Crashbox Monkey House

• 1 Return of the Mayfly 04:30
• 2 Someplace on Madison 04:23
• 3 Crashbox 05:12
• 4 Disappear in Plain Sight 04:20
• 5 What's Left of This World 03:40
• 6 Sundaying 03:33
• 7 Smoke 'Em If You Got 'Em 04:19
• 8 Bring the Stars Down 05:08
• 9 You Just Don't Know It Yet 04:30
• 10 Chasing the Muse 04:36
• 11 Friday Night Jam 05:13
• 12 Feeling You Breathe 03:57
• Total Runtime 53:21

Info for Crashbox

Crashbox builds on Monkey House's chart-topping success, blending jazz, rock, and pop with sophisticated songwriting and world-class musicianship.

Crashbox, the new twelve-song opus Monkey House founder Don Breithaupt calls “the best album we’ve ever done, from the standpoint of songwriting, performance and production,” is ready for the world. Monkey House’s fifth album for ALMA Records will be released on June 6.

Building on the success of 2019’s Friday and 2022’s Remember the Audio, Crashbox features guest appearances by Michael Leonhart and the late Drew Zingg, and a cowrite with Marc Jordan, whose CV includes covers by Rod Stewart, Joe Cocker and Natalie Cole.

“Our fan base gets bigger with each release,” says Breithaupt. “We have true believers in the U.S., England, Japan, Sweden, Germany, everywhere. It’s great to feel like people are hotly anticipating each album. My goal every time is to have the band feel like we’ve outdone ourselves. For us, that’s the bar.”

Following the success of Remember the Audio, Monkey House returns with Crashbox—a dynamic and sonically rich collection that blends jazz harmony with pop accessibility and rock energy. Helmed by Emmy-winning songwriter-producer Don Breithaupt, the album features the band’s longtime lineup—Justin Abedin (guitar), Pat Kilbride (bass), and Mark Kelso (drums)—and welcomes a stellar cast of guests including Steely Dan’s trumpeter Michael Leonhart, Boz Scaggs guitarist Drew Zingg, and powerhouse vocalists Michael Dunston and Selena Evangeline.

Tracked live at Noble Street Studios in Toronto and meticulously crafted with longtime producer Peter Cardinali and Grammy-winning engineer John ‘Beetle’ Bailey, Crashbox delivers richly layered arrangements, lyrical wit, and undeniable groove. It’s a testament to Breithaupt’s ever-evolving creative vision—and proof that Monkey House continues to push the boundaries of sophisticated pop.

“Our fan base gets bigger with each release,” says Breithaupt. “We have true believers in the U.S., England, Japan, Sweden, Germany, everywhere. It’s great to feel like people are hotly anticipating each album. My goal every time is to have the band feel like we’ve outdone ourselves. That’s the bar.” Consider that goal met once more, in thrilling style.

Crafted for longtime fans and new listeners alike, Crashbox is Monkey House at their most vibrant and refined. With Breithaupt’s signature blend of wit, groove, and sophistication, the album delivers dazzling arrangements, top-tier musicianship, and thought-provoking lyrics—all wrapped in pristine production. As both a continuation and evolution of the band’s sound, Crashbox reaffirms Monkey House’s status as one of the most inventive and enduring voices in contemporary jazz-pop.

“Sophisticated, supple, funky, and smart… glorious chords, expert playing, and music as luxurious as a king-size mattress with a duck down duvet on a frosty night” — Bob Mersereau, CBC Radio

“Don Breithaupt of Monkey House is one of the very few guys who really get the melodic pop thing: Randy Goodrum, David Foster, Michael Omartian. It’s a very special category.” — Jay Graydon, Grammy-winning producer

“Snaps, crackles, and pops with an intelligent effervescence attempted by many and achieved by very few…” — Vickie van Dyke, WAVE 94.7 FM.

Monkey House

Monkey House (Don Breithaupt)
is perhaps best known for composing the music for the animated series 6teen with Anthony Vanderburgh. In 2009, the duo won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Song for their theme to this series. Since 2007, they've won three SOCAN Awards, two for Domestic Animated Television Series music and one for International Television Series music. They're currently working on the animated series Sidekick, which airs on YTV. Breithaupt has also composed original themes and/or scores for HGTV’s Home to Keep, Fresh TV’s Really Me!, CBC’s Disability Network and TVO’s Benjamin’s Farm.

Breithaupt also composes songs with his brother Jeff, which are featured in their revue, The Breithaupt Brothers Songbook, which has regular performances in New York. He's the current keyboard player for the Kim Mitchell Band, and he tours with Rik Emmett and Sass Jordan. In addition, Breithaupt leads his own group Monkey House, who have released two well-received albums with strong airplay, and have just finished recording a new one, Headquarters, to be released in early 2012. The band makes melodic pop with a sophisticated, jazzy twist, clearly influenced by Steely Dan.

In fact Breithaupt is the author of Steely Dan’s Aja, Vol. 46 of Continuum Publishing’s 33-1/3 series of books about albums. His previous books include Precious and Few: Pop Music in the Early '70s and Night Moves: Pop Music in the Late '70s. He received his musical education at Berklee College of Music in Boston, and his literary education at Queen's University in Kingston. He has written extensively on music and film, most often for The National Post.

As a songwriter, Breithaupt has had his work covered by such artists as Alfie Zappacosta, Marc Jordan, Dione Taylor, Sarah Slean, Denzal Sinclaire, Patricia O'Callaghan, and Chris Smith, and he's currently co-writing new material with Rik Emmett, Kim Mitchell and Wendy Lands.

Booklet for Crashbox