Review: Monumentals - Irregular Heads

At last, a band with a name that reflects the music.....how much simpler would the life of a music lover be if all names gave an indication of the music itself ('The Sound a bit like The Black Angels', 'We've got a Sabbath Album' or 'Twee Indie Bollocks' anyone?)....and make no mistake, this music IS monumental. Monumentals are Ryan and Neil from The Cult of Dom Keller and are a 'krautrock-inspired soundtrack duo', the press blurb mentions names such as Godspeed! You Black Emperor, Morricone, Vangelis, Nick Cave and Eno...that is an awful lot to live up to. 'Irregular Heads' comes to us from Eggs In Aspic, a label that consistently brings us music from all corners of the psych world with nary a duff release but I've gotta say, I think this is the best yet!

'Circadian Oscillator' opens this collection with some beautiful analogue electronica...rich drones flow around some low key synths and it all sounds rather lilting and lovely and one can see where the Vangelis reference fits in. The addition of some snippets of eerie voices gives everything an otherworldly aspect....sublime! 'Catlifedead' opens with what sounds like mutated gamelan before a piano is introduced playing some dread laden chords and one is instantly taken back to the wonderful Giallo film soundtracks of the seventies - the same mix of the atmospheric with the experimental, almost bordering on musique concret..indeed it reminds me of a lot of the brilliant left field music that is still coming out of Italy. Seriously, this track is worth the entry fee on its own. 'Zeg-001' continues with the soundtrack vibe but moving the location from haunted suburbia to the lonely openness of space via the sunblasted prairies of the old west. A distinct Morricone spaghetti western influence can be clearly heard under some black hole dense drones and echoes. 'Celestial Pangs' comes as bit of a shock...a guitar!! Said guitar is sedate but rich and mellifluous and acts as a sound bedrock for some more analogue loveliness. Again Vangelis would be the obvious touchpoint but at this stage I'm thinking less of an influence but more of jumping off point. The shimmer of a tambourine heralds the mark at which the guitar becomes more strident whilst still retaining its initial, inherent melancholia. 'Dawn Colossal' is a slice of iridescent kosmische very much in the mould of Tangerine Dream...the same rich washes of sound and delicious drones while 'Alice In Wonderland Syndrome' takes a more experimental approach...guitar chords backed by some oscillating electronica morph into a cacophony of instruments and hellish voices. It all changes again with the introduction of some psychedelic leaning guitar before the cacophony returns and it continues in this way until the end. Musically this has a lot of Father Murphy about it (which can only be a very good thing). 'Codeine Caves' is a real beauty...filigree wisps of melody interweaving with some delicate drone set the groundwork for some lachrymose but irrestible piano, the result being a mix of horror soundtrack and musical eulogy. 'Berliner', as implied by it's title, is a krautrock inspired number or maybe the B-side of Bowie's 'Heroes' album I would say...it has the same vibe as 'Sense of Doubt', 'Moss garden' et al....and is stunning. This wonderful, wonderful album is brought to a close with 'Collapse Of The Ghost Regime' and this time around it is Vangelis circa 'Bladerunner' that comes to mind, it has that same dystopian atmosphere and those deep, resonant drones that so easily conjure up mental images of decaying futuristic landscapes.

'Irregular Heads' is definitely going on the growing list of best 2018 albums so far. The guys in Monumentals have created something that is truly awe inspiring in its scope and quality..they have taken disparate influences and moulded them into a collection of tracks that show creativity, ingenuity and craftsmanship. Musically it never sits still, the range is staggering and yet it is seamless from start to finish. It is, in short and to come full circle, truly monumental. Grab the tape while you can from the Eggs in Aspic Bandcamp page here because they are going fast and you really do not want to miss out on this.