With the climate crisis reaching a crucial crossroads, Montreal-based folk singer Brian Campbell has penned a passionate call to do whatever one can to save the planet. From devastating fires internationally to Earth's unnerving rise in temperature, Campbell's latest single "Planet on Fire" is a proverbial eye-opening anthem on what needs to be done from big business on down the line. Yet the natural feeling of the terrific single is a bit outside the folk musician's wheelhouse.
"It’s quite clear that 'Planet on Fire,' a blues rock protest song, is an outlier: most of what I do is acoustic folk," Campbell says of the single. "Extreme circumstances bring on extreme measures, one could say. As a protest song, I also admit that the song feels more partisan than I am. Its broad-stroke distinctions of rich and poor, it’s pointing at “the enemy” in their corner offices who 'refuse to see,' may lack nuance, but unfortunately far too many corner office denizens really do live up to the stereotype, and far too many of the rich and powerful really 'don’t give a damn.'"
Campbell says "Planet on Fire" originally started as a simple riff back in 2018, but nothing came to him immediately. At that time, cataclysmic fires in Fort McMurray, Alberta, were fresh memories as fires in Greece and California were out of control.
The following year, fires in Australia and Brazil raged, leaving scorched swaths of land in their wake. News of ice caps melting also made headlines. In short, it was a stark reminder of the climate crisis.
The emergence of Swedish then-teenager Greta Thunberg on the environmental scene struck a chord with the musician, particularly her damning speech at the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit towards world leaders with their heads in the sand. Campbell later attended a Climate Strike march in Montreal, where Thunberg spoke. Inspired by the event, Campbell the next day found the lyrics for “Planet on Fire” pouring out of him. He recorded the song in 2019 at Montreal's Studio Loco and released a video for it.
Fast forward to 2025. Campbell, witnessing the fires that wiped out portions of Los Angeles, felt it was time to release the song on his upcoming album Let's Talk. "Not a day goes by, it seems, when there isn't another alarming headline," Campbell says.
"Planet on Fire," is a stark, sobering account of what has transpired with global warming. Recalling the works of Fred Eaglesmith, and the iconic Bruce Cockburn, Campbell is accompanied by Chard Chénier on harmonica, giving the song a bluesy feel. Campbell's arranger and collaborator Martin Bennett provides some fine lead guitar playing to flesh out the already weighty, beefy single. Bennett, who also engineered "Planet on Fire," plays piano, a sampled bass and percussion, while Campbell sings and plays acoustic and electric guitar.
"Planet on Fire" is from the upcoming studio album Let's Talk, slated for release in late April. Campbell described the album as an effort that "references communication and miscommunication in love, politics, and war." The single and album follow two full-length albums and two EPs Campbell's released over his career.
A published poet with several collections, Campbell's musical journey began in Antigua, Guatemala. Taking a Spanish immersion course there, Campbell learned fingerstyle picking from a fellow student. Influenced by musicians like Dave Van Ronk and John Renbourn as well as Latin American singer-songwriters like Victor Jara and Violeta Parra, Campbell moved to Montreal in 1990 and composed over two dozen original songs in one summer. He released The Imaginary Album in 1996 and The Courtier's Manuscript in 2002, the latter featuring "To My Whimsical Love" which was lauded by the International Unisong Competition.
Campbell has routinely performed at Montreal's Mariposa Café and in several folk venues around Quebec including Acoustic Village and the NDG (Notre-Dame-de-Grâce) and Hudson Porchfests. He has also performed on various campus and community radio programs. Additional EPs include On This Shore and 2024's A Crystal Rim. Meanwhile, Campbell, featured by Tinnitist and Record World International, released his previous full-length album, By The River's Blue, in 2022.
Campbell will celebrate the release of Let's Talk with an album launch party at Montreal's Mariposa Cafe on April 26. But for now, fans will be delighted to hear "Planet on Fire," a song that is incredibly easy on the ears despite its message being hefty and heart-wrenching.
