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How To Run a Listening Party and 5 Reasons You Should as a Musician

Photo by Vincent Chan on Unsplash

There’s no better way to connect with your fans, friends, and even first-time listeners than by hosting a Listening Party! Picture this: your latest single or album is about to drop, and instead of just sending it into the world, you create an experience that’s unforgettable, personal, and downright fun. It’s the kind of thing that can make your music go from being heard to being felt! Listening parties are a great idea for artists who don’t do live shows because they offer a unique way to connect with fans, share the stories behind the music, and create an immersive experience without needing to hit the stage.

Here’s how you can throw an epic Listening Party and why you need to do it, like, yesterday.

5 Reasons Why Musicians Should Host a Listening Party

  1. Direct Fan Connection
    A listening party is your chance to interact with your listeners in real time. Whether you’re streaming live or hosting an intimate in-person event, the vibe is electric when you can talk about your process, the stories behind the songs, and get immediate reactions. It’s that moment where your fans feel like they know you, not just your music.
  2. Build Hype and Anticipation
    Ever heard the saying, “If you build it, they will come”? When you announce a listening party, you’re creating buzz. Fans love to feel like they’re getting exclusive access. It’s like they’re hearing your music before the world does – because they are! It turns the album drop into a must-see event.
  3. Feedback in Real Time
    Imagine getting real-time feedback on your new track! Whether it’s through social media chats, comments, or in-person reactions, you get to see what’s resonating with your fans. This can help shape your future work or even guide your tour setlists. You’re learning, growing, and fine-tuning your art all at once!
  4. Strengthen Your Brand
    A well-executed listening party does more than just launch an album. It strengthens your brand. By curating the event to fit your style – think themed decor, special playlists, or surprise guests – you create an experience that’s uniquely you. And that memory sticks with people long after the last note fades.
  5. Generate Social Media Buzz
    People love to share cool, exclusive events! A listening party is social media gold – your fans will post stories, pics, and comments. You can even livestream it and let your audience tweet, Instagram, or TikTok their reactions. The ripple effect of that buzz keeps growing, and suddenly, your music is everywhere!

How to Throw a Listening Party

Now that you’re convinced (right?!), let’s break down how to actually run a listening party. It’s simpler than you think, but with a few tips, you can make it legendary.

  1. Choose Your Format
    Decide whether it’ll be an in-person event or a virtual one. An in-person party is perfect for local fans or close friends, while a virtual event lets you connect with your global fan base. Virtual platforms like Zoom or Instagram Live are perfect for engaging with fans around the world!
  2. Pick a Venue (if live)
    If you’re going live, find a venue that fits your vibe. It could be a cozy house party, a local club, or even an art gallery. Think about the aesthetic of your music and choose a space that reflects that – something that enhances the atmosphere you want your listeners to feel.
  3. Create a Killer Playlist
    This is your moment, but you don’t want to overwhelm your audience. Choose a few key tracks to showcase, then mix in some of your influences or songs that inspired your work. A curated listening experience adds layers to your story and lets fans feel like they’re walking through your creative mind.
  4. Plan Interactive Moments
    Make it more than just a play-through. Talk to your fans! Introduce each track, share stories, ask questions, and get feedback. You can even invite a Q&A session where fans ask about the songwriting process, production choices, or what’s next for you. Interaction is key to making the event memorable.
  5. Promote It Like Crazy
    A successful listening party starts with great promotion. Use all your social media channels to build excitement, create countdowns, share sneak peeks, and get your fans talking! The more hype, the bigger the turnout. And hey, don’t forget to follow up after with highlights or special behind-the-scenes moments.

A Listening Party is more than just a playback of your music – it’s a celebration of your art, a way to build lasting connections, and a perfect moment to let your fans in on your creative journey. So go ahead, plan that party!

Canada Post to Unveil Stamp Honouring Canadian Singer-Songwriter and Musician Sarah McLachlan

Canada Post issued a new stamp today honouring singer-songwriter and musician, Sarah McLachlan. Known for her emotional ballads and hauntingly soulful vocals, the award-winning Canadian artist has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide.

Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1968, McLachlan was adopted as an infant and received classical training in guitar, piano and voice at an early age. After studying at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design for one year, she moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, and released her first studio album, Touch (1988), at age 20.

Her second album, Solace (1991), went gold in Canada and earned McLachlan her first two JUNO nominations and first win for Best Video for the single “Into the Fire.” Fumbling Towards Ecstasy – celebrating its 30th anniversary this year with a North American tour – was a hit on its release in Canada and the United States in 1994.

McLachlan has since launched six more studio albums, including the multi-platinum Surfacing (1997), her best-selling album to date. Showcasing her unique fusion of pop and folk with such hits as, “Building a Mystery,” “Sweet Surrender” and “Angel,” the album was a critical and commercial success and won two Grammy Awards and four JUNO Awards.

In 1997, McLachlan founded the exclusively female-fronted Lilith Fair concert tour, which helped bolster careers and raised more than $7 million for local and national charities. She has been a longtime advocate for animal rights and is the founder of the non-profit Sarah McLachlan School of Music, which provides free music education and mentorship to children and youth, among others, facing barriers to access.

McLachlan was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada (1999), invested into the Order of British Columbia (2001) and received a Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement (Popular Music) (2015). A member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame (2017), she will be inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame on September 28 of this year.

Designed by Jocelyne Saulnier of Joce Creative, the stamp features a photo of McLachlan with a stylized version of her signature in the foreground. The background includes a detail from her hand silk-screened art print, Blue Sunrays. The cancel site is Vancouver, B.C. – McLachlan’s longtime home.

My Next Read: “Band People: Life and Work in Popular Music” by Franz Nicolay

Secret (and not-so-secret) weapons, side-of-the-stagers, rhythm and horn sections, backup singers, accompanists—these and other “band people” are the anonymous but irreplaceable character actors of popular music. Through interviews and incisive cultural critique, writer and musician Franz Nicolay provides a portrait of the musical middle class. Artists talk frankly about their careers and attitudes toward their craft, work environment, and group dynamics, and shed light on how support musicians make sense of the weird combination of friend group, gang, small business consortium, long-term creative collaboration, and chosen family that constitutes a band. Is it more important to be a good hang or a virtuoso player? Do bands work best as democracies or autocracies? How do musicians with children balance their personal and professional lives? How much money is too little? And how does it feel to play on hundreds of records, with none released under your name? In exploring these and other questions, Band People gives voice to those who collaborate to create and dissects what it means to be a laborer in the culture industry.

Celebrate the U.S. Beatlemania Explosion: Iconic 1964 Albums Return in 8LP Vinyl Box Set

1964 was the year that the U.S.A. first fell head-over-heels for The Beatles, with an unprecedented run of albums and singles topping the charts and going on to sell millions of copies. But these albums are not simply replicas of the 1963 and 1964 albums released by Parlophone in the UK and rest of world. Seeing a different opportunity, Capitol Records and United Artists compiled these albums for U.S. release between January 1964 and March 1965.

To celebrate the momentous year when Beatlemania exploded across the U.S., seven Beatles albums are collected for a spectacular new 8LP vinyl box set. Meet The Beatles!; The Beatles’ Second Album; A Hard Day’s Night (Original Motion Picture Sound Track); Something New; The Beatles’ Story (2LP); Beatles ’65; and The Early Beatles all feature faithfully replicated artwork and new four-panel inserts with essays written by American Beatles historian and author Bruce Spizer. The albums’ new vinyl lacquers were cut by Kevin Reeves at Nashville’s East Iris Studios with constant reference to the original vinyl first pressings to ensure they are faithful to the original release, while also enabling more musical information to be heard than was possible before. 180 gram audiophile pressing. The Beatles’ Story 2LP is exclusive to the box set.

1964 was the year that the U.S.A. first fell head-over-heels for The Beatles, with an unprecedented run of albums and singles topping the charts and going on to sell millions of copies. But these albums are not simply replicas of the 1963 and 1964 albums released by Parlophone in the UK and rest of world. Seeing a different opportunity, Capitol Records and United Artists compiled these albums for U.S. release between January 1964 and March 1965.

