London, Ont., singer/songwriter Aaron Allen received an interesting email yesterday (July 3). It was an audio file containing the final mix of his next single, “Good Tattoo,” due to be released next month. He sent to me for me to listen to. After the success of his last single, “Where Music Comes From,” the new single should take him to the next level in Canadian country music. Without permission from his team, it wouldn’t have been appropriate for me to air it, even if it meant being the first to do so. We settled on him performing the song live on Country 107.3 instead during our interview.

Allen’s career has seen the release of nine records over a span of about 20 years. He and his music have been labelled everything from alt-country, to cowpunk, to roots rock and everything in between. Part of the credit for the new direction of his music lies with members of team, like producer Jeff Dalziel, who was named Producer of the Year at last month’s Country Music Association of Ontario awards, and his co-writer on “Good Tattoo,” Phil Barton, the Nashville-based songwriter who’s scored many hits with many of Canada’s top country stars.

Yesterday, we talked about the new single, his last single and, because they are so obvious, his many tattoos. Listen to the full interview below and keep your ears open for Aaron Allen’s next single next month. Already this year, he was a final nominee for a London Music Award. Starting with “Good Tattoo,” it’ll be interesting to see where and how far his career goes in the upcoming months and even in the next few years.