Witchpolice Radio

Here's my conversation with saxophonist Neil Watson , who is directing the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra 's upcoming tribute to Dave Brubeck! We talk about what makes Brubeck’s music so enduring, delving into his deep catalogue beyond the hits, translating music written for a quartet into a big-band setting, and more! ‘Take 5: Dave Brubeck and West Coast Swing’ takes place Oct. 17, 7:30 p.m., at the Uni...

I sat down with Mark Klassen from experimental art-rock quartet Cantor Dust   to talk about the upcoming LP (and there is a vinyl release!), ‘ The Anatomy of Malevolence ’, which drops Oct. 2. Here's our conversation about the record, the expansion of the group from a solo project to a duo and now a four-piece, concept albums, tackling serious subject matter, and much more! Need more Cantor Dust i...

I sat down with folk singer-songwriter David Alpert for an episode that you're hearing a few days after the release of his debut EP,  'Late September' . Here's our conversation about the new record, developing the confidence to pursue music professionally, writing deeply personal songs that can appeal to a wide audience, the benefits of busking… and much more! Follow the podcast on Facebook , Inst...

Delightfully avant-garde Winnipeg weirdos Savant Flaneur  have a new record ( 'Hocketus' ) coming out on New York-based free jazz label 577 Records , so we caught up on the latest in their experimental universe.   Tune in for a conversation about the ‘antagonistic’, performance-based ‘Hocketus’ album, finding inroads to the avant-grade for casual listeners, a punk rock aesthetic despite being a vi...

Country music purist Sean Burns is set to release his excellent new record, ‘ Better Off In Time & Other Songs For The Dance Floor ’, on Sept. 18, so he popped back onto the podcast to talk about it!  Tune in for our chat about deep-diving into hyper-specific country subgenres, the trajectory of the Sean Burns sound, what he’s learned from his day job playing bass with Corb Lund , and much mor...

They were a last-minute addition to Sunday's Propagandhi bill at the Burton Cummings Theatre (see all of you there!), and now they’re a last-minute addition to my podcast schedule: it’s OP-ED !  I sat down with Tarek (vocals) and Jay (guitar) to talk about the big gig, and how it mirrors their first-ever performance, the way Tarek’s lived experience as a Palestinian refugee informs the band’s musi...

Eight-piece party funk outfit The Remedies are recognizing 10 years since the band’s first release with a new album celebrating that history. Here's my chat with the group's frontman about the importance of staying friends with your bandmates, Manitoba festivals, blending synth-pop, Latin vibes, and horn-driven funk… and much more! I flubbed the timing on this one, so even though we're talking abo...

I recently saw Until Defeat at a show at the Handsome Daughter and really enjoyed their set, so we set up this interview, which is now available to insert directly into yer earholes! Tune in for our conversation about defining (sort of, let’s just go with ‘LOUD’) the band’s sound, finding inroads into the local music scene, the physicality of live performances vs recording, and much more! Follow t...

This episode features a fun conversation with local Afrofusion artist Whealo !  We talk about his new three-song ‘ Unlearn ’ EP, Winnipeg’s cultural and musical diversity, prioritizing lyrics, and more! Follow the podcast on Facebook , Instagram , TikTok and YouTube ! You can also support on Patreon ... and do us a favour and leave a rating or review on your podcast player of choice. Thanks for li...

…so by complete fluke, I’ve had two episodes with singer/songwriter/engineer/man-about-town Paul Hodgert  that were released on the exact same day in different years. We decided to (deliberately) go for the trifecta this time and completely mess up my release schedule to make it happen.  There's a legit reason Paul's back on the show, though: we talk about his work restoring the lost-for-30-years...

The Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival is well underway, and well-known local purveyor of musical comedy J. Williamez is hitting stages with his Mr. Loopy Pants project!  Tune in for a fun conversation about the one-man (plus a possibly alive loop pedal) multimedia show, why he’s so proud of this project, toxic positivity vs. heckling, music videos, and much more! Need more loopiness? Check out the...

We interrupt your regularly-scheduled programming with an episode from the vault, featuring the first appearance of (now sadly defunct) Winnipeg punks Union Stockyards on the show, way back on episode #079!  For those unfamiliar with the archival episodes -- when I moved all of my episodes from one hosting provider to another, years ago, I accidentally missed the inclusion of a couple dozen episod...

Letellier, Manitoba’s Bankside Music Festival is a long-running summer event aimed at giving rock/punk/metal bands from the province (and beyond!) an opportunity to play on a festival stage. I sat down with Bankside mastermind Richard Houle to talk about the event’s DIY roots and this year’s stacked lineup (July 17-18), which includes a whole bunch of past Witchpolice interviewees, including the B...

