Five Years and Three Cities: VICTIME Unveils New Album En Conversation Avec (Mothland)

View fullsize

VICTIME by Rose Cormier, from left to right: Samuel Gougoux, Laurence Gauthier-Brown and Simone Provencher

Crumple it up. Unfold it. Walk away. Come back together and start again (and again). This was noise rock trio VICTIME’s unexpected five year-plan to create their second long-player En conversation avec, unveiled today via Montreal label Mothland.  

En conversation avec album artwork by Cléo Sjölander

Deconstructing a guitar-bass-drums mold, while still embracing their unbridled exploratory approach, VICTIME have returned with a genreless sophomore manifesto that they credit as their best work to date. Hurtling at 100kph, En conversation avec is a corrosive, meter-busting rendez-vous of DIY breadboard overdubs, pixelated synth-scapes and a complete disregard for conventional musical permissibility. 

Devised across three cities (Gatineau, Montreal and Quebec City) between bandmates Laurence Gauthier-Brown (Ponctuation, Pure Carrière), Simone Provencher (Album) and Samuel Gougoux (Corridor, Kee Avil) through virtual demo-ing with high-stakes jams in-between pandemic lockdowns, En conversation avec is the result of the VICTIME’s unanimous urge to overhaul their sound. 

While the band is adverse to talking about the COVID-19 pandemic (with good reason), they agree that making a record long-distance was a cornerstone to the evolution of their creative process.  

“Without some delineation of guitar-drum-bass, it truly isn’t a VICTIME record,” says guitarist  Provencher. “The three of us worked on every part, which defined the album more than anything. The studio-based approach allowed us to rediscover the joy [in playing] through recording riffs, vocals, rhythms and loops directly on our computers and then sharing them with each other for processing or overdubbing,” she adds. 

For vocalist-bassist Gauthier-Brown, the digital back and forth allowed her to tackle difficult and uncharted subject matter through her lyrics differently than before. 

“Over the many years with the band, living through both the #MeToo movement and the pandemic, I’ve learned how to use my voice and take my place. The album’s first single [M.A.] allowed me to grieve and process a difficult experience. At first I couldn’t sing it without crying. But at the same time, after 7 years in a relationship, I also wrote my first ever love song with this record. It felt like the first time I could really do it,” she explains. 

The band attributes lessons learned from exploring expressive mediums outside of music to the spirit of En conversation avec. 

“We weren't necessarily tired, but we were excited about new things that we were learning while working on separate projects,” shares Gauthier-Brown. “We were all playing music with other people, scoring films, theatre and dance pieces as well, and that brought out different elements of our [musical abilities] that we were interested in incorporating into Vicitme,” she adds. “I had worked on a theatre show for two years that never happened because of the pandemic. Having to really sing on my own [while practicing] and not just do rhythm stuff helped me go deeper into myself and find my voice.” 

“I remember a moment, way before we even started the record, where Laurence walked into the jam space and said she didn’t want to be in a rock band anymore,” recalls Provencher. “I cried,” adds Gauthier-Brown, as the band laughs in harmony. 

“We each wanted to do something different with our own instrument and influence each other’s output,” explains Gougoux. “While using loops isn’t exactly inventing anything new, it brought a different element to thinking about the songs’ rhythmic elements and changed my [creative] vision over time,” he adds. 

Since forming in the late 2010s, VICTIME’s trust in each other as friends and collaborators is a testament to the band’s progression in tandem with the members’ individual growth.

“We’ve been able to find a balance in having fun together and being serious,” says Gougoux. “We started this band when we were still teenagers in our heads, but now we all have full-time jobs and are thinking about, you know, having a house and a family,” says Gauthier-Brown, the band all laughing together.

That being said, VICTIME are just as weird, and just as millennial, as they’ve always been. Along with Kim Gordon, eye surgeries and the sadness of roadkill, En conversation avec cites Twilight's Breaking Dawn and the documentary Sisters With Transistors among a myriad of intriguingly cryptic references.

While VICTIME is currently challenged by the ambitious translation of their “studio-heavy” songs to live context, they are collectively eager to see what the future holds for En conversation avec. 

“We’ve spent time in different scenes. For me, more the art scene than the music scene. And we’ve changed labels. I have no idea what kind of reception we’re going to get, because we’re starting over again, in a way… But we’re going to keep the momentum going and hopefully not take five more years to write another record,” giggles Provencher. 

“Even though I’ve been touring a lot with other projects, I know that the music communities we’ve been in will be receptive and supportive. I think we’re in a place now where we’re just excited to get invited to venues and festivals again,” says Gougoux. 

Don’t miss VICTIME’s upcoming shows in Montreal and Ottawa!

View fullsize

Double Album Launch Party

with Yoo Doo Right with We Owe ft. Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) 

December 6th, 2024 at Théâtre Plaza (Montreal) 

Tickets 

Debaser’s Pique Festival 

December 14th, 2024 at Arts Court (Ottawa) 

Tickets 

---

EN CONVERSATION AVEC

Out October 25th, 2024 via Mothland

1. Pleine conscience
2. Un beau spectacle
3. M.A.
4. Ces ruines
5. Collage
6. Résonne encore
7. Faire la matière
8. Régicide
9. Figurine
10. En conversation avec

---

VICTIME

Instagram | Bandcamp | Spotify

---

Related Articles

A Lost Season, A Magical Year: Trevor Sloan Releases "A Room by the Green Sea"

Trevor Sloan

The music of Trevor Sloan is nothing short of purifying. The multidisciplinary Toronto-based artist excels at penning vivid interpretations of nature, love, loss, and renewal. His folk-pop instrumentation and gentle descriptiveness—reminiscent of artists like Sufjan Stevens—swell with warmth, lifting you to a plane of uncanny familiarity.

On Sloan’s latest self-released album, A Room by the Green Sea, the simple beauty of summer vacations gone by unlocks so much more. Sloan teleports between country fairs and shifting waters, backed by layered acoustics, subtle drum patterns, and field recordings. From the precise memories of “Praying Mantis” to the sober admissions of “Blade on My Face,” A Room by the Green Sea is the embodiment of what you’d hope to hear by picking up a conch shell. It’s the creamy cable-knit jumper that you slip into as the sun kisses you goodbye.

