Episodes
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Colour By Numbers
If you think a concept album is ambitious, try a three-EP rock opera a decade in the making! The members of Colour By Numbers are on the show (shockingly, for the first time) talking about the latest instalment in their ‘Thaddeus’ saga, the EP release show Nov. 7 at Sidestage, and much more! Need...
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Scott Price
I know I never shut up about the importance of preserving local music, but I’m not the only one who feels that way! Here's a conversation with CKUW 95.9 FM's Scott Price, all about a pair of archival projects that are bound to get you excited if you’re anything like me. Not only is Stylus…
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Claire Thérèse
Hey look! Claire Thérèse is back on the show! Tune in for a great conversation about Claire Thérèse and the Lockdown's upcoming LP release (Oct. 16! Tonight if you're listening on the day this episode drops) and its origins as a solo record, celebrating all things DIY, being backed up by a group…
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Neil Watson
Here's my conversation with saxophonist Neil Watson, who is directing the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra's upcoming tribute to Dave Brubeck! We talk about what makes Brubeck’s music so enduring, delving into his deep catalogue beyond the hits, translating music written for a quartet into a big-band...
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Cantor Dust
I sat down with Mark Klassen from experimental art-rock quartet Cantor Dust to talk about the upcoming LP (and there is a vinyl release!), ‘The Anatomy of Malevolence’, which drops Oct. 2. Here's our conversation about the record, the expansion of the group from a solo project to a duo and now a...
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David Alpert
I sat down with folk singer-songwriter David Alpert for an episode that you're hearing a few days after the release of his debut EP, 'Late September'. Here's our conversation about the new record, developing the confidence to pursue music professionally, writing deeply personal songs that can...
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Savant Flaneur
Delightfully avant-garde Winnipeg weirdos Savant Flaneur have a new record ('Hocketus') coming out on New York-based free jazz label 577 Records, so we caught up on the latest in their experimental universe. Tune in for a conversation about the ‘antagonistic’, performance-based ‘Hocketus’ album,...
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Sean Burns
Country music purist Sean Burns is set to release his excellent new record, ‘Better Off In Time & Other Songs For The Dance Floor’, on Sept. 18, so he popped back onto the podcast to talk about it! Tune in for our chat about deep-diving into hyper-specific country subgenres, the trajectory of the...
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OP-ED
They were a last-minute addition to Sunday's Propagandhi bill at the Burton Cummings Theatre (see all of you there!), and now they’re a last-minute addition to my podcast schedule: it’s OP-ED! I sat down with Tarek (vocals) and Jay (guitar) to talk about the big gig, and how it mirrors their...
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The Remedies
Eight-piece party funk outfit The Remedies are recognizing 10 years since the band’s first release with a new album celebrating that history. Here's my chat with the group's frontman about the importance of staying friends with your bandmates, Manitoba festivals, blending synth-pop, Latin vibes,...
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Until Defeat
I recently saw Until Defeat at a show at the Handsome Daughter and really enjoyed their set, so we set up this interview, which is now available to insert directly into yer earholes! Tune in for our conversation about defining (sort of, let’s just go with ‘LOUD’) the band’s sound, finding inroads...
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Whealo
This episode features a fun conversation with local Afrofusion artist Whealo! We talk about his new three-song ‘Unlearn’ EP, Winnipeg’s cultural and musical diversity, prioritizing lyrics, and more! Follow the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube! You can also support on Patreon......
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Paul Hodgert
…so by complete fluke, I’ve had two episodes with singer/songwriter/engineer/man-about-town Paul Hodgert that were released on the exact same day in different years. We decided to (deliberately) go for the trifecta this time and completely mess up my release schedule to make it happen. There's a...
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Mr. Loopy Pants
The Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival is well underway, and well-known local purveyor of musical comedy J. Williamez is hitting stages with his Mr. Loopy Pants project! Tune in for a fun conversation about the one-man (plus a possibly alive loop pedal) multimedia show, why he’s so proud of this...
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From the Vault: Union Stockyards (2014)
We interrupt your regularly-scheduled programming with an episode from the vault, featuring the first appearance of (now sadly defunct) Winnipeg punks Union Stockyards on the show, way back on episode #079! For those unfamiliar with the archival episodes -- when I moved all of my episodes from…
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Bankside Music Festival
Letellier, Manitoba’s Bankside Music Festival is a long-running summer event aimed at giving rock/punk/metal bands from the province (and beyond!) an opportunity to play on a festival stage. I sat down with Bankside mastermind Richard Houle to talk about the event’s DIY roots and this year’s...
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Ozconscious
After years of changes, local alt-rock/dream-pop outfit Ozconscious is set to release a new full-length, ‘Nostalgia for the Moment’, at the Pyramid Cabaret on June 20 (that's tomorrow if you're listening the day this episode drops!) I sat down with frontman Tate Hiebert to talk about the record,...
