Daniel Lanois and Aaron Funk of Venetian Snares are a dream team with a shared “appetite for the unknown.” With Lanois on pedal steal and Funk on the drum machines, the two illustrate different corners of the musical landscape. What started as mutual respect between the two Canadian artists led to many years of creative germination, resulting in an eight-track full-length self titled exploration released May 4th of this year. They bring their “melange of gospel and electronica” to the House Of Strombo to play for a small audience and talk to George about their friendship, their creative process and inspirations, and that’s not all. They only made the power go out twice!

Keith Urban, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer, is unstoppable. With his ninth studio record, Graffiti U, Urban continues to follow his curiosity. He meets with George at a Live Nation session celebrating Graffiti U to discuss where the passion behind the songs come from, the many collaborators featured on the album, and where his head’s at.

Milk & Bone is made up of two best pals from Montreal, Laurence Lafond-Beaulne and Camille Poliquin. After taking Jazz in school, they decided to take a different path together and create their own music, which can be described as electro-pop. Their melodies are both dreamy and harrowing and are backed up by electronic textures and layered synths. Their mesmerizing melodies explore the darker aspects of love, friendship, and lust. Their debut album “Little Mourning” had been a major success. They stop by the House Of Strombo in midst of a tour to share their beautiful music.

We’ll deliver 3-hours of uninterrupted music for music lovers by music lovers with exclusive song premieres from Megan Nash and Ralph.

Paul Shaffer is perhaps best known as Letterman’s right-hand musical force, but it doesn’t end there – he dedicates his time to countless charities, wrote “It’s Raining Men”, turned down the offer to be George Constanza on Seinfeld, and is the man responsible for the Blues Brothers band. The list goes on. Shaffer visits the House Of Strombo to sit at the piano and chat with George. They dig into his musical upbringing, spirituality, finding “soul” for Ray Charles, Gilda Radner, his relationship with Dan Aykroyd, recruiting the Blues Brothers players, being temporarily dismembered from the Blues Brothers by John Belushi and it doesn’t end there.

Sunflower Bean brand their music as “rock music for the digital age” and they’ve earned it through playing more shows in New York City than anyone else, this past year. With their sophomore release, Twentytwo in Blue, they embrace agism on their sleeves, which they explore in conversation with George, alongside a few choice cuts from the record, endeavours into the DIY spirit of political integration and if that weren’t enough, they’ll unleash their cover of The Runaways.

We’ll deliver 3-hours of uninterrupted music for music lovers by music lovers, including premieres of new music from For Esmé and Jenesia.

Alice In Chains are on of the big four kings of Seattle. They’ve returned this week with trumpets blaring to reveal that their first album in five years will drop later this year. As one of the most commercially successful crew of the nineties, there’s stories to explore from having to request their childhood idol Eddie Van Halen to leave their dressing room to embracing the past. In an exclusive conversation, all four members join George in the House Of Strombo.

George Thorogood is the Satan of Slide and after 40-years with his faithful Destroyers, he has chosen to release his first solo album. With an acoustic guitar on his knee, he delivers his biggest songs and revels in personal stories of blues and baseball lore with our own George.

We’ll deliver 3-hours of uninterrupted music for music lovers by music lovers, including premieres of new music from Ben Caplan, Dana Sipos, Jules, MEGATIVE and Michael Rault,

On this week, a long time friend of the show Bob Mackowycz Jr. visits the House. He and George shared a gospel-inspired three hours, exploring some sounds from Whitney Houston, Janis Joplin, Nick Cave and much more. Bob reveals some of his favorite working musicians to date, including St. Vincent.

In this week’s episode, we have nothing but some of the newest earworms and some of the classics that will undoubtedly bring back some memories.

“We are looking for something that allows us to ascend. To become lighter than our physical presence. To ascend from the emotion of every day. To ascend from what we understand. To ascend and know why we are ascending. To not know why we want to ascend. To be always ascending.” Franz Ferdinand found rebirth with their latest collection, the self-described philosophical and visceral Always Ascending. In the House Of Strombo’s kitchen party with the wildly wordy and witty Scottish men, they come armed with new cuts, iconic riffs and an exclusive rendition of an anthem from Drake. Through it all, they chat with George about early gigs, challenges within accepting an undeniable legacy, an appetite to create and the spirit of a good song.