Leading up to today’s release of A Room by the Green Sea, Sloan jumped on a call with Also Cool to detail his latest artistic chapter. We caught up on his poetic inspirations, his adventures out West, and much more.

Rebecca Judd for Also Cool Mag: With [A Room by the Green Sea], you mention that it was inspired by some recent summer travels. Mayne Island – that’s a different one, I’ve never heard of that part of BC before. Can you tell me what it is that brought you out there – what it is you got up to and how that impacted your creative process?

Trevor Sloan: My wife’s family actually lives there, so I’ve been going there for many years. It’s almost like a second home, in a sense. [We’ve gone there for] the last two summers – it’s a beautiful little island, the ocean, the forests. We went to the beach a lot, did some hiking...

We also did a little road trip of Vancouver Island and went to another place called Qualicum Beach, and then Comox, Courtenay, Cumberland… we did this whole tour of swimming, [checking out the] different beaches because we love to do that.

When you’re on Mayne Island, the ocean is just always there. The boats going by, you’re swimming or seeing the waves coming in. I wrote some of the songs there when I was staying there; “Salty Ocean,” for example, and “Island Girl.” And the title A Room by the Green Sea is a room in [my wife’s family home], it overlooks the ocean. Just the feeling of being there and having these memories…

Also Cool: That’s cool that it’s a connection with your wife’s family as well, because it’s a whole different perspective on the notion of family and connectivity to a place. “Ottawa 1977,” [a previous single], that story is related to your family, but Mayne Island must feel familiar yet different.

October Days by Trevor Sloan

In our previous interview (written by Valerie Boucher), you shared that you like to craft characters and immerse yourself in their worlds of these characters – different objects, different settings, different things that you observe. There are a lot of new stories in A Room by the Green Sea: there’s the brokenhearted diarist in “Sweet Lady Jo,” there are teens playing tetherball. How did these new personalities reveal themselves in this chapter? Do they manifest naturally? Do they ever cross over different timelines?

Trevor: I feel like this album is a bit more personal, and maybe there are less characters. It’s more so based on my life and things that I’ve experienced. That being said, even when I’m writing about something that’s happened in my life, it’s still a mix of memory and imagination. Like, I become a character in the story – it’s not necessarily autobiographical.

“Lady Sweet Jo” is an interesting one, because that’s a character – that’s a female poet. The story behind that one is I was reading some poems by Den Sute-jo, but I misread it as “Lady Sweet Jo” because in the book it was written as “Lady Sute-jo.” I thought, “That’s the coolest name, Lady Sute-jo.” The inspiration also came from reading a Chinese poet by the name of Chu Shu Chen, and she writes this very heartbroken and bitter verse. So I came up with this character that was loosely based on these two poets.

AC: All it takes is a little seed. I love the idea of it being a productive misread.

TS: I now have reading glasses, but before then I didn’t… I wouldn’t make that same mistake now, but it was a blessing in disguise.

AC: I’m interested in the stories that don’t make the cut. Are there things where someone or something presents itself as an inspiration, but it doesn’t feel right? Or if [a character or object] is associated with this particular setting or time in your life, does it feel like you need to get those things out on the paper at the same time?

TS: Generally, I will record 20-30 songs and then I pick the best 10. Sometimes songs and characters get cut because I just want to pick the best.

AC: Your music has this delicate and nostalgic quality to it where it feels like a memory in its softness and descriptiveness. But its production is [quite] sharp and meticulous—you work really hard at crafting this vibe that is quite comfortable—so I feel like calling your music “nostalgic” might be a bit reductive when it is so detailed. I’m interested in knowing the ways you may have experimented or tried to do something different with your sound on this new album. 

TS: I really appreciate you saying these things, and the concept of not wanting to call it just “nostalgia.” That’s a word that gets thrown around with my music a lot. I do feel like I try to keep things interesting and modern, I’m constantly discovering and listening to new music. I’m very much inspired by the 60s and 70s but I’m also inspired by new artists. I want my music to sound “of its time” – it’s not just a rehash of [those decades].

In terms of experimentation: in the last interview I did with Also Cool, I talked about my defective [Roland Juno-106] keyboard, and that’s now fixed! [laughs] I was able to use it more, and it was an enjoyable experience. The Juno is an analog keyboard from the 80s. There’s a particular sound on it that has a 70s lounge vibe to it, and I used that on a few tracks, so that’s a thread throughout the album.

I also used more electronic-sounding drums on a couple of the tracks, like “Praying Mantis” and “Island Girl.” That was a new thing for me.

And the sounds of nature…I use water sounds—waves, rivers—and the crackling of a fire.

AC: [Those choices] lend themselves well to what it was you were trying to capture. I love it when musicians take advantage of what it is that’s around them and use that to enhance a story.

Free… Free! by Trevor Sloan

You collaborated with Andy Magoffin, who mixed and mastered some of this album. What was it like to [work] with him again?

TS: Andy’s awesome. I love working with him. I’ve worked with him on maybe eight albums, and so we’re very much in sync now. I can give [my music] to him and let him do the mixing and mastering – there’s always a bit of back-and-forth, but it’s been so long that he just knows what I like and he makes it happen. I really appreciate what he does, because he brings a brightness and a spaciousness to the sound so it all sounds like it’s in a room with the instruments coming from different places.

He also played horns on “Don’t Waste Your Time” and “Lady Sweet Jo.” That was a new thing [for me] – I would love to have more instruments on my records, but I don’t know a lot of people. [laughs] It was nice to have that extra touch.

AC: I took particular interest in “Don’t Waste Your Time.” Going back to common themes in your music, I found that that track really spoke to me as I read the lyrics. It takes a certain turn where it feels like it’s focusing on how to forget more than how to remember. That stood out relative to the rest of the album. Where does that track fit into the album’s narrative, and how did it come to be?

TS: [Many of my] songs can be introspective and concerned with little details, but I would say that [Don’t Waste Your Time] is a bit more universal. It’s about a heartbreak from youth, and how heartbreak changes over time. As time goes by, as you get older, you start to look at it differently and maybe it loses some of the pain that was associated with it. You get to a point as you get older when you can smile at it.

