Interviews
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Bell Orchestre, in Symphony with the OSM Interview by: Alain BrunetWithin Arcade Fire, Richard Reed Parry is one of the main people in charge of the “research and development” sector. House Music, Bell Orchestre’s new album released after a long recording silence, is another convincing example of this quest. He tells us about it here in all generosity.
Chamber Pop / Contemporary / Electronic / Experimental / Contemporary / Free Improvisation / Post-Rock -
THE MOST FASCINATING QUEBEC ARTIST YOU (PROBABLY) DON'T KNOW Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
Anoush Moazzeni is a pianist, improviser, composer, interdisciplinary artist, researcher and educator. The range of her interests and the creative fields she explores is impressive. She teases out electro-acoustic and digital arts with roots in Boulez and philosopher Gilles Deleuze. She combines her creativity with the fields of robotics and artificial intelligence, as well as taking over museums and the stage by playing more ‘traditional’ instruments such as… the prepared piano and the synthesizer! You probably don’t know her, given the niche nature of her work. Thanks to Pan M 360, some light will now be shed on this extraordinary artist.
Avant-Garde / Classical / Contemporary -
Leonardo da Vinci in a public space near you Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
The Cordâme ensemble is taking to the road to visit several corners of Quebec this summer to present its latest album, Da Vinci inventions, in indoor and outdoor performances. Much appreciated here, Da Vinci inventions is a musical journey to the heart of the Italian Renaissance, halfway between reality and the fantasy of what the great Leonardo could have offered us as musical inventions.
Classical / Renaissance music -
Undrum this, conventional music-making! Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
The Suoni per il popolo festival in Montreal proposes this year its own in-house mini-festival called Undrum. It’s about everything and everyone that uses new and surprising ways of playing the drum kit. Great names are giving this new kid on the festival block some already very solid credentials as an event to be considered seriously : Susie Ibarra, Glenn Kotche, Michel Langevin (Voivod) and many others. Ongoing at Suoni : next show hits the stage this Sunday!
Avant-Garde / Avant-Pop / Avant-Rock / Contemporary -
Nadia Labrie: in tune with happiness and Mozart Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
For flutist Nadia Labrie, music is a barometer of emotions and of life in general. The light that radiates from Mozart’s scores is perfectly in tune with the happiness and confidence that glows from the artist at this moment in her life, even if it means relearning her instrument! The public is invited to share this bubble of beneficial vitality during two concerts dedicated to the great Wolfgang during the Classica Festival in Saint-Lambert. Interview.
Classical -
Tim Brady: making history without labels Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
40 years of career! Quebec electric guitarist and composer Tim Brady is spreading the good news of written and/or improvised art music based on the particular language, timbral and sonic characteristics, and unique personality of his favorite instrument. Brady has just released a triple album, gathering a set of polymorphous recent works (just like his creative personality) but also others drawn from his archives (gems we had never heard before!).
Avant-Garde / Classical / Contemporary / Free Improvisation -
Black Country, New Road: Collective ideal Interview by: Alain Brunet
Among the emerging bands in the U.K., Black Country, New Road arouse the greatest interest among those keen on new rock expressions with their stylistic blend and power of interpretation.
Free Jazz / Post-Punk / Post-Rock / Prog Rock / Rock -
Blanck Mass: From misery to blessing Interview by: Louise Jaunet
Three years after the very melodic and poignant Animated Violence Mild, Blanck Mass returns with the soundtrack to a movie that he alone has watched: his own personal experience of grief.
Electronic / Experimental / Contemporary / Post-Rock -
Les traditions unies du Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
Le Vancouver Inter Cultural Orchestra (VICO) est un orchestre de chambre à la fois traditionnel et totalement nouveau. Il marie instruments classiques occidentaux et traditionnels du monde entier, dans un répertoire innovateur et savant. Il sera en concert le 18 février au festival Montréal Nouvelles Musiques (MNM) 2021.
Classical / Contemporary -
The Besnard Lakes : The warning is sent out Interview by: Louise Jaunet
Three years after their last offering, The Besnards Lakes are returning to bring us their light to guide our journey through this pandemic.
Psych-Rock / Shoegaze / Space Rock -
What’s in the cards for King Khan? Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
The soul-punk sensation starts the year right with a blast of snotty punk, and talks about cartoons, cosmic jazz, and paths of illumination.
Avant-Punk / cosmic jazz / Jazz / Soul -
Steven Wilson refuses to hide behind references Interview by: Alain Brunet
A prog icon of the last few years, Steven Wilson invites his audience to new mutations: The Future Bites is, according to him, in phase with the current period, dominated by electronic music.
Art Pop / Electronic / IDM / Krautrock / Psych-Funk / Synthwave -
Mike Milosh: Rhye and other paths Interview by: Alain Brunet
Mike Milosh is Rhye, and more. The release of Home, the third studio album from the Canadian singer transplanted to California, is the pretext for a conversation about his work.
Art Pop / Auteur Pop / Orchestral Pop -
Maestro Kent Nagano: His OSM mandate’s conclusion, the pandemic, the future Interview by: Alain Brunet
Recently, before coming back to Montreal for a cycle of winter concerts, Maestro Kent Nagano was reached at his Parisian home. He gave PAN M 360 an initial assessment of his term at the helm of the Montreal orchestra, one cut short by the global pandemic.
Classical -
Louis-Philippe Marsolais: Horn and soul Interview by: Félix Desjardins
Louis-Philippe Marsolais “plays music, more than playing the horn”, according to Yannick Nézet-Séguin. His instrument is “a means of expression, a language.”
Classical -
Mothland Records in pocket-sized format Interview by: Louise Jaunet
The Montreal-based label launches their first eclectic, colourful cassette compilation, in the image of their annual psychedelic festival Distorsion.
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Ardneks: Jakarta astral Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Lots of wonderful things go into the neo-psych art of Indonesia’s Ardneks, but music is the main ingredient.
Indie Rock / Psych-Rock -
Collectif9: Taking the time to listen to music differently Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
The very cool ensemble Collectif9 proposes Rituaels, a musical-video journey with almost mystical echoes
Classical / Contemporary -
Jérôme Minière and Quasar in a retrofuturist show Interview by: Michel Rondeau
Jérôme Minière and the Quasar saxophone quartet team up for the presentation of an ambitious, tragic, and experimental technopera-ballet
Contemporary / Experimental / Contemporary / Pop -
Faten Kanaan: The choice of minimalism and repetitious cycles Interview by: Alain Brunet
Faten Kanaan is one of the most prominent of the new generation of composers emerging on the international scene, given to repetitious and post-minimalist music.
Ambient / Contemporary / Electronic / Minimalist -
Chaos E.T. Sexual: A darkness full of emotion and meaning Interview by: Yohann Goyat
Only Human Crust is full of emotion and ironic allusions to politics and culture, with a sound atmosphere worthy of the great science-fiction films.
Doom Metal / Drone -
Stéphane Tétreault, alone with Bach Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
For the first time in eight years, cellist Stéphane Tétreault will play Bach’s famous Cello Suites, as part of the Festival Bach Montréal.
Baroque / Classical -
Ane Brun and Elisapie: Between women of the North Interview by: Alain Brunet
PAN M 360 invites you to a conversation between women from the North: Ane Brun, who just released two albums of songs in Oslo, and Elisapie, an Inuit artist based in Montreal.
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Ziad Rahbani, according to Lara Rain Interview by: Alain Brunet
Like his mythical parents, the great Fairuz and the composer Assi Rahbani, Ziad Rahbani is a crucial artist in contemporary Lebanon. Lara Rain intends to demonstrate this at the FMA!
