I don’t know if any of y’all took advantage of Record Store Day, but it was pretty special. Records, donut holes, orange soda … I picked up this sweet compilation called This LP Crashes Hard Drives — ten tracks, ten artists, ten labels that really care about quality new and reissued music, in a package that makes aging vinyl fans swoon: thick-ass cardboard gatefold sleeve, bad-ass cover art (that sticker’s just on the plastic wrap), and the sweetest ass of all? Reading material.
There’s a couple paeans to Record Stores, a Numero Group catalog, and a bomb-diddley-doodle zine from Light In The Attic Records with interviews, photos, and advertisements for things you’re actually interested in (records). Light In the Attic’s pretty much killing it right now, with reissues by Betty Davis, Serge Gainsbourg, and today’s Vegetable — the Monks.
The section in the zine about the Monks is a letter from Jello Biafra (familiar handwriting — my mother and I corresponded with him in the 80s, no really) in response to LITA’s request for a blurb. He talks about first hearing the Monks’ album at the Maximum Rock ‘n’ Roll house, courtesy of “I’m Telling” Tim Yohannon. Jello says his jaw dropped when he heard it.
The track on This LP Crashes Hard Drives, “Pretty Suzanne,” is pretty su-great, but there was no jaw-dropping when I heard it. However, once I listened to the full album (what Jello calls “getting hammered by the big picture”), I was staring open-mouthed at the speakers.
The Monks’ story is a beautiful one, but if you don’t feel like reading about them on the Light In The Attic site or the excellent official Monks site, I’ll just tell you that they were American ex-soldiers in Germany. You know, with monk haircuts and robes. And an electric banjo, of course.
And in keeping with today’s semi-theme of how words can illuminate music, here’s a quote from the Black Monk Time liner notes:
Sunlight grids quiver in the system. Read on! It’s monk time — it’s hop time. Don’t read this. We said: don’t read this. Let sapphires glide into the grooves. What is beat? What is beat today? And what is over-beat? And who the hell is going to melt the hot and cold world of tomorrow?
Oh, Monks. I hate you with a passion, baby! (but call me)
Monks – Monk Time from Black Monk Time
Bonus Geisteskrankheit
The Monks on German TV in 1965:
“Monk Chant”
“Oh, How To Do Now”
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great stuff! i love the Monks!!!