MONO
Newtown Social Club
Sydney, AUS
December 7, 2015
"Mesmerizing" and "cinematic" are the adjectives that come to mind when one is asked to describe the epic, vast instrumental landscapes MONO from Japan weaves.
Drawn out crescendos, cascading and repeating, slowly building up until a shrill and thunderous wave of distortion drowns you in an ocean of noise. Phil Spector would have hit the wall.
Oh, My Bloody, shoegazing Valentine!
The upper register of the Glockenspiel, which is an integral part of MONO's instrumentation rather than an ornament, is omnipresent and its chimes add an ethereal quality to the performance, which is enhanced by the intimate setting of the Newtown Social Club.
A MONO show is not a fun show in the traditional sense: The protagonists completely lost in the music, trying to communicate the incommunicable, do not acknowledge the audience and a seated venue would suit them better than a rock'n' roll cave.
Light and its dynamics could play an important role yet the show is devoid of visual stimuli.
The element of MONOtony is prevalent throughout the show as almost every song starts and ends in the same place.
A majestic instrumental band.
