Despite being smack dab in the middle of the digital age, people still have a penchant for physical releases. You’d be hard pressed to find a band who’s not releasing their stuff on vinyl these days, and in most underground and independent scenes, cassette tapes are still very much an integral part of sharing and selling music. However, Galaxius Mons, a synth-pop duo from Montreal composed of Ian Jarvis (Chairs) and Matt LeGroulx (EXPWY), are upping the ante by releasing their latest album GMO as a sandwich.Pulled-pork, to be exact.When you think about it, it’s kind of a genius idea. You’re at a show, you’re hungry as hell, and this way you can not only purchase a delicious, saucy pulled-pork (or vegetarian alternative) sandwich, but you also get a download code for an album of sprawling, reverb-soaked glitch pop featuring a whole host of Montreal musicians like Jef Barbara and You, Yourself and I on guest vocals.The band is dropping their new album at a release show organized at the Plant, an artist run loft space in Montreal that just so happens to have an incredible kitchen. The Plant has been a staple in the Montreal music community for the past couple of years, bringing people together with incredible food and amazing music, so this partnership is a match made in heaven. In the interest of furthering the revolution of edible albums, Noisey is not only giving you a chance to stream this delicious digital album—sans pulled-pork, sadly—but we also had a chat with Matt LeGroulx of Galaxius Mons about why they’re releasing the album on sandwich, what kind of whiskey to pair with their album, and why they think this release method hasn’t spread like wildfire yet.Noisey: Matt, how did you and Ian first start playing together?
Matt LeGroulx: We met through our friend Chris Brophy while Chris and I were both working at Jean Coutu way back in the mid-aughts. I started playing bass in Ian’s instrumental band at the time that eventually morphed into his band Chairs. Incidentally, both Chris and the trumpet player in that band, Laurent Menard are on the track "Controller Down" on the new album.And how did you guys start writing Galaxius Mons stuff together?
We were on our way to a Chairs or Expwy gig in Ian’s Civic and I had this idea to do an album using only my Moog Rogue. We made that album and it went well enough that we decided to make another one.As far as I'm aware, this is the first album to be released on food. Can you think of any other bands who've released an album in sandwich format?
Not to my knowledge.What was it about pulled pork, specifically, that piqued your interest?
A good pulled pork sandwich is in the conversation for the King of Sandwiches.Why do you think this kind of release style hasn't caught on yet?
I’m sure there are laws against it.Do you think there's potential in more abstract release methods like this?
I’ll get back to you when I’m rolling in sandwich money.Did you play around with the idea of putting USB drives in the sandwiches at all?
Yeah, but we decided against it due to the extra cost.Do you think it would work outside of a supportive, collaborative community like the Plant?
I think it would be difficult because as we’re already seeing the logistics are easy to get bogged down in and, we’re not restaurateurs. The Plant is pretty much the ideal spot for this kind of thing as they have a kitchen but like I said earlier, I’m sure there are laws against this kind of thing in a bar or other type of venue setting.Speaking of collaborations, you had a slew of Montreal musicians feature on this album and a lot of guest vocalists—did you set out with the idea of a collaborative effort in mind, or did it just kind of evolve into that?
We asked Jef Barbara to do a vocal spot because we knew he liked the first album and we’re fans of his. Jef was awesome and super sweet as well as being a total pro. It went so well that we just started asking people who we liked if they’d be interested. Most everyone said yes and everyone killed it. It’s amazing how great these songs sound with such wonderful singers taking the lead.What is your opinion on the state of music in Montreal right now?
Well, it’s an incredibly cheap place to live. As far as the wider scene I have no opinion because I only go to shows that I’m playing and I pretty much only listen to music for research purposes. The music I do listen to is the music my friends make and I think it’s the most fertile and under-appreciated scene in the country.Nick Laugher is a writer living in Montreal, he is on Twitter.
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Matt LeGroulx: We met through our friend Chris Brophy while Chris and I were both working at Jean Coutu way back in the mid-aughts. I started playing bass in Ian’s instrumental band at the time that eventually morphed into his band Chairs. Incidentally, both Chris and the trumpet player in that band, Laurent Menard are on the track "Controller Down" on the new album.
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We were on our way to a Chairs or Expwy gig in Ian’s Civic and I had this idea to do an album using only my Moog Rogue. We made that album and it went well enough that we decided to make another one.As far as I'm aware, this is the first album to be released on food. Can you think of any other bands who've released an album in sandwich format?
Not to my knowledge.What was it about pulled pork, specifically, that piqued your interest?
A good pulled pork sandwich is in the conversation for the King of Sandwiches.Why do you think this kind of release style hasn't caught on yet?
I’m sure there are laws against it.Do you think there's potential in more abstract release methods like this?
I’ll get back to you when I’m rolling in sandwich money.Did you play around with the idea of putting USB drives in the sandwiches at all?
Yeah, but we decided against it due to the extra cost.Do you think it would work outside of a supportive, collaborative community like the Plant?
I think it would be difficult because as we’re already seeing the logistics are easy to get bogged down in and, we’re not restaurateurs. The Plant is pretty much the ideal spot for this kind of thing as they have a kitchen but like I said earlier, I’m sure there are laws against this kind of thing in a bar or other type of venue setting.Speaking of collaborations, you had a slew of Montreal musicians feature on this album and a lot of guest vocalists—did you set out with the idea of a collaborative effort in mind, or did it just kind of evolve into that?
We asked Jef Barbara to do a vocal spot because we knew he liked the first album and we’re fans of his. Jef was awesome and super sweet as well as being a total pro. It went so well that we just started asking people who we liked if they’d be interested. Most everyone said yes and everyone killed it. It’s amazing how great these songs sound with such wonderful singers taking the lead.What is your opinion on the state of music in Montreal right now?
Well, it’s an incredibly cheap place to live. As far as the wider scene I have no opinion because I only go to shows that I’m playing and I pretty much only listen to music for research purposes. The music I do listen to is the music my friends make and I think it’s the most fertile and under-appreciated scene in the country.Nick Laugher is a writer living in Montreal, he is on Twitter.