Rock Monsters Romania

Because I was curious and eager for this experience, I ended up at Sala Palatului on February 29th. I was very curious about the concept, the concert, and everything that a show at Sala Palatului entails, akin to that of an underground Romanian band. I said all day that we should cherish February 29th because we meet it again every four years, and how else could we do that if not at a concert?

Filled with curiosity and patience, I headed to Sala Palatului and felt like a grown-up. With a concert that didn’t start exactly at the time I was used to and ended at a decent hour so I could catch the metro or bus if I wished. Since childhood, I’ve had a fascination with chamber music and orchestras in general. It seems so intimate and grand in a way that I can’t quite put into words. I always compare an orchestra to a Swiss watch. Every gear must move when it should and work together to create the finished product, to be perfect. I have immense gratitude for people who play chamber instruments, if you want to call them that. “Fascinated” is an understatement. You could leave me for hours in front of an orchestra, and I’d still find something to understand, to follow, or to ask about. Somehow, it frees my inner child, and all the questions come from there. Maybe that’s why I have connections to my childhood when I think about chamber music. Being mostly at chamber concerts in childhood, with teachers who rigorously watched students on how they used the bow on the violin or didn’t miss a note on the piano.

Returning to The Mono Jacks, you can find more about them on Rock Monsters, but as a brief description: The Mono Jacks is an alternative rock band founded by Doru Trăscău in 2008. Currently, the band consists of Doru Trăscău (vocals, guitar), Andrei Zamfir (guitar), Cristian Chiru (bass), John Ciurea (drums), and with Vlad Corțuș as a guest guitarist in some shows. The choice to perform alongside ALTOrchestra I think came naturally and as a next step after the launch concert of their latest album “Norul Nouă” last year at Sala Palatului. I was excited last year when I heard they were going to perform at Sala Palatului, but now that they also had an orchestra, I couldn’t help but like it. I am proud to own a poster taken from the street with The Mono Jacks since they released their new album, “Norul Nouă,” in 2023 at Sala Palatului. It’s a subject of gossip and jokes among my group of friends, the story of how I took this poster from the street and how it has been hanging on my kitchen door for almost a year now.

Sala Palatului is a kind of Mecca for most Romanian artists, and for those in the underground scene, it seems untouchable. When you mention Sala Palatului, alongside Fuego and Andra, you also mention Therion, Megadeth, Michael Bolton, Chris Rea, Bobby McFerrin, Tarja Turunen, Steve Vai, and many other world-renowned artists. So, the whole place comes with a certain notoriety and prestige.

To be honest, for me, Sala Palatului is a place frozen in time. Yes, it’s gigantic, and I understand the emotions and joy one must feel when performing there for so many people, but to me, the whole place seems detached from the stories of communism at my grandparents’. It seems like an impersonal place where you just sit and listen, and maybe applaud because if you stand up, the person behind you can’t see, and you don’t even know if it’s okay to “sing” along if it bothers the person next to you. So yes, for me, Sala Palatului is something very impersonal but sumptuous. I don’t think I could shake that thought all evening, and that’s probably why the concert didn’t seem extraordinary to me. The song ends, people applaud, and they move on to the next one. I didn’t feel that connection between the audience and the artist. Yes, not all concerts need to be on a small stage where you’re literally face to face with the band, but neither in a gigantic place where everything seems unfriendly and from a bygone era.

The Mono Jacks entered the stage being themselves, they didn’t seem very nervous, which I think was also due to the experience they had last year at Sala Palatului. The orchestra behind them gave a sense of majesty, and when the violins started playing, I got into my element. I was frustrated that I couldn’t be closer and understand what was happening with the conductor and the instruments, but I wandered around the hall, I didn’t stay in my seat. I was both in the balcony and in front of the stage, to the left, to the right, in the middle. You couldn’t keep me in one place. What I clearly understood was that the sound was just right even from the front row, from the back, or from the middle, but the most important thing about this concert is that it brought all kinds of people together. From young to old, to seniors and children who ran and danced in the balconies.

Doru Trăscău, the showman, as everyone knows him, didn’t hold back this time either and gave it his all. That guy moved more than I did in a whole week. Andrei Zamfir set the tone and was attentive to the audience, and you could tell he somehow felt comfortable amidst all the emotions he had. The song “Infinit” sounded exceptional with all the instruments in the background, and yes, I was upset that the audience didn’t sing along, but apparently, that’s how the Sala Palatului audience is. I was there ready to sing and move, but apparently, that wasn’t the purpose of the concert, so I stayed quiet and listened to the orchestra in the background.

On the song “Undeva,” the entire groove of the song shifted towards the orchestra but also towards Doru’s voice. Vlad’s guitar made its mark on this song, and the show was at its home. The light show made the difference. With the audience being illuminated and towards the end of the song, Doru was bathed in light, playing with the shadows created on the walls of Sala Palatului, a very beautiful and unique sight.

On the song “Un sfert de secundă,” the song everyone was waiting for, the surprise guest was Irina Rimes. It was a combination I saw coming, I admit, but I can’t say that Irina Rimes‘ voice surprised me in any way. I liked Doru more on this song than Irina Rimes. She was an extra on the song that I could have lived without hearing. It seemed a bit much from her, but the guys from the band, the orchestra in the background, and Doru Trăscău through his gestures made the song shine at the end, ending with applause as Irina Rimes left.

On the song “Gloria,” I couldn’t hold back, and I shouted “Gloria” so loudly that I think she might have heard me. And Altorchestra didn’t disappoint on this song either. The energy was in the air, and everything felt like it was from a different movie.

If you don’t sing to “Umeri Aurii” or “Caleidoscop,” I don’t know what you’re doing at a The Mono Jacks concert, and even though it wasn’t 22:22 when they played “Caleidoscop,” it felt like the heavens opened up. “Chiar dacă viața-i un joc de neînțeles” The Mono Jacks concerts make sense. The passion with which Doru Trăscău moves and sings, John Ciurea, who seems to have disappeared forever behind the drums, Cristian Chiru, who with the help of the bass and the orchestra in the background, did an excellent job.

I could say a lot about this concert because it stirred up quite a few reactions in me. Yes, I was annoyed that it wasn’t dynamic for me and seemed that way only for the people on stage, but all the work behind the scenes must be acknowledged, and on the song “Zbor” from the album “Gloria,” the entire audience was flooded by the flashlights of the phones, which looked like a sea of stars on a dark evening.

Text and photos by Ionela Pleșan