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By: Gemma Mastroianni Episode 3 of Wavy is here! Ryley Chorowiec, the singer of Ryley Patrick, joins Gemma Mastroianni in a conversation about the best and worst concerts of their lives. From bad crowds and drunken artists to euphoric and life-changing concert experiences, this episode is one for the books! They also discuss fiscal responsibility when it comes to concert tickets, as well as scalpers. Check it out on Spotify!

By: Gemma Mastroianni Church on Sunday played to a busy crowd at Toronto’s Lee’s Palace this past Saturday. The band consists of Ryan Preiano on guitar and vocals, Ian Fragomeni on drums, and Jake Gordon on bass. They closed out the show with Black Paint, Twice Bleached, and Cigar Club performing prior. I was stoked for this show! Most performances I’ve seen at Lee’s Palace have been from touring bands from out of the country, so it was exciting to see some locals at one of Toronto’s well-known venues. Church on Sunday took the stage around 11 p.m. Their heavy-hitting tracks had the crowd dancing through the whole set, from start to finish. The bands’ coordinated black-and-white theme, even going so far as matching instruments, added a unique touch to their stage presence. The band played for just over an hour including some new and old tracks. I really enjoyed their punk-rock covers of “Ice, Ice, Baby,” and “Blitzkrieg Bop.” It added a nice touch to their already enjoyable and fun set, getting the crowd even more pumped! I especially enjoyed the cover of “Ice, Ice, Baby” as it was definitely unexpected, and I had never heard a remix like so before. It was fun to hear a punk twist to it, and a great way to get the crowd excited. The show was mostly upbeat and exciting, and the crowd was into it. People were scattered throughout Lee’s Palace at the beginning of the set however as the set continued throughout the night, just about everyone in the room was gathered into the center pit. This made for a fun environment and overall positive energy in the room! All of the band members had a fun and exciting energy to them and were each very skilled in their individual roles. Preiano’s voice sounded true to his recordings, and his interactions with the crowd throughout the show created a genuine connection between the audience members and performers. Fragomeni’s drumming was precise and tight, and overall very impressive- he never missed a beat (definitely a must-see). Gordon totally killed it on bass and had fantastic stage presence, moving around throughout the stage for plenty of the set. Overall the band was in synch and had a great connection between one another on-stage, were evidently stoked to be there, and super talented at what they do. If you’re looking for a fun punk-rock show, definitely check out Church on Sunday’s next performance. It was the perfect way to end a fun Saturday night – they put on one hell of a party! Follow Church on Sunday on Facebook, Instagram, and Spotify.

By: Jordyn Lyric Lucy Dacus played the upstairs venue at Philadelphia’s one-of-a-kind Johnny Brenda’s on New Year’s Eve to deliver all the feelings. The show brought her three-night residency to a close, a sold-out and tightly packed end to the year and to her trio of performances. The show kicked off with a dreamy set by Richmond, VA locals Addy, a pop band with a nostalgic image and a sound to match. Their music is sweet and heartfelt, like a handmade valentine, and their performance brings the emotional and contemplative to the stage. They’re sure to win hearts– the crowd swayed along with them until they brought it to a close. Mal Blum, an artist who hails from NYC, brought a vibrant, DIY-reminiscent sound. Backed by a full band, the live performance was a departure from Blum’s solo work. Blum and their band created an upbeat space for dancing and singing and shouting. Both their sweet softer works and their dynamic full-band releases find Blum and their guitar musing about life’s great joys and sorrows, optimistically of course, in a way that reminisces upon the stylings of the great Kimya Dawson (you know her from Juno). Blum’s song “Fine” made its rounds as a popular audio track on TikTok; it’s a kindhearted and honest track that many have set their video clips to. After Dacus took the stage, she gave a sweet and simple hello and thank you. She brings her whole self to her performance, through and between each song, and it’s always her genuine attiude and her talent combined that bring tears to the eyes. That’s right, I admit to crying to her records sometimes. Who hasn’t? Covers and originals alike (she’s signed to Matador records), Dacus puts her whole heart and persona into every release. The venue was a perfect choice, albeit tightly packed– she certainly could have filled a larger room, but as the nature of her music is intimate, the nature of her performance-matched, and the smaller space led only to a stronger connection between Dacus and the crowd. The tiny cherubic statues in the corners and the high ceilings, with their billowing curtains, created a theatrical environment where the performance could speak for itself. The indie singer-songwriter also from Richmond has a beautiful voice and a truly heart-wrenching style. They combine in an emotional performance that lacks nothing but pretentiousness– she is no fuss, all feeling. Her releases are a one-of-a-kind exploration of what it’s like to move through the world with lots of feelings, something that relates across a listenership. The crowd adores her, gazing down from balconies or standing shoulder to shoulder, packed to the doors, to get a glimpse of her fun yet fully moving performance. It was a pleasure to watch her play– she is one of the great talents of this generation, and continues to make gorgeous, haunting works and perform them in a graceful, honest, heartfelt way. Dacus is a treasure in the industry today, and I look forward to seeing what the new year will bring her.

