Monica LaPlante

Local Minneapolis darling Monica LaPlante plays a style of garage rock/garage pop loaded with class and charm. Her brutally honest lyrics prove that perfection lies in the art of simplicity. LaPlante's 2016 album, Noir, brings a much darker side to her repertoire, fueled by guitar-driven rockers and dark synthy ballads from the heart.

LaPlante’s transition from leaf on the wind to vamp on the prowl began pretty much instantaneously. Writing and recording the demo for darkside party banger “Hope You’re Alone” in a single night gave the artist enough momentum that nothing could stand in her way--for long.

As with her command of melody, the aptitude for depicting emotional nuance LaPlante showcases on “Can’t Stop” is gaining massive depth and resonance remarkably fast--especially when it comes to ambiguity. Even when she plays the budding libertine, as she does with flick-of-the-wrist ease on “Do That To Me,” she’s careful to let a little longing for something more seep through the cracks in her wall of benign indifference. Noir’s overarching affective backbone resides solely in LaPlante’s will to rock.