Mono - Snowdrop - VINYL LP

When Mono recorded their previous album, OATH, withlongtime production partner and friend, Steve Albini in 2023,they never fathomed that it would be the final studio albumthey made together. Albini tragically died the following year,and that loss left an incalculable void in the lives of not justeveryone who ever knew Steve, but everyone with anattachment to any of the thousands of records he helpedbring into world over the past four decades. He brought aclarity to the chaos, and a selfless sense of service to art andartists that was unrivaled. On both a personal and practicallevel, the loss left Mono faced with profound grief anduncertainty. Albini had become a fundamental part ofMono's unmistakable sound, and the thought of replacinghim was daunting, to say the least. Enter Brad Wood(Touché Amoré, The Smashing Pumpkins).Chosen for both his familiarity with Mono's creative andtechnical working process - as well as his decades-longfriendship with Steve Albini - Brad Wood entered Albini'sstoried Electrical Audio studios in September 2025 to recordwhat would become Snowdrop. Once again working withChicago-based conductor and orchestral musical director,Chad McCullough, Mono enlisted a 10-piece orchestra aswell as an 8-piece choir for the eight massive pieces thatmake up Snowdrop. With the band performing and Woodrecording in the same hallowed space where most ofMono's records had been made in their quarter-centuryhistory, the songs on Snowdrop carry an extra weight. Mixedby Wood at his Seagrass home studio in Los Angeles, thealbum is equally intimate and enveloping.Where there could easily be a pall hanging over Snowdrop,there is instead an extraordinary air of gratitude. Rather thansteep in heartache, there is a poignant appreciation for theresonance of life well-spent with a dear friend - and theyearning for what may come. Snowdrop is the sound of aband turning shock

Soundtrack album for the thriller Joker, the album features the film's original music composed by Emmy Award winner Hildur Gudnadottir (Chernobyl, Sicario Day of the Soldado, Mary Magdalene, Strong Island). Joker is directed by Todd Phillips and stars Joaquin Phoenix, Robert de Niro, Zazie Beetz, Bill Camp, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Glenn Fleshler, Douglas Hodge, Marc Maron, Josh Pais and Shea Whigham.

What are we doing here? The year 2020 turned what was once quintessential late-night stoner existentialism into a daily mantra for nearly everyone on this planet. What are we doing with our limited time in this life? What is our purpose? What should we be doing? For the past 25 years, Mono have explored themes such as the relationship between darkness and light; hope in the face of disaster; and the duality of birth and death. On their 12th full-length album, OATH, they ponder the time that makes up life, and how to make the most of that time. Recorded and mixed with longtime friend and collaborator, Steve Albini, OATH opens like a sunrise with a slowly ascending orchestra and brass section, the full band taking it's time to revel in the atmosphere before joining in the splendor. Throughout the album's 71-minute runtime, Mono meditates on that theme of time and life in myriad ways. The unhurried evolution of a song that is a hallmark of Mono's catalog is infused with an air of elegance that elevates OATH to new heights. Mono challenged themselves with a universally relatable existential examination, and answered with OATH, an album that offers benevolent reflection rather than fleeting respite.