Reality Sandwich

After the demise of K-Pet, Kitchener producer/drummer/songwriter Karl Snyder found inspiration close to home. Reality Sandwich, his new project, are partly a family affair with five members and two generations of Snyder’s large family contributing poetry, vocals, keys, bass and graphics. Dejeuner is, at times, trip-hop extraordinaire morphed with songwriter-ish tendencies, but its full scope is much broader. From the electro-pop of "Just the Way You Are” or the sunny, genteel ’60s romp of "Please Forgive Me” to the nocturnal and brooding "Forget to Steal” and the profoundly moving Portishead-ish "Gone to Africa” this is not an album that is easy to pin down to one genre or style. Snyder could have easily written a compelling soundtrack — "Disk Mixer 2012” would best fit something Atari released in the primordial days of joysticks — and his soundscapes shine through as artistic intricacies in their own right. The secret weapon here is Kaleigh May, the Beth Gibbons of the band, whose contributions create many of the album’s most compelling moods and textures.