MIHI NIHIL - MIHI NIHIL

MIHI NIHIL (Mee-Kee Nee-Keel) is an emerging band from Los Angeles, consisting of members who have had successes in all sorts of creative endeavors. These individual milestones include touring with Iggy Pop and the Stooges, and Jane’s Addiction, fronting shows at famous festivals/venues including Coachella, the Warped Tour, and Carnegie Hall, backing up musical legends like Neil Young, John Denver, Bruce Springsteen, and even designing eyewear worn by Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, and Rhianna. We are Mihi Vox (vocals), Benjamin Montoya (guitar), Nick Steinberg (Bass) and Adam Alt (drums)

Casually, through years of friendship and free-flow sessions the group calls “Whiskey Rehearsals,” MIHI NIHIL was realized and the anatomy of the album was built. They quickly understood how perfect this imperfect pairing of three alternative musicians and a classical singer would be. The record, written and performed together by the quartet in one room, fully encompasses their collaborative essence.

Delivering a sound rooted in post-punk, MIHI NIHIL pulls from a kaleidoscope of influences, including early Radiohead, The Clash, Ennio Morricone, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Bauhaus, Neil Young, The Cure and The Pixies. Mihi’s captivating vocals flow seamlessly from serene unfolding to anthemic power, gliding alongside the tectonic pull of Benjamin’s guitar, while Nick and Adam drive the bass and drums with commanding fervor. Together, the four-piece have crafted a nine-song debut grounded in earthiness and redolent with nostalgia.

The name MIHI NIHIL sounds like a University’s Latin motto, but it was actually the lead singer, Mihi Vox’s, nickname in college. Now a band motto, the name represents the groups approach to life and music as they write songs together, staying open not only to each other but also to the music.

Veteran indie producer Adam Lasus (Yo La Tengo, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Army Navy) captured the band’s live energy to tape, revealing an album imbued with a timeless, lush and layered sound that’s meant to be savored and slowly ingested. Like colorful rock formations, the music encompasses a myriad of subtle tints and bold textures. Recorded without a click track, MIHI NIHIL naturally expands and contracts, pushes and pulls, moving with ease. Whether it’s the cinematic echo of Ennio Morricone in “Verberation” or the ominous yearning for connection in the more soporific electro “Space Invader,” MIHI NIHIL shifts tonal presentations effortlessly with maximum emotional thrust.

Leading up to their self-titled LP, the foursome has steadily fed four singles over the prior months. Garnering positive attention along the way, they landed tracks in two recent major motion pictures, on several media outlets in fifteen countries and in fifty-four playlists. From the playful punk burst of “I Eat You,” which feels like it could have been recorded in 1977, to the dark wistful waltz of “Falling Star” swaying with a 1950s soul, MIHI NIHIL bridge the past and present musical zeitgeists. Their music feels at once mysterious and familiar, as a fog curling heavily around the listener only to be cut through by rays from the sun.