Podcast
When We Wake with Andrew Shaver
Hosted by Andrew Shaver · EN
In-depth and intimate conversations with some of Canada’s finest songwriters, musicians, and other industry adjacent professionals.
Produced, edited and hosted by Andrew Shaver of Clever Hopes.
The full When We Wake weekly broadcast is syndicated across Canada. Each week, the show offers a thoughtfully curated mix of emerging and essential voices, weaving together the threads between melody and meaning. Alongside standout tracks, When We Wake features in-depth conversations with the artists themselves—uncovering the stories, questions, and creative sparks behind the songs.
25episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
45. When We Wake with Daniel James McFadyen
Nov 300:43:48Tap to summarizeThree time Music Nova Scotia Award winner, Daniel James McFadyen grew up outside of Toronto chasing a ball, not a melody. But somewhere between the rec centre squash courts and the dark and dreary corners of the pubs filled with folk covers, music found him. His new album, Back to the Country, was written in a cabin on the east coast and recorded in a cabin cum recording studio on the west coast. It’s raw, nostalgic, and wide open. Like the places that shaped it. It's When We Wake with Daniel James McFadyen.Landmine Tour@danieljamesmcfadyenWanna get in touch?Send an email to whenwewakeradio@gmail.comOr find me on Instagram@whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaverWhen We Wake with Andrew Shaver is written, hosted, edited, and produced by Andrew Shaver. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.Theme song Got You by Noah Reid
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44. When We Wake with Charlotte Cornfield
Oct 900:47:13Tap to summarizeCharlotte Cornfield is one of those songwriters who can make a small moment feel like a revelation. And speaking of revelations, while I’ve been a fan of Charlotte’s for almost a decade now, going all the way back to her 2106 debut Future Snowbird, in our chat, I learned that Charlotte knew of me years before that even. You can imagine my surprise.I guess, I used to be somebody, you know?Nah.Turns out, Charlotte and I have more than a couple handfuls of mutual friends form our shared time in Montreal, but this was our first real conversation. And it went in many directions. In today’s episode we talk about a magical week in September that Charlotte spent at a songwriter retreat in Cork, as well as the friendships and collaborations that have come out of it; her love of the Toronto music scene and, well, for the city itself; we talk a lot about family and what it means to keep creating while raising one. Charlotte’s daughter, Odette, is now two and a half, and that shift from all-hours songwriting to daycare-scheduled creativity has changed how Charlotte works. In fact, her new album, due in spring of 2026, was written in the 3 months between Odette starting daycare and Charlotte going into the studio (with an as yet unannounced “dream band”) to record live off the floor, with no headphones and no overdubs. We bookend our chat with some live dates she’s playing. Off the top, the Nowadays Festival in Dartmouth NS October 9, and on the tail end, a show she’s playing November 12th at Massey Hall in Toronto as part of an incredible lineup celebrating Neil Young’s 80th.charlottecornfield.comWanna get in touch?Send an email to whenwewakeradio@gmail.comOr find me on Instagram@whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaverWhen We Wake with Andrew Shaver is written, hosted, edited, and produced by Andrew Shaver. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.Theme song Got You by Noah Reid
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43. When We Wake with Jeff Innes & Brandon Scott (of Yukon Blonde)
Oct 200:58:28Tap to summarizeYukon Blonde has been part of Canada’s indie rock landscape for more than a decade. They're JUNO-nominated, they've picked up a SOCAN award, they've had tunes placed in shows like Grey’s Anatomy and The Summer I Turned Pretty, they’ve hit the Top 10 at commercial alt radio, and had #1s on the CBC Music Top 20. Not too shabby.And they don’t just write great songs. As anyone who has seen them live knows, they are electric , even if they wrote most of their new album on acoustics.On today's episode I chat with Yukon Blonde's Jeff Innes and Brandon Scott about the band's new album Friendship and Rock’n’Roll. We get into how they first met; the heavy metal band Jeff stole Brandon away from; their shared love of vintage cameras; their thoughts on AI in the music industry, and why they hope it might push people back toward playing real instruments. I also asked the two of them what they’d bring with them to the future. Jeff’s answer won’t surprise anyone, but Brandon’s even caught his old bud Jeff off guard. And of course, we chat about the songs from the new record, an album that really does live up to its name: friendship and rock’n’roll.@yukonblondeWanna get in touch?Send an email to whenwewakeradio@gmail.comOr find me on Instagram@whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaverWhen We Wake with Andrew Shaver is written, hosted, edited, and produced by Andrew Shaver. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.Theme song Got You by Noah Reid
