Gimmicks

Description

After releasing their third album, Maintenant Jamais, and a tour in Europe, the United States, Canada, and Mexico in 2025, Population II now announces Gimmicks, a new EP of synth-rock. Blending vocals and instrumentals, Gimmicks serves as a companion to the band's latest album. It is an extension of the electronic sounds we explored on Maintenant Jamais, with tracks like "13 1 3 1" and "Poudreuse Blues," explains Pierre-Luc Gratton. Even though we added upright piano and fuzz bass to some songs, our number one rule for this project was: keyboards and synthesizers above all! That’s why they decided to completely abandon the guitar on these new tracks, once again demonstrating the extent of their versatility. Rhythmically, the use of a drum machine allowed the musicians to push their own limits and elevate this stylistic exercise to a higher level. It made us rethink our rhythmic habits and add bursts of intensity by experimenting with timbres and sound dynamics. The result is an EP that is sometimes unsettling, sometimes dreamlike, but perfectly calibrated, where restraint gives way to ingenuity, freedom, and friendship. While fans of prog and krautrock will recognize the influence of Syrinx, Tangerine Dream, and Cluster, Gimmicks is, above all, the assertion of a band capable of looking back to move forward.