by Scott Roos photos by Tracy Creighton (Copperblue Photography and Design) There’s something fitting about an artist returning to where it all started just as things are beginning to take off. For Taya Lebel, that means a September 16 stop at the Rock Trout in Prince Albert, where she’ll share the stage with fellow up-and-coming Canadian country artists Jeremy Grey and Justin Sutton. With the 2026 Canadian Country Music Awards heading to Saskatoon, the evening offers a prett

by Scott Roos There is something inherently fascinating about watching two people who have spent nearly three decades together try to explain each other. Especially when those two people happen to be Raine Maida and Chantal Kreviazuk. On paper, their story sounds almost impossibly tidy: two successful Canadian musicians who met early in their careers, fell in love, built families together, continued making music and somehow managed to maintain separate identities while becom

by Scott Roos photo credits in captions photo by Aaron Richter There was a time when I'll readily admit that Journey was not at all on my radar... It's not that I disliked them. It's just as a self described "metalhead" I just never really considered myself a Journey guy. Then, a little over 20 years ago, I started collecting vinyl again. And, Somewhere along the way, I picked up copies of Escape, Departure and Evolution. Likely at a thrift store or garage sale or something

by Scott Roos photos courtesy of the bands and Little Slaughter on the Prairie There’s something fitting about a festival called Little Slaughter on the Prairie arriving in Saskatoon with eight bands, a magician and absolutely no interest in behaving like a traditional music festival. Taking over RCAF Lynx Hall on Saturday, August 22, the inaugural event brings together Edmonton and Saskatoon’s heavy music communities for an evening built around grind, death metal, deathcore,

words and pics by Scott Roos There are probably more obvious places to stage a heavy metal show in Saskatoon than TCU Place. The home of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra isn’t exactly the first building that comes to mind when someone says “circle pit.” It has more of a “please take your seats and silence your cellphones” reputation than a “somebody just crowd-surfed over three rows of people” one. But on Friday night, Aug. 14, TCU Place made a pretty convincing argument that

Words and pics by Scott Roos Our Grade: A There’s something wonderfully uncomplicated about “Wild Life,” the new single from Prince Albert’s The Shyning. Released July 16, it’s the kind of rock song that doesn’t ask you to overthink things. It just wants you to turn it up and have a good time. Recorded at Mosaic Music Studio with Rich McFarlane, “Wild Life” comes loaded with the sort of classic-rock swagger that makes you want to dig an old denim jacket out of the closet. The

by Scott Roos photos courtesy of the artist unless otherwise stated There is something pretty cool about the Saskatoon Fringe Festival. Actually, there are a lot of things that are pretty cool about it. For one thing, there are simply so many options. From July 30 to August 8, Saskatoon's famed Broadway Avenue neighbourhood becomes a sort of giant, temporary theatre district, with performers, musicians, dancers, comedians and storytellers popping up all over the place. You ca

words and pics by Scott Roos When Josh Stumpf and his fiancée, Mercy Glover, launched the Sunset Country Music Festival five years ago, the goal wasn't to build another summer concert. It was to build something that mattered. Since its inception, the annual festival has combined Saskatchewan country music with community fundraising, inviting fans to spend an evening on the Stumpf family farm near MacDowall while supporting local charities. Every year, the beneficiaries change

by Scott Roos photo by Deanna Roos Padgett performing his 6 Guitars show in Prince Albert (2024) Before 6 Guitars made him an international Fringe favourite, before audiences across North America knew his name, Chase Padgett was just another kid trying to make sense of life with a trumpet in one hand and, eventually, a guitar in the other. On Sunday, August 9, Saskatoon audiences will have one final opportunity to celebrate the Fringe Festival with a special Encore fundraiser

by Scott Roos photo courtesy of John Sobol There are Fringe shows that make you chuckle. Fringe shows that make you think. Fringe shows with music. Fringe shows with storytelling. And then there's Juicy Woo-Woo – The UFO Cabaret, which somehow manages to cram all of those things into one evening while asking one of humanity's oldest questions: What if we're not alone? Before you roll your eyes, though, creator John Sobol would probably tell you the same thing he told NSMZ. "T

