Latest news with #MenITrust
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Men I Trust Adds Live Grit to Gorgeous, Shimmering Dreampop Songs at Brooklyn Tour Launch: Concert Review
Canadian indie outfit Men I Trust seems beamed down from the heavens to be a headphones band. Lead singer and guitarist Emmanuelle Proulx's gentle vocals float along over a textured dreampop sound built alongside guitarist Jessy Caron and keyboardist Dragos Chiriac. The lyrics about romance and longing fit both modes the band operates in: The airy studio versions of their material, and the group's popular 'Forever Live Sessions' releases, which find the musicians huddled together and playing live. How is the group's sound translated to a live-with-audience show? Men I Trust launched the Equus North American Tour at Brooklyn's Lena Horne Bandshell on Friday night, and it's clear the band has perfected a third branch of their sound: a dynamic, road-ready live act. 2025 has been a prolific year for the group, as it included the release of its fifth and sixth studio albums, 'Equus Asinus' in March and 'Equus Caballus' in May. While the former was a slight stylistic diversion, relying more on acoustic sounds and the tempos notched down, the latter continued the unhurried but bouncy rhythm section on many of their best-known compositions. Supplemented by longtime touring bandmates Eric Maillet on drums and mononymic bassist Alexis, Men I Trust opened a career-spanning set with the bright, synth-heavy new song 'To Ease You.' One thing that separates the band from dreampop peers is the surprisingly swinging rhythm section, in which a structured bassline dances around a steady drumbeat. This heartbeat allows for propulsion even when the vibe is demure, and the opening chug of 'To Ease You' set the tone that even with hushed melodies, the set would keep moving. Perhaps the group's biggest live strength is their steadfast commitment to play in the pocket, with parts that best serve the song. Besides a guitar solo or two, the arrangements are locked in, eschewing showboating to blend seamlessly with each other. Their sound flowed on tracks like fan favorite 'Tailwhip,' with Maillet's driving but tasteful drum line creating structure for Alexis' muted, funk-influenced bass, with Chiriac's siren-inspired synth interplaying with the two guitarists, laying down pedal-distorted riffs under Proulx's fragile, gorgeous vocal line. It's a tricky balance, but the band (and the hard-working sound experts at the venue) let every well-balanced note shine through. Hearing the group's work recontextualized live also allows some of their influences to shine through even brighter. The guitars of 'Where I Sit' recall quirky '80s bands like Oingo Boingo, where 'Carried Away' is made more muscular live and sounds like a deconstruction of a forgotten grunge anthem. 'Serenade of Water' finds the group approaching trip hop, with a searching guitar line run through an expressive pedal, while 'Seven' feels like it could be a b-side to Eagles' 'The Long Run,' with a lick and rolling rhythm straight out of 1979. Despite all of these dips into the rock music songbook, all of the jams are unmistakably Men I Trust, synthesizing these ideas in tasteful ways to nudge their sound, not break it. Ending their encore by pogoing through the upbeat tracks 'Worn Down' and 'Billie Toppy,' the dancing crowd showed the power of a band turning up their amps and going large. While many Men I Trust songs began in the privacy of hushed bedrooms or small studios, the ace songwriting and Proulx's soulful vocals can touch thousands in a crowd. Best of Variety The Best Albums of the Decade
Time Out
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
Dig in the crates this weekend at Record Store Day Bangkok 2025
At some point in your twenties – likely around the time your Spotify Wrapped begins resembling the soundtrack of a Wes Anderson film – you realise you don't just 'like' music, you want to touch it. You want to hold its weight, flip it over, scrutinise liner notes like sacred text and wince at the scratch you swore wasn't there when you bought it. You want vinyl. Record Store Day, then, feels less like an event and more like a rite of passage. This April 25-27, from 10am-10pm, it descends once again upon Bangkok, sprawling across three full days and over thirty record vendors. Set inside The Storeys Square at One Bangkok, it's less 'mall event' and more temporary temple to the analogue gods – complete with DJs, crate diggers and people earnestly debating the superiority of mono pressings. And admission is absolutely nothing. There are talks, of