The Awkward Brilliance of Majical Cloudz

I've never met Majical Cloudz frontman Devon Welsh. In fact, I've never even seen him in person or read an interview with him. For all I know, he's a warm and friendly guy. Regardless, he frankly makes me a little uncomfortable.

Just look at the image to the above-right. Yikes. Practically every photo I've ever seen of Welsh looks pretty much like this: his head is shaved close to the bone, he's wearing a plain white T-shirt, and he's staring down the camera with a soul-excavating, heavy-browed look.

I wouldn't normally devote the introduction of an article to discussing a singer's appearance, but in Welsh's case, his striking look captures everything that's strange and wonderful about his music with Majical Cloudz. Impersonator, the recent album from the Montreal duo -- which also features producer Matthew Otto -- is thrilling in its austerity.

I'm not sure that I've ever heard an electronic pop record use such minimal arrangements. On song after song, Welsh croons with eye-popping emphasis, usually backed by wispy keyboards that plunk quietly in the background. You can imagine the veins in Welsh's temples bulging with intensity as he begins "This Is Magic" with the lines, "I feel like a kid / I see some monsters standing over my crib." These words take him 19 seconds to sing, with the gaping negative space filled in only with hushed organ tones.

Other songs beef up the soundscape, but only slightly. "Childhood's End" and "Mister" sport pitter-pattering drum machines and "Silver Rings" couches its arpeggios and falsetto coos in atmospheric reverb. In every case, Welsh's voice is starkly front and centre, each tremble and inflection as nakedly unadorned as his bald head.

But even if the self-flagellating sound of these sonic exorcisms aren't appealing to you, then the centrepiece "Turns Turns Turns" offers some respite. The slow, echoing beat resembles the loop-based genius of Person Pitch-era Panda Bear, and the layered vocal samples, while not exactly lush, give some idea of what Majical Cloudz might sound like with more ornate, easily palatable production.

Majical Cloudz will perform at Vancouver's Electric Owl on Monday (Aug. 19). The intimate venue will allow fans to get up close and personal Welsh. On the other hand, if that makes you feel too awkward, you can always join me in lurking at the back.