Here’s the wonderful backstory: “a family band like no other, Secret Monkey Weekend returns with their sparkling sophomore album Lemon Drop Hammer on June 6. Comprising seasoned guitarist/vocalist Jefferson Hart and his stepdaughters Ella (bass/vocals) and Lila Brown-Hart (drums/vocals), the North Carolina trio’s harmony-heavy Beatles/Squeeze songwriting, charming lyricism, and familial chemistry is channeled into 10 tracks helmed by revered R.E.M./Smithereens producer Don Dixon.
“I wasn’t prepared for Jefferson’s tremendous talent as a writer, player and singer,” said Dixon. “These three individuals have combined to make something I love [and] grown, literally and figuratively, in front of my eyes.”
Secret Monkey Weekend’s wildly atypical backstory is testament to the power of music even in the face of heartrending grief. Ella and Lila’s father Matt, a prominent area drummer who’d toured with Hüsker Dü’s Grant Hart, passed suddenly in 2012, when his daughters were aged just 4 and 9. Matt had played in bands with Jefferson and, after his friend’s passing, the latter started teaching Ella guitar. A relationship with their mom, Laura, slowly blossomed.
“Before you knew it, we were just making music for fun. It was very natural,” Jefferson told Durham Magazine. “[Ella and Lila] both expressed a want and need to play specific instruments.” Lila chose drums, like her dad; Ella picked bass, her father’s second instrument. And Laura is there as band mom, from initial sparks of inspiration, to final mixes and shows.
Secret Monkey Weekend (a name derived from a vintage Tiger Beat magazine headline) began as purely organic family therapy, with no plans for anything more. Yet by 2016, they were playing casual shows and soon graduated to a busy calendar of club and festival dates. Debut album All The Time In The World, also produced by Dixon, followed in 2022. It’s a tale so remarkable that the trio is the subject of an Emmy-winning 2023 PBS documentary, “Secret Monkey Weekend”.
Lemon Drop Hammer (a title inspired by Jefferson witnessing Laura assault a bag of congealed candy with said tool) is a singular combo of deft songcraft, wide-eyed youthful wonder, and music functioning in its highest form – as comfort and connection. Harnessing timeless Beatles/Kinks melodic instincts to fairy-dust power-pop guitar jangle, authentic first-person lyrics, and three contrasting voices that harmonize as only family can, it’s a record at once instantly classic and, with a teen and 22-year-old aboard, innately contemporary.
Buoyant album opener “So Much Joy” evokes heyday Yardbirds; it’s “woo-ooh” backups framing textured co-ed vocals. With Ella’s vulnerable, heartfelt lyrics voiced by her sister, “Things You Threw Away” recounts sorting through their late dad’s previously untouched possessions, revisiting and processing his loss as now young adults. Meanwhile, the summery “We Can Be Friends” is an innocent ode to childhood bonds forged over the simplest, smallest things, with a hook that could be the theme to a ‘70’s TV show.
Released on the band’s own Secret Monkey Records, Lemon Drop Hammer will be accompanied by regional touring and later standalone digital single “Grant Hart,” a fond tribute to their hugely influential late family friend.”
The one thing that can’t be emphasized enough is the pure quality of the song structures. These are smart, well-crafted songs – great arrangements, vocals and execution. “So Much Joy” should be a single, if this was a just world, for example. And the poignancy of “We Can Be Friends” cannot be understated, as with “Things You Threw Away” (all aforementioned). This isn’t lightweight by any means. “Walking Between Raindrops” is another of those “I can imagine this on the radio”, as it has that instant kind of pop-hit classic feel; “Way Way Out” has a neo-psychedelic/garage feel and a wonderfully sinister undertone, courtesy of the chord progressions and the keyboard.
This is a worthwhile listen – for both the music and the story behind the band. It’s a total package that I hope will gain greater momentum. Secret Monkey Weekend should be taken seriously among the fun.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Lemon Drop Hammer will be released on Friday, June 6th, 2025
https://secretmonkeyweekend.com