Writing of recent single ‘Hold Clear’ back in October, we described how MVSO began as a vehicle for songwriter and vocalist duo Mat Vairo and Saumon Oboudiyat to experiment with music, though quickly evolved into a more considered creative outlet. Scheduled for release in the spring of 2024, the EP Proprioception is the first release to come from the partnership. An exploration of the “universal themes of life, death and the passing of time through a decidedly personal lens,” as we put it in our preview, allowing MVSO “to take on the biggest ideas while also recording a specific moment in their lives and the position of their friendship within it.”
The understated, simmering style of ‘Hold Clear’ suggested the form such an endeavour takes, “where,” as we continued, “the intimacy of the personal opens out into something cryptic and deep.” Now MVSO have returned with brand new single ‘Passing Through’ to further introduce their evocative sound. A stark guitar line draws the listener through the track’s shadows, where the muted ambient sounds blur into the background to evoke a sense of empty clarity. When the vocals emerge into this soundscape, they are all the more striking for it. Restrained in tone but foregrounded by the arrangement’s haunted quiet, murmured as though in distant regret or world weary contemplation.
Proprioception will be released in spring 2024. You can find MSVO on socials and streaming services.
