congratulations, friends – you made it through another work week. And as it is Friday, we here at Mixtape like to get your weekend started with a playlist of songs you may have never heard before. This week’s playlist is a unique collection of artists and musicians from Hamilton, Ontario.
Canada’s steeltown has been home to many, many great musicians and has one of those music scenes that exists on beds of folklore and epic tales that may or may not be entirely true. Only one thing is certain – this blue-collar town has been a safe haven for talented musicians for years. Here are just a few samples of what you can find in Hamilton.
Dark Mean with “Happy Banjo”
The band’s lead singer and main songwriter just happens to be named Mark Dean, which makes the band’s name a crafty play on words. Having been on the seen for a number of years in some form or another Dean has managed to make a place for his kind of sound within the city. Dark Mean released a full-length album in 2011 that garnered a lot of praise for being able to meld acoustic guitar riffs with banjo lines in way that sounds like they have always meant to be played in unison. We may or may not have seen photos on social media that the band is in the studio again, making some pretty awesome tunes probably.
Harlan Pepper with “Little Miss Sunshine”
Four young dudes from Hamilton playing music that sounds like they’ve been living a hard life for far too long. They weave tales together of train travel, lost loves and sorrow – pulling them all together with skillful plucking and tender harmonies. But they are young – baby faced even. It makes Harlan Pepper rather impressive, and proves they really only have a bright future ahead of them. That is, of course, if their old soul ways don’t catch up with them.
Melissa McClelland with “Skyway Bridge”
Melissa and her husband Luke Doucet live in Hamilton. As Whitehorse, they have a song called “No Glamour in the Hammer“, but this isn’t the first time Melissa has written a song about the grittier side of Hamilton. And once you listen to “Skyway Bridge” (which is an actual landmark bridge in the Hammer), you start to understand that Melissa has a very strong appreciation for the tragically romantic side of this city.
Teenage Head with “Let’s Shake”
This was the band that put Canada on the punk-rock map and they are from Hamilton. The city took care of these musical darlins and their very hard and very fast rock’n’roll lifestyle ensuring that they managed to stay afloat and not become some kind of Hamilton tragedy. As a result, this band has some kind of legend status that everyone in Hamilton knows about — and has at least one story about lead singer Fankie Venom doing something really crazy.
Matt Paxton with “Shore Pine Walk”
Paxton is another one of those Hamilton artists who has been doing his thing for a while now – he even picked up a few nominations for the Hamilton Music Awards along the way. Building upon basic guitar sounds, Paxton uses his music as a means to tell his stories. Quiet vocals, mastered so that they don’t over take any of the musical elements, Paxton has managed to fit himself into the Hamilton music scene as a regular.
To listen to the entire playlist, click here.
Photo: Instagram: pceasy