Garçons Return With “in my head,” “astro,” and a New Version of Themselves

Five years can change a lot.

For Garçons, it did.

Deelo Avery and Julian Strangelove have lived a lot of life since we last heard from the Canadian duo, and rather than trying to return exactly where they left off, they are letting that time find its way into the music.

Now, Garçons are back with “in my head” and “astro,” two releases that feel less like a return to the past and more like the beginning of something new.

Back Where It Feels Right

When we asked what it felt like to finally release music as Garçons again, Julian kept it simple.

“It just feels good to be doing what we’re meant to be doing again.”

There is excitement in that answer, but also a little more weight.

“Deeper than that I think we feel this type of responsibility to make these songs reach as far as they can.”

Deelo is still letting the era unfold.

“I’ll have more of a complete feeling when the rest of the songs drop.”

That feels fitting. “in my head” does not try to explain everything at once. It opens the door.

The song circles overthinking, internal conflict, and the point where you realize you might be the thing standing in your own way.

When we asked what unlocked that idea, Julian described it as something that builds over time.

“It just builds up over time and at some point it all boils over…and you have no other choice but to bare down and move forward.”

Deelo added:

“Just going through life you learn that you are your biggest obstacle in many cases.”

Heavy Thoughts, Easy Movement

There is an interesting contrast at the center of “in my head.”

The lyrics are introspective, but the song itself never feels weighed down. There is warmth to it. Movement. The kind of track that feels made for an open window even while the writing is sorting through something heavier.

That balance was intentional.

“You could find me in a dire moment and you could find a smile with the tears,” Deelo told us.

Julian sees the production as the release valve.

“The lyrics take you through the ups and downs of life but the production is there to make you feel like everything’s gonna be okay in the end.”

That tension between weight and ease feels like one of the clearest threads running through this new chapter.

The past is there. It just does not have to dictate the mood.

Same Guys, Updated Brain

Garçons have never been especially interested in staying inside one genre.

Their music has always moved instinctively between R&B, funk, soul, pop, rock, and Afrobeat, and that openness is still there.

When we asked whether they returned with a clear sonic direction in mind, Julian said the process remained much more intuitive.

“Whatever comes out comes out, and it always leads us into an unexpected direction. Just gotta follow the song when it comes.”

Deelo had a simpler word for where they are now:

“Mature.”

The chemistry between them, though, does not seem to need much reworking.

Asked how the time apart changed their way of creating together, Deelo answered:

“Business as usual.”

Julian agreed that the connection still feels natural, but the songs themselves carry more intention now.

“There was a lot more weight to the songs right away. In a sense it was easier to be more intentional with the music and building the world it lives in.”

And when we asked what longtime listeners might recognize in this version of Garçons, Deelo summed it up perfectly:

“Same guys, updated brain.”

Then Comes “astro”

If “in my head” reopens the world of Garçons, “astro” stretches it.

Julian describes the track as something new for them.

“It’s a type of song we’ve never put out before which is exciting.”

That made it feel like the natural next step.

“It really sounds like the world we’re building so it felt like the obvious choice.”

Deelo sees it as another extension of what Garçons can be.

“It’s an extent to our artistry as you'll see when the rest of the songs drop.”

The two releases are not trying to mirror each other. Their connection is more about feeling.

“They’re both warm, emotional but fun,” Deelo said.

That description says a lot about where Garçons seem to be heading.

They are not narrowing the project down. They are opening it back up.

Letting the Songs Lead

Returning after time away can come with expectations, especially when listeners already have a version of the project in their heads.

Garçons seem increasingly comfortable leaving that pressure behind.

Deelo is clear that the past still matters.

“The past informs the present/future. that’s inevitable.”

But Julian says the music eventually started making the decisions for them.

“You sit and listen to a bunch of ideas and they have a way of telling you what to do next if you listen closely.”

That feels like the right way to describe the rollout so far.

“in my head” does not try to recreate old Garçons. “astro” does not try to neatly follow the first single.

They are letting each song push the project a little further.

Building the World Around It

The visual side of Garçons has always mattered too.

For Julian, it is simply another part of the storytelling.

“It’s just another way for us to tell the story. Hopefully they can help people connect to the lyrics on a deeper level.”

That sense of world-building comes up often when they talk about this era.

The music is one piece. The visuals are another. Together, they are slowly revealing what Garçons looks and sounds like now.

A Higher Purpose

When we asked whether returning had changed what Garçons means to each of them personally, their answers landed in very different places.

Deelo:

“No.”

Julian:

“A higher purpose.”

Somehow, both make sense.

There is still something effortless about the way Garçons move. The chemistry is familiar. The refusal to sit in one lane is still intact.

But there is more perspective now too.

Julian hopes longtime listeners, who have grown alongside them, can find their own stories inside the new music.

“A lot of them are older now, they’ve gone through similar things that we have over the years. So I hope they can find their own way to connect to the songs, find their own meaning to them with whatever they’re going through or have gone through.”

That might be the clearest way to understand “in my head” and “astro.”

They are not songs about going back.

They are songs from two people who kept moving and decided to bring everything they learned with them.

And when we asked where a new listener should go after these two releases, Deelo left it open.

“You’d have to go and find out. Different strokes for different folks.”

Fair enough.

Stream in my head & astro by Garçons out now.

Photography: Rafaela Conde & Nicolas Emas Varone