Myrre

Mario Palumbo fronts the Myrre band which recently released Solace On Mars. The remaining members are McKinley Leonard-Scott (guitars/vocals), Kent Wang (bass/vocals) and Mike Almos (drums). Solace on Mars is a concept album based on a traveller who experiences the wild emotions of leaving home to find somewhere to belong. Not particularly surprising is that it coincides with Palumbo’s experiences; Palumbo is twenty years of age.

I think the aspect that was most unique about the four songs was that Palumbo had no problem attempting contrasting vocal styles. Take for instance the opener “Hesitate” where he straight up raps for about the first minute. Once the verse hits he changes his style, does some conventional singing and back again.

There were moments that remind me of Rage Against The Machine and moments that didn’t. It was hard to know what to make of it. There were definitely parts that worked better for me. I thought his best delivery was when he sung, “The bridges walked weren’t meant to burn To leave a town made for watching birds In time you’ll know, the voice whispered The bridges walked weren’t meant to burn.”

The beginning of “Calcite (Cease Fire)” peaked my interest. It doesn't sound much like what came before. I actually thought of the Gorillaz on this song. It took a couple of spins but I thought the song worked the longer I spent time with it.

The band starts to go off the rails stylistically with “Stuck In A Loop.” It’s a pretty straightforward punk song and it didn't feel related to the previous song on the EP. This trend continues with “Tide Eye” which is almost straight dramatic pop/rock.

The individual songs are there but the band needs to give some thought on how they can tie their songs together and build a foundation. Suffice it to say this release does not create a signature sound which I argue is something every band needs at some point.

​Solace On Mars is a solid debut effort but also points to a band that is still figuring out their sound. I think there is a lot of talent in multiple areas and I am excited to hear them evolve and come into their own. - Matt Jensen