Space Monkeys

Space Monkeys

Space Monkeys are an alternative dance group from Middleton, associated with Manchester, England. They form in 1994 and remain active. The group line-up includes Richard McNevin-Duff and Chas Morrison, with earlier members Tony Pipes and Dom Morrison also part of the band.

The band signs to Factory Records and Interscope Records in the US. Their first album, The Daddy of Them All, appears in 1997. Its single “Sugar Cane” reaches number 58 on the Billboard chart, and its video is directed by photographer David LaChapelle and features the Rock Steady Crew. The group tours the US and Europe with Smash Mouth and Third Eye Blind.

“Drug Soup” is recorded for the soundtrack of the film Sliding Doors, starring Gwyneth Paltrow. Space Monkeys later record a second album, Escape from the 20th Century, which includes tracks produced by Prince Paul, but it is not released after the collapse of Factory Records and related problems.

After the group disbands for a time, Richard McNevin-Duff and Tony Pipes release material as Munki, including a reworking of “Ulysses” for Manchester Aid to Kosovo’s Cohesion compilation. Chas Morrison later joins the avant-garde drum and bass group RSL and then the band Strays.