El Monstero – Uptown Theater – Kansas City

January 19, 2014

Happy New Year! It’s been almost one year since Photos from the Pit has been launched, and it’s been quite a ride. I’ve almost gone full circle now. This time last year, I shot El Monstero at the Uptown Theater, and I got to kick off 2014 with El Monstero once more. Word is definitely getting out about these guys. What was once St. Louis’ best kept secret is now becoming better known, though there was still a large showing of St. Louis fans who made the trip west to catch their hometown heroes.

Borrowing heavily from The Wall and Dark Side of the Moon, El Monstero puts on a show that runs for over three hours, including aerial acrobats, pole dancers and sheep on stilts. El Monstero also added some video projection screens, which were absent from their show in Kansas City last year.

Though a tribute act, El Monstero brings a level of energy to their performances normally reserved for arena acts. It’s amazing how 11 musicians, plus an ensemble of actors and acrobats, not to mention the countless unsung heroes behind the scenes, can create such a spectacular show largely unknown outside of the Midwest. The only way to truly understand an El Monstero show is to experience it, their website is linked below.

El Monstero is: Mark Thomas Quinn (vocals, guitar), Jimmy Griffin (vocals, guitar), Kevin Gangepain (bass), John Pessoni (drums), Bryan Greene (guitar), Bill Relter (keyboards), Jake Elking (keyboards), Dave Farver (saxophone), Ermine Cannon (background vocals), Tandra Williams (background vocals), Mindy Mierek (background vocals)