Big Head Todd and The Monsters are excited to announce the release of their 12th album, Her Way Out, via Big Records.
For close to four decades, the members of Big Head Todd and The Monsters—Todd Park Mohr [vocals, guitar, keys, sax, harmonica], Brian Nevin [drums], Rob Squires [bass, vocals], and Jeremy Lawton [keyboards, lap pedal-steel guitar, vocals]—have continued to both throw down in the studio and light up stages worldwide. Rallying around a core vision, the platinum-selling Colorado quartet kick out the jams both in-studio and on-stage.
Todd, Brian and Rob unlocked their musical partnership during high school when they started jamming in the early eighties. In 1986 they adopted the name Big Head Todd and The Monsters. BHTM released two successful independent records on their label, BIG Records, Another Mayberry (1989) and Midnight Radio (1990.) Sister Sweetly (1993) pushed them to the next level yielding four top 10 rock radio hits. Strategem [1994] came next followed by Beautiful World [1997], which included "Boom Boom" featuring John Lee Hooker.
The band procured a spot in The Guinness Book of World Records with their performance of "Blue Sky" live from NASA Mission Control to the Space Station..They've toured and recorded with B.B. King, Neil Young, The Allman Brothers, Hubert Sumlin, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Dave Matthews Band, The Eagles and Robert Plant. They attained hometown hero status by headlining Red Rocks Amphitheatre 35 times and earning induction into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame in 2023.
Their latest release, Her Way Out, came to life organically. For two years, the band hosted "Monster's Music Monthly," serving up new songs or new versions of their extensive catalogue.of a classic Working out of Jeremy's home studio, they parlayed this momentum into their latest LP.
"It had been almost seven years since our last album release, but we wanted to put the same energy of 'Monster's Music Monthly' into a full-length," Todd notes. "We have a very distinct personality as a band. I write to each member's sensibilities because they will have to dig playing it. We're a benevolent democracy. If one guy isn't connecting with a certain song, that song is out. As an uncomplicated rock band, we like to do' proper' things—loud guitars, drums, big bass, well-placed organ, keys, and lap steel. We road-tested every song on the record before recording a lick. That helped us dial in the arrangements, ditch tunes that didn't work and grow a strong sense of what our parts should be."
In this respect, the single and title track "Her Way Out" packs a concentrated and catchy punch. Anchored by a steady beat, the rough-and-tumble riff kicks up dust as soulful vocals ignite an irresistible refrain: "She found her way out, her way out—and it was me."
Guitar surges through "Thunderbird" as strains of organ coat a raucous refrain with a lyrical tip-of-the-hat to the Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas classic American Graffiti. Todd declares, "'Thunderbird' is a collection of one-liners from the film knit together with a beat poet vibe. It has an AC/DC-like guitar riff and a cinematic-style vocal. It's all about drag racing and love never caught."
Elsewhere, Big Head Todd and The Monsters nod to Annie Oakley with "Don't Kill Me Tonight." Then, there's "King Kong." A hulking groove lumbers beneath the frontman's bluesy intonation as a piano solo bleeds into a skyscraper-scaling guitar lead.
"It's inspired by a large movie poster in my basement of King Kong on top of the Empire State Building," Todd reveals. "I'm drawn to these iconic contemporary heroes who are also monsters. They are complicated because they destroy so much, yet are sympathetic to children and fall in love with human women. These 'Titans,' as they are called, are often monsters of our own making. It's exciting to perform live."
Rave reviews have been rolling in. Westword declared, "Her Way Out is the kind of album that's meant to be played while speeding down a mountain road, chasing that Wild West type of freedom that this Colorado band has always evoked". Blues Rock Review said, "Her Way Out is an enjoyable collection that only becomes more so with repeated listens". At the same time, Americana Highways effused, "Rootsy American rock that ought to turn anyone on".
Ultimately, the future looks as bright as ever for these longtime friends.
"We work very hard at being a great band" Todd leaves off. "We're also a group that cares for each other. We've been together for almost 40 years. Our audience has made it all possible, and we're grateful and determined to keep playing."