We’ll deliver 3-hours of uninterrupted music for music lovers by music lovers, including premieres of new music from Cowboy Junkies, Espanola, Jaunt, Jonas Bonnetta (of Evening Hymns) and Smaller Hearts.

Fred Penner has been dubbed the King of Positivity, known for his work crafting minds through his long-running television hub Fred Penner’s Place. Two decades since he retired from the electronic babysitter – he’s earned the Order Of Canada and collaborated with artists that he raised on his latest album, including Alex Cuba, Bahamas, Basia Bulat, Ron Sexsmith and Terra Lightfoot. When he visited the House Of Strombo to join the epic Barenaked Ladies’ session, he slung his guitar upstairs to revel in the incredible history of his career from the origins of his show to attending school with Neil Young, the transformative family process through divorce and he delivers a Doc Watson cover.

“The most important thing to me in any kind of music is surprise.” Sting + Shaggy sat down with George at New York’s Reservoir Studios, the headquarters of their collaborative project, 44/876. In conversation, the two legends unravel the story behind the surprise, their first meeting, the modern definition of reggae, the essence of a good song, how age changes the approach, the value of music as a societal influence in political times, their personal experience as immigrants to America, the eternal influence of Bob Marley, how to plant the seeds of a revolution, artists controlling the “gateway to cool”, insecurities in their songwriting, and their mutual appreciation of Kendrick Lamar.

We celebrate the life and music of Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia to remember the day that his final ashes were scattered at the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco. Through some of the most treasured covers of his expansive
catalogue; Lucinda Williams to Cracker, Elvis Costello to Patti Smith – it’s a long strange trip of musical bliss.

We’ll deliver 3-hours of uninterrupted music for music lovers by music lovers, including premieres of new music from Beatrice Deer, Bossie and iLLvibe.

Al Jourgensen once said, “I will stop making music. You just make it a nice little utopian world. All right? Then I’ll shut the fuck up.” As the long-serving frontman of the industrial monsters Ministry, Uncle Al’s opinions have pulled punches on politics and conspiracies and beyond. His latest album AmiKKKant is a direct response to the disrespect of women in our society, the waning respect for the U.S. Constitution, the challenges of moral and ethic responsibility and “the man in the White House.” In conversation with George from Topanga, Al dissects the return to Ministry, the #MeToo movement, holding the listener accountable, how he harnesses his anger, collaborating with members of NWA, learning to have fun with music, modern counter-culture from Parkland, the rebirth through personal sobriety and beyond.

Documentary filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin has created fifty films in her fifty year career, revolving around the Indigenous experience in Canada. The prestigious voice joined George for a conversation during the Toronto International Film Festival to celebrate her latest film, Our People Will Be Healed, songs that kept her going throughout her career, her own musical career and the intention of filmmaking: “For our people to have a voice.”

Spike Slawson is known for his spectacular work as the manic frontman of Me First And The Gimme Gimmes, but he visits the House Of Strombo, armed with a ukulele to deliver some wonderful jams from his latest project: Uke-Hunt to cover Nancy Sinatra and Skeeter Davis.

Next in our series of celebrating icons while they’re with us, we turn our attention toward the great Japanese mind, Haruomi Hosono. His work shaped many through film soundtracks, ambient albums, production and pioneering efforts on the synth. We dig through his archives and welcome shepherds of the next generation, Mappe Of and Twist, to perform their thoughtful versions of his biggest songs.

We celebrate the life and music of Kurt Cobain to commemorate the day that he was found at home, outside of Seattle. We’ll revisit the sounds of his mind, female artists that he wore on his sleeve that influenced his work covering the work that influenced them – The Slits doing Marvin Gaye, The Breeders taking on The Beatles and The Raincoats’ rendition of The Kinks.

We’ll deliver 3-hours of uninterrupted music for music lovers by music lovers, including premieres of new music from Donovan Woods, Long Branch and Young Galaxy.