It’s also giving advice – “if you can’t tell what’s on their mind / don’t waste your time.” You’re better off being with people that make you feel good, people who you know where you stand in their eyes.

AC: It’s nice to have that balance of [universality], amidst songs that concern themselves with putting one in the shoes of a character or the emotions of a particular place. For people who want something that presents itself in a different way, it’s definitely powerful to connect the escapism with something more relatable.

For the cover for A Room by the Green Sea, [you’ve added] some unique shapes to it. I want to say one of them is a scythe…? Even just the [muted] colourways. I’d love to ask more about the album art and how you created that collage.

TS: I created maybe four or five collages, and they’re all in the same vein. I wanted something more abstract [for this album], and mysterious. A lot of the collages that I was doing, there were these “ghostly figures.” When you mention the scythe, there’s this green thing that looks like the top of a ghost.

My source material was different paintings from the 1700s, and I cut them up and rearranged them. I wanted the green to be very prevalent. When I collage, I just start cutting and see where it all comes together.

AC: What are your upcoming plans for the release of A Room by the Green Sea?

TS: The most exciting thing is I decided to get vinyl done for this record. This doesn’t make any sense in some respects, but I’ve always wanted to do vinyl and have the physical thing in my hands!

Vinyl Giveaway

To celebrate its release, we’re giving away one vinyl copy of A Room by the Green Sea! Enter today for your chance to win this mesmerizing new album.

To enter the giveaway:

• Follow us at @alsocoolmag and @trevorjsloan 

• Like the post on Instagram

• Tag your go-to friend for music recs (1 comment = 1 entry, no limit!)

Terms and Conditions:

The giveaway closes on September 9th, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. ET. You must reside in Canada to participate in the giveaway. The winner will be selected at random, announced, and contacted via DM on September 10th, 2024. Should the winner fail to respond within 24 hours of being notified, another winner will be selected. The winner of this giveaway will receive one vinyl copy of A Room by the Green Sea shipped at no extra cost; please note that any damages incurred while in transit are no fault of Also Cool or Trevor Sloan. This giveaway is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Instagram. 

---

A Room by the Green Sea

out September 6th, 2024

1. Introduction

2. Salty Ocean

3. Praying Mantis

4. Don’t Waste Your Time

5. Faded Towel

6. Green Rivers, Green Summers

7. Sunlight through the Window

8. Blade on My Face

9. Island Girl

10. Purple Starfish

11. Black Water

12. Lady Sweet Jo

All tracks written and recorded by Trevor Sloan

Horns on tracks 4 and 12 by Andy Magoffin

Mixed and mastered by Andy Magoffin

Cover art by Trevor Sloan

---

Trevor Sloan

Instagram | Spotify | Bandcamp | Website

Rebecca Judd is the features editor of Also Cool Mag.

---

Related Articles

Sunglaciers Sharpen Their Psychedelic Edge with "Regular Nature" (Mothland)

Sunglaciers by Em Medland-Marchen

Two years after the release of the explosive Subterranea, Calgary post-punk quartet Sunglaciers have resurfaced with Regular Nature, out now via Mothland. 

Spanning 15 tracks, this latest endeavour pulls from familiar motives to paint a truly vibrant picture. Sunglaciers have always stood on the edge of experimentation, anchored firmly in rock n’ roll while nodding to new wave, garage, and whatever else they please. But Regular Nature comes imbued with the conscious resolution to find something new between the folds. 

Said the group of this dexterous new record:

“We want to make you dance. We want to make you think. We want to make you think while you’re dancing and dance while you’re busy thinking. This is an album for the body, brain and heart. It’s compassionate, frustrated, communal and dreadful. In a world of information overload, where everything comes at you at once, Regular Nature is trying to normalize the phenomenon. This is chaotic music for a chaotic world, a three-way conversation between outer self, the subconscious and the mad world.”

Regular Nature begins with “Fakes,” a compellingly frenzied track that reads like a hi-fi, edgier Devo. “All style, not a lot of substance / Shut out, shut out the noise” chants multi-instrumentalist Evan Resnik as he scorches through a doom spiral. “Right Time” puts a surfy foot forward, propelled by winding guitars and striking snares. But while the band is not afraid to reach an electric climax, best portrayed with the psychic anguish of “Kafka,” it is the wistful freefall of slow-burner “Rotten Teeth” that delivers true refreshment: “I still have dreams of love with no beginning and no end / How can that be if I am walking out the door again?”

Regular Nature is a psych-rock saga, supercharged with exhilarating instrumentation while boasting meditative subtleties. Fortified by its stylistic depth, the album tells an engrossing story of the turmoil that awaits us all.

Regular Nature

out March 29, 2024 via Mothland

1. Fakes

2. Right Time

3. Undermine

4. Cursed

5. Kafka

6. I Remember the Days

7. Interlude

8. Frog Mask

9. A.I.

10. Reef

11. Not Ready

12. Rotten Teeth

13. Gov Shut

14. One Time or Another

15. Waiting for Nothing

Written & performed by Sunglaciers (Evan Resnik, Mathieu Blanchard, Kyle Crough, and Nyssa Brown)

Select instrumentation by Chad VanGaalen, Daniel Monkman, Chris Dadge, Nate Waters, and Cassia Hardy

Recorded by Mathieu Blanchard & Evan Resnik

Additional recording by Chad VanGaalen

Produced by Sunglaciers

Mixing, additional production & digital mastering by Mark Lawson

Mastered for vinyl by Richard White

Artwork by Nyssa Brown & Evan Resnik

---

Sunglaciers

Instagram | Bandcamp | Spotify | YouTube

Rebecca Judd is the features editor of Also Cool Mag.

---

Related Articles

From Bartender to Headliner: Montreal's Alix Fernz Turns Heads with Debut Album "Bizou" (Mothland)

View fullsize

Alix Fernz by Antoine Giroux

Alix Fernz is the beloved enfant terrible lighting a match on Montreal’s music scene. Formerly performing as Blood Skin Atopic, Alix Fernz is the moniker of 24-year-old singer-songwriter Alexandre Fournier. Arriving April 19th via hometown label Mothland, Bizou is Fournier’s debut album under this new alias. 

