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The Road Hammers – Back At It

Roman Mitz
The Road Hammers – Back At It
Roman Mitz – Open Spaces An undeniable staple in Canadian country rock since 2004, The Road Hammers (singer/guitarists Jason McCoy and Clayton Bellamy, and bassist Chris Byrne) have had six Top 10 hits and nine Top 20 singles, amassed over 25 million streams and collected five CCMA Awards and one Juno Award along the way. After a two-year hiatus, the... Read More

One Ugly Cowboy – Making Beautiful Noise

Roman Mitz
One Ugly Cowboy – Making Beautiful Noise
By Roman Mitz – Open Spaces Up and coming Toronto-based country-rockers ONE UGLY COWBOY are a relatively new band but the quintet is steeped with experience, and it shows on their latest album “Ride With The Wind”. The group is fronted by dynamic vocalist Jane Sowerby and her axe-wielding soul mate Richard Zwic, who has written and worked with several... Read More

Hourglass – Murray McLauchlan’s Timely New Album

Roman Mitz
Hourglass – Murray McLauchlan’s Timely New Album
 by Roman Mitz Murray McLauchlan has one heck of a resume. The renowned singer/songwriter is an 11-time Juno Award winner and an Order of Canada recipient who has authored a bestselling autobiography, hosted CBC Radio’s Swinging On A Star, and starred in Floating Over Canada, a recurring CBC/PBS TV special which followed Murray, a licensed bush pilot, across the country... Read More

Tim Hicks – Campfire Troubadour

Roman Mitz
Tim Hicks – Campfire Troubadour
Tim Hicks – Photo by Dustin Rabin By Roman Mitz While Tim Hicks is known for his raucous live shows and the party atmosphere surrounding them, his evolution as a performer had humble beginnings, as he charmed bar patrons nightly with a vast repertoire of solo acoustic material designed to please a crowd. His latest EP, “Campfire Troubadour“ pulls from this model, reimagining... Read More

Samantha Martin & Delta Sugar – Little Bit ‘O Soul

Roman Mitz
Samantha Martin & Delta Sugar – Little Bit ‘O Soul
Samantha Martin is a musical chameleon.  She first showed off her soulful vocals on her 2004 EP entitled ”Fade”, followed in 2008 by her terrific full-length debut album ”Back Home”, which contained her loving tribute to Janis Joplin fittingly entitled “Pearl”.  Samantha then took off in a rootsy-rockabilly direction for the eponymously titled Samantha Martin & The Haggard in 2012... Read More

Jess Moskaluke Gets Intimate

Roman Mitz
Jess Moskaluke Gets Intimate
On her brand new album “The Demos” Jess Moskaluke bares all, figuratively speaking, as she includes stripped-down versions of three of the tracks to pull back the curtain on the songwriting process. The record also contains the full studio renditions of those songs, plus a handful of new recordings that have all of the bells and whistles. Jess worked virtually with... Read More

PETRIC’s Prairie Flashbacks

Roman Mitz
PETRIC’s Prairie Flashbacks
With over 14 million online streams and eight charting singles, including three Top ’20s, PETRIC has made quite the statement since forming back in 2014. The Winnipeg country trio, comprised of brothers Tom and Jason Petric, along with long-time friend Jordan Day, have just released their first full-length album “Flashbacks”.  The new record is really a mix of flashbacks and flash-forwards, as... Read More

Molly Johnson’s Cool Yule Record

Roman Mitz
Molly Johnson’s Cool Yule Record
Molly Johnson – Photo by Chris Nicholls Photography It seems fitting that our chat with Molly Johnson takes place the day after the legendary Canadian songstress’s annual Christmas cookie baking session. Her new EP “This Holiday Season” evokes festive images that are as pleasant as the smell of gingerbread and macaroon treats wafting from the oven. “The cookies turned out... Read More

MacKenzie Porter – A 90 Proof Collection

Roman Mitz
MacKenzie Porter – A 90 Proof Collection
Singer-songwriter MacKenzie Porter sure has come a long way from the ranch where she was raised in Medicine Hat, Alberta. Since moving to Nashville in 2014, she’s developed a unique style that may best be described as a traditional country with a contemporary edge. Her hook-laden songs have sparked a list of accolades including multiple Canadian Country Music Award nominations... Read More

Dallas Smith – Country Music Awards Continue To ‘Drop’.

Roman Mitz
Dallas Smith – Country Music Awards Continue To ‘Drop’.
Dallas Smith has won a lot of Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) awards. In fact, he has more hardware on his den shelf than you’ll find in aisle nine of your local home improvement store. His latest CCMA wins came on September 27 for Entertainer of the Year, Top Selling Canadian Album of the Year (“The Fall”) and Top Selling... Read More

Lindsay Ell – Songs From and For The Heart

Roman Mitz
Lindsay Ell – Songs From and For The Heart
Lindsay Ell – Heart Theory – Photo by Jeremy Cowart In a short period of time, Lindsay Ell has compiled a mind-blowing list of accomplishments. Lindsay’s last recording, “The Project” her first full-length album, debuted at No. 1 on the Country Album Sales Chart and was named Billboard’s Best Country Album of 2017. Over the course of her career, she... Read More

Glen Washington – Still Having The Time Of His Life

Roman Mitz
Glen Washington – Still Having The Time Of His Life
This month Open Spaces ditches its cowboy hat in favour of a Red Stripe cap, as we were fortunate enough to speak with Reggae superstar Glen Washington, who’s recording some new tracks in the south of France. Specifically, he’s at the renowned Irie Ites studio in the Pays De La Loire region, about two hours south-east of Paris.  The studio... Read More

Country Round-up with Brett Kissel, Karli June, Jason Blaine, Don Amero and Black Mountain Whiskey Rebellion, and more

Roman Mitz
Country Round-up with Brett Kissel, Karli June, Jason Blaine, Don Amero and Black Mountain Whiskey Rebellion, and more
Brett Kissel As we make our way out of the traditional winter freeze of new releases, a couple of recent recordings have made a splash on streaming services beginning with Brett Kissel’s latest album “Now or Never”.  Last year was a huge one for Brett, who won the JUNO Award for Country Album of the Year and earned the Canadian... Read More