Rays of Darkness

Rays of Darkness is the first MONO album in 15 years to feature no orchestral instruments whatsoever. That fact alone is remarkable given the band’s reputation for sweeping, dramatic instrumentals that recall Oscar-worthy film scores. Instead, Rays of Darkness more closely resembles a jet engine taking off inside a small, crowded auditorium. It is MONO’s blackest album ever, a collection of scorched riffs, doom rhythms, and an unexpected contribution from post-hardcore pioneer Tetsu Fukagawa of Envy. The album ends with the smoldering wreckage of distorted guitars and ominous drones playing out a eulogy to the days when MONO shot blinding rays of light through seemingly endless darkness.

These two new albums from the longstanding Japanese instrumental outfit Mono feel like a double-LP split in half and given two names. The Last Dawn continues along the orchestral arc that 2012's For My Parents followed, while Rays of Darkness strips things down to the rock-quartet bone.

Rays of Darkness is the second of two simultaneously recorded albums by Mono that reveal related yet different aspects of their musical identity.

Album review: Mono - The Last Dawn / Rays Of Darkness. Intensity has rarely felt so intimate…

A review of The Last Dawn / Rays of Darkness by Mono available October 24th in Europe via Pelagic Records and October 28th in North America Via Temporary Residence Limited.