Having already played with the likes of Minus the Bear, Dads and 1994!, Portsmouth trio Noyo Mathis have released their new EP ‘Endure’ through Animal Defence Records. Favourites of both Dengfest and Fools Paradise, the band are about to embark on a UK tour – and on this evidence, will be well worth catching.
The instrumental math-led opening of ‘Torn in Two’ kicks things off amidst thoughts of being desperate and hoping for something more. Similar in style to Interpol, with a little bit of early iLiKETRAiNS thrown in for good measure, when the lyrics come in they’re suitably unsettling as with a hint of menace, the band state: ‘I know that one day I’ll find you’. A dramatic change around the one-and-a-half minute mark finds Noyo Mathis stepping into a more hysterical rock sound while the odd time signatures and intelligent breakdown show they’re always brimming with ideas. ‘Faults’ opens with a sound akin to And So I Watch You From Afar while the lyrics again showcase the band’s fondness for the bleak as they sing ‘I’m afraid that I’ll end up alone, I’m afraid that I’ll be lost entirely’ before a big indie-pop chorus takes over, with the drums very much at the front and center. Speaking for the youth of today as they plan what the hell they’re going to do with their lives, the themes will strike a chord with anyone who’s ever thought about the future and tensed up: ‘I hate this town but I hope we never leave’.
There’s a stark contrast between the selfish-sounding ‘I Used to Exist’ – all ‘me’ and ‘I’ amongst a huge wall of guitar sound – and the title track ‘Endure’, which seems full of regret and contemplation: ‘I made mistakes before, I cannot run as I fumble through these melodies’. More emo-tinged than what has come before, with perhaps a nod to Basement, the crunching guitars complement the more fragile atmospherics perfectly, especially with the heartbreaking delivery of the line: ‘When the hospital called. I was scared that I had lost you’. The final track ‘Daughters’ finds the band back in the math-rock sound established earlier on but with more stripped-down drums and a bigger chorus. As the track falters almost into silence, it then takes one final turn and expertly builds into a melodic post-rock ending complete with rhythmic clap-alongs.
Although it’s called ‘Endure’, this is an EP you’ll be happy to embrace.
Find out more about Noyo Mathis:
noyomathis.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/noyomathis
@noyomathis
Filed under: EP review, New music, Preview Tagged: alternative music, Endure, EP review, fools paradise, indie music, math rock, music, music blog, music review, new music, Noyo Mathis, Noyo Mathis band, Noyo Mathis Endure, pop music, Portsmouth, post rock, post rock music