‘Ordinary Heroes’ is better than your ordinary mainstream jazz because Peter Hum composes, arranges and plays with the finesse and conviction he brings to his political activism.

Is Annihilator’s ‘Ballistic, Sadistic’ a little one-note? Sure. But it’s a very good note.

‘Not Fragile’ hurtled Bachman-Turner Overdrive to stardom 45 years ago this month with an old-fashioned recipe of hard rock rooted in the blues.

Released five years ago, David Ian’s ‘Valentine’s Day’ deftly explored the contours of romantic moods – from the lusty to the lovely.

Projekt Gemineye returns with six daring songs that recall the heady days when bands like Rush and Yes ruled the musical landscape.

With “50 from 50, Canadiana 1967-2017,” JC Mosquito collects 50 songs released by Canadian artists over the last 50 years.

Proving again that contemporary jazz doesn’t necessarily equate to smooth jazz, Brad Cheeseman Group’s ‘The Tide Turns’ is another solid set of tracks from Cheeseman where real work is put in from conception to execution.

When great musicians from different bands and projects get together for the express purpose of making music without the restrictions they usually face elsewhere, it should bring out the best in all of them. That’s just what happened with the guys in Modus Factor on their inaugural effort ‘The Picasso Zone.’

In retrospect, I’m kind of sorry I just couldn’t get into Rush’s ‘2112’ when it first came out.

Jensen and Olin draw from a deep well of experience and the broad diversity of music styles to make a little magic with a big band.