Crawl - Rockwired Radio Profiles #665

Much like DALI VAN GOGH on the previous edition of ROCKWIRED RADIO PROFILES, CRAWL is another Canadian hard rock band that has come back with a fine new release but the story here is one that spans decades and some startling changes in the music industry. In the early nineties CRAWL hit it big in Canada with the release of two albums 300 YARDS OF FACE and FEED which featured singles STORM, DRY and NOT THE WAY IT SHOULD BE. The first of these two singles ended up earning nominations for the MUCH MUSIC VIDEO AWARD ( Canada's version of the MTV MUSIC AWARDS) for BEST HARD ROCK PERFORMANCE in 1994 and 1995 respectively. When ROCKWIRED took notice of these guys, the band had reformed with bassist SCOTT CLARK, guitarist STUART GREEN and drummer TOM GRONDIN taking over the creative reins while new vocalist MICHAEL DAVID WOLF was front and center on the 2014 EP release ANTICIPATE THE FALL. Now the band is back with THE CROCKFORD FILES - a five song collection of the sort of blistering rock n roll that we've come to expect from CRAWL as evidenced by the tracks MINE and DEAD.

CHECK OUT THE PODCAST AT:

http://www.rockwired.com/temporarysite/rockwiredprofiles665.mp3

Rock Is Red #22 - Susan Aglukark

In speaking with Inuk singer songwriter SUSAN AGLUKARK, it is surprising to learn that her resolve as an artist and a musician was never truly solidified in her mind until after the release of her fourth album THIS CHILD. The 1995 album went three times platinum in Canada and earned her two JUNO AWARDS yet AGLUKARK maintains that her role as singer songwriter felt undefined until the follow up album UNSUNG HERO.  "On that album is a song called STAND UP written around 1997 or 1998." says AGLUKARK. "I remember having this moment of realization . I was the artist the EMI RECORDS had signed. I'm the center of this thing. I am the focus. I have to lead this. If I'm the writing the songs I'm directing he story and with  that knowledge came this profound peace. I needed to stop writing hit songs and just answer the call of the song. I fell inn love with being a conduit using the music as a tool to share the culture. That was when I knew that I had to commit to this musical career. That was when I knew."  And commit she has! AGLUKARK's musical career has been beautifully cataloged on nine albums over the span of twenty-five years. Her sound marries Inuk folk music traditions with contemporary pop and country flourishes. Now she is in the midst of putting together a brand new album with songs that speak to and for her Inuk culture, the wrongs of the past and the frailty of the human condition. While these themes are nothing new to AGLUKARK's music, she maintains that there will be a few surprises.  As she progresses in her life as both a musician and a spokesperson for numerous non-profit organizations working with Aboriginal and Inuit youth AGLUKARK has never lost sight of the importance of her music and it's message.  "Sometimes we (as Native people) feel like we begin when the government says we begin. Our identity comes from an institutional organization and they say this is what you are and this is what you do. When I got into this career it was all too easy to let everyone else make choices and decisions for me. That was how I had been conditioned . The more I engaged art and the more I wrote, the more I was empowered and realized that I had  the opportunity through music, singing and songwriting to share my views and my culture. This is mine but I had to come to that place first. At the core of all of the problems with our youth is this identity crisis." 

CHECK OUT THE PODCAST AT:

http://www.rockwired.com/rockisred/rockisred22.mp3

Rockwired Radio Profiles #628 - Dead Air Republic

With a tumultuous election year already upon us in the United States a great number of eyes are looking to Canada to see what our neighboring country is all about. Maybe it could be  a place of refuge should a TRUMP presidency become the case. Politics aside ROCKWIRED has enjoyed an appreciation for the rock n roll that comes from the True North Strong and Free from bands such as GHOST TOWN ORCHESTRA, LUKAS ROSSI, CRAWL, SATE, DISTRICT AVENUE and FINGER ELEVEN and now we're happy to be adding DEAD AIR REPUBLIC to that list. Rock n roll is certainly the name of their game and their brand new EP WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE is an in-your-face affair that is destined to attract attention from active rock radio programmers beneath that U.S-Canadian border. The music is simply stomping with some rather layered guitar riff-age brought to you but DAVID MALTAIS and RICH BENT and an imposing rhythm section consisting of bass player BEN BARNES and drummer MIKE DESTROFF. Despite all of the heavy metal thunder lead singer MARC BOURGON gives the chaotic material a touch of humanity in his nuanced vocal performance and crafty lyrical approach. 

CHECK OUT THE PODCAST AT:
http://www.rockwired.com/temporarysite/rockwiredprofiles628.mp3

Rockwired Radio Profiles #533 - Tyler Gilbert

As far as accolades go, Calgary born, Saskatchewan based singer/songwriter TYLER GILBERT has been nothing short of an indie sensation since releasing his 2008 debut EP Vos and its full length follow up THE RE-SESSION (2009). He's done national tours all over his native country, from Vancouver and Edmonton to Toronto and Montreal; performed at countless major festivals, including the CANADIAN COUNTRY MUSIC AWARD FESTIVAL and CANADIAN WESTERN AGRIBITION; done national tours of the U.S. Midwest; and performed live on GLOBAL TV and CTV while his music hit the playlists of top stations all across Canada. But behind the scenes, there are always those darker challenging realities that any indie artist faces in building a great career - those moments when anything that could go wrong along the way, did. As GILBERT explains in his liner notes, the title of his latest album OK MURPHY is his way of acknowledging that there are always bumps in the road - and Murphy's Law may have prevailed in the past, but no longer. Like, "Ok Murphy, you won this round, but now you're on the sidelines." The future couldn't be more vibrant as Gilbert finds the perfect balance on the 13 track set between the acoustic folk/rock of his past and the electric-driven rock direction he continues to gravitate to.

CHECK OUT THE PODCAST AT:

http://www.rockwired.com/temporarysite/rockwiredprofiles533.mp3