On Bizou, Fernz leads us down a drainpipe into an unabashed, palpitating reverie of studded leather, troublemaking and lipstick-stained dive bar mirrors. Produced in the bedrooms of three different apartments, with vocals tracked on Fernz’s iPhone mic, Bizou fearlessly criss-crosses remnants of bratty 70s-punk with new wave romanticism in a blistering 32-minutes.

View fullsize

Bizou album artwork, credit: Alix Fernz & Nora Mejdouli

Mixed by Emmanuel Éthier (Choses Sauvages, Corridor, P’tit Belliveau, Population II), Bizou is Fernz’s first studio effort. After parsing over Bizou for nearly three years, Fernz is anxious for its unveiling at his album listening party this Thursday at Montreal nightclub Le Système.

“I got signed to Mothland after the album was done, but it's been worth the wait to release it for real,” says Fernz. “Teasing things out single by single has worked well, I saw the [streaming] numbers and I was like ‘holy crap!’” he laughs. 

Beyond its subversive aesthetics, Bizou is a coming-of-age record for Fernz, expanding on his experiences and growing pains as a suburban outcast.  

“Bizou has helped me a lot, as a period of self-learning,” explains Fernz. “A lot of the songs are angry and bring up a lot of unsavoury old feelings. I don’t like writing from the first-person, so I’ve created other versions of myself—personas—to write about the tough stuff and disconnect from my teenage years—trying to figure things out, feeling out of place in private school, doing drugs and shit. When I’m onstage singing these songs, I feel like another person, like someone else.”

The characters of Bizou come to life in the album’s accompanying music videos, where Fernz takes cues from latex magazines and 80s fashion to shapeshift from a nightmarish, botox-injected fiend to a lace-clad pierrot clown. 

With the adoption of his new stage name, Fernz has already encountered significant milestones as he aims to take his musical career to the next level.

“I moved to Montreal when I was 17, and started making music shortly after as Blood Skin Atopic. Switching to this solo project has helped me evolve out of a little DIY guy, now that I actually have [a label] backing me up,” explains Fernz. 

Fernz's it-factor has been established by his electric live sets attracting festival audiences, despite previously only having one single online. Since sharing “Wax”—the inaugural single from Bizou—in late 2023, Fernz has played POP Montreal, M For Montreal, Le Phoque OFF and Taverne Tour. In between, he’s gripped show-goers across Montreal’s signature stages and recently toured outside of Quebec for the first time.

View fullsize

Alix Fernz by Antoine Giroux

Along with his musical forays, Fernz is a tattoo artist by day and a bartender at Montreal venue L’Esco. 

“I tell my boss [at l’Esco] all the time that I owe him my career,” says Fernz. “Meeting all these artists night after night is one of the main reasons that I can say that I am where I am. It’s priceless. I recently stayed after my shift to see Model/Actriz from New York after hearing their soundcheck and my mouth was like, watering the entire time,” he laughs. 

With all the buzz surrounding Bizou’s arrival, Fernz has started to perceive a shift in his reputation from local bartender to micro-celebrity. “I still don’t know how to react when people recognize me from my shows at work,” he smiles. “Working at L’Esco is like the epitome of ‘Oh! I know you… but I don’t know from where?’”  he adds. “I’m finding more and more people recognize me on the street from music than tattooing—I see my clients at the bar all the time. It’s definitely weird, but I enjoy it.” 

Despite this, Fernz remains humble and committed to his creative growth. When talking about what’s next, he reveals he’s already got a new project in the works. Hinting at what the future holds, Fernz describes his new songs having more of a pop direction, but maintaining his signature oddball edge. “I have ten demos already. Bizou has been a huge learning opportunity for me in being able to work on music with other people and introduce [the project], but I can’t wait to work on something else!” he exclaims. 

Catch Alix Fernz on tour this spring and pre-save / pre-order Bizou before its release this Friday!

April 28th - Toronto @ The Baby G 

May 10th - Sainte-Thérèse @ Santa Teresa  

May 16th - Montreal @ POW POW (album release show)

May 23rd - Chicoutimi @ Bar à Pitons 

May 24th - Québec @ Le Pantoum 

May 25th - Rimouski @ Bains Publics  

Alix Fernz

Instagram | Bandcamp | Spotify | Youtube

Zoë Argiropulos-Hunter (she/her) is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of Also Cool Mag. Aside from the mag, she is a music promoter & booker, and a radio host & DJ.

---

Related Articles

What's Cool at Taverne Tour 2024

View fullsize

It goes without saying that Taverne Tour is our go-to fest for thawing the wintertime slump. In line with years past, the 7th edition of the Montreal music festival is packed from brim to brim with stellar inter-genre programming, highlighting artists from the city’s local music scene and beyond. On this weekend from February 8th-10th, here is our list of must-see acts from the festival’s lineup. Read along while jamming to our offical Taverne Tour playlist below.

Full disclosure: Some shows have already sold out — we hope you scored your tickets in time!

View fullsize

Ben Shemie via Taverne Tour

Montreal’s Ben Shemie—known as lead vocalist and guitarist of art rock outfit SUUNS—moonlights with his experimental solo pursuits. Playing on his classical compositional training, Shemie dabbles in astral string arrangements, frenzied, yet melodic, feedback loops and contorted vocals in his latest avant-pop feat. 

Shemie plays La Sala Rossa Thursday, February 8th.

View fullsize

DahL via Taverne Tour

With their forthcoming album That’s It in the works for March, Montreal’s DahL has perked up our ears with their savvy splicing of trip hop know-how, post-punk textures and arresting flow. The project is the brainchild of Nassir Liselle and Purplefield, who have joined forces with long-time collaborator and producer William Winston on synthesizers and Edward Scrimger on drums for an unparalleled live performance. 

DahL plays La Sala Rossa on Saturday, February 10th. 

Tickets are sold out!

