New Music Friday – September 18, 2026

Fresh Canadian Releases to Hear This Week

Canadian music is covering plenty of ground this week.

September 18 brings major new releases from internationally recognised Canadian artists alongside albums and EPs from independent musicians deserving a wider audience. Carly Rae Jepsen returns with an ambitious double album, while Jesse Cook explores a spacious new musical direction. Neil Young, Orville Peck and several emerging Canadian artists round out a remarkably diverse Friday.

Here are eight Canadian releases worth hearing this week.

Carly Rae Jepsen – Day and Night

Carly Rae Jepsen goes big with Day and Night, a 24-track double album released today.

Rather than assembling an oversized collection, Jepsen divides the project into two distinct musical worlds. Day leans toward warmer, more organic instrumentation, while Night moves into the polished synth-pop territory that has helped make the British Columbia-born singer-songwriter an international favourite.

Jepsen previewed the project with “On Wires,” setting the stage for one of this week’s most substantial Canadian pop releases.

Maple Music Lounge Take:Day and Night demonstrates just how confidently Jepsen can move between different sides of her songwriting.

Jesse Cook – past the breakwater

Toronto-raised guitarist Jesse Cook returns with past the breakwater, a 10-track album that pushes his signature flamenco and world-music sound further into jazz.

Cook composed, arranged, produced, recorded and mixed the album himself. Much of the work took place at a remote cabin on an island in the Canadian Shield, helping inspire the record’s spacious character. Singles “forever” and “you were looking north” offered early glimpses of its quieter direction.

Maple Music Lounge Take: Canadian landscape, musical experimentation and one of the country’s most distinctive guitarists make this a standout release this week.

Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts – Second Song

Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts continue an extraordinary recording career with Second Song.

The seven-song semi-acoustic collection includes five new compositions and two songs Young originally wrote during the 1960s, creating an unusual bridge between the beginning of his songwriting career and where he stands today.

Rather than simply revisiting the past, Young places those early songs alongside new material as part of the same contemporary record.

Maple Music Lounge Take: Few artists can place newly written material beside songs dating to the 1960s and make the combination feel this natural.

Orville Peck – Mule

Canadian country artist Orville Peck returns with Mule, a new 13-track album.

Peck has spent his career expanding ideas about what contemporary country music can look and sound like. His deep baritone, cinematic presentation and willingness to move between traditional country influences and modern production have helped establish him well beyond Canada’s borders.

Mule offers another opportunity to hear where that evolution takes him.

Maple Music Lounge Take: Peck remains one of Canadian country music’s most immediately recognisable voices, making Mule an essential release to watch.

Miesha & The Spanks – Visions

Calgary duo Miesha & The Spanks bring some welcome garage-rock energy to Friday with Visions.

Led by Miesha Louie alongside drummer Sean Hamilton, the band has built its reputation on fuzzed-out guitars, punk attitude and a live sound designed to be played loudly. The album was produced with JUNO Award-winning producer Hill Kourkoutis, adding another notable Canadian creative voice to the project.

Maple Music Lounge Take:Visions proves Canada’s rock scene remains far more interesting than what listeners encounter through mainstream playlists alone.

Emma Worley – Forever Beginner

Toronto-based singer-songwriter Emma Worley offers a change of pace with her sophomore album, Forever Beginner.

Originally from Guelph, Ontario, Worley works between alternative folk, Americana and contemporary singer-songwriter music. Her intimate approach places the emphasis on storytelling, melody and the uncertainties that come with trying to understand where life is heading.

Maple Music Lounge Take:Forever Beginner is a quieter entry in a release week containing some very big personalities — and that is precisely why it belongs here.

Blonde Diamond – Love Is a Shadow

Vancouver alternative-rock band Blonde Diamond return with the six-track EP Love Is a Shadow.

The project includes a particularly interesting Canadian collaboration: the title track features fellow alternative-rock favourites Dear Rouge. Blonde Diamond blend alternative rock and pop with darker electronic textures, creating an identity that continues to evolve across their releases.

Maple Music Lounge Take: The Dear Rouge collaboration makes this one immediately interesting while highlighting the depth of British Columbia’s alternative scene.

Hansom Ēli – The Hybrid Tapes

Montréal sibling duo Hansom Ēli deliver one of this week’s hardest Canadian releases to categorise with The Hybrid Tapes.

Camille and Alexy Guérin draw from folk, R&B, funk, indie pop and other influences without settling comfortably into a single genre. That willingness to cross musical boundaries makes the project particularly well suited to New Music Friday.

Maple Music Lounge Take: Hansom Ēli’s refusal to fit neatly into one musical category is exactly what makes The Hybrid Tapes worth investigating.