Montreal's Pelada Announce Breakup, Share Final Tour Dates

The duo can still be booked until January 1, 2025

Photo: Hendrik Schneider

BY Calum SlingerlandPublished Feb 28, 2024

Pelada — the Montreal-based electronic duo of vocalist Chris Vargas and instrumentalist Tobias Rochman — have announced the end of their group.

"After 10 years we've made the difficult decision to end Pelada effective Jan 1, 2025," Rochman wrote on Instagram.

However, the duo are "still accepting booking until then," and have a series of standalone dates and festival appearances on their itinerary for 2024.

At present, Pelada have Canadian dates set for Montreal's Olympia on March 31, ahead of joining in the 2024 edition of Toronto's Venus Fest on April 4. Those shows are surrounded by sets at the inaugural Pitchfork Music Festival Mexico City, Primavera Sound in Barcelona and more.

"Thank you so much to everyone for supporting us. It’s been a dream come true," Rochman concluded. Find Pelada's 2024 tour dates below.

Breaking out of Montreal's underground electronic in 2014, Vargas and Rochman made their debut as Pelada with the four-track EP1 in 2016. Produced by Pierre Guerineau of Essaie Pas, it featured the former's expressive delivery of lyrics sung in Spanish backed by the latter's acid techno production.

Full-length debut Movimiento Para Cambio (Movement for Change) arrived via Berlin experimental label PAN in 2019, bringing Pelada's artistry to a greater audience. Lyrical themes of power, control and social justice backed by electronic compositions led the group to both support punk acts like Iceage and Shame on tour, perform live in club environments like Berghain, and at Canadian festivals including Calgary's Sled Island and Ontario's River & Sky.

Sophomore follow-up Ahora Más Que Nunca (Now More Than Ever) arrived independently last September, and saw Pelada collaborate with Backxwash and Irreversible Entanglements trumpeter Aquiles Navarro.
 


Pelada 2024 Tour Dates:

03/01 Brooklyn, NY - TV Eye (Synthicide)
03/02 San Jose, Costa Rica - Le Chandelier
03/07 Mexico City, Mexico - Pitchfork Music Festival Mexico City
03/08 Mexico City, Mexico - Pitchfork Music Festival Mexico City
03/31 Montreal, QC - L'Olympia
04/04 Toronto, ON - Venus Fest
04/05 Chicago, IL -  Sleeping Village
04/06 Iowa City, IA -  Mission Creek Festival
04/12 Barcelona, Spain - MUTEK Barcelona
04/13 Valencia, Spain - Spook Club
05/03 Bogotá, Colombia - TBD
05/04 Medellín, Colombia - Club Líbido
05/23 Lisbon, Portugal - Musicbox
05/25 Madeira, Portugal - TBD
06/01 Barcelona, Spain - Primavera Sound

Latest Coverage