Not letting the dust settle from their inventive and experimentally-organised debut album Megabear, ME REX are back with a new track and news of a forthcoming EP. While it’s nigh impossible to say that “Never Graduate” picks off perfectly from where Megabear ended (what with it being a different ending point for everyone all the time), thematically it carries forward the pent-up vigour from the album’s most anthemic moments. Of “Never Graduate” lead singer and principal songwriter Myles McCabe said:
“‘Never Graduate’ is about the fear felt while moving into a new phase of life. The feeling of unreadiness for inevitable change. Relationships that are shifting from simple circumstantial bonds to obligations of structured support. Hesitancy to move onto something new at the cost of the exclusion of all other possible futures.“
Ever the busy lyricist, McCabe crams a lot into his sentences on “Never Graduate.” Conjuring his ability to make everything in the ME REX universe feel connected, he throws in the occasional familiar phrase, most notably the mention of the “party [that’s] never over.” The real highlights, however, are the surrounding elements from the familiar synth riff, the pensive yet urgent time signature, and the harmonious moments when McCabe sings alongside his bandmates, his voice risen an octave and sounding like everything is at stake and the fate of the world lies in what he sings.
“Never Graduate” is the first offering from the forthcoming Pterodactyl EP, which is due February 4 2022 on Big Scary monsters. Speaking of the EP, McCabe explains:
“Pterodactyl, while sticking to traditional song structures, very much picks up where the EPs left off. It includes the first songs that I knew I wouldn’t be able to play live by myself. While I have done solo versions of ‘Skin, it Itches’ and ‘Never Graduate’, I wanted to embrace parts of the full band set up that wouldn’t have been possible in a solo show. Pterodactyl is more complex technically and musically than any of the previous records, from the 10/8 time signature on ‘Never Graduate’, to the tapping guitar on ‘Skin, it itches’, to the musical theatre inspired dynamics of ‘Giant Giant’. The songs explore the need for change, through personal growth, decay, or the apocalypse.”
Listen to “Never Graduate” below or via your favourite streaming site.
Pterodactyl is out February 4 2022 via Big Scary Monsters. Stay up to date with ME REX via Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
