MODERN MONSTERS “Modern Monsters”

Self Released, 2021

Music: Alternative Metal
Website: https://modernmonstersmusic.com/music
Duration: 10:12 (3 tracks)
Country: U.S.A

Leaving their current(settled) band to start a new project tells how many Modern Monsters mean to founding members Brody Bass, Rich Wells, and Keenan Tuohy. Turns out that the trio was in hopes to start something vicious and heavy, hence the idea for a new project. While starting a new band is not at all easy, for Modern Monsters, the easy picks of guitarist Wyatt Lennon and vocalist Josh Weaver would catapult them to release a new album sooner than expected. This album would turn out to be the self-titled 3 track EP, “Modern Monsters”.

The band has a solid camaraderie, as except for Josh, everyone knows each other well before. This made it easier for them to write songs. The band has mentioned before that the songs are written collectively and no part is written by an individual without taking others’ opinions. All of this made me curious, and excited. Hence I picked the album right when it was dropped.

The album starts with “Furrow”, a track that defines the band’s musical inclination. Even though the base of the track is a thick guitar riff, the band also experiments with switching from a heavier base to more melodic parts. Josh has a huge part to play in this. His constant switches from singing to screaming help the rest of the instrumentation align with the required pitch. I’m sure that if it wasn’t for the band’s collective songwriting, this track wouldn’t be as creative as to how it is now.

It is important to note that, even though Modern Monsters are new to the scene, the members are all experienced and this is not their first band. Their maturity is evident from the second track of the album, “Lament”. With a wonderful lyricism that explains not having pain anymore, and delves deeper into the subject of sorrow. The track matches the passionate lyricism and the instrumentation is crafted in a way that doesn’t give away the gist of what the band tries through the lyrics.

The third and final track, “Stay Free”, is a staple radio-friendly rock track, that can be but anthemic if you get hold of the lyrics. The guitars roar into the track, as heavy as they can get, with the Drums driving the entire thing forward. Once again, the band has something to tell the listeners. In short, this is what the band has to say on their lyricism:

“Our music comes from our angst about social issues surrounding us in our society. This EP is an expression of our frustrations and our want to move forward in a world that works together to solve our issues instead of becoming constantly divided. We wanted to write something to make people realize we are all in this together and can overcome our negative mindsets”

Overall, for a debut effort as a collective, Modern Monsters has excelled well in almost all segments – be it, the lyricism, the vocal or the instrumentation, making it easier to comment on their memorability, originality and production. The only thing that I felt was the brevity of the EP. Would’ve been better if they took a few more months in the creative phase and released a 5-track EP. But, the good thing is that, even though there is only 3 tracks, none of which are filler tracks. I’m really looking forward to what the band puts out next!

Tracklist:

1. Furrow
2. Lament
3. Stay Free

Line-up:

Rich Wells- Guitar
Brody Bass – Bass
Keenan Tuohy- Drums
Josh Weaver- Vocals
Wyatt Lennon- Guitar