Season 2 - Ep. 11 - Bringing Back the Old Pop Punk Sound with Lee from Monkey Mind
Today, I am going to be speaking with Lee Wright from the British punk band Monkey Mind.
Along with bassist Michael Olga and drummer Martin Payton, these guys form a punk trio that will have you blasting back to the early days of pop punk breaking out. We'll dig into the music and more of the mind of Monkey Mind in this conversation!
Intro Music: "Colorado" by Birds Love Filters
Monkey Mind on Bandcamp: https://monkeymind2.bandcamp.com/
Monkey Mind on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monkeymindmusic
Monkey Mind on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leemonkeymind
Monkey Mind on People of Punk Rock Records: http://peopleofpunkrockrecords.com/band-artist.php?id=monkey-mind
Monkey Mind YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdLnoUnCY99aXl9UZ1Na5FQ
Monkey Mind on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/31wlPGRGD8zSkFIJbqGdxP
▬ Contents of this video ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
0:00 - Intro
0:58 - How did the band Monkey Mind get together, and are they still active in their other projects?
4:56 - How did Michael Olga become the bass player and backup singer in Monkey Mind after being the front man in Toy Dolls for so long?
6:09 - How did Martin Paynton join Monkey Mind?
6:39 - Does it feel like a fair comparison to put Monkey Mind against early Green Day as far as the sound goes?
8:51 - Why did Lee Wright decide to start Monkey Mind at such a late point in his musical career?
9:58 - How was Monkey Mind able to put their album together during a pandemic?
13:22 - What kind of bands influenced Monkey Mind's music?
15:45 - How does Monkey Mind throw in really technical instrumentation and still keep a punk sound?
17:43 - Why did Monkey Mind create a song about Wim "The Iceman" Hof?
24:46 - Was there a reason behind choosing Monkey Mind for the band name?
26:00 - Is the song "Buddy Love" about Lee from Monkey Mind's dog?
27:29 - Are Monkey Mind's songs about Lee Wright's life? Or are there fictional?
29:31 - How hard was it to film the Monkey Mind music video for "Ice Man - The Ballad of Wim Hof?"
31:13 - What's the story behind the song and video for "Mr. Wright" by Monkey Mind?
34:08 - Will Monkey Mind be going on tour this year?
35:58 - Final words from Lee Wright of Monkey Mind
37:02 - Outro