What to know
- Angine de Poitrine is the latest Canadian musical act to blow up in popularity. Except, they’re quite weird.
- In the last week, they’ve played three sold out shows at Mod Club, opened for Jack White, and headlined FIFA FanFest.
- Grammy-winning musician and producer Justin Gray says the duo’s musical and artistic depth is why they’ve enjoyed continued success past their KEXP performance that went viral a few months ago.
Angine de Poitrine is the latest Canadian musical act to blow up in the scene. Except, they’re not your average pop stars.
Composed of guitarist/bassist Khn de Poitrine and drummer Klek de Poitrine under anonymous pseudonyms, the instrumental math duo from Saguenay, Que. have been gaining popularity over the last few months.
Last week, Angine de Poitrine played three sold out shows at the Mod Club, opened for Jack White at RBC Amphitheatre, and performed at FIFA Fan Festival in Toronto before the World Cup Finals broadcast.
But here’s the thing about the Québécois rock duo. They’re quite absurdist and weird. Khn and Klek perform in full-body polka dot ensembles including face masks with long floppy noses, gloves, shoes, and feet paint.
The duo performs music that involves micronotal melodies — played on a custom made microtonal guitar and bass hybrid — and catchy grooves built around complex rhythmic patterns. Their music sounds so full-bodied and layered due to live looping, where Khn layers the different parts live into a pedal that repeats what he plays.
Justin Gray, a Grammy Award-winning bassist, composer, engineer, producer and music professor, explained to Now Toronto why Angine de Poitrine is so universally loved despite their weirdness.
The KEXP performance that changed everything
Gray said the catalyst to the math-rock duo blowing up in popularity came from their performance for KEXP, a non-commercial radio station based in Seattle. The video, published in February, opens with one of their most-known songs, “Sarniezz,” and continues with “Mata Zyklek,” “Fabienk,” and “Sherpa.”
As of writing this story, the video has over 17.5 million views.
Usually, viral moments are very short-lived. However, Gray said the key to Angine de Poitrine’s continued success has everything to do with their musicality.
“[They had] the musical and artistic depth to capitalize on that attention properly. When people discovered them through the video, there was already a strong body of music, an exceptional live performance, and a fully developed artistic identity to back it up,” he explained.
“The video created the initial explosion, but the quality and originality of the work gave people a reason to stay, and that is the hardest part.”
Weird is popular: Why the music outlasted the viral moment
To Gray, it’s also not that strange how popular Angine de Poitrine have become in the music scene. He said there’s a long history of complex and unconventional rock reaching wider audiences. For example, Rush, Frank Zappa, Slipknot, and King Crimson.
“Rush is an especially relevant Canadian example,” Gray elaborated. “Their global success proves that different time signatures, extended compositions, virtuosity, and deep musicality can reach an enormous audience when combined with memorable writing and a distinctive artistic identity.”
Every artist exists within a music lineage, and Gray said Angine de Poitrine is so compelling partly because audiences “can hear both their influences and the places where they are moving into genuinely new territory.”
“The band is incredibly tight and are excellent performers. They know how to own a stage, they are extremely well rehearsed, and they understand how to create an experience for an audience.”
Additionally, while the polka dot costumes are what initially attracts a listener to Angine de Poitrine, they’re talented enough for it to not be a gimmick.
“The image may encourage someone to watch for the first time, but it is the music and the depth of their performances that keep people engaged.”
Audiences are too often underestimated
Angine de Poitrine’s popularity reminds Gray that the music industry too often underestimates audiences. He said labels often take the safer road, marketing universally palatable artists in an established framework.
“I think we are seeing an audience that is hungry to watch talented musicians own what they do without attempting to fit into a predefined framework. Angine de Poitrine is unapologetically authentic.”
Gray is also not trying to point any fingers, but he thinks Canada sometimes fails to celebrate homegrown talent because the Canadian industry is more often looking toward the rest of the world.
“These are two musicians from Canada who have built something special, and I love seeing the media, the music industry, and the audience aligning to celebrate it. We should do that more often!”