By: Valentina Caballero You often encounter some of the most interesting people at 24-hour Walmarts during road trips to the US. I had one of those moments in the summer of 2016. It was 3 a.m. and I stopped by a Walmart somewhere in Philadelphia with my parents to get a bite to eat. I was walking down the cereal aisle when I laid my eyes on the most questionable pieces of body art I’ve ever seen on an old woman. I wish I could’ve taken a photo, but to give you an idea, the tattoo looked like a distorted portrait of what I presume was this woman’s son or maybe even possibly her grandson on her thigh. I don’t think I’ll ever get that image erased from my memory, but needless to say, that 3 a.m. Walmart lady encounter taught me three important lessons: 1.) Don’t go to Walmart at 3 a.m. 2.) Never get your loved ones’ faces tattooed onto your body 3.) Find a skilled tattoo artist that can actually recreate your ideas before committing to a lifetime of a scary demon child portrait looking at you every time you sit down. With all of that in mind, when it came to getting my first tattoo, I was extremely wary about finding a tattoo artist that could accurately ink my design. Luckily, I found out about this awesome Toronto-based tattoo artist called Mayflower Ink through Instagram. Even though this was my first time getting something inked on me, Aram was very understanding and walked me through the entire process. A couple of weeks prior to getting the tattoo, we did a brief consultation via email about stylization I was looking for. I sent Aram a sketch I drew for the tattoo, we scheduled an appointment and she took the rest from there. I always thought the process behind getting a tattoo would be much more convoluted, but when it came to the day of finally getting it done, things were pretty straightforward. I arrived at Aram’s place and we talked for a bit while she transferred my design to a drawing through an app called Procreate. This allowed her to easily scale the drawing to the size I wanted. Once that was finished, she printed the sketch in order to confirm with me the positioning of it on my arm. It took a couple of reprintings until we got the right size, but when we did, we moved onto the final stages of the tattoo prep. In order to get the tattoo outline on my bicep, Aram printed the design on a thermal copier– a special printer which basically creates a stencil of your design on an adhesive paper that can be placed on your skin so it leaves a traceable imprint of your tattoo. Following this, came the actual tattoo. I honestly thought it was going to hurt a lot more, but it wasn’t all that bad. I’m sure it depends on the area where you get the tattoo done and the intricacy of the design influences the level of pain, but for a first tattoo, it was actually pretty decent. On top of that, I was talking with Aram about music and concerts for most of the process that I didn’t fully register the sting from the tattoo gun when it was happening. Needless to say, I’m super happy with how the tattoo ended up. Aram did an awesome job transferring the design and making sure it looked like what I originally drew. If you’re in Toronto looking to get a tattoo, I 1000% recommend Mayflower Ink. DM, or email 𝕒𝕣𝕒𝕞𝕙𝕖𝕪𝕕𝕒𝕣𝕚𝕒𝕟𝟛@𝕘𝕞𝕒𝕚𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝕞 for an appointment. Best, Val Credits Photos by Bella Caballero (@frombellawithlove) Photos Edited by Valentina Caballero (@val.ntina.c) Tattoo Design by Valentina Caballero Inked by Aram Heydarian (@mayflowerink)

By: Gemma Mastroianni This week on the Wavy podcast I had the pleasure of speaking with Andrew Colonico. Colonico is a long-time friend of mine, and just so happens to be the singer of Revive the Rose! We chat music marketing 101. Colonico shares success stories in networking and digital marketing, along with stories of failure. If you’re trying to get your band noticed, this is definitely the episode for you! With that being said, whether you’re in the music space or not, there are some excellent networking and digital marketing tips here that can be applied to any brand. Stream it on Anchor or Spotify!

