By Rebecca Tarbet
On paper, Clay Chock and Moses Huish sound like the same dude. Tall. Short, light colored hair. Sometimes a mustache. Snowboarder. Well-dressed. Mysterious aura. Moses and Clay first met each other in the Isles parking lot in 2022 and kept running into each other around the apartment complex. At one of Clay and Moses’s earlier run-ins (in the Isle’s hot tub) they had a long conversation about music. Naming artist after artist, they realized they liked all of the same music. A bond was formed in that hot tub, and the two music aficionados subsequently spent the rest of their college experience together.
Add “same music taste” to that list of similarities between Clay and Moses, along with: guitarist, drummer, bassist, and vocalist. Clay and Moses first started jamming together with acoustic guitars, playing folk music. Next, they added electric guitar to the jam sessions, and eventually Moses bought a drum set. Skeletons of songs began to form in the endless hours spent jamming together. “Over time these songs kinda got more realized into actual songs, usually adding the vocals last,” Clay said.
Years of jam sessions later, Neftalí Rodríguez entered the story. Moses was on study abroad, and Nef was solo backpacking Europe. The two knew each other by name through mutual friends. They decided to meet up when they were both in Italy, what Nef described as “the highlight of my trip.” Back in Utah, Nef started playing drums with Moses and Clay, and thus Mr. Sir was born. The trio started recording their music at Moses’ house, regularly rotating who was playing what instrument.
The songs on Effect feel like you’re sitting in the living room with Mr. Sir, but at the same time sitting at the bottom of the ocean floor, listening to a transmission of the music’s feeling. “I think it’s pretty sick, considering how experimental it is, compared to a lot of the things that are being produced and released today,” Nef said. “I hope people can feel the rawness and feel the connection between all the instruments and the people playing behind them.”
“Wishing We Could Fly,” the opening track on Effect, is the shortest on the project. The short length and the biting minor chords of the song draw the listener into the EP, leaving them wanting more. Effect is short, clocking in at a brief 17 minutes and 30 seconds. Hollow drums reminiscent of early Pinegrove, a fuzzy atmosphere reminiscent of Duster, guitar grooves reminiscent of Krungabin, and vocal melodies reminiscent of The Drums all come together to create a wall of dreamy sound.
“Token” is turning into my favorite track on the Mr. Sir project. As I listen to the song speed up and slow down, I can almost see Nef, Moses, and Clay looking at each other, nodding their heads to the beat, making the wordless decisions to bring the guitar and drums in at the same time. Compared to the previous songs, the guitar is dirtier and more intense in “Token.” It ends the EP with a strong punch.
Clay’s vocals come from another planet, like a distant alien trying to tell me something that I can’t quite make out, maybe vitally important to the salvation of our planet – or just saying what’s up. Either way, I like what I hear. When Moses told me Clay recorded those vocals at 2 AM, I was not surprised. Clay grabbed the computer and went into a separate room to record “Token.” “[That melody] just kind of came to me as I was about to record. Then I brought it back out and I was like ‘Yo, I think I got something.’ They liked it,” Clay said.
On Effect, the vocals support the guitar, not the other way around. The singing is sparsely sprinkled throughout the EP, with some songs without any vocals at all. “Something There” is one of these songs. It is perfectly titled. Something is there! But Mr. Sir won’t tell you with lyrics. You just have to listen to what the guitar is trying to tell you, specifically those bewitching chords at the conclusion of the track.
As I listen to Effect, there are times when I wish it were easier to make out the lyrics. I assume they’re poetic, considering how dreamy and hazy the rest of the album is. The variation on the EP makes for a dynamic, entertaining listen, but I wouldn’t mind some more repetition of choruses or verses. Afterall, I wouldn’t mind getting a Mr. Sir song stuck in my head.
“It’s like a snapshot of our time in college where three dudes are really enjoying the music and enjoying themselves while playing it,” Nef said. I would tell you, reader, to follow Mr. Sir on Instagram, but you can’t. They don’t have one. “Word of mouth,” is what Moses had to say on the matter. How mysterious and cool… just like their music. Experience the mystery yourself on Spotify.