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Discover the Sinatra, Brel, and Aznavour of Arabic music Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
Montreal singer Nidal Ibourk is passionately in love with a musical genre that Westerners should know better, and learn to love too!
Arabic / Singer-Songwriter -
“Grignotines de luxe”: A surprise album that will satisfy more than a few Interview by: Elsa Fortant
Without warning, FouKi kicks out an album without hang-ups and definitively feelgood.
Hip Hop / Keb Rap -
Kerson Leong and Bach: Virtuosity, intensity, passion, physics of sound Interview by: Alain Brunet
Invited to the Bach Festival, Montrealer Kerson Leong is now one of the country’s elite classical violinists. His gifts have led him to an international career that has only just begun.
Classical -
Anna Saradjian: A haven of peace and beauty named Bach Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
Pianist Anna Saradjian is enjoying herself, and music lovers are too, thanks to the all-Bach concert given on the occasion of the 2020 Bach Festival in Montreal.
Classical -
Anna Saradjian: A haven of peace and beauty named Bach Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
Pianist Anna Saradjian is enjoying herself, and music lovers are too, thanks to the all-Bach concert given on the occasion of the 2020 Bach Festival in Montreal.
Baroque -
Marrakesh Express between Morocco, France and... here! Interview by: Alain Brunet
From Marrakech and Lyon, Bab L’Bluz brew an infectious mix of Saharan blues, rock, and psychedelia. No vaccine for this one!
Gnawa / Psych-Rock / Saharan Blues -
Leonard Sumner: Rap and Americana, Anishinaabe style Interview by: Alain Brunet
Composer, performer, organizer, singer, rapper, activist… Leonard Sumner carries within him the legacy and hope of the Anishinaabe nation.
Americana / First Nations / Hip Hop -
RRobin et Les Mamans du Congo: Sounds and noises for inspiration Interview by: Yohann Goyat
The singing of emancipated Congolese women is highlighted by French beatmaker RRobin, mixing complex rhythms and electronic sounds.
Afro-Pop / Electronic -
Jo Passed is not just passing through Interview by: Alain Brunet
Invited to M for Montreal, Jo Passed is Jo Hirayabashi’s gleaming avant-rock vehicle, certainly one of the most interesting bands in British Columbia.
Avant-Pop / Avant-Rock / Krautrock / Rock -
Un nuevo capítulo… Papi Chulo Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Papi Chulo y su Grupo Invisible’s Ritmo de lo Habitual is the latest future-Latin lunacy from Montrealer Mariano Franco and friends.
Cumbia / Electronic / latino / Synthwave / tropical bass -
Bar Farouk: Half a century of Beirut nightlife... before it all fell apart Interview by: Alain Brunet
Bar Farouk sums up the nightlife of Beirut, from the ’20s to the ’70s… before the sky fell on the heads of the Lebanese.
Arabic -
L’Orchestre féminin Cheikh Sadek el-Bejaoui: Algerian women on a mission Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
As part of the Festival du monde arabe de Montréal (FMA), the ensemble offers an exclusive show that only festival-goers will be able to see and hear.
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Paul Jacobs: Sole master on board Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
On the eve of his streamed concert at M For Montreal, Paul Jacobs talks about his next album, the one after that, and his other passions, illustration and drawing.
Psych-Folk / Psych-Rock -
Karina Gauvin: a muse for patrons of the arts Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
Quebec soprano Karina Gauvin has been named artist-in-residence of the Musica Mécénat program.
Classical / Classical Singing -
A Love Supreme Electric: Henry Kaiser and his electrifying colleagues Interview by: Alain Brunet
John Coltrane’s mythical album A Love Supreme is the pretext for electric and all the more electrifying rereadings, piloted by guitarist Henry Kaiser and his acolytes.
Contemporary Jazz / Jazz -
Le Couleur: When everything fits Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Le Couleur emancipate themselves and discover the pleasures of group love with Concorde, a record that the band defends on stage as part of the 20th Coup de coeur francophone.
Nu Disco / Pop / Synth-Pop -
Group Modular: Far out in the fourth dimension Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Israeli electronic explorers Group Modular are back, with a battery of drummers behind them, to turn the world on to Time Masters.
Electronic / Psych-Funk / Synthwave -
Prairie WWWW: Premonitions of the past Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
In the courtyard of a traditional sanheyuan, Taiwan’s electro-mystics Prairie WWWW bring their latest EP Formosan Dream to life.
Art Rock / Experimental / Contemporary -
The Spits: Short and sweet Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
The Spits resurface with the album VI and, once again, keep things loud, fast, and dirty!
Garage Punk / Punk Rock -
The worlds of Sofiane Pamart Interview by: Anne-Sophie Rasolo
In the wake of the launch of his new solo album, rap pianist Sofiane Parmat tells us about his relationship with travel, his background, and what matters to him.
Hip Hop / Neoclassical -
Dakka Dembélé: A small boat doesn’t take on water Interview by: Alain Brunet
Following in the footsteps of Alpha Blondy and Tiken Jah Fakoly, Ivorian reggaeman Dakka Dembélé invites us aboard his “Petit bateau”, docked in Montreal, with the launch of his first album and a performance of the material at the Nuits d’Afrique.
African / Reggae / Roots Reggae / West African Traditional -
The Fuzz puzzle Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Guitar, bass, drums, a wall of amps, volume at full, and foot planted on the distortion pedal. With III, Fuzz puts all the pieces of the puzzle in place to position themselves in the top tier of heavy rock.
Acid Rock / Hard Rock / Rock / Sludge -
Zal Sissokho, Montreal griot meets Montreal flamenco Interview by: Alain Brunet
Mandinka Kora + flamenco guitar + double bass + cajon = Zal Sissokho, Kora Flamenca, a Félix Album of the Year award in World Music, and virtual concert at the Nuits d’Afrique
African / Flamenco -
Saycet: It’s not a revolt... Interview by: Yohann Goyat
France’s Saycet creates an ambitious soundtrack for the Netflix series “La Révolution”.
Soundtrack -
Pierre Kwenders and Clément Bazin: intercontinental, with class Interview by: Alain Brunet
Pierre Kwenders teams up with Clément Bazin, and the co-pilots imagine a global flight plan for Classe tendresse.
African / Afrobeat / Electronic / Pop -
METZ, or the noise of change Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Avec Atlas Vending, METZ signe l’album de la maturité… mais ne s’assagit pas pour autant.
Noise Rock / Post-Punk -
Ela Minus: Woman and machines Interview by: Alain Brunet
Punk attitude, pop sensibility, Colombian roots, electro allegiance, sensual rebellion: Ela Minus, ladies and gentlemen!
Avant-Pop / Synth-Pop / Synth-Punk -
L. Teez: Beyond boom-bap Interview by: Elsa Fortant
The twenty-something knows his classics. Nourished by Black American music, he offers an album that’s part of the hip-hop jazz movement.
Hip Hop / Jazz -
Bantü Salsa: Dancing on history Interview by: Ralph Boncy
The Montreal outfit led by Cameroonian emigré Just Woân may well become the new Afro-Latin sensation in jazz and world music – if the pandemic allows it…
African / Jazz / Salsa -
Helena Deland: End-of-twenties vertigo and then... the world! Interview by: Alain Brunet
Helena Deland is taking off into the indiesphere quickly and convincingly. After EPs and world tours, here’s her album Someone New… and what she says about it.
Indie Folk / Pop / Rock -
Backxwash: Reversing misfortune Interview by: Louise Jaunet
Backxwash is about to become the wicked, anti-conformist heroine the queer movement needed.
