MonkeyJunk - To Behold

Album: To Behold
Size: 101,6 MB
Time: 43:54
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2011
Styles: Blues
Art: Full

1. Mother's Crying (4:36)
2. You're Gonna Change (Or I'm Gonna Leave) (3:34)
3. Right Now (4:12)
4. Let Her Down (4:57)
5. With These Hands (3:48)
6. You Don't Know (3:40)
7. While You Are Mine (6:05)
8. Running In The Rain (2:44)
9. All About You (5:04)
10. The Marrinator (5:11)

The second album from this unusual blues-rock trio finds the band continuing to explore the borderlands between swamp boogie, funk, R&B, country, Delta blues, and Chicago blues, with consistently fruitful results. Operating without a bass player (vocalist Steve Marriner plays guitar, keyboards, and harmonica, while Tony D plays lead guitar and Matt Sobb plays drums), MonkeyJunk nevertheless generate a dark and thoroughly grounded groove - or perhaps one should say "grooves."

"Right Now" is Texas-style funky blues, heavy on the wah-wah pedal; "Running in the Rain" is full-tilt barrelhouse blues with a strong R&B undertow; "With These Hands" is a lovely example of Muscle Shoals-style soul music, and a song that Dan Penn would have been proud to write; but perhaps best of all is the group's arrangement of the Hank Williams classic "You're Gonna Change (Or I'm Gonna Leave)," which takes that vintage honky tonker and turns it into a snarling, harp-driven Delta blues workout complete with greasy slide guitar and a vibe that evokes a more heavyweight Tom Waits.

Throughout the album it's hard to say whether Marriner's singing or Tony D's stinging lead guitar is the true anchor of MonkeyJunk's sound, but either one would be sufficient. The band is only a few years old, but sounds as if it has been aging and ripening its sound for decades. /Rick Anderson, AllMusic

To Behold mc
To Behold gofile

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MonkeyJunk - All Frequencies

Album: All Frequencies
Size: 98,2 MB
Time: 42:11
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2013
Styles: Blues-rock
Art: Full

1. You Make A Mess (3:14)
2. Right From Wrong (3:37)
3. Why Are People Like That? (3:59)
4. Je Nah Say Kwah (2:55)
5. Sirens In The Night (3:54)
6. Yearnin' For Yesterday (3:32)
7. Once Had Wings (5:19)
8. What I Got To Give (4:22)
9. Say What? (4:03)
10. Swank (7:13)

Just like a well-oiled machine, MonkeyJunk get going and offer up another unyielding display of soulful blues rock robustness in their latest album “All Frequencies”. The tenacious trio are gifted with an arsenal of instrumental ability. From baritone guitars to harmonicas, each track has something special. The record flies off with a punchy opener. “You Make A Mess” has the upbeat vigour that puts the boogie back into the blues. The hooky chorus and rip-roaring rhythm puts this track in the album’s limelight. The following tune “Right From Wrong,” shifts the feel, but keeps the verve alive. It is a great track to bare witness to some sweet harmonica skills.

Many of the other songs tend not to match up to the blues infused caper belonging to the first few tracks. Still, they are definitely worth a listen. “Once Had Wings” has a balled sense to it and the final track “Swank,” is an all out funky jam with some suave organ melodies. MonkeyJunk have the instruments, the rhythm and the vivacity. All Frequencies should be added to the list of noteworthy blues rock albums of the year. /George Ward, Blues Rock Review

(For personnel details, see artwork included.)

All Frequencies mc
All Frequencies gofile

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Monkeyjunk - Time To Roll

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:05
Size: 94.0 MB
Styles: Roots, Swampy blues
Year: 2016
Art: Front

[4:30] 1. Best Kept Secret
[4:02] 2. Time To Roll
[3:35] 3. See The Sign
[4:26] 4. Blue Lights Go Down
[5:11] 5. Pray For Rain
[3:33] 6. The Hunter
[5:39] 7. Can't Call You Baby
[3:24] 8. Undertaker Blues
[3:33] 9. Gone
[3:08] 10. Fuzzy Poodle

Time To Roll is unique in that it incorporates elements of all four of their previous recordings with added maturity in songwriting and instrumentation, cementing MonkeyJunk’s originality and sound as its own. It is also progressive for the band, as they’ve added electric bass on most of the songs. No MonkeyJunk recording to date has included bass, but they felt that it would be a welcome addition to MonkeyJunk’s sound. In another precedent, the band also recorded one acoustic track for the first time on the new album.

Comprised of Steve Marriner on vocals, baritone guitar, bass, harmonica and organ, Tony D on lead guitar, and Matt Sobb on drums, MonkeyJunk is one of the hardest working bands on the scene today, performing at venues festivals around the world for over eight years. Continually pushing boundaries and blurring genre lines, the Ottawa Ontario-based trio has added an edge to their music by incorporating swampy blues & rock with thoughtful and intelligent lyrics.

