by Jason

It was a warm evening in Dallas, TX as I approached the neighborhood which is called Deep Ellum. It’s a place full of clubs, great restaurants, and some apartments just outside of the downtown area of the city. On May 13th, I drove out to see Mono, the Japanese post-rock band, for a second time. I hadn’t seen them since 2009 in a live venue, and I was excited to get to see them since the releases of For My Parents, The Last Dawn, Rays of Darkness, and the most recent Requiem for Hell. For those of you who do not know Mono, their first album, Under the Pipal Tree, came out in 2001 and not long after they quickly made a name for themselves. The band is made up of Takaakira “Taka” Goto (guitar), Tamaki Kunishi (bass), Yasunori Takada (drums), and Hideki “Yoda” Suematsu (guitar). I was very pleased with the set list since the band played tracks exclusively from Hymn to the Immortal Wind to the current release. Here’s the set list:

Ashes in the Snow (Hymn to the Immortal Wind)
Death in Rebirth (Requiem for Hell)
Dream Odyssey (For My Parents)
Pure as Snow (Trails of the Winter Storm) (Hymn to the Immortal Wind)
Recoil, Ignite (Rays of Darkness)
Requiem for Hell (Requiem for Hell)

For anyone who has seen Mono live, you know the emotive power of their music. These tracks, placed together in this sequence, were perfect and played out the themes of shadow and light brilliantly. “Requiem for Hell” was an incredibly closer, huge and soaring, leaving the audience with an epic conclusion to remember. Mono are masters of touching expression, whether they are taking their audience to the heights of heaven or down to the depths of hell. Their music encapsulates the highs and lows of life and, live, this music becomes all that more powerful, like torrents of sonic waves washing over the audience. At one point, the band can create intimate, beautiful sonic spaces and then explode into a tidal wave of guitars, bass, and drums. Each one of the band members has a deft control over their instrument, playing off one another to incredible effect.

If you can catch Mono on their remaining dates, I highly recommend you do so. You will be in for a treat!

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