Deeply propulsive and intimately human all at once, MYRNE’s ‘Circles’ EP seeks out stillness in the turmoil through an immersive experience balancing cool sound with warm feeling.
Stream: “What Can I Do” – MYRNE
A tender tempest of emotionally resonant electronic music, MYRNE’s new EP is as cathartic as it is invigorating: A tight, cinematic collection that instantly jumps off the page, engulfing the ears as well as an unsuspecting heart. Deeply propulsive and intimately human all at once, Circles seeks out stillness in the turmoil through an immersive experience balancing cool sound with warm feeling.
So what can I do?
If I can’t be here, without you
I’d rather be dead
than ahead in this world without you
So what can I do?
If I can’t be here, without you
I’d rather be gone
In a world within my head
So what can I do?
So when, this is over,
I’ll be here in your arms again
Released May 6, 2022 via Astralwerks, MYRNE’s Circles EP is an enchanting and nuanced journey into the mind of one of Singapore’s most exciting dance music exports. Following 2019’s debut album In Search of Solitude and 2020’s Wandering EP, the DJ and producer found “stillness” in the confines of his home studio – a sanctuary from the turbulent outside world.
“Circles is a collection of songs I wrote in 2021, after coming to terms with some stagnation I felt when it came to writing music,” MYRNE tells Atwood Magazine. “To me, growth goes in circles, because you’re always going back to and respecting your roots. A big theme I have about music is really just spontaneity – we really shouldn’t think too much when we’re doing anything creative. So the record does sound a little jumbled, but that was just ideas flowing and turning to songs. I think it has shown a side of me that’s more lyrical and melodic, while at the same time energetic (with the titular track).”
Circles is a fresh start for MYRNE in more ways than one: Not only is it his first release since parting ways with Ultra Records and signing with UMG record label Astralwerks, but it’s also one of the first collections to showcase his own songwriting and vocals on all tracks.
“It’s helped me find my sound as an artist and work with the things I like, so that when I’m able to collaborate, I can be a bit more centered.” he explains.
Four tracks may not sound like a lot on paper, but in practice, Circles is an adventure unto itself: One with a percussive pulse, achingly intimate singing, and utterly hypnotic, hazy melodies full of refreshing energy. Opener “What Can I Do” sets the pace with a slow, methodical churn. MYRNE embraces a vast spectrum of atmospheric and ethereal sound, resulting in what feels like a massive aural hug.
Title track “Circles” is a triumphant and elevating cyclic upheaval, with the mantra-like refrain “It’s like we’re going in circles” taking on a mesmerizing, magnetic quality the more it repeats.
It’s like we are going in circles
I can’t bear to let you go
It’s like we are going in circles
To a place only we know
“With ‘Circles’, I really wanted to explore repetition and loop-based sampling in a song; I wanted to pay homage to old rave tools while adding a touch of modern-day songwriting,” MYRNE says, further citing this as his favorite track off the EP. “It’s just a nice dancey track that’s full of old rave samples!” he smiles.
As far as lyrical highlights, “I really only sing words that I’m good at (because I’m not trained as a singer),” MYRNE adds, “but I like the line, ‘I’d rather be dead / than ahead in this world without you‘ [from “What Can I Do”] in a sentimental, hopeless sort of way.”
The EP’s back half is as enthralling as its front, with the achingly melancholic emo-dance pop song “Emotion” writhing with dramatic feeling and the six-and-a-half minute instrumental “Faithless” proving a poignant, graceful finale full of dazzling textures and wondrous sonics. “I’m a big fan of open world games and I thought this would be a soundtrack to a trippy, glowing forest,” MYRNE says.
Emotion, I’m feeling kind of broken,
but I’ve got devotion
I’ll set up by the shore for you
Emotion, I’m feeling kind of broken,
but I’ve got devotion and I
will be here on forever for you
Despite (or perhaps as a result of) the conditions of the world in which it was made, Circles feels like its very own sanctuary:
A musical home base providing welcome refuge from the chaos of our everyday lives. It’s a soothing, tranquilizing, and altogether cinematic daydream – an adventure for the ears and a balm for the soul.
“For me the biggest takeaway is that it’s fun to experiment and try things I’m not so good at once in a while,” MYRNE shares. Experience the full record via our below stream, and peek inside MYRNE’s Circles EP with Atwood Magazine as he goes track-by-track through the music and lyrics of his latest release!
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:: stream/purchase Circles here ::
Stream: ‘Circles’ – MYRNE
:: Inside Circles ::
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“What Can I Do”
I wrote this with just a huge, synthy wall of sound in mind, and the lyrics came much later. I wanted to explore this feeling of hopelessness in loving someone to a fault.
“Circles”
The main synth is just chopping up a piano line I wrote. I wanted something big, energetic, as a homage to old rave tunes and the vocals came much later!
“Emotion”
The first song I wrote with the EP in mind. I really loved pop punk songs as a kid so I wanted to try and combine some of those influences into something electronic. I’m also a fan of thick, sidechained vocals so there’s plenty of that.
“Faithless”
Started with a sample of this trippy atmosphere of an art exhibition, so I recreated all the sounds in Ableton and built it around that. I’m a big fan of open world games and I thought this would be a soundtrack to a trippy, glowing forest.
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:: stream/purchase Circles here ::
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