Eurus

## Chronology

*Notos*

***Eurus***

*Boreas*

***Eurus*** is the second EP in the Four Winds series released by indie folk rock band The Oh Hellos. The EP was released on Friday, February 9, 2018 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 B of a 12-inch vinyl alongside the *Notos* 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 as well as begin planning for the last two. In November 2017, the band announced the project alongside the first EP in the series, *Notos*, establishing the premise of the series as examining the question, "Where did my ideas come from?". Inspired by the southern wind deity of the summer, *Notos* aimed to contemplate the challenges to one's initial worldviews and the pushback that can come from that, especially given the social division and the political climate in the United States since 2016. Therefore, *Eurus* as the next installment was intended to be a logical continuation of that questioning.

## Production and Release

After *Notos* was released in December 2017 and the band began touring again, they announced *Eurus* as well as released the lead single “Grow” on January 18, 2018. Soon after its release, Maggie stated about "Grow" that it would explore how while the feelings of certainty in our own ideals is natural to feel, that same certainty can "stunt your growth as a human being". Therefore, the song was meant to evoke that theme of open-mindedness despite the uncertainty and how while that uncertainty may break us, it can allow us to become the fullest versions of ourselves "more than your concrete mold could ever allow you to".

*Eurus*, named after the eastern wind deity associated with fall, was described as being a logical step after the questions raised in *Notos* and how while one may gain empathy and understanding from questioning their own perspective, it can create further isolation between oneself and their communities. Therefore, the EP seeks to explore this alienation, grapple with the uncertainty of breaking away from those communities, and how one can reconcile their own identity and worldview in the midst of this separation. Furthermore, the band aimed to use the fall motif to musically hearken to "the feelings of dark woods, dry branches, dead leaves, and wondering who had migrated — you, or your flock?" The animal on the cover of *Eurus* has been theorized to be a goose, and given the behavior of forming flocks and migrating together that geese often exhibit, it could potentially represent the emotional exploration of the political tribalism that is central to the themes that inspired the series' conception.[*citation needed*] Furthermore, the plant on the single "Grow" appears to be a wheat flower of some kind, though the exact type is unknown[*citation needed*]

*Eurus* was released in full on Bandcamp, Spotify, and other platforms on February 9, 2018. It was later released on physical media such as on CD as well as on a split vinyl with the *Notos* EP, with *Eurus* serving as side B of the record. As of December 2022, *Eurus* collectively has 16 million plays across all seven tracks on Spotify. "Passerine" holds the most listens at over 5.1 million plays, with the title track ("Eurus") as well as lead single "Grow" both following closely behind at 2.4 million and 2.3 million plays respectively. In April 2021, "Passerine" began to rise rapidly in Spotify plays over the course of several months, mostly due to an unrelated fanfiction of the same name. The fanfiction's popularity, which is connected to the DreamSMP community started by a group of Minecraft YouTubers known as Sleepy Bois Inc., has unintentionally bolstered the number of plays "Passerine" has. The track has additionally been used in numerous TikTok videos specifically related to the unrelated fanfiction.[*citation needed*]

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 *Eurus* 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 BLyric 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 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. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Notos. (2017, November 15). The Oh Hellos. https://music.theohhellos.com/album/notos
6. ↑ The Oh Hellos. (2017, December 8) “Our new EP Notos is now available everywhere! Stream, download HERE” Twitter. https://twitter.com/theohhellos/status/939134752321179649
7. ↑ The Oh Hellos. (2018, January 18) “Our new EP #Notos will be out February 9th! Check out EP track Grow…” Twitter. https://twitter.com/theohhellos/status/954038084139606016
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 McKenna, B. (2018, January 18). *The Oh Hellos Premiere New Song “Grow.”* American Songwriter. https://americansongwriter.com/oh-hellos-premiere-new-song-grow/
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Eurus. (2018, January 18). The Oh Hellos. https://music.theohhellos.com/album/eurus
10. ↑ The Oh Hellos. (2018, February 9) “Eurus is out today! Available at your favorite digital music purveyor…” Twitter. https://twitter.com/theohhellos/status/961988567659560962
11. ↑ Eurus. The Oh Hellos. https://open.spotify.com/album/7fTZd5QeAVVBTX4r5ULjRa?si=76NmoRKpQeKVpEOvj7TgqA&dl\_branch=1
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 The Oh Hellos, @theohhellos (2020, September 9). “UPDATE.” https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17881792540743907/