SUPER DUTY TOUGH WORK ANNOUNCES PARADIGM SHIFT EXTENDED, SHARE LP B-SIDE “WATERSHEDDING”

SUPER DUTY TOUGH WORK’S PARADIGM SHIFT EXTENDED,  OUT JUNE 7 VIA NEXT DOOR RECORDS, FEATURES INSTRUMENTAL TRACKS OF THEIR LATEST LP, ALBUM B-SIDE “WATERSHEDDING”, AND TWO TRACKS FROM THEIR DEBUT EP, STUDIES IN GREY

LISTEN / SHARE “WATERSHEDDING ” HERE
LISTEN / SHARE “MOOD SWINGS (INSTRUMENTAL)” HERE

BUY / STREAM “WATERSHEDDING” + “MOOD SWINGS (INSTRUMENTAL)” HERE

WATCH / SHARE TRAILER FOR ‘MAKING OF PARADIGM SHIFT’ DOCUMENTARY HERE

PRE-SAVE PARADIGM SHIFT EXTENDED HERE

PHOTO CREDIT : Adam Kelly // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

After releasing their mission statement-esque debut full length Paradigm Shift in 2023,  Winnipeg’s Super Duty Tough Work expands on this thought by releasing the full instrumental  version of the record, accompanied by one b-side, “Watershedding”, and two previously released tracks from their debut record, Studies in Grey. Paradigm Shift Extended arrives June 7 via Next Door Records. 

Switching focus from the lyrics to the music, the instrumental record offers listeners a chance  to really absorb the rhythmic and harmonic ideas laid down by the band, because this is a  band after all. The static-heavy syncopation of drummers Brendan Grey and Kevin Waters, with low-end support of bassist Ashley Au, only to be further embellished by bursts of sax and guitar from Olivier Macharia and Gaby Ocejo, is at the forefront of this release, as listeners are led to embrace the often overlooked foundations for the searing commentary that typically dominates Super Duty reviews.

In addition to the instrumental tracks, a lost cut from the Paradigm Shift sessions is featured.  “Watershedding” is a smooth yet haunting, forward-moving yet relaxed offering, filled in typical  Super Duty Tough Work fashion with sparse yet tasteful staticky piano and lyrics so layered,  you’ll be looking for the footnotes to catch every reference. Navigating a new era,  “Watershedding” finds frontman Brendan Grey drawing on the past as he tries to make sense of  the present, lamenting on everything from mind reading algorithms and corporations  supporting genocide, to the effect all of the above has on one’s psyche. Yet despite the despair, Grey maintains his wit (“My style is like the Black Adder meets the Black Panthers”), his focus (“Each move made with a purpose, stay watching like closed circuits…”) and his commitment to his listeners and the art (“So when I rhyme it’s sincerely yours”), all while continuing to show that he is the master of paying homage to his influences and citing his sources. 

References to Clyde Stubblefield and James Brown are particularly poignant, as the drums on this cut (played by Grey) are caught somewhere between quintessential Stubblefield (think Funky Drummer) and a more contemporary J Dilla stutter. The crunchy keys and muffled  bass are accentuated by the supremely tasteful guitar playing of JUNO Award winning jazz guitarist Joceyln Gould, and the airy vocal harmonies of Afro-Iraqi musician Ahmed Moneka, who’s voice is distant yet felt, positioned and mixed to sound more like a sample from an old record, than a live recording. Static, piano loops, thumbing kick drums, trashy hi-hats, no real chorus, hopelessness, optimism and of course, a Nas reference?! Sounds like Super Duty Tough Work. 

LISTEN / SHARE “WATERSHEDDING ” HERE
LISTEN / SHARE “MOOD SWINGS (INSTRUMENTAL)” HERE

BUY / STREAM “WATERSHEDDING” + “MOOD SWINGS (INSTRUMENTAL)” HERE

PARADIGM SHIFT EXTENDED ARTWORK // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

PRE-SAVE PARADIGM SHIFT EXTENDED HERE

SUPER DUTY TOUGH WORK ON TOUR
June 22 Africa Oye Liverpool UK
July 10 The Horn St Alban's UK
July 13 Mostly Jazz Birmingham UK
July 17 Lefty's Well Whitehorse YK
July 18-22 Dawson City Music Fest YK
Aug 2-4 Arts Wells Festival Wells BC

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MAJOR LOVE’S NEW LP, LIVE, LAUGH, MAJOR LOVE, OUT THIS FRIDAY, SHARES OPENING TRACK

WATCH / SHARE “FOR THE LONG RUN” HERE

LIVE, LAUGH, MAJOR LOVE OUT THIS FRIDAY VIA SLOW WEATHER

PRE-SAVE LIVE, LAUGH, MAJOR LOVE  HERE

TOUR DATES BEGIN TOMORROW, MAY 16 - FULL DATES LISTED BELOW

“Major Love — the collaborative project between Edmonton songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Colleen Brown and Scenic Route to Alaska — are following up their 2018 debut this May, excavating the painful reverberations of pandemic isolation with latest single "Making the Most of It." Produced by Marcus Paquin, the upcoming record promises catharsis and introspection like only Brown and co. can provide.” Exclaim! | Most Anticipated Albums of 2024

