THE HYBRIS are looking for artists who are interested in remixing one of their new tracks. You can find all the information here.

The Hybris kickstarted Cozy Resistance with Celebrate the Good Times, an energetic tune with a rocking sound and 80s futuristic vibes that put the listeners in the mood. It has an extremely dynamic flow with powerful hooks and atmospheric melodies, creating a solid synth/guitar conversation that with the catchy vocal melody controls the song’s dynamics and leads the listeners through its twists and turns. Goodbye Jerks, Heading to Earth 2 hits next with a rocking riff and an irresistible groove, boosting the record’s energy and taking it to the next level. It has a catchy, engaging sound that’ll drive the fans crazy when played live, as it moves forward relentlessly towards a bigger sound with really cool guitar work and an entertaining jazzy drumline. Taking a mellow approach, Impostor Syndrome comes next opening with deep bass and melodic vocals before taking us on an interesting, melodic ride. It has a big melodic sound with an ever changing structure that kept progressing into a faster, heavier sound without compromising its exciting flow or melodic core. Hey, Death! steers towards a calmer, more touching direction with an epic big sound that easily builds emotional bonds with the listeners. As The Hybris introduced us to a different side of their writing on Hey, Death!, they cleverly crafted a structure that mixes diverse elements and grooves with their direction, creating something creatively unique. Falling Down comes next with a sludgy touch and thick riffs, blasting the record’s flow at this point with an attacking wall of sound at the chorus, hauntingly groovy riffs, and perfectly fitting guitar licks and solos that took us to a new, fresh area. Heads Off has a raw punk-ish approach that hits right from its intro before developing into a complex and more detailed approach, shifting its sound into a more progressive one with unpredictable shifts that show off The Hybris’ writing skills as the song smoothly evolves into an irresistible headbanger. As we just got past the center of the record, Superhero Break Between Gotham and Guantanamo creates a chill dynamic rest, while the guys flex their lovely melodic abilities. The Game of Cat and Mouse opens up with an Iron Maiden-ish bass build-up that leads to an exploding verse that’ll send the listeners off their seats. It has a grinding intense heavy flow with a subtle progressive touch, that keeps its heavy sound intact while they play around with different layers and arrangements creating a multi-layered and textured sound. Keep the Wolves Away keeps on the sludgy, progressing sound going while adding powerful catchy harmonics to their uncompromising, hard-hitting flow. The Hybris brings back their groovy, fun direction on What If, putting together an open-sounding tune with amazing unstoppable drumming and well-written and arranged melodies as we’re getting closer to the end of the record. Ending the record on a high note, Your Abyss comes next showing The Hybris’ different sides of writing as they take us on a smoothly shifting structure from a calm soft intro into a heavier sound in a subtle dynamic progression. It has one of the record’s best guitar solos and vocal performances that were perfectly delivered and produced to put the listeners right into those sound shifts, leaving them playing the record all over again from the top.

Cozy Resistance is a solid record with diverse sounds and tones in an extremely entertaining mix. It shows The Hybris’ musicianship in the way they mixed their influence with their own creative touch, producing such a hooking record. Looking forward to more from you guys, keep on rocking. Cheers!

• Very happy to be asking you these questions, Dale. First of all, having grown up in the 70s, and having led a life full of musical milestones, how do you like to introduce yourself to others? And what would you say are the musical milestones you are most proud of?

First off, I would like to thank you for listening to our song. It really means a lot. It has taken a long time to reach this point. My life has been consumed by music from the time I was born. My parents were the main influence in sharing their musical tastes at an early age. Their diverse vinyl record collection kept me busy in the early 70’s with the likes of the Beatles, Johnny Cash, CCR, Neil Diamond, The Bee Gees, Abba to Gordon Lightfoot. The list went on. They would buy me albums like the Doobie Brothers, Eagles, Led Zeppelin, Cheap trick to Paul McCartney. I played Band on the Run to death! However, as I entered my teens and started exploring my own interests, and started fooling around on the guitar, I ventured off into the rock world with the likes of Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Pink Floyd, AC/DC, ZZ Top, and Yes. These bands all helped shape me musically. However, by the time I hit high school in the early 80’s, and then throughout the rest of the 80’s, my tastes started to veer towards a more alternative vein with experimental David Bowie, REM, U2, and more of the outliers like New Order, Depeche Mode, The Cure, The The, Sisters of Mercy, Bauhaus to name a few. However, things changed when I completed a music recording course at UVIC in 1988, and this would be my musical milestone so to speak. I knew at that time that I would eventually do some writing and recording and producing of my own music. However, the technology at the time was expensive, bulky, and painstakingly time consuming using old reel to reel tapes. In 1991, I ventured into a career in Real Estate which is what I still do today, and music has always been a hobby along the way. It would take another 20 years before the at home technology began to emerge, and I started to realize this dream of creating my own music.

