Tag: Gaspard Eden Pancakes

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Gaspard Eden is a restlessly creative, emerging Quebec City-based singer/songwriter and musician. Eden’s full-length debut Soft Power is slated for release later this year through Coyote Records, and the album’s material reportedly finds the emerging Quebec-based singer/songwriter and musician pushing his sound in a completely new direction from his previously released work while evoking a wide ranger of emotions through melodic soundscapes and poetic lyricism. 

So far, I’ve written about two of Soft Power‘s singles: the brooding, jangle pop track “Pancakes,” a track centered around Eden’s plaintive falsetto and an achingly wistful nostalgia for a seemingly simpler past — and the ethereal, Soft to the touch-era Jef Barbara-like “Automatic Dreams,” which featured Eden’s longtime friend, singer/songwriter Gabrielle Shonk. 

“Baby Black Hole,” the album’s third and latest single is a slow-burning, Quiet Storm-like R&B take on shimmering indie rock, centered around Eden’s achingly tender vocals that’s a dorky come-on to an object of desire, full of goofy science fiction references. There’s also a bit of mournful clarinet, which adds to the song’s mischievous yet sultry vibe.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Gaspard Eden is a restlessly creative, emerging Quebec City-based singer/songwriter and musician. Eden’s full-length debut Soft Power is slated for release later this year through Coyote Records, and the album’s material reportedly finds the emerging Quebec-based singer/songwriter and musician pushing his sound in a completely new direction from his previously released work while evoking a wide ranger of emotions through melodic soundscapes and poetic lyricism.

Earlier this year, I wrote about Soft Power‘s first single, the brooding jangle pop “Pancakes,” a track centered around Eden’s plaintive falsetto and an achingly wistful nostalgia for a seemingly simpler past — in particular, the age-old need (and desire) to have family and loved ones nearby. The album’s latest single “Automatic Dreams” is a shimmering, hook-driven track centered around jangling guitars, atmospheric synths, softly padded drums, a euphoric hook and Eden’s plaintive vocals. Sonically, the track reminds me a bit of Jef Barbara’s Soft to the Touch, as “Automatic Dreams” possesses a similar ethereal take on New Wave. The track also features backing vocals from Eden’s longtime friend, singer/songwriter Gabrielle Shonk, who adds a dreamtyl quality to the song.

According to Eden, “Automatic Dreams” “explores the different levels of lucidity that dreams cause.” The track follows a narrator through a lucid dream about a car ride that goes horribly wrong and throughout the song, he (the narrator) describes all of the sensations he felt during this vivid dream.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Quebec’s Gaspard Eden Releases a Surreal Claymation Video for Shimmering “Pancakes”

Gaspard Eden is a restlessly creative, emerging Quebec City-based singer/songwriter and musician. Coyote Records, will be releasing Eden’s full-length debut Soft Power late this year, and the album reportedly finds the Quebec City-based singer/songwriter and musician pushing his sound in a completely new direction while evoking a wide range of emotions through melodic landscapes and poetic lyricism.

Soft Power’s first single “Pancakes” is a slow-burning and brooding bit of jangle pop centered around an enormous hook, glistening and jangling guitars, Eden’s plaintive falsetto and an aching nostalgia for a seemingly simpler past that you can never get back — but while expressing the need and desire to have family around you. 

Directed by tattoo artist Phil Berge, the recently claymation video for “Pancakes” was created during COVID-19 related lockdowns and quarantines — and it draws from 90s claymation cartoons like Wallace and Gromit, Pingu and Soupe Opera among others. The video follows three characters — two men and a women — as they prepare various items for breakfast, including the namesake pancakes. Surreal things that could only happen in a claymation cartoon happen — figures morph into different things at will, as the characters make their breakfast. “There is certainly a romantic and nostalgic aspect to the idea behind this video, because all those who worked on this project grew up in the 90s, accompanied in their childhood by number of shows by television featuring animations of clay figures,” Eden says in press notes.

Additionally, the video is also influenced by Eden’s memories of browsing through his father’s collection of Beta cassettes, which featured episodes of The California Raisins. As a boy, the emerging Quebec-based artist was fascinated by the colors and textures. “By digging a little deeper into the history of the medium, we found artists like Bruce Bickford as a reference and we fell in love with [the] aesthetics,” Eden explains. “Phil Berge took me by surprise with an instinctive and creative script that perfectly complements my song,” the Quebec-based artist says. “He made this video a true work of art!”