The last time the Moaning Myrtles put out a full-length album, we were still waiting on three more Harry Potter movies. The last time they toured, we were barely into this decade. Needless to say, it was a pleasant surprise when I found out that Lauren and Nina decided to play not one, not two, but THREE reunion shows at the Yule Balls this past year. When I found out there was going to be new music, it was really hard to contain myself. Normally, there wouldn’t be a full review on just a single, but given that this is the Moaning Myrtles, complete with reunion mini-tour, this had to be written as soon as the video was released.

“Nevertheless, I Persisted (Myrtle Elizabeth Warren)” is a straight up JAM. I’m not lying when I say that the tune’s been stuck in my head since hearing it on Geek Beat during the Boston Yule Ball.

The story behind the song is pretty interesting – it’s based off of Moaning Myrtle’s introduction to Scorpius and Al in Cursed Child, but it has a uniquely Lauren-and-Nina twist to it. According to Lauren, “JK Rowling tweeted a little while ago that Myrtle’s full name is Myrtle Elizabeth Warren. She then realized that the name sounded familiar, but by then it was too late to take back her unintentional nod to the senator. Myrtle ends up introducing herself to Harry and Draco’s children in the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child using her full name, and we just couldn’t not write a weird human rights anthem bouncing off of this pretty funny tidbit.”

The lyrics are classic Moaning Myrtles personality wise, but they also remind me a lot of Nina’s solo album “Cliches” that she released back in 2008, which featured many witty political-themed songs. It’s definitely more fast paced than a lot of previous Myrtles releases, which makes it sound a lot like Lauren’s more recent solo stuff. All in all, it’s a fantastic combination of composition and lyrics that shows how much both Lauren and Nina have matured as musicians over the ten years since their last release – and how they’ve stayed true to the original identity of their band.

“Nevertheless, I Persisted” is a rallying cry for all wizard rock fans to not only jump back into the scene again, but to stand up and make a difference and fight for what they believe in. Lines like “So call your reps and join the fight” and “When people tried to silence me/I stood my ground and I resisted” not only allude to the current political climate, they bring back memories of popular wrock songs past that were anti-George W. Bush allegories.

Although there’s been no word from either Lauren or Nina (yet) about formally recording this song and making it available for purchase in the future, Lauren put up the live (and full band!) version with professional audio from Geek Beat on her YouTube channel. If you turn on the closed captions, the lyrics will pop up and you can sing along!