Hip Hop / Horrorcore -
Tigran Hamasyan: Fighting stance for the Armenians of Artsakh Interview by: Alain Brunet
The most famous Armenian jazzman on Earth stands up for his compatriots under siege.
Contemporary Jazz / Folk / Instrumental Metal / Jazz / Middle Eastern / Prog Rock / Traditional -
“Juvenile”: the beginning of a new era for CRi Interview by: Elsa Fortant
With his debut album, CRi brings together electro, pop, and indie fans.
Electronic -
Ilam: When Senegal rhymes with Montreal Interview by: Alain Brunet
A West African style voice, Senegalese singer Ilam chose Montreal as his base
African / Afro-Pop -
Tation: Written on the wind Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Like the enormous expanse of sky over the Tibetan plateau, Tation’s Coordinate Plan 2018 reaches past the horizons of the standard rock-band EP
Post-Rock -
Antoine Corriveau: The slap (in the face) and the territory Interview by: Alain Brunet
On the album Pissenlit, Antoine Corriveau combines a burnished voice and acidic poetic introspection with strong, even rough music.
Art Rock / Noise Rock / Punk / Singer-Songwriter -
Will Butler: Generational, divided Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
With Generations, Will Butler presents an album with dark themes but eclectic and engaging music.
Indie Rock -
Muling Kagat: Another taste of Manila Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
A son salutes his late father with a celebration of Filipino pop pioneers Hotdog
Disco / Jazz / Pop / South-East Asian -
Dóttir at the Off Jazz Festival: handpicked Nordic whispers Interview by: Alain Brunet
Sienna Dahlen and Véro Marengère hold a nourishing conversation about the Nordic lands of contemporary jazz, free improvisation and electroacoustics.
Ambient / Contemporary Jazz / Electroacoustic / Experimental / Contemporary / Free Improvisation -
Yves Jarvis: Volume and variety Interview by: Alain Brunet
Total freedom, fluidity, and conciseness are the core values of Yves Jarvis’ anticipated album Sundry Rock Sound Stock.
Ambient / Avant-Pop / Experimental / Contemporary / Folk -
Raccoon: Ringtail rapper Interview by: Félix Desjardins
Heavy lyrics over light productions – Raccoon works in the antithesis on his new project Le set up.
Hip Hop / Keb Rap -
Thanya Iyer: Open forms, open songs, open woman Interview by: Alain Brunet
Thanya Iyer is a formidable cross-cultural creature, absorbing everything in her path!
Avant-Folk / Avant-Pop / Carnatic / Electronic / Free Improvisation / Jazz / Singer-Songwriter -
Fwonte: Demons dancing Interview by: Jean-François Cyr
Montreal singer Fwonte performs songs from his recent album, Danser avec mes démons, at the Pop Montreal festival.
Digital Cumbia / Hip Hop / Indie Pop / Kompa -
Lou Canon: Hearing voices Interview by: Isabelle Marceau
As part of Pop Montreal’s lineup, Lou Canon invites us to hear and experience her new album through her very first livestream performance.
Electronic / Indie Pop -
Beverly Glenn-Copeland: Better Late Than Never Interview by: Frédéric Cardin
Keyboard Fantasies by Beverly Glenn-Copeland is a masterpiece revealed at least… 30 years later!
Ambient / Electronic / Experimental Dream Pop -
Marie Davidson & L'Oeil Nu : Taking on pop Interview by: Alain Brunet
Will Marie Davidson’s career be propelled by Renegade Breakdown, her new album of… pop?!
Avant-Pop / Disco / Electro-Pop / Electro-Rock / Funk / Jazz / Krautrock / Pop / Singer-Songwriter / Space Rock -
Boogieman and Samito: Music as a playground Interview by: Elsa Fortant
Heard kussom? Boogieman and Samito talk about the new party sound they’ve created.
Bass Music / Electronic / House -
Welcome to the multiverse of Priori Interview by: Elsa Fortant
Priori explores the auditory realm with many creative satellites, and MUTEK presents his latest trajectory.
Acid-Techno / Deep House / Dub Techno / IDM / Techno -
Vigliensoni: Clastic fantastic Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
With Clastic Music, presented at MUTEK, Vigliensoni creates an interactive show in which he frees himself from the computer.
Ambient / Drone / Experimental / Contemporary -
Tati au Miel: Super noise Interview by: Alain Brunet
A fan of noise and industrial techno, Tati au Miel emerges at MUTEK, a major stage for the start of a career that promises to be seismic.
Ambient / Experimental / Contemporary / Industrial / Noise / Techno -
Alexis Langevin-Tétrault: Hypercubist Interview by: Alain Brunet
Alexis Langevin-Tétrault’s audiovisual performance Hypercube measures the relationship between an audiovisual device and its digital creator
Ambient / Electronic / Experimental / Contemporary / Industrial / Noise -
Hekla: Intangible terrors Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
The Icelandic Thereminist welcomes listeners to her imaginary monster realm, with her eerie new album Sprungur.
Contemporary / Post-Rock -
The Pineapple Thief: Alternative facts... alternative truths... alternative prog Interview by: Alain Brunet
Versions of the Truth is the 13th album from English prog band The Pineapple Thief, which is entering its golden age after 21 years of existence. Paradoxical?
Prog Rock -
Anachnid: The spider that fell from the sky Interview by: Louise Jaunet
Anachnid, an artist of Oji-Cree and Mi’kmaq origins, presents her album Dreamweaver, a powerful backdrop to current political issues affecting Indigenous communities, during her visit to the FME.
Ambient / Electronic / First Nations / Future Soul / Indie Pop -
Jonathan Personne: This time it’s personal Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Jonathan Personne reappears in the musical landscape with Disparitions, an album that sums up an intense period for the Montreal musician.
Indie Rock -
Brand new shoes for No Joy Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
On their album, Motherhood, No Joy push the boundaries of shoegaze a little further, giving the genre a much-needed second wind.
Indie Rock / Noise-Pop / Shoegaze -
Meridian Brothers, or cumbia upside down Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Meridian Brothers, led by the gently crazy Eblis Álvarez, returns with an even bolder and more modern cumbia album, perpetuating the genre and propelling it in a very personal way into the 21st century.
Cumbia / Experimental / Contemporary / tropical bass -
Turning Jewels Into Water: Ritual, but not habitual Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Turning a flow of beats and snatches of sound into evocations of other realities is what Turning Jewels Into Water do. The pairing of Brooklynites Ravish Momin (percussion) and Val Jeanty (electronics), both of them educators as well as skilled and explorative musicians, TJIW share new slices of their shared vision on the album Our Reflection Adorned by Newly Formed Stars, out on August 21 on the FPE label.
Electronic -
Busty & the Bass: MTL groove, world class groove Interview by: Alain Brunet
There are eight of them. Four Canadians, four Americans. They met at McGill University in the early 2010s, decided to stay in Montreal and began to expand internationally. In 2017, Busty & the Bass launched the album Uncommon Good on Indica, now here’s Eddie on the Arts & Crafts label, an ambitious production by Neil Pogue with prestigious guests George Clinton, Macy Gray, and rappers Illa J and Jon Connor. Bassist Milo Johnson sums up the new chapter.
