Monotonix: Where Were You When It Happened?

By: Dennis Cook

There ain’t nothing sweet or subtle about Monotonix. The Israeli-cum-international trio of noisemakers sprout more hair than a Yeti and rarely keep their cloths on while hurtling at you like men hopped up on some new upper drug cooked up from cough syrup, used panties, and the drippings of vintage Grand Funk Railroad. And they sure as shit don’t need more than a half hour to slap your eardrums around until you yelp in pleasure-pain. Bursting forth from unzipped blue jeans on the cover of sophomore effort, Where Were You When It Happened? (Drag City), Monotonix gently complicates their swing-a-cat wildness with moments of funkiness and emotional honesty that announce there’s more than rafter swinging, ass-crack revealing antics to these lunatics.

For just two guys playing instruments – Haggai Fershtman (percussion) & Yonatan Gat (guitars, keys) – and one feverishly possessed frontman, Ami Shalev (think young Iggy Pop with flashes of early Ted Nugent), Monotonix exudes a jet engine blast that leaves one flattened and happy. No wooing ballads here, it’s all thrust and jab whose impact leaves you dizzy with curious fingerprints all over your body. “Something Has Dried,” “As Noise”and “Hunt You Down” are quality lovelorn man stuff with brutal, Dio-esque shout-to-the-heavens accents. “Set Me Free” offers something faintly danceable yet still quite anguished, and the rest is a total smackdown. Once again co-producer/engineer Tim Green (Fucking Champs) captures it all in unvarnished glory. Nasty slap ‘n’ tickle gets no better than this.

JamBase | Hirsute
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