The Canadian house producer Patrick Holland likely baffled more than a few heads when he admitted in a recent profile that one of his biggest youthful influences was not dance music but the Dave Matthews Band. But perhaps that’s not so strange. There’s no obvious through line from the jam band to Project Pablo, Holland’s primary production handle, but both share an inclination for breezy, melodic, jazz-inflected grooves. Though the Vancouver native now calls Montreal home, his aesthetic hews closely to the laid-back sound of West Coast labels like Mood Hut and Pacific Rhythms.
Since releasing a promising debut on the now-shuttered 1080p cassette label in 2015, Project Pablo has kept up a steady stream of singles on labels ranging from Brooklyn’s Let’s Play House to Lone’s Magicwire to Holland’s own Sounds of Beaubien Ouest. There’s Always More at the Store showcases a few new wrinkles to his sound while also reminding us that he can also easily bang out a cool beat, too. “Napoletana” is closest to his recent run: crisp snares and hi-hats, slinking bass, and zigzagging keyboard line, with some gorgeous, hazy chords behind it all. It’s catchy, but one gets the notion that Pablo has dozens of unreleased jams just like this.
Elsewhere he moves into new areas. “Remind Me Tomorrow” features a minimal-techno pulse echoing in a metallic corridor. It’s about as chilly as Pablo can get, but a warm glow soon suffuses it, thanks to a fuzzy synth wash and a winsome motif that arises midway through the track. “Last Day” is a pleasant enough ambient piece for piano and guitar, but rather than letting it develop, he treats it as a mere interlude. Maybe Holland will risk giving such ruminations a bit more space to evolve in the future.
Echoing pings and programmed drums ricochet around the EP’s headiest entry, “Less and Less.” The track playfully dances between tingling electro, the charming sound of the Canadian Riviera, and Basic Channel’s dubby minimalism; it’s all held together by a sidewinding, minor-key synth melody. The eight-minute closer “I Heard You Breathing” features Holland’s slipperiest beat here; paired with an eloquent melody, it’s a fine example of his increasingly streamlined productions. But throughout the track runs a nagging high frequency that squeals like the unoiled wheel on a shopping cart, or a whistling tea kettle left on the stove. It’s one of the lone instances in Project Pablo’s growing yet generally chill discography that actually feels a bit unnerving.
