Japanese instrumental rock group MONO have announced their new album ‘Snowdrop’ will be released on 12 June 2026. It will be followed first Australian tour in 4 years, taking place in April 2027. The legendary quartet will perform in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and return to Perth and Adelaide for the first time since 2020.
When MONO recorded their previous album “OATH” with longtime production partner and friend, Steve Albini in 2023, they never fathomed that it would be the final studio album they made together. Albini tragically died the following year, and that loss left an incalculable void in the lives of not just everyone who ever knew Steve, but everyone with an attachment to any of the thousands of records he helped bring into world over the past four decades. He brought a clarity to the chaos, and a selfless sense of service to art and artists that was unrivalled. On both a personal and practical level, the loss left MONO faced with profound grief and uncertainty. Albini had become a fundamental part of MONO’s unmistakable sound, and the thought of replacing him was daunting, to say the least.
Enter: Brad Wood. Chosen for both his familiarity with MONO’s creative and technical working process – as well as his decades-long friendship with Steve Albini – Brad Wood entered Albini’s storied Electrical Audio studios in September 2025 to record what would become “Snowdrop”. Once again working with Chicago-based conductor and orchestral musical director, Chad McCullough, MONO enlisted a 10-piece orchestra as well as an 8-piece choir for the eight massive works that make up “Snowdrop”.
With the band performing and Wood recording in the same hallowed space where the majority of MONO’s records had been made in their quarter-century history, the songs on “Snowdrop” carry an extra weight. Wood then mixed the album at Seagrass, his home studio in Los Angeles. Where there could easily be a pall hanging over “Snowdrop”, there is instead an extraordinary air of gratitude. Rather than steep in heartache, there is a poignant appreciation for the resonance of life well-spent with a dear friend – and the yearning for what may come. “Snowdrop” is the sound of a band turning shock and sadness into hope and wonder, and finding renewed focus in the freedom of unknowing.
Originally formed in 1999, MONO’s unique approach blends orchestral arrangements and shoegaze guitar noise into memorable and emotional epics. Consistently held in high regard by their peers, their music has been praised by media, including NME proclaiming “This is music for the Gods.” Amongst their fans, they are revered as one of the best live experiences in rock.