This record takes my breath a way. Mixing discordant guitars, thunderous drums, booming bass and raw, impassioned vocals. Whole Sky Monitor have a heavy, heavy sound but also the tunes to back them up. This ain’t no hollow bluster. Their sound is (probably) deeply unfashionable but pretty damn cool, full of subtle shifts and changes, aided by a punchy, effective no-frills production. ‘Harehills Chapeltown’ deals with the bands ambiguous love/hate relationship with their hometown (Leeds), with its images ranging from ‘all white steel bands’ to the shouts of ‘Another circle in hell’. Especially effective is the way in which the bass in the chorus just leaps out at you from the speakers almost flooring you. ‘Mary Moses’ relates the tale of an attempt at internet fraud, linking the global to the personal, wrapped up in a fantastic, clattering tune. ‘Just Let Me Talk To Her’ has more of a groove, only sounding slightly less frantic than its two predecessors. The vocals take on a less shouty feel and are joined by some neat harmonies without losing any of their impact.
Whole Sky Monitor have a great dual-guitar driven sound, a brutally inventive rhythm section and passionate vocals. It’s hard to compare this record to anyone else, sure there are precedents but they leave most of their contemporaries parading ‘emotional’ rock music sounding like bedwetters. Passionate, angry and edgy, at times they remind me of the excellent but ill-fated likes of Six By Seven, Skyscraper and World Domination Enterprises. There is a real tension existing in their music, between space and claustrophobia, experimentation and melody. Beautiful music for ugly times.
Andy Wood
//Andy Wood