View fullsize

Daniel Romano’s Outfit via Taverne Tour

Daniel Romano’s Outfit is road tripping once again in anticipation of their next release, Too Hot To Sleep, arriving March 1st on You’ve Changed Records. Sporting power pop sensibility on Too Hot’s first two offerings—“Field of Ruins” and “Chatter”—we’re keen to experience the Welland, Ontario group’s newfound spunk alongside their longtime country flare. 

Daniel Romano’s Outfit plays La Sotterenea on Saturday, February 10th. 

View fullsize

Marie Davidson via Taverne Tour

Reigning queen of Montreal’s clubscape, Marie Davidson, made an impressionable comeback performance at M For Montreal this past fall. The local electronic music producer, singer, songwriter and poet floored the audience with her coy stage presence and enthralling beats. Knowing that we’d accept a taste, but are eager for more, Davidson’s appearance at Taverne Tour is sure to bring the house down. 

Marie Davidson plays Le Belmont on Saturday, February 10th. 

View fullsize

Pantayo via Taverne Tour

Toronto ensemble Pantayo promises to entrance audiences with its harmonious dialog of kulintang, electronica and indie pop. Combining traditional Filipino music with contemporary influences and experiential sounds, the queer, diasporic Filipinx quintet inspire mesmerizing, powerful and grooving atmospheres through collaborative percussive magic.

Pantayo plays Le Ministère on Friday, February 9th.

Tickets are sold out!

View fullsize

Safia Nolin via Taverne Tour

Revered Quebec City singer-songwriter Safia Nolin is a breath of fresh air amidst our heavier Taverne Tour selections. Strumming with tenderness, Nolin’s stilling voice is like a reverie paired with her uncluttered, frank acoustic compositions. Nolin’s recent EP ET SI, DE/main l’oiseau chills with its poignant dexterity — charting fragility and renewal all at once. 

Safia Nolin plays Le Quai des Brumes Thursday, February 8th. 

Tickets are sold out! 

View fullsize

Slash Need via Taverne Tour

Our standing review of Toronto’s Slash Need is that we would gladly let them step on us. The duo’s floorboard-thumbing crossover of industrial punk and performance art is always a treat. For seduction, camp, leather, lace and hounding instrumentals, look no further than this spectacle of daring debauchery.

Slash Need plays Le Ministère Thursday, February 8th. 

View fullsize

Sun Entire via Taverne Tour

Sun Entire is a three piece shoegaze outfit made up of Montrealers June Moon, Nico Serrus and Ivan Urueña. Hot on the heels of their debut LP Fit To Break, the band intrigues with their honeyed sound — awash with 90s-tinged, luminous whimsy.

Sun Entire plays L’Escogriffe on Thursday, February 8th. 

View fullsize

Sweeping Promises via Taverne Tour

All the way from Lawrence, Kansas, post-punk pair Sweeping Promises charms with their playful take on raw angularity. The band’s 2023 LP Good Living is Coming For You inspires shoulder shimmying from back to front, complete with surfy bass riffs, vintage synths and Devo-esque vocals. 

Sweeping Promises plays La Sala Rossa Friday, February 9th.

View fullsize

Roost.World via Taverne Tour

Fall into a dark wave rabbit hole at our Taverne Tour co-pro with Burlington, Vermont synth troopers Roost.World. Shake the week’s edge off with the Roost.World’s intergalactic goth rhythms, and introspective sets from special guests Lola 1:2 and Marontate.

Join us at Casa Del Popolo on Friday, February 9th!

View fullsize

Taverne Tour

Website | Instagram | Festival App

---

Related Articles

La Sécurité Ignites the Boulevard with Debut Album "Stay Safe!" (Mothland)

La Sécurité by Aabid Youssef

With their highly-anticipated debut album waiting in the wings, La Sécurité is ready to cause some commotion. The Montreal art-punk group shares Stay Safe! tomorrow via Mothland – a record consisting of ten electrifying tunes united in their skittish asymmetry.

The musicians that form La Sécurité are no strangers to the scene, having charmed countless audiences through other projects like Choses Sauvages and Silver Dapple, but operating within this collective keeps each member on their toes. From the arresting synths of debut track “Suspens” to the domineering bassline of “Serpent”, the band has set a standard of heightened sonic volatility, and the remainder of the record continues that thrill. Stay Safe! provokes the senses with its bilingual musings and jagged new-wave arrangements, traversing between subjects like flirtation and bodily autonomy with the same crafty cool. Expect to strut to zigzagging guitars, commanding rhythms, and a sprinkle of woodblocks.

A few weeks before the release of Stay Safe!, vocalist Éliane Viens-Synnott connected with Also Cool to reflect on the final touches and tease the summer adventures ahead.

La Sécurité by Aabid Youssef

Rebecca Judd for Also Cool Mag: This new single “Serpent” is peppy with a punch. I love the effortlessness of its undercut, how it captures the messiness of catty gossip with such breezy disco flair. This is a broader balance you strike within your forthcoming album as well: this determination to be both lyrically and instrumentally bold, scratching many different surfaces and thriving in the madness. How did the development of “Serpents” fit into Stay Safe!’s creative process?

Éliane Viens-Synnott of La Sécurité: It came about in a pretty organic way. [Drummer] Kenny [Smith] started doing that funky beat, just joking around during a practice, and [bassist and producer] Félix [Bélisle] kinda whipped out that super groovy bassline! We noodled around with the rest, keeping in mind the more dancey side of our art-punk influences (Maximum Joy and ESG, to name a few) without wanting to rip anyone off, of course. I thought it was fitting for some lyrics I had already written. I didn't want the song to be emo or dramatic or anything – just a friendly little jab!

Also Cool: The video for “Serpent” is frenzied and lighthearted, capturing everything from Sonic to South by Southwest. Your videos notoriously stay true to your sound, feeling lo-fi yet descriptive. Does the band have a particular approach to concocting music videos, or was this one just as simple as a glitch?

La Sécurité: Pretty simple, yeah! Since we kinda established that DIY/VHS approach with our first videos, we thought it was a nice direction to continue in. It's a way to keep a natural, sort-of intimate-feeling approach, highlighting good times that we have spent together as friends and bandmates.

AC: As the video shows, La Sécurité recently played SXSW, which feels like a significant milestone given your first show at DISTORSION was six months ago. Can you share more about your experience in Texas and what you took from it?

