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The War Office

by Monitors

/
  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Classic 140g black 12” vinyl record in a printed sleeve. Featuring original artwork by the band themselves. This is a double EP release, featuring both The War Office and Notes from the Aftermath. Strictly limited edition of 200.

    All merch orders include digital downloads plus free bonus goodies, badges and stickers. This image is a mock-up, so actual colours might vary slightly.

    Includes unlimited streaming of The War Office via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    edition of 200 
    Purchasable with gift card

      £15 GBP or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      £3 GBP  or more

     

1.
Idolise, monochrome, canonise from the cornerstones Visions of a silent reprieve Polarise, simpatico, galvanise, what a way to go Voices, voices came unto me Prophets, our saviours, they offer favours for favours Across the plains, over acres, shut the fuck up and dance Sent for redemption, your catatonic intention As anhedonia mentioned, it's categorically no This is a high, this is a low, these are the reasons, oh say it ain't so Nevermind, in repose, side to side, so it goes Systems of design reappear From time to time, calm to show, what resides in our hearts below Torn between the distant the near Prophets, our saviours, they offer favours for favours Across the plains, over acres, shut the fuck up and dance Sent for redemption, your catatonic intention As anhedonia mentioned, it's categorically no This is a high, this is a low, these are the reasons, oh say it ain't so Mine eyes aglow, life in a doll's house Long gone widow, no guide of my choice God given laws to which we are prone Habitual, blood ties to disown As I walk towards, over the moon On a silver screen in a darkened room Show me life was once before Touch, it burns our open sores Speak of need, regard the charm that it brings Behind these four walls I desire nothing Cursing the firstborn, never amounted to nothing A still-born, hollow remains, for shame Await for the fallow in me Mine eyes aglow, life in a doll's house Long gone widow, no guide of my choice God given laws to which we are prone Habitual, blood ties to disown This bed unknown seems not to be sound Wired audio, keep company down Cursing the firstborn, never amounted to nothing A still-born, hollow remains, for shame
2.
Roses & Wine 03:41
Whisper-kissed, appeal to the masses Now we never venture outside And the days are long enough Never a dull moment, reach high heaven Time to think it over While we fail, dismayed, au courant From where I stand, On a drip, drown in maladies, For we gave it all, l'amour Just to raise a smile I will provide roses and wine For you to scrutinise, my love The one constant the company we keep, Goes hand in hand, somebody want to breed As we reach for the incomplete From where I stand, On a drip, drown in maladies, For we gave it all, l'amour Maladies they await
3.
Glass 04:11
These are the days of maidenhood Behold in awe, marvel, delight in Taste the age, eternal wonder Shared conception, Tennessee's enslaved again A peak, fallen veil Distorted in harmony She searches another On Salvador skies I begin Chained, same release, hold From the rocks on the oceanside to no avail Beyond the scars, our past This bitter, safe-haven town, we leave our last To grace we go, cherish the faithful From the rocks on the oceanside to no avail I crown thee, my love I crown thee, my love Echoes define from the glass we're behind I crown thee, my love From glass we're behind These are the days of misunderstood Caught between private alliance Haste remains, it lies on yonder A spare connection Genevieve's inflamed again Weep for the nailed Out there the promises are ours now to face With sides uneasy, to grace we go Shatters the same home From the rocks on the oceanside to no avail I crown thee, my love I crown thee, my love Echoes define from the glass we're behind I crown thee, my love From glass we're behind
4.
A taste of all the pure, the horror in me Hear lies in symmetry A waste, adorn, the finest figures indeed See hearts in the closed windows Show me the way, show me the way Your turn to burn it on the fire Show me the way, show me the way While we move towards the light Just us and me in high life Open those swollen eyes Just enough to tide us over And from those systems I would crawl to you, insufferable A measure of the centre, falling back Sudden lack, untold scenes of habitual Show me the way, show me the way Your turn to burn it on the fire Show me the way, show me the way While we move towards the light Just us and me in high life Open those swollen eyes Just enough to tide us over
5.
Sold Out, Wired Icon Pattern recognition, inner distant world Contect never better, while I list, then learn Showered by conception through Duverger's Law On the mount of Olives hit a Chinese wall But I know the signs, that conquer, divide Inside the beltway, Saul Alinksy Cut it up, make it up, swear on my word Nominal values, benefit of the doubt Coming up, cracking up, show me the worth Spending a penny on higher credit from the levee Water, wired to the bone, wired to the bone Send in the priest, on release, thank you, please Now to show trials But I know the signs that conquer, divide Brother don't deny dishonour of mine Such a cold design, the profit suffice Pound to a penny, the sold-out committee thrives on GDP, ITC, a profit profile Deutschmark, Drachma, dollars and Yen Playing on importance owing time and again Deutschmark, Drachma, dollars and Yen Playing on importance, own original sin
6.
Bloody Mary 02:28
Bloody Mary's in the house, it ain't gonna be pretty Bloody Mary's in the house and she's here to stay She said ''Give me one, give me one, give me, want a reason Not to be cracking all the bones in everybody's skull'' Oh she crave it, oh so private Once sedated now, my lady Bloody Mary's in the house, it ain't gonna be pretty Bloody Mary's in the house and there's hell to pay But she don't want, she don't want, she don't want to make it Without her smackhead interpol, convicted infamy Oh she crave it, oh so private Once sedated now, my lady Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary Oh she crave it, oh so private Once sedated now, my lady

