Martyrs - Drowning Days

​Martyrs

​Drowning Days
self-released; 2026

By Matt Jensen

Martyrs understand that melancholy and movement are not opposing forces. “Drowning Days” is constructed for the moment when private sadness enters a crowded club and becomes briefly communal, carried by repetition, volume, and the physical pressure of the beat. Welsh duo Jon Howells and Michael Hall draw from post-punk and early techno, giving the song enough melodic definition to support its emotional weight while keeping the rhythm direct and functional.

The opening beat immediately takes me back to Chicago clubs in the 1990s, when this sort of oversized drum-machine sound was becoming increasingly common. The kick hits with blunt, mechanical force, suggesting an 808 pushed well beyond its natural limits. It establishes the song’s identity within seconds and remains nearly constant from that point forward.

Electronic drums occupy much of the available space in the mix, with the four-to-the-floor kick serving as both foundation and driving force. Clean guitars treated with reverb add color around the rhythm without interrupting it, while the bass provides a simple, effective hook. Hall sings primarily within a comfortable register, giving the verses an understated delivery before occasionally reaching upward to heighten the tension. His performance is accessible and catchy without competing against the density of the percussion.

Additional instrumentation enters during the chorus, widening the arrangement while leaving the central pulse untouched. Hall’s lyrics look back at places once associated with happiness, only to find that those surroundings have changed after the people connected to them are no longer present. That sense of absence gives the chorus a bittersweet charge: the music encourages release, but the words never suggest that dancing has solved anything.

​After returning to the verse, Martyrs approach the next chorus with a slight variation in the buildup, adding enough movement to prevent the structure from becoming overly rigid. Rhythmically, “Drowning Days” remains straightforward. There are no odd meters or disruptive turns, but neither would serve the song’s purpose. Its success depends on the persistence of that thump and the presence of a melody people can grab when the chorus returns. The result is a clean hybrid of post-punk guitar music and early techno, shaped for listeners who would rather move through their sadness than sit motionless inside it. Take a listen.

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