Awake & Dreaming

Inevitable, the debut album from Awake & Dreaming, released October 16, 2026. Awake & Dreaming have the sound and ambition of a generational alt-rock band. Blending delicate piano with arena-scale guitars, electronic atmospheres, and art-rock theatrics, they've built a sound that pairs dystopian urgency with blockbuster spectacle. The record has an arc. It opens on I U Me, "flesh and blood and part of the machine," runs the dopamine loop of Rewire, turns to what that loop preys on: grief, desire, rebellion, 2 a.m. self-talk, anxiety. Faceless reveals the true colours. Event Horizon gets the last word: nothing electronic, a foot-pumped reed organ helps to wonder what's all possible. Mixed by Jay Dufour (9x Juno, July Talk, Billy Talent). Mastered by João Carvalho (Rush, The Tragically Hip). York Calling called it "one of 2026's album of the year contenders." Live, they run a synchronized light show they built themselves. They have opened for Blue Rodeo and for Rough Trade at El Mocambo, played the Canadian National Exhibition twice and The Delancey in New York, and headlined a ten-city Ontario and Quebec tour that closed at Toronto's Rivoli. Press in twelve countries. 300,000+ streams. All ten songs written and arranged by Sasha Kristoff and Stefan Schneider. Waterloo, Ontario. No label. The name means being present in the moment while imagining what could be. For Sasha it is also literal: she has Type 2 narcolepsy, and the band carries the name to help raise awareness.