There's a real sense of mystery about YOVA, and one which I reckon the band are happy to propagate. The name belongs to Jova Radevska and Mark Vernon, a duo with very different backgrounds but a shared love for alternative, experimental, cinematic aural experiences.
Radevska is a Macedonian vocalist and songwriter, while London-based Vernon has previously managed and recorded with John Cale (a founding member of the Velvet Underground), and co-produced tracks on PJ Harvey’s debut album ‘Dry’.
They met by chance at one of Radevska's gigs in London, and a fascinating collaboration was born.
YOVA's debut album ‘Nine Lives’ was released in 2022, and now the pair have decided to follow-up with a new EP, centred around the title track 'Hurt Like No Hurt' (which came out as a single in October 2022). YOVA describe this as "a song about relationship ghosting, the merry-go-round of breaking up and making up, and the inevitable finality of it all. An ultimate realisation that there comes a point where no matter what, there’s just no going back; when the only choice is the inevitable grief and acceptance of loss in order to emerge as a stronger person. Sometimes no further words need to be spoken, the sound of silence is enough."
There's a lot to unpack there. And to go with that multi-faceted theme, the song itself has lots of sides to it. It's at the same time pacey and yet ominous; reflective and introspective and yet forward-looking. Those contrasting elements illustrating the nature of this duo and the sounds they produce.
'Hurt Like No hurt' is underlaid with a plodding, relentless thrumming bassline, overlaid with Radevska's ethereal vocals and layers of pleading guitars. It opens with lo-fi beats and a touch of that bassline before the lyrics appear. Then, the song seems to open up into a more organic section, driven by a thwacking snare and a whiny electric riff. There's a short middle-eight section, where everything seems to stumble, stop/start, take a few steps back, before it's all gathered together again and taken - satisfyingly - through to the ending.
The song structure is in some ways quite conventional, and yet - not. There feels like more, something undefinable which sets it apart - it might be in the layering, the slightly disconcerting clash of instrumentation, or the forward mix of the vocals at times. I find it intriguing.
The EP has been released as a "digital bundle" which includes an instrumental version of the title track as well as a live recording of 'Rain' (an intriguing and beguiling song which featured as the third track on the 2022 album).
Check out 'Hurt Like No Hurt' below and let me know what you think.