Silver Monk Time: A Tribute to the Monks

uberbeat (and a war or two) goes on

TUESDAY, JUNE 5, 2007 AT 4 A.M.

BY DON ALLRED

In 1966, five American ex-GI bar band vets, re-christened the Monks, presented Germany with Black Monk Time."Uberbeat," they dubbed it: drums directing bass volts, organ jolts, guitar feedback, electric banjo percussion, echoing harmonies---and pre–Slim Shady chatter, jumping in and out. "It's Monk Time, it's Hop Time," they call, before and after ragging on "Mad Vietcong," James Bond, and "What army? Any army."

Silver Monk Time compiles 29 covers and homages, tied in with 2006 documentary Monks—The Transatlantic Feedback. The Fall expertly probe ripples of "Higgle-dy Piggle-dy," Jason Forrest folds Monks demos into the birthday-suit salute of "Monk Hop," and the Raincoats croon-hammer "Monk Chant" 'round the mountain. Meanwhile, the 5.6.7.8.'s "Cuckoo" spins right off its peak, brushed by the smoke-ring feathers of Nista Nije Nista's "Kuchhuche." Chicken-coop guest gusto generates Silver Apples x Alan Vega's eggcarnation of the title track.

Doc Schoko's doom-swallowing "Sei Still" smirks at its English-speaking doppelgänger, "Shut Up," as rolled by stoic-to-furious International Noise Conspiracy and tapped out by tremulously tight toot-toot-tootsies of Floating Di Morel. The Monks' own Gary Burger appears in the belligerent belly of Faust's "Beware...." "The war is never done," he reports, and also, "The war has not begun." If anybody can jump past such looming contradictions, it's a Monk. And Silver Monk Time buys us all some more hop time, finally!