Monks of Mellonwah: Turn The People

Monks of Mellonwah are a Sydney based band with a predilection for surreal album covers and a penchant for off-kilter band names. They have been advertised as being heavily influenced by bands like Led Zeppelin and Australia’s very own AC/DC. And if Australia’s answer to John Lennon is Tame Impala, than Monks of Mellonwah are at least a posited response to Aussie’s best export since Vegemite.

Monks of Mellonwah established serious buzz in 2010 with their EP Stars Are Out. Within months the standout track “Swamp Groove” made the rounds of Aussie radio outlets.

“Swamp Groove” had all the makings of a killer rock track. There is the catchy riff, lyrics rife with sexual longing, nice use of backing vocal harmonies and an extended bridge populated with loud whirling guitars. Their combination of danceable groove and free spirited rock landed the band some big label attention. Monks of Mellonwah went on to win several awards and set out on a world tour.

They may just be the most acclaimed band you’ve never heard of.

On Turn The People, the group’s proper debut, Monks of Mellonwah hit hard. With production work from Kieth Olsen (Fleetwood Mac, Grateful Dead) the album is far cleaner then their previous work, but it may be this pristine aesthetic that makes the group less interesting. Where Stars Are Out won our ears with its raw candidness, Turn The People sounds sterile. It is like walking into your favorite bakery and smelling… nothing. It’s clean as a hospital, which is comforting, but that appetizing scent of bagels and cupcakes upon entry? Gone.

This is clearest in the utter lack of catchy riffs. Standout track “Vanity” is the only time that a sound attempts to nest in your brain. This phenomenon is due mostly to frontman Vikram Kaushik’s fast paced flow. Kaushik is far and away the band’s not-very-secret weapon on this release. He shows a talent for creating bouncing lyrical landscapes here and all through the record.  

However, unlike Kaushik’s improvisational performance on Stars Are Out that had him pining within the sweet spots of guitar rage, on Turn the People he is recorded high in the mix, drawing attention to his vivid imagery. His delivery is urgent and rapid at an almost rap-like speed.

No other time is this quick stream of consciousness as apparent as on “Pulse.” Vikram jumps twitchingly over a daunting bass propelling the dark imagery that is his calling card on this release. He stops jerking just long enough to allow the band to catch up. The track ascends to a don’t-look-down height, and it is impressive that they are able to fit so much into four and a half minutes.

At other times though, their need to fill up the mix is their undoing. Many of these songs ascribe to the prog-rock philosophy of “more is more.” While none of the track clock in much longer than “Pulse” some of them sure feel like it.

“Alive For a Minute” is one of the best songs on here. It is danceable and tastefully uses a vocoder to give the refrain a tinge of modernity. But, the band blares through a minute long outro that would probably be great live, but taxes the listener.

Still, the greatest deterrent to the bands aesthetics is not their prog-y tendency, but their lyric’s off the radar content. Monks Of Mellonwah songs explore the haunted forests and decrypt tombs of rock. Opening track “Ghost Stories”, which begins with a completely unnecessary synthesizer intro of the same name, sports the lyrics “Saw the lightning/Bolts and they were/Scared away/It's cataclysmic.”

On “Tear Your Hate Apart” Kaushik mournfully bleats lyrics like “I was lying there that night/ when your daddy fell and died,” or the heartfelt (?) “Bless you perfect child/ your eyes brighten all our days and nights.” Which gives you a good idea of the sort of atrocious junior high emo sentiment to expect from this release. The content of which is more accustomed to self-proclaimed outcasts, Muse.

And it is worth nothing that many of these tracks bring up the same feeling of “What are these guys raging against?” that many felt during Muse’s self-congratulatory Uprising phase. As far as I know, Muse wasn’t attempting to carry the torch of some counter-culture resistance. And even if they were, the revolution of this era is not one that will be televised; but rather screenshot, posted, Liked, and Shared. This is a key factor that has made similar revolutionaries Eminem, Linkin Park and Muse feel stale and out of touch. If MoM wants to enlist to that corps; well, it’s their hard rockin funeral.

And the group attends said funeral with gusto. “Tear Your Hate Apart” is a synth heavy ballad pleading to (wait for it) tear up your hate so it doesn’t weigh you down… or something. The track once again showcases MoM’s fascination with the synthesizer, putting it in everywhere they can. It is not the first (or the last) time that the group is just short of yelling “LOOK WE HAVE A SYNTHESIZER!!”

And on the topic of trading your guitars for turntables, throughout this album it feels like MoM figured utilizing the synth would give their sound modernity. Which is unfortunate because when Monks of Mellonwah aren’t obsessing over somehow using their synthesizer things tend to work out better. “Sailing Stones” sounds like something Chris Cornell is jealous he didn’t write. The guitars soar here as does Vikram’s confidence. The track is a hard-hitting exultation of success. Vikram exclaims out the gate, “I feel alive like none before, don’t break my fall.” Play this song loud when you drive fast; it’s a wonderful companion.

By the end of the listen one may find oneself wondering what sort of agenda MoM is plugging here. Their image seems to be that of smart indie dance hallers, but their musicality and content suggest something else. Are they attempting to depict a post-apocalyptic epic of Coheed and Cambria proportions? Maybe they are trying to tap into the (albeit, profitable) jockstrap-wearing dregs of the Muse/Linkin Park marketplace? Or are they just vying for a slot at the upcoming Download Festival? Neither case would be wholly sinful on it’s own merits. But in any instance, a reassessment of goals seems to be in order.