Listen: Monsoonsiren’s ‘Falstrati’ EP

Patron saint of cats, vinyl, and the infamous buttoned-up-shirt-under-sweater look, Nathan Menon, better known as Monsoonsiren has finally released his EP ‘Falstrati’ via Berlin based electronic record label Project Mooncircle. This is a release we’ve been waiting to get our hands on since its announcement in August last year.

Menon has had an undoubtably prolific year, teasing his every growing fan base with singles for the last couple of months, even premiering ‘Photographs’ on the legendary Mary Anne Hobbes Recommends on BBC Radio 6 Music which we spoke about in detail here.

We have to admit that we had very high expectations from ‘Falstrati’ after his hauntingly beautiful 2013 debut release with Tom Day. For the most part, the EP lives up to those lofty expectations, no doubt aided by the impressive list of producers who lent their sounds to Menon’s unbelievable falsetto.

The songs of ‘Falstrati’ are predictably far from joyous. Menon’s instantly recognizable (and completely indecipherable) vocals chime despondently over largely minimal, spatial sounds and broken, sparingly punctuating beats (‘cinematic’ is an apt cliché). We particularly enjoyed eerie slow burner ‘Glasstable’s’, gorgeously produced by Go Yama and the smooth production and slightly R&B influenced vocals in ‘Photographs’, produced by Laplace.

There’s obviously room for growth (he is 20 years old after all). Menon’s voice sound a tad strained at certain points and ‘Falstrati’ isn’t meant for everyone – it’s more cerebral than visceral, best heard on a pair of good headphones.

Menon had a lot (really) to say about the influences behind the EP on his Bandcamp page (you can read the whole thing yourself here). He says in his last line – “I think what inspires me the most about being a musician: is the story telling. To be able to project your stories and memories through sound knowing that there’s at least somebody out there that will listen to what you have to say.” We’re of the firm belief that in time, a growing number of people will want to listen to his story - Monsoonsiren is here to stay.

Listen to 'Falstrati' below and buy the EP here on Bandcamp. The EP is also available in 12" clear vinyl. Follow Monsoonsiren and Project Mooncircle on Facebook for updates.

Words: Diya Gupta