Electronic / Hip Hop / Jazz / Pop / R&B / Soul -
Barrdo: Back to basics 2.0 Interview by: Patrice Caron
Initially intended as an episode of the podcast C’est nous autres les kings, recording quality decided otherwise. In order to give it a little more scope, I resigned myself to do something as tempting as a dentist appointment, that is to say transcribing an audio interview into text. One, because it would be a shame if the interview got lost in limbo, and two, because Barrdo is worth the detour. A project of PA (Poulet Neige, Fuudge), his third album is about to be released, and Quebec rock fans should really listen to it and take the opportunity to revisit the two previous ones. As they say, you’re in for a treat.
Rock / Singer-Songwriter -
Beaver Sheppard : Do-it-yourself dambuilder Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Beaver Sheppard is a hyper-productive artist, known as much for his paintings as for his cooking and his music. With Downtown, Beaver Sheppard unveils his most eclectic and diversified album.
Art Pop / Electro-Pop / Indie Folk -
Protomartyr: The key to success Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Protomartyr recently released Ultimate Success Today, a dark and accurate assessment of the current state of the world, and undoubtedly the most accomplished and ambitious album from the Detroit post-punk band.
Post-Punk -
Quinsin: New bowstrings Interview by: Alain Brunet
Saxophonist, clarinettist and composer Quinsin Nachoff offers three considerable works, brought together on an album on the Whirlwind label. At the crossroads of contemporary jazz and contemporary music from the classical tradition, the opus Pivotal Arc is the subject of a fascinating conversation. PAN M 360 joins Quinsin Nachoff and the soloist of his ambitious 45-minute concerto, violinist Nathalie Bonin.
Contemporary / Contemporary Jazz -
Zoon: Truths and reconciliations Interview by: Louise Jaunet
Seven generations have passed since the 1876 introduction of the Indian Act, the primary legislation that still governs First Nations local governments today. This document retains the grip of a colonial past that has caused indelible trauma, and social and cultural disruption, for Indigenous peoples. Facing this painful past requires courage. Daniel Monkman found it through the ancestral wisdom of the Seven Sacred Teachings, one of the traditional spiritual foundations of native culture. He presents his personal healing journey through his first solo album, Bleached Wavves, a brilliant shoegaze record that has been making waves on some radio stations since its release last June. PAN M 360 reached the Hamilton-based artist to find out about this journey.
Psych-Rock / Shoegaze -
George Tsz-Kwan Lam: Destinations and departures Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Every immigrant is necessarily an emigrant. Composer and professor George Tsz-Kwan Lam – born in Hong Kong, raised in Massachusetts, settled in New York City and now again back in Hong Kong – knows a bit about that. His recent work The Emigrants, just released digitally, balances his engaging music, performed by the cello-and-percussion duo New Morse Code, with fragments of interviews with other relocated musicians. The whole is a reflection on what’s given up, as well as what can be gained, in the process of transplanting oneself.
Contemporary -
Minyo Cumbiero: Bento box from Bogotá Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Colombia’s Frente Cumbiero are a key act in the post-millennial cumbia revival, rooted and raw in their sound, but ever inquisitive. Japan’s Minyo Crusaders strive to renew old-time festival songs through inspired fusions. Their paths crossed at Japan’s Fuji Rock Festival in 2018. The Frente crew extended an invitation to record together in their hometown Bogotá, and the Tokyo ten-piece accepted. Together, they now bring the world the amazing EP Minyo Cumbiero: From Tokyo to Bogota.
Cumbia / Dub / Minyo / North East Asian -
Dengue Dengue Dengue: Lost lands and unearthed treasures Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Ancient lands, lost in the raging waves of history and myth, are the latest object of fascination for Lima, Peru’s Dengue Dengue Dengue, masked mystics of trippy tropical bass. Initially, a decade ago, disciples of dub-heavy digital cumbia, the duo of Rafael Pereira and Felipe Salmon soon enough spread their creative tendrils in wider, weirder ways – often ensnaring amazing visual artists in their sinister schemes. They’ve adopted the alter ego DNGDNGDNG for their new On the Corner release, the Continentes Perdidos EP, which takes them to the most far-flung, uncharted territory yet.
Electronic / tropical bass -
Jordan Officer (pt. 2): Three albums, one petition... two interviews Interview by: Alain Brunet
Montrealer Jordan Officer has invested himself in the three fundamental axes of his art: jazz, blues, and country. The release of a triptych recorded by the guitarist, violinist, and singer coincides with his public statement concerning the dwindling incomes of musicians in a digital environment dominated by streaming on the web. The result is an intense cycle of creativity: three albums released by Spectra Musique, a petition of 6,000 names submitted to the Parliament of Canada, and public performances. This justifies two separate interviews with PAN M 360: one artistic, one political. This is the second one.
Blues / Country / Jazz -
Jordan Officer (pt. 1): Three albums, one petition... two interviews Interview by: Alain Brunet
Montrealer Jordan Officer has invested himself in the three fundamental axes of his art: jazz, blues, and country. The release of a triptych recorded by the guitarist, violinist, and singer coincides with his public statement concerning the dwindling incomes of musicians in a digital environment dominated by streaming on the web. The result is an intense cycle of creativity: three albums released by Spectra Musique, a petition of 6,000 names submitted to the Parliament of Canada, and public performances. This justifies two separate interviews with PAN M 360: one artistic, one political. This is the first one.
Blues / Country / Jazz -
Jessy Lanza: Gleeful gloom Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Jessy Lanza has just released her third album All The Time, an album on which the Canadian artist again expresses her many moods once through music that’s often playful and uplifting. A few days before the release, the singer, musician, and producer told PAN M 360 about her acclimatization to New York life, about the genesis of All The Time and her accomplice Jeremy Greenspan, and about her little quirks and worries, with great sincerity and many bursts of laughter.
Electronic / Experimental / Contemporary / Soul/R&B -
Bernardino Femminielli: A synthesis of traumas Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
The iconoclastic entertainer is back with L’Exil, a long mini-album in which the Montreal artist details with great sincerity and emotion his difficult expatriation to the City of Lights, and his struggle to remain lucid.
Experimental / Contemporary / Singer-Songwriter -
Julianna Barwick: A river less still than it seems Interview by: Alain Brunet
Since her emergence in 2006, American musician Julianna Barwick has gained great notoriety for her vocal, instrumental, and electronic superimpositions, generated by digital and analog technologies. Life is certainly no slow ride for the woman, who has just launched the linear works of Healing Is a Miracle and Ninja Tune, with contributions by Sigur Rós singer Jónsi, harpist Mary Lattimore, and producer Nosaj Thing.
Ambient / Choral Music / Experimental / Contemporary / Post-Rock -
The Liberating of Navet Confit Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Navet Confit went digging through his records. The harvest was good because it’s not one disc he just launched, not two or three, but ten simultaneously! The versatile artist, who also presents an unusual virtual concert, tells us about this kind of crazy project, and paints a portrait of each album.
Experimental / Contemporary -
Rufus Wainwright: Continuity and end of Act One Interview by: Alain Brunet
Produced by Mitchell Froom, Rufus Wainwright’s ninth studio album marks the end of a “first act” in the career of the Montrealer, who has lived in Los Angeles for four years with husband and child. Joined in California in the midst of the pandemic, he recounts his creative process and places the much-anticipated Unfollow the Rules in a prolific body of work that began in the late 1990s with the excellent eponymous album produced by Jon Brion, Pierre Marchand, and the legendary Van Dyke Parks.
Avant-Pop / Baroque Pop / Pop -
Feu St-Antoine: Connective Hallucination Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
The new label Appærent begins its activities with the launch of L’eau par la soif by Feu St-Antoine, an intimate and very personal first solo disc that sees Pierre Guerineau define himself more as a creator. The Montreal musician and producer, and his associate Jesse Osborne-Lanthier, give an overview of the label and its ambitions, and tell us about this first release, available in digital format and as a limited edition of 99 CDs.