By: Olivia Mokrzycki and Antoni James Check out this Toronto couple’s top 10 albums of 2019. NUMBER TEN OLIVIA – Lana Del Rey’s ability to create thematically and aesthetically directed auras within her music has always caught people’s attention and helped form her fanbase. Norman Fucking Rowell is yet another example of how brilliantly she is able to create these fantasies and how they almost seem to come to life as you listen to each song. ANTONI – Here’s Devendra’s latest album filled with touching themes about life and parenthood, packaged in gentle arrangements and very much appreciated strings sections. It’s laid back and it’s nice. NUMBER NINE ANTONI – It has been such a long time since a mega-hit radio pop album has shocked me, but this one did. After listening to When We All Fall Asleep I was genuinely shocked as to how this could be such an international hit and such a radio sensation, simply because it’s just SO DIFFERENT from what it’s up against. If you’ve skipped over this one, go back, make the right choice and listen to it! OLIVIA – Bruised my knees to the bone in the pit during Amyl and the Sniffers this year. Their debut album is pure punk energy, with the most captivating female vocalist I’ve heard in a long time. Such a killer record! NUMBER EIGHT ANTONI – It was such a nice treat to have Karen O come back for a proper musical project this year, especially in the form of this cinematic and mysterious album. Her sharp yet soft voice atop the always floating grooves tie things together nicely. OLIVIA – Harry Styles might have been hiding his interesting personality away from us all these years. Although maintaining this strict image left minimal room for creative freedom, I’m more than glad he was able to at least build a large fan base through it because everyone should hear this album. It has such a spectacular mix of good pop arrangements with strange storylike lyrics, classically rocking riffs and solos, as well as slow-paced moments. Sounds like he’s pulling some inspo from Vampire weekend on certain tracks as well! NUMBER SEVEN ANTONI – Another perfect late-night album is Clairo’s debut. Produced by my favourite producer ever, Rostam, the two work together beautifully bouncing vocals off of milky key parts. This one’s got tones for days. OLIVIA – I had no idea what to expect with this ex Post Animal, Stranger Things star, but oh boy Mr. Keery have you changed the game. Dirty production over feel good, vibey tracks kissed with psychedelic touches and whacky lyrics. Don’t sleep on DJO!!! NUMBER SIX ANTONI – I hadn’t heard of Jay Som until a friend showed me this album a month ago, and it hit pretty instantly. Looking for a ‘walking through the neighborhood in the evening’ vibe, then look no further! OLIVIA – Turkish psych-rockers, Altin Gun released their second album, Gece, this year. Full of surprises, this psychedelic album stays true to Turkish folk and incorporates electronica. Once you hear it, you’ll be hooked. Such an incredible piece of art. NUMBER FIVE OLIVIA – Billie Eilish surprised me big time with WWAFA WDWG. She continued to turn heads all year long, notably grabbing the attention of music fans even outside the pop realm. Her album sounds simple but holds so many underlining and intricate sounds and samples. If you haven’t already heard it, I promise it’s worth it. ANTONI – Remember Steve Harrington from Stranger Things? Well, he’s now used that