SONG PREMIERE: Can’t Not – Mitten Claps

It’s the tale as old as time: the ongoing battle between balancing life and the commitments of being a musician. Indie, alt-rock duo, Mitten Claps know this challenge all too well. Having played together over the last decade, they have undoubtedly experienced the various shifts that life can bring. From traveling and having kids to landing new job opportunities, many of these changes are a highlight in their day-to-day lives but a hit to the timelines of their creative projects.  

After numerous years of the often disheartening starting-and-stopping of the writing and recording process, the duo is set to release their new album, Can’t Not, on October 5th, 2018.  

An accumulation of their shift to a heavier alt-rock sound, their dedication to the band, and the opportunity to explore their place in music, the release is a meaningful milestone according to vocalist/guitarist, Jonathan Hildebrand. “When I started the writing process it allowed for quite a bit of retrospective thinking: thinking about the band, what it means to us and what it means to be putting out an album at this point in the band’s life.”

The album as a whole as well as its title track delves deeper into that introspective realization and is a nod to the undeniable pull to continue to write and create despite the many roadblocks. “[It] refers to music always having been sort of a side project, and working through what that means for us,” Hildebrand says. “We’ve come to a realization that even though it’s one of the many things we’re doing in our day-to-day lives, it’s something that will always stay. It’s something we always will still have to do.”

Listen to their new single, “Can’t Not” above. Grab a copy of Can’t Not on October 5th, 2018 through Bandcamp. Catch their album release show in Winnipeg on October 13th, 2018 at Forth.