LS: Yeah, what a ride that was. Even having our first show at DISTORSION was kind of unreal! We were pretty curious to see if there would be any buzz at all outside of the comfort of our MTL scene, and I guess the short answer to that question is yes! We met many awesome people and our shows felt pretty electric. Playing six shows in a week definitely helped us weld our dynamic on- and off-stage together.

AC: Stay Safe! comes out on June 16, and you’ve teased that your debut will be “quite pleasing, even to unsuspecting eardrums”. Without giving too much away, what kinds of experimentation made the final cut?

LS: Well, there is one unexpected surprise I'm excited to share. I guess the one hint I'm willing to share is: 90s prom night vibes, haha. Once you hear it, you'll get it. Besides that, expect more songs along the same lines as what you've been hearing so far. They each have their unique touch, but somehow all belong together.

AC: Festival season is afoot… surely there are some plans up your sleeve. What does this summer look like for La Sécurité?

LS: Looking good! In June, we are hitting up FLOURISH Festival in New Brunswick, followed by a show in Québec City with our friends Jesuslesfilles (which [guitarist] Melissa [Di Menna] also plays in)! Then we head to Calgary for Sled Island, and in July we are doing La Noce in Saguenay as well as Le Festif in Baie-Saint-Paul. There are a few more dates that aren't announced yet, so it's a secret for now. Last but not least, we will be doing a record release show in Montreal at l'Esco! The date will be announced the day our record comes out.

---

Stay Safe!

Out June 16, 2023 via Mothland

1. Le Kick

2. Dis-Moi

3. Anyway

4. Waiting For Kenny

5. Suspens

6. K9

7. Serpent

8. Try Again

9. Hot Topic

10. Sleepy Rebellion

All songs written & performed by La Sécurité

Produced, recorded, and mixed by Samuel Gemme & Félix Bélisle

Mastered by Francis Ledoux

Artwork & layout by Melissa Di Menna

---

La Sécurité

Bandcamp | Instagram | Spotify

Rebecca Judd is the features editor of Also Cool Mag.

---

Related Articles

In Conversation: Cosmic-Pop Enigma Elizabete Balčus on Artistic Freedom, Vegetable Synthesizers and "Hotel Universe" (Mothland)

View fullsize

Elizabete Balčus by Zane Zelmene

Hailing from Rīga, Latvia, extraterrestrial-pop maestro Elizabete Balčus performed one of the most memorable sets of the year, and possibly ever, this past fall. Since making a stop in Rouyn-Noranda for the 2022 edition of FME, touring her avant-garde opus Hotel Universe, we’ve been enthralled by Balčus’ raison d'être. With an entrancing, collaged-sound that spans from a Lynchian merry-go-round to what you might hear twinkling in the alcoves of a celestial ice fortress, Balčus’ enigmatic production is a realm-bending portal that combines operatic vocals, classical flute, 80s-tinged rhythms and electronic vegetable-synth pulses.

Following the buzz of her album release, we had the chance to connect with Balčus on the importance of harnessing her independent spirit as a creative, and the inner-workings of her multifaceted artistry.

Zoë Argiropulos-Hunter for Also Cool: You recently completed a touring stint in Canada promoting your new album Hotel Universe and met your Montreal-based label, Mothland. What was it like realizing this work alongside new audiences? How did the creative circles in Canada compare to that of your hometown? 

Elizabete Balčus: It was great to meet my label in person after some months spent collaborating with them remotely. They take a lot of care in curating lineups for tours, and I felt like I was sharing the stage with artists that were a good fit for me.

It’s been nice adding in new material and tapping into the mood of my new album. But, I always balance that with music made in the moment; improvisation. Meaning, the songs I have on the album can be stretched and changed a lot, compared to the originals. Each show on my tour was quite different because those improvised parts would change depending on my mood. What’s most important to me is to have a true catharsis and expressing my emotions to their fullest. If I’m showing what I’m feeling without holding anything back, that’s when I get the strongest response from a crowd.  Being in Canada and being in front of a new audience was exhilarating – it made it easy for me to relay my emotions.

View fullsize

Elizabete Balčus at FME in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec - September 2022, photo by Malaika Astorga

Also Cool: You wear many hats as a musician, composer, performance artist and actor. How did you balance and tap into these intertwined passions when realizing Hotel Universe?

Elizabete Balčus: In general I am a fan of one solo artist’s perspective. I like to feel that one person is responsible for everything. When I put a release together, I like to feel like it’s all of me, and not just one part of me. And I feel that I can express myself with visual art and performance in a way that emphasizes my musicality, so it is very important in what I do. Having multiple hats is a consequence of me having a project that is homage to a lot of my inspirations: I love theatre, I love dancing—I like music that is immensely theatrical and surreal. So, it’s natural for me to apply these things to create what I consider a solo show worth attending.

AC: What pushed you to expand from your traditional artistic background to an experimental solo endeavour? Has this transition made an impression on how you approach, or feel about, your craft? 

EB: The thing that pushed me was that I wanted to do something that came naturally to me. That natural thing was, and still is, being creative with something that I can call entirely my own. It’s artistic freedom, I suppose.

There’s an axis between my classical upbringing and my solo show. All of my arrangements are quite classically-based, and this comes through in playing classical flute in my sets. I use the thing I learned in the Latvian Academy of Music, but I changed it to fit my world. 

View fullsize

Elizabete Balčus performing at Club SAW in Ottawa, Ontario - September 2022, photo by the author

AC: Branching off of that, when did you start incorporating eco-synthesizers into your music? What is your favourite fruit or vegetable to play?

EB: I wanted to make the performance art aspect as important as the music. I discovered these inventions, and felt they were right. Way back in 2016, I got a device that allowed me to play real fruit and vegetables., and I incorporated it into my live show. I still sometimes play broccoli and pineapple—I guess they’re my favourites because of their psychedelic shape! I am always interested in adding different tools to my live show. Sometimes I play with a prosthetic leg, other people’s skin or my own biorhythms to create electronic sounds.

