In Universal Themes, the newest release of Chris Monzon’s solo project Baby Dog, little streams run downhill—streams of synths, drum machines and distorted guitars. When they meet, they form a raging, psychedelic torrent of sound, fierce but peacefully reassuring, much like the noisy yet steady flow of a river. For Monzon, the process of making it was a similarly natural outpouring of emotion, one that he initially stumbled through the same way his band’s namesake might—earnestly, slightly pathetically, yet ultimately toward surer footing.
Baby Dog’s first set at Spectre Records served as a sort of microcosm of the project’s awkward early stage. It came at an emotionally and creatively tumultuous period for Monzon. The songs were in an embryonic stage, and his looper pedal and drum machine set-up were faulty, but the songs nonetheless began to take shape.
“At the time, things were just pouring out of me; I was strongly emotional,” said Monzon.
He set out to record his first EP with Quinton Maddox, who recorded such local acts as Plastic Caves and Alphabet Cult out of a studio in his garage.
“His mantra was that he was just a ’big red button,’” recalled Monzon. “I could just keep playing the songs over and over, and he was fine with that.”
Those recordings became the Baby Dog self-titled EP. Monzon considers its lyrical content to be more blunt, direct, and musically closer to what a Baby Dog live show would eventually become—a full live band with a drum set.
As his live set was filling out, his recording projects scaled back. Universal Themes is a more solitary release, making full use of drum machines and home recording to bring the EP together in his own time, whenever inspiration struck. Lyrically, it reaches toward the philosophical.
“I was cleaning up the Pioneer Center and just thinking about life and death,” said Monzon of the writing process. “I’ll usually find one thing that’s solid, like a melody or a theme, and I’ll sit on it for a long time, just going about my life thinking about what it means.”
Though Universal Themes was recorded solo, much of Baby Dog’s music has the feel of a full band. The drum machines, keyboards and guitars swell to cacophonous, melodic epiphanies as Monzon sings lines such as “People come and go” far off in the mix, as if on the opposite bank of his sonic river, fighting against being drowned out. The song titles are simple and contemplative: “Hope,” “Impermanence,” “Mortality.”
To contrast the solitary nature of the EP, Monzon sought out contributions from artists he admired. He paired with artist Andrea Elizabeth for the album art and got a final mix done by musician Eleanor Burke. To perform the music live, he also deployed Burke on bass, Garrett Caufield—drummer for Boys and Murder Dream—Sam Gates of Team Francis on synths, and Nick Eng on guitar.
Onstage, the songs become unhinged, noisy alternative rock anthems reminiscent of Monzon’s idols, Sonic Youth, filtered through his own electrically dynamic stage presence. The band, usually put together at the last minute, emphasizing raw expression and never feels too polished.
“They tell me, ’You’re so chill to work with,” said Monzon. “I say ’no,’ because for me I feel like a really friendly dictator. I say, ’No I’m not, I just know the right people to work with.’”