Monophonics - In Your Brain [2LP]

2012’s In Your Brain sits on the fuzzy psych side of soul and funk. Paying homage to innovators such as Sly Stone, Norman Whitfield and Funkedelic’s George Clinton, the 6 piece outfit displays their ability to put a moody stamp on each composition. Touching on everything from cinematic soul, heavy funk, 60’s rock and spaghetti western laced with yellow sunshine acid, the album is sure to leave you tuned in and turned on!

With a different sound and a do it yourself attitude towards making records, Monophonics’ guitarist Ian McDonald and keyboardist/vocalist Kelly Finnigan took on the duties of engineering and producing. Finding influence and gear advice from Orgone’s Sergio Rios as well as articles from Daptone’s Gabe Roth and Shawn Lee, they purchased an 8-track ¼ inch tape machine, vintage microphones, spring reverbs and tape delays and dug into Finnigan’s basement in SF. “Half the battle making records in this genre is tone and vibe, we have figured out over the years that it might be the simplest written song but with the right production it can become timeless,” explains McDonald.

Collaborating with talented friends was another consistent theme on this record featuring a dozen or so different musicians, but the stand out feature are the vocals of that soulful crazy queen Fanny Franklin (Orgone, Get Wet) on “All Together” and tapping Sergio Rios to do the mix at Killion Sound. Killion has become a highly respected studio because of Rios’s dirty tones and soulful style as evidenced by the various Orgone releases plus recordings from artists like Jack Splash (Cee-Lo & Alicia Keys) and Ikebe Shakedown.

• Looking Ahead
• There's A Riot Going On
• In Your Brain
• Sure Is Funky
• Deception
• All Together Featuring Fanny Franklin
• Say You Love Me
• They Don't Understand
• Mirage
• Foolish Love
• Thinking Black
• Bang Bang
• Temptation
• Keep Looking Ahead