Album Review: Mono - For My Parents

Japanese quartet Mono are pushing further into neo-classical territory. For My Parents sees them teaming with the Wordless Music Orchestra for a second time, and for the majority of the record they allow the strings to tower over Takaakira Goto and Hideki Suematsu's guitars – happy letting the strings do the heavy emotional lifting. There's not a lot left to do with post rock, and this determined departure from classic rock sounds in favour of traditional classical arrangements is a spirited but ultimately disappointing exercise to breathe new life into the genre.

Legend sees the band embracing their Japanese heritage with broad, dramatic strokes for the first movement before shifting into a more subdued tone for the second. The wall of strings evaporates, leaving a simple repeating guitar figure to gently summon them back, building to a supercharged finale.

Nostalgia is dripping in melodrama, with a naked bassline weaving around underneath super-sad strings drunk on their own melancholy. It's over the top but still quite lovely. It's when things get stripped back to just the two guitars shivering together in the cold that the song hits genuine notes of sorrow, and the effect is powerful.

Dream Odyssey is the album's most accessible song, and it's no accident it's also the only one featuring an actual drum section complete with snares and a kick. It's a striking, piano-driven piece that feels like a refugee from Twin Peaks. It has grace and clarity and, more importantly, restraint, and is easily the high-water mark.

For My Parents overdoes it. It pushes the drama (and the volume) too far, taking the emotional cues of post rock and blowing them up to almost grotesque proportions. Hopefully they'll find a better balance next time.