good good Netflix money to create this package of pure psych goodness. This album is honestly up there with the Tame Impalas and mild high clubs of the world. NUMBER FOUR ANTONI – I wasn’t really into the direction that Hip Hop decided to go this year; I just couldn’t get into the tones and sounds that so much of it explored sonically. Then Tyler came back to save the year with this masterpiece. Every sound made on here is glorious. OLIVIA – Fontaine’s DC stormed into 2019 with their debut album Dogrel and made quite the impact. With a heavy nod to post-punk they got tons of people craving those rough vocals, memorably dynamic bass lines and lyrics about the motherland, Ireland. NUMBER THREE OLIVIA – Stella Donnelly’s debut album is full of some truly catchy melodies and sing-along worthy choruses. Importantly, underneath these sweet-sounding songs, sit some clever lyrics starting strong feminist discussions. The dynamic is powerful, the album is brilliant and sits at my number three! ANTONI – One of the craziest and most eclectic bands on the planet right now is King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. They are consistently incredible and this thrash metal album is no exception. This record makes me want to add Hell to my travel list. NUMBER TWO ANTONI – If it weren’t for the intense commitment to Vampire Weekend’s sound and style, this album would’ve made the top spot. This shocking departure from her last album is packaged in both eerie string arrangements and lush synths, lead by Olsen’s always haunting vocals. This record’s got some of the most interesting production I’ve heard in ages (especially on the vocals.) OLIVIA – Prolific Australian psych-rockers have never once failed to impress and excite me. After famously releasing five albums in 2017, all of which were shockingly great, I have been waiting to hear a release I didn’t like just to see if it was possible. Damn right impossible! In 2019 they graced us with two releases of greatly varying qualities. Fishing For Fishies and sitting high at my number two: Infest The Rat’s Nest. A vivid experience of pure THRASH. This album greatly showcases the immense power the band has over creating instrumental greatness and is overall fit for a real headbang and mosh pit frenzy. NUMBER ONE OLIVIA – Took me until 2019 to really dive into the interesting world of Vampire Weekend. Now, looking at my results for most played music of the year, the band reigns at #1. Father Of The Bride really opened a new set of ears for me. The record’s brilliant collaborations made it unique from multiple angles. 18 songs, filling just under one absolutely divine hour. Tons of catchy little riffs stayed ringing gloriously through me since I first heard them. The album is a perfect collection of songs including fun and feel good parts, instrumentally dramatic sections, somber moments, and sweet duets. It is simply one of the most beautiful, interesting and modern things I’ve ever heard. ANTONI – After waiting a very long 6 years since their last album in 2013, Father of The Bride finally exploded onto 2019’s musical scene packing some major oomph that instantly won me over. Nothing bridges musical styles and genres quite like this album does, with inspirations coming from classic folk and the jam-rock movement to modern hip hop and pop. This album is a beautiful sticker book of different ideas shaped by the overall mood of springtime.

