Melbourne-based artist Low Monroe has cultivated a niche in gothic post-punk that thrives on dark atmospherics, theatrical live performances, and a cinematic narrative approach. With the release of his latest single, Exxon Tears, dropped on November 22, 2024, Monroe delves deeper into themes of corruption, exploitation, and pseudo-love. Drawing comparisons to Bauhaus and early Nick Cave, the track is as ominous as it is polished—a culmination of an intense year that has seen Monroe refine his craft and expand his project into a collaborative endeavor with his live band, The Fugitives.
Recorded, produced, and mixed by Monroe himself, Exxon Tears represents what he calls “phase two” of the Low Monroe project—a more refined and cohesive statement. The song embodies the duality of its influences: a brooding, noir-inspired exploration of crime and corruption paired with sleek production that brings its themes into sharp focus.
Low Monroe emerged in 2022 as Sergi’s solo project, launching with the debut single Second Try Theme. Monroe envisioned the project as much a performance piece as a musical act, inspired by the hardboiled visuals and character-driven storytelling of Old Hollywood noir films.
“I really began to fall in love with the specific character tropes of these films, all through the lens of the antagonists and their slow, eerie demise,” Sergi explains. This fascination shaped not only the project’s lyrical content but also its performance style, with Monroe adopting a theatrical persona. He credits local artist Cong Josie as a key influence in developing this alter ego.
Initially a one-man operation, Monroe began enlisting band members during the release of his second single, Velvet Cell, in 2023.
The live band, aptly named The Fugitives, includes Daniel Motta on guitar, Jake Hohaia on bass, and Finn Smith on drums. Their debut performance at the Velvet Cell launch marked the transition of Low Monroe from a solo endeavor to a collective force. This partnership has since yielded a string of releases, including the singles Dead Star Revolver and Smoke Show in 2024.
Monroe describes the transition as a natural progression: “Sliding steadily away from a solo project and closer to a collaborative effort, the band has become central to both the sound and the energy of our live shows.”
Cinema is more than an influence—it’s the spine of Low Monroe’s work. Monroe caught up with us and shared a personal top 10 list of films that have inspired the project, highlighting noir staples like In a Lonely Place, Sweet Smell of Success, and Chinatown. These films inform not only the project’s visual and thematic elements but also its lyrical narratives. For instance, Exxon Tears draws on Monroe’s reflections on the Exxon Valdez oil spill, using the environmental disaster as a metaphor for selfishness and its destructive impact.
“In relation to the song, the Exxon Valdez is a metaphor for how selfishness can vastly pour and do so much harm,” says Monroe. “The song is written as a confrontational cry for help, and the consequences of speaking up to your superior.”
This attention to narrative depth extends to tracks like Dead Star Revolver, which integrates imagery inspired by Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. Monroe recounts the visceral impact of Laura Palmer’s fateful run into the woods: “That scene struck a nerve. Writing Dead Star Revolver, the line, ‘I saw in the woods, of a distant and dystopian way, to say I do,’ always gives me flashbacks to that moment.”
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Here are Low Monroe’s Top 10 films that have inspired and influenced his project.
1. In a Loney Place (1950)
The famed actors Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame star in the noir staple, ‘In a Lonely Place’. The story follows a declining playwright Dixon Steele (Bogart) who is a prime suspect of a murder within town. The victim was fan of Steele who visited him the night she was murdered. However, his neighbour Laurel Gray (Grahame) brings forward evidence that proves his innocences the night of the crime. The two begin to spend time with each other and slowly fall in love but there’s much hesitation from Gray. She starts watching Steele’s behaviour turn incredibly dark, and questions not if he actually did murder that woman, but how capable he is to kill someone.
This film is really clever at subverting expectations and really puts you in the shoes of someone so dangerously close to harms way. The whole narrative of a washed artist became a prominent theme in my early days of writing, I even wrote a song loosely based off of this movie; unreleased and titled ’Evade The Playwright’.
