British powerhouse KOYO capture strain and tension through an intimate lens in their new single “You Said It,” a feverish indie rock song bustling with energy, emotion, and passion.
Stream: “You Said It” – KOYO
We will say a lot in the heat of the moment, but there are some things we can’t take back. When we cross those lines, we are forever changing whatever our relationship may be – marking it with a deep scar that never fully heals. We’ve all seen this play out on television or in the movies, but it is best represented in the goings-on of our own lives – the friends who came and went, the people we “thought” we knew, but perhaps never fully understood at all. British powerhouse KOYO capture strain and tension through an intimate lens in their new single “You Said It,” a feverish indie rock song bustling with energy, emotion, and passion.
Fear ringing in my ear
Got to move
I can’t hear if it’s real or insincere
I don’t have a clue
Years we’re gonna lose
If we just can’t choose
Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “You Said It,” the title track off KOYO’s forthcoming sophomore album (out May 2020). Hailing from Leeds, UK, KOYO have been tearing up the local rock scene for five years now with their controlled, explosive, nuanced alternative sound. Their hour-long self-titled debut album KOYO established the band’s multi-dimensionality back in 2017, setting a high bar for a band that sounds increasingly poised to break out onto the world’s stage.
Consisting of Huw Edwards (lead vocals, guitar), Jacob Price (sampling, synthesisers), Dan Comlay (bass), Seb Knee-Wright (guitars) and Tom Higham (drums), KOYO followed their debut with last February’s raucous rock song “Before,” and shortly thereafter began their sophomore album cycle with the pulsing, emphatic lead single “Circles.” Both “Circles” and You Said It‘s fiery sophomore single “Ostracised” find an increasingly colorful KOYO tightening their sound and expanding their sonic vision, thanks in large part to Dan Comlay’s pronounced, expressive bass work and Tom Higham’s incredibly expressive, complementary drumming.
An enviable rhythm section proves the perfect jumping off point for Huw Edwards’ finessed, distinctive vocals. Whether he’s high up in his smooth falsetto (as in the “Ostracised” chorus) or deep in his tenor (as on “You Said It” and “Circles”), Edwards bakes strong feelings into every second of KOYO’s sound.
Nowhere is the band more in their element than on “You Said It,” a multifaceted, intricate brush of immediacy and intensity that showcases their growth and musical prowess.
Perfectly-timed guitars ring out in the darkness as Comlay and Higham lay down a driving, increasingly complex and tenacious beat. Edwards’ vocals are cool, yet full of haunting expression as balances a calm and collected external appearance with inner turmoil and fracture:
I don’t mind what you said
You said it
I don’t mind what you said
You said it
I don’t mind what you said
You said it
I don’t mind
Can’t get it outta my head
The chorus marks a tipping point for the music’s built-up frustrations, but KOYO never withdraw or let up; they hold onto that tension, letting it fester and build further as the song progresses onto ever-more turbulent pastures.
“We were attracted to the ambiguity of the phrase,” singer Huw Edwards says of the band’s latest single. “Originally it was inspired by the notion that once something has been said between two people, once certain boundaries have been crossed, it can sometimes be impossible to move on. You can try to backtrack, but trust is already undermined and relationships damaged. Or maybe a truth was spoken, and “You Said It” represents a kind of catch-phrase. A final coming-to-terms with the fact that a relationship has become un-saveable. The various faces in the artwork of this album, seen already with “Circles” and “Ostracised”, represent the many facets of someone’s personality; the underlying layers beneath the visible surface, that can become disorientating and untrustworthy. Like walking through a hall of mirrors and being unable to distinguish between truth and illusion.”
With its hard rock, mathy veneer reminiscent of Band of Skulls, Metric, and Foo Fighters, “You Said It” hits heavy and refuses to let up. It’s moody, progressive rock packed into an impassioned three-minute stretch that seems to last a lifetime. Dark, dynamic, and unrelenting, “You Said It” is reason enough to add KOYO to you artist-to-watch lists.
Stream the band’s new single exclusively on Atwood Magazine; KOYO’s new album You Said It is out May 2020!
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Stream: “You Said It” – KOYO
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