MXMJoY are set to release new EP single - 1.07.22
The critics on 2019’s ‘p.e.a.c.e’ album:
“Exploring power, desire, injustice and survival. MXMJoY sound like hope” The Guardian
“Their sound still resonates over three decades later…now reformed as MXMJoy…a blissful amalgam of electronica and R&B, laced with grittier, brooding undercurrents that hark back to their early ’80s vision” The Vinyl Factory
“Remains faithful to their roots but showcases an expanded experimental direction into dark electronics and expertly used samples and effects” Classic Pop
“Their trademark ‘funk-punk’ sound lives on” Crack
Birthed from the seminal 1980s post-punk band Maximum Joy, MXMJoY is the dramatic reimagining by founding members Janine Rainforth and Charlie Llewellin. On the 1st July, they will release their new single ‘Joy Again’, via London Field Recordings, their first new music since the band’s critically acclaimed debut album ‘p.e.a.c.e’, released in 2019.
‘Joy Again’ summons the disco gods and goddesses, bringing infectious beats, electro grooves, pop hooks, synths and uplifting vocals to create a dancefloor anthem. Track two is the sharply melodic ‘Bring it On’ which boasts a rich pop sensibility and Rainforth’s entrancing vocal while ‘Love Is Everywhere’ follows in a similar upbeat vein with a wonderfully open hearted, spacey groove with pulsing synths, electro rhythms, horns and jazzy guitar, reflecting the hot summer of 2019 when the band penned the track. Exclusive to the CD is a mesmeric remix of the title track.
The reformation was spearheaded by Rainforth with a show at Simple Things Festival, Bristol in 2015. Her work on solo projects allowed her to bring new experiences to an old collaboration and she and Llewellin were in the studio immediately after. “The last album that I worked on with Charlie in Maximum Joy was Station MXJY in 1982! The making of that was an experience in itself – it was made in the ‘traditional’ way if you like – for the most part of it we stayed at a recording studio and jammed and played until we got sounds and tracks we liked. The autonomy I have found in making my solo music could be brought into how we constructed it,” says Rainforth. “As a collective band Maximum Joy and as individuals and now as MXMJoY – we have always shared the drive to evolve and keep looking for and finding new sounds & grooves that inspire, challenge, and maybe even soothe!”.
The tracks are due for release on an exclusive short run of CD’s on London Field Recordings and will be available on the band’s Bandcamp, digitally, as well as select retail outlets.
The new single follows the release of a newly remastered 5-track EP of two exclusive Maximum Joy sessions recorded for legendary BBC radio DJs John Peel and Kid Jensen in 1982. A pivotal point in Bristol’s dub-informed lineage, Pitchfork compared Maximum Joy’s sound to "one of the Slits backed by the Gang of Four.”
May the joy be with you!
Tracklisting:
1. ‘Joy Again’
2. ‘Bring it On’
3. ‘Love is Everywhere’
4. ‘Summer Joy Mix’ (CD exclusive)
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