The Great Canadian Mixtape Podcast presents the Northern Lights Series, shorter episodes spotlighting the fleeting sounds of the unsung North! First up: Holly McNarland.

Why is the "bad boy" or "bad girl" so compelling? Was Holly an Alanis Knock-Off? Does Who an Artist Is matter as much as What They Create? Is Holly McNarland more than just "Numb"?

This Episode Includes: Early 90s Pop Music, Placebo References, A Big Lebowski drop, A "probably not Dave Genn" guitar solo, Cracker (the band not the food), and something called Jann Arden Drive.

This Episode Does Not Include: A Gladwellian Close, Fake References, More than One Fubar Quote, Love from British Columbia, and Thrush Hermit Garage Tapes.

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“I Mother Earth: Back When We Used to be Alright” The second episode of The Great Canadian Mixtape is all about the Masters of the Groove Bridge - I Mother Earth! Two Albums with Edwin, Two with Brian Byrne – where do your loyalties lie?

Join me as we uncover the power of the band t-shirt, process the grief of losing our favorite band, make several unnecessary Peter Gabriel references, and revisit one of the most talented and creative bands in Canadian History: I Mother Earth.

Does extensive touring take a toll? Who is the primary creative force in I Mother Earth? What is your take on the Brian Byrne Albums? Edwin’s solo career? Was Edwin and the Pressure an Album or a Band? What was your first band T-shirt?

This episode includes: Metalcore Breakdowns, the host setting himself up to get assassinated by music nerds, an Air Supply reference, the phrase “I’ll still toss the occasional flaming bag of crap”, drops from Fubar, a fake Yeti promo, the word “ennui” (sorry about that), and the Zellers in Collingwood Ontario.

This podcast is a love letter to that moment in Canadian music — a chance to reflect, reconnect, and remember the greatest time in Canadian music.

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🎧 Let's share our experiences together...if we don’t, these memories — and this magical time in Canadian music — might just fade away.

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🎙️ Episode 1 — “Our Lady Peace: Clumsy Memories from Our Generation”

The debut episode of The Great Canadian Mixtape dives into one of the most sound-defining Canadian bands of the 90s — Our Lady Peace. Their first two albums, Naveed and Clumsy, helped shape the soundtrack of a generation of Canadian kids growing up between pay phones, MuchMusic countdowns, and convenience store parking lots.

Join me — just another 90s kid who played in garage bands, went to all-ages shows, and lived off a steady diet of MuchMusic programming — as I conure up memories and invite you to revisit what it felt like to first hear Starseed on the radio, to scream Superman’s Dead at the top of your lungs, and to find identity in those early albums.

• Was the Drummer a Nerd?
• How did Raine learn to sing like that?
• Why does the creepy Dummy from Naveed still haunt our dreams?
• Did OLP genuinely evolve… or did they get “Simple Plan’d”?

It’s a love letter to a magical time in Canadian music — a celebration of shared memories, growing up before the internet, and the bands that defined who we are today.

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