Win Fight Dream Lose

The EP Win Fight Dream Lose is not the first time I have listened to music created by Tanzos. The first time was in 2020, the year the wheels fell off the wagon, via three singles which garnered good critical responses. I posted my thoughts on that here.

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Win Fight Dream Lose is the first extended-time release from Tanzos, aka Mik Tanzos. The EP contains two previously released singles, Good Intentions and Mood Swings, and an unreleased piano version of his 2021 hit Nevermind. That covers three out of five tracks on the EP, which is why I don’t particularly appreciate doing singles. By the time the EP comes out, most of the songs on a short-form record, aka EP, have already been reviewed. Nevermind my rant. Nevermind, the song, has the feel of Nick Cave on the piano bits, but the similarity stops there. The original Nevermind and the reworked piano version are different but equally good.

Good music needs good lyrics, and there are a few shining examples. The title track states, “We learn to like the things we choose.” I can relate to this on several levels of understanding, but I’m unsure if they are the same as Tanzos’. Here is one example. In 1994 I received a gift certificate for my birthday and bought a CD with the money. The CD was from a band I was acquainted with, but when I played it, what came out of the speakers was not what I expected. The band had veered off the road into new territory and new sounds, and on first listen, I wouldn’t say I liked it. I couldn’t take it back because it was opened and used, so it got filed away. Sometime later, I listened to it again and started warming up to what was happening on this CD. And after many more trips around whatever goes on inside a CD player, I have learned to like this CD that I had chosen. “We learn to like the things we choose.”

“I’m trapped in my head” is a line from the track Mood Swings. Tanzos tells us, “The song tries to capture the difficult emotions of someone already used to internal conflict. But sometimes it’s just too much, you get overwhelmed and lose control “

“I’m trapped in my head” stirred a memory for me. In recovery groups, there is a saying, “My head is a dangerous place to visit alone.” It is even worse to comprehend when we are trapped there, bouncing off the walls and into thoughts we want to bury and never remember again.

Win Fight Dream Lose is driven in equal parts by crisp piano parts and undercurrents of guitar that shimmer when they rise to the surface. All in all, Tanzos has crafted a delightful EP.