Kreative Kontrol

Aaron Goldstein discusses his band Espanola and their new album, Espanola, Again , what it was like touring with Willie Nelson in Kathleen Edwards’ band, why and how he became such a sought-after pedal steel player, the blurry line between producing and writing a song, writing about displacement, southern rock from southern Ontario, future plans, and much more. Supported by you on  Patreon ,&...

In their first ever interview, Fez Gielen , Ali Hendra , Loris Kecaj and Lauren Spear from MAYBEL discuss their wonderful new and second album, Gloam , loving Montreal but moving away, working with producer Jonas Bonnetta from Port William Sound /Evening Hymns, folk singer Bob Dylan from Minnesota, how this band first met and began working together, obsessions, classical music, bluegrass, Nirvana,...

Kurt Vile discusses his lovely new EP, Back to Moon Beach , Philly, Boston, and Atom and His Package, pandemic prescience, writing songs that show love for George Jones, Dead Milkmen, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and David Berman, our personal connections to Berman, Silver Jews, and Purple Mountains, interacting with Neil Young, bringing your children to work, our shared love for the late Dallas Good and...

Gregg Turkington discusses his collaboration with Erik Paparozzi on the wonderful new album, Neil Hamburger Presents Seasonal Depression Suite , why a Christmas-themed concept record set in a chain hotel works so well, surveys, reviews, and why customers get so entitled at hotels and motels, Frank Sinatra’s Watertown and David Berman’s songwriting, serious artists who are very funny, the star-stud...

Pete Stahl discusses the celebratory, star-studded new album, DC Special , by Scream , the heartbreaking, recent passing of founding member Kent Stax, Dave Grohl’s pre-Nirvana role in Scream and his engagement with the band since, working at the longstanding location of Inner Ear before the studio was displaced, our shared love of the people in Fugazi, the strange cycle of similar socio-political...

Jon Dore discusses his November 2023 tour of the Canadian Prairies , wanting to move from Alaska to Ottawa, his incredible partner, his recent and great CBC show, Humour Resources , whether audience feedback has ever made him reconsider a joke, what the term “post-pandemic” actually means right now, why Tom Green and vish need to talk, gambling with Norm Macdonald, a new comedy special and a new p...

Nicole Rampersaud and Off World ’s Sandro Perri discuss their respective new albums, Saudade and 3 , how they first met in Toronto and where they each live now, barbecue liberation and Grub-a-Dub, swan songs and other bird activities, the sounds of nature and surprising people with the sounds of their instruments, being a dub bub and the role of a producer in songwriting, temporality and nostalgia...

Roy Wood Jr. discusses headlining a coast-to-coast Just for Laughs tour across Canada in November, the World Series, being on the road and learning a lot about Canada, why he left his correspondent role on The Daily Show and whether he’s still interested in hosting it, the fragile state of late night TV and other ways comedians thrive these days, his work on Better Call Saul , performing at the 20...

Geordie Gordon discusses his excellent, reflective new solo album, Tambourine , writing about his teenage years playing music and contemplating his sexuality, loving sad songs, his role in U.S. Girls and seeing an important show by the Hidden Cameras, growing up in the closet in a university town, pondering his next record, playing shows , other future plans, and much more. Supported by you on&nbs...

Maximilian Turnbull discusses the new Badge Époque Ensemble album, Air, Light & Harmony , and this past spring’s Radiant Music by Symphony Orchestra , touring and speaking with toddler twins and also Bill Callahan, composing and also composting music, sampling your own work and conceptual complexity, working with his friend Michael Rault, future plans, and much more. Supported by you on Patreo...

Marc Masters discusses his fascinating new book, High Bias –The Distorted History of the Cassette Tape , why we fixate on music formats, the democratization of sound, why cassettes are still revered and collected around the world, tapers, the Grateful Dead, and Sonic Youth, how tapes foretold modern notions of on-demand music portability, what might be next for sound carriers and makers, book tour...

Michael Azerrad discusses his wonderful new book, The Amplified Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana , interviewing Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl, and Krist Novoselic for the original Come As You Are book and his subsequent friendship with the band, the truth and rock mythology, self-consciousness and indifference about perception, Kurt’s clinical conditions, how he seemed so relatable, shame, collage,...

Joseph Shabason discusses his fascinating new concept album, Welcome to Hell , which rescores the classic, 1996 skateboarding video of the same name, his own skating history and how jazz, punk, and free improvisation relate to the sport, reclaiming public spaces, the amazing look and sound of skate videos and legends like Ed Templeton, bail sections, skate parks, tour dates , other future plans, a...

