The first time I ever listened to a song by Canadian Indie-pop band, Metric, was in Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim versus the World. A young Brie Larson appears on stage as the narrator screams ‘And then it was time…. for Toronto… to drown in the sweet sorrow of The Clash at Demonhead!’

In a sultry, already suggestive voice, Brie covers Metric’s Black Sheep single,  chanting several oh yeahs as the crowd goes wild with ex-superman jamming on the guitar. Eyes flash, hair is tossed and silent threats fill the room. Metric’s original song gives the film added layers of complexity, contrasting the overt sweetness of Brie’s character with darkness, as the track twists and turns in its sharp key changes.

Metric’s most well-known track also embodies this theme of oxymoron, obvious in the very title as it is in the the jarring switches from major to minor; help, I’m alive.

This is what makes Metric truly unique. Each track weaves optimism with cynicism, indie-pop edged with a distinct flavor of dystopian despair. This is often so subtle that listening lifts your feelings and hopes but leaves you wanting for resolution. With their latest full-length album coming out this year, the band has been slowly releasing upbeat, dreamy singles, each more synth-heavy than the last. Their use of synthesizers give their tracks that distance between listener and vocalist, with emotion only just graspable but yet so far away that its almost surreal.

Listen to the two new singles and watch out for the new album!