To celebrate the momentous year when Beatlemania exploded across the U.S., seven Beatles albums are collected for a spectacular new 8LP vinyl box set. Meet The Beatles!; The Beatles’ Second Album; A Hard Day’s Night (Original Motion Picture Sound Track); Something New; The Beatles’ Story (2LP); Beatles ’65; and The Early Beatles all feature faithfully replicated artwork and new four-panel inserts with essays written by American Beatles historian and author Bruce Spizer. The albums’ new vinyl lacquers were cut by Kevin Reeves at Nashville’s East Iris Studios with constant reference to the original vinyl first pressings to ensure they are faithful to the original release, while also enabling more musical information to be heard than was possible before. 180 gram audiophile pressing. The Beatles’ Story 2LP is exclusive to the box set.

Tracklist:

Meet The Beatles! [ LP1 ]
SIDE 1
I Want To Hold Your Hand
I Saw Her Standing There
This Boy
It Won’t Be Long
All I’ve Got To Do
All My Loving

SIDE 2
Don’t Bother Me
2.Little Child
Till There Was You
Hold Me Tight
I Wanna Be Your Man
Not A Second Time

The Beatles’ Second Album [ LP2 ]
SIDE 1
Roll Over Beethoven
Thank You Girl
You Really Got A Hold On Me
Devil In Her Heart
Money
You Can’t Do That

SIDE 2
Long Tall Sally
I Call Your Name
Please Mister Postman
I’ll Get You
She Loves You

A Hard Day’s Night [ LP3 ]
SIDE 1
A Hard Day’s Night
Tell Me Why
I’ll Cry Instead
I Should Have Known Better (Instrumental)
I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
And I Love Her (Instrumental)

SIDE 2
I Should Have Known Better
If I Fell
And I Love Her
Ringo’s Theme (This Boy) (Instrumental)
Can’t Buy Me Love
A Hard Day’s Night (Instrumental)

The Beatles Story [ LP4 ]
SIDE 1
On Stage With The Beatles
How Beatlemania Began
Beatlemania In Action
Man Behind The Beatles – Brian Epstein
John Lennon
Who’s A Millionaire?

SIDE 2
Beatles Will Be Beatles
Man Behind The Music – George Martin
George Harrison

The Beatles Story [ LP5 ]
SIDE 3
A Hard Day’s Night – Their First Movie
Paul McCartney
Sneaky Haircuts And More About Paul

SIDE 4
The Beatles Look At Life
Beatle Medley
‘Victims’ Of Beatlemania
Ringo Starr
Liverpool And All The World!

Something New [ LP6 ]
SIDE 1
I’ll Cry Instead
Things We Said Today
Any Time At All
When I Get Home
Slow Down
Matchbox

SIDE 2
Tell Me Why
And I Love Her
I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
If I Fell

Beatles ’65 [ LP7 ]
SIDE 1
No Reply
I’m A Loser
Baby’s In Black
Rock And Roll Music
I’ll Follow The Sun
Mr. Moonlight

SIDE 2
Honey Don’t
I’ll Be Back
She’s A Woman
I Feel Fine
Everybody’s Trying To Be My Baby

The Early Beatles [ LP8 ]
SIDE 1
Love Me Do
Twist And Shout
Anna
Chains
Boys
Ask Me Why

SIDE 2
Please Please Me
PS I Love You
Baby It’s You
A Taste of Honey
Do You Want To Know A Secret

The Flaming Lips to Release Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Blu-Ray Edition on November 1, 2024

Immersing listeners deeper into a living and breathing otherworld, GRAMMY Award-winning alternative luminaries The Flaming Lips will unveil Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (Blu-Ray Edition) on November 1, 2024. The Atmos mixes of Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots as well as 2020’s American Head, are available to stream now on participating digital platforms.

