From Toronto to Melbourne, our latest music picks

Toronto-based Broken Social Scene is often described as a collective rather than a band, as its members have participated in various configurations over the years while in many cases having separate solo careers. Its latest incarnation, after a seven-year hiatus, seems the biggest yet - 15 musicians put together the just-released collection Hug of Thunder. BSS is known for elaborate, multi-layered arrangements and that pattern is followed here. Each of the 12 tracks is distinctive, complex and intriguing. We've picked the title track, with lyrics and vocals by Feist, to feature in our New Music rotation, and many other tracks will be popping up in our mix.

From nearly the opposite side of the planet comes Sienna Wild, a trio from Melbourne that's doing its part to keep straight-ahead guitar rock alive in an era of synth/psych/dream pop. Here at Birch Street Radio we happily mix all styles - as long as we like the sound - and we're glad to help introduce local bands to a wider audience. In this case we start out with "Back Road Honey," which would sound as natural blasting from a barroom in the Southern U.S. as from the Ding Dong Lounge in the band's home town.

We spin the globe again and come to Provo, Utah, where singer-songwriter-harpist Goldmyth has released her debut EP, Faded Dream. Her music blends the delicate sounds of her voice and harp with layers of synth and percussion. We're picking up "Has To Be Better," whose lyric is an "I'm-not-coming-back-unless" message to an ex-lover.

The latest release from Philadelphia's Waxahatchee, Out In The Storm, drops next week, and we're very impressed with what we've heard so far. "Silver" is an immensely catchy track, and belongs in the category of cheerful-sounding songs with dark lyrics: "I went out in the storm / and I'm never returning." This marks the fourth album from Katie Crutchfield, part of a vibrant indie-music scene in the Philadelphia area.

And from Birmingham, England, we introduce you to singer-songwriter Hannah Brown. Her recent EP, Better For This, has been picking up airplay in the UK, particularly for the single, a fine pop tune called "Empty." But a more subdued song called "Stay" really grabbed us with its intimate vocal and a lyric about the confusion of a developing relationship: "If I ask you to go / ask you to stay / I can't explain ... Be bold and stay."

From Toronto to Melbourne, our latest music picks

Toronto-based Broken Social Scene is often described as a collective rather than a band, as its members have participated in various configurations over the years while in many cases having separate solo careers. Its latest incarnation, after a seven-year hiatus, seems the biggest yet - 15 musicians put together the just-released collection Hug of Thunder. BSS is known for elaborate, multi-layered arrangements and that pattern is followed here. Each of the 12 tracks is distinctive, complex and intriguing. We've picked the title track, with lyrics and vocals by Feist, to feature in our New Music rotation, and many other tracks will be popping up in our mix.

From nearly the opposite side of the planet comes Sienna Wild, a trio from Melbourne that's doing its part to keep straight-ahead guitar rock alive in an era of synth/psych/dream pop. Here at Birch Street Radio we happily mix all styles - as long as we like the sound - and we're glad to help introduce local bands to a wider audience. In this case we start out with "Back Road Honey," which would sound as natural blasting from a barroom in the Southern U.S. as from the Ding Dong Lounge in the band's home town.

We spin the globe again and come to Provo, Utah, where singer-songwriter-harpist Goldmyth has released her debut EP, Faded Dream. Her music blends the delicate sounds of her voice and harp with layers of synth and percussion. We're picking up "Has To Be Better," whose lyric is an "I'm-not-coming-back-unless" message to an ex-lover.

The latest release from Philadelphia's Waxahatchee, Out In The Storm, drops next week, and we're very impressed with what we've heard so far. "Silver" is an immensely catchy track, and belongs in the category of cheerful-sounding songs with dark lyrics: "I went out in the storm / and I'm never returning." This marks the fourth album from Katie Crutchfield, part of a vibrant indie-music scene in the Philadelphia area.

And from Birmingham, England, we introduce you to singer-songwriter Hannah Brown. Her recent EP, Better For This, has been picking up airplay in the UK, particularly for the single, a fine pop tune called "Empty." But a more subdued song called "Stay" really grabbed us with its intimate vocal and a lyric about the confusion of a developing relationship: "If I ask you to go / ask you to stay / I can't explain ... Be bold and stay."

Music from 2 countries celebrating 'birthdays'

We hope our listeners in Canada and the U.S. are enjoying their long weekends celebrating national holidays. And in honor of the 150th anniversary of Canadian confederation (July 1), and the 241st anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence (July 4), we're sticking to those two countries for this week's additions to our New Music bin.

We'll start with another track from Arcade Fire's forthcoming Everything Now collection, which seems to be something of a concept album about modern anxiety-inducing society. "Signs of Life" has some of the same disco influences - and undercurrent of nervous tension - as the title track, which we've been playing for the past month. The rest of the Montreal band's fifth album is due late this month.

Winnipeg's Mise en Scene just released its second full-length, Still Life On Fire and it's generating a lot of buzz. We found the single "Wasters" on the great new-music site The Revue and were quickly sold on a sound that's reminiscent of past bands like The Runaways and The Bangles as well as current groups like Best Coast. Founders Stefanie Blondal Johnson (guitar/vocals) and Jodi Dunlop (drums) are joined by bassist Corey D. Hykawy (bass) to form a high-energy trio.

From the States, we're adding tracks by three indie artists that our regular listeners know well.

Nashville singer/guitarist Tyler Boone continues to try out different sounds. His True Experience EP included flavors of straightforward rock, blues and country-tinged ballads. He's out with a new single, "Short Skirt Bare Knees," that goes full-tilt in the loud blues-rock direction, complete with wailing guitar breaks.

