Mono Get "Thoughtful and Eclectic" On New Album

BY Brock ThiessenPublished Jan 12, 2009

Following a brief spell of hibernation, Japan's Mono have emerged with details on their first new full-length in three years. Titled Hymn to the Immortal Wind, the fifth album proper by these über-serious post-rockers is due out March 24 courtesy of Temporary Residence and promises to be the group's "most thoughtful and eclectic album to date," according to the press release.

The album was recorded by long-time collaborator and sound documentarian Steve Albini at Electrical Audio Recording Studios in Chicago last year, with Mono enlisting a full 28-piece chamber orchestra to lend a whole lot of extra hands on this one. "It has been three years since the release of our last album and we are truly grateful to still be able to create our music today," the band says via an online statement. "Being together as a band for ten years has brought forth some changes and has hopefully allowed us to grow."

Along with the release of Hymn to the Immortal Wind, Mono are also gearing up for a bit of reissuing this winter. The band's 2003 album, One Step More And You Die, and 2004's New York Soundtracks are both on deck to be remastered and repackaged as one double-vinyl collection in 2009. Pre-orders are to begin in February via Temporary Residence, with the first 500 orders coming on coloured vinyl copies.

Also, in celebration of the group's ten-year anniversary, they will be playing a special one-off show in New York on May 8. For one night only, conductor Jeff Milarsky will lead the band and a 23-piece orchestra through Hymn to the Immortal Wind, marking the first time the band will have performed with additional instrumentation and reportedly be the only North American live date in support of the new record.

Here's the tracklisting for Hymn To The Immortal Wind, which will come on both CD and double vinyl:

1. "Ashes In The Snow"
2. "Burial At Sea" 3. "Silent Flight, Sleeping Dawn"
4. "Pure As Snow"
5. "Follow The Map"
6. "The Battle Of Heaven"
7. "Everlasting Light"

Mono "The Sky Remains the Same As Ever"

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