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42. When We Wake with Jake Nicoll
Sep 1500:41:26Tap to summarizeHe grew up wanting to be an inventor. Turns out he is. Jake Nicoll builds the places and the tools he records with right down to the microphones, compressors, and the bits in between. He moved to Newfoundland with his twin brother and one of his sisters for university and to make music, and he never stopped tinkering. When the pandemic hit, he went to his family farm in Guelph ON for what he thought would be two weeks. It became a year and a half of sustenance farming with Dad.Since early 2024 he’s released two albums with companion EPs — the homespun Lonely Mission and the synth-sparked Saturn Returns — jumping styles without losing the heart. Today we talk about his time on the farm, his studio builds, his proclivity for a good dumpster dive, and, of course, the music... because there’s lots of it. Overachiever? Maybe. Or perhaps, he's simply built for it. Wanna get in touch?Send an email to whenwewakeradio@gmail.comOr find me on Instagram@whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaverWhen We Wake with Andrew Shaver is written, hosted, edited, and produced by Andrew Shaver. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.Theme song Got You by Noah Reid
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41. When We Wake with Ewan Currie (of The Sheepdogs)
Sep 100:38:28Tap to summarizeA sense of home is at the heart of Ewan Currie’s songwriting, and after a lifetime of moving around, he’s landed on the East Coast, kinda like me. But, I’ll put my cards on the table and admit that, ok, sure, folks might be a little more excited by his move than mine. I get it.Ewan Currie is the frontman of one of Canada’s favourite Rock'n'Roll bands, The Sheepdogs, who, of course, were thrust into the spotlight in 2011 after winning Rolling Stone’s "Do You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star?" contest and becoming the first unsigned band to don the magazine's cover. Since then, they have climbed to the top of the Canadian charts and have secured their place as one of this country’s premiere live acts. In fact, Ewan thinks their live show is the best it’s ever been.In our chat today we talk about why Ewan is pretty sure that Rock'n'Roll may have peaked somewhere between 1968 and 1974, why Halifax might just be Canada’s Rock'n'Roll capital, and about how moving around as a kid shaped his perspective of the world. Ewan also shares how how his father influenced his love of music and ultimate his career path. In June, Ewan released Strange Vacation, his second solo album, just in time for his move to Nova Scotia into a house up on a hill a stone's thrown from mine.It's great to have new music from a new neighbour.@ewanjcurrieWanna get in touch?Send an email to whenwewakeradio@gmail.comOr find me on Instagram@whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaverWhen We Wake with Andrew Shaver is written, hosted, edited, and produced by Andrew Shaver. The weekly radio broadcast is syndicated across Canada, from Newfoundland to British Columbia.Theme song Got You by Noah Reid
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When We Wake with Lennie Gallant
Dec 13, 202400:32:32Tap to summarizeOn today’s episode, I chat with the pride of (or, at least, one of the prides of) Prince Edward Island, Lennie Gallant. Lennie Gallant is not only a member of the Order of Canada, but he's also had a song (Peter's Dream) inducted into the Canadian Songwriter’s Hall of Fame. My goodness, he’s almost royalty. Speaking of which, in our chat, we talk about the origin of his last name, which has something to do with his great, great, great, great, (great?) grandfather and a discussion that he had with one of the kings of France named Louis. We also get into Lennie's friendship with the late great Jimmy Buffett, a man he met - where else? - in the Caribbean after having sailed there on a schooner from Nova Scotia, and, on which, he very nearly died. I have nightmares just thinking about it. Lennie also boasts a couple cowrites on Jimmy's final album, Equal Strain On All Parts, released posthumously. Lennie is in the midst of a Christmas Tour through Eastern Canada and, of course, we chat about that as well. lenniegallant.com Wanna get in touch? Email whenwewakeradio@gmail.com Or find me on Instagram @whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaver
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When We Wake with Con O'Brien, of The Irish Descendants