Time To Roll was recorded at Signal Path Studios in Almonte, Ontario and mixed and mastered in just over two weeks spanning across two months. “The writing and recording process was different on Time to Roll in many aspects. All of the past records have been made over periods of 6 months to a year – starting and stopping many times over those longer time frames”, says Matt Sobb. “We were only in the studio for about 3 weeks all together and that is BY FAR the fastest and shortest time we’ve ever made a record…but it was intentional to do it that way. We wanted to push ourselves to work hard and to work efficiently and focused – to see what we could come up with in a shorter period of time.”

Time To Roll mc
Time To Roll zippy

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Monkeyjunk - Moon Turn Red

Size: 100,3 MB
Time: 42:38
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Blues Rock
Art: Front

01. Light It Up (3:33)
02. You (3:44)
03. Show Me Yours (4:05)
04. Hot Hot Papa (4:35)
05. Love Attack (4:28)
06. Live Another Day (4:59)
07. Learn How To Love (5:02)
08. Lucky One (2:56)
09. Travelin' Light (4:22)
10. Meet Me At Midnight (4:50)

This CD is a hard driving rock-infused collection of 10 powerful songs: brings on the bravado. There’s a great mix of energetic, clap your hands/ air-guitar worthy tracks with a few bluesy ballads.

MonkeyJunk is the Ottawa-based trio of Tony D, Steve Marriner, and Matt Sobb. A highly acclaimed band, they formed in 2008 and describe their music as ‘swamp-rock roots and blues.’ Tony is the lead guitarist, Marriner is on lead vocals, harmonica and baritone guitar and Sobb is on percussion, drums and backing vocals.

Guest musicians on Moon Turn Red are David Wilcox, Gordie Johnson, Steve O’Connor, Ken Friesen, Nick Diak, Kelly Prescott and Kelly Sloan.

“Light it Up,” the first song starts with a firey guitar solo.

“Love Attack” has a ska/reggae vibe, while “Live Another Day” has some social commentary: “Desperate times in a desperate land/ |Hope has all but come and gone/ Dying for the dollar/ Livin’ hand to hand…This land is your land/ And this land is mine.”

MonkeyJunk turns down the lights— so to speak— and the mood on “Learn How to Love,” a bluesy ballad. Kelly Prescott’s harmony vocals add to this song’s emotional resonance. The lyrics and guitar playing may make you weep: “Echoes of laughter and shadows of tears/All that is left from all of those years… The wardrobe is empty/ The pictures are gone/With all your possessions that made this a home/ Tossing and turning where we used to dream/ If time only gave us a chance to redeem/ You’ll know that I’ll go on.

The songwriting, musicianship and vocals on Moon Turn Red are fierce and dynamic, sometimes heart wrenching. Marriner’s voice is rich, with the occasional bluesy growl.

All three band members wrote nine of the 10 songs: Friesen and Paul Reddick also co-wrote some of the songs. Wilcox wrote “Hot Papa.” ~Erica Phillips

Moon Turn Red

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MonkeyJunk - Tiger In Your Tank

Size: 112,6 MB
Time: 48:44
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2010
Styles: Blues Rock
Art: Front

01. I Wanna Put A Tiger In Your Tank (3:06)
02. Small Time Evil (3:26)
03. Give Me Time (4:07)
04. If You Were Mine (3:42)
05. When Push Comes To Shove (6:05)
06. Beefy (5:04)
07. Pay The Cost (4:23)
08. Boogie Man (5:56)
09. Leave The Rest To You (3:57)
10. Blues For Anna (3:36)
11. Gutsy (5:17)

In their short 5 year existence, Ottawa, Canada-based MonkeyJunk has cultivated a unique blend of SWAMP ROOTS ROCK. Their extensive touring has helped to develop a notable fan base across Canada, the US and Europe. They have been rewarded for their hard work with many awards including:

2012 Juno Award winner – Blues Album of the Year
2008-2013 – 15 Maple Blues Awards
2010 Canadian Independent Music Award – Blues Album of the Year
2010 Blues Music Award (USA) – Best New Artist Debut

“The name MonkeyJunk comes from Son House, who once said ‘I’m talking about the blues, I ain’t talking ’bout no monkeyjunk.’ But I am going to talk about MonkeyJunk – they are brilliant and have produced one of the best albums I have heard in a long time…; Ten tracks that prove that this Canadian band is here to stay. And as Son House would have said if he had seen these boys: ‘I’m talking ’bout the blues, I’m talking about MonkeyJunk!’” – Bob Boncey, Blues Matters (UK)

Tiger In Your Tank

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