Midnight Snack turned five years old this week. This was the Toronto-based artist Homeshake’s second studio album–not counting two mixtapes. Homeshake (aka Peter Sagar) may be best known as the former guitarist in Mac Demarco’s touring band, but his idiosyncratic lo-fi R&B tracks are wonderfully silly yet infectiously groovy, and they more than stand on their own.
This album brings together the best of his guitar work and his infectious synth lines, complemented perfectly by some charmingly awkward basslines and every once in a while some pitch-shifted singing. Each track is greater than the sum of its parts. For example, take “Under the Sheets”. On the surface, it’s a very bare song with only a couple of things going on. Yet, that’s all that it takes. The boxy movement of chords and jaunty synth bass keep everything going in a satisfying and steady way. Then, the synth solo swoops in to close the loop and end the song with a melodic bang.
More recent Homeshake projects focus on a dreamier, more atmospheric vision of the Homeshake oeuvre. Snack is in this wonderful sweet spot–it features some of the most variety within one Homeshake album. It basks in some slower, hazier tracks like “Faded” while interspersing fun, danceable songs like “Move This Body”. The opening track is genuinely kind of goofy in the best way possible. All of it meshes to create a cohesive and balanced album with a completely unique sonic profile.
After a listen, you really get the impression that Sagar really enjoyed making this album. He clearly takes great joy in coming up with these synth concoctions. How could someone not have fun with pitch-shifted vocals? The opener, “What Did He Look Like” magnificently sets the tone for the album. It’s a strange little track that seems to contain a snippet of a conversation about Homeshake, wondering who exactly this guy is. It’s a clever way to not only start off an album, but poke fun at the idea of an auteur–a persona that the anti-celebrity culture Sagar readily shirks. This little bit of dialogue is also a fun play on the ubiquitous R&B trope of the sultry spoken interlude. Homeshake’s cheeky version is a fitting way to incorporate it into his own sonic palette.
Although Midnight Snack isn’t the most ambitious technical or thematic project, it speaks volumes to the power of relatability and voice. Homeshake’s influences are definitely traceable (you can find them on his monthly radio show), but they come together in a new, interesting, and very compelling way throughout his discography and especially in Midnight Snack. It’s a great album to try out for any first-time Homeshake listener, and one I readily come back to as a Homeshake fan.
To celebrate the fifth year anniversary, Homeshake released a limited run of records pressed in midnight blue vinyl. Look for them in your local record store. He also released the Haircut EP in July. All proceeds from Haircut will donated to rotating charitable organizations.
