Vancouver songwriter and producer Jeff Cancade is probably best known for the electronic pop he makes as Devours — but as the Golden Age of Wrestling, he (mostly) strips out the vocals and the beats, leaving poignant ambient synthscapes.
His sophomore album with the project, Crossface Chicken Wing, is quietly beautiful, with pop hooks that emerge from an atmospheric haze of bleary arpeggiators and warped voices. Opening track "i miss eating big league chew and watching nitro in the basement of your old house" sets the tone with misty-eyed nostalgia evoked by echoing synth chords and refrain of "I'm in the prime of my life." With a kick and a snare, this song could have been a full-blown bubblegum anthem; instead, it's a softly gorgeous meditation on childhood.
Similarly, "rottweiler" has an eighth-note synth pulse that resembles an ambient remix of a new wave banger, while late-album standouts "purgatory for vancouver buzz bands" and "koala kisses" anchor their abstractions with satisfying synth melodies.
While the album is largely instrumental, the track titles offer some hints about the music: "body shots montage" is as warped and wobbly as an all-night bender, and the feature appearance from Devours (yes — Cancade makes a cameo on his own album under an alias) adds a hint of pop accessibility to the song's middle section. The hazy arpeggios of "16mm dream sequence" are just as wistful as the title promises (albeit a bit spookier).
Occasionally weird and consistently inviting, Crossface Chicken Wing is a delicate balance, offering adventurous experimentalism without sacrificing the infectious accessibility Cancade is known for with Devours.
(surviving the game)His sophomore album with the project, Crossface Chicken Wing, is quietly beautiful, with pop hooks that emerge from an atmospheric haze of bleary arpeggiators and warped voices. Opening track "i miss eating big league chew and watching nitro in the basement of your old house" sets the tone with misty-eyed nostalgia evoked by echoing synth chords and refrain of "I'm in the prime of my life." With a kick and a snare, this song could have been a full-blown bubblegum anthem; instead, it's a softly gorgeous meditation on childhood.
Similarly, "rottweiler" has an eighth-note synth pulse that resembles an ambient remix of a new wave banger, while late-album standouts "purgatory for vancouver buzz bands" and "koala kisses" anchor their abstractions with satisfying synth melodies.
While the album is largely instrumental, the track titles offer some hints about the music: "body shots montage" is as warped and wobbly as an all-night bender, and the feature appearance from Devours (yes — Cancade makes a cameo on his own album under an alias) adds a hint of pop accessibility to the song's middle section. The hazy arpeggios of "16mm dream sequence" are just as wistful as the title promises (albeit a bit spookier).
Occasionally weird and consistently inviting, Crossface Chicken Wing is a delicate balance, offering adventurous experimentalism without sacrificing the infectious accessibility Cancade is known for with Devours.
