Million Moons
Cinematic British post-rockers write music with big emotions, for big thoughts
“The songs have really been thought about within the context of the concept.”
“The emotional resonance of post-rock is really important to us,” says Million Moons guitarist Freddie Locock-Harrison on how they build out their ultra-sensitive concept records.
“Our albums deal with things that are hard to put into words; there’s a lot of feeling and atmosphere involved,” he explains. “If you look at our WhatsApp conversations, we talk about feeling far more than notes, like, ‘Can you make this sadder?’”
It’s a sentiment that drives their third and most accomplished LP, 'You Be Good, I Love You'. It takes its name from the final words of Alex the parrot, the fascinating subject of a 30-year psychology study that found that animals were far more complex creatures than science previously gave them credit. The lives of animals, the report – and now the band – stresses, are no less profound than ours. It’s a record close to their bandleader’s heart.
Spearheaded by multi-instrumentalist and marine conservationist Edward Thompson, Million Moons creates wordless but highly evocative compositions, with classical motifs at one end of the spectrum and “metal for extra emotional heft” at the other. What began as Thompson's “post-rock side hustle,” alongside drummer Solomon Radley, has continuously evolved. Locock-Harrison broadened their scope on 2024's sophomore record, 'A Gap In The Clouds', with bassist Jay Miller arriving for album three. It’s seen them, Thompson says, evolve from “piano-driven post-rock with classical influences into a sort of small scale cohesive orchestral unit emulating futuristic sounds.”
Now more than ever, he has needed the band as an emotional outlet, with their new centrepiece song, 'Last Days Together' written after in the wake of his beloved dog, Ralphy’s death.
“When Ralphy passed, it felt like Ed had gone quiet for a very long time,” Radley reflects. “Then one day this very sad demo turns up…”
“Lots of people talk about music in the healing process, and I think that track’s really emblematic of that,” Thompson returns, while noting that the tear-jerker has “really resonated with our fans,” leading to a sea of heartfelt messages.
The track embodies the poignancy of the record’s message. But far more unusual and “beautiful” aspects of the animal kingdom make for intriguing muses.
“The songs have really been thought about within the context of the concept,” Thompson says. “The menacing riffs and pelagic sounds in 'Titan of the Deep' really lend themselves to the giant squid.”
Radley, meanwhile, uses “odd time signatures and war drums” to evoke the thunder of the Great Nile Migration, and 'Floating for Eternity' draws inspiration from the jellyfish that consistently cheat death by returning to their larval state.
They hope the record will inspire listeners to look at the natural world differently, as it has for them.
“I was walking in the hills of Italy recently, and I heard two nightingales calling to each other,” Locock-Harrison remembers. “I was utterly convinced they were having a conversation. Animals are just like us, living their lives in a way we could never possibly understand; writing this album has made us reconnect with nature.”
- Phil Weller
PROG FILE
LINE-UP: Edward Thompson (guitar), Freddie Locock-Harrison (guitar), Jay Miller (bass), Solomon Radley (drums)
SOUNDS LIKE: Gentle currents that grow into monstrous tidal waves; this is post-rock for big thinkers a la Caspain and Sleepmakeswaves
CURRENT RELEASE: 'You Be Good, I Love You' releases June 26 via Ripcord Records, Dunk! Records, and A Thousand Arms Music