''Mono'' (stylized in all caps) is the fifth studio album by American musician K.Flay, released via Giant Music on September 15, 2023. Inspired largely by her 2022 diagnosis of

labyrinthitis Labyrinthitis is inflammation of the labyrinth – a maze of fluid-filled channels in the inner ear. Vestibular neuritis is inflammation of the vestibular nerve – the nerve in the inner ear that sends messages related to motion and position t ...

and subsequent total deafness in her right ear, ''Mono'' is primarily a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

album that continues K.Flay's trend of departing from her earlier hip hop sound.

Overview

On April 26, 2023, K.Flay released the album's first track, "Raw Raw", along with its accompanying music video. The track had been teased on her social media pages in the weeks prior to its release. The song heavily features the theme of vulnerability, which K.Flay said was inspired by her 2022 diagnosis of

and

sensorineural hearing loss Sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) is a type of hearing loss in which the root cause lies in the inner ear or sensory organ (cochlea and associated structures) or the vestibulocochlear nerve (cranial nerve VIII). SNHL accounts for about 90% of rep ...

in her right ear. She said, "I wanted to capture what vulnerability really feels like. Outwardly it might seem tender, but on the inside it's messy and bloody and somewhat terrifying. It's a chainsaw buzzing at your throat." In May, she teased the second single "Shy" by playing snippets on Instagram Live and performing the song while on tour with

Grandson Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

. The song was released on June 7. On June 6, the day before "Shy" was released, K.Flay announced that her upcoming album would be called ''Mono'' (inspired by her aforementioned deafness) and revealed the album's cover, track list, and release date of September 15. The third single from the album, "Irish Goodbye", was released on August 17. The fourth single, "Punisher", was released with an animated music video on the same day as the album.

Reception

''Mono'' was released to mainly positive reviews. A writer for New Noise Magazine called it an "incredible" record, praising it for being " .Flay'smost cohesive and vulnerable album to date".

Track listing

Notes *"Yes I'm Serious" interpolates "Are You Serious?" *"Watch Me Pt. 2" interpolates "Watch Me Pt. 1". *While originally exclusive to vinyl and CD versions, "Carsick" saw an official single release several months after the rest of the album was made digitally available.

Personnel

* Kyle Buckley – production (track 4) * Dru DeCaro – production (4) * Kristine Flaherty – lead vocals, instruments, production; mixing (8) * Michael Freeman – mixing (1–7, 9, 12–14) * David Haddad – production (7, 9, 10, 12) * Jeoff Harris – production (1, 3, 14) * Aric Improta – drums *

Joe LaPorta Joseph J. LaPorta (born ) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in New Jersey.http://www.allmusic.com/artist/joe-laporta-mn000199340/credits/date-asc/ Career Born and raised in New York, LaPorta graduated from New York Univer ...

– mastering *

Paul Meany Paul Meany (born July 2, 1976) is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, music director and record producer. He is best known as the lead singer and keyboardist for the alternative rock band Mutemath. Career While under the mon ...

– production (5, 6, 11, 13), mixing (11) * Rob Nelson – production (4)

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2023 albums K.Flay albums Pop punk albums by American artists Alternative rock albums by American artists