Added: 4 years ago
From: PowerLloyd
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  • Fuckin Yass! Minted

  • Took me nearly 15 years to realize The Fall covered this song as "Black Monk Theme, Pt. 2"; they also covered "I Hate You" as "Black Monk Theme, Pt. 1"

  • Punk rock!

  • Looking at this excellent video again, I'm amazed that the banjo player didn't have bloody fingers with how hard he's strumming. For some reason this reminds of a cross between the Mod era Who, Kinks, and Robert Fripp/League of Gentleman (Heptaparpinoshok - or something like that).

  • these dudes rocked it.....there should have been so much more from them...

  • I love it that they are all Army boys!

  • Superior.

  • Scraps 'o' noise mania, a whole autobahn's worth of motorik mayhem, but sadly just one LP that's thankfully all-killer-no-filler ... Faust - you are deeply indebdted, as you well know ...

  • it's crazy the way they shaved the top of their heads...like the Pharaohs

  • HOLY SHIT! AWESOME! I admit that my heart and sympathies lie with the Rockers as opposed to the Mods.....but I would have totally rocked out to this!

    Of course that would be back in the day, back before I was born, when we (they) had the luxury of fighting each other.

    Today it's different.

    Let's unite!

  • Yeah Great.! unfortunately they didn't get promoted by the record power brokers and I'm guessing it's because they weren't pretty boys like the other popular groups of the time.

  • way ahead of its time

  • que Buen Grupo de los 60's Yeaah!

  • And they say The Who started the stuttering lyrics. They just ripped off The Monks.

  • i cant believe this is 66

  • i love the monks but they made such long intros for their songs it almost gives agony to the unwarned

  • They were GIs in Germany...gosh! Must have been the acidrevolution in the US what made them do this...

  • True pioneers in a time of rock n' roll pioneers. Quite brilliant.

  • So these guys were like DEVO before DEVO? I am a coniseuier of this genre and I must say I had never heard of them. I am shocked by their appearance. I would think that that would not have gone over well with American kids of the time. Perhaps that is why I hadn't heard of them. They certainly have no Top 40 sounds.

  • @huskyjerk There's always something awesome happening that people are not ready for. How many great painters died poor and unknown, ya know? Like how were Barry and the Remains not huge? Or The Wailers?

  • @huskyjerk

    Sorry if this offends you, but what connoisseur of garage mayhem doesn't know of the Monks? That's absolutely shameful.

  • @Psychodarity Yes....I agree......I just never heard of them.......Or may have heard of them but paid no attention to them, and lost track of them for that over the years. I suspect, like my original statement alluded to, that, because they were not a commercial hit, they were hard for a conservative, middle American youngster to take to. They were not the Beatles nor the Monkees nor the Byrds. Hence, there was no adaption to their sound by someone like me. But they are cool !

  •  There's a documentary about them?

  • @Khultan i have it on dvd...its gettable on amazon. its called "monks :the transatlantic feedback" and i recommend it to everyone who loves music and moreso to everyone who hates music!

  • @paulboggan Ha ha -thanks : )

  • it s monk time,,,,it s hot time.... its party time.....yeah..... realy goog.... immernoch, die beste beatband der welt...... in god we rust

  • Syncronized Sonic Subversion! Bitchin'bango

  • The Fall covered 3 of their songs.

    Nuff said!!!

  • I wonder if DEVO was influenced by this?

  • In the 60's they played in our house and today we meet them often!. (:

  • Gotta love the electric banjo. How many punk bands from the era had "that".

  • @motownmaniax None, but there were no other punk bands in the '60s.

  • @WesleyBundy Genre labeling from different eras is subjective. There was an active garage band movement in the 60's, which in today's vernacular could and has been termed "punk" by aficionados. Do a net search on 60's punk and let me know what you find.

  • @motownmaniax The concept was beat deconstruction, a German art project for which they hired a few GIs.

  • @bimhimbim Where did you come up with this from?

  • was david byrne also there?

  • @claudebasel

    Wer zu frueh kommt, den bestraft das Leben. Aber die Jungs sind wirklich abgefahren, keine Frage. Nur haben sie die Leute damals vermutlich ein bisschen ueberfordert.

