When I spoke with Trust‘s mysterious frontman, Robert Alfons, he told me that while making his debut record, TRST, he constantly felt like he was making a stripper mix. I have to agree. These songs all conjour a dark smoky ambiance perfect for the pole. Who do you imagine dancing to Trust tracks? You won’t believe who Robert thinks about.

Tracks played on the show...

1) Trust, TRST “Candy Walls”

2) Trust, TRST “Sulk”

3) Sarah Harmer You Were Here “Basement Apartment” (snippet/background)

4) Trust, TRST “Glory Hole”

ALL songs CANCON

I haven’t done a heavy band for a while, so this week I bring you my chat with Sam Carter, the lead from British band Architects.

From the start, this interview appeared to be cursed. We had to move three separate times to escape loud band soundchecks, rowdy dressing rooms and overzealous fans. Sam remained professional almost the entire time, even though he had a meet-and-greet and tons of fans anxiously waiting for him.

The UK’s Architects are another band who have endured fan backlash when a record (2011’s The Here And Now) didn’t meet fan expectations. Architects bounced back immediately releasing another record (2012’s Daybreaker) that reflected the sound of their earlier fan-loved works like the band’s third release Hollow Crown. I get Sam to talk candidly about this backlash and much more. Listen to our chat!

Tracks played on the show...

1) Architects Daybreaker “These Colours Don’t Run”

2) Architects The Here and Now “Stay Young Forever”

3) Architects Hollow Crown “Hollow Crown”

4) Architects Daybreaker “Even If You Win, You’re Still A Rat”

NO songs CANCON

Warning to Radio Folk: There may be a (very) few swear words.

Local hip hop team (and sneaker fiends) BoomBox Saints named themselves after the 90's cult classic film Boondock Saints. The guys occupy that sweet spot in between R&B and hip hop like mainstream superstars The Weeknd and Drake.

I met the group at a DTES loft, but our interview was interrupted by a surprise high end, brand name men’s belt fashion show. Yeah, you read that right. Listen to our crazy chat.

Tracks played on the show...

1) Boombox Saints, For The Moment “By My Side”

2) Boombox Saints, For The Moment “Blind”

3) Boombox Saints, For The Moment “Whole World”

4) Boombox Saints, For The Moment “For The Moment”

ALL songs CANCON

Ra Ra Riot is a NY university party-born band known for mixing indie pop with lush string arrangements. They invaded iPods around the same time as band besties Vampire Weekend.

Ra Ra Riot’s latest release, Beta Love, dives headfirst into the highly processed world of synthetic electro-pop. The reception to this career move can be charitably described as mixed, with most long-term fans wondering what the hell happened.

As a fan, I can understand the concern over this change, but you can’t blame a band for wanting to grow. Eager to talk about all of this, I managed to lure Mat from the band away from the catering at the club. I get him to talk about the direction change in depth and much more.

Tracks played on the show...

1) Ra Ra Riot, Beta Love “Beta Love”

2) Ra Ra Riot, The Orchard “Boy”

3) Ra Ra Riot, The Orchard “Too Dramatic”

4) Ra Ra Riot, Beta Love “Dance With Me”

NO songs CANCON

I met Lumineers lead Wesley Shultz deep in the bowels of Vancouver’s Vogue Theatre. Not many know this, but The Lumineers got their start as a cover band called Free Beer. Wes told me how the band got their current name and who he likes to serenade while he or she takes a dump in the woods. Listen to our chat for all the details!

Tracks played on the show...

1) The Lumineers, The Lumineers “Ho Hey”

2) The Lumineers, The Lumineers “Stubborn Love”

3) The Lumineers, The Lumineers “Dead Sea”

4) The Lumineers, The Lumineers “Submarines”

NO songs CANCON

B-Lines are the Vancouver scene’s favorite punk mainstays. (They are named after a bus route in Vancouver.) I caught up with frontman Ryan Dyck outside the Media Club before a Monday night show. Ryan was a few beers into his night and in the middle of our chat, he got into a fight with his roommate about all the records that were clogging up their living room. Things only get crazier from there. Listen to our chat!

Tracks played on the show...

1) B-Lines “Tell Me” (single)

2) B-Lines B-Lines 12-inch “In the Red”

3) B-Lines B-Lines 12-inch “Wealthy Barber”

4) B-Lines B-Lines 12-inch “World War Four”

5) B-Lines “Normal Again” (single)

6) B-Lines B-Lines 12-inch “Psychedelic High School”

ALL songs CANCON

If you have a beer with Needles//Pins, beware of the following: 1) Tony X will steal your beer, 2) Adam Ess will be super eager to chat but then realize that he has to pee and complain about holding it through the entire interview and finally 3) after talking to you for more than 30 minutes, Macey will promptly forget your name.

Don’t take it personally and just listen to our crazy chat.

Tracks played on the show...

1) Needles // Pins, 12:34 “Drop It”

2) Needles // Pins, 12:34 “Makes Me Wanna”

3) Needles // Pins, 12:34 “Breadwinner Takes All”

4) Needles // Pins, 12:34 “Hale Bop”

5) Needles // Pins, 12:34 “12:34”

ALL songs CANCON

Afie Jurvanen is the man behind Bahamas. Before striking out on his own, Afie cut his teeth playing for Feist, Jason Collette and Zeus and this experience is evident in all aspects of his work.

Afie and I crammed ourselves into his tour van after soundcheck with a hot cup of tea. It was fun to test his “Aw shucks” persona when I brought up some strange quotes from his past. Listen to our chat!

Tracks played on the show...

1) Bahamas, Barchords “Caught Me Thinkin’”

2) Bahamas, Pink Strat “Hockey Teeth”

3) Bahamas, Barchords “Lost In The Light”

4) Bahamas, Barchords “Your Sweet Touch”

ALL songs CANCON

Digitalism is Jens (the ginger) and Isi (the big guy). The guys met at a record store in Hamburg and became fast friends. Later, the store’s owner asked them to DJ a party, and they then began mixing and recording. According to legend, they record their music in a World War II bunker they own in Hamburg.

I've been a Digitalism fan since “Pogo” and wasn’t afraid to interrupt a dinner in between Digitalism and Classixx, so we could do this interview. The guys were nice to answer some questions before their DJ set and our talk is a nice post-bottle-of-wine mix of broken English and laughter.

Tracks played on the show...

1) Digitalism, Idealism "Pogo"

2) Digitalism, I Love You, Dude "2 Hearts"

3) Digitalism, Idealism "Idealism"

4) Digitalism, I Love You, Dude "Circles"

NO songs are CANCON

When I arrived to chat with Lowell Sostomi from Great Bloomers, I had to break up an afternoon beer session involving members of Yukon Blonde, Library Voices and Great Bloomers. But Lowell was perfectly happy to take a break from the backstage shenanigans at The Commodore Ballroom to talk to me about the band lineup changes, Trans-Canada Highway tour van accidents and hardcore dental surgery! Listen to our chat…

Tracks played on the show...

1) Great Bloomers, Distant Fires “Something More”

2) Great Bloomers, Speak of Trouble “The Young Ones Slept”

3) Great Bloomers, Distant Fires “Sunday Clothes”

ALL songs CANCON