Musician, collagist, merch designer — one might say Ted Feighan is a modern Renaissance man. In his case, the Renaissance is tropical. As Monster Rally, he’s taking his record-store vibes and jungle beats into new territory on tour this fall, joined on stage by his best friend, fellow artist-musician John Hastings of the groovy Denver-based RUMTUM.
Growing up in Cleveland, Ohio, with its long, gray winters, Feighan channeled his anxieties into subtropic dreams. “I was imagining being anywhere else,” he tells PureHoney. “Creating Monster Rally was a combination of wanting to feel calm and serene and having a mental vacation.”
While he’s been making music since age 13, it wasn’t until college when his “obsession” with producer Madlib led him to buy a vintage Boss SP-303 sampler, the same model Madlib used on 2004’s Madvillainy. He’s since upgraded, but the aesthetic lives on. Songs such as “Torchlit Cenote” and “Grassy Crystals” beckon the listener into an imaginary basement lounge in Rio, fashioning tropicalia and hip-hop into lush, hazy grooves. On “Your Old House,” his latest single, the soothing vocal presence of indie jazz J-pop artist Mei Semones fits the ukulele strumming and chill beats to conjure a perfect beach day.
Monster Rally’s audio palette corresponds to, and with, his vibrant artwork — rainforested collages that often become his album covers. Scouring library sales for vintage LPs and magazines, he’ll incorporate alligators, flamingos and all the surrounding flora into his visual and sonic creations. Feighan also shares his creative process on Substack at The Flowering Jungle.
Besides putting finishing touches on a new album due in the spring, he’s been reworking songs to play live with Hastings, adding a drum kit, congas and some fun Mellotron synthesizer jams. “It’s something I’ve thought about doing for a long time, and I’m glad it’s actually coming together,” he says.
And what better place to end his tour than sunny Miami? “I still picture Monster Rally as a place,” he says. “Mentally I’m going there and that’s what I’m seeing, that’s what I’m hearing. I’m hoping people get that kind of experience, too.”
Monster Rally performs 8pm Saturday, Nov. 22 at ZeyZey Miami. monsterrally.co ~ Olivia Feldman
