“Running in Circles” by Maine Coon – An EP Review

     The four-track EP “Running in Circles” is “good for what ails ya,” if you benefit from a dose of high energy guitar flavored with a hint of TV by the Radio. At times the use of the guitar approaches that of the Post Rock genre, which relies on the instrument to create texturing and dynamic flow in the absence of vocals. However, “Running in Circles” includes vocals.

     “Running in Circles” is the work of Maine Coon, a quartet in Paris, France. The members are Mathieu Martin (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Pierre Missiaen (guitar), Guillaume Laborde (bass, keyboards) and Alex (Alexandre Vrla, we believe) (drums). 

     The discovery of Maine Coon was the latest reminder of why time spent in finding new music is worthwhile. Listening to each song on the EP brought an excitement. 
     The first track is the title song, “Running in Circles.” It has a 50-second introduction that creates some curiosity as to what will follow. What follows is a drum-driven segment in which the guitars seemingly frolic in the background at times. At the 2:34 mark, the guitars push their way into the spotlight, and the song benefits.

     The second track is “Tomorrow Remains to Be Seen.” The song includes more time without vocalization than the other three, but the vocals do play an important role. “Boys” takes the third spot on the EP. The song is the lightest of the tracks.

     The EP closes with “Tatoo Girl.” In 2014, Maine Coon released the song with the typical spelling of “tattoo,” but it was far less textured. So, we prefer this version with the missing "t." Admittedly, for the first half of “Tatoo Girl,” we thought it was the weak link of the EP. After hearing the second half, we wondered if it would become our favorite of the four tracks. 

      “Running in Circles” by Maine Coon

     “Tatoo Girl” by Maine Coon

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