MORN are a scrappy, fired-up young indie rock band from South Wales, and they've got a whole lot of urgency and momentum in their sound. They're part of the young wave of post-punk bands currently running wild in the UK, but their sound is faster and more linear than what a lot of their peers are doing. MORN don't want to scramble your brain. They want to rock. I like where they're going.
Last yearn MORN released a very impressive debut single called "Modern Man" as part of Speedy Wunderground's Speedy Single Series. Right now, they're getting ready to play some UK shows with Militarie Gun, a cool pairing, and they've got another hugely promising new single. Label boss Dan Carey produced that nasty, propulsive new track "The Standard Model." It's a raw, nervous attack of a song, and I'm happily surprised to note that it reminds me of Art Brut. It's been a minute since anything reminded me of Art Brut. Here's what singer/guitarist Robert Riba says about "The Standard Model."
"The Standard Model" has been with us since the birth of our band. It gives unrelenting guitar madness with abrasive vocals — a commentary on a widely hated character who, at the peak of the track, turns to dust. Perhaps running away, disappearing without a trace, never held accountable. Although it hits hard, it's our least serious, most purely fun and ecstatic song. We built it by stitching two catchy riffs together, and our live performance really grew around it. Both tracks were captured live in Dan Carey's studio in Streatham, the energy bouncing off the walls of this small room with all of us crammed inside.
Felix Lawson, Luca Lawson, and Benjamin Pritchard directed the video for "The Standard Model," which mirrors the song's energy nicely. On top of that, MORN have also released their B-side "I Watched You As Your Mind Slipped Far (Away From Me)," which starts out moody and gets heavy. It sounds nothing like the other two MORN songs out on the market. Based on all available evidence, I'd say it's time to start getting psyched about this band. Check out both songs below.
