Very first Monolators release, dating from before our first show. We recorded this as a demo to send to bookers--but then decided to to treat it as a legitimate EP after we sent a copy of "Spandex Hitman" to Anne Litt at KCRW and she actually played it. Thanks Anne! I doubt that there were ever more that a few dozen physical copies of this made (on cd-r, natch), and they're all gone now.
These songs were recorded in our garage with almost zero understanding of how to record music. We didn't own a 4-track, and I had never used one, so we decided to record it on computer instead. I recall that, rather than using multitrack recording software, we 'bounced' tracks back and forth between stereo recording apps on two different computers using a little Shure mixer and a pair of green microphones I got from a military surplus store. It seemed like a good idea at the time.
Incidentally: the (somewhat deceptive) title of the record was based on the "hi-fi sound" label on the sort of tray-shaped radio seen here on the cover art. This is an actual, working radio that a friend gave us, although we added "the monolators" to it via photoshop, obviously. The radio also had the shield logo that we adopted for our own use--we loved that logo but eventually gave up on it after the hundredth time someone asked us if we had borrowed/ripped it off from the K Records logo. At the time I had never owned a K Records release, so the answer is: no.
-Eli
credits
released September 22, 2002
Eli Chartkoff: vocals, bass
Mary Chartkoff: vocals, drums
Mike Dennis: vocals, guitar
Recorded by The Monolators sometime in 2002. "In My Dreams" and "Spandex Hitman" are by Eli Chartkoff and Jorin Bossen. "When The Saints Collide" is by Eli Chartkoff. "Santy Anno" is a traditional folk song arranged by The Monolators.
Howlin' Banana Records offers up horn-heavy garage rock on this new LP from pop-, punk-, ska-influenced The Madcaps. Bandcamp New & Notable Jan 15, 2016
Recalling the anti-folk era of the early ’00s, L.A. group Guppy pair winsome, quirky lyrics with bright indie rock arrangements. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 24, 2022