First:

Back in 2002 Hot Hot Heat were king of the dancefloor. It seemed you couldn’t step into a club without hearing the energy of “Bandages” blaring out of the speakers. While the band has never quite managed to match the ubiquity of that first hit, they’ve never gone away either. Their latest, Future Breeds, is out today and to celebrate we’re going to take a look at their first single “21 @ 12.” The video is a little long and indulgent, but the song is solid and I love the Dylan-esque cadence in vocalist Steve Bays’ voice.

Mr. Invitation is the sixth release from Greg MacPherson. (A stunning output considering I’ve never, ever, heard of him before.) I’m always a little surprised to find a talented, successful and seasoned musician I’ve never heard of, like not once. How is that possible? I read blogs, go to shows, listen to the radio etc. Sorry, Greg. Nonetheless, I’m happy to have finally been introduced. Check out “Outside Edge” off the new record. You’re welcome.

TSOL, the latest release from Shad is continuing to gather steam, and for good reason. We featured his first single “Yaa I get it” a few weeks ago and while we generally try not to repeat ourselves here, the new video is just too good to pass up. Expertly timed and choreographed, it takes a pretty simple concept and executes it perfectly. Check out “Rose Garden”:

First: “Yaa I Get It” is the first track off Kenya-born, London, Ont.-raised MC Shad‘s upcoming release TSOL. His previous effort The Old Prince used wit and humour to separate himself from the pack and based on his first single, he’s not looking to fix anything that ain’t broke. The new track boasts a fatter production than his previous effort that Shad seems more than ready to tackle. While there are a few lyrical hiccups here (please—no rapping about Twitter), Shad sounds smooth and confident here. Time to get out of the basement.

Next: Born Ruffians are back June 1st with their follow up to Red, Yellow & Blue with Say it. The track “What to say” is about communication and the difficulty in choosing your words appropriately. But while the lyrics may cycle through some of vocalist Luke Lalonde’s insecurities with human interaction, the song itself is a perfect union of sparse instrumentation, twitchy guitar and Lalonde’s high flying cries of “what to say.”

Finally: “New Inheritors,” the first single off Wintersleep‘s upcoming album of the same name, sounds like a sombre plea to the youth of today. These “new inheritors of earth” have an overdeveloped sense of entitlement that could turn destructive if not dealt with. But the song doesn’t necessarily place blame, it simply poses the question: New inheritors, are you going to buy into your own hype?