By: Dakota Arsenault Personally, I think Canada puts out the best music in the world. Sure, I’m biased because I’m surrounded by it and have access to see artists before they blow up to levels of Arcade Fire or Drake, but I will put Canadian artists up against anyone else and think they are better. I track the music I listen to on a spreadsheet trying to almost exclusively listen to new albums. This year I logged 295 albums with 76 of them coming from the great white north and here are the best of the bunch. The top 10 are more in-depth including song highlights, 11-20 are more condensed reviews with some honourable mentions at the end because I just had to fit in so many names. 1. Orville Peck – Pony Not only is this the best Canadian album of the year, in my opinion it is the best record hands down. I wrote about it on The Soundtrack’s Album’s of the Year post and you can hear me talking about it on the first episode of the Wavy podcast discussing the best albums of the decade. For those unaware, Orville Peck (not his real name) is a masked cowboy singer who released his debut record this year. He (supposedly) was a drummer in a middling punk band in Montreal before switching to make a country album that he always dreamed of doing. Listening to him croon about Rodeo Queen’s (a drag queen) and lost loves you can’t help but notice the influences of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and Dolly Parton. He is like a memory of an old country song with added haziness that makes the memory fainter while also deeper. Even for people that don’t normally listen to the country will let out a hearty yeehaw after listening to this album. Highlights: Turn to Hate, Kansas (Remembers Me) 2. PUP – Morbid Stuff The Toronto punk rock quartet broke through the mainstream in 2016 with The Dream is Over and the hometown classic DVP, but followed up their guttural screams with Morbid Stuff, the band’s third output. There were fears that the band wouldn’t record a new album after lead singer Stefan Babcock’s throat issues from too much screaming. After getting a taste of success the band turned their attention inwards and poured out all the self-loathing and depression and made an even catchier record. The band was again shortlisted for the Polaris Prize (and were unfortunately robbed) but they solidified the turmoil that regular people have to bubble under the surface. Highlights: Kids, Sibling Rivarly 3. Dave Monks – On A Wave The Tokyo Police Club lead singer and bassist turns away from indie garage rock and picks up an acoustic guitar and showing off his tender side. The album has a feel of early 70’s singer-songwriter tunes as he explores different themes and stripped-down compositions. The title track is mostly just piano and drums and gives the listener some time to meditate with Dave. Highlights: On A Wave, Love Fades 4. Loud – Tout ça pour ça I wasn’t familiar with Montreal rapper Loud before this year, and finding info on him in English is few and far between. But listening to his music you don’t need to know much anyways. Most of his songs are in French but he throws in one-liners in English a few times per track. His beats hit hard, you bob your head and groove along but with the bombast, there are hints of darkness in Loud’s delivery. He gets jazz-pop vocalist Charlotte Cardin to do a bilingual feature on Sometimes, All The Time about long-distance relationships that showcases the duality of Loud’s music. Highlights: Sometimes, All Time, Longues vie 5. Badge Époque Ensemble – Badge Époque Ensemble This new Toronto jazz-fusion group is lead by Slim Twig (Max Turnbull) who has been putting out wildly innovative records for over a decade and has been an integral part of his wife’s project U.S. Girls. While groups like BADBADNOTGOOD made jazz cool again, they haven’t been putting out great material for a while now. Enter Badge Époque Ensemble where the music sounds like the wildest sounds of 70’s rock, slick guitar solos, flute crescendos, and killer drum beats. This is an instant stoner classic. Highlights: Milk Spilt on Eternity, Undressed in Solitude 6. Clairmont the Second – Do You Drive? The Toronto rap scene has exploded since Drake and while there have been many artists that have positioned themselves the opposite of him, lyrically and stylistically, Clairmont the Second might be the best of the bunch. Blending early Chance the Rapper style beats with laid back Texas flows you have a recipe for success. He even had a verse on the Polaris Prize-winning Haviah Mighty record from this year (Clairmont was long-listed but shamefully didn’t make the final ten). Highlights: Grip, Grain 7. Half Moon Run – A Blemish in the Great Light The Montreal group has been making music that blends heavy rock experimentation of Foals with the folk tendencies of City & Colour, but might have