Formula Indie Sessions _ Interview with Monach
“A Light to Guide You” may not be their first album, but it may as well be. Having undergone multiple lineup changes in the leadup to their latest release, the Kingston, Ontario based five-piece pop-punk band have found their footing with honest, emo-tinged anthems about failed relationships, mental health, and how life will always get better. Influenced by genre heavyweights such as The Wonder Years and Pup, the band has shared the stage with bands such as Gob, Arm’s Length and Fucked Up.
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
The first memory or two that come to mind that really hooked me is, I’m pretty sure, hearing Our Lady Peace playing on the radio or maybe MuchMusic, or hearing my uncle play guitar at my house. I’m sure there’s something else buried in there, because I grew up surrounded by music, but that’s the one that stands out.
How did your passion for creating music begin?
Probably the day I tried playing a guitar. I was really little and didn’t quite get that you had to do more than just open strum it over and over (sorry Mom and Dad), but I think even back then, something flipped in my brain that made me go ‘hey, I like this, this is fun’. I learned actual chords, basic song structure, and started obsessively listening to music and now I don’t think I’ll stop writing until I literally can’t anymore.
What’s the story behind your current music project?
Our latest album, “A Light To Guide You”, is kind of a breakup album where I’m looking at this failed relationship in the middle of healing from it, and following all the strings that tie to it in terms of why things happened the way they did, what outside factors and unaddressed mental health issues influenced behaviours, and acknowledging my part in it and my flaws. It’s bookended by the good that comes in the wake of it. I started writing the lyrics in the beginning of the pandemic, and then when the world shut down, suddenly, I had all the time in the world to think and write, and I started to see the thread tying everything I was writing together. Once I saw that, it all came really quickly, and within weeks, me and the rest of the guys were listening to a proposed set of songs on a video call and realizing ‘oh shit, we’ve got an album on our hands.’ It was a really healing process writing this thing and we’re so proud of it.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
If your early 2000’s scene faves and modern pop-punk/emo collided, you’d find us.
What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
I’m pretty bad for having demos that run long instrumentally, and I’ve learned (and am still learning) to cut the fat a bit. Simplify things. I think maybe it’s a side-effect from listening to post-rock like Explosions in the Sky, maybe it’s just me being a bad writer sometimes, but I tend to drag sections out longer than really serves the song; I’m really thankful everyone in the band is a great writer, because they’re already great at hearing something and knowing when it needs to be slimmed down, and it’s helped me figure that out as well. I think also, with having done a bit of touring now, I’ve learned to write vocal melodies that aren’t a challenge for myself, and write both more in my range and in a way that utilizes both me and Wryan (guitar/vox/keys). I used to hear a melody in my head and be stubborn about my belief that it had to be that one, but there’s always another option that works just as great.
What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
Logic and a notes app for sure! I was using Garageband for a long time, but ever since I saw Wryan using Logic for our first album and saw how efficient it aas/how much you could do with it, I’ve been a ride or die for it. I think having the space and quiet to focus on the writing helps as well – I find I’m either doing most of my writing holed up in a space alone on break at work or late at night.
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
I’m not sure if this will count as indie or not – I’ve been really digging this band Vianova from over in Germany, kind of a heavy, experimental band that are doing some super interesting things with heavy music. The new Hot Mulligan album is super good, and then I’ve had Bon Iver’s latest on repeat since it came out. The whole ‘sad, tortured artist finding peace’ thing just really gets me.
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
I’d say entirely – I used to be a sucker (arguably, I still am to some degree) for the saddest stuff, and I’m an incredibly nostalgic person despite my best efforts to not be. There used to be a lot more longing and regret tied to the past that I felt in my writing, but I think somewhere along the way, that’s turned to something healthier where I can write from a place of appreciating these times, people, whatever it is, and kind of strip away some of the angst that used to be tied to it all. Maybe that’s working through things or maybe I’m just evolving it into new angst and I just haven’t realized it yet. Who knows!
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
“Things are never so bad that you cannot heal and grow from it,” I think is the message I’d like to come across from our music. Maybe inspire people to reach out to one another, catch up with people and check in on them; life’s short and that shit makes a world of difference.
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
I don’t know if this is gonna sound cliché or whatever, but – just to open up and be vulnerable. I don’t know if we’ve just been lucky so far, but the bands we’ve played with and the people we’ve met through playing music, they’ve all been so supportive and just so nice, and I think that sort of community within our scene really helps reinforce that it’s okay to be yourself, that there’s good in people and they aren’t judging you in the same way that maybe you’re just judging yourself.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
I would lose my absolute mind being able to play When We Were Young, or Warped Tour. That’s kind of the ceiling for me at this point, I think.
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
I think if I got the chance to work with Soupy (Dan Campbell) from The Wonder Years in any degree, I could probably die happy. That dude is such an inspiration to me and I’d love to just sit and chat with him.
Where can our listeners follow and support your music? (Website,Spotify, IG, links)
All our links are conveniently on our linktree!
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
I think playing some festivals, writing and recording more, and maybe getting to jump on some tours that bring us to places we might not have dreamt this would take us! We’re aiming to constantly push that ceiling as high as we can, but honestly, we’re grateful for anything and everything the band brings us.
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
That we’re just a couple of chill dudes who could probably sweep you at Mario Kart. Come to a show and come at us about it.
