Search - Benzedrine Monks Of Santa Demo, The Benzedrine Monks of Santo Domonica :: Chantmania / Theme From Monkees / We Will Rock You

Classical but not Classic

David Hardison | Denver, CO USA | 03/05/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"There's an episode of The Simpsons where Homer forms a barbershop quartet. When pressed for a name, Principal Skinner suggests something that sounds funny, but gets less funny the more you hear it. Unfortunately, this CD is somewhat the same.Following on the heels of Chant, this album gleefully skewers the fad by setting pop hits in a Gregorian-esque style. And they certainly picked some gems for this setting: Losing My Religion just fits with the whole theme, Hey We're the Monks works pretty well, and Do Ya Think I'm Sexy is just so wrong that it's gotta be right. (In fact, it was hearing this last track in the store that made me buy the whole CD). Unfortunately, there's a sameness to all five tracks (track number 6 is basically silence), which I guess shouldn't be too surprising. And after a few listenings it, well, gets less funny the more you hear it.Until reading a previous review, I hadn't realized that some of the people who created this album were also part of Big Daddy. I guess this makes sense, since Big Daddy's _raison d'etre_ was setting 80's hits in a 50's style. However, Big Daddy's songs stand well on their own, apart from the "joke". You can listen to one without ever having heard the original and still enjoy it; knowing the original setting just brings an extra grin. Sadly, Chantmania can't seem to achieve the timeless quality of the Chants it copies."

We're too busy chanting, to put anybody down

Johnny Heering | Bethel, CT United States | 02/24/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This EP is a parody of the fad from about ten years ago when Gregorian chants briefly became popular. Here we have rock songs chanted Gregorian style. This is so absurb that it's funny. With only five songs it doesn't overstay it's welcome. I would imagine that a whole album of this stuff would get pretty repetitive. But the concept is amusing enough for the 16 minute length of this CD. Fans of novelty music should enjoy this one."

Delightful humor

M. J. Smith | Seattle, WA USA | 10/26/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"My son gave me this as a Christmas present - it has been shared with a Melkite/Latin rite priest and a women's schola director. We all agree that it is excellent chant - we just can't find quite the right service for it. The first and last cuts are personal favorites; on the last be certain that you listen very silently all the way through - it is an exercise in meditation.If you insist on taking your music seriously, if you are unable to conceive of a musical satire on plain song, this album is not for you. But if its time for a little levity, the Benzedrine Monks are waiting for you.If you want musical satire but chant just "isn't your thing", you can also listen to Cat Hymns and donate to a good cause as well. I'm sure it has Benzedrine Monks stele of approval :-)"