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Concerts
Angine de Poitrine Make Their Much-Anticipated Toronto Debut
But fans were ready with their cameras out at Mod Club.
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There are some concerts that you know will be "I saw them when" moments: The Weeknd's debut at Mod Club in 2011, a young Adele playing The Rivoli in 2008, even Nirvana at Lee's Palace in 1990. Leading up to this concert, it felt like Angine de Poitrine could join those ranks.
The Saguenay, Quebec duo have already shown they can command crowds of nearly 100,000, but they kept their first headlining Toronto show nice and intimate at about 600 people (they'll play there again two more times this week, then return to play the much bigger History on November 5). You could feel the anticipation in the air for the Billboard Canada Global Breakthrough Award winners.
Well before guitarist Khn de Poitrine and drummer Klek de Poitrine took the stage, every inch of the venue became packed with fans bringing their online virality into the real world. They spoke about their KEXP performance, their "interview" on Quebec TV and compared them to Led Zeppelin. They threw elbows, looking for prime sightlines. They came dressed in subtle costumes, wearing black-and-white polka dots on skirts, shirts and bucket hats. They may have even spotted other international rock stars who were rumoured to be in town to catch the show.
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The crowd was ready to erupt, even cheering for the band's crew (also dressed in black-and-white) erecting their DIY polka-dot sheet backdrop.
Angine de Poitrine at Mod Club in Toronto on July 14, 2026.Ryan Gagnon/Last Encore Photography for We Are In The Future
When the band finally took the stage, it was a minute before they started playing. Instead, they stood and turned to the crowd, soaking up their cheers, Khn raised his hands to the triangle on his signature hat igniting a light within it, and the two members spoke a few words in their made-up language (somewhere between a sci-fi B-movie robot, a hawk and WWE wrestler Kane), and then began the simple stop-start drum and bass loop that begins Vol. II closer "Angor." Khn signalled the crowd to clap along by clapping on the side of his helmet, which again timed to the triangle light inside.
Much has been made of the unusualness of their music — the odd time signatures, polyrhythms and microtones (the notes between the notes) — but seeing them live, you can tell why this music is so crowd-pleasing. Their instrumental grooves have a weight to them you can see in their viral online performances but you can feel live in the room. The heavy riffs and build-ups create a visceral tension and release that adds drama that doesn't need vocals. After the recent wide release of their vinyl albums, Angine de Poitrine charted on multiple Billboard charts, including the Top Dance Albums chart. That felt like a weird fit at the time, but you could see people moving to the off-kilter grooves and clapping along to the non-4/4 time signatures.
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There are bits to latch onto all throughout the show, whether it's a jammy guitar lick joining perfectly to a bass loop or the music suddenly dropping out and then returning. There are moments like the one in "Fabienk," when the duo turns to the crowd, raises their arms and leads the audience in a little dance while singing "Sebastien" (a shoutout to their manager, Billboard Canada Manager on the Rise, Sébastien Collin). Even though there are only two members, it often felt like a locked-in jam session, something akin to the desert rock groove of vintage Queens of the Stone Age. Other times it felt more like prog, psych or metal.
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Angine de Poitrine at Mod Club in Toronto on July 14, 2026.Ryan Gagnon/Last Encore Photography for We Are In The Future
It may be "difficult" music, but it's also very fun and filled with humour. Between songs, drummer Klek took a sip through his helmet with a long straw and often spilled the water intentionally on the audience. Between triggering loop pedals with his also-painted foot, Khn sometimes made what looked like exaggerated yoga poses. At one point, he used his long nose like a radio tuner, triggering sound effects along with it. Every time one of their polka-dotted crew came to fix a drum mic or towel off Klek, he received an ovation of his own, an appreciation for the band's extended alien world.
It was hot and sweaty in the Mod Club, and it wasn't long before Klek's arm makeup wore off — by now its own in-joke. Angine de Poitrine played 8 songs in just over an hour, and it felt like an athletic feat, especially right after playing at RBC Amphitheatre with Jack White during a Toronto heat wave. Still, it felt like a taste of things to come as the band continue their extraterrestrial ascent.
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