Frank “Bella” Abbatecola has a fascination with the Moon. Perhaps it was borne out of his time spent at an Antarctic scientific research center, where Moon sightings can’t be taken for granted during the Austral Summer. Maybe it has to do with the mythology of the Moon and its alleged ability to induce insanity. Or, maybe it is because the Moon signals the arrival of night when it’s time to go out and rock. Whatever the reason, nobody who knows Abbatecola should be at all surprised that Monroe Monroe’s new EP would be titled Hello Moon.
The band’s first EP Love Wins, which was released in January and contained the local hit “Squeeze”, earned the band major attention at the Westword Music Showcase Awards where they picked up the top prize of a recording package worth $10,000. The result of that award is a collection of five songs that builds upon the formula that made Love Wins so successful. Hello Moon starts off with a pair of danceable pop-punk love songs: “Adore” and “Love Language (Wild Hearts)”. Based on these two tracks, listeners will continue to draw comparisons between Abbatecola’s voice and U2’s Bono as their range, tone, and delivery are very similar. But the guitars sound bigger and the rhythms are more aggressive compared to Love Wins. Abbatecola’s lone guitar at the beginning of “Adore” (which you can stream from the widget above) is so rich and reverberant, you would swear that it was recorded in the Pepsi Center rather than in a booth at Rocky Mountain Recorders. The bass sound of Monroe Monroe’s newest member James Morrison (also of Young Cities) gives these songs more punch. Nobody will accuse Morrison of overplaying on this record. He keeps it simple and plays only what is needed to support the rhythm like a good bass player should.
Photo Credit: Rebecca Marie Photography
The album’s middle track, “A Place to Start”, is harder and more masculine than anything the band has released thus far. It starts of with a Sex Pistols meets Jimmy Eat World guitar duel between Abbatecola and Tavis Alley before the drums and bass step in to break up the fight and kick the song into high gear. Truth be told, Matt Morse’s relentless attack on the hi-hat is a bit distracting on this track (particularly on the chorus). A little restraint might have made the song sound even heavier. Morse’s impressive skills are better on display in “Summon the Sound” where he plays a funky syncopated rhythm using every piece of his drum kit including a drum synthesizer. I’ve seen the jaws of other drummers drop when they watch Morse perform this song live. The lyrical theme of “Summon the Sound” is one not frequently used by Abbatecola – I don’t love you anymore and I feel fine (“I believe I’m getting better. Over you”) – and it provides a refreshing change of sentiment. “Your Heart Sings”, an epic minor-key composition with fluctuating dynamics and a blistering outro, closes the album. It’s one of those songs that benefits from being positioned at the end of a record, allowing you to wrap your head around what you just heard in the silence that follows. Alley’s aggressive manner of playing is one of the reasons why Hello Moon moves Monroe Monroe closer to their own signature sound.
Photo Credit: Michael Thompson
One minor annoyance for me is that the vocals are sometimes buried in the mix or lazily enunciated. Abbatecola is a singer who seems to prioritize hitting the right note and nailing the cadence of the syllables ahead of the words themselves. But, in order for music of this genre to rise to the level of “anthemic”, fans needs to be able to belt out the lyrics at a live show, or their car, or their room. There are some who pore over lyrics to decode their meanings and evaluate their literary worthiness. Maybe Abbatecola is one of those people and lacks the confidence in his own writing to sing his lyrics clearly. But I think most people (myself included) just want to be able to sing along, and may find it more difficult to connect with a song if they can’t distinguish the words. That said, Hello Moon is a step forward for the band in many ways and should help propel them further up the Denver music food chain.
Promotional Notes:
December 3rd – Interview on University of Northern Colorado’s campus radio station, where the album will be debuted in its entirety.
December 3rd – Monroe Monroe will perform as a special guest of I Fight Dragons at AF Ray’s in Greeley. The Photo Atlas will also perform.
December 5th – Interview on MileHighUnderground.com at 10 AM.
December 8th – Hello Moon Release Party at The Lazy Dog/Brick House in Boulder featuring Wire Faces and In the Whale.
December 9th – Hello Moon Release Party at Road 34 in Fort Collins featuring Wire Faces and In the Whale.
December 10th – Hello Moon Release Party at Hi-Dive in Denver featuring The Photo Atlas, Input (feat. Caleb Slade), and In the Whale.
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