The Guitar Player's Resource
Putting a positive and six-string spin on monkey business is San Antonio's Monkeysoop, led by guitarist Jerry Connor. A jammy, loose, and guitar-dominated vibe marks the group's instrumental, self-titled debut CD. Connor, supported by Erica Missey (bass), Mike Mayorga (drums) and Paul Wiesban (electric violin), lets it all hang out with fat metallic assaults, linear cascades, wall-of-sound embellishments, and shrednik bombast. The title track showcases flipped-out, speedy fret runs and plenty of notes, while tracks such as "Vagrancy" spotlight an entirely different side of the band, with an eerie, haunting guitar mantra. Monkeysoop draws on progressive rock, metal, jazz, classical, funk, folk and soundtrack music for its range of influence.
Jerry Connor's twenty-plus-year obsession with guitar began on South Padre Island, where he would play while listening to Rush and Jimi Hendrix. His musical world turned upside down when a fateful accident left him unable to play guitar. Through college, he concentrated on music studies, especially theory, in hopes of becoming a composer, as doctors had told him he would never play guitar again. However, Jerry's determination and up to ten hours of practice a day eventually rehabilitated him, and his knowledge of music theory and his practiced playing have created a guitar powerhouse whose creed is "it's all about the music." After playing with different bands across the country, he settled in San Antonio to write the music that makes up Monkeysoop.
Monkeysoop is currently working on new music for an acoustic album, as well as amped tunes for the follow-up to their self-titled debut, with new drummer Xavier Gonzalez. The band is available to play shows, write and record musical scores for film and commercial purposes, and touring.
Monkeysoop C/O Erica Missey
United States
Web site: www.monkeysoop.com