Monkey

Lost at Sea

Ska has died! Ska has risen! Ska will come again! Will Monkey win the skapocalyptic war?

Record Label: Asian Man Records
Release Year: 2009
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Remember the ska revival in the mid 90's when every high school had a group of cool kids that formed a ska band and almost every Friday there was ska at the Phoenix theatre in Petaluma. I wouldn't be surprised if Monkey was one of those bands playing at the Phoenix on a Friday night because Monkey is one of those bands that have been around "fooorevvvver". But what makes Monkey different is that they have endured the capricious waves of ska and have stayed afloat. The release of Lost at Sea has brought Monkey to a new level of maturity. On this album they deserve to be recognized as serious musicians not as just a ska group. The compositions of Monkey's songs have a depth to them that only raw experience can provide. For instance the horn lines aren't the same three notes tooted over and over again. Lost at Sea is not just ragga/ska you can hear the jazz and feel the blues in every song. The instrumentals on Lost at Sea are some of my favorite songs on this album. "Hot Lunch" has that traditional ska feel that'll find you kicking up the skank within two up-beats. "Train Wreck" and "Danska" brings an air of funk that brings on that slow skank that looks like you are holding a joint. At the end of "Train Wreck" it breaks down into a slow bluesy raga. Oh thank god that was a joint there! The album ends with the estranged track "Scallywag" which sounds like a ship of pirates battling the high seas and its eccentric coolness is fitting for any Quentin Tarantino soundtrack. This is not to say the non-instrumentals aren't great. The track "This Life" has the potential of becoming Monkey's hit. It's danceable, catchy, and has a potent message that "Shit is going to suck sometimes so deal with it". I found myself singing "This Life" in my head just hours after listening to it for the first time. Given I didn't know all the words I started making up my own. I can still hear it in my head somewhere back there.

Review By BAscene Staff