It’s been a decade since Brian Fallon led The Gaslight Anthem with their genre-influencing record, The ’59 Sound. He has since forged his own trail with a solo career and his latest project SLEEPWALKERS is a return to the studio with producer Ted Hutt, the man behind the boards of that aforementioned seminal record. It’s been a minute since the New Jersey bread tunesmith and George have sat down together, so there’s more than a lot to talk about as Fallon visits with his guitar slung.

John Krasinski has earned the three-peat by writing, directing and staring in the dramatic-thriller, A Quiet Place. In an in-depth conversation, Krasinski goes deep on directing his wife Emily Blunt in the film, designing monsters, his love for Nick Drake, accepting fear in fatherhood, tracing his family history alongside his own father in Poland, his personal exploration spirituality, the kingdom of Bhutan and how he embraces immortal popularity with his performance as Jim Halpert on Netflix’s darling, The Office.

The Godfather of Canadian hip-hop returns to the House Of Strombo. Maestro Fresh Wes brings his signature bravado to commemorate his fiftieth birthday through a career-spanning conversation with George, looking ahead through the rear-view mirror. From the moment that “Let Your Backbone Slide” defined a culture in our country to his charitable work alongside War Child, there’s no denying that Maestro’s impact is everlasting.

We celebrate the life and music of Marvin Gaye, who was tragically killed by his father on this weekend in 1984. By spinning his songs of love, hope, redemption and joy, we’ll dance the pain away together to the spirit of the Prince of Motown.

We’ll deliver 3-hours of uninterrupted music for music lovers by music lovers, including premieres of new music from Harmonauts, Reuben And The Dark and Wild Child.

With mammoth hits and melodies that put you in a stranglehold, Barenaked Ladies are the Canadian institution that are truly the first indie success story in this country. Since that famous “Yellow Tape”, they’ve sold over 15-million albums worldwide, wrote the theme song for the biggest American comedy show, continue to give back with initiatives such as Plus1, MusiCounts and they continue that legacy with the recent release of their fifteenth album, “Fake Nudes.” In an incredibly intimate session, the BNL jam their biggest songs to an audience of fans and Canadian musicians from throughout their career and reflected on their 30-years with George. They’re joined by friends Fred Penner, Maestro Fresh Wes and Sloan’s Chris Murphy on a few of the classics.

Denise Donlon, this year’s recipient of the Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award, joins George for a one-on-one exploration. She is only the second woman to earn the award, following radio trailblazer Rosalie Tremblay in 1984. Donlon and George discuss the ongoing gender-parity movement, the current state of the Canadian music scene and her badass career as one of the most fascinating people in the industry, from hosting a campus radio station, tour-managing Headpins on the road with Whitesnake to her innovative contributions as VP/GM at MuchMusic, becoming the first female president at Sony Music Canada, her time as the executive-director and general manager of CBC English Radio and her ongoing work alongside initiatives, which include War Child Canada and Swim Drink Fish Canada.

In an incredibly rare performance session, Do Make Say Think celebrate their JUNO-nominated album, “Stubborn Persistent Illusions.” The post-rock collective formed twenty years ago in Toronto and have consistently approached their music with a fiercely independent self-production with the core remaining: Ohad Benchetrit, David Mitchell, James Payment, Justin Small and Charles Spearin. We welcome the songs of their first album in eight years, their zen approach and they serve up an unexpected cover of an instrumental classic.

We’ll revisit some recent House Of Strombo performances and conversations with this year’s JUNO nominees including The Beaches, Clairmont The Second, Iskwe, Jessie Reyez, Kid Koala, Land Of Talk, Leif Vollebekk, The Weather Station and WEAVES.

Some JUNO nominated friends of the show call-in to request songs from fellow-JUNO nominees, such as A Tribe Called Red, Anciients, Battle Of Santiago, Blue Hawaii, Broken Social Scene’s Brendan Canning, DJ Shub, The Jerry Cans, Lou Phelps, METZ, Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger, Rebecca Kohler and Rose Cousins.