This marks the first release of Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots on Blu-Ray in Dolby ATMOS mixed by Dave Fridmann & Atmos engineering & mastering by Jon Fridmann, DTS-HD 5.1 Mix mixed by Dave Fridmann & Elliot Scheiner, and DTS-HD 2.0 Hi-Res Stereo mixes by Dave Fridmann. The package insert also includes an excerpt from an interview by Wayne Coyne with Jon and Dave Fridmann, discussing the Atmos mixing and listening experience.

The Blu-Ray also notably boasts animated visualizer “Bleep Blops” and four newly remastered music videos—“Fight Test,” “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 1,” Are You A Hypnotist??,” and both versions of “Do You Realize??” All music videos will also be upgraded on digital platforms, with “Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 1” & “Fight Test” available to watch in HD leading up to release.

The Flaming Lips initially unveiled Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots on July 16, 2002. It went on to emerge as their “biggest-selling album so far” and earn a Gold certification from the RIAA. Indicative of the record’s impact, the epic closer “Approaching Pavonis Mons by Balloon (Utopia Planitia)” garnered a GRAMMY® Award in the category of “Best Rock Instrumental Performance.” 22 years later since its arrival, signature classics such as “Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell” and “Do You Realize??” remain staples in concert and on streaming platforms.

American Head was produced, as always, by longtime collaborator Dave Fridmann and The Lips and is comprised of thirteen cinematic tracks. Among them, “God and the Policeman,” featuring backing vocals from country superstar Kacey Musgraves.

The band is currently on the Voyage to a Blue Planet Tour with Weezer across the US through October 12, 2024. They will then pick back up with continued dates performing Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots in its entirety in Australia, the UK, Europe & Asia in 2025.

Formed in Oklahoma City, OK in 1983, The Flaming Lips have since become one of the most iconic, influential, unpredictable, and vital forces in American alternative rock music. The band has garnered three GRAMMY Awards, a Tony nomination, and an RIAA Gold-certified Record for Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. Q Magazine named them one of the “50 Bands to See Before You Die.”  The band has made countless late-night television appearances, appeared in a Super Bowl commercial, contributed to many film soundtracks, and collaborated with artists such as Miley Cyrus, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Kacey Musgraves, Yoko Ono, The Chemical Brothers, and many more. Most recently, The LIPS have recorded an album of Nick Cave covers featuring vocalist Nell Smith called “Where The Viaduct Blooms.” They have set countless records, broken attendance records, have a hometown street named in their honor, created spectacular interactive audio/visual events now regarded as legendary.  Frontman Wayne Coyne has been recognized for works of art that graced many LIPS album covers along with his traveling art exhibit (and subsequent album) “The King’s Mouth,” an audiovisual art installation that has been featured in many contemporary art museums around the US.  Their latest LP, American Head, marks a return to a more melodic and song-oriented body of work and has critically been lauded as their best work in years, placing on several “Year End/Best Of lists” around the world. Even after a combination of 23 studio recordings, 16 singles, 11 compilations, 12 EPs and 11 self-released experimental collaborative oddities released in various forms,quantities and unique mediums, The Flaming Lips remain in a creative apex that has no bounds. To that end, they have become an American Treasure and created a genre all to themselves.

TRACKLISTING:

YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS (BLU-RAY)
AUDIO
DOLBY ATMOS, DTS-HD 5.1 SURROUND & DTS-HD 2.0 STEREO MIXES
1. Fight Test
2. One More Robot/Sympathy 3000-21
3. Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 1
4. Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 2
5. In the Morning Of The Magicians
6. Ego Tripping At The Gates of Hell
7. Are You A Hypnotist??
8. It’s Summertime
9. Do You Realize??
10. All We Have Is Now
11. Approaching Pavonis Mons By Balloon (Utopia Planitia)

MUSIC VIDEOS
1. Fight Test
2. Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 1
3. Are You A Hypnotist??
4. Do You Realize??
5. Do You Realize?? (Mark Pellington Version)

YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS DIGITAL ALBUM (ATMOS)
1. Fight Test
2. One More Robot/Sympathy 3000-21
3. Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 1
4. Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 2
5. In the Morning Of The Magicians
6. Ego Tripping At The Gates of Hell
7. Are You A Hypnotist??
8. It’s Summertime
9. Do You Realize??
10. All We Have Is Now
11. Approaching Pavonis Mons By Balloon (Utopia Planitia)

AMERICAN HEAD DIGITAL ALBUM (ATMOS)
1. Will You Return / When You Come Down
2. Watching the Lightbugs Glow
3. Flowers of Neptune 6
4. Dinosaurs on the Mountain
5. At the Movies on Quaaludes
6. Mother I’ve Taken LSD
7. Brother Eye
8. You n Me Sellin’ Weed
9. Mother Please Don’t Be Sad
10. When We Die When We’re High
11. Assassins of Youth
12. God and the Policeman (featuring Kacey Musgraves)
13. My Religion Is You

The Flaming Lips On Tour 2024/2025:
*Indicates date with With Weezer

Sep 17 Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena*
Sep 18 Greenville, SC Bon Secours Wellness Arena*
Sep 20 Orlando, FL Kia Center*
Sep 21 Hollywood, FL Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino*
Sep 27 Austin, TX Moody Center*
Sep 28 Houston, TX Toyota Center*
Sep 29 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center*
Oct 01 Loveland, CO Blue Fcu Arena*
Oct 04 Seattle, WA Climate Pledge Arena*
Oct 05 Vancouver, BC, Rogers Arena*
Oct 06 Portland, OR Moda Center*
Oct 08 Sacramento, CA Golden 1 Center*
Oct 09 San Francisco, CA Chase Center*
Oct 11 Inglewood, CA Intuit Dome*
Oct 12 Palm Desert, CA Acrisure Arena at Greater Palm Springs*
Feb 1 West Melbourne, VIC, Australia at Festival Hall Melbourne
Feb 5 Brisbane, QLD, Australia at The Fortitude Music Hall
April 25 Birmingham, UK at O2 Academy Birmingham
April 26 London, UK at O2 Academy Brixton
April 28 Dublin, Ireland at 3Olympia Theatre
April 29 Dublin, Ireland at 3Olympia Theatre
May 1 Edinburgh, UK at Usher Hall
May 2 Leeds, UK at O2 Academy Leeds
May 4 Manchester, UK at O2 Apollo Manchester
May 5 Bristol, UK at Beacon Hall, Bristol Beacon
May 30 Borgerhout, Belgium at DE ROMA
May 31 Paris, France at Le Trianon
June 2 Utrecht, Netherlands at TivioliVredenburg
June 4 Cologne, German at E-Werk Köln
June 5 Berlin, German at TEMPODROM
June 8 Copenhagen, Denmark at VEGA – Musikkens Hus, Store Vega

Southern Rock Icons Van Zant Reunite, New Album Coming November 22

Southern rock icons Van Zant have reunited and returned to the studio for what will be their first new album in nearly two decades. Titled Always Look Up, the album will also mark the duo’s first foray into Christian music, while holding firm to their southern rock roots. Available on CD, vinyl and streaming, Always Look Up will be available everywhere November 22, 2024 from Frontiers Music SRL.

The Van Zant musical dynasty built its foundation firmly on family. Donnie Van Zant co-founded .38 Special and brother Johnny Van Zant is the current lead vocalist for Lynyrd Skynyrd after the passing of their brother Ronnie Van Zant, who fronted and co-founded the iconic Rock and Roll Hall of Fame rock band.

But throughout their four decades of climbing the southern rock and country charts together and separately, faith has stayed just as important of a factor in the equation, so much so that the guys decided to finally share their inspirational side with the upcoming new album.

“This has been on our bucket list for quite some time to do a gospel record,” says Donnie of the sessions that started during the pandemic. “We’re both big believers in Jesus Christ, so that’s really how it started.”

In spite of their enormous successes, including .38 Special’s more than 20 million album sales and Lynyrd Skynyrd continuing to sell out arenas and amphitheaters, much of what makes Van Zant so relatable is the fact they’ll be the first to admit their flaws and struggles.

