Enchanting neo-space-age bachelor pad
The Brooklyn quintet’s first full length (their debut EP Lounge Act was released in 2005) is a thickly produced concoction of sounds that are both retro-futuristic and contemporary, ala Stereolab. Monocle draws heavily from the lounge atmosphere of ‘50s and ‘60s space-age bachelor pad music, packing their swinging tracks with buzzing synthesizers, and ethereal clouds of bass, drums and guitar. The results have the confessional tone of background music, but the energetic bite of productions that demand the foreground. Sunny Kim sings breezy and cool in the manner of Astrud Gilberto, and the instrumental backings have the antsy trance ambience of the Feelies or Luna. This is music from a future in which analog synthesizers are cutting edge, cold war spy films are all the rage and KPM’s swinging stock music library provides the soundtrack to your life. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com] 