Pēlikel Learns to Feel Again in New EP 'Okay, Maybe' Out Now
Montreal-based Lebanese band Pēlikel returns with EP Okay, Maybe, a flood of sound and feeling, shaped by the years of silence that came before it. The release of the lead single 'Aether Voyage' set the stage for introspection, in anticipation of their most cathartic work to date.
Immediately after the release of their debut album Shambles in 2021, Pēlikel’s writing process was stalled as Roy and Kevin relocated from Lebanon to Montreal. When the band finally reunited in 2024, it all came bursting out in one overwhelming wave of expression.
The EP had to sound as big as the meaning it carried, expressed Kevin. But being apart all this time meant the ideas just kept flowing, and we didn’t throw any away. We fully embraced the decadence, even if it came back to bite us during the mix.
Okay, Maybe draws from teenage Kevin’s writings following a health scare and intense death anxiety; at the heart of the record is a desperate wish to live without suffering. Exploring the inseparability of joy and pain, the 26-minute conceptual record follows a journey from detachment and numbness toward reclaiming the self.
Despite its intimate origins, Okay, Maybe unfolds with orchestral ambition. The band leaned fully into a maximalist approach, layering intricate guitar work, ambient textures, and lush vocal harmonies over sweeping arrangements. Mixed by Simon L'Espérance (Karcius) and mastered by Richard Addison (Trillium Sound), the result is a record that sounds vast without losing its emotional precision; cinematic in scope, but deeply human at its core.
The orchestrations Joey composed really gave the EP its sense of scale and movement, says Roy. They guide the listener through all these shifting landscapes, carrying the emotional weight from start to finish.
From delicate whispers to explosive crescendos, the EP mirrors the emotional turbulence it was born from, treating each track as a chapter in a carefully constructed whole. What starts as a longing to escape life’s weight gradually transforms into a readiness to fully experience it. Shifting from giving up to giving in, the record arrives at clarity, acceptance, and a renewed appreciation for being alive. The title “Okay, Maybe” signifies this reconsideration, and the ultimate embracing of the unknown.
This record, to me, is like sweetened condensed milk, adds Joey. It’s short, a little spoonful but with so much at its heart.
The band’s name, a nod to the French word “pellicule” (or film stock), speaks to both cinema and fragility. It’s an apt metaphor for their songs, which often feel like flickers of memory rendered in soft focus.
Aether Voyage is a blend of nostalgia for a brighter past and anxious despair for the approaching future. Pēlikel’s finest track to date.
About the Band Pēlikel – from the French “pellicule” – is a progressive rock band composed of Joey Semaan, Kevin Semaan, and Roy Andraos.
Their debut record Shambles (2021) was the canvas for defining their sound and setting the stage for their evolution. With it, the band put their music into motion, propelling them from the Beirut music scene to Montreal stages.
With the freedom of progressive rock, their music explores the wind of classical compositions, the textures of indie, and the weight of folk. It blends delicate intimacy and explosive intensity, weaving emotion into motion and spontaneity into structure, reading like a film.
