Quebec Scene

ROYAL CANOE is a band armed with five keyboards and lyrically sharp pop songs that move people and make people move. It all began in 2006, when Matt Peters (The Waking Eyes) teamed up with some Winnipeg friends and musicians to write a collection of songs. Many of the tunes revolve around tragic characters, each treated with equal parts humour and tenderness. Buzz continues to build around Royal Canoe, one of Canada’s most dynamic live acts.

In 2008 THE LIPTONIANS emerged from a basement in Winnipeg with an “earnest little pop-rock gem” (Uptown Magazine). Much to their surprise, the album picked up a Western Canadian Music Award for Outstanding Pop Recording, became a regular on CBC Radio, and paved the way for three dynamic cross-Canada tours. The band’s songwriting has become more adventurous, fusing lush horn arrangements with electro-folk grooves and pop-rock sing-alongs.

MAYBE SMITH has produced five LPs and two EPs of densely packed pop music full of samples, electronic squiggles and other curiosities. His album Animals & Architects was nominated for a Western Canadian Music Award, and he has been labelled “Canada’s best kept musical secret” by Grant Lawrence of CBC Radio 3.