The Right Now's Starlight has been out for a few months now but we feel the need for another dose of this Chicago band's rock-n-soul sound. Most of the album has a polished, retro, big-band sound behind Stefanie Berecz's powerhouse vocals. This time we're featuring the edgier, noisier closing track, "Hooked."

And then because we always like to mix up a wide variety of sounds, we're adding a simple keyboard-and-vocal ballad by Kate Klim. This Ohio-based singer-songwriter is something of a hidden gem. Her albums Kamikaze Love (2011) and 100 Million Years (2014) are filled with well-crafted and highly evocative songs about small moments with big meanings. She's cut back on performing and recording lately to focus on her young family, but recently shared with her fans a "bedroom demo" of a song about making waves, called "Gaileo Galilei," And by special arrangement, we can now share it with you.

Music from 2 countries celebrating 'birthdays'

We hope our listeners in Canada and the U.S. are enjoying their long weekends celebrating national holidays. And in honor of the 150th anniversary of Canadian confederation (July 1), and the 241st anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence (July 4), we're sticking to those two countries for this week's additions to our New Music bin.

We'll start with another track from Arcade Fire's forthcoming Everything Now collection, which seems to be something of a concept album about modern anxiety-inducing society. "Signs of Life" has some of the same disco influences - and undercurrent of nervous tension - as the title track, which we've been playing for the past month. The rest of the Montreal band's fifth album is due late this month.

Winnipeg's Mise en Scene just released its second full-length, Still Life On Fire and it's generating a lot of buzz. We found the single "Wasters" on the great new-music site The Revue and were quickly sold on a sound that's reminiscent of past bands like The Runaways and The Bangles as well as current groups like Best Coast. Founders Stefanie Blondal Johnson (guitar/vocals) and Jodi Dunlop (drums) are joined by bassist Corey D. Hykawy (bass) to form a high-energy trio.

From the States, we're adding tracks by three indie artists that our regular listeners know well.

Nashville singer/guitarist Tyler Boone continues to try out different sounds. His True Experience EP included flavors of straightforward rock, blues and country-tinged ballads. He's out with a new single, "Short Skirt Bare Knees," that goes full-tilt in the loud blues-rock direction, complete with wailing guitar breaks.

The Right Now's Starlight has been out for a few months now but we feel the need for another dose of this Chicago band's rock-n-soul sound. Most of the album has a polished, retro, big-band sound behind Stefanie Berecz's powerhouse vocals. This time we're featuring the edgier, noisier closing track, "Hooked."

And then because we always like to mix up a wide variety of sounds, we're adding a simple keyboard-and-vocal ballad by Kate Klim. This Ohio-based singer-songwriter is something of a hidden gem. Her albums Kamikaze Love (2011) and 100 Million Years (2014) are filled with well-crafted and highly evocative songs about small moments with big meanings. She's cut back on performing and recording lately to focus on her young family, but recently shared with her fans a "bedroom demo" of a song about making waves, called "Gaileo Galilei," And by special arrangement, we can now share it with you.

Magpie Salute and more new music joins our mix

We've been looking forward to The Magpie Salute's debut album -- yet somehow missed its release a couple of weeks ago. Now that we've got our hands on it, we'll be playing it plenty.

This 10-piece outfit was assembled by Rich Robinson, co-founder of the Black Crowes, primarily as a live act that's currently on tour. The self-titled album was recorded live (except for one track) before a small audience in the Applehead Recording studio in Woodstock, N.Y. Several of the tracks are long, intricate jams, and while the live setting gives them a spontaneous feel, these are virtuoso performances. The players include Black Crowes alumni Marc Ford (guitar) and Steve Pipien (bass), along with Joe Magistro (drums) and Nico Bereciartua (guitar). The live tracks also mark the last recordings by the late Black Crowes keyboardist Eddie Harsch. Lead vocalist John Hogg is backed by former Crowes singer Charity White, Katrine Ottosen and Adrien Reju (whose fine solo records we've been playing for some time).

Except for the hard-rocking opening track, "Omission," the album is made up of covers, with a wide range: two Black Crowes numbers, a Joe Sample jazz composition, songs by War, Pink Floyd, The Faces and Bob Marley. And one of our all-time favorites, Delaney & Bonnie's "Comin' Home." We couldn't resist picking that track to feature in our New Music rotation, but we'll be stirring the rest of the album into our big mix, too.

Also in our New Music bin this week is a track from Cage the Elephant's next album, "Unpeeled," due in about a month. This is also a live album - recorded during a tour of small venues earlier this year, in which the band performed stripped-down versions of some of their own songs plus covers. The first to be released is "Whole Wide World," a cover of the 1977 song by British new wave singer-songwriter Wreckless Eric.

We weren't previously familiar with singer Beth Ditto or her former band, the punk-pop outfit Gossip. But she's just released her second solo collection, "Fake Sugar," and the lead single, "Fire," is (ahem) very hot. It owes something to the Springsteen song of the same title, with a bit of an echo of the Pointer Sisters' version. But Ditto attacks her song (co-written with collaborator Jennifer Decilveo) with a much harder, brasher, in-your-face style.

You've been hearing us play several tracks by Brooklyn-based duo Gracie and Rachel for more than a year. Last week they released their self-titled, debut album, collecting those singles and adding several more songs. Their violin-piano-vocal music has a delicate sound with lyrics that often deal with insecurity, anxiety -- and self-empowerment. This week we're adding "It's Time," an I'll-do-it-my-way statement.

Also added this week: Another track from the new Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit album, "The Nashville Sound." With Springsteen-style working-class angst and anger, "Cumberland Gap" is a song of a coal miner's son feeling trapped in a dying town, with the refrain, "Maybe the Cumberland Gap just swallows you whole."