Something slightly different. The Psychotic Monks a band from Saint-Ouen a suburb in the northern part of Paris, who defy easy categorisation on their latest album Private Meaning First. Describing themselves as 'Post George Orwell' and naming Francis Bacon as their main influence is promising if slightly pretentious and they deliver on both of those fronts. Nothing wrong with pretension in rock music. It never did The Clash or the Manics any harm. Anyhow, this is a strange, disorientating and defiantly dark record.
Looking for musical signposts you'd probably plump for Sonic Youth, Birthday Party, Einstürzende Neubauten, Unknown Pleasures, or early Deus. So not easy listening then. The Psychotic Monks' is a dark clanging, dissonant, uneasy sound. They sing in English but you can't always make out what exactly they're singing but know they're not happy. On their Spotify page the band quote Macbeth: 'Life is a tale. Told by an idiot. Full of sound and fury. Signifying nothing.' No jokes then.
If at times you might need to come to the surface for a lungful of oxygen, there's much here that's noteworthy. Psychotic Monks deserve respect for sticking to their guns if nothing else.
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