Ambient / Electronic / Experimental / Contemporary -
WD-40: Six feet of separation Interview by: Christine Fortier
On July 9, Montrealers WD-40 play 18 songs for a project called 6”, divided into two parts. In the first part, entitled 6” 1, the punk-country quartet perform nine songs that its members have each recorded at home. The second segment, 6” 2, was recorded on June 2 in a rehearsal room in Verdun. Drummer Hugo Lachance, who edited and produced 6”, tells us how the project was born.
Rock -
Marie Gold, MC... Chloé Pilon-Vaillancourt, engineer Interview by: Alain Brunet
“The golden rule is that there are no golden rules,” said both George Bernard Shaw, and the theme song of a debut album. On the Les Faux-Monnayeurs label, Règle d’or was conceived by Chloé Pilon-Vaillancourt, known as Marie Gold for her hip hop career. By night, she’s a rapper and beatmaker, by day, she’s a graduate student in engineering physics. No rules, indeed.
Hip Hop -
Pottery: Bobby, his motel and his music Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Pottery presents Welcome To Bobby’s Motel, an album brimming with grooves and sweet madness.
Post-Punk -
Klô Pelgag: From Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs to Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption Interview by: Alain Brunet
Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs is Klô Pelgag’s third album, on the Secret City Records label. It’s first of all the name of a Lower St. Lawrence village on Île Verte, but also an imaginary place where the author, composer, arranger, and producer healed the wounds caused by profound overwork… before launching herself back into the public sphere. In a café in the Villeray district, she recounts the process – sitting two metres away from her interlocutor, it goes without saying.
Art Pop / Baroque Pop / Prog Rock / Singer-Songwriter -
Eman: Still hungry Interview by: Félix Desjardins
He’s one sixth member of Alaclair Ensemble and half of Eman X Vlooper, but is now establishing himself as a solo artist. Keb rap veteran Eman, 14 years after his first work with the duo Accrophone, is releasing his first solo album, a logical follow-up to his EP Maison, released in 2019. He spoke with PAN M 360 about his career in retrospect, and about this new project, of which he is almost the sole architect.
Hip Hop / Keb Rap -
Long Beach Dub Allstars: Right back, again Interview by: Darcy Macdonald
For many ’90s kids, the multi-genre, reggae-rooted Long Beach Dub Allstars are remembered as a spin-off of Sublime, wherein original members of that band, their old friends, and their longtime collaborators gathered around the ashes of what might have been, never quite rising like the phoenix, but appreciated for their brief renaissance, nonetheless.
Dub / Reggae / Ska -
Thomas Dutronc: La Frenchy connection Interview by: Claude André
After having made a (first) name for himself thanks largely to his gypsy excursions, Thomas Dutronc dons his swankiest attire to play the lounge crooner, in the company of many prestigious guests, on Frenchy.
Singer-Songwriter -
Braids, a decade later Interview by: Alain Brunet
There comes a time when an art-rock- or avant-pop-orientated band emphasizes conciseness of purpose, the immediate impact of a melody, efficient harmonic constructions, in short, the fundamental qualities of a song beyond its stylistic orientations and the atypical environment in which it flourishes. This is what the fourth studio album of Montreal trio Braids, originally from Calgary, is all about. Shadow Offering has just been released on Secret City Records, and Taylor Smith and Raphaelle Standell-Preston commented on the creative process.
Art Rock -
Mong Tong: Perfectly paranormal Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Taiwanese duo Mong Tong indulge a deep fascination for the folkloric phantoms and eerie Chinese esoterica of the island they call home, as well as the international iconography of formalized paranoia. They channel the freaky fragments of fact-or-fancy that they find through psych-funk, synthwave, prog rock, and creepy audio collage, all stewed in a miasmic doom-metal soup. PAN M 360 corresponded with the brothers for some clues to unlock the mysteries of their new album, Mystery.
Doom Metal / Experimental / Contemporary / Psych-Funk -
Poirier: Tour de force Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
With one foot on the dancefloor and the other in songcraft, Poirier builds a bridge between eras, styles and communities on his new album Soft Power. A delicate balancing act.
Electronic -
Jehnny Beth: Revealing without servility Interview by: Alain Brunet
Recorded between Los Angeles, London and Paris, To Love Is To Live is the first solo album by French artist Jehnny Beth, aka Camille Berthomier, known for her central role in Savages. Currently on indefinite break, the Franco-British band was a finalist for the Mercury Prize for the albums Silence Yourself (2013) and Adore Life (2016). A new chapter begins for the singer, who roped in producers Flood, Atticus Ross, and Johnny Hostile, not to mention guests Romy Madley Croft of the XX, actor Cillian Murphy, and punk-rock singer Joe Talbot of IDLES. PAN M 360 contacted Jehnny Beth in Paris to find out more about her record, released on the Arts & Crafts label.
Art Rock -
Angèle David-Guillou: Perpetual motion, perfect stillness Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Time and motion are of concern to any musician, any factory worker for that matter. They are however of almost metaphysical fascination to Angèle David-Guillou, a French composer and musician residing in England. The three releases in her Mouvement series, the last of which came out in May, reveal a trajectory that concludes on such a current note, it’s almost uncanny. PAN M 360 connected with David-Guillou to walk back through the timeline of this remarkable series of works.
Classical / Contemporary -
TENGGER: A restless peace Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
In Mongolian, the word means a wide-open sky. In Hungarian, a vast sea. Either is appropriate to the expansive, entrancing music of TENGGER, which is the Korean-Japanese couple itta and Marqido and their son RAII, based in Seoul but perpetually peripatetic. The “psychedelic new-age drone magic” they perform, by way of harmonium, voice, analog synths, and other odds and ends, expresses a pacific perspective that’s at once rooted in the earth of the planet beneath our feet, and loose on the winds of wanderlust. PAN M 360 connected with TENGGER to talk about their new album Nomad, on the Beyond Beyond is Beyond label.
Ambient / Drone / Krautrock -
Ben Shemie: Illuminated vision Interview by: Alain Brunet
The album A Single Point of Light was conceived, recorded and produced prior to the pandemic. Its creator, Montrealer Ben Shemie, then put this second project on hold for an extended stay in France. The original script called for the release of this album, and then Suuns, of which Shemie is the frontman, was to be back on the road, but… the tour schedule was turned upside down for obvious reasons. So let’s talk about what is tangible for now, that is to say this album created in solitude, with the perception of light as its guiding principle.
Electroacoustic / Experimental / Contemporary / Singer-Songwriter -
Anonymus: Conquering the World Interview by: Christine Fortier
On June 12, Anonymus launches La Bestia, an album entirely in Spanish. It is composed of one new song, the first single entitled “Sobrevivir”, and eight tracks from Stress (1997), Sacrifices (2019), État brute (2010), Instinct (1999), and Chapter Chaos Begins (2006), four of them already in Spanish, the others have been translated for the purposes of this twelfth album. For the thrash quartet, founded in 1989, the objective of La Bestia is simple – conquer Latin America and Spain. Singer and bassist Oscar Souto spoke with PAN M 360 about the adventure behind the creation of La Bestia.
metal -
schroothoop: Junkyard jazz geography Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
With their recent first release, the mini-album Klein Gevaarlijk Afval (on the label Rebel Up!), the Brussels trio schroothoop revealed a weird, wide world of wonderful music, all painted a sensible shade of green – their eco-friendly instruments are made from rescued trash (the band’s name is Dutch for “junkyard”). The three corresponded with PAN M 360 to discuss first aid, second life for scrap, and third-generation exotica.
