Ramsey Elkholy

Ramsey Elkholy is a guitarist, producer, songwriter, and anthropologist who fronts Monotronic, the indietronica collective he founded in 2016. He describes the project as a space where instruments merge into a single source, guided by a communal, tribal spirit that values the group over the individual. Each musician is encouraged to shape the sound with distinct textures and ideas, resulting in music that feels organic, layered, and unified rather than driven by ego or formula. Elkholy holds a PhD in Anthropology and is the author of Being and Becoming: Embodiment and Experience Among the Orang Rimba of Sumatra, a study of rainforest foragers in Indonesia and their intimate relationship with their environment. His scholarship and fieldwork inform his artistic outlook. Years spent traveling across Asia and India, studying Indian music in Calcutta, and living with the Orang Rimba immersed him in dense natural soundscapes he recalls as orchestral and rhythmically complex. A native New Yorker now based in Los Angeles, Ramsey Elkholy Monotronic records in a home studio, where global influences converge with indie rock and electronic textures. Many songs were written while spending time on the beaches of Tulum, Mexico, reflecting his habit of composing in motion. All tracks on Monotronic’s recent album Waiting for You were written by Elkholy and brought to life through close collaboration with a rotating cast of accomplished musicians. Waiting for You features bassist Mohini Dey on Close Enough and legendary drummer Omar Hakim, known for work with Daft Punk and David Bowie, who performed drums across the record. Music videos for Looking Away, Everything Moves, Sun Song, Photograph, and Kettle Song accompanied the release, with three premiering at number one on VEVO. Everything Moves was filmed in a Los Angeles escape room, while Kettle Song includes K-pop dancers, Samurai warriors, and a monumental kettle drum. Since the 2019 self-titled debut, Monotronic has drawn praise from Rolling Stone, Relix, Rock Cellar, and Hype Magazine. The collective has united players connected to Daft Punk, Chic, Joe Jackson, Robert Randolph, The Spin Doctors, and Dweezil Zappa, and has performed at major festivals and New York City venues. In fall 2025, the band completed a sold-out US tour spanning Denver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Texas. Subsequent singles, including Kids of Summer, Buy Yourself a Dream, Just Another Day, Livin' in a Lie, and In Between, expanded their audience, with several videos debuting at number one on VEVO. Critics highlighted the cinematic sweep of Looking Away and the infectious energy of In Between. At the same time, a Tame Impala-inspired cover of Everybody Wants to Rule the World was widely praised. Together, these releases chart a steady ascent across underground and mainstream scenes.