Visiting from the United Kingdom, Pena Hughes-John joined us with two of her original songs. We talked about: Steampunk as a culture, fashion statement, and musical style Writing songs on the ukulele How many chords is too many? Collaborating with others Writing a song from a writing prompt Using time signature changes to introduce tension …
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This Is Spinal Tap: 35 Years Later
This week SongTalk Radio has a special episode celebrating the 35th anniversary of the classic film, “This Is Spinal Tap”. And joining us in our trip down memory lane is one of our favourite guests on the show Blair Packham. We talk about where and when we first encountered this classic cult comedy and how …
Patrick Ballantyne: An album of longing
This week Song Talk welcomed Patrick Ballantyne back to our studio. Patrick is a veteran songwriter and musician who has worked with many top-selling artists such as The Trews, Meredith Shaw and Big Sugar. On this episode, Patrick brought in a few songs from his upcoming new release so our Song Talk audience got to …
Blair Packham: From song inception to development
One of our favourite guests and friend of the show Blair Packham returned to the show to share his song ideas, from titles to bits of songs, and how he develops them into full-fledged songs. We talked about: Song Studio Hugh’s Room in Toronto Songwriting Apps: OnSong, Rhyme Genie, Tunesmith, and Music Memos Writing the …
Angela Saini: Writing and collaborating on her new album
Angela Saini returned to Song Talk Radio with a new album and a fresh bunch of earnest and optimistic songs. We talked about: Structured vs. casual collaborations When should an artist make a trip to Nashville? Making a personal connections to songs you’re performing, even if you didn’t write them totally by yourself Live performance …
Linda Lavender on song development
Singer/songwriter Linda Lavender shares the story of her song They Won’t Catch Me Again. Follow her journey from it’s birth on a five-hour road trip to its studio recording. We talked about: Linda’s album The Rosseau Sessions with Often Running Bluegrass music Influencers like Lyle Lovett, Lucinda Williams, Alison Krauss People on the run, rebels, a …
Writing Songs for Children with Ashley Braga
Singer-songwriter and Music Educator Ashley Braga came to visit us again on the tails of her first album for children, Ladder to the Moon. The album features traditional children’s songs with Ashley’s own twists, and totally original songs as well. Ladder to the Moon was produced by Song Talk Radio’s own Neel Modi. We talked about: how songwriting …
Bohemian Rhapsody, the movie review
Did you love the new movie Bohemian Rhapsody? Hate it? Something in between? Listen as Bruce, Neel, Phil, Michael, and Vanessa let loose! Hear their takes on the Bryan Singer helmed Queen/Freddie Mercury biopic released in late 2018. While they found much to criticize, they had a few raves too. Listen to the whole show!