🎙 Album Review: AV & The Inner City - One of Canada’s Most Soulful, Vital Ensembles

Photo Credit: Lulubee Photography.

If there is one musical collective to have emerged from Canada in recent years that I truly adore, it is AV & The Inner City. From the moment they first appeared, singing together on the front porch of bandleader Ann Vriend’s Edmonton home during the height of the pandemic, they captured a rare combination of soul, skill, and heart.

I love their sound, I love their soul, and I love the way their music feels at once personal and universal, intimate and expansive. Over sixty weekly grassroots singalongs, this all-female vocal ensemble transformed from a local gathering into a national force, blending Soul, Roots, Blues, and non-religious Gospel into performances that are both emotionally charged and profoundly human.

The genesis of AV & The Inner City is inseparable from its community. Emerging from Edmonton’s McCauley neighbourhood, an area often defined by poverty and addiction—the collective became a beacon of connection and hope. Its members, including Laurelle K, Mira Angela, Crystal Eyo, Alenka Lundell, Jenn Dahlen, and AV herself, along with former members Johwanna Alleyne and Debbie Houle, bring together an extraordinary range of backgrounds: Indigenous, Black, Filipino, LGBTQ, immigrant, and working-class voices. This diversity, paired with a shared love of singing, gives the group an authenticity and vibrancy that resonates deeply with audiences. Their harmonies are intricate yet effortless, soaring yet grounded, capable of conveying both the joy of human connection and the weight of real struggles.

Even before the debut EP, the group’s presence was undeniable. Their live performances captivated audiences across Alberta, earning them the Emerging Artist Award at the 2023 Edmonton Folk Music Festival. Media coverage, from CBC Radio and SiriusXM to The Edmonton Journal and Porter Airlines’ Re:Porter Magazine, confirmed what those in the room already knew: AV & The Inner City are extraordinary. Industry veterans have praised their stage presence, with former Nickelodeon promoter Vic Bell declaring, “Soul and gospel singing ruled… This was an act that could have closed the Main Stage any night.”

In previous Sound Cafe features, we highlighted the brilliance of their early singles, praising The Failer and Lion at the Gate for their lyrical depth, inventive arrangements, and soaring harmonies. Those tracks offered an early glimpse into the power and soul of the collective—and now, their self-titled debut EP confirms that promise in full.

The six-track EP, AV & The Inner City, is both a culmination of years of collaboration and a thrilling new beginning. Lead track “Runnin’ Outta Places” offers a clever, acapella-driven critique of displacement, inequality, and capitalism’s relentless pursuit of growth, its playful chants and gritty beats building to a cathartic, lush bridge. Together with The Failer and Lion at the Gate, each song shines individually yet contributes to a cohesive statement of resilience, courage, and communal joy. Whether exploring life’s highs and lows, celebrating music’s transcendent power, or issuing anthems of bravery, the tracks demonstrate vocal mastery, lyrical sophistication, and emotional depth.

What sets AV & The Inner City apart is not just their technical skill or the beauty of their harmonies, it is their heart. In an era where much of the music industry chases trends and speed, this group reminds us that the most vital art emerges from authenticity, connection, and courage. Their music speaks to lived experience, to communities too often overlooked, and to the enduring power of joy and hope. It is music that heals, music that inspires, and music that celebrates the sheer magic of voices joining together in solidarity.

Ann Vriend, whose genius and vision anchor the collective, has built something truly exceptional. AV & The Inner City are more than a band, they are a movement, a statement, and a testament to what can emerge when diverse voices unite with honesty, generosity, and soul.

Their debut EP crystallizes years of relentless work, grassroots connection, and fearless storytelling, producing a sound that is urgent, timeless, and utterly Canadian. With this release, AV & The Inner City announce themselves as one of the most vital new forces in Canadian Roots, Soul, and Blues, a collective I am proud to call a personal favourite, whose music will resonate long after the final note fades.

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About the Writer:

Stevie Connor is a Scottish-born polymath of the music scene, known for his work as a musician, composer, journalist, and radio pioneer.

He is the founder of Blues & Roots Radio and The Sound Cafe Magazine, platforms that have become global hubs for blues, roots, folk, Americana, and world music.

A juror for national music awards including the JUNO Awards, and the Canadian Folk Music Awards, Stevie’s deep passion for music and storytelling continues to connect artists and audiences across cultures and continents.