A new name inevitably brings with it a new quality. This is definitely true for KeyMono, previously known as BrassBastardz, which apparently caused them certain difficulties in the English-speaking part of the world. On the surface, it is only the band’s name that has changed, plus perhaps the fact that it has gained significantly greater popularity in the UK, where KeyMono even won in the Electronica/Dance category of The People’s Music Awards in 2011. Yet something else feels different as well: a certain maturity of sound, more atmospheric arrangements, and the overall confidence of the band’s hip persona. Which means that both the Lithuanian and the Western listener gets all the good things that were already present in the band’s first two full-length albums – the infectiously groovy blend of vocal acid jazz, funk, electronica and hip hop – in a wholly new world-class wrapping that makes the sound of KeyMono all the more delightful.
Jurij Dobriakov
Website:www.keymono.org
