Andrews, NB – Paddlefest

    * with Michael Feuerstac

  • I Can Love You WIth My Eyes Closed

    Again.. I IMPLORE you to listen to the Adam Baldwin EP. He is a special kid. This song gets me. I get this song. Can’t say it enough… I am a huge huge fan. Just watch!


     

  • RHR Artist Song of the Week – March 6

    This week’s Thursday Track is from a brand new signing from Halifax, No Bodies. Craig Hamlin and James O’Toole bring us this Sadies-esque, trippy cool EP, recorded with the halifamous Charles Austin. The song I’d like to showcase is “Tell Me Who You Love”. Listen HERE!

     

  • Sexy Girl

     

    The RHR artist song of the week comes from Dave Marsh and The True Love Rules. The New Album, The Cause of Many Troubles, has been on repeat during my travels this winter. It’s been with me to Jamaica, London, Florence and Cambridge and it fits every moment. The track “Sexy Girl” (CLICK HERE) is our Thursday Track this week, but I implore you to check out the rest of the album as soon as possible!
    xo,

    -JB

    A snippet of an album review from CBC’s Bob Mersereau

    “What makes these tracks so enjoyable is how well Marsh has put them together. With a rather encyclopaedic knowledge of rock’s past, he can summon just the right guitar line, the perfect background vocals, the right time to use a crazy synth, the appropriate amount of echo on his voice, all the little pieces that make each song sound so great. And what’s so interesting is he takes all these bits and pieces, largely found in late 60’s to mid 70’s albums, and spins them into thoroughly contemporary alt-pop. So you get all these moments where you start thinking about, say, the big Traffic/Mad Dogs and Englishmen/Delaney & Bonnie sound on the title track, or the winking nod to Bowie in This Is How We Say Goodnight (“So let’s talk serious under the moonlight”), but there’s no one song that they resemble, nor seems more vintage than new.”

  • RHR Artist Song of the Week – Feb 20

    Following last week’s folk pop track, “The Right Idea” by Sherman Downey and The Ambiguous Case, we now have this week’s Song of the Week by The Mouthbreathers.

    This band is from Sackville, NB and are gaining a lot of attention these days. A killer throw back to The Maritimes in the 90s, but not enough to sound dated, these pop-punks are WAY cool. And I don’t say that often about pop-punk. I struggled to chose between track 1 on their first effort (Appetite for Deconstruction) and track 1 on the follow up EP (Stone Soup), but ultimately settled on “Standards” from Stone Soup. 

    “You’re good lookin’ but you got bad manners, 
    Good lookin’ but you got bad manners, 
    So I don’t even care what your favourite band is.
    I don’t even wanna know…”

  • RHR Artists Nominated for East Coast Music Awards!

    2012-01-27-06-02-28-ECMA

    Congratulations to the RHR artists nominated for awards during this year’s East Coast Music Week! All EXTREMELY well deserved. A list of RHR artists and their nomination category is pasted below. Go team! I have the best roster in the land 🙂

    For a full list of nominees, please visit HERE.

    – JB

    TOM SWIFT: Blues Recording of the Year
    THE LITTLE DITTIES: Children’s Recording of the Year
    MEAGHAN BLANCHARD: Country Recording of the Year
    RYAN COOK: Country Recording of the Year
    JOSHUA VAN TASSEL: Electronic Recording of the Year
    SCIENTISTS OF SOUND: Electronic Recording of the Year
    KIM WEMPE: Fan’s Choice Video of the Year (“Never Promised You Nothing”) AND Pop Recording of the Year
    THE MOTORLEAGUE: Fan’s Choice Video of the Year (“North America”) AND Rock Recording of the Year
    ACRES AND ACRES: Folk Recording of the Year AND Group Recording of the Year
    STEPHEN FEARING: Folk Recording of the Year
    THE CHRONOS BAND: Jazz Recording of the Year
    BLACK MOOR: Loud Recording of the Year
    QUAKE MATTHEWS: Rap/Hip-Hop Recording of the Year
    RAIN OVER ST. AMBROSE: Rock Recording of the Year
    ALAN JEFFRIES: Roots/Traditional Solo Recording of the Year
    CHRISSY CROWLEY: Traditional Instrumental Recording of the Year
    MAXIM CORMIER: Traditional Instrumental Recording of the Year

     

     

  • New Artist: Chrissy Crowley!

