The Spacemonkeyz are a virtual musical group consisting of Darren Galea, Richie Stevens and Gavin Dodds. The virtual members are called D-Zire, Dubversive and Gavva.
History
The group came together when Galea created a dub remix of the single, Tomorrow Comes Today (Tomorrow Dub, which was released as a B-side on the Tomorrow Comes Today single), which Damon Albarn liked so much that he asked Galea to remix the whole album Gorillaz.
According to the band's autobiography, Rise of the Ogre, The Spacemonkeys broke into Kong Studios in 2002 while Gorillaz were on tour and stole the master tapes of the self-titled album because 2-D had accidentally forgotten to lock the studio doors. Gorillaz discovered this while signing autographs backstage at the Isle of MTV Festival in Portugal, when Murdoc was handed a record to sign which he didn't recognize by a fan. This record was Laika Come Home, a reworkings album made by the Spacemonkeyz using the master tapes, which Gorillaz later praised them for despite not being directly authorized by them.
Laika Come Home was released in July 2002. The album's first and only single Lil' Dub Chefin' reached #73 on the UK Singles Chart. It featured singer Terry Hall and Jamaican dub reggae artists U Brown and Earl Sixteen. After that, on the 7th of August of the same year, they were all featured on a BBC Radio 1 session, playing live the tracks Jungle Fresh, Lil' Dub Chefin', Strictly Rubbadub and A Fistful Of Peanuts from Laika Come Home.
The group went on to do a few more remixes of non-Gorillaz material, such as a Germany-exclusive EP named Mensch (Spacemonkeyz vs. Grönemeyer), which contained various remixes of the single Mensch from composer and producer Herbert Grönemeyer and later a remix of the song "Snakes and Ladders" by the group Virgin Souls titled "Snakes And Ladders Dub", released in 2010 on their MySpace account, the only song ever posted there.
Richie Stevens, one of the members of the Spacemonkeyz, announced on the Hallelujah Monkeyz podcast on the 4th of September 2017 that the Spacemonkeyz would be returning soon with a new extended play making, but were trying to get a label to help them distribute the project.[1]. While neither this EP or another remix of a Gorillaz song have been released to date, the group did make a few remixes for the Smudge All Stars music project in 2022 as well as one of the singles named Atoms, by Dark Globe and Boy GeorgeW.
Virtual Backstory
| “ | Three unusual primates have arrived on Planet Earth. They are the second-generation mutated offspring of the monkey cosmonauts sent into space during the Cold War of the fifties and sixties. For forty years they have been on an interplanetary tour of the universe searching for their spiritual leader "Laika," the first dog in space. During this time they have managed to acquire a massive amount of devastating musical technology. In an attempt to publicise their cause these mutant chimps have touched down on this planet to infiltrate, agitate and organize. They are considered armed and dangerous. Any sightings should be reported immediately to the Gorillaz. | „ |
| ~ The Spacemonkeyz wanted poster |
After the events of Phase 1, not much was heard from the Spacemonkeyz again. In 2020, in an interview hosted by Gorillaz Raritiez, Murdoc stated that the group had gone to the planet UranusW.[2]
Discography
Albums
- Spacemonkeyz vs Gorillaz – Laika Come Home (2002)
- Jungle Fresh [featuring Miho Hatori & Tina Weymouth]
- Strictly Rubbadub [featuring U Brown]
- Bañana Baby [featuring Earl Sixteen]
- Monkey Racket
- De-Punked
- P45
- Dub Ø9
- Crooked Dub
- Mutant Genius
- Come Again
- A Fistful Of Peanuts [featuring Miho Hatori, Earl Sixteen & U Brown]
- Lil' Dub Chefin' [featuring Terry Hall]
- More Rubbadub [featuring U Brown]
- More Peanuts [featuring Miho Hatori, Earl Sixteen & U Brown]
Singles
- Spacemonkeyz vs Gorillaz – "Lil' Dub Chefin'" (2002)
- Lil' Dub Chefin' (Single Version) [featuring Terry Hall]
- Lil' Dub Chefin' (Radio Edit) [featuring Terry Hall]
- Spacemonkeyz Theme [featuring The Last Emperor & Stanley Huang]
- Smudge All Stars - Freaky Toe (Spacemonkeyz Mix) [featuring Audio Satellite] (2022)
- Smudge All Stars - Still Here (Dubversive X DJ D-Zire Mix) [featuring Reuben Fowler] (2022)
- Atoms (Dubversive Dub Mix) [with Dark Globe, Boy George & Culture Club] (2022)
EPs
- Herbert Grönemeyer – "Mensch" (Spacemonkeyz Remix) (2002)
- Mensch (Master Remix) [Spacemonkeyz Vs. Grönemeyer]
- Mensch (Instrumental) [Spacemonkeyz Vs. Grönemeyer]
- Mensch (Dub) [Spacemonkeyz Vs. Grönemeyer]
- Mensch (St Entienne) [Spacemonkeyz Vs. Grönemeyer]
Gallery
Sources
- Wikipedia article
- Discogs page
- Gorillaz Unofficial: Spacemonkeyz Biography
- Spacemonkeyz Wanted Poster
References
- ↑ "Interview with Dubversive of Spacemonkeyz / "Laika Come Home" Track by Track Review - 09/04/2017". Hallelujah Monkeyz.
- ↑ "Gorillaz Raritiez: Life's Biggest Mysteries". Gorillaz Raritiez interview with Jamie Hewlett. Retrieved 25 May 2021.