You could say that Kelly McMichael took the long way round to using her own name. Born in Peterborough, Ontario and now based in St. John’s, Newfoundland, she spent years making music under different monikers and inside other people’s bands, touring with artists like Sarah Harmer, Gentleman Reg, The Hidden Cameras and The Burning Hell.

Along the way she made her own music as Rouge and then Renders, before eventually stepping forward using her name with her Polaris Prize shortlisted debut album Waves, and its Music NL award winning (and Polaris Prize longlisted) follow-up After the Sting of It.

In today's episode, we chat about those different musical lives, the process of finding her own voice, the winding path that led her to the front of the stage, and about sharing vocals on one of my new Clever Hopes songs, Long Way Round...which she absolutely, positively, knocks out of the ballpark.

KellyMcMichael.com

Wanna get in touch?

Send an email to ⁠⁠whenwewakeradio@gmail.com⁠⁠

Or find me on Instagram ⁠@theandrewshaver⁠

⁠When We Wake with Andrew Shaver⁠ is written, hosted, edited, and produced by ⁠⁠Andrew Shaver⁠ of ⁠Clever Hopes⁠⁠. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.

Theme song Got You by ⁠Noah Reid⁠

My guest today is one of those musicians other musicians talk about. Christine Bougie is widely considered one of Canada’s finest guitarists. She's a sought-after collaborator who’s spent years helping shape the sound of other artists’ songs on stages and records across the country. We’re talking Bahamas, Sarah Harmer, Jenn Grant, Amy Millan, Matt Anderson…and, trust me, the list goes on.

But she’s also an artist with a singular voice of her own, and her new album, How to Care for Introverts, brings that voice front and centre. The record is built around the expressive sound of solo lap steel guitar and was recorded with Chris Stringer at Union Sound in Toronto. It is beautiful, spacious, atmospheric music.

In our conversation, Christine talks about discovering jazz as a teenager, the encouragement she once received from guitar legend Bill Frisell, about how she continues to try to pay that one forward, and why stepping out front as a solo artist can feel both exciting and a little uncomfortable for someone who’s made a career as a side player.

We also talk about embracing imperfection in the studio and the creative power of making space.

@christinebougie

Wanna get in touch?

Send an email to ⁠⁠whenwewakeradio@gmail.com⁠⁠

Or find me on Instagram

⁠@whenwewakeradio ⁠& ⁠@theandrewshaver⁠

⁠When We Wake with Andrew Shaver⁠ is written, hosted, edited, and produced by ⁠⁠Andrew Shaver⁠ of ⁠Clever Hopes⁠⁠. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.

Theme song Got You by ⁠Noah Reid⁠

My guest today is one of Nova Scotia’s finest songwriters, and one-time touring bass player for Stompin Tom Connors, Pictou County’s Dave Gunning.

His new album Field Notes wasn’t recorded in a traditional studio at all. It was captured outdoors in Australia, under a gumtree, with one microphone on Dave and two more pointed at the birds (kookaburras?). No isolation booths. No endless second-guessing. Just voice, guitar, and whatever the day decided to offer.

On one track, Angels' Share, a bird chirps perfectly in key during the instrumental and stops as Dave starts to sing again. The kind of magic you can't recreate in a studio.

We talk about the decision to record this way and the leap of faith he took by travelling to the other side of the world to do so with producer Mark Lang. We talk about co-writing Vincent Coleman with his dear friend, the late Bruce Guthro. And we get into the time Stompin’ Tom Connors hired him after what might be the most unconventional audition in Canadian music history.

Wanna get in touch?

Send an email to ⁠⁠whenwewakeradio@gmail.com⁠⁠

Or find me on Instagram

⁠@whenwewakeradio ⁠& ⁠@theandrewshaver⁠

⁠When We Wake with Andrew Shaver⁠ is written, hosted, edited, and produced by ⁠⁠Andrew Shaver⁠ of ⁠Clever Hopes⁠⁠. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.

Theme song Got You by ⁠Noah Reid⁠