By Dan Moffat
When I saw the singer-songwriter name “Passion Mango,” I thought I would be biting into a bin of overripened, upbeat tunes from someone who lives in a climate with too much sun, ala Dayglow. What I got was hydroponic bedroom-pop from someone with a never ending view of the misty moldy mess that is the Pacific Northwest.
As someone from Bellingham, Washington, there is something familiar about the feel of these songs, whether it is based on the blase affect of being in a constantly gray-lit environment, or proximity to alternative Canadian music in general, I instantly made a connection. Let me say this in plainer terms: I love Canada (except when they beat the Mariners). I wanted to move to the evergreen coast when I was 18 but life had other plans. Passion Mango taps into a unique sense of place and nostalgia that speaks to me.
Passion Mango is the moniker for Vancouver, Canada based artist Connor Wilkinson, who’s hit song “Boy,” whet his appetite for subsequent albums, including last year’s self-titled and this year’s Clean Slate. Wilkinson’s haunted guitars, ethereal vocals, and sparse arrangements lurch forward on the downtempo numbers. Occasional dance breaks occur throughout, offering levity and a sense of relief to keep the vibe unexpected and hopeful, hopeful like maybe I could have my own “clean slate”: move out of the country and grow plants using a water based nutrient solution, in my element, swaying to the beat from “Joint.”
Getting their juice from influences like Sun Kil Moon, Beach Fossils, and Alex G, Passion Mango has propelled themselves across the country supporting fellow Vancouverites, Hotel Mira. The slower and cerebral numbers resemble SKM, the boxed indie beats and chorus effect Beach Fossils, and acoustic, single-named songs like Alex G. For further listening, a similar Canadian artist that also draws on these influences is Montreal’s excellent and mysterious singer-songwriter, Gaspard Eden.
On Tuesday, October 28, the passion man goes to the ME upstairs in Cambridge. Check them out.