YONAKA

The Brighton four-piece exploded back onto the scene with their empowering and defiant new mixtape. Frontwoman Theresa Jarvis shares how her mental health journey helped motivate the band’s sonic evolution.

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YONAKA are in a category of their own making. Their explosive, unapologetic anthems leave you strutting in cinematic slow motion; a snarl on your tongue and the confidence to do anything. This empowering sound is the result of a long personal journey with their mental health, developed sonically in the chrysalis of lockdown. Writing countless songs in their home studio together, the Brighton four-piece - comprised of Theresa Jarvis, Alex Crosby, Robert Mason and George Edwards - exploded back onto the scene with their thoughtfully curated mixtape, ‘Seize The Power’. It was their first offering since 2019 and set the tone with its oozing self-worth and new snarling sophistication.

An evolution from their debut album, the eight-track mixtape is a collection that displays the band's personal growth during their two-year hibernation. With nothing else to focus on, the four best mates dedicated all of their time during lockdown to writing: “We weren’t writing for a specific thing or sound,” reflects frontwoman Theresa Jarvis, sitting in the living room that doubles up as the band’s studio. “But when we wrote ‘Seize The Power’ we realised that was the sound and what we wanted our new music to be.”

This title track introduces YONAKA’s new perspective since emerging from the cocoon of lockdown. They’ve grown tougher since the vulnerability of their debut album ‘Don’t Wait Until Tomorrow’, and this new offering throws two fingers up at those who stood in their way, including their inhibitions. “I felt very much like a victim in Don’t Wait Until Tomorrow’,” admits Theresa. “But in ‘Seize The Power’ we’re taking the power back. We all possess the power within but through life, we are always put down by others, told to be quiet and not express ourselves; this makes us less confident and we lose ourselves. I wanted to take back control.”

The band has always been open about mental health, with Theresa, in particular, being vocal about her experience with anxiety. It’s something that has “consumed” their previous releases, and with their new sound, the band have straddled any raging selfdoubt and tamed it into defiant self-empowerment: “I have some days where I'm too scared to go to the shop on my own,” shares Theresa with refreshing honesty, her bandmates sat beside her, listening empathetically. “It's so easy to beat yourself up and think you’re weak. But it’s important to be softer and say to yourself: ‘Actually you’re doing really well and I’m proud of you so just keep going.”

It is all too easy to let your mental health consume you and extinguish any sense of self-worth. With their music, YONAKA are on a mission to praise those who are struggling with mental health and remind them they are strong for dealing with something that is out of their control. Theresa squares up to her demons on the blistering track ‘Call Me A Saint’, which addresses her journey with mental health: “I wanted to recognise in myself that I am a saint for putting up with this shit every day and still fighting on. And so is everyone else who’s battling with mental health issues or whatever else is going on in their lives. It’s so easy to be your own worst enemy; but realise that you’re making it through the day; you’re still here, you’re working on it.”

Self-producing the mixtape in their living room, the band have kept to their DIY roots. They’ve always lived within a stone's throw of each other, with their strong kinship forming when they first played together in Theresa and Rob’s basement in 2014. Theresa booked a gig before they even had a setlist, and they embarked on writing their first songs as a band. They’ve not stopped since then, writing lyrics in their phone notes, journals and messages. Songwriting has become a form of natural self-expression for the four of them: “Music is almost like a diary but for the world to read,” muses Theresa. “It definitely helps get things out. I feel like everyone should just write all the time anyway. It’s just good to get those thoughts out. Otherwise, we keep it all in and that’s not healthy. You don’t have to say it out loud, just say it to yourself.” Guitarist George adds: “ I write about my day on the notes on my phone and delete it at the end. It's cathartic.”

"I HAVE SOME DAYS WHERE I'M TOO SCARED TO GO TO THE SHOP ON MY OWN"

- THERESA

The four of them wrote “over 100 songs” during lockdown while gigging was off the table, culminating with the eight tracks shared on the mixtape. They sat on this new material for over a year before releasing it, a time they describe as “nerve-wracking” but “exciting”: “It’s such a big departure from the last album,” explains bassist Alex Crosby. “We spent so much time working on it, listening to it back and feeling all the emotions that we put into it. It was all up in the air about how people would receive it.”

The release of the mixtape’s singles - ‘Call Me A Saint’, ‘Ordinary’ and ‘Seize The Power’ - accumulated over 7 million streams together, with the ‘Seize The Power’ video alone reaching over half a million views on YouTube by the time the mixtape was finally released. YONAKA were welcomed back with open arms from the radio and editorial circuit as well, with Annie Mac showcasing the commanding release in her coveted Hottest Record slot. “I felt more confident with this release,” expresses Theresa, with Alex, Rob and George all nodding in agreement. “Every time we play the mixtape it is so satisfying to hear. Sometimes when we play the older stuff from ‘Don’t Wait Until Tomorrow’ it feels a bit like a regression.”

They also got to recut their teeth on stage when they toured again for the first time back with Nothing But Thieves across the UK and Ireland. Live, the four have always performed as if it’s the final time they play together. In the crowd, their fans squint through sweat and euphoria as they witness YONAKA putting all their energy into each explosive anthem. “The tour with Nothing But Thieves was amazing - it was a great first gig back,” reflects Alex. “But then when we were on our own tour - which had been years since we’d played our own show - it was just a whole other level. When you’re playing to your fans, the energy in the room is crazy. It feels easier to play almost. It boosts your energy with everyone singing back to you.”

“You feel so grateful to have this family supporting you,” Theresa adds. “The adrenaline you get is insane. I got ill on the second day of the tour and I was all bunged up. I’d freak out each night telling myself I was going to be shit and thinking I couldn’t do it. But then we'd get out there and the adrenaline just soared through me.”

Through their honest lyrics and openness about mental health, YONAKA have built a loyal family of fans who not only enjoy their music, but deeply relate to it: “When you see people singing and dancing up and down to your songs you just feel so grateful. It's amazing to be able to reach people through music.” To hear a band being so open about their mental health struggles is refreshing, especially in the way that YONAKA repackages their internal battles into soaring, empowering anthems. Theresa has been very vocal in the past about her journey with anxiety and how she has come to accept it - referring to it as her “guest” and herself as to its “keeper”. “Being open about mental health is important,” the frontwoman begins. “It's nice when you hear someone else saying they feel all the same weird shit that you feel. You feel like you’re not on your own and it's reassuring to know that you’re not going crazy. It’s invisible to other people unless you talk about it.”

We end our conversation by sharing the best advice someone’s given us: “My therapist once told me that there’s not one strand of hair on your head that is not where it’s supposed to be. You’re where you’re supposed to be and you grow from there,” shares Theresa. “Follow your heart and do what you love to do. We only get this life once and you’ve got to do what makes you happy and what makes your heart sing, whatever it is that gets you out of bed in the morning. It's hard, but keep something in you that keeps you fired up and driven.”

"MY THERAPIST ONCE TOLD ME THAT

THERE’S NOT ONE To read the full version of this magazine you can buy print STRAND OF HAIR ON YOUR HEAD THAT IS NOT WHERE IT’S copies delivered direct to you from our Bandcamp or support us via Patreon for even more exclusive goodies! SUPPOSED TO BE.

YOU’RE WHERE YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE AND Just click on the links below:

YOU GROW FROM

THERE." - THERESA

The album"Seize The Power" is out now on Creature Records.