Every week, CKUA’s hosts submit their songs for our weekly House Blend playlist: an exciting new release, a beloved classic or just an old personal favourite. We mix it all together to create a sonic concoction that’ll help kick off your week. Check out what’s on this week’s playlist.
The Playlist
The Picks
Baba: Hazmat Modine, “It Calls Me”
Punchy guitars, hot harps and Mongolian singers — unusual at least, very memorable, almost ethereal. The track and the band are a standout musical adventure from New York.
Terry David Mulligan: Leeroy Stagger, “I Want It All”
Holy spit, Leeroy’s got a hit. He slips in references to Trump, the power of song, his beautiful wife and kids, “a few guitars — it’s a pretty good life”. And they gave him his own radio show! This song changes everything.
Lark Clark: Renata Rosa, “Jurema”
Rosa created music with an Amazonian tribe and an Iranian movie director. This song brings these unlikely forces together.
Oskar Zybart: Jom Comyn, “Why Do You Love Me”
Jom Comyn meets old Motown, and they become fast friends.
*This song is not available on Spotify, but you can hear it here.
Lisa Wilton: Francois & The Atlas Mountains, “Grand Dereglement”
Brussels-based musician, Francois Marry, has led this excellent French-British band for the past 12 years. The group’s latest album, Solide Mirage, was released earlier this month. “Grand Dereglement” is a great kickoff song. Sung in French, it’s a mesmerizing blend of indie pop and light Afrobeat rhythms with a decidedly-European finesse.
Lionel Rault: Ryan Adams, “Outbound Train”
Strong writing, singing and production from Ryan Adam’s latest album, Prisoner.
Orest Soltykevich: John Bayless, “Crocodile Rock”
John Bayless, a classically-trained American pianist, is also known for his improvisational skills. He’s especially known for his classical music styling of pop music. This song is from his 2007 album: Circle of Life – The Music of Elton John in the Style of Bach.
Allison Brock: Paul McCartney and Wings, “Maybe I’m Amazed”
A love song Paul wrote for Linda originally appeared on his McCartney album. Doesn’t get much better than that — except of course for the live version they did on Wings Over America. That version is MY pick!
Monica Miller: Piers Faccini, “The Many Were More”
Faccini’s album, I Dreamed An Island, is a timely celebration of diversity. His imagined island exists in 12th-Century Sicily — a decidedly metropolitan place where the Western, Arabic and Byzantine worlds all come together. Guest musicians, and there are many, include, on this track, Algerian mandole player-singer: Malik Ziad.
Mark Antonelli: Karin Kei Nagano, “Inventions: No. 8 and No, 14”, from J. S. Bach: Inventions & Sinfonias
The first music by Bach I ever heard — I’ll admit it was the moog synthesizer version by transgender Wendy Carlos. I was 10-years-old and had never heard anything like it before. I thought it was crazy! All these years later, the two pieces have remained some of my favourite music. This recording is a brand new one with top-notch playing from the daughter of Kent Nagano.
David Ward: Father John Misty, “Total Entertainment Forever”
I was sold by watching his riveting Saturday Night Live (SNL) performance of this catchy but somewhat dark view of the future.
Holger Petersen: Taj Mahal, “Senor Blues”
An eclectic mix of Latin big band jazz and blues by composer Horace Silver. Nobody sounds like Taj Mahal. Wonderful groove, horn arrangements and solos.
Tony King: Portugal. The Man, “Feel It Still”
Nothing like fear to boil the blood and inspire the creative spirit. This new single from Portugal The Man comes after a long hiatus, and was precipitated by front-man John Gourley’s trip to Wasilla, Alaska to visit his father. Following a terse “time to pull the thumb out,” talk and under threat from the record company PTM is back with a killer groove anchored by the spirit of 1969.
Amy Van Keeken: Vashti Bunyan, “Winter is Blue”
The never-ending Alberta winter is upon us. The snow is beautiful but I’m so ready for spring. Stunning in its simplicity, this delicate track has a gorgeous and unexpected melody.