course. There always are. Panels where collectors drop the needle on nostalgia, fansign corners where musicians meet the brave few who still buy their music in physical form. There's a DJ set billed as 'exclusive,' which usually just means you'll hear something deliciously obscure that no algorithm has yet to recommend. But let's talk about the Vinyl Swap – here's where it gets interesting (at least in my view.) You bring a record – your record – maybe a copy of Plastic Ono Band you once played in a breakup fog, maybe something French and dramatic from Air. It has to be in good condition, obviously; this isn't a dumping ground for warped regrets. You leave it on the swap table with a handwritten clue, something cryptic and tender. No titles, no names. Just a few words that hint at what lives in the grooves. Mine read: 'home away from home' with 'morning dew on cherry trees' (Equus Asinus, the album by Men I Trust.) You don't get to choose in the traditional sense. You read the notes others have left, feel a tug, and pick one. That's it. That's your new record. You're adopting someone's memory, soundtracking a stranger's heartbreak or joy. It's the closest thing I've ever experienced to emotional roulette. Nearby is Vinyl Home, a softer pocket of the event held in The Wireless Club. Inside, the chaos quiets. The turntables are real, the records on loan from the Public Relations Department's archives, and the vibe is part salon, part listening room, part vintage dreamscape. You can sit. You can breathe. You can let Side B play all the way through without anyone skipping to the chorus. Record Store Day isn't trying to sell you something. It's trying to remind you of what music used to feel like before it got flattened into files and squeezed into playlists called 'Chill Vibes.' It's messy and warm and oddly intimate, like flipping through someone else's diary written in guitar solos.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Men I Trust Release Equus Asinus, First of Two New Albums: Stream
The post Men I Trust Release Equus Asinus, First of Two New Albums: Stream appeared first on Consequence. Men I Trust have released Equus Asinus, the first of their two new albums due this spring. Spanning 14 new tracks, Equus Asinus offers a contemplative, nuanced version of the Montreal band's signature sound, with a number of down-tempo tracks and acoustic arrangements, and tasteful, nostalgic keyboard and guitar tones throughout. Stream the album below. It's also available to purchase via Bandcamp at a pay-what-you-want price. Get Men I Trust Tickets Here The band first announced Equus Asinus and its companion — the yet-to-be-released Equus Caballus — last month, along with a run of 2025 tour dates. Writing about the projects on Twitter, they explained, 'Early in the writing and recording process, we realized we had a collection of songs with distinct energies yet equally meaningful to us. It became clear that we wanted to release them as two separate entities both from the same genus: Equus Asinus and Equus Caballus.' The release date for Equus Caballus has not been confirmed, but the band did indicate that it would be arriving this spring, 'before we start our North American and European tours.' As for Equus Asinus' striking album art, featuring a shirtless man ironing a shirt, the band said the photo was taken by Donna Ferrato, and that they 'feel lucky and honoured to collaborate with her.' See the artwork and tracklist below. Men I Trust's 2025 tour dates will kick off in April, taking the band to Brooklyn, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Atlanta, and more cities, before concluding with a final show in Philadelphia on September 6th. Get tickets here. Artwork: Tracklist: 01. I Come with Mud 02. All My Candles 03. Bethlehem 04. Frost Bite 05. Heavenly Flow 06. The Landkeeper 07. Purple Box 08. Paul's Theme 09. Girl (2025) 10. Burrow 11. Unlike Anything 12. I Don't Like Music 13. Moon 2 14. What Matters Most Men I Trust Release Equus Asinus, First of Two New Albums: Stream Jo Vito Popular Posts JD Vance Booed at Kennedy Center Dropkick Murphys Make On-Stage Wager with Trump Supporter Over Where His Shirt Was Made Documentary Claims Jim Morrison Is Alive, Living in Syracuse In 2025, Lollapalooza Has Shed Its Rock Past for Good j-hope of BTS Makes Triumphant Return with Solo Tour "Hope on the Stage": Review Matt Pinfield Comes Out of a Coma After Suffering Massive Stroke: "Guys, I'm Alive" Subscribe to Consequence's email digest and get the latest breaking news in music, film, and television, tour updates, access to exclusive giveaways, and more straight to your inbox.
