I loved “Switchin’ Rails,” my first encounter with Powers of the Monk and I love this new one too, although it comes from a very different part of the band’s broad and eclectic sound. The main reason for that is that this a remix, and, as is often the way with such reworkings, the sonic choices made here have pushed the single’s, already dancefloor-friendly groove into a much more clubland place.
Perhaps this reinforces the link between folk and roots music, the original popular music forms, and the ubiquitous dance music of the modern age. Indeed, within “Strip the Bone,” there are all sorts of popular sounds at work – not only the rootsy sound that the band revels in but a hint of a reggae groove is heard, as are ambient and cinematic washes of sound, and no small amount of clubland beat propels things along, the sort of beat that often drives dance fusion crossovers from the nineties to the present day.
If nothing else, it proves that this Pontiac-Detroit-Ann Arbor, Michigan duo isn’t for categorizing and that you can’t pre-judge the band based on what they did on their last single. You certainly can’t predict what they are likely to do next based on what you are listening to right now.
The best bands keep you guessing. Powers of the Monk are about as good as it gets in that department.
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