Hidden Track

Grant talks to Neko Case about her latest record 'Hell-On', co-produced by Bjorn Yttling (Peter Bjorn and John) and recorded in Stockholm. That’s where Neko was when she found out her home in Vermont had burned down. We'll hear her surprisingly zen outlook on the fire. Plus, Neko tells us about finally claiming the title of "producer" after 20 years in the music business. We'll also hear about how her collaboration with k.d. lang and Laura Veirs changed her approached to her 7th studio album.

The Pixies’ album Doolittle was released thirty years ago this month. It’s an album that’s bursting with arresting-yet-mysterious imagery, captivating-yet-cryptic lyrics, and breathtakingly unexpected musical dynamics and departures. It’s an almost unbelievably dense, compact artistic statement that fascinates at first blush, and heavily rewards repeated listening. There’s a whole world in there. A world we’ll explore with Ben Sisario, who’s the author the book Doolittle, part of the 33 1/3 series

Drew Gonsalves talks calypso with Lark Clark on this week's Hidden Track podcast. The Trinidadian Canadian is the founding member of the JUNO-winning outfit Kobo Town. The Toronto group blends calypso with myriad influences, including ska, reggae, dub and hip-hop. A genre that originated in Trinidad and Tobago, calypso is what Drew describes as "the folk music of urban Trinidad." Whether you've only ever heard calypso from the Harry Belafonte tunes in the movie Beetlejuice, or you're deep down into

It's not everyday you get to chat with a music legend, cultural force, and intergenerational icon. This week on Hidden Track, Grant Stovel talks to folk music giant Judy Collins. Her inspired work as a song stylist helped launch to fame songwriters like Leonard Cohen, Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, and Ian Tyson. We'll hear about those relationships, as well as the struggles and demons that have clawed at her along the way. Sixty years into her career, Collins has emerged as a truly

Alejandro Rose-Garcia, aka Shakey Graves, burst onto the Americana scene in 2011 with his debut album 'Roll the Bones.' Armed with a suitcase outfitted with a kick pedal, and his acoustic guitar, the Austin born musician was soon mesmerizing audiences with his spectacular one-man-band performances. His 2014 follow up 'And the War Came,' yield the smash single “Dearly Departed," and earned him slots on the Late Show with David Letterman, Conan, and Austin City Limits. Alejandro talks to Grant about

She skyrocketed to fame with a song that didn't sound like anything anyone had ever heard before. It was gentle yet tense, lurid yet mysterious. "Ode to Billie Joe" was driven by Bobbie Gentry's trademark acoustic guitar groove, and that low Mississippi drawl that seemed like it was murmuring secrets in your ear. On this episode, Grant Stovel explores the captivating legacy of an artist who has one of most sensational success stories in all of popular music, and also one of its most fascinating and

This week, Leslie Feist talks to Grant Stovel about how a conscious shift in perspective guided the approach to her latest album, Pleasure. She’ll tell us about the “dark nights of the soul” that led her to finding a better work-life balance. Plus, Leslie reflects on her tributes to Leonard Cohen, Gord Downie, and the milestone anniversary of her appearance on Sesame Street.

On our debut episode, Grant Stovel welcomes musician Jeremy Dutcher. The classically trained operatic tenor and composer spent most of his 20's quietly crafting his stunning debut album Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa. The album blends his training in opera, and his contemporary musical sensibility, and features post-classical rearrangements of Wolastoq First Nation traditional music. The work recently took home Canada's top musical honour, the Polaris Music Prize, this past September.  In this