Work
Self-Released, 2021
9/10
A Luxembourg outfit with an affinity for the nostalgic sounds of industrial, goth rock and darkwave, although MIY began as a solo vehicle for Gábor Bándi, these days Mattia D’Agostino plays drums on this sophomore album.
“Searchlight” starts the listen with nods to post-punk and synth-rock as an ominous quality surrounds the deep singing and dark buzzing, and “Work” follows with a charged presence of industrial like thundering that writhes with a fuzzy energy.
The middle tracks are among the best, and include the melodic pop ideas of “Faith”, while “Beat” builds sonically loud walls of symphonic rock. “The Night”, one of the album’s best tracks, then recruits Remeya Kingston’s smooth pipes as metallic sounds are met with tuneful, soaring singing.
Near to the end, “Another World” offers an atypical, atmospheric slant on today’s indie-tronica, and “Lose” exits the listen with soulful brass that aligns with gritty New Wave nods, effectively embracing the best moments of the outsider ‘80s sounds.
Certainly firm and riff heavy enough for fans of metal, and iconoclastic in a way that brings to mind The Birthday Massacre, there’s also plenty of timeless synth stabs to be found here, and it all comes together in a very creative and relatable listen that thematically addresses defiance and strength of the human soul in some very morbid times. Even if you never cared for Ministry, you’re going to love this.
Travels well with: Selfless Orchestra- Great Barrier; Cosse- Nothing Belongs To Anything