Single Servings, March 14, 2022
In this week’s Single Servings, Alanis Morissette seeks forgiveness, Orville Peck gets back on the horse, By Divine Right makes a triumphant return, Joe Nolan starts the car, and much more!
By Jason Schneider
In this week’s Single Servings, Alanis Morissette seeks forgiveness, Orville Peck gets back on the horse, By Divine Right makes a triumphant return, Joe Nolan starts the car, and much more!
Alexisonfire – Sweet Dreams Of Otherness
Release Date: March 11
Label: Dine Alone
The hardcore legends have announced that their first new studio album since 2009, Otherness, will be released June 24—nearly 20 years since their self-titled debut. Despite guitarist/vocalist Dallas Green forging his own singer/songwriter path as City & Colour, he proves he can still bring the noise on this first single, accompanied by a rousing live performance video directed by actor Jay Baruchel.
Alanis Morissette – Olive Branch
Release Date: March 11
Label: Epiphany Music
Coinciding with the announcement of a world tour celebrating the 25th anniversary of Jagged Little Pill that kicks off this July in her hometown Ottawa, Alanis has shared this new track, an aching piano ballad that strikes a surprisingly regretful tone, as the title suggests.
Harrison & TOBi – Outta This World
Release Date: March 10
Label: Last Gang
Juno Award-winning hip-hop artist TOBi and Toronto producer Harrison have reunited on this new single, the first taste of a projected new album from the pair sometime later this year. TOBi said in a statement, “Since Harrison and I did Beige a couple of years ago, we’d been trying to get another joint in. A lot has happened in those few years, good and bad, so I wanted to capture that in the song on our second go around.”
Orville Peck – The Curse Of The Blackened Eye
Release Date: March 11
Label: Columbia
The enigmatic country star has dropped another four-song teaser ahead of his sophomore album Bronco. It’s highlighted by The Curse Of The Blackened Eye, the video for which features actor Norman Reedus of The Walking Dead. His appearance is just one of the creepy aspects that once again underscore that what Peck’s doing ain’t your grandaddy’s country music.
Art d’Ecco – Palm Slave
Release Date: March 9
Label: Paper Bag Records
Art d’Ecco’s Desires (from the album In Standard Definition) was one of Single Servings’ best of 2021, so it’s exciting to get a brand new track from the Victoria B.C. glam rocker. On Palm Slave, he goes full-on early Roxy Music, complete with squealing saxophone. Yes, it’s been done before, but nowhere near this good.
By Divine Right – St. Leon’s
Release Date: March 11
Label: Fortune Stellar
The Toronto indie rock legends—whose ranks have included Feist and Broken Social Scene’s Brendan Canning—are returning this fall with an ambitious double album entitled OTTO MOTTO. St. Leon’s offers an early taste, and shows that bandleader Jose Contreras hasn’t lost a step when it comes to writing melodic guitar anthems.
Envy Of None – Look Inside
Release Date: March 9
Label: Kscope
We’ve been sharing every tidbit we can about Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson’s new project as it keeps coming into focus, and Look Inside is another glimpse of the self-titled Envy Of None album set to arrive April 8. Vocalist Maia Wynne says, “The guitars and bass really drive the grittiness and heaviness I felt when I wrote those lyrics. It feels like an all-encompassing sludge, and that is what I absolutely love about this song.”
Kiesza – Slow Motion Fighting
Release Date: March 11
Label: Independent
The one-time pop prodigy continues her comeback after a nearly debilitating car accident, with Slow Motion Fighting again revealing the evolution of her sound over the past couple of years. On one hand danceable, lyrics such as, “Wounds that you could not bear seem to heal, everything you believed wasn’t real,” are remarkably mature.
Joe Nolan – Start The Car
Release Date: March 1
Label: Fallen Tree Records
Edmonton singer/songwriter Nolan continues to ride the momentum of last year’s excellent LP Scrapper with this new standalone single released to coincide with his current western Canadian tour dates. Like the album, Start The Car is a compelling one-man studio creation that shows Nolan in full command of his creative powers.
Shaela Miller – Tidal Wave
Release Date: March 8
Label: Independent
Released to celebrate International Women’s Day, Tidal Wave is actually an outtake from Alberta alt-country artist Miller’s well-received 2020 album Big Hair Small City. Along with its important message about self-care, it will hopefully tide fans over until her next record is expected to arrive in the fall.
