PATRICK WATSON WILL PERFORM FRIDAY, JULY 25

For decades, Patrick Watson has been one of Canada's most prolific songwriters: a producer/music-maker whose fragile voice, poetic lyrics and cinematic, heart-cradling compositions have earned his band, also named Patrick Watson, nominations for prestigious awards, festival headliner slots and silver screen credits. In addition to a successful music career, Watson also regularly scores films, for example his haunting, mysterious, and sweeping soundtrack to the supernatural drama, The 9th Life of Louis Drax. So when Watson lost his golden voice for a few months, for real, in 2024 he surely must’ve thought he’d woken up inside someone else’s elevator pitch at a B-grade horror movie conference. But rather than ruminate on where he found himself, a place most singers would have rightly classified as their darkest place, Watson fixed his curious eye on the possibilities illuminated by this unique situation. There is a charming honesty that is always laid bare in Patrick Watson’s songs. So when he sings, on “Silencio” (the first single from an upcoming album, inspired by the power of silence): “I think you like me better since I lost my voice,” it’s equal parts funny and terrifying. This is Patrick Watson at his/their Watsonnest. Shhhh. Listen. - Chantal Vitalis