Monument Valley is the solo project of Ned Younger whose 2012 7” single ‘Your Cover Blown’ has been waiting far too long for a follow up album. Well, here it is.

Released last week, Walking On Skin  is a beautifully crafted collection of tracks that draws inspiration from Younger’s personal heroes –  Leonard Cohen and Stuart Murdoch –  and sends chills down your spine from start to finish.

Opening track ‘Too Loud’ introduces an extremely nostalgic, atmospheric style that is similar to the music of Daughter with delicate piano chords and a  haunting bass line. ‘Too Loud’ shows off Younger’s ability to draw on everyday experiences to write wonderful lyrics –  “I’ve seen you since/ On a bank holiday Monday/ Telling recession stories to a bouncer in a door way” –  whilst simultaneously singing about love and relationships in a fresh and innovative way, introducing Monument Valley as one of 2014’s ‘ones to watch’.

An homage to Younger’s experiences whilst living in London, Walking on Skin pays tribute to the sights and sounds of the bustling city. ‘Walking Home’ is a fantastic track that includes snippets from recordings made around London, with clips from QPR matches and the London Tonight documentary cementing the city’s influence on the album.

Younger’s choice to go solo, self-releasing his debut album, was a decision with fantastic results. Walking on Skin is a carefully made album with nostalgia-filled songs that are both haunting and beautiful, supporting Ned Younger as a great new talent with plenty to offer. I wouldn’t be surprised if Monument Valley becomes a leading light in the world of self-released music, as Younger has already shown that you don’t need a music label to create a decent album, which Walking on Skin demonstrates incredibly successfully.

 

Adam Ross