Today’s Sounds: EXPWY

We’re not quite there yet, but we’ve come perilously close to the end of summer.
Thankfully, the third release of this calendar year from prolific local composer Matt LeGroulx (known as EXPWY, which you can pronounce as either Expressway or Expweeee, as some faulty GPS devices might) is a fresh slice of lo-fi tropical bliss that will evoke the same serene imagery in the dead of winter as it does right now.
From bigger names like Ariel Pink to a growing list of Montreal-based artists (Dirty Beaches, Each Other), there are more than a few individuals unreliably narrating our faint memories of AM Gold. Surf, psychedelic and bossa nova get their due here, but instead of precise facsimiles, LeGroulx presents them through a grainy, sepia-toned filter, so the final result is more akin to a hazy recollection. The slow-paced jingles recall my trip to Carillon beach as a child (now Parc Voyageur), sitting in the backseat and barely able to hear Oldies 990 on the radio due to the windows being rolled down.

Record:

Expwy, Little Hand Fighter (independent)

We’re not quite there yet, but we’ve come perilously close to the end of summer.

Thankfully, the third release of this calendar year from prolific local composer Matt LeGroulx (known as Expwy, which you can pronounce as either “expressway” or “expweeee,” as some faulty GPS devices might) is a fresh slice of lo-fi tropical bliss that will evoke the same serene imagery in the dead of winter as it does right now.

From bigger names like Ariel Pink to a growing list of Montreal-based artists (Dirty Beaches, Each Other), there are more than a few individuals unreliably narrating our faint memories of AM Gold. Surf, psychedelic and bossa nova get their due here, but instead of precise facsimiles, LeGroulx presents them through a grainy, sepia-toned filter, so the final result is more akin to a hazy recollection. The slow-paced jingles recall my trip to Ontario’s Carillon beach as a child (now Parc Voyageur), sitting in the backseat and barely able to hear Oldies 990 on the radio due to the windows being rolled down.

Little Hand Fighter is also pretty light on garnish, with an acoustic guitar/ukulele taking centre stage along with minimal cabasa and cabasa-type percussion. LeGroulx’s vocals, in addition to being heavy on the reverb, are delivered in a hypnotic, soothing drawl. This is an album where everything is largely in its right place, and as such is meant to seep into your subconscious slowly rather than beat you over the head with enthusiasm.

Ideal for the dog days of summer then, which hopefully will continue for a while still.
 

Track:

Parenthetical Girls, “Curtains”

 
Led by the fabulous Zac Pennington, this Portland band has been known to plunder pop songs past, borrowing liberally from the likes of T-Rex and Depeche Mode. From the fifth and final installment of Privilege (their series of 12-inches, released on their own Slender Means Society imprint), here’s another brilliant ’80s pastiche, one that could’ve made Casey Kasem’s Top 40.


 

Video:

Julia Holter, “Goddess Eyes I”

 
From this L.A. soundshaper’s sophomore album Ekstasis, this song evokes the dusky dimension of abstract dreams, an effect that’s enhanced by the chilling beauty of these images.

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