Band:	Mono
Album:	Oath
Style:	Post-rock
Release date:	June 2024
A review by:	RaduP

01. Us, Then
02. Oath
03. Then, Us
04. Run On
05. Reflection
06. Hear The Wind Sing
07. Hourglass
08. Moonlight Drawing
09. Holy Winter
10. We All Shine On
11. Time Goes By

I wasn't really gonna review this album, feeling like I've already given Mono their dues, and feeling that there's not much to add to what's already been said about them and their music. But then I realized this is possibly the last album Steve Albini produced.

And I say "possibly" because I haven't found for certain which one is the last one, but it is for certain one of the last ones and definitely the last Mono album to be produced by Steve Albini. I don't wanna make this more about Steve than about the actual band playing, but wanna know what other Mono albums had his hand in them? Walking Cloud And Deep Red Sky, You Are There, Hymn To The Immortal Wind, Requiem For Hell, all classics if you ask me, so forgive me for giving one aspect of Oath this much attention this early on, but Steve Albini has had his hand in some of the band's most celebrated work, and that partnership now tragically ending with Albini's passing, we ought to celebrate that we have one final album.

Hearing it now and being very aware of the production it's easy to be in awe at how organic the whole thing sounds. When Mono's orchestral approach is at its strongest it would be easy to lose some of it's "rock band" quality, but the production adds just the right amounts of reverb and how crisp the drumming sounds. It's the latter that feels like the most instantaneously obvious aspect of the production, because drums don't usually have such a strong impact within crescendocore outside their own moments, especially when the strings are this involved. So as far as the production is involved, there's little to complain about.

And, to come back to Mono, I mentioned how I had already given them their dues, and I started that review with "Mono was formed in 1999. Twenty years later, they are still as vital as ever.". Well, add another five years to that. And another album outside of this one. There is something about Oath's songwriting though that makes me err at the "they're still as vital as ever" part. It's still a beautiful album, and it definitely tries very hard to be one, but it's also 71 minutes long, and the only Mono album that is longer is Palmless Prayer / Mass Murder Refrain, which was a collaboration, and Oath really doesn't feel like it uses that runtime very effectively. A lot of the crescendos meander without feeling as emotionally rewarding as they should, even if the sound is great, it does feel like the melodies themselves don't feel as inspired as they once did, but also in a way where it feels like even with how great the production sounds they'll have a bigger impact in an actual live setting. I find that a lot of the album's strongest moments come in the latter half, starting from the serene stripped back melodies in "Hourglass" to the most emotionally rewarding crescendo on the album happening in the closer "Time Goes By".

Mono have made great album with other producers, or even self-produced ones, and I'm sure there's plenty more Mono for our future selves to enjoy. Even though not all of Oath is up to standard, it's a great send-off to one of the best band-producer partnerships and one of the greatest producers to ever live.

R.I.P. Steve Albini