100 Monkeys

100 Monkeys
100 Monkeys in Indianapolis, June 29, 2011.
Background information
Origin	Los Angeles, California, United States
Years active	2008 (2008)–2012
Labels	Awesome Sauce Records, Warrior Records
Website	http://www.100monkeysmusic.com/
Members	Jackson Rathbone Ben Graupner Ben Johnson Jerad Anderson Lawrence Abrams

100 Monkeys is an independent funk rock band from Los Angeles, California. The band name comes from the idea of the “Hundredth Monkey Effect” in which a learned behavior spreads instantaneously from one group of monkeys to all related monkeys once a critical number is reached. The current members of the group are Ben Graupner, Jackson Rathbone, Jerad Anderson, Ben Johnson, and Lawrence Abrams. The band has recently risen to fame due in part to the popularity of member Jackson Rathbone, an actor who plays the character Jasper in the Twilight Saga movie series. Rathbone has given interviews about his work as a musician on MTV and VH1.

The group came together in 2008 in Los Angeles, California, playing small shows at the 24K Lounge and other places in Los Angeles. Their first album, Monster De Lux, was entirely improvised and was done in one long take. Their second self-released album, Creative Control Sessions, featured popular songs "Sleeping Giants" and "Gus" and was produced by Scott Coslett. During a small tour from May through June 2009, the band played dates in PA and NY and in June released 3 singles of studio mastered songs - “Ugly Girl”, “Smoke” and “Wasteland Too”. their first studio album, “Grape” was released in 2009. The band then toured the West Coast. In 2010, the band embarked on a 100 City Tour across the United States, an effort which has greatly increased their audience.

The band’s sound has been described as funk rock by Spin Magazine. They have described the meaning behind their lyrics to be inspired by “drinking, the devil, death and women who cheat and steal.” Due to their recent fame the group has been interviewed by various music magazines and television networks. Their music is said to have a blues like feel, and their performances give off a '60s-like vibe, mimicking bands such as the Beatles. Their sound has also been described by MTV.com as a blend of “Iggy Pop with the Raconteurs.”