TEKE::TEKE - Montreal, QC

Biography
Psychedelic rock group TEKE::TEKE are intimately familiar with duality, of splitting reality between past and present, complex melodies and hushed interludes, intense action and lingering response. After building their sound through careful assembly of countless splinters of Japanese folk, psychedelia, Brazilian surf rock, and other far-flung touchstones, the Montreal-based seven-piece indulged in and learned from stretching out in free-floating experimentation on the road. Now releasing their sophomore album, Hagata (due June 9th via Kill Rock Stars), TEKE::TEKE move fully in the space between, embracing the power of mythic pairings and identities lived at once. Matching muscly intensity with moments of cloudy meditation—like a world-class high jumper finding bliss at the apex of their leap—the group frame expressive compositions with regal flute, rich horns, ecstatic guitar, and a thumping rhythm section.
Recent Press
"'Garakuta' is a wild concoction of flutes, psychedelic guitars, unrelenting pace and circuitous fun. Can you imagine Amon Düül tripping on acid in the middle of Japan? Something like that."
- Shindig Magazine
"Spitfire songs...frenzied mishmash of guitars, trombone, assorted Japanese instruments, and Kuroki’s singing — guttural, physical shrieks in her native tongue — bears a manic energy that bleeds into even the ballads. ....engaging in a cross-continental musical scramble while flirting with detonation."
- The New Yorker
"...defies description and most definitely demands attention."
- Consequence
"...this music instantly puts you in a Seijun Suzuki ultra-cool world."
- The Wire
"Nothing else in 2021 sounds quite like it." "Spies mosh with surfers, ninjas and supervillains..."
- BrooklynVegan
"The highlight of my weekend was happening upon the Canadian Japanese rock band TEKE::TEKE. […] They were one of those bands, helped by the alternately angry and welcoming charisma of the singer Maya Kuroki, who nobody knew before and everyone was talking about afterwards."
- The Times UK