CD Review: Saltillo - Monocyte

Written by Kira Kalinina Saturday, 14 April 2012 13:39

Artist: Saltillo
Title: Monocyte
Genre: Trip-hop
Release Date: 7th February 2011
Label: Artoffact Records

Album Review

‘Monocyte’ is the second album by SALTILLO, the project of Menton J. Matthews. A unique and over-talented musician plays violin, cello, tenor viola da gamba, piano, guitar, bass, banjo, drum-programing, pro tools all alone. This concept album supposed to represent a soundtrack for the same name sci-fi comic book. It is unbelievable what beautiful and complex worlds Matthews manages to create again and again. First comes violin then comes the beat, then cello and piano - and so, adding one after another more and more elements, the musician provokes the big bang after which the new universal is born. Like on his previous album ‘Ganglion’ Matthews quotes a lot William Shakespeare's ‘Henry IV’ (‘Proxy’, ‘Gatekeepers’) and other classical literature, like ‘The Medea’ by Euripides or even Bible.

‘Monocyte’ is amazing, calling, dark and in the end frightening universal. It is just about making the first step into it, and you never can get out of it. The dark atmosphere of the album influences the listener so much, that you really feel insecure. It isn’t the disturbing music in kind of cheap thriller, where you hear it and you know: either something unexpected will happen, so I will jump on my seat, or it just goes away. When you listen to ‘Monocyte’, every single muscle is tight, your mind is alarmed, and you’re ready to run any minute. Even if you’re doing something else, and music plays just in the background - with time you realize that you dropped everything and you’re listening to this wonderful music.

To be completely honest, this alarm isn’t really the feeling you want to discover. But if you tend to like dark atmosphere, and looking for the music which will make you have gooseflesh - go for it. SALTILLO is absolutely that kind of art which will shake your world, bring all your fears and anxiety outside and fill it with beauty.


Tracklist

01. ABEO
02. Proxy
03. If Wishes were Catholics
04. The Right of Action
05. They all do it the same
06. Gate Keepers
07. I Hate You
08. Forced Vision
09. Hollow
10. Locus Priory
11. Veil
12. To Kill a King


Line-up

Menton J. Matthews III - Violin, cello, tenor, viola da gamba, piano, guitar, bass, banjo, drum-programming, pro tools


Website

http://www.menton3.com/ / http://last.fm/music/Saltillo


Cover Picture




Rating

Music: 10
Sound: 10
Total: 10 / 10


Buy the album here!