Monkey3
S/T
6.2
Take a few deep breaths and relax before listening to this album. Cast aside those memories of the brutal death metal maelstrom that was just raping your ears. Monkey3 wants to take you to a different place. The self-titled album from these Switzerland boys is a crossbreed between stoner rock and psychedelic rock. Since I listen to neither sub-genre, comparisons will be very sparse. First of all, it’s important to realize that this is an instrumental album. Soundwise, they are a little reminiscent of Tool's album "Lateralus", with bass lines that are unchained from the guitar, free to go where they may. The music is not aggressive, but laid-back, and it's neither too uplifting, nor sorrowful. It’s just sort of there. The best analogy I can come up with is that they are the musical equivalent of a lava lamp – things are slow to develop, and when they do develop it’s not that exciting, yet it keeps your attention fixated on it for longer than you realized. Occasionally the guitarist will whip out a sweet lead, but there’s not really any competition amongst the musicians to upstage each other. Some moments of note include the fine leads in Boris Nuts. The song Electric Mistress rocks as hard as anything you’ll find here with a mesmerizing rhythm that builds and builds in intensity, and really brings to mind the Tool comparison. Last Gamuzao brings to mind a Corrosion of Conformity song called Bottom Feeder. Personally, I think Monkey3 makes good background music, not because it’s instrumental and mellow, but because everything is stretched out and doesn’t demand your undivided attention. If you like jam bands that are heavy on the bass and a bit on the psychedelic side, check this out.