produced their most grandiose album yet. Utilizing more string sections than previous albums allows for more feelings to seep into the cracks. The band ditches their folk influences for large chunks of the album too, completely reinventing what a Half Moon Run album sounds like. Highlights: Then Again, Jello on My Mind 8. Daniel Caesar – CASE STUDY 01 Much like how Frank Ocean turned the slick pop RnB album Channel Orange into the meditative Blonde, Daniel Caesar also made a deeper and less accessible album than his hugely successful Freudian from 2017. CASE STUDY 01 still showcases Caesar’s perfect vocal prowess, but delves deeper into his psyche (ironic considering his previous albums name) discussing what turns him on. The album also has some killer features from Pharrell Williams, Brandy and John Mayer’s guitar. Highlights: CYANIDE, ARE YOU OK? 9. Leif Vollebekk – New Ways It has been three long years waiting to hear the sweet voice of Vollebekk and his last album Twin Solitude. He is as groovy as ever, making you want to find a partner to slow dance sensually with as his piano playing wafts between the two of you. If you’ve never listened to Leif Vollebekk, it is a perfect time to check him out. Highlights: Never Be Back, Transatlantic Flight 10. City & Colour – A Pill For Loneliness Gone are the days of stark acoustic songs like Save Your Scissors as Dallas Green has finally recorded an album that his live shows sound like. I first saw him live during his The Hurry and The Harm tour and was surprised at how much country and western influences he paired with shoe gaze-like guitar playing. This album explores sounds in ways we haven’t heard him do before and it is all for the better. He is finally able to make “rock” music under his own name (sort of) without worrying about it being confused with his band Alexisonfire. Highlights: Living in Lightning, Strangers 11. Carly Rae Jepsen – Dedicated Jepsen spurned catchy bubblegum pop of Call Me Maybe for catchy bubblegum pop of E•MO•TION. Wait that doesn’t sound right? Carly took the formulas and somehow cranked up the depth of her lyrics and put out another instant classic with Dedication. 12. Haviah Mighty – 13th Floor Brampton has been a hotbed for art the last few years and Haviah Mighty cemented its place on the rap scene with her phenomenal debut 13th Floor that won this year’s Polaris Prize. You rarely hear straightforward rock and roll music these days, but the Kingston group keeps cranking out arena bangers that make you want to crack open a 2-4 and party all weekend. 14. Blue Hawaii – Open Reduction Internal Fixation Blue Hawaii is the side project of Raphaelle Standell-Preston of Braids who has a deep house affinity. Their music screams 3AM in the club when you’ve been dancing all night and need a bassline injected directly into your soul. 15. Snotty Nose Rez Kids – Trapline Kitimaat duo Young D and Yung Trybez continue pairing hard-hitting beats with stories about life on a reserve and why they are proud to be indigenous. It hits harder than you would think. 16. The Beaches – The Professional Despite only being a 5 song 16 minute EP, this album rocks out and is more memorable than most other releases this year. The east end Toronto group keeps showing off why it is so cool to be in a band with your best girlfriends. 17. Daphni – Sizzling EP Dan Snaith who records under so many names it is hard to keep track (Caribou, Manitoba, Daphni etc.) but it really doesn’t matter because everything he produces is a solid gold dancefloor banger. He goes full disco on this EP and makes you want to get your platform boots out boogie down. 18. Tim Baker – Forever Overhead Former Hey Rosetta! frontman Tim Baker puts out his debut solo album that pairs back his former bands lush sounds but keeps his tender and deep lyrics making his voice the main draw here. 19. Wintersleep – In The Land Of Halifax folk-rock band hit it big a few years ago with Amerika and have followed up their radio-friendly tunes with more great listens. Beneficiary might be their best song yet. 20. Sum 41 – Order in Decline They were one of the best pop-punk bands of the early 2000’s, then they fell off and they have reinvented themselves as an actual power metal band. No joke, they rock really hard and there is no irony to it. Trust me I’m surprised as you that they put out an album this solid too. The rest of the best honourable mentions are in alphabetical order: Alice Merton – Mint, Basic White – The Second Half, Dominique Fils-Aimé – Stay Tuned!, Dwayne Gretzky – Dwayne Gretzky, Girlfriend Material – Cool Car, GRAE – New Girl, Moon King – Voice of Lovers, Ralph – Flashbacks & Fantasies, Riit – ataataga, TOBi – Still What were your favourite Canadian releases of the year? Did I miss any or was I just off the mark? Let me know! Follow me on Twitter and Instagram.

