Listen: Majical Cloudz – What That Was

No, you’re the best friend I’ve ever had. Assuring the world, one song at a time, that he’s more than a musician that once collaborated with Grimes, it seems what we’ve found in Majical Cloudz, is the heart that never materialized in Ariel Pink’s glittering and cold party where his tantrums became more of a star than Ariel himself. And the pesky little tabs of Ritalin John Maus just couldn’t manage to choke down to keep from seeming like he was plugged into a socket most of the time. Devon Welsh, the mind (and voice) behind Majical Cloudz sits somewhere right in the middle.

And yet what seems to be the most brilliant and captivating part of Majical Cloudz is the lack of cloudy, dream-washed haze in his music that has been become the horrid mark of ubiquity for bands today. There’s no quiver, or fragility to Welsh’s vocals. Instead his words command a sound and create emotion around a deep baritone virtuosity, bringing synth rippling organ sighs to life, and casting this doleful, half-cracked, and yet painstakingly genuine smile over the entire project. Oh what Majical Cloudz indeed.

Majical Cloudz 12′EP, Turns Turns Turns drops December 3rd via Merok/Arbutus.