MonkeyJunk - Moon Turn Red (2015)

Tracklist

01. Light It Up
02. You
03. Show Me Yours
04. Hot Hot Papa (feat. David Wilcox)
05. Love Attack
06. Live Another Day
07. Learn How To Love
08. Lucky One
09. Travelin' Light
10. Meet Me At Midnight



This CD is a hard driving rock-infused collection of 10 powerful songs: brings on the bravado. There’s a great mix of energetic, clap your hands/ air-guitar worthy tracks with a few bluesy ballads.

MonkeyJunk is the Ottawa-based trio of Tony D, Steve Marriner, and Matt Sobb. A highly acclaimed band, they formed in 2008 and describe their music as ‘swamp-rock roots and blues.’ Tony is the lead guitarist, Marriner is on lead vocals, harmonica and baritone guitar and Sobb is on percussion, drums and backing vocals.

Guest musicians on Moon Turn Red are David Wilcox, Gordie Johnson, Steve O’Connor, Ken Friesen, Nick Diak, Kelly Prescott and Kelly Sloan.

“Light it Up,” the first song starts with a firey guitar solo.

“Love Attack” has a ska/reggae vibe, while “Live Another Day” has some social commentary: “Desperate times in a desperate land/ |Hope has all but come and gone/ Dying for the dollar/ Livin’ hand to hand…This land is your land/ And this land is mine.”

MonkeyJunk turns down the lights— so to speak— and the mood on “Learn How to Love,” a bluesy ballad. Kelly Prescott’s harmony vocals add to this song’s emotional resonance. The lyrics and guitar playing may make you weep: “Echoes of laughter and shadows of tears/All that is left from all of those years… The wardrobe is empty/ The pictures are gone/With all your possessions that made this a home/ Tossing and turning where we used to dream/ If time only gave us a chance to redeem/ You’ll know that I’ll go on.

The songwriting, musicianship and vocals on Moon Turn Red are fierce and dynamic, sometimes heart wrenching. Marriner’s voice is rich, with the occasional bluesy growl.

All three band members wrote nine of the 10 songs: Friesen and Paul Reddick also co-wrote some of the songs. Wilcox wrote “Hot Papa.”

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