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Masak
Technical difficulties meant this one comes out a few days later than anticipated, but thanks for your patience. Here's a fun conversation with singer-songwriter Masak about her 15-years-in-the-making, genre-diverse album ('Masak's Unassorted Flavors'), getting inspiration from her late friend…
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Screaming at Traffic
Long-running emo punks Screaming at Traffic recently dropped a new EP with the excellent title ‘Songs to Steal Copper Wire To’. I sat down with (co-) frontman Jacques Richer to talk about the record, the band not taking itself too seriously, regrouping after some time off, and a whole lot more!...
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Apollo Suns
This one's jumping the queue because it's time sensitive. It’s the end of an era! Frequent Witchpolice interviewee (this will be his sixth appearance in the past decade) Ed Durocher and his merry psychedelic fusion big band Apollo Suns are calling it quits. Here's our conversation about the…
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Strawberry Punch
Winnipeg’s Strawberry Punch is a self-proclaimed 'all-femme queer indie/pop/twee/punk rock band' who just released a deadly debut record and has all kinds of cool shit on the horizon. Tune in for our chat about the origins of their (don’t call it a) supergroup, bouncing around swapping…
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Crooked Ice (with guest hosts Sean and Todd McGinity)
What the hell is going on here? It’s guest hosts Sean and Todd McGinity (of SeanGeek and Fastfret Podcast) giving me a bit of a break and interviewing two-thirds of alt-rawkers Crooked Ice for Witchpolice Radio! Tune in for their chat about the soon-to-be-released ‘DarkStars’ full-length (which…
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Greg Rekus
The man, the myth, the legend… Greg Rekus is back on the show for his seventh appearance over the years! Tune in for my chat with the hardest-working man in folk-punk about playing a show with his heroes The Bonaduces (May 8, at the West End Cultural Centre, also feat. Mise en Scene), U.S.…
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Serge Paul
In the most Winnipeg series of events ever, I randomly bumped into sax player/singer-songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist Serge Paul downtown recently, which led directly to us doing a podcast interview about his new record, ‘Gut Love’. Tune in for a conversation about saxophone, Franglais,...
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Mise en Scene
Long-running indie rock duo Mise en Scene are back with a new record (and back on the podcast after a few years)! Check out our conversation about ‘Drive-Thru Confessional’, putting out the album *before* the April 18 release show, why they work so well together creatively, defining — or, rather,...
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Poison Suckers
I’ve been doing this podcast for eleventy trillion years and somehow — despite enjoying many of their various projects for the past three decades — I’ve never had either member of Poison Suckers on the show. That changes now! Tune in for a chat about their brand new 7" EP ('Charmer') on…
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Jacob Brodovsky
Singer-songwriter Jacob Brodovsky is set to release ‘Tell the Kids We Tried’, his new LP, later this year. He came back for an interview on the podcast to talk about the record, changing artistic (and life!) priorities, and much more. Need more Jacob in your life? Check out episodes #371 (April...
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Two Crows for Comfort
Dogs and Winnipeg Beach and writing folk songs, oh my! It has somehow been five whole-ass years (!) since the fantastic Two Crows for Comfort were on the podcast, so we caught up about their touring adventures, new (and old) music, and much more. Need more Crows in your life? Check out episodes...
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Chandler Pretty
Trying something new on this one: you're probably used to my show's titles starting with the episode number (this one is #1026), but apparently that hampers a show's ability to be found be potential new listeners on certain platforms, so this time we're testing the guest's name alone. Here's my...
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WR1025: Dog Pops
When Dog Pops were last on the podcast, they were a brand new band. Fast-forward to today, and they have the excellent ‘Good Pudding’ long-player out in the world and are playing their jangly little songs about animals and food all over town. Tune in for my conversation with Top Pop Marshall…
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WR1024: Adele M. Wilding
February is Black History Month, and among the many events happening across Winnipeg is Adele M. Wilding's ‘Steal Away: Songs of Hope and Resilience’, a concert focused around the tradition and history of African-American spirituals. Tune in for my conversation with Adele about honouring her West...
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WR1023: Yaadies
Great conversation on this episode with Neville Hamilton from Steinbach reggae outfit Yaadies! We talk about coming to Canada and bringing Jamaican music to a very unlikely location, getting his kids involved in the family band, spreading Caribbean culture across Manitoba through IRAL Music &…
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WR1022: Len Bowen
Now with repaired audio! Veteran Winnipeg MC Len Bowen has been steadily releasing inspired hip-hop since his early days as a member of local icons Shadez. In our latest (of many over the years) interview, we talk about his new record ('If You Don't See Me, You Saw Me'), representing Winnipeg on…
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WR1021: Solaire
I listen to a pretty wide variety of music, so it’s rare that I get stumped on a genre, but J-Rock was a new one on me! Tune in for my conversation with locals Solaire about anime and video game music, Paramore tribute sets, their upcoming EP release (Feb. 7 at the Handsome Daughter), and much...
