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Oi!
I's got music for da peoples today!
That right there, is the logo of Shonen Knife (少年ナイフ or Shonen Naifu in Japanese--literally "Boy Knife") .
If you've never heard of them, there's really only one way I can think to describe them: Remember the origin story for The Power Puff Girls? Sure ya do! Well, imagine if after adding Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice, instead of Chemical X, Professor Utonium tossed in a copy of the 1978 Ramones LP Road To Ruin.
Instead of Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup--you'd get Naoko, Atsuko, and Michie. (and later Etsuko, Ritsuko, and Emi)
Not a J-Pop band (nothing against J-Pop), SK (occasionally known as the Osaka Ramones) put a distinctively Japanese spin on American Old-School East-Coast Punk...The driving guitars and infectious, bare-bones rhythms are there--but the lyrics are about food, cats, bicycles, fish, candy, and rocketships...To describe the band in their own unique terms, they are--and I quote: "oo-oo-ultra-eccentric-super-cult-punk-pop-band-shonen-knife!"
Imagine if someone put Hello Kitty and Iggy Pop in the Brundlefly machine....
That's the original line-up: Michie Nakatani (Bass, left), Naoko Yamano (Guitar and vocals, center), and her sister: Atsuko Yamano (Drums, right). The photo is circa 1994. Here they are in 2009:
The line-up changed over the years (They formed in 1981, but were all but unknown stateside until '85--and didn't get a deal with a major label until 1992) Michie left the band in '99, Atsuko moved to bass, and Etsuko "Ettchan" Nakanishi became the new drummer (left, short hair) when temporary drummer, Mana Nishiura (not pictured), left the band in '04 (Tragically, Mana died a year later in an automobile accident while touring with Japanese Metal band DMBQ). In 2006, Atsuko quit the band after marrying and moving to L.A. (though she still plays whenever SK is in town) Touring bassist Ritsuko Taneda was then promoted to full member (Right, long hair). Naoko Yamano (center, duh) is the only founding member to have stayed with the band for its full 30 year lifespan (and one can't deny: she's remarkably well-preserved for a woman who'll be 51 this year!)
This lineup was maintained until last year, when Etsuko left (what is it about drummers?) and was replaced by Emi Morimoto (left, ponytail):
(EDITOR'S NOTE: It was 4 in the freakin' morning when I posted this originally--so it was a bit sparse. Thought I'd go back and juice it up a bit...Sorry for any inconvenience!)
Anyway, they're wonderful, magnificent, and adorable...Here in the States they've never had the success they deserved, and are best known as Kurt Cobain's favorite band:
Cobain sought them out after falling in love with their 1983 cassette, Burning Farm, which he first heard about when it was picked up by the indie label K records. (Later, Shonen Knife would also be distributed by the legendary grunge label SubPop) Amusingly, SK not only had no clue who Nirvana was, but also were a little afraid of Cobain and his cohorts. Later, Naoko would describe him as "very nice, but quiet".
SK became one of those bands that audiences didn't know (American audiences, at least), but other musicians loved...In 1989, a compilation album of SK covers by many of the biggest alternative acts of the late 80s and early 90s called Every Band Has A Shonen Knife That Loves Them was released. 20 bands contributed songs.
Bah! Time for me to stop wasting your time with mere words... hit the jump!
A serious note before you do: Our thoughts are with the people of Japan as they struggle to recover from the recent 8.9 magnitude Earthquake and the following Tsunami. Anyone wishing to assist can do so at http://www.redcross.org/
This is Tomato Head off of 1994's Rock Animals, probably the best known SK video in the States due to its appearance on Beavis and Butt-Head...FYI, this is about as "Dark" as Shonen Knife gets.
Here's a fan-made video for I Am A Cat from 1991's Let's Knife, SK's major-label debut. It's also my favorite SK tune, and may be the cutest thing ever to rise from the hand of man (3 words: SAMURAI. PIZZA. CATS!!!)
I'll have more videos for you folks soon, but I'll end tonight on a strong note with this vid for the title-track to 2009's Super Group. I Am A Cat may be my favorite song, but this is my favorite SK video by far! And try to wrap your head around this: The lead singer, Naoko Yamano, was 49 when she made this video...That's a 49 year old woman!
You always hear about how the Japanese are so much healthier than Westerners...How much more proof do you need?XD
More Knifey Goodness to come! I leave you with some lovely pictures of Ettchan:
Scoot-san
I's got music for da peoples today!
