| Monkey3 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland |
| Genres | Psychedelic Rock, Progressive Rock, Space Rock, Instrumental Rock |
| Years active | 2000 - Present |
| Labels | Monkeythree Productions, Spinning Goblin Productions, Buzzville, Stickman Records, Napalm Records |
| Website | Monkey3 Official |
| Current members | Walter Kevin Boris dB |
| Past members | Darkman Mister M Picasso |
Monkey3 are a psychedelic, space-rock band from Lausanne, Switzerland. Forming in 2001, Monkey3's sound is heavily emphasized and influenced in space rock, progressive rock and psychedelic atmosphere. Initially starting as a jam band, Monkey3 would evolve into a band known for their trippy grooves for heavy riffs with spacey keyboards landscapes, all enhanced by hypnotic video projections.
To date Monkey3 have released six studio albums among a host of other releases, all the while being a staple in the European psych scene. They are currently signed to Napalm Records.
History[]
Formation, First Album and 39 Laps (2000 - 2009)[]
Monkey3 in their early years.
Monkey3 would form in January 2000 in Lausanne. Initially the quartet were part of a jam-band community, heavily influenced by the likes of Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and 35007 among other acts. Eventually in 2001 the band would eventually compose their own material and establish themselves as Monkey3.[1] The band's first concert was on 6 October 2001.[2] Following the release of a self-titled EP (Monkey III), the band would release their debut album Monkey3 circa 2003, seeing high praise from some sites such as Stonerrock.com.[3][4]
The band would be temporarily inactive in 2003 as guitarist Boris would be in Los Angeles for studies. However he would return to Switzerland the next year. Monkey3 would sign with Belgian label Buzzville and re-release their debut album on 21 June 2004, gaining further acclaim and touring the United Kingdom and Europe for the first time.[5] The band would only perform a handful of gigs in 2005 (Including a gig supporting Mono and a short tour with Honcho and Sparzanza.) as work would begin on a second album.[6] Recording at Phat Sonic Studio, Monkey 3 would release their second studio album 39 Laps on 4 December 2006 to positive reviews. The band would also release a split 10" with Hypnos 69, with artwork done by Malleus Rock Art Lab.[7] Monkey3 would tour Europe the next year surrounding an appearance at Roadburn Festival. Further touring would include shows at Buzzfest among several hometown gigs.
Along with a live DVD in Live at Aventicum in 2009, Monkey3 would also release a covers EP entitled Undercover featuring covers of Archive, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple along with a live rendition of Ennio Morricone's "Once Upon a Time in The West". Notably it would be the first Monkey3 release to feature vocals, with Tony Jelencovich (Transport League, M.A.N.) and John Garcia (Kyuss, Unida, Slo Burn, Hermano) as respective guests. Monkey3 would tour through Europe in 2009.[8]
Beyond The Black Sky and The 5th Sun (2010 - 2015)[]
Monkey3 would return to Roadburn in 2010, along with supporting Garcia Plays Kyuss and appearing at Hellfest that year.[9] Work would begin on a third studio album with producer Johann Meyer and artwork provided again by Malleus. Recording would take place at Studio de la Fonderie in Fribourg, followed by mixing at Studio D Clanch in Yeverdon and lastly mastering at MyRoom Studio in Lausanne. Beyond The Black Sky would see release on 22 April 2011 via German label Stickman Records, attaining positive reception from the likes of The Obelisk[10] and The Soda Shop[11] among other publications.
Monkey3 would host a release party for Beyond The Black Sky on 22 April 2011 at Le Romandie/Impetus Festival in Lausanne, performing the entire album.[12] The band would participate in various short tours throughout Europe to support Beyond The Black Sky.[13] In 2012, along with appearing at festivals such as DesertFest Berlin, Duna Jam, Hellfest and Yellowstock, Monkey would participate in the Up In Smoke touring festival alongside Glowsun and Grandloom.[14] On 2 August 2012 Monkey3 would sign with Austrian label Napalm Records.[15]
Working again with Johann Meyer work would begin on a fourth studio album, with details on this album announced circa April 2013, followed by summer festival appearances such as Lake on Fire Festival.[16] A teaser single in Birth of Venus would see release on 27 September, featuring a b-side on a cover of "Zero The Hero" by Black Sabbath with Niklas Sjöberg (The Graviators) as a guest vocalist.[17] The 5th Sun would see release on 25 October 2013 to widespread critical acclaim from the likes of The Sludgelord,[18] Echoes and Dust,[19] Markus Heavy Music Blog (8/10),[20] Metal Kaoz (8/10)[21] and Metal Temple (10/10)[22] among others.