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WR1020: Kris Rendina
This episode features an interview with singer-songwriter Kris Rendina, who you may recognize from previous projects like Gold Mountain! We talk about his imminent solo full-length, The Moonflower Express (which will be released Feb. 5 at Sidestage), as well as peaks and valleys in songwriting,...
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WR1019: Favourite local releases of 2025
If you've been listening to this podcast for any length of time, you're probably familiar with my year-end rundowns of my favourite local (and local-adjacent) releases of the year. Usually it's this big, lengthy thing over multiple episodes, but this time I tried to keep it nice and concise. Here...
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WR1018: Uncle Sinner
Banjo-slingin’ death-song enthusiast Uncle Sinner is back with his first album in five years, the excellent ‘Everybody Wants to Know How I Die’. Listen up for a great chat about the record, taking cover photos the old-fashioned way, Manitoba’s influence on musical bleakness (and rebirth), and…
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WR1017: Ben Stopfel
Folk artist Ben Stopfel spent the majority of his musical career here in Winnipeg, before decamping to Nashville a couple of years ago and plying his trade as a songwriter in Music City. He’s back home for a show at Public Domain on Dec. 28 (which means this one is time-sensitive and jumped the...
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WR1016: Fernanda
Just over a year ago, folk singer Fernanda appeared on the podcast for the first time. We caught up to talk about her newly-released concept album, ‘Deer Trails’, the name change from her previous Julie Fern identity, working with field recordings, experimenting with new genres, and much more!…
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WR1015: Kevin MKAI
It's another 'Manitoba-adjacent' episode! Shoegaze-inspired singer-songwriter Kevin MKAI may be based in Toronto these days, but he cut his teeth in Winnipeg’s music scene of the early ‘90s. Here's our conversation about his new music, his early experiences here in his hometown, poetry open-mics,...
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WR1014: The Mouth-Bonus
For various technical reasons, no new interview episode this week... but I'm not gonna leave you hangin'. Instead, here's a bonus episode that was originally released exclusively on the Patreon page back in 2022: it's, essentially, the full discography of my old punk/noise/space music trio The...
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WR1013: Rob Crooks
The new record by rapper/producer/singer/songwriter/Winnipeg expat Rob Crooks is a layered, cinematic meditation on grief. Here's our conversation about the four-song ‘Unhomely’, taking creative liberties with deeply personal stories, sonic experimentation, Winnipeg from an outside perspective…
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WR1012: Local music recommendations
This is a bit of a different episode than you're used to on the podcast. As many of you know, in addition to releasing new interviews every week, I also have a Patreon page. Basically, that exists as a way for people who want to support the show, throw me a buck a month or whatever they want to...
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WR1011: Show Pony
Last time Show Pony was on the podcast, they were juuuust starting out, and in those early days, they were playing alt-country… but times have changed. I sat down with the band’s core members to talk about the shift to high-octane rawk sounds, harnessing their live energy in the studio, their...
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WR1010: Good + Plenty's 'Music Cocoon'
Really interesting conversation on this episode with Good + Plenty Arts Collective's Amber Neufeld and Mckye Hildebrand, all about the upcoming ‘Music Cocoon’ show at the West End Cultural Centre (Nov. 16)! The event, which features performances by local artists (and past Witchpolice guests) Ila...
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WR1009: Chris Micheal
Country singer-songwriter Chris Micheal was on a path to success a few years ago, until the momentum he had built was suddenly derailed and he all but disappeared from the music scene. Tune in to our conversation about the way back from health problems and addiction, and his newfound…
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WR1008: Omens
Gettin' spooky on this one (just in time for Halloween) with Trevor and Mike from Omens! Check out our interview about the (deliberately) slow roll-out to their second album, navigating the world of streaming and weird Google censorship, emerging from the Jet Set Satellite shadow, Halloween…
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WR1007: JayWood
One of the coolest things about doing the show for eleventy trillion years is I get to watch interviewees’ careers grow and develop, and in some cases — like with JayWood — I get to see that hard work pay off with well-deserved critical acclaim and success. JayWood sat down for a fifth…
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WR1006: Doug McArthur
It's a return appearance on the podcast by singer-songwriter Doug McArthur! Tune in for a great conversation about collaborating with other writers, shifting his sound away from the alt-rock thing, unconventional ways to promote his new single, and much more! Note: early on in the episode there…
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WR1005: Car287
Caught up with the fellas in Car287 to talk all about the new record, ‘Through the Lens’, the band’s recent upward trajectory, navigating acoustic versions of their songs, and much more! Note: this was recorded a couple of weeks back, so some of the things they mention have already happened...…
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About this show
Acclaimed Manitoba-centric music interview podcast. Hosted by Winnipeg journalist and massive record nerd Sam Thompson. Music talk radio, broadcasting from 2012 'til forever. DIY or die.
Hosted by
Witchpolice Radio
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