“Space Cadet / The Count” - KOYOT

Feature

15 Oct

With “Space Cadet / The Count,” KOYOT delivers a sprawling two-part odyssey that’s as atmospheric as it is electrifying — a seamless fusion of psychedelic rock grandeur, punk grit, and cosmic introspection.

The story of “Space Cadet / The Count” begins way back in 2021, when KOYOT started shaping the song’s bones and letting it grow at its own pace, “like a photograph developing on film.” You can hear that patience in the layers: shimmering synth textures from the Telepathic Instruments Orchid synth and the Hologram Chroma Console, bass lines that hum like the pulse of a starship, and guitar tones that feel half-solar flare, half-daydream.

The first half, “Space Cadet,” feels filtered through a distinctly Canadian lens — wide-open skies, endless road, and introspective stillness. Then, at the 3:05 mark, the scene shifts: “The Count” emerges, and everything darkens. The synths buzz with menace, the drums tighten, and a haunted tension creeps in. It’s an almost supernatural turn.

By the time the track hits the 5-minute mark, it completely erupts. A blistering, soul-scorching guitar solo — pure Gilmour-meets-Hendrix energy — sends the whole thing spiraling into orbit. It’s wild, cathartic, and transcendent, like KOYOT cracking open the cosmos just to see what’s inside.

Lyrically, “Space Cadet / The Count” feels like a meditation on time, memory, and what lingers after both have dissolved. There’s nostalgia here, but also propulsion. A constant push toward the unknown. It’s not escapism so much as exploration — a dive into the self through fuzzed-out riffs and delay-soaked ambience.

Following the success of “Positano” and “Melancholy,” which earned KOYOT more than 90,000 streams across 96 countries, this release feels like a major step forward. The sound of a band completely finding its voice.

KOYOT’s Cree and Métis roots weave subtly into the sound, not through overt gestures, but in the music’s sense of place, its grounding even as it soars. That mix of cultural resonance and cosmic scale gives “Space Cadet / The Count” its depth: it’s rock that’s not just big — it’s rooted.

“Space Cadet / The Count” is available now on all major streaming platforms