Corridor - “Topographe”

SXSW 2020 - OEB Score: 8; Popularity Index: 3

Pairs Well With…Modest Mouse, Vampire Weekend, Deerhunter

Canadian rock band Corridor released their third record Junior last fall, a collection of jangly alt/indie tracks nicely balancing breezy production and intense, garage rock performance. Arpeggiated melodies on both bass and guitar give Corridor surprising post-punk density. Take “Domino”, a track that starts as simple riffs to end in a wash of layered sound, a building technique that gives Junior dynamics and flow. “Topographe” is equally hypnotic at its core, bubbling instead of moving in any verse-chorus-verse fashion. In these shoegaze moments Corridor sounds at their best, yielding a sound that only works so well by following the patient paths that lay minutes before. The multilingual band adds even more depth to their music by breaking out of French-language tracks recently, though it makes little difference given the band’s psychedelic pop/rock echoes that make up much of their vocal and instrumental melodies. (Kevin McStravick)