View fullsize

Elizabete Balčus’ musical set-up at FME in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec - September 2022, photo by the author

AC: Alongside your sound, your live show has so many intriguing elements. Touching on your costumes and makeup: what inspires your aesthetic and where do you source your performance wardrobe? 

EB: I take a lot of influence from avant-garde fashion, Dadaism, retro-futurism, sci-fi films and Greek mythology and theatre. Sometimes a certain painting, a film character, a plant or even an animal can inspire me to make a costume. For example, once some green insect flew in my room and danced on the wall while I was listening to my demos and sketching costume ideas. It inspired me to make a hat with antennas and paint my pointed boots light green.

I place a lot of importance on wearing and making headpieces because they are, for me, a mark of spirituality. I think of it as a way of broadcasting my energy to the cosmos. It’s like how saints are pictured wearing halos. As for makeup, it usually comes after the clothes and headpieces as a final touch. Most of the time I just take a brush and experiment, see where it goes.

For clothes: I like vintage shops. I’ve picked up a lot of stuff that I remix. I reshape or cut and glue things together, to make them more my own. I also take some costumes from the theatre my family runs, and from time-to-time, I collaborate with fashion designers that lend me some of their creations. I was lucky to find the artist Anna Gulbe who lent me the hat and boots for my Canadian tour.

AC: What has been the most rewarding aspect of unveiling Hotel Universe thus far? What impact has the experience had on your artistic outlook?

EB: The rewarding thing for me about releasing music is it’s a format that I feel I can most fluently express myself. Even more than talking. So, it’s nice to have that communication with others who feel my music and respond to—what is a very accurate—portrayal of who I am, deep down.

Releasing music doesn’t directly change my artistic outlook, but it definitely spurs me on and gives me energy to move forward.

View fullsize

Elizabete Balčus by Zane Zelmene

Elizabete Balčus

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Bandcamp | Spotify

Zoë Argiropulos-Hunter (she/her) is the co-founder and managing editor of Also Cool Mag. Aside from the mag, she is a music promoter & booker, and a radio host & DJ.

---

Related Articles

Gloin Releases New Album “We Found This”

View fullsize

Gloin by Sara May

This year, Also Cool had the pleasure of meeting Gloin at FME in Abitibi-Temiscamengue. To say we were compelled was an understatement – their songs “Cha Cha” and “Shoot to Kill” were on repeat both directions of the nine-hour drive to the festival.

When we got to see them in the tiny and packed Cabaret de la Dernière Chance, our faces melted off (in the most consensual way). Gloin brings so much energy to the stage and we are absolutely stoked to get the opportunity to interview them in parallel to the release of their latest album, We Found This.

Gloin are knock-out performers, and you cannot help but bop as Vic shreds onstage. While their 2019 album Soft Monster was loaded with head-bangers, there are some more soothing rhythms on We Found This, always with some level of distortion and dark underbelly (a Gloin signature).

They also recently graced Montreal with their presence at M for Montreal, playing at the M for Mothland showcase alongside other Also Cool favourites like Grim Streaker.

In our excitement about their latest release and in Also Cool façon, we had to interview them – not only about We Found This and group dynamics, but also about some of their random thoughts, small favourites surrounding Toronto, and their band as a whole.

Holly Hilts for Also Cool Mag: So, first off, how have your last few months been, between Northern Quebec festival life and your album release – how are you feeling?

Vic: FME and the surrounding shows left me on a high. Since our release, I have been insanely eager to tour and promote the album. I am an impatient person and the process is killing me.

John: FME was a lot of fun, and since then we have released our full-length album. I feel similar to Vic – excited to translate the record to a live setting. It’s always a lot of fun and the songs often sound better.

Richard: The excitement of playing FME was only succeeded by the release of our new record. It’s been exciting to see the positive feedback of something we’ve worked so hard to put out.

Simon: Feeling excited that the record is finally out, and eager to play these songs live.

Also Cool: Listening to the album, I get some really stark imagery – like on “FZero”, I really picture digitized, glitchy marching robotic humans to the beat. Do you have any really clear images that jump out at you while you are playing any of the songs?

R: Skeletons having a luau during “Dark Moto”.

J: “Winter Abroad” is an old song I wrote years ago. It was written specifically to depict looking out a window during a snowy, quiet Toronto morning.

V: “Work Patrol” is less of an image and more of a filter that distorts reality into a chaotic and extremely stressful experience during every single fucking thing you do. Also known as anxiety I guess (laughs).

S: “FZero” is named after the video game, and when we play it I just see them racing.

AC: What is your favourite intersection in Toronto?

J: I don’t have any that I like but I have a lot that I hate. Dundas and Lansdowne, Queen and Spadina, Front and Spadina, Bloor and St. Clair. These are all based on traffic and road work.

R: I don't have a favorite intersection but I have a favorite street, Palmerston between College and Bloor. Also 401 and Major Mack.

V: I’ve got a soft spot for Front and Sherbourne because I had a first kiss with someone very important at the Rabba on the corner where I lived when I first moved to Toronto.

S: Dovercourt and Mackenzie Crescent. Walk up Mackenzie ‘til you get to Lisgar.

View fullsize

Gloin, by Alex Carre

AC: What have you had to learn to accept about each other over the years?

V: I’ve always found it difficult to spend a lot of time with men. So that’s been pretty much the main thing. But to be honest, these guys are pretty chill. Mostly. It does feel like family in a certain way and when one person is not there the rhythm is off.

J: When you spend such a large amount of time with one another, you realize that being friends with people that you don’t see every waking moment is extremely different than spending every waking moment with them. You gain a much deeper understanding of each individual person, you see the good and the bad and you learn to accept everyone's strengths and weaknesses. Not without its setbacks as friends, we have discovered how we all operate and have grown as friends as well as creative partners because of it. Being in a band is not as easy as everyone may think it is, and it takes a lot of work.

R: Everyone works at their own pace. It's good we find time to get shit done together.

S: Learn to call people out when they are slacking and accept it when it happens to you. We all have our own ways of dealing with issues and trusting that process no matter how long it takes.

AC: Your latest album is titled We Found This – what did you find?

Gloin: If you buy the vinyl, there is a handwritten note inside that will explain everything! 

