Ducktails

Biography

by Nate Knaebel

Ducktails is the solo side project of Matthew Mondanile, a member of Ridgewood, NJ-based indie beach bums Real Estate. While not too dissimilar in tone from the sun-kissed pop of his main squeeze, Mondanile's work as Ducktails presents a more fragmented, mercurial version of the Garden State of mind. More synthetic, too, in its approach than Real Estate, Ducktails is all burbling analog synths, bedroom processing, and sunburnt soundscapes. The end effect acts as a sort of bleary aural Polaroid taken at a backyard party Real Estate just finished playing. Mondanile's output under the Ducktails moniker has been prolific and perhaps a tad illusory; he has released numerous ultra-rare cassettes and CD-Rs, a pair of 7"s, and a pair of "official" LPs (a self-titled album on Not Not Fun and Landscapes on Olde English Spelling Bee, both in 2009). Mondanile also plays in several other projects, including Predator Vision and the Parasails.