M(h)aol at Future Yard

Irish post-punk firebrands M(h)aol return to Liverpool this September, bringing their raw, rhythm-driven new album Something Soft to Future Yard.

Something Soft is anything but. From the accumulation of noise that is opener ‘Pursuit’ to the hellish closing cries of ‘Coda’, M(h)aol weaponise dissonance and distortion to tackle gaslighting, misogyny, consumerism, and the emotional chaos of navigating a world with too little empathy. But their songs aren’t laments; they’re reclamations of power – dragging the ugliest parts of modern life into the harsh light and seizing control through pounding floor toms, snarling basslines, and vocals that swing between blank-eyed detachment and visceral rage.

With members based across Dublin, Belfast and London, M(h)aol’s line-up includes drummer and vocalist Constance Keane (she/her), bassist Jamie Hyland (she/her), and guitarist Sean Nolan (he/him). Together they conjure a sound that’s taut, volatile and hypnotic – a wiry collision of post-punk abrasion, motorik rhythm and noise-drenched atmosphere. There’s something almost psychedelic in the way their songs loop and lurch, drawing on dance-punk, krautrock and DIY hardcore traditions – Shellac, Lungfish, maybe even early Liars – yet shot through with a dark wit that’s their own.

Tracks like ‘Pursuit’ are queasy and propulsive, mirroring the dread of being followed with jittery repetition and escalating screams. Elsewhere, ‘1 800-Call-Me-Back’ plays ghosting for laughs, channelling phone-line detachment into deadpan absurdity. And on ‘E8/N16’, a list of male names spirals into industrial noise and cathartic chaos – a sonic eye-roll as much as a release valve.

For all its menace, there’s a sense of invitation too: M(h)aol aren’t just venting – they’re asking you to feel it with them. That energy needs a room, a crowd, a collective exorcism. The intimate sweatbox of Future Yard is just the place.