Don Harrison has spent decades burning his fingerprints into the fretboards of Canada’s alt-rock underbelly—first for Vancouver’s beloved and bombastic Sons of Freedom, then with Skinny Puppy side project HILT, Black Eye Buddha, and a string of collaborators from Pure to Coal to Paul Hyde. But with his first full-length album Whirligig, Harrison’s not just playing lead guitar—he’s leading the whole dang thing and flying solo under the name Harrison Inc.

Recorded in Powell River, BC, at his own Munsonville Music Studio, Whirligig is what happens when having space to spread out means finding your spark. “I moved from Vancouver, had no band around, and a pile of songs I couldn’t wait to share,” Harrison shrugs. After trying to get the songs off the ground with other vocalists, he decided to pick up the vocals himself. “It was daunting to step forward as the singer, but then it became freeing.”

Musically, Whirligig leans into what made early-90s alt-rock great—the buzzing collision of guitars and synths, hooky beats, crunchy riffs and locomotive grooves. In other words, the music doesn’t pick a lane. Harrison describes it neatly: “I used to be seen as a heavy guitarist, but there’s a lighter side here—without getting sugary.”

Drawing vibes from a lineage that connects the dots between Roxy Music, T. Rex, Robert Fripp, echoes of Jesus Jones and even a few slower tracks that would sound great in an indie film, Whirligig is the kind of album Harrison says are for people who “aren’t too serious about rock music and like to listen loud, without pretension.” 

Mixed and co-produced by long time collaborator and friend, Ewan Deane (Hear No Evil Studio), who played drums, percussion on most songs.  Tyler Berrie mixed and co-produced two songs.  With Leigh Grant (Pure) on drums and Combine the Victorious’ Isabelle Dunlop on the odd harmony, the record feels both like Harrison saying hello again to old friends and fully introducing himself to new ears.

With standouts like the pure rock “Sunshine” and the punky “Blue Sky,” Harrison’s not chasing awards or algorithmic love—this one’s personal. “Success comes from the doing,” he says. “It’s a record that means a lot, my take on the human condition. I’m older now, naturally evolving—maybe a bit less bombastic, but always wanting people to be part of the song.”

Which is exactly why this project is called Harrison Inc., because even when it’s personal, the songs are built for others to join in.