Mmmm... another year, another album from Seattle's Recess Monkey.
The guys are back soliciting backup choral help from the kids, this time on Valentine's Day in Seattle, for five tracks on their upcoming album, to be entitled Field Trip. Go here for all the details, Seattle-area folks.
I could've made a statehood day reference, but that's really only relevant for us Arizonans, so, uh, never mind.
An Open Letter to Residents of Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago, and the Greater Los Angeles Metropolitan Area
So I've been getting newsletters from Elizabeth Mitchell on a regular basis talking about her late summer tour of the West Coast. I knew, therefore, that she was going to be singing with Renee & Jeremy earlier this month (Suni Paz in LA was a surprise) and Frances England and Charity Kahn this past weekend. I even knew (I think) that she was going to sing with Justin Roberts last month. (They sang the Velvet Underground's "Sunday Morning.")
What I didn't expect is that nobody was going to upload any video to the Internet. C'mon, people! I don't have one of those fancy iPhones or other cell phones with a camera in them, but somebody out there must've gone to the show with one in hand.
And now I hear that the lads from Recess Monkey are going to be joining Elizabeth on stage for their shows in Seattle this Saturday.
Seattle -- you can do it! Video! Video! Video! (Hey, I gave you, like, fiveRecess Monkey videos.)
(Note: Unless, of course, recording is expressly prohibited by the terms and conditions of the ticket entry. Then, er, forget I ever asked.)
Video: "Under My Bed" / "Green Monster" - Recess Monkey
After their long, long national tour, the boys at Recess Monkey made it back to Seattle A-OK and, last weekend, played a show at the Experience Music Project. Joined by Matt Swanson, the boys played a medley of "Under My Bed" and "Green Monster," accompanied by video screens that look like they were swiped from the U2 tour, goodness, those look gargantuan.
I believe the show was actually recorded in HD, which explains why it sounds and looks just a wee bit better than my videos from their show in Phoenix.
Recess Monkey - Live At Modified Arts
OK, it's not quite Live At Budokan, and I'm definitely no Scorcese or Demme, but I've got 12+ minutes of video from Recess Monkey's show at Phoenix's Modified Arts. One's below, four more after the jump.
Recess Monkey - "S-L-Double-E-P-Over"
Drew's foot reminds me, vaguely, of the Robert Klein "I can't stop my leg" bit.
Concert Review: Recess Monkey (Phoenix, August 2008)
Recess Monkey have come and gone, but I'd be remiss if I didn't post a few photos from the show, along with my thoughts. (It should be noted that since I, well, presented the show, this really isn't a "review.")
Readers who've already purchased the band's latest disk, Tabby Road, will recognize the band's iconic Honda Element and trailer. OK, perhaps it's not really iconic, but maybe it'll become like Abbey Road and find itself in hundreds of thousands of pictures as the years go by. Hey, wait, guys -- they totally need to ship that thing to London and have it photographed crossing the Abbey Road intersection. How mind-blowing would that be?
OK, not really at all, but still, kinda cool.
Anyway, the band got to Modified about 1:30, got set up, and waited for the throngs to arrive. And sure enough, by 3 PM, there was a healthy crowd of people (not quite full, but definitely not empty, ready to rock out.
Actually, with the air conditioning not being very strong on a 114-degree day, there was comparatively little rocking out, though one of the fun parts of seeing a band live after they've played songs for a while was seeing how the audience interaction developed -- "Down Down Down" and "Boogie Monster" are two songs that really do lend themselves to crowd participation. And of course, the band sounded really good live.
After close to an hour of playing, the band wrapped up with "Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road." We had dinner at the grandparents' to get to, so we didn't literally see them off, but you can find out much more about the day at the band's ever-amusing tour blog.
Thanks very much to the band for making room in their schedule for Phoenix. It was a great show. We hope it's not the last time -- as the band's suggested before, spring training makes for an excellent excuse to visit the Valley of the Sun.
More photos after the jump, and videos from the show later today.A, Um, Reminder
I know, I know, I've told you many times before, but in case you need to be reminded, Recess Monkey continues its national tour on Sunday right here in Phoenix at Modified Arts downtown (407 E. Roosevelt). Doors open at 2:30, show starts at 3:00, with tickets $6 for adults, $3 for kids, and free for infants. Don't miss the fun at Modified's first kids' show. Just think, when they're hosting shows for kids weekly, you'll be able to say you were there.
