Music
13 Canadian electronic artists to watch
by Greg Bouchard
February 19, 2014
Prince Innocence
Canadian independent music has long had a penchant for synths n’ drum machines. Back in the early 2000s, when the rest of the music world was catching onto a burgeoning dance-punk scene in New York, Canada had the keyboards and guitars of Stars, Broken Social Scene, and Wolf Parade. Even a band as heavy and fast as Death From Above 1979 was locked into a synth-heavy groove.
It shouldn’t be a surprise, then, that Canada boasts one of the biggest and best electronic scenes in the world today. It’s likely you’ve heard Grimes, Majical Cloudz, Doldrums, SUUNS, etc., but they’re just the most visible part of a deep and vibrant community stretching across the country. Maybe it’s because electro works best at late-night loft parties, or mabye it’s because no one can afford to take a full band on the road anymore, but countless artists are behind their computers or noodling on their synths, creating music that’ll blow your brains apart.
The list below pulls together some of our favourite current Canadian electro artists, most of them with only a few songs, an EP, or an LP to their names. Whatever the case, you want to be listening to them right now. Once you’re done with this list, check our list of new electronic labels to watch, too.
Bad Channels
The Toronto-based duo of Nick Grottick and Jessica Gierusz play like two perfectly matched opposites. Gierusz’s soaring melodic hooks round out the edge of Grottick’s production, which is far rougher than it sounds upon first listen. The contrast is what keeps Bad Channels fresh after countless listens. Their “Death Toll” single, released last October, promises great things to come. This duo is not to be confused with the garage band Bad Channels, who made it onto our list of power pop bands to watch.
Boundary
The latest project of world-class Montreal producer/DJ Ghislain Poirier, Boundary strips down his sound—and, in the process, shows how much he can do with very little. The dark IDM soundscapes are both hypnotic and cinematic, always pointing to something more and masking their simplicity. With only a self-titled LP under the Boundary moniker, we can only hope for more.
Doomsquad
The “dark new age” stylings of Toronto/Montreal-based Doomsquad are equal parts dance party and satanic ritual. Their songs speed ahead rhythmically into darkness with unstoppable force. After releasing a pair of excellent and painfully short EPs, barely capturing their massive live sound on record, the trio is set to unveil their debut full-length, Kalaboogie, on February 25th.
Ev Ree Wuhn
Despite having released only one EP, Toronto’s Ev Ree Wuhn (who we’ve been trailing for a while) have created a vast, lush musical world for themselves. The layered vocals and rich, organic instrumental textures of Adrian Gagnon, Lawson Smith, and Alex Grant offer a level of depth missing from the average bedroom DIY project.
Fragile Feet
Montrealers Jessica Slipp and Samuel Haythornthwaite write long, wispy pop songs that change shape slowly. Their stripped down, but nuanced, recordings resemble the early EPs of Broken Social Scene’s Kevin Drew and Charles Spearin as KC Accidental. Like that duo, this one creates a sense of space that defies its small size.
James Deen
In addition to sharing a moniker with a popular porn star, Brennan Henderson, aka James Deen, describes himself as “The Michael Jordan of chillwave.” These decisions seem to indicate that the 19-year-old Kelowna, BC producer has an abundance of confidence in his abilities. As his trove of original songs and remixes shows, he might just be that good. Rarely has anyone synthesized the electronic music trends of the past five years into such a seamless and forward-looking mix as he has.
Marble Lion
There’s nothing flashy about Marble Lion, a three-piece witch house and noise outfit from Montreal who play with hoodies up and heads down, but rarely does anyone walk away from their two EPs without loving them. Marble Lion shroud themselves in darkness, only to cut through it with bright, transcendent hooks. Watch for another EP this year.
Miss Elizabeth
Odie Ouderkirk and Tom Avis—of Toronto-based blog/DJ troupe Silent Shout, who we’ve given daps to in the past—escape the normal synth-pop trappings by writing damn catchy songs with a sense of emotional urgency. Like anyone who really knows their way around knobs and keyboards, Miss Elizabeth can make achingly human sounds rise from cold technology. It’s something the world needs more of. Their Luger EP, which dropped last May, is all we have to tide us over for now.
Petra Glynt
When Alexandra Mackenzie takes the stage as Petra Glynt, she plays a combination of samplers, synths, and live percussion, all tied together by her unique and accomplished visual style. While a lesser musician might buckle under the weight of their own ambitions, this Torontonian blasts through her songs by pounding away at the drums with rare complexity and intensity. Her Of This Land EP shows a lot of promise, but her live prove that she’s one of the most vital rising artists in the scene.
Prince Innocence
More so than any other artists listed here, Prince Innocence are a classic electro pop duo. Talvi Faustmann’s reverb-soaked vocals float like smoke over the candy coated beats and synth lines Josh McIntyre (also known for his work in Little Girls). It’s almost like no one told this Toronto outfit the ’80s ended, that Twin Peaks is off the air, and Molly Ringwald is all grown up. As a boyfriend-girlfriend duo with frequent crossovers into the fashion world, they’re also a nice reminder that style has a place in music.
Slight
A self-described psychedelic pop krautrock project, Slight find beauty in repetition and understatement. These Montrealers take cues from Neu! by constructing simple songs that take on more and more weight as they play out across successive bars with uncanny precision. With only three songs available on their Melodion EP, their live shows are a must-see, if only to find out what else they have up their sleeves.
Southern Shores
The Belaric beat-leaning Southern Shores have seen their fair share of buzz since releasing their debut EP, Atlantic, in 2011, but they’re still worth mentioning because of the sheer awesomeness of that record and their second EP, New World. As with Doomsquad and Petra Glynt, Southern Shores are part of an essential group of artists pushing dance/electro percussion into new territory and making it sound fun in the process. If you don’t listen very closely, New World sounds like nothing more than a day at the beach—in a good way.
Violence
Violence are to mundane, unoriginal, four-on-the-floor electro what Bob Dylan is to Donovan. The Ottawa duo dropped their debut LP, Erlebnis, less than a month ago, and it’s already a favourite among critics and those who follow the scene. The album is filled with dark and intense production, yet still offers room to breathe and to enjoy the perfectly-crafted sounds throughout.
