“In the world of academia, the ‘monograph’ reigns supreme. A book-length study of a single subject, a monograph should synthesize essay-length analyses into one argument that contributes something new to the scholar’s field. To analogize the world of music to academia: the monograph stands in for the album, demonstrating an artist’s ability to cohere individual songs into one holistic listen. Monograf, a Norwegian post-rock collective, published its first monograph in 2019. Nadir made a novel contribution to post-rock by adding Norwegian folk music to soundscapes reminiscent of Godspeed You! Black Emperor.” Book smart vs. garage smart.