AC: How did you figure out your overall sound and how would you describe your growth since Soft Monster?

Gloin: With Soft Monster we did not have a clear direction, and we pulled what liked and expanded on those specifics. We liked the driving energetic vibe, the aggression, and the pop element. We tried to avoid overdone repetitive droning psych elements in order to keep things exciting.

View fullsize

Gloin, by Nikki Dicunto

AC: Favourite lyric on the album, please!

V: I love to yell “RUSH” in “Pitchfork”.

R: I like it when Simon says “Avec des gants de sécurité” from “Brique Chaude”.

J: “Weak mind, be kind” from “FZero”.

S: When Vic yells “HEY BUDDY” from “Work Patrol”.

AC: How do you dream your audience members feel after a show of yours?

R: Exhausted.

V: Relieved, energized, powerful!

J: That we are their new favourite band and they can’t wait to see us again.

S: Confused but happy.

AC: And any last thoughts you would like to share with Also Coolers?

Gloin: If we were cast in The Hangover, John would be Stu, Richard would be Alan, Vic would be Phil and Simon would be Doug.

View fullsize

Gloin - We Found This

Gloin

Instagram | Facebook | Spotify | Bandcamp

---

Related Articles

La Sécurité and Hot Garbage Talk Influences, Experimentation, and DISTORSION PSYCH FEST (Mothland)

DISTORSION PSYCH FEST poster by Tiny Little Hammers

Before plugging in the synths and warming up the fog machines, we were able to chat with two bands on the bill at this year’s DISTORSION PSYCH FEST leading up to their rollicking sets in July.

La Sécurité by Marc-Antoine Barbier

The first group we had our eyes on was La Sécurité, a newly formed art-punk supergroup featuring members from iconic Montreal bands such as Choses Sauvages and Jesuslesfilles. In the spring, they treated audiences to a delightfully frantic and groovy dual single release – “Suspens/Try Again” via Mothland. DISTORSION was the band’s first live show together, and it was a gig for the books. 

Sofie Milito of Also Cool: I'd love to hear a bit about your group's beginnings. How did La Sécurité come together?

Éliane Viens-Synnott of La Sécurité: The band initially started with Félix [Bélisle] and I noodling around during the pandemic to pass the time. We had fun mixing up all our influences — him having more of an electro/disco background, whereas I'm more into punk and new wave myself. We then invited three friends to join. I met Melissa [Di Menna] in Vanille, this other band we played in together. We realized quite quickly that we were very compatible creatively. Laurence-Anne [last name unknown] is a good friend and has collaborated with Félix a couple times on other projects, so it kind of seemed like a no-brainer. We met Kenny [Smith] in the past couple years in and around the music scene, and we clicked really quickly as well. He has lots of natural taste and talent. Long story short, we all came together in a pretty organic way. 

Also Cool: With members from a multitude of different bands and musical projects, is there anything you were (or still are) curious about experimenting with as a group?

Éliane: It's fun to switch up who is composing which part and to take in everyone's ideas. The first few songs were mostly written by Félix and I, but the more we go along, it's more of a collaborative effort. I guess that's the direction we are interested in experimenting with. It's kind of fun to be kept on our toes and it's a good project for that purpose.

AC: What was inspiring the band in the making of your first pair of singles (“Suspens / Try Again”)?

Éliane: I wrote those singles during the pandemic, so there are allusions to that for sure. We found our groove arranging the musical aspects of the songs together and they helped us to figure out our work dynamic.

AC: There's a voltaic energy to those songs that seems like great fun for a live setting. What's most exciting to you about playing this first live show at Distortion?

Éliane: I'm excited to break in our live performance in general, and to present news songs that were composed in a more collaborative way. You can't really know what it's going tobe like until you do it!

AC: If La Sécurité were stranded on a desert island, what would be your top media picks?

Éliane: See The Whirl by Delta 5, [Miyazaki's] Howl's Moving Castle, and Please Kill Me [by Gillian McCain and Legs McNeil].

AC: On the heels of your first studio recording, is there anything on the horizon for the band that you can tell us about?

Éliane: We’ve got a couple more shows planned before the end of the year. An album is in the works as well…

---

Hot Garbage by Alex Carre

Combining krautrock and psychedelia, Hot Garbage has been releasing spell-binding tunes since 2017, coming out with their first full-length album RIDE via Mothland in 2021. Hailing from Toronto, they trekked over to play DISTORSION amid a series of US gigs. Catch them on their fall tour this November!

Sofie Milito of Also Cool: How did Hot Garbage come to be?

Julianna Carkevaris of Hot Garbage: Alex [Carlevaris] and Mark [Henein] had been playing in bands together since their early high school days. I joined in on bass when this project was getting going—around 2014—then Dylan [Gamble] joined on keys shortly after. 

Also Cool: What are you experimenting with these days?

Julianna: We're currently working on a new record, and for the past couple of years we've been exploring new approaches to the songwriting process. The pandemic forced us to work on things while being apart from each other, which had advantages and disadvantages. I think now, we're finding a new balance between that and the synergy and spontaneity of getting ideas out by playing together in an improvised way.

AC: RIDE takes us on a scorching, swirling journey from minute one to its trippy finish. Can you tell us a little about the album’s world and what was inspiring you in the making-of?

Julianna: I think the inspiration is quite varied throughout the record, but generally, we draw a lot of ideas and moods from imagery and photos, cinema, books, mysterious phenomena — both worldly and otherworldly ["RIDE is all at once dread, beauty, wonder, horror and mystery"]. 

AC: As a band, what’s your favourite part about a live gig?

Julianna: The give and take, and the exchanging of energy.

AC: If Hot Garbage were stranded on a desert island, what would be your top media picks? 

Julianna: [The film] Goodfellas. It is a marvel of cinema with a great soundtrack. RIP, Ray Liotta.

AC: What’s the hottest garbage you’ve come across?

Julianna: It's pretty hot right now actually, so I probably walked by some today… and it will probably just keep getting hotter. Enjoy it while you can.

---

La Sécurité

Bandcamp | Instagram 

Hot Garbage

Bandcamp | Instagram

Sofie Milito

Bandcamp

---

Related Articles