Experimental / Contemporary / Jazz -
Doubleheader: Bicephalic beats Interview by: Alain Brunet
Doubleheader is a bicephalic beast: the producer, rapper and multi-instrumentalist Alexandre Arthur Comeau Bilodeau (ex-Radio Radio, Pierre Kwenders, Samito, etc.) and the producer, arranger and multi-instrumentalist Jean Massicotte (Patrick Watson, Jean Leloup, Lhasa, Arthur H, Alejandra Ribera, etc.). The material already generated could constitute two complete albums, but the dream duo has chosen to launch its new tracks one at a time. And it all starts with “Diamond Flake”, a disco space funk jam performed by Dominique Fils-Aimé, interspersed with a rap by Arthur Comeau. The rest is hip hop, reggaeton, techno, blues, Cajun, country, and more.
Blues / Cajun / Country / Disco / Funk / Hip Hop / Reggaeton / Techno -
Harikuyamaku: Okinawa dub version Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
With not one but two very different releases this week, it’s a good time to check in with Harikuyamaku, a musician and producer rooted in the sun-soaked soil of Okinawa – the culturally distinct, southernmost punctuation point of the Japanese archipelago. Harikuyamaku’s music is a mash-up of Okinawan folk and dub reggae, with excursions into the wider field of electronic dance music and experimentation. PAN M 360 flagged him down to talk about that, ceramic speakers, butoh dance, and more.
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Camille Deléan: A question of balance Interview by: Jean-François Cyr
Three years after her first LP, Music on the Grey Mile, Camille Deléan has released a beautiful English-language album with the evocative title Cold House Burning. The Franco-Ontarian singer, transplanted to Montreal, has tapped into her inner self to deliver 10 touching songs.
Folk -
Mirabelle: From country-folk to ethereal wave, a singer transforms Interview by: Alain Brunet
In recent years, Mirabelle’s cocoon has been woven for a slow and safe gestation. From 2009 to 2015, Laurence Hélie, its progenitor, was situated in the francophone country-folk scene and garnered good reviews. Her postpartum depression put her artistic career on hold, until she had metamorphosed into Mirabelle, emerged and took off. PAN M 360 followed her flight.
Alt-Pop / Ethereal Wave / Space Rock / Synth-Pop / Trip Hop -
Jäde, without inhibitions Interview by: Anne-Sophie Rasolo
Jäde is 24 years old and her real name is Adèle. PAN M 360 connected with the Lyonnaise R&B artist to get a little bit of her story, and find out what led up to the production of her EP Première fois, as well as her future projects.
R&B -
The six sides of Amon Tobin Interview by: Alain Brunet
Originally from Brazil (Bota Fogo, a neighbourhood in Rio de Janeiro), Amon Tobin spent his adolescence and early adulthood in the United Kingdom before launching his career in Montreal, where he lived for a few years. He then moved to California, first to San Francisco and then to Los Angeles, where he’s been exhibiting an astonishing prolificity. Under several pseudonyms as well as his real name, Tobin’s music has multiplied on the Nomark label, which he founded and through which all his recent recordings have been released.
Electronic -
The Dears: The end and afterwards Interview by: Louise Jaunet
The veterans of the Montreal indie rock scene have just released Lovers Rock, an album that reflects our current collective state of mind against a backdrop of melancholy chamber pop. Throughout the band’s career, singer and guitarist Murray Lightburn has strived to portray a mysteriously apocalyptic, yet realistic and optimistic perspective. Here he tells PAN M 360 about the genesis of this vision.
Indie Rock -
Koffee K: Stringing his bow Interview by: Félix Desjardins
If Longueuil’s Koffee K is one of the most listened-to hip hop artists in la belle province, it’s not due to any significant media recognition. His song “Human Drug”, a single launched on May 1, is his first new release since his album Forever, released in 2019. He spoke with PAN M 360 about his upcoming projects, his career and the Montreal rap scene.
Hip Hop -
Dame Area: Hunting Down Darkness Interview by: Jean Bourbeau
The revelation of the European underground scene in recent years, the Catalan duo Dame Area, composed of Silvia Konstance Constan and Víktor Lux Crux, unfortunately remains little known in North America. Their latest EP, La Soluzione é Una, weaves a skilful mix of minimal electro, warlike incantations, and industrial percussion. The time has come to highlight their twilight music. So, in the midst of confinement, the pair generously answered PAN M 360’s questions.
Electronic / Industrial -
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith: Alternating currents Interview by: Alain Brunet
American composer and musician Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith bottles lightning with The Mozaic of Transformation, (Ghostly International) a very personal ode to electric energy captured on her eighth studio album. Since 2012, Smith has been developing a language at the confluence of Western classical music, Asian music and traditions, the electroacoustic universe, synthpop and even music for video games. That makes her a must for PAN M 360, reaching her at her California residence for a conversation.
Ambient / Electronic / Experimental / Contemporary -
Sparks: Still on fire Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
With the recent release of A Steady Drip Drip, the American duo Sparks shows us that they are still as relevant and original as they were when they started, 50 years ago.
Pop / Rock -
Jimmy Hunt: Listen to the silence Interview by: Alain Brunet
Hermiting in the hinterland of Baie des Chaleurs, where he now resides, Jimmy Hunt did not plan to create the material for an album. Motivated rather by a literary project, he finally distilled its most significant elements into minimalist songs, freshly recorded and out now on the Dare to Care label. Hunt talk with PAN M 360 about his new opus, Le silence.
Kebamericana / Progressive Folk -
Akurion: A Labour of Love Interview by: Christine Fortier
Akurion first appeared in 2015 on a promotional CD featuring the song “Yet Ye See Them Not”. The years went by with no indication as to whether the band would ever see the light of day again. We now know that between the formation of Akurion in 2012 and the release of “Come Forth to Me” on April 10, 2020, the founding members, guitarist Rob Milley (Neuraxis, Necrotic Mutation) and singer Mike DiSalvo (Come Cluster Void, ex-Cryptopsy), went through a period of mourning. It must also be said that the other musicians of this supergroup, bassist Oli Pinard (Cryptopsy, Cattle Decapitation, Vengeful) and drummer Tommy McKinnon (Conflux), haven’t been twiddling their thumbs.
metal -
Sleaford Mods: Spring collection Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
With the double album All That Glue, Sleaford Mods get stuck on the compilation game, finally making available many of their songs that are almost impossible to find elsewhere. Fans won’t be disappointed, since the band has added several unreleased bonus tracks. The always very voluble Jason Williamson tells PAN M 360 all about it.
Hip Hop / Punk -
Einstürzende Neubauten: All is in everything Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
After four decades of experiments and sound exploration, Einstürzende Neubauten are still as relevant and forward-thinking as ever. To mark their 40 years of activity, the German industrial band presents Alles in Allem, a brand new album with which they remind us of their intense passion for Berlin.
Experimental / Contemporary / Industrial / Noise -
Gypsy Kumbia Orchestra: Nomadic cumbia Interview by: Michel Rondeau
Five years after Revuelta Danza Party, the Montreal collective that blends cumbia and Balkan music with dance, circus and street arts in an exuberant fairground atmosphere returns with a new album, VelkomBak, the soundtrack to a theatrical show that promises to be full of colour. On the eve of its release, PAN M 360 spoke with GKO director Carmen Ruiz and artistic director Juan Sebastian Mejia.
