Ben Gunning — No Magic Hand

Out: July 21st, 2023 on Halocline Trance (CS/ DL)
RIYL: Junior Boys, Prefab Sprout, Caribou, Joseph Shabason, Bernice, Caetano Veloso, Visible Cloaks.

BEN GUNNING — BANDCAMP | FACEBOOK
HALOCLINE TRANCE — BANDCAMP | INSTAGRAM

Ben Gunning is one of those musicians whose restless creativity is the source of their forward momentum. Since co-founding fêted indie rock outfit Local Rabbits at age 14, he has released a string wildly varied records, and along the way collaborated with the likes of Robin Dann (of Bernice), Joseph Shabason, guitarist/composer Christine Bougie, Thom Gill (of Bernice, Titillators, Chaka Khan), Marker Starling, Rheostatics, Joel Plaskett, Thrush Hermit and Neko Case. The forthcoming No Magic Hand (out 21 July on Halocline Trance) is his firsttruly solorelease. While his usual cadre of collaborators is typically tasked with bringing his intricate arrangements to life, its more solitary sonics make it his most vibrant and focused collection yet. The gleefully polymorphous production found on No Magic Hand variously employs understated guitar, propulsive beats, fluorescent synths articulating sophisticated harmony, beneath and beside Gunning’s agile falsetto singing yet still manages consummate cohesion.  These new pieces are also  suffused with a newfound inquisitiveness and introspective playfulness that audibly impacts all domains: from the formal, to the textural, the sonic to the textual. Yet any abstraction is mediated by Gunning’s gift for crafting bold, evocative melodies. On the first single, “Power” all of this converges, epitomizing the meticulous-but-curious spirit of the album.

COVERAGE:
List — Tinnitist, Upcoming Releases
List — Tinnitist, New Week in Music (July 17-July 23, 2023)
List — Gay Vegan Vinyl Cassette, GVVC Weekly #243
List — #Brand New, Electro Saturday Weekend #29/2023
News — Tape Fear
News — Joyful Union Cassette Blog
Interview — Jenna Melanson, Five Questions With Ben Gunning, Canadian Beats
Roundup — Frank P. Eckert, Motherboard: August 2023, Groove.de
Review — Chris Ingalls, PopMatters
Review — Ljubinko Zivkovic, Echoes and Dust
Newsletter — Ljubinko’s Newsletter
Playlist — Music OT Future
Chart/ Radio — CJSW Top 30 (September 28, 2023)
Chart/ Radio — CJSW Electronic Music Top 10 (September 28, 2023)
Chart/Radio — CJSW Top 30 (August 31, 2023)
Chart/ Radio — CHRW Top 30 (August 1, 2023)
Chart/ Radio — CHRW Top 30 (July 25, 2023)
Chart/ Radio — CHRW Top 30 (July 18, 2023)
Chart/ Radio — CHRW Top 30 (July 11, 2023)
Chart/ Radio — CHRW Top 30 (July 4, 2023)
Radio — City of Music, KCAW (February 13, 2025)
Radio — Rock N Blues, CFBX (January 25, 2024)
Radio — The X with Xander, CFBX (January 16, 2024)
Radio — Anime-d in Japan Insanity on the Radio, CFBX (January 14, 2024)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (January 15, 2024)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (January 12, 2024)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (January 9, 2024)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (January 5, 2024)
Radio — Top Two Intervals, CJSW (December 24, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 23, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 20, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 17, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 15, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 14, 2023)
Radio — Noise, CJSW (December 14, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 11, 2023)
Radio — The Nocturnable, CJSW (December 9, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 9, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 3, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (December 1, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (November 29, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (November 27, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (November 23, 2023)
Radio — Nightstream, CBC (November 20, 2023)
Radio — Palgary Almanac, CJSW (November 9, 2023)
Radio — Fourier Transform, CJSW (October 30, 2023)
Radio — Palgary Almanac, CJSW (October 12, 2023)
Radio — Palgary Almanac, CJSW (September 28, 2023)
Radio — Fourier Transform, CJSW (September 25, 2023)
Radio — Fourier Transform, CJSW (September 18, 2023)
Radio — Palgary Almanac, CJSW (August 31, 2023)
Radio — Liminal Scores, CJSW (August 23, 2023)
Radio — Good Egg, CJSW (August 22, 2023)
Radio — Ryan Inc, UMFM (August 22, 2023)
Radio — The Brutal and the Beautiful, CJSW (August 21, 2023)
Radio — Trevor Jackson, NTS Radio (August 1, 2023)
Radio — Blank Check, Freeform Portland (July 26, 2023)
Radio — The Night Shift, CJRU (July 24, 2023)
Radio — No Pigeonholes, KOWS (July 13, 2023)
Radio — The Night Shift, CJRU (July 21, 2023)
Radio — Jimmy Tamborello’s Dying Songs, Dublab (June 22, 2023)