There are many layers to beautiful music. The songs that truly stand out tend to make their mark with a combination of moving lyrics, memorable vocals, perhaps even an earworm of a hook. But it’s the emotion behind the music that brings us back over and over to gush over how much we love it. Monarchy takes note of this and pulls no punches with the title track of their latest EP, “Almost Human.”
Before you grimace at me for sharing a song that is completely autotuned, internalize those vocals. This is not just a love song, it is an embodiment of what love can do. We expect autotune from Monarchy, being a successful electronic duo, but it has a true purpose here: a song that proclaims to be “almost human” with natural vocals is a lie. With a voice that is convincingly not human, these lyrics gain honesty.
Now revel in the other of the layers of this track. The a capella hums and harmonies alone are enough to stop anyone in their tracks. The lyrics are written like a sappy love letter, but sung as if those feelings would never fade.
“Come be free don’t be afraid anymore
You and me, we’ll cast off our burdens
Now, now we can smile for love
Shine for eternity in our love
All the riches of your heart are mine
No one could better your design
And you, you make me feel almost human
Dark was the road, tires spitting stones at us
Falling down, we’ve been to bed with recklessness
Nothing else matters with you in my world
Nothing else matters with you in my world
Nothing else matters with you in my world…”
As a bonus, you can immerse yourself in a seven-and-a-half minute rendition of “Almost Human,” slowed to 98 BPM. And they took out the spatial electronics in the background, so you don’t miss a single word. Nurture it, download it, cry with it. This is a special piece of music. It stuck with me, and has earned its rightful place as one of the best tracks released this year.
Buy Monarchy’s EP, “Almost Human,” here. Find more info on the duo on their website, Facebook, Twitter, Soundcloud, and YouTube.
The Music Court 
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