about

A band built on friendship across three cultures, that’s the foundation for Monitors; settled in mainland Europe, they combine talent from Liverpool, Bihać, and Paris. Having joined Manchester’s AnalogueTrash at the start of 2021, the band are ready to unleash their post-punk electro fused label debut The War Office on 2nd April 2021.

The pan European representation is provided by Chris Remick (Liverpool, England) on lyrics and vocals, Emil Balic (Bihać, Bosnia) composer and bass player, and Feodor Trotta (Paris, France) on drumming duties, providing huge beats to an already impressive live sound. Having self-released their debut EP Notes From The Aftermath in 2019, the new EP is an expansion on the themes explored in that release; political corruption, isolation, addiction, and ecology are all addressed here; but with a more melodic, broader and far more expansive edge than before.

The six track EP kicks off with the supremely funky The Drill, a fuzz-bass-hi-hat-pulverising tour de force that demands you move with energy, but as with all Monitors songs the inspiration and subtext is somewhat darker - here inspired by the descent into madness of August Natterer. “He had a hallucination of 10,000 images in 30 minutes” says Chris, “to the point where after committal he believed he was the illegitimate child of Napoleon and a ‘redeemer of the world’. This song deals with the instability of the mind and its power over the body to inspire, enlighten but potentially to also destroy.”

The band makes the most of their individual and combined influences, with Chris very much a fan of post-punk staples such as The Fall, Can, Joy Division, Damo Suzuki and “any artist that has an ambition to really push the boundaries of the possible” continues Chris, “artists like Kate Bush and David Bowie.” Contrast this with Emil who says “I’m really into the more contemporary artists than Chris. My influences are much more around modern techno and dance music.”

Bloody Mary is a prime example of how these seemingly disparate musical influences converge with the band’s love of the wider arts. It’s a track inspired by Abel Ferrara’s cop movie Bad Lieutenant with a twist that the song’s hedonistic, debauched and unforgiving central character is now a female protagonist. “This is what happens when the guys from Monitors are locked-down in the three corners of Europe” says Emil, “this song is dedicated to the demonised and marginalised spirits.”

Meanwhile, the uplifting Glass provides a song about youthful optimism complete with all the enthusiasm and uncertainty that accompany it. It shares similar themes with recent single Previously… written as a story of a brother and sister making their escape from domestic violence together for the first time, but in Glass these new feelings are treated with a more hopeful outlook.

The War Office sees Monitors’ style develop beyond post punk and electro, their eclectic influences meaning those that are fans of alt-rock and darkwave/new wave will find themselves wanting Monitors as a new addition to their playlists.

credits

released April 2, 2021

All tracks written and composed by Emil Balic & Christopher Remick as Monitors, except Roses & Wine, written and composed by Emil Balic, Christopher Remick & Féodor Trotta.

Mixed by Emil Balic
Mastering by Jérôme Kremser
Artwork by Emil Balic
Cover photo © The Liverpool Echo

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Monitors Paris, France

A band built on friendship across three cultures, that’s the foundation for Monitors; settled in mainland Europe, they combine talent from Liverpool, Bihać, and Paris.

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