Humans

Origin: None

HUMANS is a Canadian indie-electronic duo made up of musicians Robbie Slade and Peter Ricq.

Since coming together in, HUMANS have established themselves by creating sounds that successfully fuse experimental electronic elements with catchy indie-pop hooks. Focusing on performance and production styles of both the past and present, HUMANS have consistently impressed upon audiophiles with their technical and compositional skills. Using a combination of synthesizers and instruments, the sound has a certain way of being very unique, while not tied down to one specific genre.

The duo’s self-released EP Avec Mes Mecs captured the blind, wild, captivating joy of unrestrained youth, and seminal lyrics like “Who knew all we had to do was party” quickly made the EP a house party staple. The follow up EP, Traps was released with Hybridity Music. The release saw critical acclaim and college radio success, holding the #1 position for 6 weeks on the earshot electronic charts, and ranking in the top ten on BPM. Traps received a 4/5 on Resident Advisor, and the record was featured on XLR8R, Prefix, Indie Shuffle, Spinner, Interview Magazine, Rcrd Lbl, and scored the cover of Beatroute Magazine. Remixes included acclaimed producers Nautiluss and Max Ulis.

The EP lead HUMANS on a North American tour including slots at Osheaga, Squamish Valley Music Fest, Bass Coast, SXSW, Shambhala, and CMJ. Their music has been featured in placements with Red Bull, Entourage, CSI, and MTV. When not making music, Slade works on a number of projects including Bass Coast Festival, while Ricq is a well respected indie director and illustrative visual artist.

Their debut LP, Noontide is an evolution of HUMANS carefully constructed, innovative mix of heavy electronics and modern pop sensibilities. The album is a synthesis of time and space, and a testament to the many influences that make up the band’s core. Noontide was released February 24th 2015 via Hybridity Music, one of Canada’s leading independent electronic labels. The album captured the attention of fans and industry alike earning them nominations at Canada’s Junos and Western Canadian Music Awards for “Electronic Album of the Year”.

The artwork for Noontide was designed by Peter himself. Besides performing and writing with HUMANS, Ricq is an acclaimed visual artist having developed animated television shows including “The League of Super Evil” which aired on YTV and Nickelodeon and has artwork exhibited throughout Canada. He is also the director and driving force behind HUMANS’ videos including the latest video from Water Water. The duo also amped up the live show by working with Tangible Productions and creating what they call “The Blob” An amorphous inflatable white structure that houses LED lights and sensors. Robbie describes the inspiration behind it, “For our live show, we wanted to make a truly unique experience. We were hoping to create something that was really out of this world. For us, a giant, inflatable mutant cow with led light behaviours inside throughout was just that! It’s also extremely fun to romp around inside of when the show is over.. But only if you help us tear down all the gear!”

2016 is set to be a banner year for the duo with their new EP Water Water released on March 4 via New York label Mom & Pop in the USA and Haven Sounds in Canada.

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