Mono is about to unveil its new ocean of sweetness.
From its formation in 1999 in Japan, the band has forged a solid reputation in the Post-Rock scene. To celebrate their 25-year career, Takaakira « Taka » Goto (guitar/glockenspiel), Hideki « Yoda » Suematsu (guitar/glockenspiel), Tamaki Kunishi (bass/guitar/keyboards) and Dahm Majuri Cipolla (drums) unveil Oath, their thirteenth album, released by Pelagic Records, Temporary Residence Ltd. and New Noise, and is stated as the last collaboration with their long-time friend and producer Steve Albini, who tragically passed away in May of that year.
Like all Post albums, Mono‘s latest offering hides a few secrets throughout its seventy-one minutes of sonic progression. If we first see a mirror between Us, Then, and Then, Us, respectively first and third tracks, we also become aware of the sonic evolution of the strings that accompany the four musicians, showing themselves to be as melancholic as they are majestic, and sometimes even creating a kind of dissonance with the most saturated passages, as on Run On where the contrast reaches its climax. Airy tones are also given pride of place, especially on Hear the Wind Sing, where soothing harmonics reach us in fluctuating waves before plunging us into the center of the storm to close the track. The band plays a lot with this « eye of the storm » effect, notably on Moonlight Drawing, which slowly locks us into its intensity before letting it out, then gradually eases us into silence and coldness with Holy Winter, which easily enchants us with its luminous tones, guiding our steps to the silent We All Shine On. As a veritable interlude as restful as eerie, its eight minutes come to an end, leaving us to contemplate Time Goes By, which closes the album as demonstrative as ever – something I find relatively rare for an instrumental track – and is made up of a wide variety of elements to enable a gradual, imperceptible blaze until the spark slowly fades.
Mono‘s reputation could only lead us to expect an excellent album, and this is precisely what the band delivers with Oath. Every note is extremely worked, every silence is religiously placed, and that’s exactly what we love about this band.
90/100
