Big Head Todd and the Monsters
Big Head Todd and the Monsters
Rock band
Sister Sweetly Scores Platinum
Big Head Todd and the Monsters have inspired loyalty among their fans, most of whom admire their unpretentious attitude. Just like their fans, the Monsters are inspired by their love of music and don’t aspire to be rock and roll stars. Even with that guy next door image, fans still put the band on a pedestal at times along with their other rock n’ roll heroes. The band has enjoyed a slow and steady ascent into stardom over the last elevenyears.
The group was formed by three friends who had known each other since their high school days, and they are led by Todd Mohr, who plays lead guitar as well as being the band’s singer and songwriter. The monsters are Rob “Rodeo” Squires on bass and Brian Nevin on drums. The trio hails from Colorado and enjoys supergroup status there. The band started in Boulder as part of the college campus music scene and their first gigs were at fraternity parties and blues jam nights in local nightclubs. Locals have enjoyed watching the band grow from their early beginnings in 1986 to their current national status.
For the Record…
Members include Todd Mohr, singer, lead guitar; Brian Nevin, drums; Rob Squires, bass.
Formed in Colorado, 1986; played locally and released two albums on their
label Big Records, Another Mayberry, 1989, and Midnight Radio, 1990; signed to Giant Records, released Sister Sweetly and Big Head Todd and the Monsters Live, 1993; Strategem was released on Giant, 1994; Beautiful World was released on Revolution Records, 1997.
Addresses: Record company —Revolution Records, 8900 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 200 Beverly Hills, CA 90211.
The Monsters hold a special place in the heart of their Colorado fans and the band is very appreciative of the local support. Nevin explained the band’s enthusiasm about playing in their home state in the Colorado Daily: “I still feel like we’re a part of this community and to play here is different than playing any place else—it’s always like one big family reunion. In some senses, I think we’re in the right place at the right time. We want the musical popularity, but it’s a tough game. Follow your heart, and things will happen the way they’re supposed to. That’s always been our deal. I’m glad we’ve had the opportunity to grow slowly and develop, as very few bands have the luxury of having the education we’ve had. But in the end—it’s the music that’s important.”
The Colonel
The Monsters formed in 1986 and became a successful local group in the Denver area and soon built a loyal regional following across the Rocky Mountain States. The band paid their dues traveling the country in their van dubbed “the Colonel.” They accumulated many memories while logging 400,000 miles on the odometer of the Colonel. Their regional success was gradually expanding through the Midwest and the west coast. Mohr, remembering those early days, stated in an article on the band’s website, “I don’t think it’s really unusual that we started in a van because everybody does. But what is unusual is the fact that we were in that van for probably seven years.”
Their earliest fans were constantly pestering the band for a recording of their music. With their modest means the band formed Big records and released their first album, Another Mayberryin 1989. This was followed by Mid-night Radio in 1990, and both these independent releases carried the band to another level of success. Constant touring allowed the band to perfect and refine their live performance and this soon became known for passionate, inspiring live sets. The band released a live album called Big Head Todd and the Monsters Live that was recorded live at the 1993 H.O.R.D.E. festival.
Sister Sweetly Scores Platinum
The band reached the pinnacle of their success with the 1993 release of Sister Sweetly. Blessed with good timing and more national exposure—including the H.O.R.D.E. tour—the album went platinum. Alternative music was breaking throughout the country, and radio stations and fans were eagerly looking for new sounds. The Monsters came to the fore, with their unusual name, solid talent, and smash new album. They rode the alternative wave to the top as Sister Sweetly continued to rise on the charts.
The financial and critical success of Sister Sweetly allowed the band more freedom to grow and change as musicians without the pressure to make a living. The album was followed by Stratagem which enjoyed less success than its predecessor, but nevertheless was well received. The band took a prolonged hiatus between albums, fueling unfounded rumors of a breakup.
It’s a Beautiful World
For a band like Big Head Todd and the Monsters, working with your heroes and musical influences is a dream come true. That dream was realized by the band as they worked on their Beautiful World album. The album was recorded in Sausilito, California with producer Jerry Harrison. Harrison, ex-member of the Talking Heads and producer of many of the band’s contemporaries such as Live, Crash Test Dummies and The Verve Pipe, brought some surprises into the studio.
During the early days of the band, they often performed the John Lee Hooker classic “Boom, Boom.” Unknown to the Monsters, Hooker was recording down the hall from them. Harrison arranged for the blues legend to sit in on the band’s cover of the song. Bassist Rob Squires remembered in an article on the band’s website, “Hooker has just this incredible presence. He walked in the room and literally everybody was intimidated, including our producer and the people that work at the studio. His voice is just thunder, and when he started talking into the mike, everyone just lost it.” A new collaboration of “Boom, Boom” was born.
The band claims many influences in the blues world, as well as soul, rock and funk. The band’s name was inspired by bluesman Eddie “Clean Head” Vinson. They claim Albert Collins, Lightnin’ Hopkins, the Allman Brothers, Eric Clapton and the Grateful Dead as influences on their music. The band also worked with funk legend Bernie Worrell on the title track of Beautiful World, Worrell is the former keyboardist for funk supergroup, Parliament-Funkadelic. Squires told the Colorado Daily plans for the Beautiful Worldtour, “We’re playing soulful and funky stuff more. We’ll have more Hammond B-3 organ in the sound with Corey Mauser (formerly of the Ugly Americans) and we’ll have Hazel (Miller) doing some singing … We just found that when we’re playing on huge stages that a three-piece can feel really lost. Hopefully, the other players will give assistance in that area.”
Selected discography
Another May berry, Big Records, 1989.
Midnight Radio, Big Records, 1990.
Sister Sweetly, Giant Records, 1993.
Big Head Todd and the Monsters Live, Giant Records, 1993.
Stratagem, Giant Records, 1994.
Beautiful World, Revolution Records, 1997.
Sources
Books
Robbins, IraA., editor, The Trouser Press Guide to 90’s Rock, Simon and Schuster, New York, 1997.
Periodicals
Colorado Daily, June 12, 1996.
Rolling Stone, February 12, 1996
Online
http://www.revolution.com/bhtm/
Additional information for this profile was obtained from a February 3, 1997 interview with the band on America Online, and an appearance on the Conan O’Brien show that aired on May 26, 1997.
—Janet Smith
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