In 2022, Louisville indie rock outfit, Ed Monk, emerged from a 6-year hiatus to play a special 30th birthday set for one of its members. From the first rehearsal for that set, one idea became evident: there was still plenty of creative juice to squeeze from these minds. This new sense of direction saw a change-up in personnel and sound as well, with bassist, Patrick Denney, stepping into the role of lead vocalist, and the addition of a new member holding down the low end, Terry Kim. Along with founding members, Adam Sears, Andrew Sears, and Zack Stefanski, Ed Monk released three singles, ‘Walk Out,’ ‘Honey,’ and ‘Narcissus’ between 2023 and 2024, while playing several shows across Louisville in order to reintroduce themselves to the city of Louisville.
Now, the band wants 2025 to be the year that the city listens. On January 31st, Ed Monk released their new EP, Second Nature, with a release show to follow on February 7th at The Whirling Tiger with support from Cincinnati’s Multimagic, and Louisville’s own Animal Transit. Here’s what the band has to say about the EP -
“We are so excited for our city to hear the fruits of our labor over the last year and a half. This EP explores many different themes from romantic betrayal to corporate greed to being stuck on an island (literally or metaphorically? You decide!), with everything coalescing around the Ed Monk sound. With the exception of some drums and bass being recorded at the esteemed Deadbird Studios, 'Second Nature' is a fully in-house production, from the writing, recording, mixing, and mastering, to the artwork. We hope it has the ability to resonate with everybody’s lived experience in some way, shape, or form. But mostly, we hope you feel the need to move your feet.”
The EP will contain the three aforementioned singles, as well as two new songs, ‘End User Licenses,’ and ‘Burning Fire.’ The band will play all 5 songs from the EP at the release show, as well as 2 brand new songs, and a couple songs from the vault. Ed Monk will continue to write and play live shows extensively through 2025, with plans to begin work on a new studio project in 2025.
