Join us for the final hours (11a-1p), during the final hours of this year’s Monkey Power Trio session, followed by a talkback facilitated by PS1 Executive Director John E at 1pm.
Attendees will be able to hear the band as they conclude their annual day’s work — behind a curtain, in keeping with their tradition. (For the past several years, the members of Monkey Power Trio have held their sessions in galleries and museums, behind curtains, or otherwise obscured from the view of onlookers. Prior to that, they had always conducted their work in private.) Visitors who bring instruments, or have the desire to sing, may be called upon to participate.
For 24 hours, beginning at 1:00 PM (CST) on Friday, July 18, the experimental collective known as Monkey Power Trio (MPT) will convene at PS1 Close House for their 31st annual recording session.
This one-day residency is part of a project the group began in Brooklyn, New York in the summer of 1995 — to gather once a year for just 24-hours in order to record with no pre-planning, and release whatever they create on vinyl — a creative pact they’ve all vowed to maintain until only one member of the group is left alive. (The last surviving member is required to put out a final solo album.) This year’s session is titled “Geographic Midpoint,” a nod to Iowa City’s location at the exact midpoint between the now far-flung homes of the group’s members.
“I wouldn’t call us musicians,” says Monkey Power Trio’s Mark Maynard. “We write songs, but I don’t think it was ever really about the music. It’s about the act of making something within these very specific constraints that we’ve set for ourselves. Every day that we convene, another year has passed. It’s like we walk out of the room for a minute, and, when we walk back in, we’re all just a little bit different. We’re essentially making an audio ‘flip book’ of our lives. We each live a year, and we come together to collectively distill it. Then we disappear again, until it’s time to process another year’s worth of anguish, pain, love and joy that’s been bottled up inside of us.”
What People Are Saying About Monkey Power Trio:
“A most uplifting message… They do it as well as they possibly can, without having an enormous amount of skill, it would seem… I’ve got no complaint with technical expertise, but, by and large, it’s sometimes a diversion, instead of what it should really be about.”
— John Peel, BBC
“This is a great story. Every year since 1995, this group of friends from different corners of these United States get together for 24 hours. They try to create all, or most of an album out of nothing during that time. I love this idea. I’m a big fan of The Fugs. And that’s what Monkey Power Trio is doing… It’s disconnected. It’s chaotic. It’s shambolic… I hear a little Beat Happening. I hear a little outsider folk art. I just love the idea. They clearly care about the results, even though they don’t take themselves too seriously.”
— Jim DeRogatis, Sound Opinions
“It’s endurance art… They’ve vowed to continue until all but one of them has passed away, with the last remaining member making one final solo recording, thereby bringing the project to an end… It fits as much into a tradition of Conceptual or Performance Art as it does any music genre.”
— Matt Distel, The Carnegie
Appearance on KRUI :
Upon arriving in Iowa City, the members of the Monkey Power Trio will be appearing on the University of Iowa’s student radio station, KRUI (89.7 FM). The Monkey Power will be joining KRUI chief engineer Izaak Thompson on Thursday, July 17 at 6:00 PM (CST), to discuss the genesis of their project, talk about their plans for the Iowa City session, and share some of their favorite tracks. Those not in Iowa City can listen to the livestream here: https://krui.fm/listen/. Interested parties can also call-in at: 319-335-8970.
For More Information about the Monkey Power Trio:
Please visit https://monkeypowertrio.com, or https://themonkeypowertrio.bandcamp.com.