Hello all, just wanted to let everyone out there know that Hidden Shoal Recordings will be releasing a new album called "Music For Underwater Supermarkets," a mini album solo project written by Rich Bennett, which also features Matt Filler on guitar. It is slated to come out on September 9th, but a free single will be available this tuesday from the Hidden Shoal website, so go check it out here. If you're the kind of person who likes to read about stuff before you go clicking away though, here's an excerpt from the press release:

Since early childhood, the music of supermarkets, elevators and doctor's offices has been floating around inside Rich Bennett's head...Indeed Bennett's debut solo outing Music for Underwater Supermarkets is the glistening fruit of a retreat back to those aisles. While informed by the familiar, Music for Underwater Supermarkets breathes gentle yet strange new life into the everyday.

In Monocle news, we are trying to work out some dates for a short Northeastern tour in October, so if you live in the area, keep checking up on us. We'll post the dates soon!

As the rest of the world outside my window prepares to grill, get drunk, and blow up a tiny piece of New York City, Matt Filler and I are getting ready to head out to the West Coast to do some rocking.

That's right, we will be embarking on an epic journey across the United States of America, arriving in the great Northwest so that we may rock the pants off of all the coffee drinking, salmon fishing, doug fir loving masses. We'll be joined on bass, drums, and guitar by Blake Madden, Max Wood, and Brendan Malec. Our guest vocalist out there will be the excellent Annie Alldredge. Check the page to see if we'll be playing near you, and if not, get in a car, plane, or boat, and come by and check us out. It might be the last time any of us can afford to go across the country just to do a little synth-jamming!

Rich

For a short while, Monocle will be featured on the Spacelab website as part of the "Sound lab" series. You can go, listen to full versions of songs which you can't hear on MySpace, and vote on whether or not you like us. And what more can I say about a website cool enough to be named after a Kraftwerk song?

Hello all,
This month we were lucky enough to get reviewed in Textura, an awesome online publication with tons of cool reviews, interviews, and all those other things you crazy music kids like to read about. Check out the review of Outer Sunset here:

Textura Review

Also, a few weeks back, we got another nice review from the music blog 'Its Not The Band I Hate It's Their Fans.' Much thanks to both publications and reviewers for the kind words and thoughtful insight.

Blog Review

Our first review of Outer Sunset, and some very nice words from the folks at Adequacy.net. Here's a bit of what they said:

"Outer Sunset has a subtle energy that flows almost tangibly throughout each track, and this understated approach does not lessen the impact, but rather renders it unmistakable. Multi-layered and involving, Outer Sunset manages to be avant-garde and accessible simultaneously, which is no small feat."

Click here to read the full review.

The proud members of your favorite auditory-lotion lathering mystery sensual
cinema pop unit are thrilled to announce the release of our new album and
impassioned debut full-length, OUTER SUNSET; featuring eleven pop
arrangements setting about a moonlight requisition to capture and cradle
your acute desire to fly.

Outer Sunset, to be officially released on November 27th with Hidden Shoal
Recordings, will be available for download primarily at
music.hiddenshoal.com, as well as Amazon
digital, eMusic, Rhapsody, and Itunes.

We are also extremely excited to be playing with the incredible
electronica/shoegaze artist, Ulrich Schnauss, in conjunction with our record
release show.

Details for the RECORD RELEASE SHOW are as follows:

December, 13 2007 @ Club Europa w/ Ulrich Schnauss, Elika, Project Skyward,
and Screen vinyl image
98-104 Meserole Ave in Greenpoint Brooklyn
7pm

Ahhhh yes... Monocle will be releasing our debut full-length, Outer Sunset, with Hidden Shoal Recording in November, music.hiddenshoal.com. A word from the press release about what were about to unleash....

Monocle's first full-length album Outer Sunset reflects a decidedly edgier, denser approach both compositionally and performance-wise. Monocle's sound evokes Ennio Morricone and Danny Elfman just as much as Stereolab. The band's hard work in performance of this material during 2007 lifts the music to dizzying heights.

Hidden Shoal Recordings is an Australian-based independent digital music label. The label is a unique marriage of contemporary distribution, marketing and publicity with traditional indie label values and, most importantly, a wonderful catalogue of releases.

We now have a few places that are selling our cd, so please check them out and all the other great stuff each site carries:

Amp Camp (www.ampcamp.com)
ToneVendor (www.tonevendor.com)
Pralaya Records (www.pralayarecords.com)

The date for the Stereolab Tribute has also been decided. The cd will come out on September 12th, and will be available as both a download and cd in the states, and only as a download in Europe. We will be playing a launch party at Galapagos on the 15th of September for that, so check out the shows section for more info. You can also visit www.stereolab-pop.com for more info on the tribute cd. A must have for any lab fan!

Some great news from the front. Our 4 song EP, Lounge Act, has finally been completed and will be available for purchase very very soon. 2 of the songs are posted on the page for now. Also, we will be having our debut performance in support of our cd at a kickin' loft party in Brooklyn. Here's the details:

Saturday April 29th @ 8pm
Larry's Loft
65 9th St. btw. 2nd Ave and Smith St.

There is a $5 suggested donation to get in, and that will get you all the beer you can drink, and all the music you can enjoy. Monocle will be performing with Nite Club, after which we will have dj's spinning some of the bestest and obscurest dance music you can handle for the rest of night.

If you don't know anyone at the party, you will have to call to get in. Here's who you be calling:
Matt @917-703-2688 or
Pete @ 732-513-0137.

The secret phrase to get in is: "Hey buddy, it's my bar/bat - mitzvah today!"

Hope to see you there, and please send me a message if you have any other questions.

Right now we are still working on our 4 song EP which should be out within a month or 2. The two songs posted now are just rough mixes and teasers from the album to get y'all hungry for some more.

Also, our cover of the Stereolab song, 'Cybele's Reverie' will be appearing on a compilation called "The Politics of Photosynthesis" which will be coming out around June and will feature covers of other Stereolab songs by some other great artists too. It will be released on the German label, Fuller Experience and should be available in your local record store and online. More info on that when the release date comes.

So, enjoy, and stay tuned for some new music!