SWOMP

Canadian singer-songwriter Leith Ross caught up with SWOMP backstage at Sommo Festival in Cavendish on Sept. 11 to discuss their songwriting, the new music and what has shaped their work. Ross also talked about being in the midst of one year away froms screens. Ross has built a growing audience around deeply personal songs that explore love, relationships, queerness and mental health. Ross grew up...

Toronto rock trio Altered by Mom brought its irreverent, high-energy sound to Sommo Festival in Cavendish, P.E.I., blending catchy songwriting with a rebellious DIY spirit. The band - JUNO-winning songwriters Gina Kennedy on bass and vocals and Devon Lougheed on guitar and vocals, alongside drummer Max Trefler - has built a reputation for playful performances, sharp songwriting and an approach tha...

Mi’kmaw singer-songwriter DeeDee Austin is the featured artist for this year’s Ancestors Voices: Music and Learning for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, with her song “Buried Truth” serving as the centrepiece of free curriculum resources for Kindergarten to Grade 12 classrooms across Canada. SWOMP caught up with Austin for an interview at Sommo Festival 2026 in Cavendish, Prince Edward I...

New York City indie band Melt brought their energetic, genre-blurring sound to Sommo Festival in Cavendish, P.E.I., on Sept. 11, 2026. Formed in 2017, Melt built an audience through relentless touring and the viral success of their single “Sour Candy,” developing a reputation for high-energy live performances that have earned them support slots with artists including My Morning Jacket and Grouplov...

Teen rock trio Thunder Queens are releasing two new songs as they prepare to unveil their sophomore album, Deep Below, on September 24, 2026. The London-based band — Lola Good on vocals and drums, Violet Bruneel on vocals and electric guitar, and Clara Magnan on vocals and bass — shared “Walk With Me” and “Misplaced Heart” Tuesday. The songs bookend a three-song arc on Side A of Deep Below, which...

MARIS is a Los Angeles–based, Montana-born singer/songwriter, emerging as “pop music’s next Mega Star” [Los Angeles Times]. A playful DIY ethos animates her songs, social content, and live shows. Blending heartland rock with glam-pop bombast, MARIS crafts arena-sized, sugar-rush choruses built around elastic vocals and diaristic songwriting. Her new EP - 'MOSH★PIT' - arrived on September 18, 2026....

Fresh off their energized set on the Sandbar Stage at Sommo Festival 2026, American rockers Edgehill chatted backstage with SWOMP on Saturday, September 12, 2026. Learn more about the band, below: The trio is comprised of Chris Kelly [lead vocals, guitar], Jake Zimmermann [lead guitar, vocals], and Aidan Cunningham [drums]. The band members grew up in markedly distinct areas of the country. Chris...

JJ Wilde discussed new music she has in the works with SWOMP, ahead of her opening set at Rock The Runway in London, Ontario on Thursday, September 17, 2026. Following her sound check in Harris Park, the Kitchener, Ontario rocker sat down with SWOMP for interview. Follow JJ at https://jjwilde.com/ .

Canadian rock icon Bif Naked is returning with new music while preparing to take the stage at a major Toronto benefit concert this fall. Bif Naked has released “Lift Me Up,” a new single co-written with longtime collaborator Ezra Cipes and produced by Cipes alongside Peter Karroll. The release reunites the pair nearly two decades after the singer and her team gave Cipes and his brother Gabe an ear...

Canadian singer Fefe Dobson performed on the main stage at the CallHome Music Festival in Brantford, Ontario on Friday, July 24, 2026. Following her performance, Dobson caught up with SWOMP backstage for an interview. Dobson is set to perform on September 10, 2026 at Massey Hall in Toronto as part of Live Loud - a national partnership between Matthew Perry House and Make Music Matter, harnessing t...

Canadian country artist Kelsi Mayne will bring her high-energy live show to Rock The Lot in Dresden, Ont. on Aug. 15, the latest stop in what has become a landmark summer for the Windsor-born singer-songwriter. The performance comes as Mayne rides the momentum of a breakout year that has cemented her status as one of the country's most closely watched rising country acts. She recently made her deb...

Grammy-winning producer, musician and songwriter Daniel Lanois is returning to Ontario this summer for a series of intimate performances with the Daniel Lanois Trio. The tour includes stops in Orillia, Lindsay, Meaford, Sarnia, Fergus and Picton. Lanois is widely recognized for his work as a producer and collaborator with artists including Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel, U2, Emmylou Harris, Bob Dylan an...

