• Alanis Morissette - Everybody must have heard about her by now. "Ironic", "You Oughta Know", "Hand in My Pocket". Excellent songs, great singer, one of the best. Took home multiple Grammys and Junos.

• The Rankin Family - Most people who know celtic music will be familiar with Cape Breton's famous family. "Fare Thee Well, Love", "Gillis Mountain", "Feel The Same Way Too". A new take on a classic sound. Multiple ECMA winners.

• Great Big Sea - A new group from Newfoundland, they were recently voted Most Popular New Group at the East Coast Music Awards. A flawless CD with a wonderful mix of sounds. Favorites are "Mari-mac", "Run Runaway", "The Chemical Workers' Song"

• Rawlin's Cross - A band that has been re-creating celtic music for many years, and is now receiving the respect they deserve. They performed at the G-7 concert in Halifax last year where they filmed a video for their song "Reel & Roll". Another favorite of mine is "Long Night".

• The Crash Test Dummies - A band that has deservedly made it big in Canada and the U.S. Brad Roberts deep baritone voice is impossible to mistake for anyone else. Any of their songs is a winner in my book, and they've just released a brand new album - "A Worm's Life". Check it out at their Web Site (link above).

• Barra MacNeils - Another great East Coast band.

• Sandbox - A new band from New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, they are quickly gaining popularity here in Canada with three videos showing on MuchMusic. "Curious" and "Here and There" are my favourites.

• Ashley MacIsaac - Cape Breton's fiddle master, MacIsaac is bringing Cape Breton style music to a large and diverse audience. His videos "Devil in the Kitchen" and "Sleepy Maggie" (with Mary Jane Lamond) shot up the charts on Muchmusic and brought him instant fame across Canada (as well as complaints from some Cape Breton traditionalists).

• Vanessa Mae - Classical music's version of Ashley MacIsaac (but she looks better in a skirt) Vanessa Mae is a violin virtuoso, who is bringing a modern touch to classical music (and is also receiving complaints from Classical traditionalists).

If you are looking to listen to some music I have found a few sources on the web. I will eventually be adding links to the best music clips from here, but for now you will have to go to the source:

Muchmusic, The Alternative Medium. Sorta like MTV only better.

MTV, for those who are Muchmusic deprived.

Sony OnLine, they have a music section that I haven't fully explored yet.

Global Music Outlet, their main page, and GMO's music directory, a huge listing of artists with sound clips.

American Recordings Home Page.

Benjamin's Anime Homepage, an Anime fan page with a lot of song files available.

© 1996 James A. Welsh