ST. DIVINE & SECRET MONKEY WEEKEND!
About this Event
Sunday, Oct 4, 2026
Show at 7:30 / Doors @ 7 PM BYOB
$15 Advance / $20 Door
St. Divine is a critically acclaimed NYC based punk/Americana five piece band fronted by Will Croxton and Judy Ann Nock. Featuring duets, obscure covers (60s garage/honky tonk to 80s sleaze), and majestic rock, St. Divine has deep roots in the humid south, but is firmly planted in the blacktopped urban wilds. Formed in 2024 by vocalist/guitarist Will Croxton and Judy Ann Nock, after performing together with punk legend Ivan Julian, the band quickly gained traction on WFMU, The Underground Garage, and college radio across the U.S., surpassing 600 radio plays across the world by 2026. Their debut album, released this summer, was cited on Jim Testa’s Best of 2026 So Far, and reviewed in Jack Rabid’s The Big Takeover. St. Divine was chosen for Sound Opinions’ Buried Treasures/Hot Picks for Summer (2025) and their lead album single, SPIT (Jan 2026) was named Constant Listener Song of the Week by Jim Testa.
Together with drummer Michael Ratti (The Nails, Hot Hero Sandwich, Rex Smith), bassist Jesse Barnes (Oakley Hall) and guitarist Philip Yanos (Driver X, Modern Beast, The Side Effect), St. Divine has been described as “a blend of sass and subversiveness, melody and muscle, incendiary noise and infectious groove” (Dave Franklin, The Big Takeover, May 2025) and “dark, undulating, pounding, desperately yearning and searching – taps into the primal roots of punk…(Jim Testa, Punk Rock Scouting, Off Shelf, May 7, 2025) and a "riotous power punk sound" (Jim Derogatis, SOUND OPINIONS, July 2025).
Secret Monkey Weekend is a power pop garage trio from Durham NC, produced by REM-Smithereens producer Don Dixon. Their music and their compelling family story, arising from tragedy to healing with music, was profiled by PBS awhile back in a fifteen minute piece. It won an Emmy! The band goes back to when sisters Ella and Lila were in grade school. Father-guitarist Jefferson Hart played with dB’s founder Chris Stamey in the 90s and has led Americana / power pop bands ever since in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area for forty years. And one of Ella's childhood best pals? Grant Hart. Her birth father drummed with the Minneapolis legend in his solo shows in the early 2010's. He's honored with a single-only release last year by the band.
Radio Free Americana's Album of the Year 2025 - Lemon Drop Hammer by Secret Monkey Weekend.
Reviews of the recent album Lemon Drop Hammer
"America’s coolest family band .. exhibit a sparkling pop chemistry on par with The Bangles and The dB’s. Their heartwarming story is the focus of an Emmy-winning PBS documentary in 2023. I wasn’t prepared for Jefferson’s tremendous talent as a writer, player and singer. These three individuals have combined to make something I love [and] grown, literally and figuratively, in front of my eyes.” - Don Dixon
"Harnessing timeless Beatles/Kinks melodic instincts to fairy-dust power-pop guitar jangle, authentic first-person lyrics, and three contrasting voices that harmonize as only family can, it’s a record at once instantly classic and, with a teen and 22-year-old aboard, innately contemporary ... Buoyant album opener “So Much Joy” evokes heyday Yardbirds; it’s “woo-ooh” backups framing textured co-ed vocals." - Robert Ross, Music Tap
“The nine original songs on ‘Lemon Drop Hammer’ are gems that find a happy meeting place between a variety of feels like ‘60s psychedelic pop, ‘80s jangle, exuberant power pop, psychobilly, rustic Americana, Stones-y grit, etc. all with a consistent Southern twang in the mixture. - Brian Green, It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine
Americana Highways - "Guitarist Jefferson Hart’s lead vocal has a good Tom Petty tone & when coupled with the female na, na, na chorus, it’s infectious like a good commercial tune should be. Play it all day on the radio & people will be singing it to themselves on busy city streets. Jefferson’s stepdaughters join with wonderfully energetic female vocals. They drenched each song in flavorful sugary harmonies on whatever they sing. Out of North Carolina, (they) sculpt a mix of Squeeze-oriented melodic tunes run through a Deaf School strainer. There is a new wave/punk flavor to some of these songs or an earlier hybrid somewhat like ‘60s band The Castaways (“Liar, Liar,” “Sam”).
Vanessa Hay of Pylon - “In a time honored tradition going back to the beginnings of rock and roll, a band was born right at home. Sisters Ella and Lila Brown Hart are the rhythm section, while their Step-Dad Jefferson Hart plays the guitar. They all share singing duties. A highlight of their new self released album is the track ‘Na NaNaNa’ was written by my spouse Bob Hay of Squalls. The harmonies are perfect in only the way siblings can make them.”
Aother Athens connection is former REM sideman Peter Holsapple (the dB's) played on both albums, written liner notes, and has played keyboards live.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 17.85
