The solo project of Brooklyn-based Eli Aleinikoff, monkeybars makes an intricate, ethereal brand of pop that’s indebted to a number of genres. Aleinikoff is a formally trained saxophonist, and draws upon elements of this experience in the monkeybars sound, jazz-related sensibilities tying together dream pop, psychedelic and krautrock tones. The result is both lush and playful, the foggy textures providing the perfect substrate in which Aleinikoff can perform his whirling routines.
Which makes the title for his forthcoming EP, Acrobats, all the more apt. Set for release early next month on Baby Blue, the release uses every weapon in the monkeybars armoury to delve into the complexity behind the everyday life. Here, the mundane is not the sum of things but the surface, and Aleinikoff takes us by the hand and leads us into the underlying depths. With layers of instrumentation, of which the vocals are just but another, the EP does not merely introduce us to this novel dimension but makes it Aleinikoff’s own, carving out a liminal space between reality and fantasy in which his narratives can thrive.
Today we’re excited to share ‘Three Down’, the lead single from the release and a perfect encapsulation of the monkeybars style. Shambling into life with peppered percussion and sauntering guitars, the track hits its widescreen saturation around the minute mark, synths sparking across the gelatinous layers of reverb. Aleinikoff’s vocals refract around the scene, maintaining their hushed style before the track veers off into a frenetic jazzy breakdown in the closing minutes. At once disorientating and beautiful, this climax shows the capabilities of monkeybars, pushing into areas of instrumental proficiency that might be beyond the average dream pop band, and firmly cements the project as an act to watch closely.
Tracklisting
1.) Three Down
2.) Acrobats
3.) New Face
Album artwork by Miles Wintner