ASKO - ASKO

ASKO is a new project from nêhiyaw and Scottish musician Marek Tyler, who drums in the acclaimed rock group nêhiyawak. But to describe ASKO as a solo effort wouldn’t be exactly right—Tyler’s approach to creativity is collective and diffuse. The project’s debut self-titled album, ASKO, is informed by guidance from Tyler’s great-great-grandfather, mother, uncle and many others. The opening track, “nôkosiw,” establishes Tyler’s philosophy: “As an artist you’re not the creator, you’re just a tool, you’re just one of the brushes,” a voice states twice, at first buried under a bustling sound collage, then louder and clearer. As ASKO, Tyler is a brush, always painting something bigger than himself. 

Tyler’s background as a drummer manifests in ASKO ’s intricate rhythms and dynamic momentum. The thumping kick drums and sweeping percussion in “nikâwîs” create a heavy intensity that gives way to cosmic synths; “pimohtêwin” begins with a low warbling bass before breaking out into a euphoric beat. The electronics of the album call to mind the best of Oneohtrix Point Never and the woozy atmospheres of 2010s chillwave, especially on the highlight “nisis.” This psychedelic track features a bass drum pattern inspired by a video of artist and musician seth cardinal dodginghorse performing a chicken dance. Tyler’s reinterpretation of dodginghorse’s footwork turns the steps into syncopated drum hits, giving the dance a new sonic dimension—another thoughtful brushstroke in a beautiful work.

Janette King - Incantation

Incantation, the sophomore album from the alt-R&B singer Janette King, explores the process of bringing dreams to life in songs about seeking fulfillment and choosing yourself. King has been building up to this release over the last couple of years, with the two-track dance EP How Sad, and appearances on Gayance’s acclaimed 2023 record Mascarade. With Incantation finally here, King sounds ready to have her moment. 

The album’s first two songs grapple with embracing the present. On the highly groovy “Here,” King sings with an effortless airiness over a roving funk bassline: “This is the type of feeling / that stands the test of time.” On “This Might Be It,” King describes what it’s like to be on the edge of actualization, accompanied by a motivational choir and Phil Collins-style percussion fills. King draws heavily on eighties sonics, with bouncy synth basslines, electric keys and bright mixes that recall Prince and early Madonna. The tracks “Taboo” and “Don’t Overthink It,” meanwhile, are slinky slow jams that demonstrate her comfort in different modes. 

Album closer “When That’s Gone” inverts the confidence of Incantation’s beginning, reflecting on what happens when the fantasies disappear. “Is it always gonna feel like something’s missing?” King asks. Maybe, but we keep dreaming either way. 

Oleyada - Late Night Jam

On Late Night Jam, Oleyada soundtracks a walk home in the dark or a nightcap on a back patio. The bedroom-pop musician from Mississauga has crafted a relaxed, evening-ready EP made up of breathy vocals, reverbed keys and sleek bass. The enticing style is deftly executed, particularly on the closer “Lies, Lies,” with its ghostly guitar strums and sixties-girl-group drums. Opener “Por Siempre” is a sweet and breezy bossa nova track, while “Deep Freeze” has a perfectly sluggish groove, both songs well-suited to Oleyada’s light, precise voice. 

It’s no surprise that Oleyada has had her songs placed in several CBC shows. These tracks are mood-forward, which isn’t inherently a negative descriptor. Despite recent concern from critics about the streaming economy’s emphasis on atmosphere over artistry, it’s only a problem when mood overtakes strong songwriting or aesthetic inventiveness. This sometimes occurs on this EP; there’s a vagueness to the lyrics on the title track that make it more forgettable than universal. But, taken altogether, Late Night Jam is the kind of EP to have on hand for when the party is winding down and the right mood strikes.

Eric Chenaux Trio - Delights Of My Life

Avant-garde singer and guitarist Eric Chenaux delights in curiosity on his latest LP. With frequent collaborator Ryan Driver on Wurlitzer organ and Philippe Melanson of Bernice and U.S. Girls on electronic percussion, the Eric Chenaux Trio creates strange approximations of the natural world, blending together the organic and the electronic. The goal here isn’t to alienate, but to recalibrate. Reality, on Delights Of My Life, droops and melts. Toad trills scoop into a metallic warble, birds chirp with an electric hum. The Eric Chenaux Trio’s pop-inflected jazz stretches the imagination, as soothing as it is distracting. 

The album’s lyrics are impressionistic, conveying a sensibility more than adhering to a particular logic. Across the seven tracks, a reverence for the unknowable and the uncontrollable emerges. “Man I love / when both they burn / and they can’t shake shake shake shake shake shake shake love,” Chenaux sings on “I’ve Always Said Love,” joined by Driver and Melanson in the tender refrain. Chenaux sounds pulled ahead by his vowels, guided toward the next syllable, sometimes landing in silly places: “And why? / Can’t I throw loving arms on Halloween?” he asks, not looking for an answer but content with expressing the question. Delights Of My Life renders that spirit of inquiry in drooping sonics and fluid arrangements, a sense of malleability fixed into forty-eight minutes of excellently slouching sound.