2. Rear Window (1954)
Arguably one of Hitchcock’s best, ‘Rear Window’ takes place in an apartment complex in Manhattan through the lens of photographer L.B. “Jeff” Jefferies. Recovering from serious injuries, L.B has been left limited to a wheelchair in his apartment during a brutal heatwave across the state. His property overlooks the courtyard of all the other apartments and notes down the resident’s quirks and behaviours. The lightheartedness fades away as L.B believes he witnessed a murder by the hand of one of his neighbours. Though not 100% sure, he digs deeper and is put in serious danger as he tries to prove the legitimacy of the slaughter, stationed from his room.
Though I have only scratched the surface with his filmography,I am such a fan of Hitchcock’s work. The ability to cover so much area without leaving the location and filling each room with life and mystery keeps me coming back for more. I heavily took from this film but not from a plot driven perspective, rather a metaphor for my music. Observing outside of my own personal experiences, like how L.B does. Letting his paranoia run rampant and sometimes discovering an underlying piece of truth.
3. Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
Set in a sleazy, columnist world; ‘Sweet Smell of Success’ is an adapted novel, dripping with a shadowy noir silhouette. Tail-gating press agent Sidney Falco, has been scurrying around New York in chase of media kingpin J.J. Hunsecker. Rejected several times by J.J, Falco does whatever he can to weasel his way to the top. Falco begins to target Hunsecker’s coddled younger sister Susan, who is keeping her secret relationship with musician Steve Dallas away from her brother. Throwing whatever dirt possible on J.J’s sibling, appearing favourable and stepping on anyone that would make for a good ladder, makes the climax of the film all the more dire.
Words cannot express how much I appreciate this film. It’s so rich in dialogue and plot, and the moody backdrop fuels the story by a significant margin. In early drafts of the Low Monroe character, I imagined someone as slimy as Sidney Falco and wrote a lot about his unfavourable traits. Equally so, someone so confident, powerful and cruel as J.J. Hunsecker.
4. Experiment in Terror (1962)
After a break in from murderer ‘Red Lynch’, bank teller Kelly Sherwood is held under force to steal $100,000 or run the risk of loosing her younger sister to the criminal. Untraceable, without no one knowing what Lynch looks like, he calls his prey and watches their every move. The only distinguishable feature of the man is his breathing condition, making verbal interactions all the more sinister. Sherwood, though terrified, reported to the San Francisco office of the FBI in which agent John Ripley takes the mantle of lead investigator. The intensity builds as the killer gets closer and closer, taking care of whoever is in the way in a ruthless fashion.
This is a movie that I had only watched recently but the tension left me on the edge of my seat. Shot for shot so textured, the moody San Fransisco was perfect for this plot. I reference Red Lynch in a new song I wrote called ‘Deviant Hotline’; similar to the faceless criminal, I flipped it on it’s head and made it more of a sexy vampire song about a faceless, desperate, lover man. Looking forward to the release of that one for sure.
5. Chinatown (1974)
Considered to be one of the best screenplays of all time, ‘Chinatown’ is an homage to classic noir, fed through a unique, gut wrenching story. Marital detective Jake Gittes (Jack Nicholson) is hired by Evelyn Mulwray (Faye Dunaway) to spy on her husband, who is the builder of the city’s water system. The investigation grows thicker as series of deaths are tied to the water and land deals in Los Angeles’s then-unincorporated valley region. Weaved into conspiracies, and harmed for doing so, Jake discovers the disgusting truth, leading to one of the most horrifying crescendos ever. The ominous film that is for the most part based on true events is an undeniable masterpiece. It was way ahead of it’s time and sits in your head with so much guilt. Injustice, corruption, and lies, is an aroma that is predominant subject matter in my music. Watching films like this really inspire narrative prompts and motivates myself to create worlds within my sound.
Screw Roman Polanski though, wish his nose was sliced in real life.
6. Suspiria (1977)
Young American ballet student Suzy Bannion (Jessica Harper) transfers to the prestigious dance academy ‘Tanz Akademie’ in West Germany. Upon arriving at the school, a series of murders take place and this facility appears to not be what it seems. Suzy soon finds out that this is not a ballet school, it’s a front for a coven of witches. Despite at times with the jarring dubbed audio, it’s visually stunning from head to toe. One of the best horror films in my opinion and so vastly decorated in it’s atmosphere. I found it so intriguing to write about places of deception, this is showcased in my song ‘Club Monroe’. Surrounding the operations of a bustling club that is shallow, advancing to chew you up and eager to spit you out. Close to how Suzy dreams of attending the ballet school, ‘Club Monroe’ is through the point of view of a mother doing what she can to escape her existing life for something toxic and unsustainable. Trying night after night to enter this club, denied by the bouncers who appear to her as angels.
