Description
NYOS are a Finland-based instrumental band comprised of guitarist Tom Brooke and drummer Tuomas Kainulainen. Known for their immersive and often physically demanding live shows, NYOS create massive sonic worlds using Brooke’s labyrinthine loops and atmospheric layering alongside Kainulainen’s kinetic drumming, in music that is rhythmic, raw, and eclectic.
Since their formation in 2014, NYOS have carved out a distinctive place within Europe’s experimental and post-rock scenes, characterized by their relentless energy, polyrhythmic complexity, and hypnotic layering.
While still rooted in their signature loop-based approach, ‘Growl’ is “more ambitious with song soundscapes and compositions”, says guitarist Tom Brooke, naturally embracing a denser, more textured sound with greater attention to atmosphere and tension.
There is a palpable sense of urgency and propulsion throughout the record, aided by Brooke’s evolving, lush guitar tone and Kainulainen’s increasingly expressive drumming. A newfound openness in production, with the help of mastering engineer Guy Davie (Foals, Bloc Party, Nala Sinephro, Jon Hopkins) allows the layers to breathe, giving the music a spatial, cinematic quality. Shimmering loops and glassy guitar tones ripple through layered percussive patterns, evoking natural phenomena and surreal inner landscapes. ‘Growl’ is a real NYOS record”, says Brooke, “zero rules, or concept, but just pure freedom.”
Throughout their discography, NYOS have shown an emotional and tonal shift toward ambiguity — a willingness to dwell in dissonance or delay resolution in favour of sustained tension or tranquil drift. These dramatic shifts can be felt throughout the album, in which the listener is escorted from vibrance to intensity, offering a contrast not in energy, but in clarity.
“We often have a vibe or some ideas we wanna try out”, comments Brooke. “The songs though basically come from jamming – we’ll jam stuff and I record the jams, and then kinda backwards shape them into songs which we then re-record! So often the final structures will be set when doing the first guitar/loop recordings, but the ideas are always all there.”
The result is a dynamic and emotionally complex record that feels like a mature synthesis of everything that had come before. There is a joy in the interplay of ‘Growl’, even when the music veers into abrasive terrain.
“‘Growl’ feels like the best we’ve managed to harness the dynamics, and maybe the one thing we did focus a bit on is finding new ways to create those dynamics and making sure they aren’t too predictable – it’s our longest record to date, and when producing it, we were very conscious to make sure it is an album that holds the listener” (Brooke)
Throughout ‘Growl’, NYOS remain unmistakably themselves: their hallmark technical precision and sonic inventiveness are ever-present. Harnessing a vast dynamic range, the Finish 2-piece blend moments of fragile minimalism with visceral, precise, and emotionally immersive sound. “I think sonically it has all the characteristics of some of our works, but I think that we both feel like this record is the first time we’ve ever truly managed to capture everything we want”, says Brooke, “all the angles/emotions/vibes came out just as we hoped/imagined.”
As eclectic and exciting as ever, NYOS are a band in continuous motion, unafraid to challenge themselves and their listeners with ever-expanding sonic vocabularies. ‘Growl’ is an album that is both coherent and seamless in its movement, walking a tightrope between meticulous structure and explosive energy.
FOR FANS OF
Battles, And So I Watch You From Afar, Don Caballero, The Mars Volta, Lightning Bolt, Tortoise, Hella, Tiny Fingers, Death Grips, Zach Hill, Russian Circles, Explosions in the Sky, Tera Melos
