Christine Fellows 
Who: Christine Fellows
What: Tantalizingly original avant-folk-pop
Where: Winnipeg, MB
To Contact: Shauna de Cartier, Sixshooter Records, 98038 Queen St. E, Toronto, ON, M4M 1J0 (416) 465-2459, FAX (416) 532-0331, , www.christinefellows.com.

Since the release of her 2000 debut, 2 Little Birds, Christine Fellows has become a vibrant fixture on the Winnipeg music scene, and has begun to spread her wings across the country. The Last One Standing is her deliriously distinctive follow-up. Some call it avant-folk; others label it chamber-pop. I just call it wonderful. Fellows' remarkably oblique approach to song construction and lyric writing creates music that is at once calming and oddly disturbing, but never less than completely captivating. Cello and viola wrap loving arms around Fellows' refreshingly atypical piano style and charming vocals, with warm support from accordion, thumb piano, bowed glockenspiel and tastefully applied percussion. She says she's not an avid music listener, but rather finds her inspiration in other art forms such as dance, and in the people immediately around her. "On this record, I did a lot of dedications for people," says Fellows, "which is very unlike me, but it just seemed appropriate, and it was an interesting way to work." With songs as alluring as these, maybe she should stick with that approach. "Regrets" is a courtly backward glance at paths taken and declined. "Roadkill" is a more sobering exercise in hindsight, surveying a flattened relationship in the rear view. And "Veda's Waltz" is a gentle gift of hope with its delicious refrain, "It's not too late for the battle-scarred/Here's your parade and your tinfoil stars." Decidedly distinctive and uniquely talented, Christine Fellows' star is definitely on the rise.

Greg MacPherson Band 
Who: Greg MacPherson Band
What: Raw, lean rock with intelligence, conscience and soul
Where: Winnipeg, MB
To Contact: (204) 943-8419, The G7 Welcoming Committee, PO Box 27006, 360 Main Street Concourse, Winnipeg, MB, R3C 4T3 (204) 947-2002, FAX (204) 947-3202, , www.gregmacpherson.com; www.g7welcomingcommittee.com.

When your stock-in-trade is gritty, unblinking observations from life's dustier corners and rougher edges, and your songs are populated by everyday folks desperately riding stillborn dreams, and when you serve up gutsy guitar rock with a bit of muscle, perhaps the Bruce Springsteen comparisons are inevitable. But that's okay, because Greg MacPherson wears it well, which is to say that he has the writing chops and the talent to stand on his own. Released this past March, the Winnipegger's second album, Good Times Coming Back Again, has reviewers raving. With Steve Bates (Bulletproof Nothing, XOXO) on guitar and Jason Tait (The Weakerthans) on drums, MacPherson creates a lean and sparse sound that's a perfect vehicle for his incisive and intelligent lyrics. Being tagged 'socially conscious guy in Winnipeg' doesn't necessarily bother MacPherson. "But I'm kind of all over the place too," he says. "There are tunes that are stories and tunes that are more snapshots. It can go in lots of different directions." So you get the hard driving rock of "The Day The Water Dried Up From The Tap", the gloomy, haunted soundscape of "Remote Control", the jaunty apathy anthem "Numbers", a faded diorama of lives lived in numb stasis, and the lead-off track, "Good Times", which MacPherson infuses with such a sense of menace that it begs the question: good times for whom? The band hopes to be touring Eastern Canada by late summer. If you're looking for the future of Canadian rock 'n' roll, take a gander at the Greg MacPherson Band.

Touchtone Gurus 
Who: Touchtone Gurus
What: Irresistibly catchy modern pop-rock
Where: Saskatoon, SK
To Contact: Yvonne Valnea, Last Tango Productions, (416) 538-1838, , www.touchtonegurus.com.

Touchtone Gurus is a fast-rising Saskatoon foursome who has a lot to offer. Their second release, Shoegazing, is a wonderfully self-assured collection of melodic modern pop/rock with more hooks than a meat factory. Three songs - "Radio Show", "Take My Hand" and "Trickle Down" - made an impact on the college charts, while the singles "Nicotine" and "Tell Me About Your Day" received some well-deserved mainstream airplay. The band enjoys a wide variety of influences, including The Beatles and Radiohead, with songwriting shared equally among the band members. "We don't really aim for any particular genre of sound," says bassist Steve Bunka. "We'll take the mood of the song and accompany it with whatever music it takes to create the best vibe for that song." The band is currently working on their third album with producer Bryan Potvin of the Northern Pikes. According to Bunka, the new record, which they hope to release in September, will offer a diverse assortment of styles from light pop/rock to more conventional rock and "moody rock", and even some country-influenced tracks. The two-year game plan is to release the album on their own, shop it to radio, get a video out and hit the touring circuit. If the new record continues the fine quality of work found on Shoegazing, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to hear these guys all over the radio in the near future. The Gurus are sure to be a band you'll want to keep in touch with.

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

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