by Scott Roos photo courtesy of Dynamite Lunchbox Entertainment Fringe audiences are often looking for discovery. Sometimes that's an experimental piece of theatre. Sometimes it's stand-up. Sometimes it's something so unexpected that it lingers in your mind long after the lights come up. Tymisha Harris' A Cabaret of Legends feels like it belongs squarely in that last category. Returning to the Saskatoon Fringe after earning widespread acclaim for her award-winning production

by Scott Roos photo by courtesy Joseph Ste. Marie There's something wonderfully unpredictable about the Saskatoon Fringe Festival. You can walk into one show expecting comedy and leave unexpectedly emotional. You can wander outside afterward and find a fire juggler entertaining a crowd, browse handmade art from local vendors, take in a cool workshop and then head into another theatre for something completely different. That's the magic of Fringe. Running July 30 through Augus

by Scott Roos For the uninitiated, the idea of might conjure up images of mud-spattered trucks, endless cases of cheap beer, and thousands of rowdy twenty-somethings treating a prairie field like the world’s biggest tailgate party. And sure, according to Country Thunder digital manager Megan Benoit, that element does exist. But that stereotype only scratches the surface of what has quietly become one of Saskatchewan’s biggest and longest-running cultural traditions. “If you h

By Scott Roos band photo courtesy of Napalm Death There are some bands that become legends through mythology, and then there are bands like , who become legendary simply by surviving — not by softening, not by compromising, and certainly not by slowing down. Four decades into a career that helped invent grindcore as both a sonic assault and a philosophical framework, Napalm Death remain one of the most uncompromising bands in heavy music. As the band prepares to return to Can

Roughsleeper – Everything Is Getting Worse Released: March 3/2026 Lonesome View Records By Scott Roos Our Grade: B+ Regina’s Roughsleeper return with Everything Is Getting Worse , a five-track EP that doubles down on the band’s strengths: punchy melodic punk, big hooks, and tight musicianship. Now operating as a streamlined trio with Rob White (guitar/vocals), Joey Gadica (bass), and Steve McNeil (drums), the group has trimmed the lineup but kept the energy intact. The EP ope

by Scott Roos photos by Scott Roos (Scotty the Rooster Photography) Forty years is a long time to be doing anything. Forty years of thrash metal? That’s practically a miracle. Yet here we are. The Bay Area wrecking crew known as Exodus, one of the original architects of thrash metal’s glory days, are gearing up to unleash their latest slab of carnage, Goliath . It lands March 20 through Napalm Records, and if drummer Tom Hunting is any indication, the band didn’t exactly stro

by Scott Roos Hollow Dominion with new vocalist Aurel Dumont Out on the flat prairie where the wind never really stops and the winters still mean business, heavy music finds a way to grow in the strangest places. Regina’s Hollow Dominion are proof of that. The deathcore crew from the city that rhymes with fun are about to drop their new single “Lifesblood” on March 12 - and it carries a little more weight than your average release. This one’s a goodbye. “Literally, yeah,” gui

By Scott Roos Our Grade: A- With his latest single, "Alone", Jordan Perry leans confidently into retro territory, delivering a shimmering slice of synth pop that feels both nostalgic and fresh. The track opens with a restrained, mid-tempo pulse before gradually layering glossy keyboards and live drums, creating a slow-burn build that pays off in a satisfying climax. It’s easy to imagine this one sliding seamlessly onto the soundtrack of Cobra Kai, thanks to its polished eight

by Scott Roos Our grade: B+ A Confident Debut Rooted in Classic Rock Warmth Battleford-based Hartz Roller makes a strong first impression with their debut single, “Let Me Love You.” The track leans into a warm, nostalgic lane while still carrying enough spark to feel contemporary. From the first listen, the vocals give off a Stevie Nicks–adjacent vibe, paired with instrumentation that recalls the breezy polish of classic ’70s AM radio pop rock. Like a Sweeney Todd or Bay City

photos and words by Scott Roos Dave Mustaine shredding up a storm during "Hangar 18" There are nights when a metal tour rolls through town and checks the boxes. And then there are nights when thrash history itself seems to step out onto the stage, plug in, and remind everyone why this music still matters. The recent triple threat of Megadeth, Anthrax, and Exodus at the SaskTel Centre on Tuesday, February 24th delivered exactly that: a multi-generational thrash celebration tha