Card II by NOMON

Drawing on their passion for experimental, industrial, contemporary and electronic music, NOMON’s music is at times fierce, intense, serene and calm. “Card II” echoes the emotions related to the inevitable changes in one’s life. The feelings of fear and freedom that come with choosing a certain path, and touching on fragments of memories from their lives in Tokyo, Oakland and now New York, where they both currently reside.

The EP opens with a stereo introduction in “Kaede”, an intricate musical arrangement of various percussion instruments, drum machine beats and layers of synths. It combines contemporary percussion playing with the industrial electronic styles of Arca.
“Hana” is their most emotive track with moments of meditation provided by the bell motives, accentuating the lyrical percussion playing both physically and sonically. The ethereal introduction gradually builds and unfolds to a dynamic explosion of sounds and beats, mimicking the feeling of finding a calm in the transitive moments at the start of a new exciting chapter in life.
Shayna describes “Kirie” as her homage to Juana Molina. Quirky yet catchy, the song’s recurring marching style snare motif highlights the duo’s synchronized playing. Even though they each have distinct playing styles, they have an undeniable connection not only because they’re sisters, but because they can communicate in the same musical language.
The EP closes climatically with “Runa”, a song played fiercely combining heavy electronic beats, lyrical basslines, industrial and Gamelan-style percussion and tight drum grooves.

Shayna and Nava Dunkelman are both musicians and percussionists,
born and raised in Tokyo, Japan to an Indonesian mother and an American father.
The music is as visual as it is aural. The physicality of the performance has a choreographic quality as it is when immersed in playing percussion.
The music lives in the intersection of electronic soundscapes and intricately composed percussion parts.

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