     

    Some of you lovely music supervisors have come to me looking for east coast fiddle music, and I’m happy to announce I have a fantastic new name to add to the roster! Enter Chrissy Crowley, from Cape Breton. Her album “Last Night’s Fun” includes originals and traditional arrangements, and The Canadian Folk Music Awards sent her home with “Instrumental Solo Recording of the Year” in 2013.

    Check out a glowing review from The Guardian (UK) below, and the video of Chrissy in action above. Hit me up if you need some of this flavour for your projects!

    xo,

    -JB

    “A seriously swinging Cape Breton Fiddler. Some things just seem predetermined, inevitable, unavoidable. And so it is with the chosen vocation of one Chrissy Crowley. Born into a large family steeped in the ways of Celtic music, this unfeasibly young fiddler has taken on the twin mantels of both protecting and promoting the sounds of her native Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, the region where Celtic music prospers thanks to the Scottish, Irish and French-Acadian backgrounds of its residents. It’s when she picks up her fiddle that she undertakes the true ambassadorial role, the sound of Cape Breton history emerging with every thrust of her bow. While technically flawless, Chrissy’s playing also swings along with a sense of youthful mischief, while her natural curiosity will surely see her expanding the Cape Breton tradition in years to come. For now though, give your ears and heart over to a spellbindingly precocious talent.” 

    -Nige Tassell The Guardian (UK) 2012

  • Looking for: Pop Music!

    Dear Pop Bands / Artists,

    Do you have music that you’d like us to listen to? Do you own your master / sync rights? Do you want to be part of the RHR family? We’re currently looking for some new pop sounds to add to the database. You can be from the East Coast or beyond. Send music for consideration to info (at) rockinghorseroad.ca

    xo,

    -JB

  • Looking For: Videographer or Animator For A Small Project

    UPDATE: I found my person. Stay tuned for video in the next little while 🙂

    Hello friends, both old and new,

    RHR is looking for a special person to help bring our company’s story and brand to life via animated video or a unique and creative short film.  If you are interested in applying for the gig, or for more information, please email Janesta (at) rockinghorseroad.ca and let’s chat.

    You may be a company or a student, that doesn’t matter. We just need someone who is very creative, professional, on budget and up for a challenge.

    xo,

    JB

  • Happy New Year! Happy New Albums!

     

    RHR in the UK

    RHR is live posting at the moment from Cambridge in the UK. A gorgeous city in England, and our new home for the month.

    We have a new client here, the first newbie of 2014. Enter The Cocksure Lads!

    With an album release later this month, TCL was formed by Moxy Fruvous’ Mike Ford and Murray Foster (also of Great Big Sea). This is their take on a fictional british band from the 60s. The songs are brit-centric but don’t let the ‘schtick’ fool you, these are lovely tracks! Love songs such as “When You Walk”, “The Surprising Thing”, “Easy Peasy” and “Not Today” would be at home in any Hugh Grant film :). Being in England at the moment, this has literally become my trip’s soundtrack! Happy and fun.

    RHR has also recently delivered its clients’ new releases (or soon to be released albums) to the mailing list. If you’ve not received your link, let us know! New for January 2014:

    Dave Marsh and The True Love Rules – The Cause of Many Troubles (edgy pop-rock, or “mod/glam/proto-punk (a bit of Bowie, a bit of the Jam“)

    Sherman Downey & The Ambiguous Case – The Sun in Your Eyes (fun folk!)

    The Olympic Symphonium – Chance To Fate (alt folk, pretty harmonies)

    The Cocksure Lads – Mad Lad Plans (60’s Brit-pop)