  • turn up gary's guitar!

  • Caught the documentary the other day. Damn, these guys rock! How the hell were they not bigger? Oh, yeah- people are stupid.

  • Too damn good for the plebs, most genius things are!

  • Now I see where the B-52's got their sound....

    

  • idk how i found 0_o this but im happy that i did!

  • Love this - they've got it.

  • Oh in case anybody was unsure, this is the best song ever written.

  • Why can't you people just be open to all kinds of music. I like the Beatles and I like the Monks.

  • @killthepast333 Me too. The Beatles are actually a better and more important band. But I'll say this: they aren't in my top five favorite bands. The Monks are.

  • yea these guys were experimenting with something brand new at the time. it was awesome

  • oh yes! you can see why the Fall paid homage!

  • @beneaththepavement is this the song mark e smith covered ?

  • @ty3165 - yes it's on Extricate - by the Fall - "Black Monk theme part 2:"

    you can find the track on youtube- unfortunately its not letting me post it for your convenience.

    

  • @lynnetteb711 just ordered the album of amazon,thanks mate

  • so good!

  • what show/concert is this recording from?

  • Just got to love The Monks!

  • i wish i was alive in the 60s

  • Damb fine! The Monks Rule!

  • diggin' this!

  • Yes joegpn, I agree! That was my first thought. I can see where the spud boys got some of their inspiration.

  • esto es lo maximo!

  • Now that I see this....It reminds me of...Devo??

  • kafrila

  • Oh, How to Do Now ♪♪♪ Oh, How to Do Now Oh, How to Do Now Oh, How to Do Now ♪♪♪

  • Wow- heard this song last Sunday on 6music's Freakzone. Tremendous!

  • American GIs stationed on Germany, no doubt influencing that Krautrock sound well before Can and Neu, masterful.

  • great song!!!

  • I like the monks and madonna

  • I don't get where you're coming from. Some weird post modernist dogma??? Madonna is a business woman. The Monks don't seem calculated they are life affirming.

  • fantastic singing

  • I hear The Fall, great stuff

  • So ahead of their time, and what a unique vibe they had! And how ridiculous that they're not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Madonna is.

  • well..the music business is filled with false idols...it makes them money..

    nobody pays attention to the creators and innovators....

    well at least we have this music to remember them by :~)

  • @befuddledman It's such a cliche to say that something was 20 years ahead of it's time, but these guys WERE 20 years ahead of their time!

  • @duckman531

    40

  • @Funnysterste I put it at 20 because New Wave artists of the early 1980s were already using those quirky, syncopated beats originated by The Monks by about 1964.

  • @duckman531

    Ok, the 40 is silly. But it does not matter. These guys made the music they liked to do. They surely did not waste a thought about if this what they were doing was something special or even ahead of their time. As you can see in the video they had fun doing it. I think that was it all about.

  • @Funnysterste Your point's well taken. It also echoes Erich Von Stroheim's famous line. When Billy Wilder first met Von Stroheim, he said "Von, you were 10 years ahead of your time!" To which Von Strohem said "20!"

  • @befuddledman Yes, truly great...Black Monk Time, one of the most awesome albums ever. Sadly, there are many great artists not in the rock and roll hall of (sh)fame. Fuck madonna...great music lives forever!!!

  • @befuddledman The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a joke...

  • @befuddledman So true about Madonna

    Why do you say they were before their time?

    Fuck that ock and roll stereotype though I hate the very phrase "rock n roll" It's lame and doesn't really sum up shit, you already know it's only catched on so big to ensure profit because people are generally stupid. . my names brad and I manage a band Rock n Roll check out my fancy suit and tie ahaha Everything is retarded.

    Peace hopefully you'll get back to me on the before their time bit.

  • @befuddledman , superubercool & so ahead of the hairpieces to come after them!

  • @befuddledman How true. Is no one working on their behalf?  Kick Madonna out and put the Monks in!

  • @befuddledman the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a bad joke!

