It’s finally here. Vol. II, the sophomore follow-up to Angine de Poitrine’s now sold out Vol. 1, released two years ago—sparked by their performance on KEXP, which launched the masked pola-dotted monsters in international stardom overnight. It’s funny that last year, the duo played Montreal Jazz Fest with a tiny crowd of 70 or so people. Now they’re consistently selling out big venues worldwide. Seriously, there is so much hype surrounding this experimental, microtonal rock Québécois duo of Khn and Klek, which is good for Canadian music, but perhaps (if social media has anything to say about it) better for Quebec.
But this is, first and foremost, a music review, so let’s get into the music. Vol. II is quite similar to Vol. 1—a menagerie of twisting and looped microtonal guitar rhythms and freaky lead riffs, courtesy of Khn de Poitrine, with perhaps more focus on the thick bass lines leading the songs. The drumming, by Klek de Poitrine, is also still absolutely cracked, in a pocket universe of its own design. Maybe he’s actually Louis Cole. Maybe not? Almost every song on Vol. II is six minutes and change, so you really have to hold on.
“Fabienk,” starts Vol. II with some frenetic and robotic guitar licks, adding a grooving bass, and drumming hi-hat madness; it’s very prog rock for the first three minutes, but becomes more funky halfway through, and much more funny as both members chant “SEBASTIAN” (the name of their manager) in echoey falsettos. Personally, I prefer the second half more than the first, and I usually love prog rock, but it does come off quite similar for the first three or four minutes. “Mata Zyklek” has more legs, sounding like a psychedelic nightmare through a sinister desert. “Sarniezz” is the corresponding cousin, with a twisting bass line and microtonal guitar riffs, sounding very Middle Eastern. I find this track’s ascending and descending riff gets wedged in my mind the most.
“UTZP,” was a nice surprise, as it has more of a Klezmer gypsy jazz vibe, especially with the open and closing hi-hat and malignant guitar pull-offs for the first four minutes. The outro morphs into more of a psych rock and some 80s hair metal with excessive guitar scale sweeps. “Yor Zarhad,” its name sounding like it’s ripped out of the Dune novels, is the heaviest Angine de Poitrine we’ve ever heard. Near the end, it’s pretty head-bang-y, which I enjoy.
It’s important to note that Angine de Poitrine’s whole vibe is based on a joke; the music is impressive, but Khn and Klek de Poitrine are definitely (to borrow a phrase from the English) taking the piss with some of the extravagant guitar and drum playing. It’s basically poking fun at all of the over-the-top techniques that come from guitar heroes and rock music of yore and now.
I really do wonder if the microtonal guitar scales sound, that every Angine de Poitrine song relies on, will ever get tiring to the mainstream crowd. After a while, it does get a bit old for me. I find I need to be in the right frame of mind. I mean, when I see them live in the summer at Jazz Fest on the main stage, I’ll probably be in a bit of a state, so I’ll love it.
