When this album came out I was thought I liked it quite a lot, but recently I've been playing it more and it seems kinda boring.

It is never annoying, but I find it so bland at times that it is almost impossible to focus on the actual music, my mind always wanders. So - is there any merit to this album I'm missing?

And what about the band in general? The first album is a masterpiece, Illusion's Play is an awful, disappointing album, I believe this is quite clear so let's take them out of the picture.

I think Angels of Distress is amazing, even though it shares many features with Monotony Fields - but what the latter seems to lack is proper songwriting, on their sophomore each song had its identity and wonderful passages. On their latest all the songs sounds the same.

Anybody (who likes the band in general=) thinks this way or am I too harsh on it?

I re-listened to Monotony recently and I must say I rate it a lot less now. Don't know... it's a bit too simplistic and... monotonous... It's perfect for having a nap, though...

I do like all the other releases, even Illusion's Play, which is, as you say, a bit below par... let's hope they come back with a very strong new album... if they are still going...

Big love for Angels of Distress, not bothered by their other records, or their clones/clouds.

Monotony fields was way less monotonous compared with shades of..., which I could not really get into it at all.

I enjoy Monotony Fields, but I'll say what I've always felt for Shape of Despair since I first discovered them; Natalie Koskinen deserves a bigger role than what she is given. Her moments on the album are easily the best, especially the refrain on Inner Descending Night. She has such an ethereal voice and her singing adds so much to the atmosphere, but I just think keeping her restricted to some "ooooh"s and "aaaah"s in the background is a total waste of her potential.

This is their best since their debut. Angels of Distress sucked and Pasi was laughably bad. This album took the best of what they started with and married it with more modern touches. Natalie's the star however.

I'd mostly agree with NTNR.

When it was released I didn't care much about this record. But these days I'm sure, it's one of the best records ever made, alongside with Shades of...

I pulled it out the other day and I still love.

I remember when I heard it the first time with my headphones on the go. I was like "ok, cool" and forgot about it. 2-3 years later I listened again and was immediately in total love. It's by far the album i played the most in the past 2 years and to be honest Monotony Fields was one of the biggest reasons to start with vinyl and a decent midrange player after 20 years of CD/mp3/flac.

I wished I saw what you see in it. Unfortunately the vinyl I have, for all its gorgeous artworks, simply collects dust on my shelves.

I would really like if some of you can point out what exactly you like it in, I know it's a dumb question, as it is subjective, but I'd love to find out if there is something I am missing.

For me there is no variation between the songs, it's all made of bland power chords with almost no really good melodies, the grunts are as standard in the genre as they get and the female vocals play insignificant role. It sounds ok, because it is inoffensive but this is the album I struggle most to keep my attention focused while listening.

I really don't think it works this way. I could start to enthuse about the atmosphere in details, about the complex multilayer carpets of sound or about the clean vocals, which reached definitely a new level on Monotony Fields, but this won't change the game for you at all. Because if you are not "ready" for specific music, you can't change this fact by reading what other people hear/feel when listenning to this specific music. And in the end people have different tastes.

But I agree, it's hard to keep your attention on it. While this might be negative to some, it can be positive to me. I can't focus on most of the music I love, because I'm absorbed in thought as soon as the music starts.
I'd just keep your copy covering in dust and maybe try it at a later point in time.

I still listen to Monotony Fields a lot, and by that I mean pretty much on a weekly basis. My favourite songs on it are The Distant Dream of Life, Withdrawn and the title track, in that order. They could have left the rerecording of Written in My Scars out as it didn't really add much to the already superb collection of new songs. It's easily in my top 10 of albums from the past decade and, in my opinion, the band's best offering to date.

Among the things I love on this record are the massive sound, full, lush and rich, the atmosphere and space in the songs. I mean they are written like cathedrals, if that makes any sense. I often feel like I'm swimming between the chord changes or snare hits. The synthesizer arrangements act like a haze, creating a depth and taking the edge off the otherwise harsh and uncompromisingly slow compositions and crushing guitar work. Also notice how there's no drum breaks on this album (unless you want to count the one in 'Distant Dream') yet I don't think anything's missing. Last but not least: the intro to the title track is one of the most beautiful and captivating intros ever and it totally fits the song.