Marking a transition from folk to electronica with this new album, Montreal-based transgendered artist Rae Spoon offers something different to a genre which can feel redundant at times. I Can’t Keep All of Our Secrets is a heartfelt expression of loss, penned following the unexpected death of a friend. The contrast of Spoon’s honeyed vocals and the inhuman nature of computerized instrumentation emphasize the complexity of those inevitable existential issues following an event of loss. Pairing grief, existentialism and dance beats might seem counterintuitive, but what could make for better catharsis? And this is a sort of catharsis not restricted to Spoon’s personal experience with grief – songs like “Are You Jealous of the Dead?” feel relatable on a basic human level, the lack of humanity in the instrumentation being well accounted for in Spoon’s visceral vocal performance. January 19th at Casa del Popolo