“I’ll be honest with you, the devil was my best friend at one time,” says Johnny. “I’m not gonna lie about that and there ain’t too much that I didn’t try over the years, but I always kept hearing our dad speaking the Bible [in my mind]. Our dad should’ve been a preacher, because boy when he started talking the gospel, you didn’t get up and move. Of course as kids, I think we listened to half of it and tried to consume what we could, so that was always in the back of my head. I always believed in Jesus Christ, but I wasn’t saved and I felt like I had my personal connection, just like the song ‘It’s Up To You’ that’s on this new album. Over the years, that voice of my dad was reminding me to try to be a better person. I made lots of mistakes, lots of things that hopefully I don’t get to the pearly gates and they’re closed for me. I’m trying to get through them now!”

Adds Donnie: “We’ve tried our very best to just write about truth, about people, about problems and situations and just try to be true to ourselves. We don’t write nothing that’s B.S. We try to touch people emotionally and spiritually. If we can do that, I think we’ve done our jobs.”

Van Zant released the first single, “Jesus Christ,” in August. Inspired by a painting hanging in Johnny’s Sulfur Water Studios, the song speaks about the crucifixion and resurrection with vivid lyrical descriptions.

The follow-up single, “There You Are,” releases today. W

Pre-Save Link for Always Look Up: https://ffm.to/vanzantalwayslookup

Always Look Up Track Listing:
​1. Awesome God
​2. Stand Up
​3. Warrior
​4. There You Are
​5. Speak His Name
​6. Why God Brought Me Here
​7. Praying
​8. It’s Up to You
​9. Holy Moment
​10. Leaning on the Cross
​11. Jesus Christ

Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2 begins Streaming on Disney+ Sept. 25

Make room for new emotions when the top animated movie of all time, Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2, makes its streaming debut on Disney+ September 25.

Certified-Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and celebrated by critics as “absolute perfection, hilarious” (Jazz Tangcay, Variety) and “an unforgettable experience” (Landon Johnson, Awards Watch), the highly anticipated heartwarming sequel has already proven to be a blockbuster smash hit. Inside Out 2 is the highest-grossing animated film of all time, the fastest animated film to reach $1 billion globally, and is currently the 8th highest grossing film in global box office history.

Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2 returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions! Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who’ve long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren’t sure how to feel when Anxiety shows up. And it looks like she’s not alone. Maya Hawke lends her voice to Anxiety, alongside Amy Poehler as Joy, Phyllis Smith as Sadness, Lewis Black as Anger, Tony Hale as Fear, and Liza Lapira as Disgust. Directed by Kelsey Mann and produced by Mark Nielsen.

Unveiling the Signature Jack White Collection: A Revolution in Sound

 

Jack White has long been a pioneer in music, pushing the boundaries of tone, technique, and creativity. Now, his vision comes to life in an exciting collaboration with Fender: the Signature Jack White Collection. This meticulously crafted line introduces a selection of guitars and an amplifier, each designed to reflect White’s unique approach to music while showcasing Fender’s legendary commitment to craftsmanship.

The Pano Verb Amp: A Sound Like No Other

First up is the Pano Verb Amp, a one-of-a-kind tube amplifier that breaks new ground for Fender. White worked closely with the brand to bring this entirely new amp to life, packed with features that are a first for any Fender amplifier. Whether you’re on stage or in the studio, the Pano Verb’s versatile tones promise to deliver a sound unlike anything you’ve heard before. It’s an amplifier designed for musicians who, like Jack White, constantly seek new ways to express themselves.

The Triplecaster: The Jewel of the Collection

At the heart of the collection is the Triplecaster, a guitar that White and Fender designed as the key to unlocking the next chapter in his musical journey. With its innovative design and ability to deliver unparalleled tones, the Triplecaster stands out as the crown jewel of this collection. Musicians won’t want to miss the chance to own this limited-edition masterpiece, which promises to transform how you play. It’s an essential tool for artists looking to push their sonic boundaries.

