sunneversetsonmusic | monthly music blog

ALBUM OF THE DAY

5 APRIL 2026

Vol.I & Vol.II

ANGINE DE POITRINE

Released 9 June 2024 & 3 April 2026

Angine de Poitrine

****-

A startlingly original fusion of microtonality, polyrhythm and performance art, transforming complexity and chaos into music that is outrageously rebellious, rigorous, playful and viscerally alive.

Emerging from Québec’s experimental underground, Angine de Poitrine, the pseudonymous pairing of Khn de Poitrane (microtonal guitars and vocals) and Klek Poitrane (percussion and vocals) have rapidly shifted from cult curiosity to global phenomenon following a viral live session for Seattle progressive music broadcaster KEXP - performing in seven-feet-tall papier-mâché masks and adopting a deliberately surreal aesthetic. Having played together for over 20 years, officially launching the Angine de Poitrine project shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic and releasing their first album in 2024, the duo blur the line between band and conceptual art project. While truly individual, the approach brings to mind that of such past acts as King Crimson, The Residents, The Mothers Of Invention and early Genesis.

But beneath the visual intrigue lies formidable musicianship. Their musical practice centres on microtonal guitar systems, loop-based construction and tightly controlled polyrhythms, developed over years of playing together. Critics consistently note the paradox at the heart of their work: music that appears wilfully obscure yet remains strikingly immediate and even danceable, a balance that has driven their sudden rise as viral cult figures,

Across Vol. I and Vol. II, Angine de Poitrine establish a highly specific musical language, one that treats rhythm as both framework and illusion.

At the core is Khn’s microtonal guitar, an instrument deliberately designed to access pitches “between” conventional notes. This produces lines that feel unstable yet precise, constantly shifting their perceived centre. Around this, Klek’s frantic drumming locks into repeating cycles, the beat staying consistent as accents move around just enough to make it feel like the rhythm is constantly shifting.

Compared to it's predecessor, Vol. II is distinguished by its refinement. Where Vol. I introduced the vocabulary, the newer material extends it into longer, more cohesive forms. Tracks evolve through accumulation, (some overly-repetitively), as motifs stretch, contract and reappear in altered states, giving the music a strange, “weightless momentum”.

The duo’s central achievement is their success at transforming mathematical, microtonal and conceptual systems into music that is sensual and immediate and (despite the outrageous costuming) ultimately presenting not just a style, but a fully realised musical concept.