Fresh from their first Worcester Music Festival performance at The Firefly, Mr Bewlay has piqued the interest of the local music scene. His latest EP, Against All Reason is available to stream now. Having worked in music for 3 years, they have built up a collection of EPs alongside touring, playing festivals and getting air play on BBC6 music.
The trilogy of EPs are each set around a certain style and colour theme. Electric Reason was bright eyed and naive, Black Reason was chaotic and sardonic. These lead into Against All Reason which deals with coming to terms the the problems covered in the first two, and then facing them, all parcelled in pink and cream to deliver us Funk, Groove and Art Pop. Of the tracks on the latest EP, Mr Bewlay describes “A lot of the themes [of the EP tracks] come from femininity, the place where women find themselves with their own choices (Worst Woman), social media (Don’t love me) and rejections of love (Far in Love).
Opening track Worst of All Women opens with a funky groove and a building chant using the female voices of the female Polish choir Ptasie Radio Ensemble. The electronic groove continues, rising as the chant rolls on, bringing to mind a gathering of marching women, empowering each other in a musical gathering. Definitely worthy of a being billed as a women’s anthem.
Second track Honey is a softer offering, a song of love and adoration with 80s vibes, groovy bass lines and some double entendres sprinkled in delicately. Mr Bewlays vocals are also simmeringly smooth as they float atop this sensual sounding song. The artists beginnings in musical theatres is clear to here in the music, flamboyance and charisma ooze out of the production and the lyrics.
Why Don’t People Love Me starts with seagulls and waves. Lyrically it touches on the things people do for likes and interactions on social media, and was promoted with a promo campaign that relied on friends and colleagues posting allegations and snowballing into everyone trying to decipher what happened, hence shining a light on not taking everything you see online so seriously. The track flows smoothly, cleverly layering different sounds and vocals to create a journey that rises and falls.
Far in Love beeps into existence and keeps the steady tempo with intricate arrangements creating a multitude of sounds, and beats out into closing track Against All Reason.
A more sombre feel to this track, yet there’s a kiss of funky old school synth radiated through this and the other technically clever songs. The lyrics seem open to interpretation, but urges you to re-evaluate how you spend your time, what’s real and important.
With influences ranging from David Bowie to Parquet Courts, this artist can be a bit of a chameleon, one whose path looks colourful and intriguing. It seems he took The Firefly by storm at the years WMF with his flamboyance and extravagant set and if these tracks are anything to go by, the diversity of his sound in today’s scene is a welcome addition.
Find out more about Mr Bewlay on their LinkTree
By: Kate Fitzer