The Triplesonic: Coming Soon

Next on the horizon is the Triplesonic, a guitar that combines Fender’s rich history of electric excellence with cutting-edge technology. Powered by the groundbreaking Fender and Fishman-designed Acoustic Engine, the Triplesonic offers both acoustic and electric tones, blending a magnetic pickup with an undersaddle transducer. This hybrid guitar promises to deliver versatile, shape-shifting sounds, making it perfect for both studio recording and live performances.

Jack White Pano Verb™ - Black and Yellow
Jack White Triplecaster™ Telecaster® -
Jack White Triplesonic™ Acoustasonic® Telecaster® -

THE GREAT SALISH HEIST is coming to Cineplex across Canada for National Truth and Reconciliation Day

Orca Cove Media is excited to announce a national theatrical release for the first-ever Indigenous heist film, THE GREAT SALISH HEIST, featuring Graham Greene, Tricia Helfer, and Ashley Callingbull. Coming to Cineplex theatres across Canada for National Truth and Reconciliation Day, the film will be playing in select cities on September 22 and September 28.

“We are so excited to see our film get the big screen treatment across Canada,” says Harold C. Joe, Cowichan filmmaker and producer of Orca Cove Media. “To see our Indigenous stories get national recognition is amazing, and we can’t wait to bring the first-ever Indigenous heist film to Cineplex theatres.”

THE GREAT SALISH HEIST follows Steve Joe, a traditional archaeologist for the Moquahat people who believes the bad luck in his community is a result of the displacement of sacred artifacts. He and a rag-tag group of rebels from the Rez hatch a plan to break into a museum and reclaim their stolen artifacts.

After a successful theatrical run across the West Coast, THE GREAT SALISH HEIST’s lead cast has made names for themselves, including actress Ashley Callingbull who has since been crowned 2024’s Miss Universe Canada.

“We couldn’t be more proud of Ashley and the success she has received,” says Joe. “From our movie filmed in Southern Vancouver Island to competing in Mexico later this year for Miss Universe, she is a testament to Indigenous talent and we couldn’t be happier to have had her as part of our cast.”

Tickets are now on sale here.

After Battling Cancer, Toronto Indie Songstress Moonlyn Spreads Joy and Positivity with ‘Here & Now’ From ‘Possessed by Angels’ Album

Renowned for her infectious positivity and radiance, indie songstress Moonlyn is on the sole mission to spread joy through her music. With the release of her latest single “Here & Now,” Moonlyn is preparing to release her new full-length album Possessed by Angels on October 17. Her third studio album marks her latest record release since her 2010 album Blondes Prefer Gentlemen.

Her upcoming album is an incredibly vulnerable release, as it began to take shape at a dark point of Moonlyn’s life. After undergoing a serious cancer diagnosis and surgery during lockdown in 2020, she began to work on Possessed by Angels as a way to find light within the darkness.

“It helped me focus on the good, stay positive, and keep moving forward,” she says. “After getting past the ‘why me?’ moments and the tears following my cancer diagnosis, I made a choice – I didn’t want to be unhappy, I wanted to make good use of whatever time I have left here.”

Her latest single, “Here & Now,” was the first track Moonlyn worked on for the upcoming album. With its distinct 90s acoustic rock vibe, the song carries a powerful message about the importance of focusing on the present moment and devoting all your energy to the here and now. In less than a month, the song and its accompanying video have garnered over 250,000 streams, resonating deeply with listeners and making a strong connection with a wide audience.

“It was a song that my friend Peter had sent to me for me to add my talents to,” Moonlyn says. “I focused on everything I’m grateful for and poured all my energy into creating an album full of positive music with inspiring messages. Now, I want to share these messages with the world – to spread happiness and hope and to inspire others to do the same. Sharing my love with the world through my music is what’s keeping me strong.”

With catchy melodies and lyrics that celebrate life’s sunny side, Moonlyn invites you to a world where every beat is an invitation to dance, and every note is a burst of happiness. Within the music of Moonlyn, you will find nothing but inspiration, positivity and one uplifting tune after another.

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That Eric Alper
6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week, a 16-time JUNO Award winner overseeing PR campaigns, and have also been truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.

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