Monument, from Silver Spring, Maryland provides us with three intricately woven emo songs on this self-released 7”. In the vein of emo prior to it becoming a dirty/household word, drawing from influences such as Braid, American Football, and Cap’n Jazz, the songs are super tight and catchy as all hell. The balancing act of the different vocalists complements the music perfectly. Gritty guitars with screeching vocals interplay with a second warm and sweet jangly guitar and flitting naïf-like vocals. Personal, poetic lyrics are included on liner notes that were handwritten, photocopied, and cut to fit into an envelope included with the records. The record also appears to be hand-numbered, however it is also possible that the band members were simply amusing themselves by numbering this record as number 69 of 420. Regardless, it seems like extra special care was spent in creating the music as well as the packaging. The effort, and the final product, are both met with sincere appreciation. –Jeff Proctor
–guest (Self-released)