Live Review: IYES 'Lessons'

Precise perfectionists IYES are following up on the noise they generated from their debut EP earlier this year with ‘Lessons’, the first track from their second EP.

Josh Christopher and Melis Soyaslanová have been hard at work over the winter (well, technically summer, what with them being English but weather wise it’s pretty much the same deal), finishing up their second EP ‘Part Two’.

'Part One' was a confident and successful sample of their precision pop, and again 'Part Two' showcases their excellent songwriting and lyrics. Thoughtful, playful, clever and tapping into familiar sentiments, Melis opens on ‘Lessons’ with the admission that ‘woke up tired this morning / went to work, it was boring / time disappeared from my wrist’. We’ve all been there. Damn disintegrating watches. Joking aside, I really enjoyed this image and it shows the intelligence that goes into their moderately morose minor chord structures.

The clever production ensure that, when listened through a good pair of headphones, the jittery glitch opening vibrates in your left ear and then your right, flitting around your head enveloping it in a perfectly constructed harmonies.

As in the retro guitar of their previous single ‘No Wonder’, here we’ve got a throwback funky Elton John-esque piano tinkling that peeps in towards the close of the track, mixing with Melis’ dainty angelic voice.

IYES’ music is calm and collected, precise and honed in with finishing touches like the finessed production, layering of lyrics, alliteration and half rhymes that link one line to the next, and soft male backing vocals that bring a warm support to the feminine lead. Again, no press piece accompanies the new track as we’re told ‘they don’t want to make up a story when really, it’s just music they’ve made and wanted to share’. So there you go.

‘Part Two’ is again released via Love By Mistake.

Words by Katie Rowley

LISTEN TO MORE NEW MUSIC HERE

SEE ALSO:

IYES 'NO WONDER'

IYES 'SO CRAZY'

IYES 'NO LOVE'