Courtney Love - Mono

Tue 10th Feb, 2004 in Music Reviews

(Virgin/EMI)

Her latest single and debut solo effort, Mono, takes a leap back towards the days of Hole’s Live Through This album, with tight melodic poprock tunes that look set to ride a wave of record sales.

And the ‘Mono’ sound is exactly the opposite, big and tight and catchy, with Love employing a string of big wigs that have worked on everything from Aerosmith to Christina Aguilera’s albums; to fellow rockers Kim Deal and Jerry Best on instruments.

Mono smacks of Courtney Love. Her story, her personality. Torched and crazy woman? Smart girl manufactured image? Junkie mother. Kurt Cobain’s widow. There’s an undeniable romance to be had with contemplating the obvious pain that the world, and this woman felt when the Nirvana star took his own life and the widowed Love released her semi-psychic ‘Live Through This’ album just days afterwards. Perhaps therein lies the on-going pleasure of her music, because musically she’s not doing anything new.

Is this the part in the book that you wrote/ Where I gotta come and save the day /Did you miss me.

It’s enough to keep even non-fans listening, or at least wondering. Mono is the first single from Love’s forthcoming debut solo album, America’s Sweetheart. Out mid February 2004, it will be a wonder.