from under a rock: episode ii
The sequel you probably didn’t even know you were waiting for.
Sometimes it takes a while for things to sink in. So, I decided to wait 18 months before writing a second piece about the music I’ve missed while my extensive CD collection and I were resting comfortably under a rock.
No, I’m not announcing that I’ve discovered an amazing band that calls itself Led Zeppelin. That would be stupid on many levels. First, even I have heard of Led Zeppelin. And second, I would never use the word “amazing” to describe them. Frankly, I’m not a fan. I don’t hate them or anything. In fact, I appreciate that so many bands I do like say they were inspired by Led Zeppelin. It’s just that their music doesn’t inspire me.
But again, this isn’t about Led Zeppelin. It’s about music I actually want to listen to. From bands I hadn’t heard of but probably should have. Led Zeppelin doesn’t check any of those boxes, so please stop bringing them up, would you?
I tend to “discover” music when I’m visiting my hometown in South Canada, like now. I pick up my rental car and lock the radio onto CFNY (102.1 The Edge), the best frequency in the history of radio. And then the magic happens.
This is a station that’s been playing great music out of Toronto since the Buffalo Bills were born, which is a decade before I showed up on earth. They battled 97 Rock for most of my youth, and for my money they have been undefeated. The best news is both stations are still around, playing the same winning format they have for generations. One of the things I love about Western New York.
So who spawned this year’s musical revelation for me? I’m sure all of you have heard of these guys except me, but I’ve gathered you here today to write the praises (because I can’t sing for shit) of Kingston, Ontario’s The Glorious Sons. In fairness to me, their first release didn’t hit the airwaves until 2015, so I’m only a few laps behind the rest of the world. Trust me, I’ll make up that four years very quickly.
I clearly wasn’t paying attention when they did hit the top of Billboard charts in 2017. Even so, I think you’ll agree that their biggest accomplishment came earlier today when I couldn’t get “Kingdom in My Heart” out of my head and decided it was finally time for me to get a Spotify account. Yes, I’m now streaming music. Like almost every other human on the planet. And probably some cats. Not dogs, though. They typically aren’t that smart. That’s okay, though. I’ll fill Mojo in when I get back to Tennessee.
Now that I’m out on Spotify (you probably can’t see me, but I’m waving to you), there’s as much Canadian music at my fingertips as I can possibly handle—probably more. It’s over-stimulating like the NFL Red Zone when I was in multiple fantasy football leagues. Thankfully, I retired from that mess a few years ago and haven’t looked back. Now, I’ll just be flooding my ears with hard rock and alternative anthems from the Great White North.
I’ve only been a Spotify member for a few hours and it’s already paying dividends. For one, The Edge has a Spotify channel, so I can listen in from Middle Tennessee (bless you Al Gore, for all your internet-inventing ingenuity). And if that isn’t exciting enough, I learned that The Glorious Sons are playing Nashville on January 28. Who wants to go with me?
There you have it. As usual, I may have veered left of the landing zone a bit, but you’re used to that by now. I’m happy to report that “Kingdom in My Heart” is no longer playing in my head, but it’s okay because now I can listen to it on Spotify whenever I want to. Or I can roll the dice and find another new band on The Edge. Also on Spotify! It may not be the win-win Stephen Covey had in mind, but I say it counts. I can’t wait to tell Mojo.
Cheers!
