Named after the 1988 John Carpenter sci-fi film, They/Live creates ethereal melodic lines and haunting vocal harmonies to build complex, dystopian Pop songs.

They/Live is the project of W. E. Moire, an ex-Mormon musician, Writer, and academic. Moire signed to Philadelphia record label Born Losers in 2019, then released her self-produced debut album Ablation, engineered and mixed by grammy award winner Steve Christensen (Khruangbin, Steve Earle), during the Covid lockdown.

For her second album, Nature & Structure (2025), co-produced by Neil Wogensen (Valley Queen, Ogreta), we revisit Moire’s signature sound: emotionally sophisticated pop which investigates matters of the heart using intricate, yet austere arrangements. But here we feel Mower searching for more provocative means to express her thoughts on love and late-stage capitalism—fusing 12 string guitars, acoustic piano, and other analog sounds with harder-edged electronic grooves to accompany her ever-haunting soprano vocals and lush layers of harmony.

Deepening her multi-instrumentalism and musical experimentation, we witness Mower hone in on a contemporary, surreal kind of pop within the songs of Nature & Structure. Mower wants to know how to preserve critical thinking and compassion in a dystopia. She wants to know how we reconcile our human lives under an oligarchical empire in decline.