Toronto, Canada-based singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Adam Marek Platek, aka MISSING PET, releases new EP, Sentimental Germ.

By Graeme Smith

Adam birthed MISSING PET during the pandemic. Stuck at home, he found himself feeling like “a house pet trapped in an unnatural habitat.” He realised then that something felt off and missing from the life he had created. It’s this universal feeling of missing something that Adam explores with his music.

After releasing a handful of singles as the project in 2021, he was recently driven back to it by the end of a long-term relationship and the breakup of his former electro-rock band. Seeking refuge in music, from this misfortune came the Sentimental Germ EP.

As a collection, it strikes an eerie and uncomfortable tone. Bad Vibes Only sets the scene with its dark undercurrents and pulsating bass beats. Expressive vocals deliver lyrics that eschew the trend of toxic, false positivity, rather wallowing in razor-sharp honesty. All the while, the relentless instrumental never lets up.

That severeness spills over into I Used To Care, which tempers it with lighter, carnivalesque layers. Its lyrics is a sigh of frustration. Hit Where It Hurts lightens things further musically with some acoustic rock elements before Papercuts rounds off the EP with its paciest number. Channelling the best of the ’90s rave scene we get breakbeats aplenty to back soulful, dreamy vocals.

A visceral collection such as this could come over as a little self-pitying, but Adam manages to swerve clear of that by keeping his sentiments universal and backing them with some savage instrumental arrangements. It feels like a record to which I will frequently return.

Sentimental Germ was recorded by Josh Korody at Wychwood Sound and is out now. You can give it a listen below.