Rock Monsters Romania

Emerging experimental artist MONK drops a new thrilling single Belly of a Whale Along with a dazing music video.

MONK, a young experimental musician born and raised in the heart of Transylvania, emerges in the scene with Belly of a Whale, a chaotic and stimulating track that tackles the theme of a person’s inner conflict with their impulses, desires and dreams. Released in July, the fresh single is announcing an upcoming concept album Dance, Sex and Death, which promises to cross genre boundaries and stylistic norms and address taboo lyrical subjects.

MONK draws his inspiration from breakbeat, art rock, and middle eastern musicians, such as Igorrr, Radiohead, and Ibrahim Maalouf. His single Belly of a Whale is a frenzied mess of metal screams, lush female vocals and aggressive breakbeats that come together to tell the story of a love affair with Lilith, an irresistible but vicious biblical spirit. While producing the track, MONK collaborated with jazz and rock musicians alike, a fact which appears most unexpectedly when the blasting drums and breaks of the song are interrupted by a frantic Coltrane-like saxophone solo.

“Belly of a Whale is a track that shouldn’t have happened. I started out by forcing myself to write a generic pop rock song, as an experiment, only to find myself three hours later adding free-jazz saxophones and Amen blast breaks. Perhaps I’ll try to do it the other way around next time,” says the musician.

MONK is an emerging fusion artist defined by his anarchic but profound sound. With a background in jazz music and a passion for challenging musical norms, he is set to release his full length album Dance, Sex and Death in November 2025.