Matt Monsoor – The Rower (2021)
Almost one decade after his last album from the Comfortably Lost in Greenfield series, singer-songwriter Matt Monsoor releases the single ‘The Rower’. After leaving Wisconsin in the 1990s, Monsoor moved to Los Angeles where he picked up a guitar…the rest is history. Recently featured on iHeart Radio, Unxigned and Indie Pong, Monsoor combines surreal wistfulness with sharp lyricism. The latest addition to his discography is ‘The Rower’.
Marking his inspirations as Radiohead, TV On The Radio and Talking Heads, I expected something grungy rock; however, Monsoor takes a completely different tangent. Creating a blues ambience, the soothing instrumentation melds easily with hushed vocals. A cinematic soundscape, ‘The Rower’ takes on different sounds, styles and genres. Showcasing his innovativeness, there are movements from slow wistfulness to powerful rock making the track genre-defying.
What I find particularly intriguing is the juxtaposition of controversial lyricism in a smooth tune. It’s as if he wants to grab your attention but does so with a cascading flow of melodic harmonies. Monsoor brings the jazz of 1980s/1990s clubs to the 21st century with the purpose of exploring frustration in an enchanting way.
“Honestly, I just got tired of people waving their Jesus Saves flags while behaving like really awful people at the same time. The hypocrisy and greed in America was becoming more ruthless and embarrassing by the minute. It’s been ten years since my last release so apparently I had a few things to get off my chest… Any sane artist living in these times have probably felt the same level of frustrations and express it accordingly.” – Matt Monsoor on ‘The Rower’
For more from Matt Monsoor check out his official website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
