Monophona

Monophona are an electronic group from Luxembourg, active since 2011. The line-up consists of Claudine Muno on vocals, guitars and keys, Jorsch Kass on percussion, and Chook on programming. Their music is tagged as chillout, downtempo, electronic and trip hop.

Formation and background

The project brings together musicians with different backgrounds. Claudine Muno develops from singer-songwriter and folk-rock experience, and her influences include Tom Waits, Van Morrison and Joni Mitchell. Chook begins as a teenage DJ and goes on to work as a turntable artist and drum and bass producer. He focuses on detailed studio work and constructing tracks around sound and texture, while Muno favours acoustic instruments and the physical feel of strings and wood. Monophona forms from their search for common ground between these approaches.

Sound and live work

The group combines electronic and intimate elements, as well as melodic and experimental ideas. Jorsch Kass completes the live line-up and adds detail and dynamics to performances, moving comfortably between the two musical worlds represented in the project.

Early releases and performances

Monophona play their first gig in 2011. They go on to open for Rodrigo y Gabriela, Elektro Guzzi and Nostalgia77. Their first single, Give up, appears in 2012, and their debut album, The Spy, follows later that year.