Marie Davidson

Montreal's Marie Davidson has her hands full playing in DKMD and Hotel Monochrome with David Kristian, being a member of Essaie Pas and Les Momies de Palerme, and taking part in Sam Shalabi's Land of Kush project. It seems like there's no end to her list of projects. Still, Davidson managed to find time to record this amazing EP, her debut solo outing. With breathy detachedness, Davidson's voice, at times, calls to mind that of Nico's, speak-singing its way across fields of electronics, punctuated by drum machine rhythms. The melodies are intricate, the beats sparse and the slightly chilled nature of the music raises goose bumps. "L'unique," the only track on the cassette that doesn't include any singing, ratchets up the intensity, evoking a horror film chase sequence that ends surprisingly non-violently. The remaining tracks feature an economical use of sound that belies their complexity. With a nearly bare palette, Davidson has crafted a masterpiece.