After years of changes, local alt-rock/dream-pop outfit Ozconscious is set to release a new full-length, ‘ Nostalgia for the Moment ’, at the Pyramid Cabaret on June 20 (that's tomorrow if you're listening the day this episode drops!)  I sat down with frontman Tate Hiebert to talk about the record, different songwriting vunes, learning from busking and playing cover tunes (via Tater and the Tots )...

Technical difficulties meant this one comes out a few days later than anticipated, but thanks for your patience.  Here's a fun conversation with singer-songwriter  Masak  about her 15-years-in-the-making, genre-diverse album ('Masak's Unassorted Flavors') , getting inspiration from her late friend and collaborator  Kelly Fraser , coming back to Winnipeg after a few years in (very) rural Manitoba,...

Long-running emo punks Screaming at Traffic recently dropped a new EP with the excellent title ‘ Songs to Steal Copper Wire To ’.  I sat down with (co-) frontman Jacques Richer to talk about the record, the band not taking itself too seriously, regrouping after some time off, and a whole lot more! Need more SAT? Check out episodes #243 (Aug. 2017) and #416 (Sept. 2019), plus you can hear Jacques'...

This one's jumping the queue because it's time sensitive. It’s the end of an era! Frequent Witchpolice interviewee (this will be his sixth appearance in the past decade) Ed Durocher and his merry psychedelic fusion big band Apollo Suns are calling it quits.  Here's our conversation about the band’s last show ( May 29 at the Park Theatre , see you all there), the realities of the music industry as...

Winnipeg’s Strawberry Punch is a self-proclaimed 'all-femme queer indie/pop/twee/punk rock band' who just released a deadly debut record and has all kinds of cool shit on the horizon.  Tune in for our chat about the origins of their (don’t call it a) supergroup, bouncing around swapping instruments from song to song, appealing to a very diverse crowd, and much more! Huge thanks to everyone who sup...

What the hell is going on here? It’s guest hosts Sean and Todd McGinity (of SeanGeek and Fastfret Podcast ) giving me a bit of a break and interviewing two-thirds of alt-rawkers Crooked Ice for Witchpolice Radio!  Tune in for their chat about the soon-to-be-released ‘DarkStars’ full-length (which was actually the previous name of their band) and much more! Fun fact: Crooked Ice's bassist (who does...

The man, the myth, the legend… Greg Rekus  is back on the show for his seventh appearance over the years! Tune in for my chat with the hardest-working man in folk-punk about playing a show with his heroes  The Bonaduces  (May 8, at the West End Cultural Centre, also feat.  Mise en Scene ), U.S. touring challenges, reintroducing ‘The Dude Abides’, and much more! Greg is a true Winnipeg original and...

In the most Winnipeg series of events ever, I randomly bumped into sax player/singer-songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist Serge Paul  downtown recently, which led directly to us doing a podcast interview about his new record, ‘ Gut Love ’. Tune in for a conversation about saxophone, Franglais, resurrecting old songs, and much more, in Serge’s first appearance on the show in a literal decade!...

Long-running indie rock duo Mise en Scene are back with a new record (and back on the podcast after a few years)!  Check out our conversation about ‘ Drive-Thru Confessional ’, putting out the album *before* the April 18 release show , why they work so well together creatively, defining — or, rather, not wanting to define — the Mise en Scene sound (Mise en Sound?) and much more! Need more Mise en...

I’ve been doing this podcast for eleventy trillion years and somehow — despite enjoying many of their various projects for the past three decades — I’ve never had either member of Poison Suckers  on the show.  That changes now! Tune in for a chat about their brand new 7" EP ( 'Charmer' ) on  Transistor 66 , Winnipeg trash, pro wrestling, watermelons, the power of the train whistle, and more! Plus...

Singer-songwriter Jacob Brodovsky is set to release ‘ Tell the Kids We Tried ’, his new LP, later this year. He came back for an interview on the podcast to talk about the record, changing artistic (and life!) priorities, and much more. Need more Jacob in your life? Check out episodes #371 (April 2019), #687 (May 2022), and an even earlier appearance on episode #314 (Sept. 2018) as a member of the...

Dogs and Winnipeg Beach and writing folk songs, oh my!  It has somehow been five whole-ass years (!) since the fantastic Two Crows for Comfort were on the podcast, so we caught up about their touring adventures, new (and old) music, and much more. Need more Crows in your life? Check out episodes  #330 (Oct. 2018), #573 (March 2021), and a live performance they did in my backyard for #404 (July 201...