Me Against Misery's upcoming third album 'Fire in the Den of Thieves' promises to deliver his most thematically mature work yet, exploring complex issues like environmental decline, economic inequality and political apathy through his signature dystopian lens.    

 

The album delves into themes of injustice, environmental ruin and the failure of capitalism, according to the artist, with songs like 'Neo-Liberal' and 'Wolves and Vultures' telling tales of the anxiety and despair of a society in the grip of corporate greed. And the best bit is that all of this is set to a fitting backdrop of percussive post-punk basslines, soul tingling synths, haunting guitars and drum machines borne of an 80s goth club.   

 

Guitarist Stuart Anstee lends his melancholic melodies once again, imbuing the album with an atmospheric minimalism that really shines through on songs like 'Llymder' and 'Standing in the Ashes'. He also co-writes on 4 songs. 

 

'Divide and Rule' delves into the Empire's oldest trick. The repetition of the fuzzy synth riff giving way to a sombre yet catchy chorus, with Matt Rhys Jones unable to resist a stab at the old enemy 'they never tell you what it means when you're at school, hide behind the flag, red, white and blue'. Golden rays of hope shine through in the final crescendo as Jones suggests that empathy can win out and change can and will come.

 

The first single 'Gwanwyn' provides an upbeat yet bittersweet look at survival and resilience in dark times. Inspired by the Pablo Neruda quote, 'you can cut all the flowers but you can't stop the spring from coming', 'Gwanwyn' hits like 'a breath of fresh spring air after the longest, cruellest of winters. 

 

This more upbeat feel is maintained when the following track ‘War’ kicks in with it’s OMD type synth line as Matt Rhys Jones laments the familiar story of poor working class people slaughtering one another at the behest of ‘sick old men that refuse to die'.  

 

Album closer 'Gwlad y Gân' (in Welsh meaning 'The Land of Song') sees Matt Rhys Jones, a longtime supporter of Welsh independence, asking some serious questions of the country he calls home. He certainly doesn't spare Wales itself his 'holding up the mirror' treatment, asking how it can ever move forward or progress whilst drowning in apathy and clinging so desperately to tired old ideas in order to stay afloat. 

 

'Fire in the Den of Thieves' invites listeners into Me Against Misery's shadowy sonic landscape, balancing the album's gothic themes of struggle and darkness with a yearning for connection and transformation, a stubborn resignation that all is not lost.  

 

With sounds reminiscent of bands like Joy Division, New Order, the Cure and pre 'Ocean Rain' Echo and the Bunnymen, there is certainly something here for fans of those bands. But there is also an accessible hookiness in the songwriting, echoes of the manic street preachers, perhaps, that could easily entice rock and punk fans alike. Especially those who like their music a bit darker, or more politically charged 

 

"I'm shining a light on where we are and what got us here. I'm holding up a mirror and saying 'take a look, but you might not like what you see', says Matt Rhys Jones, aka Me Against Misery.  

 

"Profiteering and exploitation since the pandemic have just reached intolerable levels. It makes you wonder if people will ever get tired of being owned by corporations, or even realise that they are," he adds. 

 

" It's always worth remembering that, certainly here in Wales at least, it doesn't have to be this way, we have other options available to us. There is another way, we just need the will".