Steven Wilson has weighed in on Angine de Poitrine, the Canadian math rock duo whose rapid rise to fame this year has been accompanied by an equal amount of naysaying.
The pair, who perform under the noms du rock Khn de Poitrine and Klek de Poitrine, went viral in February this year after filming a session for Seattle Radio station KEXP, and have since become one of the hottest properties in live music. Their current tour, which ends in mid-December, has sold out, and a world tour in 2027 takes them to more countries and into significantly bigger venues.
"I think it's genius," Wilson tells Classic Rock. "I think the guitar player particularly is unbelievable. I love it. I think they pulled off the magic trick, because they have become they've crossed over to a mainstream audience playing atonal math rock with... You know, he's playing a microtonal guitar here. He's bringing microtones to the masses. Fucking hell! No one's ever done that before. What a Trojan horse. I think it's amazing. I mean, they're racking up millions of hits online.
"I think they've crossed over to an audience that don't even like rock. Probably a lot of fans of electronic music and dance music are digging it, some sort of math rock, prog rock, post-rock fans really digging it. Again, for some of the old-school classic rock fans, it's probably too dissonant, too angular, not melodic enough. And I get that. The people who like more pentatonic music and the blues scale, it won't resonate with them.
"But I think one of the great things about really interesting music is it is divisive. By definition, it is divisive. I think that's why people start hate campaigns against bands that are doing something different."
Our interview with Wilson, whose upcoming album Requiem For A Village will be released on November 6, will appear in an upcoming issue of Classic Rock. He plays two shows with the Parallax Orchestra next week at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Limited tickets are available.
Steven Wilson: 2026 dates
Oct 28: London Royal Albert Hall, UK
Oct 29: London Royal Albert Hall, UK
Angine de Poitrine: Vol II 2026 tour (sold out)
Oct 22: Paris Élysée Montmartre, France
Oct 24: Lyon L'Épicerie Moderne, France
Oct 25: Antwerp Trix, Belgium
Oct 27: Berlin Astra, Germany
Oct 28: Hamburg Molotow, Germany
Oct 29: Heidelberg Metropolink, Germany
Oct 31: Amsterdam London Calling, Netherlands †
Nov 01: Groningen VERA, Netherlands
Nov 05: Toronto History, ON
Nov 06: Quebec City Impérial Bell , QC
Nov 14: Montreal Club Soda, QC
Nov 16: Brooklyn Brooklyn Steel, NY
Nov 17: Brooklyn Brooklyn Steel, NY
Nov 18: Brooklyn Brooklyn Steel, NY
Nov 19: Boston Roadrunner, MA
Nov 20: Philadelphia Franklin Music Hall, PA
Nov 22: Mexico City Corona Capital CDMX, Mexico †
Nov 25: Atlanta The Eastern, GA
Nov 27: Nashville Brooklyn Bowl, TN
Nov 29: Chicago The Salt Shed, IL
Nov 30: Chicago The Salt Shed, IL
Dec 01: Minneapolis First Avenue, MN
Dec 02: Minneapolis First Avenue, MN
Dec 04: Los Angeles The Wiltern, CA
Dec 05: Los Angeles The Wiltern, CA
Dec 07: San Francisco The Castro Theatre, CA
Dec 08: Oakland Fox Theater, CA
Dec 10: Portland McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, OR
Dec 11: Portland McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, OR
Dec 12: Seattle Showbox SoDo, WA
Dec 13: Seattle Paramount Theatre, WA
Angine de Poitrine: Concerts de Musique 2027 tour
Mar 04: Melbourne Forum, Australia
Mar 06: Meredith Golden Plains, Australia †
Mar 07: Adelaide WOMADelaide, Australia †
Mar 09: Sydney Enmore Theatre, Australia
Mar 13: Buenos Aires Lollapalooza, Argentina †
Mar 14: Santiago Lollapalooza, Chile †
Mar 19: São Paulo Lollapalooza, Brasil †
Mar 21: Bogota Estéreo Picnic, Colombia †
Mar 28: Calgary Grey Eagle Event Centre, AB
Mar 29: Calgary Grey Eagle Event Centre, AB
Mar 31: Ottawa History Ottawa, ON
Apr 01: Ottawa History Ottawa, ON
Mar 06: Winnipeg Burton Cummings Theatre, MB
Mar 07: Winnipeg Burton Cummings Theatre, MB
May 02: Washington The Anthem, DC
May 03: Boston MGM Music Hall at Fenway, MA
May 05: Pittsburgh Stage AE, PA
May 06: Detroit Royal Oak Music Theatre, MI
May 07: Columbus KEMBA Live!, OH
May 08: Nashville The Truth, TN
May 10: Dallas The Bomb Factory, TX
May 11: Austin Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park, TX
May 15: Denver Mission Ballroom, ES
Jun 3-5: Barcelona Primavera Sound, Spain †
Jun 05: Paris We Love Green, France †
Jun 12: Neuchâtel Festi’neuch, Czech Republic †
Jun 14: Milan Magnolia Estivo, Italy
Jun 18-20: Scheessel Hurricane Festival, Germany †
Jun 18-20: Neuhausen Ob Eck Southside Festival, Germany †
Jun 24: Halifax The Piece Hall, UK
Jun 28: London O2 Academy Brixton, UK
Jun 29: London O2 Academy Brixton, UK
Jul 18: Toronto RBC Amphitheatre, ON
Jul 30: Chicoutimi Zone Portuaire, QC
