Sleepy Driver

The formation of this Fredericton band was purely accidental, according to singer-songwriter Peter Hicks, who found himself with a number of songs he’d written with recurring themes in the deeply personal lyrics of hard lessons, life and death, love and leaving, murder and betrayal that didn’t exactly fit his other musical projects. To showcase this different musical direction, Hicks formed Sleepy Driver with Barry Hughes, John Heinstein, Mike Hatheway, and Ethan Young-Lai, whose collective sound proved to serve as the perfect vehicle for the music. With the recent release of their debut album, Steady Now, Sleepy Driver has created an alternative roots rock that is dark yet optimistic, gritty and honest with a healthy respect for tradition, full of dynamics, subtlety and noise.

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The song - Where You Are (runs 2:55 | Flash)

Weak Size Fish

Formed in 2005 as an acoustic trio, Fredericton’s Weak Size Fish has since developed into a six-piece group that is comprised of Nick Mazerolle, Matthew Bernard, Mitchell Bernard, Steve MacMillan, Andrew Thomson, and Greg Profit. Fusing rock and reggae, they create a high energy, body moving sound that keeps listeners wanting more. Their powerful stage presence has continuously helped to expand their fan base across a variety of provinces and cities. Now, on the heels of the release of their first studio album, Off We Go, Weak Size Fish is ready to keep the momentum going and take it to the next level.

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The song - Smoke Stax (runs 1:32 | Flash)

Babette Hayward

Relatively new to the East Coast music scene, 19-year-old Babette Hayward is already making her mark with her delicate folk style. Playing a slew of festivals and shows this year, Babette has been featured as both a solo artist - with nothing but her guitar, glockenspiel and sweet singing voice - and in collaboration with several other East Coast artists, where this multi-talented musician sings back up, plays flute and a variety of percussion instruments. Although she only began writing music in the winter of 2008, this ambitious young artist has already recorded her first original EP, which will be released this fall.

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The song - untitled (runs 9:50 | Flash)

Jens Jeppesen

Jens Jeppesen is a man with a vision, having worked on an ambitious trilogy of “bluegrass hybrid” albums for nearly three years. With the third and final album, Time Alone, currently being recorded, his vision - to show the stylistic progression of an artist over time - is finally about to be realized. A unique storyteller with smooth vocals and lightening-quick guitar, he aspires to refine the music that he loves in his recordings without losing the edge, the energy, the intensity or the excitement that he captivates audiences with on stage. With his albums already being sold nationally, Jens goal is to have a national stage to share his music live as well.

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The song - untitled (runs 5:15 | Flash)

Becka deHaan & the Love Me Three Times Band

Accomplished pianist, singer and songwriter Becka deHaan has been writing and performing music for over a decade and recently formed this new musical project with a compliment of other locally-known artists, including veteran Fredericton singer/songwriter Patrick Flanagan, singer/pianist Agnes Flanagan, fiddler Sophie Flanagan and percussionist Matt Fitzgerald (also of the popular reggae ensemble, Dub Antenna). Becka is currently working on her debut album The Dawn of Midnight, which is slated for release later this year.

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The song - untitled (runs 4:28 | Flash)