Back
in late 2013 I wrote about a single called 'Red Dress', which had been released
earlier that year by Ontario-based folkers Monuments and Statues. The single
was a belated follow-up to the band's Welcome to the Undertow EP, which was
released as far back as 2010, and it came with the promise of a full-length
album sometime in the future. Well, the future’s here, because a few weeks back
the band’s debut album Fractals made its way into my ever-expanding inbox. One of the reservations I had about Welcome to the Undertow at the time related to the music's lack of structure and form. 'Red Dress' itself came across as being rather ramshackle and almost random in parts. I’m sure it wasn’t intentional, but it felt as though there was a little too much going on.
That most certainly isn't the case with Fractals, and clearly the good folk of Monuments and Statues have spent a lot of time getting things just right for the album. The nine tracks that make up the album appeal as beautifully crafted slices of folk-pop, and the whole thing just seems to gel.
The
band's basic approach hasn't changed markedly; the music remains essentially
acoustic in form - banjo, cello, piano, and a variety of string
instrumentation underpinning some lovely girl/boy vocal harmonies. The
song-writing is solid, production is crisp and full, and there is no obvious
weak moment across the album.
Looking
for highlights, no single track stands out over any of the others. ‘Red Dress’
features again, the 2014 single ‘Oh Great Rose’ is a worthy album opener, and I
really love the sultry vocal and fullness of sound offered on ‘Galafax’, which
gets a reprise near the end.
There’s
a real sense of cohesion throughout Fractals. As debut albums go, it’s pretty
impressive, and it wouldn't be at all surprising to see this release take the
band to a whole new level - in terms of wider exposure and popularity. Fractals
feels like a genuine step forward for Monuments and Statues.
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