MONKEY 101
Paul Kowalchuk – Bass, Lead vocals
Arno – Guitar and vocals
Bob Turri – Drums and vocals
Stealing this description from the Monkey 101 facebook page:
In 1989 a trio of young Philadelphia musicians helped to define the “low-fi” sound with their band Monkey 101. They were part of the Philadelphia rock scene that consisted of a handful of like-minded bands, notably Ashtray and Blue. Their debut single, French Feelings / Now That You Have Left Me, released on the local Siltbreeze record label became an instant classic. Other bands on Siltbreeze at the time, such as Guided by Voices and Sebadoh, were huge fans as well as other contemporary artists including Pavement and Superchunk. While Monkey 101 were mysterious at the time, not playing many high-profile gigs, (perhaps the most important a memorable appearance at the 1990 CMJ convention with Gumball) they have since become a happy distant memory to many fans of independent rock music.
They did, however, record an LP worth of material in 1990. Recorded one weekend in John Oates’s garage in Norristown, PA., David Lowe engineered the recording. This recording session included almost all of Monkey 101’s entire catalogue. Spirited performances abound. This was a band captured at its artistic peak. Thankfully, you can now preorder the LP (Rusts Smut and Heart Rot) released by Sister Raygun Records
They also have one track on the Rave comp Please! Don’t Lick The Walls.
Below are their 2 – 7 Inches: (links to Bandcamp for the songs on the LP)
French Feelings 7″
A – French Feelings
B – Now That You Have Left Me
Transistor 7″
A1 – Transistor
A2 – The Method Of My Machinery
B1 – Kentucky Woman
B2 – The Man Who Sells His Votes
B3 – Burgundy Wine
Chino
Chino was formed in the mid-90’s by ex-Monkey 101 singer, bassist and songwriter Paul K. Mike Schuldt plays drums while Rob Feeney writes some songs and plays the guitar. Chino has played shows throughout the Philadelphia region with dozens of bands including RunHideFight, Poppy and Jukebox Zeros. Their most notable appearances were opening some shows for Guided by Voices. Paul’s songwriting has been praised by artists as diverse as Alejandro Escovedo to Robert Pollard and now everyone can enjoy these songs.
Best of Firsts by chino
A couple of pictures I took from the Record Exchange 30th anniversary block party plus some flyers & record covers.
