Angine de Poitrine’s Custom Double-Neck Guitar Fuels Their Sound and Tour Logistics

Canadian math-rock duo Angine de Poitrine’s signature instrument is a hand-crafted double-neck electric guitar that merges a six-string and a bass neck with micro-tonal frets. The guitar is central to their looping-driven compositions, enabling the micro-tonal riffs that define their viral KEXP performance. Because the instrument’s dimensions defy standard cases, the band ships it in a sleeping bag, prompting airport security to question its appearance; Khn describes the scrutiny as “looking like a dead body.”

“I carry it in a sleeping bag – it looks like a dead body”: Angine de Poitrine’s strange choice of gig bag causes problems at airports

Khn de Poitrine and drummer Klek met in Saguenay’s La Baie borough in 2004, playing together in basements. In 2013 they began a side project that added extra micro-tonal frets to a modified guitar, a technique Klek refined by sawing additional frets. By 2019 the duo performed under the name Angine de Poitrine, and a December 4 2025 KEXP session amassed 13 million YouTube views in three months. Their oversized papier-mâché masks and polka-dot aesthetic, inspired by a previously polka-dot-covered neck, reinforce the instrument’s visual identity.

“We’re not Lady Gaga. We’re not Elton John. We’re two random dudes.” The story behind Angine de Poitrine, the viral masked microtonal duo

The guitar’s micro-tonal capabilities have revived interest in non-standard tuning within North American indie circles, a niche previously dominated by groups such as King Gizzard. Emerging bands are replicating Angine de Poitrine’s fret modifications, exemplified by a cover of “Sarniezz” that uses cable ties to approximate the micro-tonal intervals. By pairing unconventional hardware with looping structures, the duo expands compositional vocabularies and encourages a DIY approach to instrument design.

“I carry it in a sleeping bag – it looks like a dead body”: Angine de Poitrine’s strange choice of gig bag causes problems at airports

Khn explains that the sleeping-bag method is the only viable way to protect the instrument, noting that “the guitar gets funny questions because I carry it in a sleeping bag and it looks like a dead body.” He adds that fans “have fallen in love with the band as it’s always been,” and the duo will not replace their masks despite a larger budget. Klek characterizes their music as driven by “a feeling of anxiousness… we’re always playing with that feeling, and tension and release,” linking the micro-tonal guitar to their live dynamics.

“The guitar gets funny questions because it looks like a dead body”: Angine de Poitrine have to transport their double-necked guitar in a sleeping bag – which causes problems at airport security

• “We improvise and make a lot of crap, then you get a little spark,” — Khn de Poitrine, guitarist

“We’re not Lady Gaga. We’re not Elton John. We’re two random dudes.” The story behind Angine de Poitrine, the viral masked microtonal duo

• “It was just like playing with Legos.” — Klek, drummer

“The guitar gets funny questions because it looks like a dead body”: Angine de Poitrine have to transport their double-necked guitar in a sleeping bag – which causes problems at airport security

• “We’re not Lady Gaga. We’re not Elton John,” — Klek, drummer

“We’re not Lady Gaga. We’re not Elton John. We’re two random dudes.” The story behind Angine de Poitrine, the viral masked microtonal duo

• “There’s a feeling of anxiousness or something that comes with the repetitions, the frictions with the microtones,” — Klek, drummer

“I carry it in a sleeping bag – it looks like a dead body”: Angine de Poitrine’s strange choice of gig bag causes problems at airports

Angine de Poitrine will launch their first U.K. tour in the coming months, bringing the double-neck guitar to new venues. The duo also hinted at a third album in development, which will likely extend their micro-tonal exploration.

“I carry it in a sleeping bag – it looks like a dead body”: Angine de Poitrine’s strange choice of gig bag causes problems at airports