Thursday: Monuments - Origin of Escape

     I've got some serious catching up to do after the last couple of days, so let's get right to it, shall we? For starters, have you heard the new Monuments record yet? If grooves are your thing, the answer should most definitely be yes.

     I've written about British prog band Monuments before, and even featured a song from the new record The Amanuensis back before it was released. But now that it's out and I've had some more time to chew on it, I feel it's time once again to shine some light on these British djentlemen.

     "Origin of Escape" is the second track from the recently released The Amanuensis, and it's a good example of the kind of heavy grooving Monuments are capable of. And while, as I often say, the wheel isn't being reinvented here, The Amaneunsis definitely sees Monuments upping their game: there's more of everything to like this time out -- riffs, grooves, you name it -- and Chris Barretto's vocal performances are confident and powerful. Have a listen to "Origin of Escape" and hear for yourself.

Monuments - I, The Creator

     June is shaping up to be a good month for new metal. Yesterday I was talking about Mastodon's new album Once More 'Round the Sun, which comes out on the 24th of June, and today I'm directing you to the first song to be released from Monuments' sophomore disc The Amanunensis, which comes out the day before (in Europe anyways, we'll have to wait a week or two over here across the pond).

     I've featured the British prog djentlemen of Monuments and their first album Gnosis a couple of times before, mostly for their much-better-than-average djentish riffing and miles deep grooves. But "I, The Creator", the first song we heard from The Amanunensis, gets the nod today for throwing a stronger sounding sense of melody into the mix.

     Some among you will of course decry things like an increase in clean singing as being too poppy (or something more colourful). But think about it this way: the formula of groove-centric metal plus catchy melodies is what yielded Australia's Circles. Or Sevendust, for that matter. If Monuments were to evolve in the direction of either of those bands, it wouldn't be the worst thing that could happen. Have a listen to "I, The Creator" and see what you think.

Sunday: Monuments - Doxa

     Whether or not you think djent is something that's played out, or whether or not it was something you really dug to begin with, I don't think you can deny the fact that when it's done well it can be some tasty stuff. Rhythmic riffage with lots of low end can be a well-utilized tool or an over-employed crutch.

     In the hands of the British craftsmen in Monuments it's definitely the former, a tool for the forging of cool djenty grooves that stand out from the rest of the downtuned crowd. Album number two is apparently in the works, but for now we'll have to content ourselves with debut LP Gnosis and tracks like "Doxa". This is the kind of thing I could see being on the radio (in a good way), if this kind of music got on the radio.

Song of the Day: Monuments - Empty Vessels Make the Most Noise

     Today is one of those days when I'm sure there's something cool and unique that none of you has ever heard of and that I'm forgetting to tell you about. Wrack my brain as I might, I still feel like there's something I'm forgetting. But since I can't remember what that might be, your getting some sweet shuffle action.

Song of the Day: Monuments - Blue Sky Thinking

     Today's band is definitely Djent with a capital D (which isn't surprising given their pedigree, with guitarist John Browne being an alumnus of defunct British djent pioneers Fell Silent) but that doesn't mean they're not worth a listen or two. I just got a copy of their debut full-length last week, and I've been digging on it quite a bit.