Montreal, QC-based singer/songwriter Jef Barbara released his debut effort The Contamination last year and the album gained quite a bit of attention – first, for the fact that the  songs were entirely written and recored in French and for the fact that along with elements of minimalist electronica, Barbara’s lyrics were sexually frank. Barbara’s (mostly) English language Soft to the Touch was recently released by Club Roll Records and the album has received quite a bit of attention as Barbara openly plays with gender roles in a similar fashion to that of David Bowie or even a Janelle Monae, and because his sound manages to openly defy expectations. 

“I Know I’m Late,” Barbara’s first English language single sonically owed a great debt to the slickly produced but stark minimalist electro pop of the likes of Gary Numan, New Order, and much like those songs, it has an infectious and very tight groove. However, his latest single (and video) “Song for the Lovelshy” is a melancholy song that sounds as though it owes a great debt to Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music, as well as the gorgeous ballads of the 1960s – for me, the song and it’s respective video evoke the feel of city streets around 3 or 4 am, when it’s practically just you and your lonely thoughts.