Here at last. The full-length 11 track album from our favorite Belgian, Monrad has just been released and it brings with it all of Monrad’s creative vision and mystical voice. A must hear for fans of Leonard Cohen, The National and Nick Cave.
In case you missed our previous articles of Monrad’s singles, you can find them here, and here.
Monrad is the solo moniker of Matthew Ramon. Born in Kortrijk, Belgium, Matthew quickly felt the need to leave his birthplace in order to find new challenges and inspiration. He wandered off through several places until he settled down on a small village in Italy.
Once part of a reverb-heavy, instrumental surf punk band (Rencontrez l’amour – Born of punk and reverb), Matthew once again grabbed music in Italy to satisfy an uneasy mind. He, Filip Tanghe (recording and/or live engineer of Balthazar and Warhaus), Bert Desmet and Gijs Coucke teamed up together to bring to life Monrad’s first full-length album ever: “Wired“.
A dark, ethereal production that’ll made Cohen proud. Wired is filled with obscure elements, tricky compositions and melodies that haunt you in every turn. Matthew’s voice is deep, low and raspy, mixing singing with almost spoken-word parlando.
Hitting hard and straight away in “Velvet Remedy”, this first track immediately strikes with Monrad’s somber characteristic sound. Almost devilish, you can hear the same energy through songs Wired, Villain and South-Southwest.
Our once reviewed single “One-Stop-Shop” hits next, with its laid-back yet still somber energy. A personal favorite around here. “Ikigai” keeps the calm mood with Nirvana-esque riffs, haunting background vocals and an almost “Phantom of The Opera” vibe.
“Weird Sensations” kick is not to be played with, and its bass can take you for a ride even when standing still. Its background guitars fill the empty space, while rhythmic elements continue to flow in a groovy spiral of sweet weirdness. “Break It” and “Turmoil” pick up the pace with percussive elements on the loose and mischievous synth lines luring you closer and closer to the end.
“Midday Sun” feels like a quiet breeze with soothing saxophone breaths, and “Night Shadow” presents the final chapter with yet more haunting melodies, shuffling percussions and Monrad’s last goodbye followed by a plethora of guitars, saxophones and piano, leading the album to its final form.
Without a doubt, Matthew’s endeavors gave fruit, and “Wired” proves the pros of leaving town and settling down in Italy. Where will he head out next for his next album? Find out here, whenever the time comes. In the meanwhile don’t forget to support this project and to follow Monrad on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Soundcloud and Spotify.
You can also check out his official website. If you enjoy his music and are able to provide monetary support, you can download it on Bandcamp.
It also helps to stream and share his music; you can obviously find it in the following Playlists: Less Than 1,000 Followers, 12 New Songs This Week, Alterindie State Of Mind, Indie Only and Chill – Folk – Acoustic.
Remember that you can always find me here Linktree MadZen for all my social media and own music.
P.S. If you enjoy discovering new artists and fresh new music you can subscribe to this blog Less Than 1,000 Followers and follow the Playlist with all the artists that we have presented here!!!
This coverage was created via Musosoup #Sustainablecurator