Whenever I hear the word sitar I automatically have flashbacks of that oppressive, sweet scent of Nag Champa. I see parachute pants, think yoga and, of course, my father’s Beatles record collection. Unfortunately, none of this has much to do with MONOH. Yes, he is a sitar player, and from what I heard on his debut single With Attitude, a nasty one at that. And he is a part of the Ravi Shankar lineage, having devoted himself to the art for over a decade. But you won’t catch him at the yogi tea lounge or touring around the hippie circuit. At least that’s my hunch. The man has a love for advanced electronica and seems to be set on developing his own style by the sound of machines with his own approach to sitar playing. The man loves effects, patches full of wires and, I’m guessing now, but he probably feels more at home at a club than he would at your local yoga studio.
With Attitude is the first single from MONOH’s self-titled debut EP which is scheduled to drop on Quiet Love Records on the 11th of October. It’s a spritely composition, full of emotion and drive. Colourful, bright and with a snappy relentless rimshot and a textured saw-toothed bass line. If you’re listening to it on your headphones, the sitar “riffs” swirl and envelop your melon like some animated roller coaster. It makes for fun listening. There is an undeniable element of psychedelia at play here, as well. The production was credited to Alessandro Giannelli from another Swiss electronica outfit called Egopusher. I’m definitely looking forward to hearing the full EP!
