After watching Office Space, Gabe Robledo couldn’t stop repeating the quote: “Uh-oh, sounds like somebody’s got a case of The Mondays!” The 20-year-old singer/guitarist’s favorite scene became the inspiration behind the moniker of his band, The MonDays. Along with fellow Pajaro Valley High School graduates—Miguel Soriano (bass/sax/guitar), and twins Jesse Flores (drums/shaker) and Ivan Flores (keyboards)—this rock/R&B/hip-hop quartet has transformed the mundane weekday into music that drags on, but solely because their sound is timeless and infectious.
According to Robledo, an art major at UC Santa Cruz, “My goal wasn’t to be a rock star. It was to be in a Beatles cover band.” This modest admittance is evinced in “Take Me Back,” in which The MonDays unleash playful melodies and tender lyrics, like “Why is it that when I look at her/ all my feelings start to shatter?/ Why is it when I hear her name/ inside I won’t stop going insane?” Even when the band performs from their hip-hop/R&B-inspired repertoire—see “What Would I Do”—the starry-eyed sentiment remains: “And now I’ve found the perfect person, and yup, she’s a ten./ She’s my best friend.” Robledo explains, “One of my biggest idols is John Mayer, but Ivan would kill me if I said that.” After citing Kanye West as another inspiration, Robledo jokes, “I like douchebags … I’m that kind of girl.” Other members are suckers for Spanish singing musicians. “We also play a lot of Spanish pop and rock,” says Soriano. On Saturday, the four will play a 20-minute set at the fourth annual Teen Battle of the Bands, hosted by Santa Cruz Public Libraries. They will compete against Smith Alley, Jackie Rocks and Bebop, for recording and rehearsing time at local studios. If The MonDays win, the band will be able to complete its first demo, set for release in late August.
INFO: 1-4 p.m. Saturday, July 21. Outside the Downtown Library, 224 Church St., Santa Cruz. No cover.
