Derek Monypeny at Rozz-Tox -- April 1.
Wednesday, April 1, 8 p.m.
Rozz-Tox, 2108 Third Avenue, Rock Island IL
Touring in support of his most recent release Born (Free), multi-instrumentalist Derek Monypeny returns to Rock Island venue Rozz-Tox on April 1, joined on the night's bill by south Georgia native and Los Angeles-based banjo player Kelby Clark.
Lauded by Zen Effects for crafting "breathtaking compositions - stunning in their simplicity and fascinating in their meditative and even mind-altering power," Monypeny was born in the Arizona desert and is now a resident of the Mojave, Monypeny sees his musical mission as adding to and expanding on what he calls the "desert continuum;" the psychedelic sirocco swirl of desert-based stringed instruments played with utter abandon by musicians the world over. The string instrumentalist's “desert continuum” concept takes great inspiration from desert guitarists whose playing so perfectly reflects their surroundings in its gnarled beauty and all-pervasive individualism, among them Richard Bishop, Zoot Horn Rollo, Curt Kirkwood, Jesus Acedo, Bob Log III, and Howe Gelb. During his travels in North Africa, Monypeny discovered that same spirit in Saharan guitar playing, in artists such as Seddoum ould Eide, Hammadi ould Nana, and Luleide ould Dendenni.
Monypeny uses a variety of instruments to achieve these ends. In addition to guitar, he has recorded an album of solo oud recordings (Don't Bring Me Down, Bruce) and is currently performing and recording using the 15-string electric shahi baaja (Indian electric banjo). The artist is a former member of the bands Oaxacan, ALTO!, and Sir Richard Bishop's Freak Of Araby Ensemble, and in addition to Monypeny's solo work, he has an ongoing duo project with Bryan Hillebrandt titled OAE (Oakland Afternoon Ensemble). Over the course of his career, he has performed and toured with artists including Bill Orcutt, Jozef van Wissem, Eva Aguila/Kevin Shields, and Arrington de Dionyso, and many others, and in a review of Monypeny's 2019 reissue of How Can Be, the River Cities' Reader's Max Allison wrote, "Monypeny operates in a liminal space between old-west-cowboy country jams, Arabic and North African music such as Chaabi and Tuareg desert blues, south Asian and Indonesian styles including Carnatic music and Gamelan, and psychedelic rock of the mid-20th Century. The fact that all of these genres and more fuse together in the space of his solo guitar performances is a testament to the specificity of the tropes that he incorporates into his songs, and his mastery of the narrative through which he presents those ideas."
Kelby Clark is inspired by the old-time music of his home state as well as drone, free improvisation, raga, and many other forms of both experimental and traditional music from around the world. Clark has released records and tapes on labels such as Tentative Power, Working Man Lay Down, Garden Portal, Aural Canyon, and Vaagner. He has also collaborated with other artists including Donald Miller (Borbetomagus), Joseph Allred, Jeremiah M. Carter, Sarah Viviana Valdez, Hal Lambert, and Mitchell Mobley. His most recent solo LP titled Language of the Torch was released last January, and as The Quietus has raved, "The way Clark attacks his instrument, allowing songs to unspool in tumbling, organized chaos is magnetic and feels distinctly his own."
Derek Monypeny and Kelby Clark play their Rock Island engagement on April with an additional set by Onions & Cilantro, the guitar and percussion outfit of Johnnie Cluney. Admission to the 8 p.m. all-ages concert is $10-15, and more information is available by calling (309)200-0978 and visiting RozzTox.com.