Dec 12, 202400:29:20Tap to summarizeWith a family heritage that goes back to the early 18th century in Witless Bay, Newfoundland, Con O’Brien is one of the province’s great musical treasures. He is the only remaining original member in The Irish Descendants, a band that was at the heart of bringing the traditional music of Newfoundland to the rest of Canada and, indeed, the world. The Irish Descendants are celebrating 35 years of bringing their impeccable musicianship and vocal prowess to the adoring masses. Along the way, they’ve garnered a couple Gold albums, a Juno Award, and handful of East Coast Music Awards. As with many people in Newfoundland, Con’s family business was in the fisheries, and by 10 years of age he was on the payroll. He grew up intending to go to Law School, following in the footsteps of an uncle who was a lawyer for the fishery. Warner Music had other plans for him. I spoke to Con in between show dates on the 15th annual The Irish Descendant Christmas Tour through eastern Canada. theirishdescendants.com Wanna get in touch? Email whenwewakeradio@gmail.com Or find me on Instagram @whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaver
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26. When We Wake with Mike O'Brien, aka Meko Brain
Nov 26, 202400:39:39Tap to summarizeMike O’Brien grew up loving the process of writing a song. Or, as we find out in this chat, what he prefers to call making up a song. He began his career in Toronto at the turn-of-the-century playing with his high schools pals, one of whom was Afie Jurvanen. Mike and Afie would go on to form the band Paso Mino, which became a go-to backing band in the early oughts Toronto indie rock scene, most notably for Jason Collett. As we get into in today’s chat, when Afie left the band to join Leslie Feist, and ultimately go his own way as Bahamas, it left Mike with a little extra time on his hands. He used it wisely and formed, indie rock stalwarts, Zeus with fellow Paso Minite and Barrie ON, ex pat Carlin Nicholson. More recently, over the pandemic, as things slowed down for all of us, Mike turned some of his songwriting attention to his first solo endeavour, under the moniker Meko Brain, the fruits of which released earlier this month as Wonderment. It is a stunning collection of a dozen (mostly) laid back acoustic tunes that I've had in my ears on more than a few crisp autumn walks down to the Dartmouth ferry. Meko Brain Bandcamp@meko.brainWanna get in touch?Email whenwewakeradio@gmail.comOr find me on Instagram @whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaver
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25. When We Wake with James Clayton, aka Clay Pigeon
Nov 14, 202400:39:02Tap to summarizeJames Clayton (aka Clay Pigeon) is a terrific songwriter, living in Montreal these days. He’s originally from Peterborough, Ontario, he went to a jazz school out in Nelson BC, and he cut his teeth at open mic nights in Berlin. Early in the Pandemic, he and his now wife Tosca, decided they wanted to come back to Canada. James had seen a documentary on the Montreal music scene and thought, uh, yeah, that seems like the place to be, let’s go to Montreal. So they did. It didn’t take long for James to fall in with the right crowd. He was approached by legendary Montreal engineer and record producer Howard Billerman of the renowned Hotel 2 Tango studio - previous recording home to the likes of Arcade Fire, Wolf Parade, Sam Roberts Band and, oh, so many more - with an offer to collaborate. James wasn't ready. He said not now, Howard, but hopefully soon. Man, not an easy thing to say. Thankfully, the two did up working together at Hotel and the results are splendid. This past July, James released his debut album as Clay Pigeon, the achingly beautiful, The Aching Taste of Blue. I'd say the wait was worth it. Clay Pigeon @james_clayton Wanna get in touch? whenwewakeradio@gmail.com
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24. When We Wake with Mia Kelly
Oct 29, 202400:37:55Tap to summarizeGatineau, Quebec's Mia Kelly is an exciting recent addition to the Folk and Americana scene in Canada. Two albums in, she’s shared the stage with the likes of Jeremie Albino, Julian Taylor, The Franklin Electric, and, previous When We Wake guest, Aysanabee. She’s also taken home two pieces of hardware at the Canadian Folk Music Awards, and, between you and me, I suspect there’s a few more coming. Her latest release, her second full length album, is entitled To Be Clear. And to be clear, it’s a beautiful collection of songs wise beyond their years. Mia writes with a striking vulnerability and clear perspective, whether she’s telling her own story or those of people she’s encountered along the way. Produced by one of my favourite Canadian songwriters, Jim Bryson, the album’s arrangement is simple and at times sparse, allowing the songwriting and Mia’s powerful voice to shine. And, fair warning, there's some talk in this chat about Mia's smoke detector sitting there without a battery. If you'd like to encourage her to get a nine volt, you can reach out using the links below. I'd encourage you to. xA miakellymusic.com @miakkelly Wanna get in touch with me? whenwewakeradio@gmail.com Or on Instagram @whenwewakeradio & @theandrewshaver
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