Sunday, April 1, 2012

The Balladeers of Down Under Rise Above in Ambient Majesty

 

monks of mReview: Neurogenesis EP by Monks of Mellonwah

Winners of the Best Indie Rock Band award at the Artists In Music Awards in Los Angeles and nominated for Best International Act at the LA Music Awards, the Monks of Mellonwah are quickly entering the world stage spotlight, finding both US and International acclaim. this four-piece alternative rock and indie band based in Australia, the Monks draw on the depth and variety of influences driving each member to create a fresh and unique sound. The total creative element is a blending of classic blues & rock in 60’s, 70’s and 80’s styles in addition to modern creativity.

the Monks of Mellonwah been busy developing an electrifying and ambient atmospheric live act in a balladeer arrangement, soft tones with strong musical scoring and harmonic movements make them unique in a very homogenized “pop” culture. The Monks of Mellonwah released their first music video ‘Swamp Groove in April 2011 and have since enjoyed play on ABC’s music program RAGE.

Growing media interest has led to the Monks being featured in an up and coming radio documentary and more recently Los Angeles radio presenter Mikey Jayy aired the Monks song Neurogenesis while showcasing the band on his show ‘The Great Unknowns’. He also announced the bands nomination for Best New Indie/Rock Band and Best New Rock Band at the All Indie Music Awards.

We received the 5 song Neurogenesis EP by Monks of Mellonwah and were quickly impressed with this still relatively new group’s ability to capture and hold the listeners attention. Their style does harken back to the Singer / Songwriter styling’s of the 60’s and 70’s, similar to Gordon Lightfoot or James Taylor, but not “preachy” or “melancholy” but lively and full of youthful playfulness that is definitely contemporary. The singer has a sound similar to Donovan, but does not languish in the dreamy musical harmonies in their songs, but brings energy and life into each verse.

The song titles are simple, unpretentious and light hearted, like the music itself, “Neurogenesis” ( both the standard and radio edits), “Never Ending Spirit”, “Kyoto” and “You Shine” are introspective without being too vague or redundant. I would definitely classify this group as a “Rock” band, but they also could be mixed in with a power rock or hybrid of R&B/ Dance sound, which is, in my opinion fabulous, most new music groups today wind up getting pigeon holed into a particular style and cant transition into the multiple musical arenas of interest. I am very fond of the song “Kyoto” and the title track “Neurogenesis” the music is flowing and engaging, atmospheric but not overly ambient to the point where you can’t get in the beat, in fact, the beat is solid and functional, keeping you in the groove and is very hypnotic, power chords make it a great mix of influences and yet unique to the Monks of Mellonwah’s individuality.

Go to http://www.monksofmellonwah.com/ and find out more about Monks of Mellonwah, their new Video “Swamp Groove” and their vision of of their music and more. You can also find them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/monksofmellonwah.


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