"Life in Mono" is the debut single by English

trip hop Trip hop (sometimes used synonymously with "downtempo") is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as a psychedelic music, psychedelic fusion of hip hop music, hip hop ...

duo

Mono Mono may refer to: Common meanings * Infectious mononucleosis, "the kissing disease" * Monaural, monophonic sound reproduction, often shortened to mono * Mono-, a numerical prefix representing anything single Music Performers * Mono (Japanese b ...

, which consisted of singer

Siobhan de Maré Siobhan de Maré is a singer, mostly known from lending her voice to the album ''Formica Blues'' by the UK band Mono in 1997. In 2000, she joined Robin Guthrie (formerly of Cocteau Twins) to form Violet Indiana, which varies from shimmery wall of ...

and musician Martin Virgo. It was released on the band's first EP in 1996 which contained various remixes, most notably two by the

Propellerheads Propellerheads were an English electronic music duo, formed in 1995 in Bath and consisting of Will White and Alex Gifford. History Their first release was an EP named ''Dive!'', released in 1996 through the independent label Wall of Sound. ...

. It was released again in 1997 on the band's only album, ''

Formica Blues ''Formica Blues'' is the only album by English trip hop duo Mono (UK band), Mono. It was first released in the UK in 1997. Four singles were released from the album, of which the lead single, "Life in Mono", was the most successful. The album re ...

''.

Background

The song was used as the theme to the 1998 version of the movie ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. It depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip (Great Expectations), Pip (the book is a ''bildungsroman''; a coming-of-age story). It ...

'' (reportedly chosen by actor

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...

), appearing in the ''

Daria ''Daria'' is an American adult animation, adult animated sitcom created by Glenn Eichler and Susie Lewis, Susie Lewis Lynn. The series ran from March 3, 1997, to January 21, 2002, on MTV. It focuses on the title character, Daria Morgendorffer, ...

'' episode "Monster", as well as being used for the launch television advert for the new

Rover 25 The Rover 200 Series, and later the Rover 25, are a series of small family cars that were produced by British manufacturer Rover (marque), Rover from 1984 until 2005. There have been three distinct generations of the Rover 200. The first gener ...

. It was covered by

Emma Bunton Emma Lee Bunton (born 21 January 1976) is an English singer, songwriter, actress, and media personality. She rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the girl group Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Baby Spice. With over 100 million recor ...

in 2006 for her third album, also titled '' Life in Mono''. The chorus consists of " ingenue, I just don't know what to do" repeated; the word was a late addition in songwriting, to rhyme with "I just don't know what to do". It was also used in the television series ''

La Femme Nikita La Femme Nikita may refer to: * ''La Femme Nikita'' (film), a 1990 French action film by Luc Besson, originally named "Nikita" * ''La Femme Nikita'' (TV series), a 1997–2001 TV series based on the film, also called "Nikita" * ''Nikita'' (TV se ...

'', in season 2 episode 14.

Reception

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' called the song's usage in ''Great Expectations'' an example of film music that "works", citing its "anguished" lyrics as complementary to

Ethan Hawke Ethan Green Hawke (born November 6, 1970) is an American actor and film director. He has been nominated for four Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award. Hawke has directed three feature films, three off-Broadway plays, and a doc ...

's character's predicaments, and comparing de Maré's voice to those of

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (born February 10, 1937) is a retired American singer. She topped the Billboard Magazine, ''Billboard'' charts with the No. 1 singles "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "Killing Me Softly with His Song", "Feel Like M ...

and

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop si ...

. In the U.S.,

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

marketed the single in a campaign aimed to "build awareness at both the radio and club levels", shipping

promotional single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...

s to

modern rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. Radio format Mod ...

-format radio stations on 10 February, and to

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

s at about the same time. Promotion to

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

stations followed later on. The single's sales only allowed it to chart in the lower echelons of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at number 70 (though it did reach at least 19 on the

Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...

chart), but

radio airplay Airplay is how frequently a song is being played through broadcasting on radio stations. A song which is being played several times every day (spins) would have a significant amount of airplay. Music which became very popular on jukeboxes, in n ...

and requests allowed it to reach 28 on the

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

chart. "Life In Mono" reached No 60 in the band's native United Kingdom.

Charts

References

{{authority control 1996 songs 1996 debut singles 1998 singles English electronic songs Emma Bunton songs Trip hop songs The Echo Label singles Song recordings produced by Jim Abbiss