London-based duo MRCY returns with Volume 2, a companion follow-up to their acclaimed Volume 1 from last year.
Lead track 'Man' blends vibrant afrobeat polyrhythms with jazz-inflected flourishes. MRCY—comprised of vocalist Kojo Degraft-Johnson and producer/multi-instrumentalist Barney Lister—deliver a track that is as thought-provoking as it is sonically infectious, questioning the ways masculinity can evolve for the better: “Being a man in this world is complicated, and it can feel like a battle to stay open and kind,” Kojo explains. “That’s why this track has that relentless battle groove—it mirrors the fight to lead with love and integrity.”
Barney adds, “The lyrics ‘Move out the dark and lead with light / Fight for the love a thousand times’ really encapsulate what we wanted to say. Change is a collective effort, and we need to come together to redefine what it means to be a man.”
In dark and difficult times, the music of Barney and Kojo lifts us up. As MRCY, across the eight tracks of Volume 2, they deliver on their premise of emotive music that surprises as much as it comforts, referencing timeless sounds as much as a sense of the cutting edge. If their debut release, 2024’s Volume 1, which blended Kojo’s ecstatic vocals and Barney’s masterful analogue production, showcased MRCY’s lightning-in-a-bottle chemistry, Volume 2 builds from there to a collection that is more sophisticated, thematic, and definitely more modern, exploring love, self-discovery, and healing.
The duo’s innate confidence in each other stems from their impressive musical pedigree. Barney grew up in Huddersfield and was introduced to the Yorkshire town’s soundsystem culture from an early age before going on to produce and collaborate with everyone from vocalist Obongjayar to popstar Rina Sawayama, Mercury Prize-nominees Joy Crookes, Olivia Dean and Celeste and Glaswegian soul singer, Joesef. Kojo, meanwhile, draws on his South London Church-going background with a mighty vocal power that references gospel emotion, choral harmony and the catalogue of soul greats like Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin. Earning his stripes on London’s jam circuit, he has since provided vocals for Cleo Sol, Little Simz, Jungle and Liam Gallagher.
