Monade - Monstre Cosmic

Like Tortoise in half time.

Album Review by Matt Gollock | 05 Feb 2008
Album title: Monstre Cosmic
Artist: Monade
Label: Too Pure
The double-edged sword of the side project: sometimes it works and sometimes you just want to turn off and listen to the original band. But let's try and avoid making lazy comparisons with this Lætitia Sadier off-shoot with Stereolab. Monstre Cosmic has a lovely languid pace for the most part, sounding like Tortoise in half time in places. It's beautifully produced with jangling guitars, swathes of strings and a gorgeous ringing bass sound, reminiscent of the mighty Karamasov (RIP). As one might expect from references to those touchstones, there's a good deal of mournful sounding, French accented, vocals sung in harmony. Stand out tracks include the stuttering majesty that is Elle Topo and Entre Chein et Loup, which shifts gears from a melancholic torch song to a throbbing beast with alarming effect. You'll not find a Super-electric here - shit, almost made it – but this is a respectable stand-alone album nevertheless. [Matt Gollock]
Release Date: 18 Feb
Monade play Nice 'N' Sleazy, Glasgow on 1 Mar http://www.toopure.com/monade/