We were overwhelmed with the amazing response we received to the announcement of our new Edmonton festival, Interstellar Rodeo. Thank you all so much for your emails, posts, tweets, and phone calls.

Songwriters might find their idols in Tom Waits or Neil Young or Leonard Cohen or Randy Newman. Guitarists might love Stevie Ray Vaughan or Jimi Hendrix or Mark Knopfler. If us music industry peeps had a hero, particularly us Canadian music industry folks, then Bernie Finkelstein is one of our A-listers.

We love festivals so much, we decided to throw one of our own! On a grassy slope under the prairie stars, icons of modern music history will take the stage for the first ever Interstellar Rodeo, a celebration of music, food and wine, making its debut in Edmonton’s Heritage Amphitheatre in Hawrelak Park, July 27-29, 2012.

Along with our pals at Starfish Entertainment, we are super stoked to be presenting an Outlaws & Gunslingers event at Junofest.

Luke Doucet is an Champion for the Coalition for Music Education. Luke’s song,Tomorrow is Coming, was specially commissioned to be this year’s Music Monday anthem by the Coalition and the CBC.

The smoldering duo of Melissa McClelland and Luke Doucet, Whitehorse, has been burning up the highways, putting fire in the hearts of everyone who sees them play, racking up radio spins and youtube views, and selling out shows right/left/centre.

We are very pleased to be presenting the Sleepwalk Guitar Festival SXSW Jam in Austin! We are excited to welcome some of Austin’s hottest players, including Johnny Moeller, Cindy Cashdollar, Phil Hurley, Bill Kirchen, and Brad Rice.

Jenn is confirmed for a CMW appearance at Toronto’s Mod Club on Thursday, March 22 with Young Rival and Mise En Scene (9pm). The show will be full band and will include new material from an album scheduled for release in Summer 2012.

There’s no better party in Canada than Junoweek, so we’re sharpening our partying skills in preparation for all the fantastic times ahead in Ottawa this year. We’ve even built a replica Gatineau River in the alley behind our office. We are super stoked about our three Juno Award nominations this year.

For the good people of Ottawa we also have a killer show in store for you. We’re teaming up with our pals at Starfish Entertainment to present the Outlaws & Gunslingers show at Junofest.

In other CMW news, the Deep Dark Woods would love your votes in support of their nomination of Best Roots Album.

Trampled By Turtles has already performed on NPR’s Prairie Home Companion in anticipation of the release of Stars and Satellites, coming out April 10, 2012 on yours truly, Six Shooter Records here in Canada. They also have a jam-packed SXSW schedule, so check them out if you’re in Austin: