Monarchy

Heard about these guys back in November of '09 when BIGSTEREO posted a demo of 'Black, the Colour of My Heart.' That song is brilliant; the thumping choral backing contrasted with the underproduced vocals, blending sinister verses with the uplifting piano-driven chorus. On the basis of that song alone I popped along to see them play the Rock&Roll tent at last year's Bestival. Having convinced a couple of friends to come along on the promise of great things we were greeted by four masked men in suits with matching see-thru guitars. Not what I expected at all, but the show was awesome and they were very well received by the modestly-sized crowd. They certainly took themselves seriously and roared through their set like absolute pros.

I'm seeing them in 4 days at the Jazz Cafe in Camden so I thought I'd dig up a review of their album that I never finished. Click Read More to have a look.

Much to my excitement, Monarchy opened their live set with 'Black, the Colour of My Heat,' incidentally it is also the first song on their album, a suitably stirring number to set the tone - perfect. 

Following the ominous opening number, Monarchy take us up-beat straight away with the pounding beats of 'The Phoenix Alive.' At their Bestival gig this song was clearly a well known fan favourite as a contingent at the front were all chanting along "Now our victory march is struck with charm..charm..charm..charm." The lead singer uses this song to showcase his impressive falsetto, smoothly gliding his voice over the chugging synthetic backdrop.

When I first heard 'Love Get Out of My Way' I couldn't tell if it had been on a well known advert or something, because for some inexplicable reason it felt as though I had heard it before, even down to the words of the chorus that came spilling out my mouth like some sort of tuneful tourettes sufferer. That chorus is literally as catchy as chlamydia, though the warm buzzy feeling it leaves you with is a good thing! From the "Oo Oo OoooOO's" to the energetic doubled-up vocals blending with arpeggiated synths - it's just a downright cracker!

'Maybe I'm Crazy' is definitely an album highlight - it's like a modern take on ‘Clocks’ by Coldplay mixed with 'Valentine' by The Delays. The synths and vocals wash over you in much the same way as ‘Pure shores’ by All Saints does - it puts you in the frame of mind to close your eyes and juuust enjoy it. 

Monarchy then offer a refreshing change of pace with spaced-out plodder 'You Don't Want to Dance with Me' and the short dreamy interlude 'Around the Sun' before launching into 'We Were Young.' The echoey piano chords start to propel the verse forward, then the drums slowly become intensified until the chorus is at full-throttle and once again Monarchy have got you nodding away like a dashboard dog.

It has to be said that Monarchy were utterly flawless live, that chap can seriously belt out those vocals.

Part of the reason I warm to the band is that yes, their lyrics and style could be considered clichéd or some other such term, but one can't deny that the band has real conviction and that their songs are genuinely heartfelt.

Gold In The Fire - this was an absolute joy to see performed live as the keyboard player was clearly very enthusiastic or eccentric, dramatizing every keyboard stroke into an enormous pantomime gesture. After this comes the rather repetitive 'Call' - the only real downer on the album, it just doesn't really develop or go anywhere. 

The slow strummed electric guitar of 'Travelling by Ambulance' brings the listener back down to earth for this slow-burning and emotive end to the album. The confident vocal style of the chorus is pleasingly reminiscent of People in Planes and this is complimented by the minimal electronic backing. All in all, Monarchy's debut is a fantastic collection of up-beat and hellishly catchy electronic hits. 

Monarchy's music could definitely be accused of being rather formulaic, and if you were unfamilier with the individual nuances of each song then you could be forgiven for thinking that they were all very similar. Comparisons can also be made with all manner of electronic groups and even the Scissor Sisters, though I hope that the only real comparison made with the latter is that Monarchy garner a highly devoted underground following only to be propelled to stardom later. (Not literally though, they’ve already done that! - click me & me)

Remixes have been the order of the day for Monarchy over the last year and they've tinkered with numerous bands - the following are some particularly smashing ones.

Jamiroquai's original is superb as it is but Monarchy have really brought the guitar to the front of the mix, plonked in some well placed electronic flourishes and generally thickened the song up a bit.

Not only have Monarchy remixed other bands' work but, unsurprisingly, they've had their songs tampered with too!

Check out this remix of 'Love Get Out of My Way' by Holy Ghost - it's almost more of a cover than a remix, with HG grabbing an entirely new vocalist to inject a bit of funky soul into it.

Keep an eye out in the coming week or so because I'm going to finish of a whole load of semi-finished overdue album reviews and put them up.