Spun: Type Monkey Type

By Bryan Leedham

If Jungle Noise by local talent Type Monkey Type was a food, it would be an unevenly blended, half-filled Blizzard dessert — it has all the sweetness and surprise that you would hope for from a modern alt-rock/indie trio but ultimately feels slightly lacking.

Aside from the disappointing total play time (just breaking thirty minutes) and songs such as “Reading Under a Heat Lamp” that suffer from energy and momentum depravation, the group feels generally unsure of its own identity. Stuck somewhere between Chad VanGaalen, Sonic Youth and a songwriter’s retreat, this album needs to be taken for what it is — musicians testing the waters of their capabilities in a rather eclectic manner.

That said, truly pleasant moments slink out of the speakers mid-album. Experiments that show extreme musical maturity such as “A Dozen Discos,” “Full-On Neon” and “Puppet” induce smiles and contemplation. But before long, any feelings invoked by the album’s core are quickly interrupted by the catchy and funk-ridden “Smooth Like Crunchy Peanut Butter.”

Despite faults, the band does have a talent for finding synergy between unique instrumentation and well composed lyrics. Keep an eye out, because with Jungle Noise as a starting point, the foundation has definitely been laid for Type Monkey Type to grow into a formidable name in the Calgary music scene.