Monotonne - Related

A Closer Listen

This spring, Yuriy Bulichev released Unrelated, which includes a gorgeous, mournful collaboration with Mavka.  This fall, under the Monotonne moniker, he flips the script with Related:  ten tracks featuring ten Ukrainian collaborators.  Unrelated was lonely and forlorn, a reflection of the isolated feelings caused by the invasion; “Spring in Ruins” exposed the mood of a nation.  Related is colorful and at times even upbeat without toppling over into joy; Mavka appears again on “Dream,” while the most relevant title is “Позич мені спокій (Lend Me Peace).”  Some name-brand Ukrainian artists are represented (ummsbiaus, Igor Yalivec), while others have featured strongly in past Ukrainian Field Notes episodes.  The overall feeling, as shared by Bulichev, is one of unity: artists united under common pressure, for a common cause.

The opening “Powerlines Shiver (feat. Troxellemott),” one of three tracks with English titles, dances along the edges of ambient and IDM, already a contrast with the more somber works of Unrelated.  Synth tones fall like bells.  In “За літнім солодким аґрусом (feat. Grisly Faye),” Google translated as “Behind the summer sweet gooseberry,” a soft vocal is laid atop gentle beats, the track seemingly a direct answer to “Spring in Ruins,” a more promising season, even if only a dream.  By the next track, featuring spoken word from Alina Stamenova, the energy level is way up, the tempo swifter, the confidence stronger.  The title track, featuring Khrystyna Kirik on cello, preserves the strong electronic undercurrent while allowing in some shadows via mysterious “sound objects,” some wet, others dry.  Mavka’s reappearance on “Сон” is so lovely that it sends us searching for the Kyiv band’s Bandcamp page, where we find s a collaboration with maxandruh, who appears on the very next track of Related! Iryna Lazer (Skrypnykova)’s vocals are pristine, the sound design exquisite.  Monotonne’s track with maxandruh – the aforementioned “Lend Me Peace” – holds vocals back until the second half, surrounding spare words with sparkling synth and powerful percussion.

ummsbiaus, who only recently released a second collaborative album with Difference Machine, appears on “Додому (Home),” a reminder that many homes have been lost, while the idea of home remains: the very reason so many have fought for so long, have sacrificed so much.  The entire set feels like a shared home; Bulichev may own the house, but these guests are like family.  The tender whispers of “Трави feat. ногируки” resonate like a parent’s comforting words as night falls and sirens sound.  Even in the midst of pandemonium, there is love; as whisper is joined by song, the tone is that of a community rising as one.

“Станція Зеро (Station Zero) feat. Tik Tu+Eugene Gordeev+Ana Pasko” is planted in ambience, but blossoms into a club track, with evocative violin: an aural reflection of hope.  Fittingly, Igor Yalivec, whose own compilation Resistance will be released at the end of the month, is the calm closer, his synths shimmering in Monotonne’s beat-laden framework.  “Passed-by” is a rare, relaxing respite in the midst of chaos, a mental building in the physical rubble.  We who share the same struggle, and are of the same mind, are related.  (Richard Allen)