Mono

Mono, the Japanese post-rock band formed in Tokyo, play live at the Electric Ballroom in London. The concert is part of their visit to the capital.

Mono were formed in Tokyo in 1999 and make instrumental post-rock, built on long, slowly developing passages that move between quiet and loud. Their debut album, Under the Pipal Tree, was released on Rykodisc in 2001, and it introduced the band to audiences beyond Japan. The group's work has since been released internationally, and its records are usually heard as complete pieces rather than as individual songs.

The band's live shows centre on this extended, orchestral-scale guitar sound. Concerts are typically built around a single continuous set, and the emphasis falls on dynamics and texture rather than on vocals. Listeners who know the band's studio albums will recognise the approach on stage, where the music's changes in volume and density are the main structure of the evening.

The night suits listeners interested in post-rock and instrumental music who want to hear a band with a long history in the genre. The Electric Ballroom, in London, is a venue for concerts and shows, and the evening is a live music event rather than a theatrical one.