Buildings and Food

LATEST RELEASE

New Album - Yutori

Released May 8, 2026

Inspired by my Japanese Canadian ancestry and made in the spirit of Japan's 20th century kankyō ongaku environmental music movement, this ambient, post-classical LP values space and peace, hence the title, "yutori", the modern Japanese philosophy of consciously slowing down to create mental and physical spaciousness to reflect, create, and savour the world around us. 

I would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Government of Ontario for the creation of this project.

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“a minimalist ambient triumph” - Mike Mineo

— Obscure Sound

“a sonic bath in the spectacular now” - Richard Allen

— A Closer Listen

PROVINCIAL PARK

Provincial Park

Released May 9, 2025

A love letter to the Canadian wilderness, Provincial Park is comprised of melodic ambient and minimalist IDM tracks and is a meditation on natural wonders discovered through time spent in the backcountry. 

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“...the downtempo rhythms and hazy melodies are a match made in heaven” - Blair Millen

— The Letter

“... a swelling sonic sunrise of warm melodic IDM” - Hex Wolves

— Micro Genre Music

Provincial Park VIP Mixes

Companion ep - released october 10, 2025

Variations in production for some of the album's material, transforming four ambient tracks into these beat-y, house-y revisions.

Partially produced while traveling through western B.C. Canada, from mountains to island to ocean, all the while surrounded by ancient trees.

 

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“A quiet, breath-stealing immersion into Canada’s untamed calm, Provincial Park VIP Mixes captures wilderness wonder through drifting ambient currents and subtle pulses that feel both intimate and boundless.” - Pietro da Sacco

— Igloo Magazine

ECHO THE FIELD

Released:  May 10, 2024

Echo the Field is a meditative, minimalist work comprised of ambient and downtempo tracks. Inspired by trips to the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts, the album is both grounding and ethereal, and is a reflection on the beauty and timelessness of the desert landscape as well as an expression of the artist's hopefulness and sense of belonging in nature. 

INFINITY PLUS ONE

INFINITY PLUS ONE

Release date: September 22, 2023

Infinity Plus One is the third album by Buildings and Food and is a collection of varied instrumental electronic pieces from uplifting soundscapes to downtempo vibes. 

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“...deliriously amiable instrumentals, packed with charming melodies...its warm vibe is addictive.” - Blair Millen

— The Letter

Up Down Strange Charm

Up Down Strange Charm

Buildings and Food

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Recorded and produced in the artist's home studio in Toronto, "Up Down Strange Charm" is the second album by Buildings and Food. Encompassing electroacoustic, IDM, ambient, electropop, classical and glitch elements, most Read more

Recorded and produced in the artist's home studio in Toronto, "Up Down Strange Charm" is the second album by Buildings and Food. Encompassing electroacoustic, IDM, ambient, electropop, classical and glitch elements, most of the tracks on the album are instrumental with the exception of a few songs, one of which entitled, "Swimming in Denton" is an ode to the music of the late Zac Denton.
“Buildings and Food Makes the Retro Sound New Again ” - John Amen

— Exclaim Magazine

B-Movie

B-Movie

Buildings and Food

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B-Movie

Buildings and Food

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From the album, Up Down Strange Charm, released on September 25, 2020.

“A slow-burning, retro lo-fi number...beautiful low-key vocals and a catchy refrain make for a sweet soundtrack to a summer's end.” - Spill Magazine, Toronto https://spillmagazine.com/spill-video-premiere-buildings-and-food-b-movie/

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Artist Bio

Jen K. Wilson, aka Buildings and Food, is an independent Japanese Canadian/Scottish electronic music recording artist.  Her recent work incorporates experimental electronic, ambient and IDM.  

Jen is a classically trained pianist, visual artist and self-taught multi-instrumentalist who began her career playing guitar, keys and drums with various alternative indie rock outfits. She released her debut solo album Quick Beat Save in 2018 under the moniker Buildings and Food. Her sophomore release, Up Down Strange Charm was released in 2020. Both albums received glowing reviews and enjoyed multiple chart appearances in Canada and the U.S., earning spots on several Best of Year lists. Subsequent albums Infinity Plus One (2023), Echo the Field (2024), Provincial Park (2025) have appeared on Canadian National Top 50 and Canadian National Top 10 Electronic charts.

Reminiscent of Boards of Canada, Aphex Twin and Hiroshi Yoshimura, Buildings and Food albums consist of tracks varying from uplifting ambient soundscapes to downtempo vibes and are filled with warm synths, guitars, vintage keys and field-recorded samples.

Buildings and Food's latest and 6th full length release, “Yutori” was supported by a creation grant from the Ontario Arts Council and was inspired by the Japanese environmental music movement of Kankyō Ongaku. Her music is currently rotating on CBC Music's Afterdark and Radio-Canada's Pulsation on ICI Musique.

Buildings and Food music can be found on streaming services worldwide and is available for purchase here and on Bandcamp. 

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Debut Album

Quick Beat Save

Buildings and Food

Released in 2018, Quick Beat Save was the first project by Buildings and Food.  Stream the full album on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, Deezer, etc. or stream/purchase on Bandcamp:  https://buildingsandfood.bandcamp.com 

Reviews for Quick Beat Save

"Assured début from Canadian multi-instrumentalist is an invigorating, atmospheric delight." - Smells Like Infinite Sadness

"Quick Beat Save is as strange and beguiling as it is charming and unique. You may have heard something like it before but its deft weaves of classical and contemporary, past and present, analog and digital, accessible and baffling makes it stand out even within the canon of avant-gardening that has taken place on the fringes of popular music in the last 50 years." - The Swindonian, UK

"[Slow to Reverse] has this plodding electronic from the get-go, shifting and moving before Wilson’s voice comes in over another layer of electronics. Personally, I like the delivery, almost as if the words were dropped into thin air emphatically. It’s all highlighted, too, by some exceptional cymbal work that builds in some extra artistry. People always reference tunes that entrance them, and this is precisely what I envision."  - Austin Town Hall

"'1979: Pennies and Pluto’ bears a title no less intriguing than the music entailed herein. Several associations immediately come to mind, including Broadcast, Stereolab and Mahogany....The new single, just as ‘Slow to Reverse’, the single before this, is a brilliant reflection of the internal workings of an indie pop aficionado with a vision towards a positive musical construction."  - The Record Stache 

“An independent avant pop artist, whose music emanates endearing Stereolabesque charm… she whets our appetite with charismatic synth minimalism. The song flows with a laid-back ease, running on gently muffled and murmured vocals, yet also sparkles with brighter, peppy instrumentation. Easily Ladytron can be mentioned, as well as Lali Puna, Vive La Fête and Tying Tiffany” – Big Takeover Magazine 

"Most tracks on ‘Quick Beat Save’ are electronic instrumentals (and damn good ones). However, Jen K. Wilson (Buildings and Food) gets to demonstrates her abilities as a singer-songwriter on such cuts as “1979: Pennies and Pluto”, a great pop song with loads of quirkiness. "
- Irregular Dreams

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