MUSIC: Monogold Shines At Fete

Monday, August 26, 2013

Rob Duguay, GoLocalProv Music Critic

 

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Ever wanted The Arcade Fire to play stripped down without the violins? Meet Brooklyn's Monogold, who headlined at Fete this weekend.

I always like seeing bands I don't know much about at a cool venue, a first hand experience from witnessing an act play live is always more honest than being introduced by them through an album. At the Fete Lounge this past Friday, Monogold from Brooklyn headlined a show with Los Angeles' Soft Metals and local act Kid Mountain rounding out the bill. Fete in French pretty much means having a good time, and you can always be assured that the place will stand up to its definition on any given night.

Kid Mountain

A groovy band that has a little jangle pop to them (when's the last time to saw that term used in a review?), Kid Mountain kicked things off by making people move for an exquisite rock sound. Starting off with "Parashootin'" immediately had a group of people up front shuffling their feet. "No Place", "Ber Herber", "Kinda Strange", "Visitor's Center" and "Happy Lappies" kept up the rhythmic brilliance that had me wowed. I loved how lead singer & guitarist Cole Wuilleumier would change the tone of his voice with every song without being pretentious, which is very hard to do. Kid Mountain are surely something special, check out their BandCamp page to get their two EPs and their debut full length Happies to get a taste of one of the coolest bands in New England.

Soft Metals

I'm always indifferent to the duo synthpop act unless you're local phenoms Humanbeast or At Bay (If you don't know who either of these bands are check them out), Soft Metals' lead singer had a wonderful voice but I felt that they needed something more. Trust me, they weren't bad but in my opinion if you just rely on synthesizers to make your music I feel that you are just generic. The lead singer did carry the performance and I thought her voice was impeccable, but Soft Metals needs to add something to give their sound more of a body. Maybe I just haven't gotten it yet, maybe I'm right by calling it generic or maybe I'm a homer, but if you want to impress a music fan you need to have more then just a couple looping beats and ambience.

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Monogold

Have you ever wanted The Arcade Fire to play stripped down without the violins? If you have then Monogold is exactly what you've been looking for. This trio had a soothing & screaming voice coming from guitarist Keith Kelly who also wasn't afraid to turn the volume up. Their rhythms were fantastic, hitting the soul with full force. Dream rock with intensity, Monogold had the audience bobbing heads and shaking hips. Songs like "Holograms", "Our Wild Friend", "Under Daisies", "Radiant Covered Everything" and "Spirit Or Something" really got me hooked, Monogold is a band that you should really keep your eye on and I hope they come back to Providence soon. Before the next time Monogold plays The Creative Capital, grab their most recent record The Softest Glow. It's gonna knock you off your feet. Fete rules, another reason why I love going to shows on Providence. Log on to fetemusic.com and see what's happening next.

 

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