Acclaimed Montréal-based psych rock outfit Population II — Pierre-Luc Gratton (vocals, drums), Tristan Lacombe (guitar, keys) and Sébastien Provençal (bass) — can trace their origin back a long way and are inextricably linked to their teenage memories.
After years of jamming to the point of developing a unique sense of telepathy, the trio began recording independently releasing material that caught the attention of Castle Face Records head and The Oh Sees‘ frontman John Dwyer, who released the band’s full-length debut, 2020’s À la Ô Terre, an album that saw the band displaying their mastery of improvised and sophisticated composition. The Montréal-based psych outfit then spent the better part of the next two years touring to support their full-length debut, which included stops at SXSW, Pop Montréal, Toronto, NYC, and Quebec City.
Population II signed with Bonsound‘s label, booking and publishing arms. Bonsound released the French Canadian trio’s l Èthier-produced sophomore album Èlectrons libres du québec late last year. Èlectrons libres du québec‘s much more straightforward than its predecessor and continues to showcase their remarkably adept musicianship with material that sees them effortlessly balancing between challenging compositions and memorable melodies and hooks. Sonically, the material also continues their unique take on heavy psych rock with feverish punk rhythms, early punk energy bursts, hints of jazz philosophy and a love of minor scales informed by heavy metal’s early roots.
In the lead-up to the album’s release, I wrote about four of its singles:
- “Beau baptême,” a song built around a fairly traditional and recognizable song structure — verse, chorus, verse, bridge, coda — that’s roomy enough for buying power chord-driven riffs and mind-melting grooves paired with Gratton’s ethereal crooning. The song sees the trio deftly balancing jazz-inspired improvisational sensibilities with the tight restraint of a deliberately crafted composition. The song explores the psychological journey around inspiration and focuses on the very genesis of ideas — namely how ideas are actually born and the opinions they generate. Throughout the song, the band’s Pierre-Luc Gratton sings about how writing can sometimes happen with ease and spontaneity and sometimes requires deep, long reflection. Fittingly, the song is rooted in a lived-in specificity.
- “C.T.Q.S,” a song that begins with a driving rhythm, dissonant 70s jazz fusion/prog rock organ with a slightly menacing, off-kilter vibe and a relentless punk rock-like urgency before veering into a krautrock-meets-psych ripper around the song’s halfway point. Featuring tongue-in-cheek lyrics, the band’s Gratton taunts those who are too passive and have surrendered in the face of the world’s current, turbulent state. “‘C.T.Q.S’. is the manifestation of the tribulations of the past among today’s youth,” the Montréal-based trio explain. “It’s the calm after the storm, the law of suburbia, the boomer’s victory lap. It’s searching the ‘Local business” category on Amazon.”
- “Pourquoi qu’on dort pas,” which sees the trio quickly locking into a scuzzy and forceful Stooges-like groove with dreamy and campy bursts of organ paired with Gratton’s dreamy falsetto. Caribou‘s and Born Ruffians‘ Colin Fisher contributes some forceful saxophone lines, which manage to add soulful harmony and chaotic dissonance to the affair. The result manages to evoke the fuzziness of brain fog and detachment. With a title that translates into English as “Why Aren’t We Sleeping,” “Pourquoi qu’on dort pas” can trace its origins to a number of late-night strolls through the streets of Montréal’s Ahuntsic neighborhood. “During the time we wrote that song, Pierre-Luc (singer/drummer) used to go running at night when he couldn’t sleep, explains the trio. As the flora and fauna of Ahuntsic is very diverse, he often came across geese.” Fittingly, the song thematically explores birds as symbolic figures.
- The album’s third single, album opening track “Orlando” is a scuzzy Black Sabbath-like ripper rooted around some blazing and remarkably dexterous guitar work, woozy and arpeggiated keys paired with Gratton’s punchy delivery and the trio’s uncanny knack for crafting trippy, mind-bending grooves.
The album garnered praise on both sides of the Atlantic from the likes of Rock & Folk, Exclaim!, La Presse, Le Devoir and long list of others. The band also won a Breakthrough of the Year Award at last year’s GAMIQ ceremonies.
The acclaimed Montréal-based outfit are quickly following up with Serpent Échelle EP. Slated for an April 19, 2024 through Bonsound, the EP which will be released on a limited-edition cassette tape and on all digital platforms, sees the band crafting crating material that stands out from their previously released work: Shifting between orchestrated passages and lysergic riffage without warning, the EP’s material is wilder, more adventurous and heavier. Rooted in their remarkable compositional skills, the material displays a newfound commitment to songwriting.
Thematically, the material touches upon the desperate urgency of life in the age of global doom while still enjoying life’s small pleasures — love, friendship, wine, good tunes and the like.
The album also features violin from their acclaimed friend and producer Emmanuel Éthier.
Serpent Échelle‘s first single “R.B.” begins with a gorgeous string intro and an angular and propulsive bass line paired with a quick-paced hi-hat driven bit of percussion before scorching riffs explode around the 35-45 second mark. The song spends it run alternating between breathtaking beauty and scorching power chords. Gratton’s plaintive croon darts in and out of a lysergic and deceptively anachronistic arrangement that sounds as though it could have been released sometime between 1967-1973.
The French Canadian trio will be embarking on a short run of dates that includes sets at this year’s SXSW next week, a handful of shows opening for Meatbodies, including an April 27, 2023 stop at Market Hotel. Check out the tour dates below.
Tour Dates
03/12/2024 Austin, TX – SXSW – Swan Dive
03/16/2024 Austin, TX – SXSW – Las Perlas
04/19/2024 Minneapolis, MN – 7th St. Entry *
04/21/2024 Chicago, IL – Schubas *
04/23/2024 Toronto, ON – The Garrison *
04/24/2024 Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop *
04/25/2024 Troy, NY – No Fun *
04/27/2024 Brooklyn, NY – Market Hotel *
*Supporting Meatbodies