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Album Details
- Artist: Mono
- Album: Hymn To The Immortal Wind
- Label: Temporary Residence
- Year of Release: 2009
- ME Rating:
- Reviewed by: dscanland on 2009-03-23
RecommendIt's been awhile since checking in with the Japanese Neo-Classical group Mono. I've been handing the Mono discs off to another worthy reviewer. Now it's time to reacquaint myself and Hymn To The Immortal Wind is a bloody great way to do it. This is phenomenal recording showcasing Mono's talents both in composing and in instrumentation. The album is now out on CD or a double LP. 2009 marks Mono's 10th Anniversary as well.
Now if you are unfamiliar with this Mono (there is another band of the same name dabbling in trip hop) this is a good time to become familiar. Hymn To The Immortal World is really an epic album. It has everything you'd want in a post rock, neo-classical vein. Songs ebb and flow almost seamlessly. There are highs, and there are lows. The musicianship is almost flawless and the listenability of the album is above par.
The production of this album was handled by Steve Albini who recorded this to analog tape. It's got a personality that only Steve could capture. The music gets so passionate at times like on the opening "Ashes in The Snow" that you get caught up in the fever. Honestly, a wonderful instrumental rock album that fans should look out for.
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on 2009-07-07 muddyfish_uk Said:
The Post-Rock community demands a lot from its inhabitants. If the genre were some back street members only club, it would require its members to adhere to a strict dress code in which hearts where worn permanently on sleeves before permitting entry. Mono have always been 'up there' with the best of them. They share their label with the mighty 'Explosions In The Sky' and 'Eluvium' and therefore have a great range of influence and inspiration to drive them to write and perform progressive and perpetually epic pieces of Post-Rock. Thankfully, Mono's fifth studio album 'Hymn To The Immortal Wind' is in a word, magnificent. Why stop there? It is also, awe-inspiring and glorious. A truly monumental achievement. Mono's membership of the Post-Rock 'club' is not going to expire any time soon.
The experience gained from listening to 'Hymn' is a wonderfully visual one thanks to the incredible art-work. The record appears to be something of a concept album, which isn't unusual for the genre as it is one which is so fundamentally emotionally charged, a concept or plot is useful in acting as a back seat in which the listener can perch whilst being carried away by the music. With 'Hymn' this seems more necessary than ever before as the record plays like some majestic opera. Throughout the disk an orchestral score compliments the band's guitars and breathes magic into the sails of the band's gentle melodies. It's all rather moving, especially when listened to in conjunction with the linear notes, which tell a tale of romance and unrequited love upon a cold, snowy dais. It would be impossible to highlight a particular track of note as they are all so special but a good place to start would be the opener, 'Ashes In The Snow' with its underlying fuzz and chiming bell introduction. When the orchestra washes into the mix it takes your breath away.
Hymn has succeeded in putting Mono at the top of the pile as far as I'm concerned - a mantle held by 'Explosions In The Sky' for many years. They have not only managed to produce an incredibly beautiful album but in doing so have forged a new benchmark for other Post-Rock acts to aspire to.
Rating: 9/10