• Has it taken too long for you to get your home studio together and start recording? After listening to the song and watching the fantastically shot video I flew to Spotify to listen to more songs from you only to find none. Are you planning to release consistently from now on? Or is this a side project for you?

Yes, the journey to this day and the release of She’s Sowing Time has been a long time coming. My home studio was completed about 10 years ago. Prior to this, I jammed with several musicians over the years which helped me better my skills as a player. Fast forward to about 2013, and once I had amassed all the gear that I needed to record myself at home, I started writing songs and here we are today with the first official released song. It took the importance of this song to propel me to explore releasing it as a single, and the first step was to hire a professional videographer and Ted Kuzemski was my first choice. He shot the video and once it was completed, this gave me the confidence in taking the next steps to independently release the song. Also, technology has advanced along the way to allow it to happen now in 2023. That is why it is my only song that can be found on the streaming services. I do plan on releasing future songs as time allows, but this is still purely a side project and hobby.

• Am I correct in hearing a strong Bowie influence on the drums of ‘She’s Sowing Time’? That punchy groove and the particular timbre to the drums. Who would you name as your biggest influences when it comes to writing songs?

I have a lot of musical influences, but David Bowie is definitely high on the list. I do love a blend of electric and real organic drum sounds, combined with guitar, driving bass and lush old school synth sounds, and this song has a blend of all my musical tastes up to today. Moby is another influence for his layered piano and synth arrangements. There are too many others to name but if I was to name drop a few, I would include Tears for Fears, Echo and the Bunnymen, Depeche Mode, New Order, REM, Talking Heads, Velvet Underground, Iggy Pop, Peter Murphy, Beck, plus all the classic rock and pop bands I loved to listen to in the 70’s. This list could go on for hours.

Review – She’s Sowing Time by Dale Sheppard

• Talking about writing songs. What was the process behind writing ‘She’s Sowing Time’? The lush chorus and the skeletal verses. The pads and the effect on your voice. Where would you say these decisions come from? Are they just pretty and fitting to the theme? Or would you say they carry an integral part to the meaning behind the song and the words?

I usually start writing my songs by picking a drum track and tempo, and then recording a rough rhythm guitar track highlighting the verse and chorus. Then I add bass guitar and basic synth tracks to create the atmosphere. I try to layer several synth parts over each other to fill out the sound. Once completed, Kim provides the lyrics and I then set out to record my vocals to her words. The theme of this song was heavily influenced by Kim’s battle with cancer which influenced my vocal presentation and the special affects added to my vocal tracks. Kim has a wonderful voice, so I knew that our blend of vocals, once recorded, would create a full sounding chorus. Most of the decisions regarding the mixing stage come from trial and error and are constantly changing until each track complements the others. I try to keep the vocals up front and center. This song theme has urgency and struggle and a lot of emotions. Trying to create this atmosphere did take a lot of time finding the right balance for each track and for the final mixing of the song.

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• Taking the words from Kim after her battle with cancer must have been challenging. To write a piece of music that is worthy of such inspired words can’t have been easy. How did you approach this, and how did you decide that the music you came up with was worthy of such words that must have been quite personal to your family?

Yes, Kim went through an extremely tough time during her cancer fight in 2021, and she has now been cancer free for a year and a half, so we are all very relieved and grateful for this. Kim usually writes the words for my songs but after reading the lyrics to She’s Sowing Time, and adapting then to my musical composition, we knew we had something special. However, I really wanted to ramp up the production and instrumentation for this song, so I reached out to some friends of mine to add some additional tracks. The main keyboard melody was provided by Russ Ovans and the smoking lead guitar solo was provided by James Love. The final touch was adding real drums to the song, provided by Nicola D’Adamo, and his track was added to complement my existing electronic drum track to ramp up the urgency of the song while providing an organic human feel. I feel we accomplished what we set out to achieve.

• And finally, as a new fan of Dale Shepperd, what can we expect from you next? Radio shows planned ahead? More songs? An album by any chance? What do you have in store for us next?

