85 decibel Monks drops “Square One Hop”

Two decades after they last lit up the music sphere, 85 decibel Monks have returned, not so much reborn, but rather in reawakened form. The name still carries impact, the sound still grooves with trademark analogue aesthetic and the steadfast mission remains to make music that’s ‘amplified authentic.’ Coming from a time when compact discs reigned and when MySpace pages were the lifeblood of DIY promotion, the Monks’ return feels less like the resumption of a long, carefully tuned experiment in sonic fidelity.

The group’s nucleus remains Timothy Tack, better known as Tack-Fu the Beat Builder and Chris Groves, a.k.a. Grover Beats XL the Music Provider. Between them, they stitch the flair of a Chicago-born producer with the versatility of a Birmingham-bred multi-instrumentalist and around this partnership spins a constellation of Iowa City-based collaborators; musicians, engineers and beat-makers who contribute to the ongoing mission of refining the 85 dB Monk Sound. It’s a collective that operates like a workshop, bringing together classic hip hop vibes with a deep respect for the physical essence of sound.

That sound, all warm frequencies, tape hiss and groove-driven layering was first captured on Tack-Fu Presents: The Production Team 85 Decibel Monks back in 2004, their last commercial release before stepping back. Following that was a quieter, but no less industrious, chapter, with a steady string of instrumental placements across TV networks like MTV, VH1, A&E and Discovery Channel. Licensing for television and indie cinema kept the Monks’ production house ticking over while the wider world shifted from physical formats to streaming and downloads.

Even as their music reached living rooms worldwide through soundtracks and background scores, Tack-Fu felt a magnetic pull back toward what first ignited the project, creating songs meant to bring stories to life in engaging musical settings. “The landscape has shifted once again with digital distribution and streaming. Back then, you needed physical CDs and a killer press kit just to get noticed. Finding a distributor that fit the DIY hip-hop ethos was like mining for gold. Now, the internet is the machine — it’s opened the floodgates for independent artists,” Tack-Fu explains.

Now they crystallise their long-awaited return with their latest output, bringing us their new single titled “Square One Hop,” a track which fully captures their renewed purpose. True to form, the Monks return to the groove, slipping straight back into their prolific creative vision as if they’d never even blinked. Serving up a slick instrumental jam, with their aptly titled new track, 85 decibel Monks lean into an old school hip hop sound to deliver an epic groover stacked with infectious rhythm and colourful instrumentation.

Opened by the warbling swell of blooping machine noise, the rustle of shuffling percussion injects a smooth forward motion to kick start a breezy slice of upbeat hip hop energy. Flowing with the bounce of hazy organ tones which flicker with stuttered rhythm, the woozy flutter of electric keys and jazz-inflected flute dance across the arrangement to add flashes of playful melodic flutters throughout, resulting in a stellar outing brimming with groove and superb musicianship panache.

Amongst it all, the track is peppered with record scratches which keeps the flows constantly surprising with subtle jumps and switch ups to forge a truly memorable listening experience from start to finish. While time may have marched on, for 85 decibel Monks, it’s rhythm that dictates the pace and their journey from underground net label origins to television placements to today’s streaming renaissance mirrors the evolution of music itself. Having made their return in spectacular fashion, 85 decibel Monks have opened an exciting new chapter that’s sure to win over a new generation of listeners all over the world.

Listen to Square One Hop below

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