Jolly Mon

Last updated
Jolly Mon
Origin Eugene, Oregon, United States
Genres Rock, alternative rock
Years active1991–present
LabelsElemental, Battle Arena, Jollymon
MembersMark Blackburn
John Colgate
Carey Rich
Past members Greg Eklund
Karl Becker
Malcolm Brown
Brian Smith
Kevin Hutton
Tom Nicklson
Aaron Hyde
Brian Powell
Joe Gramm
Brian Brookins
Angelo Jons (banjo)
Branden

Jolly Mon, also stylized as Jollymon, is an American rock band currently based in Portland, Oregon, but has been described as a mixture of reggae, 70s atmospheric Pink Floyd, and hard rock. [1]

Contents

History

The founding member Carey Rich moved from the East coast in 1991 to Eugene, Oregon. After originally deciding upon Seattle, Washington, Rich switched to Eugene because it wasn't as intimidating at first sight. By August, Rich answered a bulletin board ad for a band looking for a bass player. The ad listed influences of Jimi Hendrix, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Primus, Black Sabbath and others. Rich mentioned the group "clicked" and began practicing a lot and by October had played their first show. By August 1992, because they had previously opened for bands like the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, Hitting Birth, and Sweaty Nipples the band was rewarded with the opportunity to headline the largest venue in town the WOW Hall. In 1993, the band signed to Elemental Records for a one-album contract and began headlining bigger clubs in Portland, Oregon, like La Luna, and RCKNDY and The Off Ramp in Seattle. At this time the band was courted by Maverick Records but the opening band Candlebox outmaneuvered Jolly Mon and got a contract instead. [2]

Originally, Rich played bass guitar and performed vocals, with Karl Becker on guitar and Greg Eklund on drums. [3] The band moved to Portland, Oregon in 1994 and around the time of their debut album Sailing, Becker quit the band and was replaced by Brian Smith, formerly of Anzio Bridgehead. [4] [5] Becker admitted his tastes switched from thrash metal to jazz and his favorite song on Sailing was "So Big" which he describes as the "most improvised song" from that album. [6]

In 1995, the band released their second album Nobody Knows Who You Are as part of an additional one-album contract with Elemental. Members of the band changed to Smith on guitar and Mark Blackburn replacing Eklund on drums, who had joined the band Everclear. [5] The album was described as psychedelic with a mix of "primal edge". The album was shorter in length than the previous album and contained only seven songs, two less than their previous offering. By this time the band was known for wearing gas masks with foam antennae. [7]

In 1997, it was reported the band was working on another album due out later that year, dubbed the "Chrome album". The band had also undergone some lineup changes. Rich switched to guitar, with Kevin on bass, Branden on drums, and Angelo on turntables. [8] When the album was released on their own label, it had undergone a name change to Stoned Nation Radio. It was described as their trademark sound of fusing "metal thump and hallucinogenic pulse" with "hip hop scratching, coldwave backbeats and throbbing electronica". [9]

By 2002, after struggling to break into the mainstream and being broke, the band unceremoniously dissolved. Rich was involved in various low-key music projects afterward, but settled with having a stable job, marriage, and got into video games like World of Warcraft. Then in 2016, John Colgate contacted Rich to see if he was interested in a one-off Jolly Mon show for nostalgia's sake. After some consideration of his lack of vocal practice the past decade, Rich agreed and they contacted Blackburn who recorded with them on their second album. They began practicing and played their first show in Vancouver, Washington. Word got out on the internet of their reunion and were offered shows from local venues. The band decided to "go for it" and recorded their fifth album. [2]

In 2017, Jolly Mon released their Voidwalker album and was reviewed by the UK magazine Power Play. The album continues the band's exploration into psychedelic territory with a "funky vibe", with some keyboard sounds to round it out. The magazine pontificates on the choice of the band and album names by drawing a comparison with Game of Thrones. [10]

Discography

Studio albums

See also

Related Research Articles

Cacophony was an American heavy metal band formed in 1986 by guitarists Marty Friedman and Jason Becker, and signed to Shrapnel Records. They released two studio albums and remained active until 1989, after which both guitarists forged their own solo careers and joined other bands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poison Idea</span> American punk rock band

Poison Idea was an American punk rock band formed in Portland, Oregon, in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Queers</span> American punk rock band

The Queers are an American punk rock band, formed in 1981 by Portsmouth, New Hampshire native Joseph “Joe” P. King along with Scott Gildersleeve, and John “Jack” Hayes. With the addition of Keith Hages joining on bass in 1983 the band started playing their first public performances. The revised line-up played a total of six live shows between 1983 and 1984. This earliest era of The Queers formation initially broke up in late 1984; however, Joe Queer re-formed the band with an all-new line-up in 1986. In 1990, after several more band line-up changes the band signed with Shakin' Street Records to release their debut album, Grow Up. The album earned the band notability within New England, but with the release of their next album, 1993's Love Songs for the Retarded, on Lookout! Records, their following grew.

<i>Ferociously Stoned</i> 1990 studio album by Cherry Poppin Daddies

Ferociously Stoned is the debut album by American band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, released in November 1990 on Sub Par Records. It was subsequently re-released on the Daddies' own independent label Space Age Bachelor Pad Records in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig Montoya</span> Musical artist

Craig Aloysius Montoya is the bassist of Castella and Tri-Polar and former bassist of Everclear.