Photo Credit : Ryan Parker // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

‘In these times of trouble when I long to feel some comfort, well, I think of you.’ The opening line of Major Love’s fifth single “For The Long Run” - the lead track off their sophomore album Live, Laugh, Major Love - is a confession. At the centre of that confession is a universal longing. It asks the question - ‘if I’m totally honest, if I’m truly myself - will I still be loved and accepted?’

The first time the chorus comes around, it’s clear the question is personal, talking about a romantic connection. But as the song develops, it morphs into a more communal reflection on how uncertainty and insecurity changes people. How some people contract and become defensive in difficult circumstances, and others look for the opportunity inside the difficulty. 

Lead singer-songwriter Colleen Brown explains: “During lockdowns, I think we were all experiencing some form of longing. A lot of us felt really isolated - maybe we were single and hadn’t touched another human in a year. Some of us were in bubbles or family units, but felt totally alienated from them. It wasn’t just physical isolation - but also the sense that humanity was splintering, along with a shared sense of reality and belonging. Many of us were losing people to conspiracy theories, seeing people we love suddenly spouting hateful rhetoric. And then some of those people would try to turn it around on us, accusing us of the same thing… it can break your brain, if you don’t have deep moral conviction behind your beliefs. 

To me this feels more relevant than ever, right now, at this moment. I truly believe we are at the flashpoint that will determine whether humanity survives in the long term. We have a couple of years to avoid irreversible ecological collapse, which we have been rushing headlong towards, and we also have students and protesters around the world being shut down, attacked, and arrested for protesting war crimes. These things are 100% related. Propping up a colonial empire is the same principle as spraying your garden with Roundup: as long as we insist on control and domination of ourselves and our environment, we are doomed as a species. This moment, right now, is our opportunity to change that, to change our trajectory. That’s what this song is really about, and that’s the feeling we are trying to capture in the music.” 

WATCH / SHARE “FOR THE LONG RUN” HERE

MORE ABOUT LIVE, LAUGH, MAJOR LOVE
Live, Laugh, Major Love, the long-awaited, Marcus Paquin-produced, semi-eponymous sophomore album from Major Love, comes to us like a cheeky valentine, pairing emotional vulnerability with light-heartedness and the kind of confidence that is synonymous with rock. Earnest without taking themselves too seriously on this record, Major Love’s lead singer-songwriter Colleen Brown playfully scorns romantic love even as she openly longs for it. 

WATCH / SHARE “TIME” HERE
BUY / STREAM “TIME” HERE

“When love relationships go bad, there’s always some part of you that recoils at the next opportunity. You’re like the armadillo. You’re always wearing your armour. And then you attract more armadillos, both of you protecting yourselves, both of you only showing a small part of your tender self. All the while, wishing, at least in part, to relieve yourselves of your shells. To be naked in your need,” says Brown. “The older I get, the more plainly obvious it is to me that in order to survive, we need to learn to love each other, forgive each other, be emotionally vulnerable with one another, look for ways we can collaborate and compromise, and become totally and utterly truthful with ourselves and each other.” 

The eleven tracks that comprise Live, Laugh, Major Love showcase Brown’s willingness to do just that, in partnership with her Major Love bandmates: Trevor Mann, Shea Connor, and Murray Wood.

WATCH / SHARE “MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME” HERE
BUY / STREAM “MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME” HERE

This latest offering, Live, Laugh, Major Love, began with the creation of these two demos; “The More I Know” and “Mountain Standard Time” and became the starting point for the whole record after a serendipitous meeting with Grammy Award-winning producer Marcus Paquin, who would go on to complete the album with the band. “I met Marcus in early 2020, when the two of us were backing up Hawksley Workman and Sarah Slean on tour. I showed him a bunch of my music. He played me the new Weather Station album he had just completed and I was really blown away, obviously, so I really wanted to work together…and we hatched plans to complete the rest of [Major Love’s] album at the National Music Centre in Calgary.” 

There were some worldly delays to getting started on that - during which time Brown released two solo albums - Isolation Songs in 2020 and Winging It in 2022 - the latter of which features Paquin as mixing engineer on the track “I Am Leaving (And It's Okay)”. 

WATCH / SHARE “ONE WOMAN” HERE
BUY / STREAM “ONE WOMAN” HERE

The band finally convened in May 2022 to record Live, Laugh, Major Love, titled in homage to the very cheesy home decor of the rental house they stayed at while recording in Calgary, and in a nod to Brown’s self-help journey that colours a lot of the songwriting. “I'm kind of poking fun at myself while also earnestly repeating my daily affirmations… That's the thread that ties all the songs together - it's me wrestling with my shadows, succumbing at times, trying to pull myself back into the light.’ 