Balkan music / Cumbia -
Catherine Major: What’s in the cards Interview by: Alain Brunet
What is Catherine Major doing in these uncertain times? Children, songs, lasting relationships in the country, a vast home. The artist created Par-dessus bord in 2004, Rose sang in 2008, Le désert des solitudes in 2011 La maison du monde in 2015, and now here’s Carte mère, on the Audiogram label. A virtual launch is scheduled for Friday, May 15. PAN M 360 spoke with Major for some details.
Electronic / Orchestral Pop -
Paramirabo: Alone together Interview by: Marie-Pierre Brasset
The Juno Awards, which were to have been held in March, have been postponed to an as yet unknown date, leaving a multitude of artists worthy of celebration hanging. Among them are Ensemble Paramirabo, nominated for the classical album of the year with Alone and Unalone, dedicated to Canadian composer James O’Callaghan. PAN M 360 spoke with the composer, as well as Jeffrey Stonehouse, flutist and artistic director of the ensemble, about the genesis and creation of the album, one of the fundamental issues being the adaptation of music conceived for the concert hall to a recorded medium, a subject that is strangely relevant in these special times.
Classical / Contemporary -
Mara Tremblay: lows and highs, miseries and greatness... Interview by: Alain Brunet
At the end of a particularly difficult time in her personal life, an upswing helped reinvigorate Mara Tremblay’s inner garden, which led her to create this magnificent Uniquement pour toi, on the Audiogram label. She shared the story of her recent life, and the creative process that followed, with PAN M 360.
Americana / Folk Rock / Kebamericana / Rock -
Pantayo: Kulintang connectors Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
The “lo-fi R&B gong punk” of Toronto-based diasporic Filipina quintet Pantayo’s eponymous album isn’t just a bridge between then and now, here and there. It’s a bit more like Tokyo’s famously complex Shibuya crosswalk, patching together practical feminism, punk ethos, Indigenous resistance, Asian visibility, queer fabulousness, and the universal thirst for inviting new sounds – and the dancefloor of our dreams.
Electronic / R&B / South-East Asian -
Lido Pimienta: Miss Colombia, Lady New Canada Interview by: Alain Brunet
African, Indigenous, Caucasian, and Colombian roots. Pan-American migration, Canadian destination. Performer, singer, lyricist, composer, producer, visual artist, director, mother, spouse. Clearly, Toronto’s Lido Pimienta is an embodiment of the three Americas. Winner of the Polaris Prize for the album La Papessa, this very strong and gifted woman carries so many strains within her, and these transcultural materials form the framework of the edifice that is Miss Colombia. Recently released on the Anti- label, this album could well be the beginning of a new level in her career.
Afro-Colombian / Art Pop / Chamber Pop / Champeta / Cumbia / Digital Cumbia / Electronic / latino -
Basia Bulat: To life, to love Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Between the death of her father and the meeting of the man who would become her husband, Montreal singer and multi-instrumentalist Basia Bulat went through a range of emotions during the creation of her fifth album, Are You In Love? Meet an artist in tune with herself and the world around her.
Americana / Indie Pop / Singer-Songwriter -
Rishi Dhir and Elephant Stone: Broken dreams and sacred sounds Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
While Montreal’s Elephant Stone may be our local lords of the softer side of psych-rock, their lyrical aspect has bite. Following the Valentine’s Day release Hollow, an album rife with theoretical doom and despair, comes the new single, “American Dream”, a caustic assessment of the nightmare south of our border – very real, very right now. PAN M 360 spoke to Elephant Stone frontman Rishi Dhir about the song, and about Sacred Sound Sessions, his regular, semi-formal solo live-stream from his home studio – another session is scheduled for this Tuesday night.
Psych-Rock -
Shane Embury: On a new path Interview by: Francis Dugas
For over 30 years, Shane Embury has been touring the world and recording with the band Napalm Death, pioneers of grindcore, in which he is the bassist and lead composer. He now presents Dark Sky Burial, his solo project. PAN M 360 got more details from him.
Dark Ambient / Electronic -
Cat Temper: Synthwave prowls and growls Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Now that we’re fully living in the era envisioned by the cyberpunky, sci-fi arcade games, cartoons, and movies of the 1980s, it’s only appropriate that the kitsch/cool of that decade gets a reboot. Alongside chiptunes and horror disco, the synthwave movement salutes the electronic sounds (and neon-soaked visuals) of yesterday’s future. Cat Temper, aka Mike Langlie of Boston, transcends the clichés while honouring the iconography, tosses in a dash of hair-metal excess, and adds a thematic hook that will have fans of furry felines purring. PAN M 360 got Langlie to cough up a few hairballs following the recent release of Cat Temper’s latest album, Feralyzed.
Synthwave -
Wolfheart: History’s lessons Interview by: Christine Fortier
This past March, Wolfheart was scheduled to cross the Atlantic to participate in the Devastation of the Nation tour with Rotting Christ, Borknagar, Abigail Williams and Imperial Triumphant. It was an opportunity for the Finnish band, formed in 2013 by singer and guitarist Tuomas Saukkonen, to promote Wolves of Karelia, the band’s fifth album, released in April on Napalm Records. The spread of COVID-19 put a stop to the tour, which was postponed to 2021. In the meantime, Saukkonen tells us about Wolves of Karelia, which deals with a great moment in Finnish history.
Melodic Death Metal -
SOMMM: Ariane Moffatt, DRMS, all or nothing Interview by: Alain Brunet
Ariane Moffatt and DRMS, Étienne Dupuis-Cloutier by his real name, build bridges. Two generational shores are thus connected, two stylistic fronts, two ways of doing things that have become SOMMM, whose debut album has just been released on the Mo’Fat Productions label. Indie pop, hip hop, electro, franco and anglo pop cultures are at the crossroads of an original auteur pop that is in tune with the times, and Ariane and DRMS are the masters of the art. PAN M 360 took a look at these bridges with their builders.
Electro-Pop / Hip Hop -
Quasar: creation above all Interview by: Michel Rondeau
On the occasion of its 25th anniversary and on the eve of the quartet’s third live concert, which will be broadcast on its Facebook page this Saturday, April 25 at 4 pm, PAN M 360 spoke with two of its musicians, who tell us about the formation’s career, its identity, the vagaries of the profession, its projects for next season… and even about Estonia.
Contemporary -
lisalyz: Antique Chinese music in a digital wok Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
On her very recent debut release, the digital EP Still, Shanghai artist lisalyz takes antique Chinese music, for courtly soirees and lively night markets alike, chops it up and chucks in a digital wok. The slices and snippets are judiciously selected, the Ableton operations able indeed, and the results simply sublime, delicate and delectable. PAN M 360 got some further insights from 27-year-old Belisa Lin, aka lisalyz.
Electronic / Traditional -
The Orb: Spatial family Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Abolition of the Royal Familia is a compendium of everything The Orb has touched on in some thirty years of service. We connected with Alex Paterson, the great manitou of the British electro entity.
Electronic -
NOBRO: Sonic women Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
With the EP Sick Hustle, NOBRO prove to all who still doubted it that rock with a feminine touch is as devastating as it is unifying. PAN M 360 connected with the band, and presents the PREMIERE of the brand new video for “Don’t Die”, directed by artist Greg Doble.
Punk Rock -
Shabazz Palaces: in a position to act Interview by: Alain Brunet
A close collaborator with Montrealer Pierre Kwenders on his latest album, a beatmaker and rapper of great influence since the ’90s when he tore things up with the excellent Digable Planets, Ishmael Butler is reached in Seattle. We must talk about Shabazz Palaces, a hip hop project he’s been leading for nearly a decade. The group’s fifth opus, The Don of Diamond Dreams, has just been released on Sub Pop. Here are our questions, here are his answers.