Markus Floats discusses the lovely Fourth Album , working in Montreal, shifting from solitary to collaborative work with Egyptian Cotton Arkestra, fixed and fluid art, a koan by Fred Moten, problems and solutions, tarot cards and astrology, darkness and hope, playing shows, other future plans, and much more. Supported by you on  Patreon ,  Pizza Trokadero ,  the Bookshelf ,  Pl...

Jessica Jalbert and Rene Wilson discuss their band Faith Healer and brilliant new album, The Hand That Fits the Glove , strange Edmonton birds, why it’s been six years since they last released an album, working with many other people, intentionality and confidence, dogs and a specific dog, going viral, huge life news, other future plans, and much more. Supported by you on  Patreon ,  Bla...

Elizabeth Powell discusses the new Land of Talk album Performances , caregiving and a culturally-rich upbringing, experimenting with their singing voice, trading guitar in for keys, gender fluidity, abuse, and the lack of protection in music communities and infrastructures, voyeurism, objectification, and dress codes, sitcoms like Family Ties , the Twin Peaks theme song, reflecting on who they are...

Monty Messex discusses the new reissue of My Crazy Life by DFL , seeing early shows by and becoming friends with members of Black Flag, the Germs, and Guns ‘N’ Roses, making music with the likes of Izzy Stradlin, Carla Bozulich, and Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz, being in Beastie Boys’ social circle, signing with Epitaph as punk went mainstream again, what makes “Crazy” Tom Davis so crazy, touring, maki...

Kelley Deal and Josephine Wiggs from the Breeders discuss Last Splash (30th Anniversary Original Analog Edition) and the making of this landmark album in 1993, Local Rabbits and Protomartyr , photo curation, archiving, and social media pros and cons, how they first came to know each other and collaborate, how the success of Last Splash impacted the band, Kelley on playing a sewing machine and maki...

Ariel Engle discusses the brilliant new album, XO Skeleton , by La Force , Paris and fandom, family ties that bind, grief and reflection, making heavy pop music, cynical mysticism, working with Andrew Whiteman, Shahzad Ismaily, and Warren Spicer, cigar box guitars, "Song a Day" and Feist, touring, new music, other future plans, and much more. Supported by you on  Patreon ,  Pizza Trokade...

Tommy Stinson discusses the wonderful new box set, Tim: Let it Bleed Edition by his old band, the Replacements , touring Canada in October with Tommy Stinson’s Cowboys in the Campfire and the stories behind the songs on their new album, Wronger , John Doe and Bob Dylan, the state of American life and writing new songs about it, loving Canada, other future plans, and much more. Supported by you on&...

Bob Mehr , Jason Jones , and Ed Stasium provide an exclusive and detailed perspective about their work together on the revelatory new box set, Tim: Let it Bleed Edition by the Replacements , other future plans, and much more. Supported by you on  Patreon ,  Blackbyrd Myoozik ,  Pizza Trokadero ,  the Bookshelf ,  Planet Bean Coffee , and  Grandad’s Donuts.  Suppo...

Sam Morril discusses his upcoming stand-up dates including a JFL Toronto stop on September 21 , being a terrible driver and growing up in a blended family in Manhattan, how our parents measure our success, getting into comedy and admiring John Mulaney, attention spans and Oppenheimer vs. Barbie , telling David Letterman why he offers some specials to fans for free, corporate delays and greed, his...

Nick Thorburn discusses his band Islands and their new, sunny/dark album, And That's Why Dolphins Lost Their Legs , making a musical trilogy, creative people striking and speaking out about cultural exploitation, pivoting in the modern age, John Lennon and Robert Smith, how to remain optimistic, always living near large bodies of water, making beats for people like Fat Tony, touring again , other...

In his first interview in nearly a decade, Buck 65 explains his self-imposed exile from hip-hop and why he’s back, incredible recent albums like 2022’s King of Drums and 2023’s Super Dope and making beats in secret, giving up space for other artists, attracting the attention of a New York Yankees scout as a kid and making a triumphant return to baseball as a middle-aged man, working with Controlle...

Allison Russell discusses her celebratory, thoughtful new album The Returner , the heady success of her 2021 debut, Outside Child , an update about her forthcoming memoir and its structure, Back to the Future and other trilogies, the power of the Rainbow Coalition, the right-ward shift of politics and fighting fascism with facts, loving The Sound of Music , inspiring work by Roberta Flack, Mavis S...