MonstrO

Album Title: MonstrO
Record Label: Vagrant Records
Review by Sal Serio
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Witness L.A. band MonstrO’s debut release, it’s molten metal glaciers pushing the boundaries of the heavy-new-rock genre with swelling burning rivers of psychedelia and classic rock. Charlie Suarez’s vocals have elements of the best hairy rock crooners, say Phil Mogg of UFO mixed with Mark Lanegan, meshed with an even weirder mix of ‘80s English hard-psych-rock workouts like the early Cult were known for. Guitarist Juan Montoya kept me transfixed with the history of rock interwoven into his creatively conceived riffing.

All of these embellishments push MonstrO in to a world of their own, where they must be judged by their own merit, since there is absolutely no one to size them up against. I happen to like that. Several of my favorite bands of recent times (ex: Mars Volta, System Of A Down, Mastodon) keep the metal genre relevant, viable, and a force to be reckoned with, by refusing to be formulaic… denying the demands of the industry. MonstrO broke the mold, and then smashed the pieces to bits.

To this end, I must gush and pontificate the praises of this gnarly MonstrO aggregation and it’s full length first recording. For Gump’s sake, just get it, crank it, and ENJOY the HELL OUT OF IT all ready. Don’t sweat my whacked-ass prose or the sci-fi hippie paintings that make up the cover art – this group will kick your ass and simultaneously blow your mind.

MonstrO Online
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