7. Paris, Texas (1984)
Right from the first scene, dropped in the middle of the West Texas desert following reclusive wanderer Travis Henderson, sporting a dusted up suit and holding tight onto an empty water jug. Missing for four years, his brother tracks him down and wants to bring him home. Travis has became mute and is reluctant returning to civilisation. Deeply haunted by his past, you discover that he has an eight year old son who has been living with his brother in Los Angeles. He had a wife, Jane, mother of his child who has also gone off grid. As Travis’ resistance wore off and battled the adjustments of change, he embarks on a journey to find Jane. As the Storie progresses, the reasons why he ended up in the desert unravel till your heart is pulled in many directions.
This film is one of my personal favourites and is a pure tearjerker. Plot aside, the score is incredible and adds so heavily to neo-western tone. The visuals are absolutely beautiful, with a lot of wide shots of scaled backgrounds. That first scene that I mentioned was particularly noteworthy, as it inspired a lot of the imagery that I’ve recorded in promotion to ‘Exxon Tears’. My girlfriend and I drove all the way to ‘The Big Drift’ in Wilsons Promontory just to create similar visualisers.
8. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992)
Prequel to the cult classic series, ‘Fire Walk With Me’ takes place 7 days before the show’s beginning. Tracking Laura Palmer’s (Sheryl Lee) last days, tragically living through her physical and psychological torment. Coinciding with her impending doom, FBI investigators are closing in on the murder case of Teresa Banks which would draw uncanny similarities of what would open the pilot episode. Shrouded by mystery, we are shown referenced scenarios in which were mention during the show and that would leave little to no doubt with loose ends.
Though divisive and controversial, I can’t help but be left so empty by how sad and haunting this film is. So unsatisfying and bleak, it does give the raw and uncut insight of how little control Laura had surrounding her fate. It felt as if Laura was a celebrity in the town, for the right and for the frowned upon reasons. For one scene specifically, towards the end of the film when Laura and James stop beside a forrest after witnessing a murder, the sight of her screaming and running into the woods struck a nerve within me. Writing ‘Dead Star Revolver’, the line – ‘I saw in the woods, of a distant and dystopian way, to say I do’ always gives me flashbacks to that scene.
p.s I also just simply adore this soundtrack, it has influenced many facets of my song writing. RIP Angelo Badalamenti.
9. In the Mood for Love (2000)
Set in Hong Kong 1962, journalist Chow Mo-wan (Tony Leung) and shipping company secretary Su Li-zhen (Maggie Cheung) rent rooms beside one another. Both in relationships with other people, their spouses often work long hours and are quite distant. Chow and Su don’t engage too much with the other tenants but occasionally bump into each other. Friendly to begin with, they soon realise that their partners are having an affair with each other. While discovering the news, they subsequently fall in love.
Though this film deviates from the noir/spooky trope that is consistent with this list and my music, it does circle around a topic that does show familiarity; doomed romance. I write a lot about despair, what ifs and it can tie back to the hopeless romantic that is deep down within me. I do really share sentiment with this one, a sucker for it.
10. Mulholland Drive (2001)
The second Lynch film to appear on this list, but within reason. Telling the story of a promising actress new to Los Angeles to pursue her career, Betty Elms (Naomi Watts) befriends an amnesiac woman recovering from a car accident played by Laura Herring. Snippets of several other characters are shown throughout town, unveiling a mystery much greater than their existence in Hollywood.
Convoluted. Yes. But having watched this movie several times, the more I watched, the more I related to the plot. The grounded desire for your very own dreams, and how misery can conjure false internal realities to cope, make for a gripping wake up call. Obviously not the only underlying facet, it deals with many other themes and what ifs, kicking you while you’re down. Tying into lyrics of ‘Dead Star Revolver’ once again, the song delves into a love triangle between a significant other and a celebrity. The film explores jealousy and just how much someone is willing to do to sever one of the ends to get what they want. Mirroring the song, it circles a very similar premise worked to a lot more of a selfish outcome of the relationships.
