Record Label: FR Records
Genre: Post-Punk
Band Link: www.wholeskymonitor.com
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A grungy, punky stew with post-punk, melodic punk, and goth elements, Whole Sky Monitor would be just another messy basement band if they didn’t have some genuinely good songwriting and talent. This is driving, catchy stuff, which is an amazing feat, considering they seem to be influenced by dark-tinted stuff like Joy Division, Fugazi, and Rage Against the Machine.

Take a song like “Drone (Revolution)”. With heavy bass, angular guitar buzz, and shouty vocals, it sounds like third-rate Rage. But seeming to know this, they throw in a catchy, street punk-like chorus that makes the tune pretty killer.

It’s a weird album and there are some weirder tangents on it, like the Revolver-era Beatles-y tune “La Mouche” (not a bad song, just doesn’t fit) and the ballady title track (yeesh). But overall, their weirdness rocks hard and is somehow better than it ought to be.

Bottom Line: Something for everyone, assuming everyone likes dark, buzzing, thumping rock.
Notable Tracks: Sold, My Regeneration, Freakshow
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