The Monsieurs
Selftitled
Worship the mighty Monsieurs! Here in Boston it’s hard to find a harder rocking trio of musicians who are cooler than the Monsieurs. They are just one of these bands that should be appreciated by the masses but at the same time are reserved for those who “get it.” And if you don’t get the Monsieurs, then you need to reconsider your priorities, sir.
For the uninitiated, the Monsieurs play a dirty and uninhibited form of garage rock and roll. There’s a reason why they’re on the Slovenly label, after all. And when you hear one of their songs, it’s a full on sonic attack to the ears. We’ve been rocking their sophomore release Deux for quite a bit and it was one of our favorite releases of the year but we almost forgot about their debut. So much so that when we revisited this release, the first thing that struck us is: How is everyone not listening to this band? Sure, Deux has a thrashier and rawer sound (like that was even possible), and in comparison, this selftitled is downright poppy. There are just so much Ramones in these songs yet so much Monsieurs personality that it’s hard not to call this debut an instant classic. While Deux is a run to the races, the songs in the collection breathe, only to make a surgically embed themselves in your brain. Is there any denying the catchiness of Kari-Ann, We are Wolves, or Rock the Night? No. They’re catchy as hell.
I don’t often say this, but I think owning this album on anything but vinyl might be a sin. This lo-fi loudness might only be truly understood in analog format and wouldn’t translate any other way. That’s why you need to get this on wax. Don’t worry, it comes with a download card for the MP3s which will brighten up the playlist on your iPod.
If you’re a fan of garage music a la Jon Spencer or the In the Red catalog, you need to hear this. And, if you’ve been wanting to hear what an distilled jolt of sonic energy sounds like, you also need to hear this. One of coolest debuts ever.
Get it from Slovenly Records.