<i>Port Royal</i> (album) 1988 studio album by Running Wild

Port Royal is the fourth album by German heavy metal band Running Wild. It expanded on the pirate theme introduced in their album Under Jolly Roger (1987) and established them as "pirate metal" in the metal community. The album takes its name from the location of Calico Jack's death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Floater (band)</span> American rock band

Floater is an American rock band currently based in Portland, Oregon. The band was started in 1993 by Robert Wynia, along with Peter Cornett and David Amador. They are known for their progressive concept albums, stylized storytelling, intense live performances, and devoted fanbase. Floater routinely sells out local venues in Oregon and periodically plays shows in the neighboring states of Washington, California, Nevada, and Idaho. Floater has played a variety of venues, including CBGB in New York and the Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles. The band was also a musical guest for Live Wire Radio on OPB radio. The band was voted the "Best Band" in the Willamette Week "Best of Portland" reader's poll for 2009 and 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mekong Delta (band)</span> German thrash metal band

Mekong Delta is a German thrash metal band formed in 1985 by Ralf Hubert with the goal to "musically outshine" all other independent releases at the time.

Greg Eklund is an American musician/drummer. Originally, he was the drummer for Jolly Mon and quit the band after the release of their debut album. He then joined the rock band Everclear as their drummer from 1994-2003, the Oohlas from 2004-2008, and Storm Large and Le Bonheur 2009–present.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boris (band)</span> Japanese band

Boris is a Japanese band formed in 1992 in Tokyo and composed of drummer Atsuo, guitarist/bassist Takeshi, and guitarist/keyboardist Wata. All three members contribute vocals. Their work has drawn variously on styles such as sludge metal, drone, metal, noise, psychedelia, and minimalism. Boris has released more than 20 studio albums on various labels around the world, as well as a variety of live albums, compilations, EPs, singles, and collaborative albums. They have collaborated with acts such as Sunn O))), Merzbow, Keiji Haino, and guitarist Michio Kurihara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gene Trautmann</span> American drummer (born 1966)

Gene Trautmann is an American drummer, best known for his work with rock bands Queens of the Stone Age, Dig and the Miracle Workers, and as a touring member of Eagles of Death Metal. He has also contributed to releases by The Desert Sessions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">G. C. Green</span> English musician

Ben George Christian Green, also known professionally as G. C. Green and B. C. Green, is an English musician, best known as the co-founder and bass guitarist of the industrial metal band Godflesh.

Mind Over Four was an American heavy metal group based out of Orange County, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toxic Holocaust</span> American thrash metal band

Toxic Holocaust is an American thrash metal band from Portland, Oregon.

Pod People are a doom metal band from Canberra, Australia that formed in 1991. The band has recorded six releases, playing a blend of stoner and sludge traits, with lyrics on themes of cannabis in their earlier works, to topics thematically based around The Divine Comedy. The band released one EP and several demo tapes with the original line up. The founding members later left the band during 1993–1996, which drastically altered the make up and sound of the band.

The Yum Yum Children, also known as YMYM FAM, are a Christian band originally from Portland, Oregon, now located in Oklahoma. Their music is similar to that of They Might Be Giants or 1970s style art rock.

Sweaty Nipples were an American rock band from Portland, Oregon. The band released two albums before splitting up. Their music has been characterized as "funk metal".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bohemian Vendetta</span> American rock band

Bohemian Vendetta was an American garage rock and psychedelic band from Long Island, New York, who were active from 1966 to 1968. In addition to recording two officially released singles and several previously unissued demos, they cut a self-titled album, Bohemian Vendetta, released by Mainstream Records in 1968.

Massive Appendage is an Australian metal band based around the McCormack brothers, Darren, Matt and Shawn using the aliases Jed Starr, Big Bird and Snuff Beastley. It is one of multiple highly connected bands involving the brothers, others being Kings Cross, Festers Fanatics and Starworld.

Sifting is a Venezuelan-American progressive metal band from Los Angeles, California, United States. The band was formed in April 2010 by Eduardo Osuna Gil (vocals/guitars).

References

  1. ↑ Stockman, J. Michael (1993-05-14), "Whilees' new CD sounds like a hit - at least locally", Statesman Journal , p. 3
  2. 1 2 "Jollymon", Fireworks, pp. 114–119, 2019-03-01
  3. ↑ FEX (1994), "New World Studios Benefit Concert - Cate Auditorium 2/4/94", New World Music Chronicle, vol. 1:1, no. April, p. 3
  4. ↑ Charbonneau, Dave (1993-09-20), "A 'Sailing' debut from local boys Jolly Mon", Oregon Daily Emerald , p. 2c
  5. 1 2 Zig (1996), "Reviews - Records: Jolly Mon (Elemental) - Nobody Knows Who You Are", Volcano magazine, vol. 1:2, no. February, p. 11
  6. ↑ Stockman, J. Michael (1993-08-26), "Local bands, local music, local fun", Statesman Journal , p. 1B
  7. ↑ Pounder (1996), "Gas Huffer, Floater, Jolly Mon, Friday March 15 - Sunriver Pavillion", Volcano magazine, vol. 1:4, no. April, p. 12
  8. ↑ Keeney, E. Todd (1997), "Jolly Mon - An update from pdx", Volcano magazine, vol. 2:16, no. September, p. 11
  9. ↑ "Need something new to get off on? Blow your Wad on These...", The Rocket , no. 283, p. 36, 1996-08-12
  10. ↑ Ainscoe, Mike (2018-10-01), "Jollymon - Voidwalker", Power Play Rock & Metal Magazine, no. 213, p. 56
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.