Monkey3 would tour through Europe that fall to support The 5th Sun though longtime bassist Picasso would leave the band by the end of 2013. With a new bassist in Kevin, Monkey3 would then extensively tour through Europe throughout 2014, performing in a dozen countries all the while appearing at major events like Desertfest London, Desertfest Belgium and Keep it Low.[23]
Astrasymmetry and Sphere (2015 - Present)[]
Monkey3 would perform sporadically throughout 2015 including a short Fall tour and an appearance at Freak Valley Festival, which would be released as a live album on 23 June 2017. Signed for a worldwide deal with Napalm, Astrasymmetry would see release on 2 September 2016 to positive reviews[24][25][26] and the band's most extensive touring cycle to date in 2016 and 2017 to support the album.
After performing a single show in 2018 at Greece's Street Mode Festival[27] work would begin on the band's sixth album. Sphere would see release on 12 April 2019, attaining the "album of the month" nod from Eclipsed Magazine[28] and praise from numerous publications.[29] Monkey3 would tour extensively throughout Europe to support Sphere, sharing the stage with the likes of Colour Haze, My Sleeping Karma, Earthless, Samsara Blues Experiment and Radio Moscow among festival appearances such as Desertfest London, Desertfest Berlin and Desertfest Belgium.[30]
Further touring would be intended in 2020 but would be postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite the worldwide pandemic, Monkey3 would still perform a handful of shows in 2020, namely a limited capacity show that July[31] and Stoner Doom Overdose that August.[32]
Discography[]
Studio Albums[]
- Monkey3 (2003, Monkeythree Production; 2004, Buzzville)
- 39 Laps (2006, Monkeythree Productions; Buzzville)
- Beyond The Black Sky (2011, Monkeythree Productions; Stickman Records)
- The 5th Sun (2013, Spinning Goblin Productions; Napalm Records)
- Astrasymmetry (2016, Napalm Records)
- Sphere (2019, Napalm Records)
Other Releases[]
- Monkey III (EP) (2002, Monkeythree Production)[33]
- Monkey3 / Hypnos 69 (Split 10" with Hypnos 69) (2006, Rocknrollradio)
- Undercover (EP) (2009, Monkeythree Productions)
- Live At Aventicum (Live DVD) (2009, Monkeythree Productions)
- Birth of Venus (7" Single) (2013, Spinning Goblin Productions)
- Live at Freak Valley (Live Album) (2017, Napalm Records)
Personnel[]
Current Members[]
- Boris aka Giaconda - Guitar (2000 - Present)
- Walter - Drums (2000 - Present)
- dB - Keyboard (2009 - Present)
- Kevin - Bass (2014 - Present)
Former Members[]
- Darkman - Keyboards (2000 - 2001)
- Picasso - Bass (2000 - 2013)
- Mister M - Keyboards (2004 - 2009)
List of Known Tours[]
- 2004 European Tour (Select dates with Alabama Thunderpussy, Old Basford) (2004)[34]
- 2005 European Tour (Select Dates with Honcho, Sparzanza) (2005)[35]
- 39 Laps European Tour (2007)[36]
- Fall 2007 Mini-Tour (2007)[37]
- 2009 European Tour (2009)[38]
- 2011 European Tours (2011)[39]
- Up in Smoke Vol. 4 (With Grandloom, Glowsun) (2012)[40]
- The 5th Sun European Tour (Select dates with Naam) (2013)[41]
- The 5th Sun Spring European Tour (2014)[42]
- The 5th Sun Fall European Tour (With Valley of the Sun) (2014)[43]
- 2015 Fall European Tour (2015)[44]
- Astrasymmetry Fall European Tour (With 1000mods, Moaning Cities) (2016)[45]
- Astrasymmetry Winter European Tour (2016)[46]
- 2017 Winter European Tour (2017)[47]
- 2017 Fall European Tour (With The Necromancers) (2017)[48]
- Sphere Tour March/April 2019 (2019)[49]
- Sphere Tour Spring 2019 (Select dates with Samsara Blues Experiment, Colour Haze) (2019)[50][51]
- Sphere Tour Summer 2019 (2019)[52]
- Sphere Tour Fall 2019 (2019)[53][54]
- Sphere Tour Spring 2020 (Canceled) (2020)[55]
- Prog Your Head (With Toundra) (2023)[56]
External Links[]
Official Links[]
Archival Links[]
- List of Known Shows 2009 - 2019
- Archived Homepage Circa 2001
- Archived Homepage circa 2008
- Archived Homepage circa 2009
References[]
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ / Stonerrock.com via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey 3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ The Obelisk
- ↑ The Soda Shop
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ The Sludgelord
- ↑ Echoes and Dust
- ↑ Markus Heavy Music Blog
- ↑ Metal Kaoz
- ↑ Metal Temple
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Heavy Music HQ
- ↑ Louder Sound
- ↑ Ghost Cult Magazine
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Monkey3 Official via Wayback Machine
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey 3 Official
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey3 Official
- ↑ Monkey3 Official
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Last.fm
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook
- ↑ Monkey3 Facebook