TOKiMONSTA – Lune Rouge

Tokimonsta overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds to release the superb album, Lune Rouge

After battling numerous obstacles in her personal life, electronica and hip-hop producer TOKiMONSTA came out on top against adversity and released her fifth studio album, Lune Rouge, on October 6^th. In late 2015, TOKiMONSTA was diagnosed with a severe neurological disorder called Moyamoya. After the diagnosis she underwent two brain surgeries and in the process of her recovery she lost her ability to use language and understand her lifelong passion, music. In spite of this major setback TOKiMONSTA found a way to rebound and used the hardship as fuel to release an absolutely stellar album.

Lune Rouge is a highly rhythmic album, drawing on influences from genres such as house, R&B, and hip-hop. The album also features numerous other artists such as R&B singer Yuna and rappers Isaiah Rashad and Joey Purp. Although the album is rhythm focused, the conglomerate of influences and features give the album a lot of versatility. At times the album may have a tropical house sound combined with hip hop style beats and at other times possibly a soulful R&B sound

The opening track of Lune Rouge, “Lune,” is entirely instrumental and has the feel of an epic string ensemble intertwined with light electronic instrumentation. The song builds anticipation and at the end leads directly into the next track entitled “Rouge.” The song has a electronic dance feel to it and Tokimonsta showcases her singing abilities with light airy vocals alongside the danceable electronic production techniques.

The next track, “Thief,” features amazing vocals from R&B singer SAINTS and has a tropical electronic dance feel to it. The song is upbeat and rhythmic and utilizes booming kick drums with a thick bassline that add to the songs flare.

The following song is entitled “I Wish I Could” and features the vocal talents of singer Selah Sue. This track makes use of a lot of influences from R&B influences including the soulful vocals of Selah Sue, and blends it with some characteristics of electronic dance music. The song also makes use of beautiful piano arrangements, which shows Tokimonsta’s background as a classically trained pianist.

This leads into the next track of the album called We Love which utilizes vocals from MNDR. The track makes uses of tropical influences with slick drum patterns. The vocals on this song go nicely with the tropical feel that is present.

The next track “Bibimbap” is entirely instrumental which allows listeners to focus more on TOKiMONSTA’s talents as a producer. The track has elements of hip hop but with TOKiMONSTA’s own flair added to the sound. This leads listeners into the next track “No Way” which is largely a hip hop track featuring the rappers Isaiah Rashad and Joey Purp, as well as additional vocals by Ambre Perkins.

The following track “Don’t Call Me” features vocals from R&B singer Yuna and is largely an R&B song with electronic elements. Yuna’s soulful vocals blend together nicely with TOKiMONSTA’s chilly lulling instrumentation.

Another highlight from this album comes on the track entitled “Early to Dawn” which features vocals once again from singer Selah Sue. TOKiMONSTA also once again showcases her talents as a classically trained pianist and combined this with rhythmic drum patterns creating a beautiful R&B track.

This album is a fantastic comeback album for TOKiMONSTA. After listening to the album, one would never guess that she had to regain her musical ability before she went to work on it. It truly demonstrates TOKiMONSTA’s talents in electronic dance music, hip-hop, and R&B.