The Two Minute Miracles 
Who: The Two Minute Miracles
What: Rootsy alt-rock smarties
Where: London, ON
To Contact: Teenage USA Recordings, 689 Queen St.W., Box 91, Toronto, ON, M6J 1E6 (416) 341-0049, , www.teenageUSArecordings.com.

Sometimes a good collection of rock songs is like a box of delicious truffles - you can't have just one. Each bite-sized piece of pleasure just leaves you craving another. That's the case with The Two-Minute Miracles. And just like good things come in small packages, this London, ON band's second release, titled simply Volume II, is a sweet example of confectionery concision. As the band's name suggests, most of their songs hug the two-minute mark (only one ventures past the three-minute frontier), but that's all they need to say what needs to be said. And while these guys are magnets for words like "oddball" and "unorthodox," such descriptors are usually also accompanied by words like "sharp-witted," "catchy" and even "genius". Lead singer/guitarist/songwriter Andy Magoffin calls what they do "roots music as interpreted by a bunch of guys who grew up on alternative college rock." Sounds about right to me. On the slightly askew "Name That Song", the guitars chug like they're strung with cardboard strings (Magoffin is fond tuning a tone-and-a-half lower, i.e., the low E string is tuned to a C#), while the chorus eventually winds itself around your head. The alt-country-ish charmer "Slow Down (Porch Mix)" is like the Honky-Wonk rendition of the more straight-up "Meet The Band Mix" version that closes out the CD. And "Rayon Queen In A Nylon Dream" is Reckoning-era R.E.M. jangle meets Wilco's Summerteeth with an early Sloan lo-fi hangover. It's good to know that Miracles can still happen. Hallelujah!

Soul Kings 
Who: Soul Kings
What: Soulful, funky blues
Where: Six Nations of the Grand, ON
To Contact: Josh Miller, RR1 Ohsweken, Six Nations of the Grand, ON, N0A 1M0 (519) 445-2653,

Soul Kings play a funky and soulful kind of blues, sometimes reminiscent of Los Lobos in their Texas-style blues moments. Led by singer/guitarist/songwriter Josh Miller, the band hails from the Six Nations of The Grand River Territory in Southern Ontario. After the demise of his former group, Josh Miller and Three Wheel Drive, Miller went back to school and completed a diploma in radio broadcasting, but just couldn't get the blues out of his system. Starting over again from square one, he formed Soul Kings about a year ago, enlisting Frank Miller on drums, Keith Silver on bass and backing vocals, and Blaine Bomberry on guitar and backing vocals. Taking his inspiration from Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix and Albert King, Miller's kind of blues keeps its chin up. "I try to take a more enlightened approach to blues," he says. "More like a good-to-be-alive kind of blues, rather than my-woman-left-me kind of stuff." The group's debut CD, Swank, is a splendid showcase for the band's chops and Miller's soulful singing. To their credit, they mix it up with several different flavours of blues on tap, from the funky "Calling For You" to the infectious groove of "Fa Fa Fa (Sad Song)" and the hard-edged "Medicine", to a fine, stripped-down cover of Stevie Wonder's "Boogie On Reggae Woman". The lead-off track, "My Time Coming", may prove to be more than typical blues bravado. From the sound of things, Soul Kings' time is now.

Katrina Bishop 
Who: Katrina Bishop
What: "Pop-Fusion"
Where: Vancouver, BC
To Contact: Grizelda Records, Suite 299 - 3495 Cambie St., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R3 (604) 872-0583, , www.katrinabishop.com.

Originally from Nova Scotia, Katrina Bishop moved out to the left coast 10 years ago and has managed to keep herself fairly busy. Aside from being the former lead singer for the Vancouver funk band Rumplesteelskin and a current member of the a cappella quartet The 4Tunes, Bishop is also an accomplished sculptor, a comic book illustrator, and a certified log home builder and private crane operator. Oh, how cliché. And just as she somehow blends all of these skills, talents and activities into her life, her debut solo CD, Runaway Lane, likewise blends a diverse mixture of musical styles - including jazz, Celtic, Latin, folk and rock - into an enticing musical stew. "The term I've come up with is pop-fusion," says Bishop of her music. "I get tired with mainstream pop and I like to mix other stuff in there." Bishop's voice is strong enough to carry her through all of these various styles, and she also shows the same kind of flexibility and vocal candour as the likes of Jane Siberry. But it's not just her singing - her writing is also very solid. "Blushing Bride" is a Celtic-tinged number with some very incisive lyrics that paint a less-than-blissful marital picture. Other standout songs include the lovely piano ballad "Nothing Could Be Better", the a cappella splendour of "Good Night For Stars" and the Latin jazz flavours of the title track. A multifaceted artist, Bishop makes a strong first move with this diverse and alluring debut.

Credit: Jim Kelly is a Toronto-based freelance writer.

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