Rose Cora Perry is taking her band, The Truth Untold, on the road this summer with a purpose beyond the music. The Warrior Women tour is a six-city concert and empowerment series featuring 24 bands, six guest speakers and 21 businesses, all while raising funds for Yellow Brick House, which supports women and children escaping domestic violence. Stops include Niagara Falls, Windsor, London, Toronto...

New Jersey hard rock band Black Rose Rebellion released its debut album, Hail The Rebel Queen, on May 29 through Pavement Entertainment. The band blends modern hard rock with metal influences and is fronted by vocalist Bri. Lead guitarist Dave "The RockDoc" Rosenfeld co-founded the group with Bri (The Rebel Queen) in June 2022 after the pair were introduced by a mutual friend while both were consi...

A few months after chatting with Yukon Blonde's Brandon Wolfe Scott , following the release of their latest album Friendship & Rock ‘n’ Roll, SWOMP caught up with the entire band following their set at Meadows Music Festival in Fergus, Ontario on Saturday, May 30, 2026 for a fun interview. Follow the band at https://www.yukonblonde.com/ .

Canadian grunge-gaze duo Softcult opened the main stage at Meadows Music Festival on Saturday, marking a hometown-adjacent performance just down the road from their native Kitchener. Mercedes Arn-Horn and Phoenix Arn-Horn spoke with SWOMP backstage following their set, reflecting on their debut full-length album When a Flower Doesn’t Grow and the band’s continued evolution since its release earlie...

Celebrating 20 years of anything in an era of shrinking attention spans feels worth applauding. For the Joel Plaskett Emergency, it is an opportunity to lean in. With their brand new single, "Fill in the Blanks," the band delivers their first new music since 2021's Twenty Years Gone: Joel Plaskett Emergency Revisits Down at the Khyber. SWOMP caught up with Plaskett to discuss the track ahead of th...

Canadian country artist Dallas Smith closed out the opening day of Meadows Music Festival 2026 in Fergus, Ontario on Friday, May 29. An hour before Smith and his band took the main stage, SWOMP sat with him backstage for an interview. During his set, Smith was constantly engaging with the crowd, handing out picks to young fans who were sitting on their parents shoulders, many attending their very...

Brett Emmons is stepping into more personal territory with Cabin Fever, the new album from his solo project John Shambles. Released April 30, the album sees the The Glorious Sons frontman move away from the band’s arena-ready rock sound in favour of something looser and more stripped down, blending folk, garage rock and lo-fi alternative influences. Songs like “Fool In The Woods,” “Landmines,” “Tr...

A new documentary chronicling one of the most influential bands in Filipino music has hit theatres across North America . “Eraserheads: Combo on the Run,” directed by Filipino-American filmmaker Maria Diane Ventura, opened April 24, offering an intimate look at the rise, breakup and reunion of the Eraserheads, a band often described as the “Beatles of the Philippines.” The 102-minute film blends c...

Wage War hit Sick New World with a sharpened edge, arriving in Las Vegas fresh off the release of its new EP It Calls Me By Name. SWOMP spoke with the Florida metalcore band ahead of its evening set, where the focus was firmly on the newly released material and the tour set to launch. The five-track EP leans heavily into the band’s roots, both geographically and sonically, drawing inspiration from...

Chained Saint wasted no time making an impression at Sick New World, opening the Spiral Stage with an early 11:35 a.m. set. The teen metal band brought sharp energy from the outset, quickly sparking a circle pit as early-arriving fans packed in. SWOMP spoke with the band backstage following the set, as the group continues to build momentum well beyond its South Florida roots. Formed in 2022, Chain...

After guitarist Marcos Curiel shared on social media that a new P.O.D. album was being recorded in Philadelphia, SWOMP got the scoop from the band in an interview following their blistering Sick New World set in Las Vegas, Nevada. On top of finishing a new album, P.O.D. is staying busy throughout 2026 with several festival spots and shows across the United States and Europe. Follow the band at htt...

The Dark. FM brought its brooding, electronic-heavy sound to Sick New World, continuing its steady rise with a set in Las Vegas. SWOMP spoke with vocalist Craig Johns after the performance, where the focus turned to the band’s latest single “[zippermouth]” and its new remix collaboration with industrial producer Smash Stereo. The reworked track pushes the band further into darker territory, layeri...

Snot packed in fans at Sick New World, delivering a tight, high-energy set as the band continues its return to the stage. SWOMP caught up with guitarist Mikey Doling and bassist John Fahnestock after the show, where the conversation quickly turned to the legacy of original frontman Lynn Strait, who died in a 1998 car accident. That history still drives the band — but so does what’s next. Snot has...