Monikaze is Lithuanian composer, songwriter and producer Monika Zenkeviciute. It was whilst studying composition on the piano at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre that Monika had a revelation “I took a gap year and ran away to Bristol” she says, “that’s where I discovered electronic music and found my inner voice.” Subsequently Monika moved from the world of conservatoires and polished lecture theatres to the bass tremors of concrete floors and the late-night headiness of club culture and Monikaze was born.
As it has been for so many people, the past year or so has been difficult, and eight tracks here are in some ways a coping mechanism and a refuge to deal with things like physical separation from her family and close friends. It is a release that takes in mutated bass frequencies, pulls apart techno and even dips into post-punk territory all the while keeping a firm pop sensibility. It’s sometimes chaotic, but always within reach of its creator – a battle zone whereby the prescription of her formal training gives way to her intuition and heart, the sound of an artist finally putting her emotions front and centre.