By: Gemma Mastroianni Sweet Tooth is a Toronto based Indie Rock band. Today, they dropped ‘Stop Your Stalling.’ The band refers to this track as “a hopeful anthem for the lazy and apathetic.” This song is upbeat and fun, with a chorus that will have you and your buddies bopping along. The riffs are catchy, and the double harmonization adds a nice touch. The guitar solo is short and sweet, but an epic lead into the bridge that adds a low-key indie-rock break with a slow clap. It’s a classic indie-rock party track that should definitely be in your 2020. This track is perfect for a house party, or even to add to your playlist for your Spring or Summer party (we miss you, summer weather.) If you like The Strokes, you’ll love this! If you’re a Sweet Tooth fan, you definitely already know this track. The band wrote it approximately two years back, and it is also a known staple during their live performances. Speaking of live performances – the dudes are playing The Horseshoe Tavern tomorrow night! Doors open at 8:00 p.m. and $10 tickets will be available at the door. Follow Sweet Tooth on Instagram, Facebook, and Spotify!

By: Gemma Mastroianni We now present to you the Wavy podcast where we talk about all things flowing with music and lifestyle, hosted by Gemma Mastroianni. Check out episode 1 featuring Dakota Arsenault where they countdown the top albums of the decade.

By: Jordyn Lyric This year was filled with collabs between streetwear giants and music’s major players. From tour merch to up-for-grabs drops (if you’re quick enough to the checkout), star-studded merch collabs stole the show. Here are some of our favorites. Online ceramics x John Mayer / Dead & Company Online Ceramics double dipped in two Mayer projects this year, with a package of tee shirt designs for Mayer’s 2019 international tour, including “I Got A Big Shirt,” seen in many an Instagram post. The design integrates Online Ceramics’ animation style with Mayer’s signature shade of purple, creating one of the most unique merch designs of the year. Dead Heads visiting summer tours were treated to another round of tees, long sleeves, and a hoodie, thoughtfully created by the prolific online brand. They rolled out fall tour merch this year as well, combining Dead design staples with Online Ceramics’ unique brand signatures, a modern take on a classic fan’s closet staples. Kid Cudi x Cactus Plant Flea Market Kid Cudi and Kanye West’s collab album, a self-titled 7-track called Kids See Ghosts, saw its own line of merch in 2018. You may have seen several Kardashians sport the signature Lucky Me hoodie released last year. 2019 saw Kid Cudi team up with Cactus Plant Flea Market again, on the Enter Galactic hoodie designed for Coachella, where he and Kanye took the stage together during the performance and a line of Rolling Loud merch featuring the date and title of the festival along with Cudi’s well-known signature elements from music past. Shawn Mendes x KidSuper Shawn Mendes concertgoers were treated to this collab, featuring a standout peachy tie-dyed hoodie at the merch table this year. Mendes embarked on an international tour, toting along hoodies featuring sketches by KidSuper, whose nostalgic art featuring a unique signature drawing style adorns vintage style, often vibrant clothing. The collection also features a long sleeve tee, sweatpants, and more with sketches and hand lettering by KidSuper. See it here among the other offerings from Mendes’ tour– look for the “Tour Sketch” title. – would you rather me link each individual piece? Let me know. Travis Scott x Virgil Abloh Scott and Abloh are two of the chicest people on the planet right now. They’re each a giant of their industry– Abloh being one of the most prolific designers in existence, Scott one of the world’s most popular rappers. It was big news then, in all circles, when they dropped a collab “By A Thread” tee, featuring Scott’s likeness wearing yet another high-profile collab piece, the Travis Scott x Air Jordan 4 sneakers. Scott, in Ken-doll-esque form, sports the Cactus Jacks in Blue on one version of the shirt, and in a limited-edition NYC concert exclusive, they’re swapped for a pair of Abloh’s Off-White x Nike 85 Jordan 1’s. Only 500 of the latter design were produced. John Mayer x Neighborhood – Tokyo exclusive John Mayer makes the list again with his Neighborhood