By the time we hear the album’s closing track “Better Excuse” we do feel as though we are once again in the light. Brown brings us back, full circle, to her romantic optimism, but this time holding on to all the lessons gleaned from the preceding tracks, as she sings about living the life she wants without waiting for love, while also putting forth the offering: “I’ll make the time, I’ve always got space for two.”

WATCH / SHARE “MAKING THE MOST OF IT” LYRIC VIDEO HERE
BUY / STREAM “MAKING THE MOST OF IT” HERE

PRE-SAVE LIVE, LAUGH, MAJOR LOVE HERE

TOUR DATES
May 16 - Edmonton, AB, Varscona Theatre
May 17 - Calgary, AB, King Eddy
May 18 - Lethbridge, AB, The Owl
May 21 - Penticton, BC, Dream Cafe
May 23 - Vancouver, BC, The Lido
May 24 - Victoria, BC, The Hallway
Jun 9 - Ottawa, ON, Live on Elgin
Jun 10 - Toronto, ON, Horseshoe Tavern
Jun 26 - Golden, BC, Kicking Horse Culture

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LIVE, LAUGH, MAJOR LOVE TRACKLIST
01 For The Long Run
02 Making The Most Of It
03 Same Girl
04 One Woman
05 The More I Know
06 Mountain Standard Time
07 Keep Your Heart To Yourself
08 Mind Body
09 Mistake Again
10 Time
11 Better Excuse

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OURI SHARES NEW SINGLE, “BABY HAS A FROWN”

LISTEN / SHARE “BABY HAS A FROWN” HERE
BUY / STREAM “BABY HAS A FROWN” HERE

HEADING OUT ON TOUR WITH CHARLOTTE DAY WILSON ACROSS NORTH AMERICA

"effortless and sublime" - PAPER Magazine

"a richly rewarding left turn" - The FADER

"expertly guides listeners through a narrative of anticipation, climax and release" - Office Magazine

"equal parts comforting and transcendent" - V Magazine

"dials in swooping sounds, echoey vocal syllables, a glitchy beat, tentative chords; the dance beat solidifies, falls away and reappears" - The New York Times

Ouri by Kirk Lisaj // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Today, Montreal-based producer and multi-instrumentalist Ouri returns with her new single “Baby Has A Frown”. Pulling from her background as a cellist, harpist, and intent lover of reimagined dance music, “Baby Has A Frown” provides insight into the musical landscape in which Ouri currently finds herself. Speaking on the track’s significance she shares, “This song is an infinite dance of polarities. I wanted it to feel like a mantra and a choreographed pursuit. A slow and deep euphoria playing on loop in your head. Following ‘Twin’ and ‘blueprints of us’, I’m accelerating into this new sonic world where all my sides merge as one.” 

LISTEN / SHARE “BABY HAS A FROWN” HERE
BUY / STREAM “BABY HAS A FROWN” HERE

Alongside the single Ouri is heading on tour across North America with Charlotte Day Wilson with stops including Toronto, Vancouver, followed by performances in Montreal, Quebec, and more. The tour follows her dates with Patrick Watson across Europe as well as her previous tour with Yaeji and additional dates with Tirzah and Smerz. You can find the full upcoming tour routing below.  

The new single comes after her highly praised debut album Frame of a Fauna was shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize. “Baby Has A Frown” also follows her bt002: self-hypnosis tape and joint project with Helena Deland titled Hildegard, which Pitchfork hailed as, "pure creative symbiosis." 

Born Ourielle Auvé, Ouri was raised in France before moving to Montreal at the age of 16 with dreams of becoming a composer. As Ouri developed her compositional ability as well as her production and vocal chops, she integrated herself with late-night DJ sets in Montreal's underground rave scene and was eventually selected to take part in Red Bull Music Academy's Montreal Bass Camp. From there, her profile began to grow as she headlined Boiler Room's Montreal showcase and toured with the likes of Yves Tumor and Jacques Greene.

TOUR DATES
5/15 - Seattle, WA @ Neumos *
5/17 - Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre *
5/18 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre *
5/20 - San Francisco, CA @ The Regency Ballroom *
5/21 - Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theater *
5/24 - Houston, TX HOB @ Bronze Peacock *
5/26 - Atlanta, GA @ Center Stage *
5/29 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry *
5/30 - Washington, DC @ Union Stage *
5/31 - New York, NY @ Webster Hall *
6/2 - Boston, MA @ The Sinclair *
6/4 - Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall *
6/6 - Toronto, ON @ History *
7/6 - Montreal, Montreal @ Jazz Festival (opening for Ichiko Aoba) 
7/7 - Quebec City, QC @ Festival D'été 

* = supporting Charlotte Day Wilson

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