That right there, is the logo of Shonen Knife (少年ナイフ or Shonen Naifu in Japanese--literally "Boy Knife") .
If you've never heard of them, there's really only one way I can think to describe them: Remember the origin story for The Power Puff Girls? Sure ya do! Well, imagine if after adding Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice, instead of Chemical X, Professor Utonium tossed in a copy of the 1978 Ramones LP Road To Ruin.
Instead of Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup--you'd get Naoko, Atsuko, and Michie. (and later Etsuko, Ritsuko, and Emi)
Not a J-Pop band (nothing against J-Pop), SK (occasionally known as the Osaka Ramones) put a distinctively Japanese spin on American Old-School East-Coast Punk...The driving guitars and infectious, bare-bones rhythms are there--but the lyrics are about food, cats, bicycles, fish, candy, and rocketships...To describe the band in their own unique terms, they are--and I quote: "oo-oo-ultra-eccentric-super-cult-punk-pop-band-shonen-knife!"
Imagine if someone put Hello Kitty and Iggy Pop in the Brundlefly machine....
That's the original line-up: Michie Nakatani (Bass, left), Naoko Yamano (Guitar and vocals, center), and her sister: Atsuko Yamano (Drums, right). The photo is circa 1994. Here they are in 2009:
The line-up changed over the years (They formed in 1981, but were all but unknown stateside until '85--and didn't get a deal with a major label until 1992) Michie left the band in '99, Atsuko moved to bass, and Etsuko "Ettchan" Nakanishi became the new drummer (left, short hair) when temporary drummer, Mana Nishiura (not pictured), left the band in '04 (Tragically, Mana died a year later in an automobile accident while touring with Japanese Metal band DMBQ). In 2006, Atsuko quit the band after marrying and moving to L.A. (though she still plays whenever SK is in town) Touring bassist Ritsuko Taneda was then promoted to full member (Right, long hair). Naoko Yamano (center, duh) is the only founding member to have stayed with the band for its full 30 year lifespan (and one can't deny: she's remarkably well-preserved for a woman who'll be 51 this year!)
This lineup was maintained until last year, when Etsuko left (what is it about drummers?) and was replaced by Emi Morimoto (left, ponytail):
(EDITOR'S NOTE: It was 4 in the freakin' morning when I posted this originally--so it was a bit sparse. Thought I'd go back and juice it up a bit...Sorry for any inconvenience!)
Anyway, they're wonderful, magnificent, and adorable...Here in the States they've never had the success they deserved, and are best known as Kurt Cobain's favorite band:
Cobain sought them out after falling in love with their 1983 cassette, Burning Farm, which he first heard about when it was picked up by the indie label K records. (Later, Shonen Knife would also be distributed by the legendary grunge label SubPop) Amusingly, SK not only had no clue who Nirvana was, but also were a little afraid of Cobain and his cohorts. Later, Naoko would describe him as "very nice, but quiet".
SK became one of those bands that audiences didn't know (American audiences, at least), but other musicians loved...In 1989, a compilation album of SK covers by many of the biggest alternative acts of the late 80s and early 90s called Every Band Has A Shonen Knife That Loves Them was released. 20 bands contributed songs.
Bah! Time for me to stop wasting your time with mere words... hit the jump!
A serious note before you do: Our thoughts are with the people of Japan as they struggle to recover from the recent 8.9 magnitude Earthquake and the following Tsunami. Anyone wishing to assist can do so at http://www.redcross.org/
This is Tomato Head off of 1994's Rock Animals, probably the best known SK video in the States due to its appearance on Beavis and Butt-Head...FYI, this is about as "Dark" as Shonen Knife gets.
Here's a fan-made video for I Am A Cat from 1991's Let's Knife, SK's major-label debut. It's also my favorite SK tune, and may be the cutest thing ever to rise from the hand of man (3 words: SAMURAI. PIZZA. CATS!!!)
I'll have more videos for you folks soon, but I'll end tonight on a strong note with this vid for the title-track to 2009's Super Group. I Am A Cat may be my favorite song, but this is my favorite SK video by far! And try to wrap your head around this: The lead singer, Naoko Yamano, was 49 when she made this video...That's a 49 year old woman!
You always hear about how the Japanese are so much healthier than Westerners...How much more proof do you need?XD
More Knifey Goodness to come! I leave you with some lovely pictures of Ettchan:
Scoot-san
