What is life but an endless series of "uh oh"s?
From our earliest childhood accidents to our
most overwhelming adult anxieties, it's a little
phrase that looms large throughout our
existence. Just ask Montreal indie-pop
maestro Patrick Watson who was recently
faced with the biggest "uh oh" a professional
singer could endure. One morning in the winter
of 2023, Patrick woke up to discover that his
voice-the angelic instrument that propelled
2006's carnivalesque art-rock opus Close to
Paradise to the Polaris Music Prize winner's
podium -had gone completely kaputt.
"Obviously, I like singing for people, but I was
really enjoying my Modular [synth] and diving
into instrumental music"-a natural inclination
for Patrick, who's composed over 15 film
scores to date. "But then I was like, 'Oh, it'd be
cool to write songs for all these different
singers that I really want to hear sing-I'll find
my way out of this situation that way.' Because
my voice wasn't supposed to come back. And
when it did, I just thought having all these other
singers was still a cooler idea for a record than
me singing." Single black vinyl in a gatefold
jacket with printed inner sleeve.