collab, a collection of merch inspired by racing, with bold graphics and plenty of Mayer’s signature purples. The capsule was released at a pop-up in Tokyo’s Trunk Hotel this past April. The merch pays homage to Mayer’s stop in Tokyo, with a “JOHN MAYER WORLD TOUR 2019-TOKYO” text feature, alongside co-branded imagery and logos, including “JM Racing” and “JMHN Team” logos. The collection featured tees, hoodies, and long-sleeves. Mayer and Neighborhood collaborated in April 2014, almost exactly five years to the date, for a capsule collection of tee shirts. Post Malone x Crocs Posty has become a staple Crocs collaborator, with three prior pairs since 2018, including a forest pattern Australia-exclusive, a yellow and barbed-wire pair synonymous with Post’s brand, and of course, his first drop with Crocs, the “Dmitri Clog,” featuring the Posty Co logo and, as with most Crocs releases, specially designed Jibbitz ™ add-on decorations across all collabs. Post Malone’s latest pair with the brand, a departure from the typical design, with a “chunky outsole” and blue and black camo, sold out in less than two hours, rounding out our list of the best, most inventive, and most coveted music and streetwear collabs of 2019. The intersection of music and fashion is well-known and ever-evolving, with creative minds of different mediums coming together to produce fresh, cutting-edge works and cultural hallmarks each and every year. Did we miss your favorite of 2019? Let us know on Twitter, @_thesoundtrack. Follow the author at @lightloved on Instagram, @J0RDYNLYRIC on Twitter.

By: Gemma Mastroianni Los Angeles based one-woman orchestra HÄANA has just released a modern new single, “GOLD”, orchestrated and produced by HÄANA herself. Check out the experimental video below: HÄANA combines music and art with Nordic and Icelandic influences to craft her electronika-modern sound. Artist influences include Massive Attack, Björk, and Trentemøller. She has even performed live with Kanye West multiple times! “GOLD” is an eclectic track that experiments with classical and EDM sounds creating a song with deep emotion, that also makes you want to dance. From a production standpoint, everything is layered perfectly. The electronics and classical elements take turns being dominant creating a balanced and exciting track, layered with her stunning shoe-gazed vocals. I love unexpected tracks like this! This one is fitting for a variety of moods and can take you to so many different places. Meshing genres can be tricky, especially when it comes to classical and EDM, which are pretty polar opposite. HÄANA unites the two genres in this phenomenal track creating something so beautifully unique. The video is truly the cherry on top. The black and white aspect of it is fitting to its eerie vibe, mixed with ballerinas and HÄANA’s violin playing. I love the simplicity of the setting and it goes to show that you don’t always need smoke and mirrors. This video is a magnificent piece of art simply including unique music, impeccable ballerinas and HÄANA’s passion. I grew up being a ballet and contemporary dancer, and watching this video is so inspiring. It brought me back to experimenting with different sounds as a dancer, and I think this piece could be choreographed in just about every genre of dance because it is such a versatile track. “GOLD” breaks boundaries, giving you a vision of a beautiful sunset and exploring different sounds of a classical string trio with a dance beat. Some say that drama, beauty, and grace can be felt while listening. Listening to “GOLD” reminded me how far you can take music, and how endless the beauty of creating art is. Check out some of her live performance from the Rainbow Serpent Festival in Australia this year: HÄANA is also deep in the yoga/music/meditation scene, and performs her original orchestral and intuitive scores at numerous yoga festivals and studios around the world, including US and Canadian Wanderlust Festivals, collaborating with lauded teachers Elena Brower, Seane Corn, Shiva Rea, Eoin Finn, Aarona Lea, and many others. She facilitates meditation experiences with her chill live PA project DEEPSØNØS. Follow HÄANA on Spotify, Soundcloud, Facebook, and Instagram and keep your eye out for more releases- we can hardly wait to see what is next! Photography by Hana Wolf. Cover art by Sequoia Emmanuelle.