  • that banjo sounds AMAZING

  • them and the sonics would have been cool together

  • Mott the Hoople just had a series of reunion concerts and the bass player wore a noose around his neck out of tribute to the Monks! Another band ahead of their time..

  • I love and loathe these silly youtube arguments. Anyhow, although different "styles" of music, I am sure Devo were indeed inspired by the Monks, as were many of the German "krautrock" bands of the seventies who it is without question influenced Devo.

  • great!

  • they were about 20 years ahead of their time.

  • they are even about 20 years ahead of most bands from today.

  • Not quite, time has gone backwards in music, not forward.

  • yes, that is true.

  • 1966. Jesus Christ.

  • @elmatadorwangmachino unbelievable innit?

  • reminds me of early devo!

  • Then you don't know early DEVO =:P check out Devo live in France for example here on youtube, it's synth-punk...

  • well for your info i know exactly what early devo sounds like you fucking idiot! .i said it only reminded me, i never claimed that they were .check out their vintage basement recordings on their ,devo hardcore volume. 2 1974-1977.THERES THE PROOF!!!

  • I'm not a 'fucking idiot'. I have that CD and I can't see how you find anything in common with the two. You seem to have serious anger management issues.

  • oh, this is a good one ,.now i have anger management issues? you dont even know me. are you my therapist now? where do you even draw that conculsion from?when i made the statement that you were a fucking idiot, i didnt mean it literally,im sure youre bright as hell. we obviously dont share the same perceptions.''working in the coal mine" was the tune that i was refering to. and look we all have from time to time'' ANGER FUCKING MANAGEMENT ISSUES'' !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • go back to sucking down your vodka. its what youre all good at and skiing .

  • thats why youre an idiot!!!

  • [smile]

  • You cheeky bastard.

  • Idiot, oh and that's referring to you, Mr.Meddled.

  • Can someone who really does know identify the dancing that these 60s kids are doing?

  • What you call "kids" are, in fact, zombies.

  • What kind of dancing are the--um... zombies doing?

  • They don't dance, they usually move more or less randomly looking for food. Maybe you can use some clever Brownian motion equation to call the "dance"?

  • [eyes looking up]....

  • Jerk!?

  • It really looks a bit like the Zombie Walk, that Northern/Eastern German Speedore Techno Dancers do nowadays...

  • @Khultan the dance was called' the Underreaction- to- the Monks-bop'

  • First time hearing this band. Some weird shit for its time as well as the image. I can hear the punk influence with its repitition, reminds me of the fall.

  • one of my favorite bands in the sixties with THE SONICS

    Alleluuuiiiiaaaaa

  • MONKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • That's some mean friggin' organ playing there.

    I heard this songs first as 'O Tannenbaum Now', by (I think) Das Furlines, on a Midnight Records X-Mas comp.

    Didn't have a clue then, but I learned soon enough :-)

    The Monks, an influence on dance music? Maybe so, but I can dance a lot easier to garage rock'n'roll than to modern so-called dance stuff. (Even if my dancing looks like shit - it's easier, I said, not actually better....)

  • OK I'm going to throw this out there. We are all probably in agreement about the Monks influence on punk, but what about the influence on dance music?

  • IT'S HERE EVERYBODY! THE DVD HAS BEEN RELEASED! I just ordered mine two days ago....I CANNOT WAIT! I can't wait to show family and friends what I expierenced in The Red Cat Theater in L.A. back on July 1, 2006. The sad thing for me will be seeing and hearing Dave talk. I know I'm gonna be crying! Dave was such a good guy, full of love for his fans! He embraced me like I was his grandson or something when he met me. Thank you for your contribution to rock and roll Dave! Rock that banjo in heaven!

  • Crazy beat man. The Monks Rule!!!!!

  • so ahead of there time

  • This would be fun to play to your mom if you lived in the mid-60s.

  • Hey, I like this one. It actually has a beat, so all those German kids can do some mild go-go dancing instead of having to sort of stand around, perplexed at these oddballs and their peculiar non-pop music.

    Not that anyone in the world at the time would've known what to make of the Monks.

  • Weird.

  • Hey! that's punk! awesome! they had an original style in everything from placement of the band in the stage to how they actually move while they play.

