My first encounter with Micah Visser happened in 2015. At the time, the Winnipeg based musician was making earnest, honest folk-inspired music. Hearing his work reminded me of how I felt the first time I heard Bright Eyes. Though this introduction was relatively recent, Visser’s evolution since then is marked on the aptly titled Forward EP, a five-song collection that thrusts the singer-songwriter into excited, uncharted synthy-pop territory.
“I Will Not Return as a Tourist” first surfaced earlier this year; it’s a tension-filled, barnburner of a track that introduced both Visser’s band, and where his musical evolution was heading. “Keeping Up” and the EP’s title song are further proof Visser knows his way around melody and musical narratives. Like Kalle Mattson, another young singer-songwriter whose style and singular sound recently developed in leaps and bounds, Visser confidently steers his band through a short, but sharply focussed set that signals many great things to come.
As he continues to move his sound and style forward with Forward, I’m predicting many more listeners will have memorable first encounters with Micah Visser in the future.
