Shunk - Shunkland
Shunkland Records
Released on March 7th, 2025
Shunkland is the baroque and masterfully atmospheric debut from Montreal’s emerging shoegaze/post-punk powerhouse, Shunk. Shunk is an entirely different beast; equally experimental, ethereal, and punk-driven; I find myself struggling to categorize them into a specific genre. However, if I were to advertise them crudely to a friend, I would describe them as something along the lines of Cocteau Twins meets medieval Debbie Harry.
From the first note, you’re hit with Peter Baylis’ rich guitar tone, bright, airy, and warm like a well-needed breeze on a hot summer day. In some moments, Baylis is calculated and delicate with his playing, and in others, it is a total cascade of cranked, post-punk entropy. Higher octane tracks such as “Goblin”, “Rat King”, and “Snake” are propelled by the maelstrom of guitar, driven further by bassist Julia Hill’s dynamic arrangements, which growl and prowl with fierce intent, following you each step of the way. Hill is locked into a kind of combative harmony with drummer Adrian Vaktor, tying together the rhythm section with syncopated parts and tightening the knot with her energizing lines. And if Hill ties the knot, Vaktor is the rope itself. His beats can go anywhere from laid-back rim clicking, atmospheric patterns, to potent post-punk flurries, always threading in just the right dose of rhythmic unpredictability.
Shunk continues to captivate with euphoric soundscapes embellished with the dulcet yet radiant tones of Gabrielle Dominique’s operatic vocals, especially in the more subtle, dreamy features such as “Banale”, “Sated”, and “Clouds”. But don't be fooled; Dominique’s vocals are dramatically polarized in other moments when she spits the lyrics right in your face with ferocity on cuts like “Rat King” and “Snake”.
Shunk is what happens when dream-pop takes a wrong turn into a surreal cabaret. The goal? Total enchantment. They invite you into a twisted world of devilish women, romance, hungry goblins, a greedy rat king, and even... tennis. It is a glittering, off-kilter universe where romance gets twisted, danger is catchy, and nothing is too serious — except the commitment to a good time. Whether they’re chanting “Give us your money/Give us your infant child” in “Rat King” or seducing you with “Hug me, kiss me, suck my juices” in “Goblin”, it’s clear: Shunk is having fun — and you’re invited. Delivering theatrical absurdity with a wink and a wall of sound, Shunk doesn’t just ask you to listen, they dare you to stay. Strange, stylish, and unbothered, Shunk isn’t chasing perfection; they simply offer pure, unfiltered ecstasy in every chaotic note.
The curtains are up, the goblins are out, the rat king wants your child. What are you waiting for? Dive into the madness, surrender to the spectacle, and give Shunkland a listen.
- Mikail Kayani