Hip Hop -
The Mauskovic Dance Band: Dancing in the Darkness Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Amsterdam’s Mauskovic Dance Band crank out a colourful, cosmo-tropical cocktail of marginal musical modes, held together by the centrifugal force of its frenetic rhythms. Band leader Nicola Mauskovic spoke to PAN M 360 about the temptation to overdo it, the shadows behind the sunshine, the nightclub where their album was born, and the dubwise direction of its quick follow-up, the recent Shadance Hall EP.
Afro-Caribbean / Cumbia / Dub / Electronic -
Souldia : backstage reflections Interview by: Alain Brunet
Kevin Saint-Laurent, a key figure in keb rap, fell into it when adolescence hit, and soon found himself cooking up his first gangsta potions, while going through difficult times, from petty crime to incarceration. Today, his hip hop baggage exceeds two decades – he’s been recording non-stop since 2009. Conceived around stories inspired by life away from the spotlights, the freshly released Backstage arrives care of the 7ième Ciel label. Things being how they are, we reached Souldia by phone, not in the green room, but in his living room.
Hip Hop / Keb Rap -
Thundercat: Just what what is is Interview by: Alain Brunet
A compatriot of Flying Lotus, with whom he has been recording and touring since the album Cosmogramma in 2008, a collaborator with Kendrick Lamar, orchestra leader, composer, jazz/groove/R&B super bassist and countertenor whose voice is reminiscent of the late George Duke, Thundercat is the most prominent bassist of the current period. He was supposed to tour this spring with to promote his new opus It Is What It Is, released on the Brainfeeder label, but COVID-19 decided otherwise… which didn’t prevent the phone conversation here with Stephen Lee Bruner, reached in Los Angeles.
Electronic / Groove / Hip Hop / Jazz / R&B -
Zen Bamboo... wicked in the thicket Interview by: Alain Brunet
What’s going on in the noggins of the four buddies in Zen Bamboo? It’s hard to say, but, one thing’s for sure, it’s going on! Since 2014, these adult teenagers have developed a taste for their hobby that has become a profession, to the point where the band is one of the most promising in Quebec rock. Let’s look at the story of an artistic gestation, the first album from which, GLU, has just been released on Simone Records.
Rock -
Garage-rock thrills and comic-book chills from The Gruesomes! Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Montreal’s “tyrants of teen trash”, The Gruesomes, are longstanding leaders in the global garage-rock revival scene. Rarely heard on stage or record in recent years, they now crawl out of the grave with a combination comic book/seven-inch single.
Garage Rock -
Naya Ali: False start, true start... Interview by: Alain Brunet
Naya Ali, 31 years old. We’d give her ten less, and that’s just perfect for this hip hop artist who has followed her passion back to where she stored it away in her early twenties. After suspending her artistic endeavours for a long hiatus, she came back to the music game at the age of 28. Today, she is one of the most promising talents in Montreal hip hop and more, as evidenced by the Godspeed: Baptism project.
Hip Hop -
Louis-Jean Cormier / When night falls... and a new day dawns Interview by: Alain Brunet
Quand la nuit tombe is Louis-Jean Cormier’s third solo album, the most successful and least consensual of his discographic offerings since the indefinite suspension of Karkwa, the band that made him famous in the 2000s, and the most Karkwaesque of his opus! LJC’s tour was due to start soon, but the coronaviral context imposed a postponement. What’s up? Let’s virtually discuss this new creative chapter that’s beginning… in confinement.
Folk / Rock / Singer-Songwriter -
Yseult Interview by: Alain Brunet
In the predictable landscape of French entertainment, Yseult stands out as unpredictable with her independence of spirit, self-confidence, and singularity. Let’s take a look at the giant profile of this 25-year-old artist.
Electronic / Gospel / Hip Hop / Pop / Singer-Songwriter / Soul / Trap -
Deuxluxes: Burn baby burn! Interview by: Patrick Baillargeon
Les Deuxluxes present Lighter Fluid, a second album bolder than the first one they recorded… in church.
Rock -
:3LON Interview by: Rupert Bottenberg
Brooding torment and violent happiness – the volatile alchemy of Baltimore’s :3LON
Ambient / Electronic / Industrial / R&B -
Macdeath: An Excellent Nightmare Interview by: Michel Rondeau
A heavy metal version of Macbeth is the crazy gamble that director Jocelyn Pelletier, noise artist and sound designer Érick D’Orion, and a handful of brave actors have taken on.
metal -
Anna Calvi, Hunter, Hunted... Interview by: Alain Brunet
After launching the album Hunter in 2018 and bringing it to life, Anna Calvi released Hunted, and now hits the road again. A stopover is planned at the Palais Montcalm in Quebec City on March 30. In the meantime, the British singer is talking about her new work… and her new tour.
Rock -
Dan Snaith, Caribou, Suddenly... Interview by: Alain Brunet
2020 marks 15 years of existence for the Caribou nickname of Canadian musician Daniel Snaith, also known as Manitoba (in his early days) and Daphni (that one’s still around today). Suddenly, Snaith’s fifth album under the Caribou name, has just been released by Merge Records and precedes an international tour currently in preparation.
Electronic
Listings 360
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Thu 06 Oct 2022 • 07:30 pm classique Harmonium Symphonique – La création originale à la Place des Arts Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier - Montréal De 68,94 $ à 223,41 $ -
Thu 06 Oct 2022 • 07:30 pm classique Hopkinson Smith à la Salle Bourgie Salle Bourgie - Montréal À partir de 28 $
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Thu 06 Oct 2022 • 09:00 pm Jazz Gabriel Schwartz, Rodrigo Simoes, Jeanne Laforest et André Galamba au Club Balattou Club Balattou - Montréal 10 $
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Thu 06 Oct 2022 • 08:30 pm Ambient / Electronic Beacon au Bar Le Ritz PDB Bar Le Ritz PDB - Montréal 29.96$
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Thu 06 Oct 2022 • 10:00 pm Jazz Big Four au Dièse Onze Dièse Onze - Montréal 30$
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Thu 06 Oct 2022 • 05:00 pm Jazz L’Off Jazz présente Dolman-Rossy-Jobin - Montréal Gratuit
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Thu 06 Oct 2022 • 08:00 pm Jazz L’Off Jazz présente Charbonneau ou les valeurs à’ bonne place Cabaret Lion d’Or - Montréal 22$
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Fri 07 Oct 2022 • 09:00 pm Folk Pop / Folk Chipo Nyambiya au Club Balattou Club Balattou - Montreal 10 $
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Fri 07 Oct 2022 • 07:30 pm classique Harmonium Symphonique – La création originale à la Place des Arts Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier - Montréal De 68,94 $ à 223,41 $
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Fri 07 Oct 2022 • 10:00 pm EDM / Electronic Paul Kalkbrenner au MTELUS MTELUS - Montréal 57.11$
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Fri 07 Oct 2022 • 07:30 pm Psych-Rock / Rock Psychedelic Porn Crumpets au Bar Le Ritz PDB Bar Le Ritz PDB - Montréal 26,87 $
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Fri 07 Oct 2022 • 10:30 pm Jazz Jacques Kuba Séguin au Dièse Onze Dièse Onze - Montréal 30$
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Fri 07 Oct 2022 • 05:00 pm Jazz L’off jazz présente Not-so-standard Group St-Henri Jazz Club - Montréal Gratuit