I usually try to complete one song a year, so I hope to have another release to share in 2024. Regarding an album, I do have about 10 songs completed but the others are rougher demos, so they have not been officially released. If I get some time to complete those songs, and write a few more, I might have an album in me yet.

• Thank you so much Dale for taking the time to answer these questions. It has been my pleasure to ask them, and I truly hope that they are as engaging to consider and answer as listening to your latest single has been inspiring to me.

The British Colombia based Dale Shepperd is an artist who has been following a lifelong passion for music since growing up in the 70s, which comes as no surprise as you listen to his first released single and start to mull over all the Phil Collins, David Bowie, and Yes influences on the song. Produced in Shepperd’s home studio and with lyrics written by Kim, Dale’s wife, during her struggle with cancer, ‘She’s Sowing Time’ is the kind of rich homegrown affair that could easily put far higher value productions to shame with its sublime directness, strength, and sheer beauty, seen through the brutal lens of cancer, and a life of musical experience.

That is not to say that ‘She’s Sowing Time’ comes from a modest production value, or even a mediocre one. The production quality is terrific on the song, with the drum sound and performance coming on top of the list of things that make this song easily stand out. The crisp, percussive, and roomy drums, the tasty fills, and the unerring groove, all give way for a lush wall of synth pads that fill the air on the chorus, making that section a truly fantastic piece of reaffirming music. The quirky solo, and the miniscule delay on Shepperd’s vocals lend the song an 80s flair that is quite unique.

‘She’s Sowing Time’ is a beautiful song. A product of sincere and honest emotions that are starkly delivered by a honed talent. The kind of song that you do not easily get over.

The Candy Republic opens Army of Robots with deceiving sharp acoustic guitars, before bringing their raw unfiltered adventurous sound up. It has a powerful groove and a hypnotizing sound that’ll get you hooked and focused, while the diverse vocal delivery and harmonies keep things interesting. It has a subtle melodic core within this rough production, as the main fuzzy dense riff has a melodic side that created a heavy thick sound with a catchy twist that fits perfectly with such a fluid structure. Army of Robots has a streaming flow with unstoppable dynamics, it smoothly moves forward with a big wall of sound that surrounds you leaving you no choice but to play it over and over again.

Army of Robots is a bold debut single, it shows lots of character with its raw production, sludgy sound, and punk attitude as The Candy Republic gives us a brief hint of what they can do with their writing skills and clear vision of their direction. Looking forward to more from The Candy Republic, keep on rocking. Cheers!

“Dude, Your Mom’s A Squid?” is a sonic journey blending garage, alternative, and indie rock, sprinkled with psychedelic elements. The band described the song as “You had something dodgy on that pizza, and the next moment you’re introducing your mother to god AND SHE’S A SQUID. It all makes sense”. With its funky guitar riff and an infectious old-school drum and bass combo, the track compels listeners to groove and dance to its irresistible rhythm. Layered on top is a melodic synth and brass section that completes the psychedelic atmosphere, immersing the audience in a truly unique musical experience.

“Your Mom’s A Squid?” is a fantastic addition to 9 o’clock Nasty‘s already impressive catalogue. The song’s fusion of genres and willingness to experiment with new sounds showcases the band’s versatility and artistic growth. With their unmistakable style and fearless approach to music-making, 9 o’clock Nasty continues to push boundaries and captivate listeners. This collaboration sets the stage for an exciting Summer of Collaboration leaving fans eagerly anticipating what the band has in store next.

The best psychedelic tunes -in my humble opinion- are the ones that slowly takes you by the hand and introduces you to the artist’s very own sonic world and that’s exactly what “Turn the Screw” does. It has a pure psychedelic-space rock intro that matches the lyrics’ modern theme, the groovy bassline acts as one of the song’s main spines and slowly, the drums slip in then the guitar marking the beginning of the verse. The vocals complementing the guitar melody combined with the guitar tone gave an old school feel and adding those effects on the vocals and harmonies gave it depth and texture.  

The song has smooth progression as its curve keeps going up smoothly, it gets heavier and more expressive with jazzy energetic drums and heavy engaging guitars towards the end. It keeps you thinking for the 1st half then urges you to act upon that as it progresses.

“Turn the Screw” felt like a well-crafted tune that took it’s time before Higher Sights took the decision to bring it to the masses. It is an interesting trip that says a lot about what Higher Sights have in store and will make me keep an eye on them for future releases and I advise that you do too. Cheers guys and looking forward for more.