From the depths of ethereal indie-folk, Caroline Rose’s latest album The Art Of Forgetting sees her at her most tuned-in and at her most honest. From the very first synth note triggered, the album is a hazy, hum-drum psychedelic soundscape bolstered with big Björkenergy... and an even bigger grandeur to the type of confessional honesty we've not seen present enough in her past work. Their breathy vocals sit right up front in the mix so listeners can hear every single ache and pain in the lyrics. The arrangements balance clean 70s pop with dramatic 00s arena pop, thanks to a prodigious amount of pianos and synths. However, there’s plenty of teeth in the tunes, thanks to regular infusions of fuzzy guitars, silky string sections, quirky bass runs, and trip-hop beats.

La Force is the mesmerizing solo project of Ariel Engle, who has spent more than a decade as one of Canada’s most sought-after musical collaborators. Born and based in Montreal, Engle’s experience reaches from Broken Social Scene’s indie rock to Québecois pop and the experimental avant-garde, culminating in her first two solo records, 2018’s La Force, and the astonishing XO SKELETON, out now.   Engle is the daughter of English-language teachers and her childhood was full of movement—living in China, Scotland and Indonesia; studying in Mandarin and sleeping in Mongolian yurts; attending Javanese puppet and gamelan shows before returning regularly to Quebec. At home in Montreal, her parents owned a massive vinyl collection—at one time, her mother worked at legendary record store Cheap Thrills. One of Engle’s earliest memories is of the voice of Aretha Franklin echoing out from a speaker, and its body-tingling power.