  • thats garage rock

  • "thats garage rock"

    Eh, some music historians believe the Monks to be the first true "punk" band. It is often referred to as protopunk, but then again, who cares about what the critics say.

  • You can see how these guys influenced the Sonics who then (maybe) influenced the MC5 and the Stooges. Also you could make a weird argument about the hairstyles. Monk chant is very clearly an influence on punk rock backing vocals for sure. It reminds me of Misfits.

  • The DVD to "monks: the transatlantic feedback" is out

  • Huelsenbeck, do you have it yet? If so, could SOMEONE please upload all new Beat Club clips with the better quality (and I've seen them, it's friggin' pristine!). No pixilation, no distortion, nothing but pure clear MONKS!

  • the 'punk monks'..'yeah'....

  • It's such a shame Polydor here in America passed on releasing this album. Unfortunately, America would've probally been just like "oh look at that, isn't that cute!" instead of knowing The Monks meant every word of what they sang!

  • this is such a great song, like a 90s era stereolab song but recorded in the 60s!

  • this makes me want to type out the word "glory"

  • classic es1

  • i think its not so punk...but still really progressive

  • the syncopation effect when the banjo comes in is amazing! early begining punk/ska? their records didn't sell too well. I think they were just way ahead of their time. this shit truly rocks!

  • does anyone know the name of the documentary that was made about them?

  • Monks: the transatlantic feedback

  • thank you so much :)

  • this is almost post punk.

  • love this!

  • slam this tight lil ass =]? j

  • germany lies to the east fuckface

  • That, as Just Ice once said, is about as far back as we can go. Early Early Early!

  • These army buddies came at the time, not further than Germany.

    Had I seen them then I would've cringed of

    embarresment,[Holland was just a step away from Germany,but no one here had heard of 'm,

    the "beat"generation would have nothing to do with'm,Come ON who wanted to be seen with an album of guys with such "haircuts".

    Now,I can say....These dudes had guts.

    BRILLIANT.

  • ..O

    (^o^)

    ..(^)

  • here comes the Punk

  • Fantastic band, beat The Beatles anyday.

  • The monks:

    a) The first band that played garage music with a punk attitude

    b) The first (and the only) band that plaeyd songs with lyrics and titles such as "shut up", "I Hate you" etc when everyone else was singing sappy love-songs (remember: this is 1964)

    c) One of the first bands that played music with guts!!!

    Way ahead of their time (and of our time, too)

  • Los Saicos

  • Ali G cameo at 0:36.

  • america's first legitimate garage/proto-punk band.

    cool clip!

  • What about the Sonics? Or the Kingsmen?

    No, the Monks were the first avant-rock band.

  • Holy crap, that is farkin' excellent.

  • THAT is Rock n Roll !! Shoe starers be warned.

  • What does "Shoe Starer" mean? I assume it has something to do with shoe-gazing music, but why do you say it?

  • why did someone give me a thumbs down. I'm just trying to better understand this culture

  • I think by "shoe starers" he just means groups that don't give an energetic show, and don't seem to be into the music. They just stand there staring at their shoes.

    Much different from shoegaze as a genre.

  • thanks

  • I don't know what shoe starer means either

  • Are these "Monks" tonsured? Sure looks like a couple of them are.

  • You got it right there, Cadfael - although I'm sure a middle aged monks revival would at least cut down on this expense for some members. Or maybe this lot simply gave up on hair topiary altogether and put eyeballs on their heads instead, as some claim..?

    Mmmmmm, now there's a thought......

    GREAT STUFF + THX FOR THIS POST

  • Good grief update - I just saw the recent Monks comeback footage and MPB has indeed taken its toll. Still think something odd is going on under those pates, mind.

  • Yep! After they stumbled across the monikier "The Monks" during a early rehearsal of "Monk Chant" (which had no title at that point and they were still going by the name The Tourquays), their managers came up with the Monk look. Roger the drummer said, "well if we're gonna be monks, we might as well look like monks. I'm shaving my head!" They all went down to the barber in their Monk regalia and got their tonsures!

  • guauuuuuuuu!!!!!!!!!