Last Monday the 100 Monkeys made their debut Kentucky appearance at Uncle Pleasant’s, wrapping up a night that included four Louisville acts: Totem Spirit Fox, Aquaventure, Sugar Spell It Out, and Panda Gail. Unfortunately I missed the first two bands, and was especially upset to have missed Aquaventure, one of BSSB’s favorite local groups. I arrived just as they were playing their last song and they sounded fantastic as always. If you have not had a chance to hear this band, you are truly missing out. Their next stop will be at Phoenix Hill on March 26th.
Sugar Spell It Out was third on the stage and, as always, put on a great show. We were at SSIO’s very first show and have been huge fans ever since. Nick even nabbed their very first set list. But even though they are a relatively new band, their music sounds seamless and they give the impression they have been on a national stage for years. Be sure to check them out at their next show at The Vernon Club on April 16th.
Next up was Panda Gail. I was immediately impressed with her when she warmed up to one of my “old”- time favorite songs, “Brand New Key” by Melanie (Safka). A 70’s classic….but I digress. My overall impression of PG was that she had a nice voice, but it seemed a little odd that she was paired with the group of performers playing that night. The energy seemed to go down a bit during her performance, but, again, I don’t really think that had anything to do with her music. It’s always strange to hear a solo performer or duet come on after or immediately before bands. She just seemed a little out of place, but overall put on a nice performance.
The headlining act of the night was the 100 Monkeys. These guys are nuts, traveling around with their manager dressed as a banana. (Get it? Monkeys…bananas…ha). I had a bit of an intimate encounter with the banana as he was making his way to the stage. It made me want to tell him that my spoon was too big. (If you don’t get the reference, go HERE and get your mind out of the gutter.)
For those of you who don’t know (and probably don’t care), one of the lead guys from the 100 Monkey’s is also in the movie biz, playing the vampire “Jasper” in the Twilight films. Obviously that meant that the audience was full of girls screaming “bite me” and “I love vampires”, but there was also a great crowd of non-twi-hards. Besides Mr. Jasper, Jackson Rathbone, the 100 Monkeys are comprised of Ben Graupner, Jerad Anderson, and Ben Johnson. They were also joined by percussionist, “Uncle Larry.”
Going into the show I didn’t know exactly what to expect given the audience and the fact that I hadn’t heard much of their music beforehand, however, I definitely left the show impressed. During their set, each of the band members took turns playing several songs on almost all of the instruments. They also took suggestions towards the end of the show, improv style, coming up with a song on the spot via the audience suggestion of “bump it”. It wasn’t a fantastic song, but I give them kudos for their ability to sing anything about a plastic hair piece. Overall they put on a fantastic performance and are definitely worth checking out if you haven’t heard of them.
more pics below the break…
Tags: 100 Monkeys, Jasper, Kentucky, Louisville, Photos, Review, Twilight
The pictures are great!! The improv song was actually called ‘Muppets’.