Sending Signals

British prog rockers Ihlo are back with their longawaited second album. Legacy affirms their status as a force to be reckoned with and takes their synth-infused dynamic sound to a whole new level.

- Words: Cheri Faulkner

Vocalist Andy Robison, guitarist Phil Monro, and drummer Clark McMenemy discuss tapping into videogame soundtracks, finding their own sound and the challenges of playing their complex parts live.

Modern technology has enabled the formation of bands that otherwise would never have existed. Ihlo are one such example. Having met via a Facebook meme group back in 2016, vocalist Andy Robison and guitarist and primary songwriter Phil Monro formed the band not in a dimly-lit rehearsal space, but via the internet, through meticulously-exchanged audio files and online collaborations.

"I'd gotten to the point of posting some demo-quality stuff online," Monro explains.

"And I knew Andy did a bit of singing and a bit of electronic music, so I thought I'd send him a track I wrote. He was like, "That's great, do you want any singing?"" From there, the two "messed around" with some electronic music before returning to prog rock.

"We got Clark on board when we were considering doing live stuff, but he did the MIDI drums on the first album, too." While Monro and Robison are the creative core of the band, drummer Clark McMenemy is a vital element of bringing their digital compositions to life.

McMenemy brings a technical precision that complements the band's experimentalism.

"I first heard about Andy online," he recalls.

"We both lived in Aberdeen, and I was immediately struck by his musical talent.

I had a bit of hero-worship going on." Ihlo defy traditional band formation narratives and, as a result, challenge the conventions of progressive music. They're testament to how the digital world has transformed the way musicians collaborate.