Remember stacking and re-stacking colourful blocks into an unmortared castle or journeying down a spiral slide, warmed by the sun during a 15-minute recess? Shaina Hayes latest, Kindergarten Heart, is not so much an ode to the liminal experience of childhood as it is a call-to-action to rekindle the joy and exuberance you once had for the world and its wonders.

Coming of age in the McGill University ghetto, Hayes bloomed into the bustling Montreal indie scene. Singing in cover bands, Hayes tested the water on music that wasn’t her own, eventually finding her way to singing backup for sludgy noise-rockers Zouz, which would become the perfect gateway to almost the exact opposite style of music. Studying agriculture, and spending the pandemic farming, Hayes created a body of musical work that was smaller and more elemental.

Haynes presents with the elegant aural texture that fills the same kind of indie sad-sack sound-space of a Lucy Dacus, Soccer Mommy, or other Montreal emotionites, but does so with a much-needed playful exuberance. With vocals at the centre, the songs are adorned with delicate acoustic guitar, misty keyboards and adventurous ambience. In a time of mournful melodies, it’s refreshing to listen quietly and leave with a smile.

–Liam Prost