Release Date: October 29th 2021. Record Label: Relapse Records. Format: Cassette/CD/DD/Vinyl
Your Time To Shine - Tracklisting
1.The Weary 04:58
2.To Each Their Own 07:28
3.I'll Be Damned 06:53
4.Your Time To Shine 10:25
5.The Siren Of Yersinia 09:11
Members
Thomas Jäger - Guitar/Vocals
Esben Willems - Drums
Mika Häkka - Bass
Review
Your Time To Shine is Monolord’s 5th album and it's a more low-key affair compared to their last couple albums. The band still bring their trademark heavy monolithic DOOM based grooves but the focus here is on more Cosmic/Space based elements with Monolord still proving they’re one of the finest bands currently out there who bring “AMPLIFIER WORSHIP” to the Doom/Stoner Metal masses.
The album is wonderfully recorded with Monolord trademark sound coming through CLEAR and LOUD with the excellent opening song The Weary feeling like a mixture of sounds from albums such as Rust and No Comfort. It’s the shortest track on the album with the band covering a lot of ground here. Feisty and aggressive Doom/Stoner Metal vocals move along at a mid-to-fast pace with Thomas' sublime vocals doing a first rate job. The lyrics aren’t necessarily the best I’ve heard from the guys but they have a haunting and emotional feel to them.
Second song To Each Their Own is a sprawling Psychedelic track with an Indie/Alternative feel to it with the heavy guitars adding layers of Spaced Out atmospheres. The vocals yet again are superb with both expression and emotion that draws me back to Thomas Jäger’s solo debut album. The band go slightly overboard on the Progressive side of things but it’s a winning decision with the music being quite fresh and catchy in all the right places. The drumming is the main “star” here with Esben pounding the drums like there’s no tomorrow. The song does go into Post-Rock waters when the quieter moments appear and it’s an excellent addition to Monolord overall sound. The thumping bass by Mika brings extra aggression to the album that means your hearing will get a good SONIC workout.
Monolord play some outstanding moments of Classic Hard Rock, Doom Metal and Stoner Metal with a slight Thin Lizzy flavour which was one of my favourite aspects of their last record. So it’s good to see the band continuing that musical influence or evolution of that sound right here on this album.
Monolord earn their money on this album with the final 3 songs with the band playing songs that will delight DIE-HARD FANS with their style of music that goes back to their earlier albums and musical surroundings whilst still maintaining their Psychedelic Mature sound heard on the last few albums. Your Time To Shine and The SIren Of Yersinia being the two standout tracks on the album.
The final stages of the album may veer into RUST album territory once again but Monolord splice enough Space/Cosmic based vibes into the overall flow of this album. The record is highly captivating and allows Monolord to break new ground in areas of this album whilst still remaining the same as well. That’s a sign of a great album for me personally speaking.
Your Time To Shine is everything you could possibly want from a Monolord album and so much more. This is another AOTY Contender from Monolord and showcases why they’re one of most consistent and creative bands around the Doom/Stoner Metal scene.
Words by Steve Howe
Your Time To Shine is available to buy now on CD/DD/Cassette/Vinyl via Relapse Records
Links:
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