The glittering prize of Franz Ferdinand and Interpol is giving birth to a new species, one with roots in the old. It's as if they're teaching another generation of kids the real meaning of alternative music, which has been bent out of shape.
The lads in Mono In VCF are not from the U.K., a bracing fact that will stun anyone that catches a glimpse of these boys' swirling atmospherics. This is the kind of music that you hear on stage lit in psychedelic colours and enveloped by fog. I'm reminded of guitar goosebumps from my college years, seeing the Sisters of Mercy in their goth glory but Mono In VCF occupy a more upbeat space, relatively speaking.
This is dark rock, but not black planet level, dimly lit yet not eclipsed by gloom. "In Los Angeles" is a deceiving first track on this three-song demo, reminiscent of Johnny Marr's jangleramalama dingdongs. Mr. Smith, how soon is now? Ah, these boys have earned it yet, baby. After leaving Los Angeles, the curtains close, ebony jackets are tossed on, and candles are lit. "Ultra Love" is a masterpiece of throbbing reverb, hypnotic in its waves of sadman crooning and doomy riffage - imagine the Sisters of Mercy's "Walk Away" slowed down to a "Love Will Tear Us Apart" groove that Joy Division pioneered before Interpol adopted it. I haven't been so enthralled by guitar chime so much since I saw the Sound once in Manchester.
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So where are Mono In VCF from? Tacoma, Washington, mates. No, not even Seattle; Kurt Cobain and his ilk were never this graceful or stylish. Bring on the dancing horses, wherever they may roam, indeed. (http://www.monoinvcf.com)
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