Equal parts accessibility and creativity.
Pop is often seen as a “safe” genre; one free of surprises, devoid of much originality, containing little room for evolution and development. But to be honest, this is a belief generally held by those unwilling to go below the radio-friendly surface and explore the creativity lurking in the pop music underground. To these people in particular, I present Monocle – strong evidence for the innovation still thriving in the genre, stated with real focus and conviction.
In terms of style, Monocle do well to set themselves aside from any serious sound-alikes, calling upon the cool melodies of jazz, enforcing a danceable tempo and pouring it all into the classic verse-chorus structure. The end result is fantastic - managing to showcase excellent musicianship, whilst still displaying potential to catalyze the dance floor.
For example, as suitably cosmic “Music of Space” flies straight into a texture haze of retro-electro synths, guitars and an addictive funky bassline, it’s hard not to be compelled by the way in which the infectious melodies are juxtaposed with the intricacy of each instrument and the conflux of different timbres. Not to mention the subtle hint of darkness lurking beneath the music on each track, fueled by the ghostly-soft croons of lead vocalist Sunny Kim.
As the album progresses into the second half, the sound takes a turn towards the more daring and different; the familiar 4/4 drum beats are switched in favor of something more impatient and syncopated, whilst the use of melodic repetition starts to send tracks into a driving aural hypnosis. The band manage to slot their sound into these changes perfectly, without forcing an “experimental” feel or disrupting the start-to-finish flow.
Well, for the most part anyway. It’s a shame that penultimate track “We Slip” sounds fresh from Slowdive’s B-sides, and sees Outer Sunset drift away from their eerie Pop Noir into a dreamy state of zero gravity. As the melodic layers weave themselves into a gentle guitar blanket, you have to admire Monocle’s ability to dip their toes into shoegaze so comfortably; though it feels incredibly out of place compared to the more direct approach that dominates most of the record.
Luckily, the stumbling trio of snare drums and gurgling synth leads of “Road Sign” ensure that the sound settles back into something distinctly Monocle and ends the release on a high. Overall, Outer Sunset really is a solid record; one that displays much accomplished, with a lot to potentially achieve in future efforts.
| Reviewer:Jack Chuter Added: December 11th 2007 |
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