The self-titled album from Toronto based artist Skye Wallace claims the sloppy grunge reminiscent of Courtney Love and her posse of furious friends, yet pauses on the precipice. The album flips between wildly energetic to greasy and moody and is nevertheless slow, polished and rhythmic; elements that betray the singer’s classic vocal training and background in folk.  

While a gritty departure from her dark-folk history, Wallace’s album nevertheless remains inspired by the Canadian landscape and experience. Her split residence between Toronto and Vancouver, combined with a vagabond existence that dragged her across Newfoundland and Yukon, informs an album that plays out like a Canadian fantasy tale.  

“Coal in Your Window,” the album’s first single, is an old-school story of forbidden romance about a boy and a girl who secretly hook up in the boiler room. Yet, this ain’t your basic barn-yard, rolling-in-the-hay romp. The lyrics might be folk, but the guitar solos are straight out of an 80s superhero knock out scene and the harmonics deliver a raw and gritty punch.

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