Notos

## Chronology

*Dear Wormwood*

***Notos***

*Eurus*

***Notos*** is the first EP in the Four Winds series released by indie folk rock band The Oh Hellos. The EP was released on Friday, December 8, 2017 both to stream on Spotify and for digital download on Bandcamp. It was additionally released as a physical copy, either as a CD on its own or as side A of a 12-inch vinyl alongside the *Eurus* EP.

## Background

See also: Four Winds (series)

After the release of *Dear Wormwood*, Tyler Heath aimed to create a series of EPs that were more relaxed in tone and scope, thus allowing him to decompress from the complex nature of said album. Meanwhile, Maggie began reflecting on her own Christian faith and values and started writing about them on her own. While the project was initially inspired by the motif of the four seasons, both Tyler and Maggie soon realized that angle had already been approached by several artists before them. Aiming to do something unique with the concept, they stumbled upon the four Greek wind deities of *Anemoi*, representing transitions between seasons. Echoing themes of evolution and growth as well as Greek mythology being ingrained prominently in modern American culture, they were drawn to the Anemoi gods. However, following the 2016 Presidential Election and the radicalism and social division that followed, they began to contemplate their own values and upbringing. This resulted in a shattering disillusionment and sense of uncertainty for them, both as Christians and as residents of southern Texas. The ensuing election shifted the course of the project dramatically, and they felt a responsibility to use their music to address the current issues, start a conversation about changing values and the political situation, and reconcile their ever-evolving emotions on the social climate. Therefore, the Anemoi gods and themes of changing seasons became a natural springboard for the project. From this newfound place, Tyler and Maggie began to work in earnest throughout late 2016 and 2017 on composing and writing the series, taking 11 months to write and record the first two EP’s and begin planning for the last two.

## Production and Release

After touring throughout early 2017, The Oh Hellos announced *Notos* as the first EP in the Four Winds series on November 15th. The same day as the announcement, the band released lead single "Torches." Tyler added that "Torches" would directly explore the political climate and be about "violent nationalism and tribalism, and how easy it is to hate what you don't know." Soon after, they released more information regarding the series proper, stating the premise as an examination of the question, “Where did my ideas come from?”.

*Notos* specially was said to explore the initial discovery of the challenges of one’s worldviews as well as the pushback that comes from those revelations. *Notos*, named after the southern wind deity, was inspired by memories of their summers both in the Pacific Northwest and on the Texas Gulf Coast. After its release, Tyler stated that tracks such as "Constellations" and "Planetarium Stickers on a Bedroom Ceiling" were intended to musically evoke those summers in Texas, the warm and humid nights where the skies would be filled with stars. The music additionally attempted to reflect the imagery of living near the Gulf Coast and the Heaths' yearly evacuation plans in the event of hurricanes in the area, which then likely was the inspiration for the EP's second instrumental track "Mandatory Evac/Counting Cars". While some speculated that the animal on *Notos* was a bee, it appears to be far closer to a cicada, which often begin to emerge during the beginning of the summer season between April and June.[*citation needed*] Some have also speculated that the plant on the cover on the "Torches" single is an echeveria, though the exact variety is unknown.[*citation needed*]

*Notos* was subsequently released on Bandcamp, Spotify, and other platforms on December 8, 2017. After its release, it peaked at #3 on the Singer/Songwriter chart on iTunes as the EP started to garner plays on various streaming services. The EP was released on physical media as a CD as well as on a split vinyl with the *Eurus* EP, with *Notos* serving as side A of the record. As of December 2022, *Notos* collectively has 28,3 million plays across all seven tracks on Spotify, with "Constellations" holding the most plays at over 15.4 million plays

In mid-2020, after the release of the third EP, *Boreas*, the band took the original recordings of *Notos* as well as *Eurus* and remastered them with the help of producer Charlie Kramsky, who was involved on the mixing for *Dear Wormwood*. While Tyler and Maggie worked on the first mixes of the EP's, their recording equipment had been updated between 2018 and 2020. Thus, the band wanted to remaster the original recordings to allow them to be more consistent with the rest of the upcoming series. While these updated mixes were present on Spotify and other streaming platforms, they re-released the original masters as their own separate EPs. The original master for the *Notos* EP can be found here. Additionally, they remastered the releases of the EP's on physical media such as CD and vinyl after the releases of *Boreas* and *Zephyrus*.

## Gallery

Split vinylVinyl coverTracklistSplit vinyl tracklistSide ALyric sheet
## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 “Maggie and Tyler Heath: The Oh Hellos”. The BlackSheep Podcast: Presented by HM Magazine. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Harras, M. (2018, April 4). The Oh Hellos Interview. RadioUTD. http://radioutd.com/blog/2018/04/oh-hellos-interview/
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Heyde, K. (2018, March 26). Interview with Oh Hellos: Music as a Conversation in Modern Times of Uncertainty. Teal Magazine. https://tealmagazine.com/articles/interview-with-oh-hellos
4. ↑ The Oh Hellos. (2017, November 15) “Our new EP #Notos will be released on December…” Twitter. https://twitter.com/theohhellos/status/930935442236514304
5. ↑ Maicki, S. (2017, November 15). Song Premiere: The Oh Hellos, 'Torches'. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/allsongs/2017/11/15/564156775/song-premiere-the-oh-hellos-torches
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Notos. (2017, November 15). The Oh Hellos. https://music.theohhellos.com/album/notos
7. ↑ The Oh Hellos. (2017, December 8) “Our new EP Notos is now available everywhere! Stream, download HERE” Twitter. https://twitter.com/theohhellos/status/939134752321179649
8. ↑ The Oh Hellos. (2017, December 13) “Notos is # 3 on the @iTunes Singer/Songwriter chart! Thanks to everyone for your support!” Twitter. https://twitter.com/theohhellos/status/941066631274475520
9. ↑ The Oh Hellos. (2018, February 24) “Fresh off the presses: Notos / Eurus Split 12" Vinyl will start shipping on Monday!” Twitter. https://twitter.com/theohhellos/status/967500842369679362
10. ↑ Notos. The Oh Hellos. https://open.spotify.com/album/77HOGWxdMWc1WuTFt3Y4EL?si=iDFIyzTiSYSfYqYFfHAjDQ&dl\_branch=1
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 The Oh Hellos, @theohhellos (2020, September 9). “UPDATE.” https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17881792540743907/