mUmbo light up the stillness on the gorgeous and hypnotic 'When It Was Quiet'

Some releases whisper, and somehow still hit harder than a shout. mUmbo’s 'When It Was Quiet' is exactly that kind of revelation as it delivers a three-track dreamstate that feels both feather-light and emotionally seismic.

The UK/Italy trio, comprised of Doug MacGowan, Emma Semple, and Antonio Dalé, make songs that feel like they were already floating in the ether and just needed the right hands to catch them. And the magic of this EP lies in how those hands collaborate. Ideas travelled between countries through WhatsApp fragments, voice notes, and evolving sketches, and you can feel that slow-burn alchemy in every second. Nothing is rushed, but everything shimmers.

Their influences ripple through the sound, but mUmbo reshape those echoes into something absolutely their own. Mood is their compass. Atmosphere is their foundation. And they build worlds out of texture.

The opening track 'You Can Do What You Want To' lands like the first scene of an indie film you instantly fall in love with. Semple’s voice is rich with storytelling clarity, and MacGowan’s guitar carves space around her like a frame around a portrait.

Then 'You Know the Song' drifts in, dissolving edges as strings and guitar swirl into one another until you can’t tell where one ends and the other begins. It’s a track that feels like following a memory you’re not sure was yours.

Finally, 'Worm Moon' takes everything deeper. Hazy, nocturnal, and beautifully suspended, it’s the EP’s most transportive moment as it offers a slow pulse of rhythm and harmony that feels like lying under a night sky and watching the clouds move.

What makes 'When It Was Quiet' so electrifying, despite its softness, is how confidently it embraces space. mUmbo know exactly when to hold back, when to let silence breathe, and when to let emotion bloom. This is music for late nights, early mornings, open windows, and any moment where you want the world to slow down just long enough to feel something real.

'When It Was Quiet' is a mood, a spell, and a small universe you’ll want to step into again and again.