Japanther
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Tags: rock, punk, lo-fi, noise rock
Japanther is a punk rock band from New York City formed in 2001 by two students at Pratt Institute. The band consists of Ian Vanek — who plays drums, cassettes, and sings — and Matt Reilly — who plays bass, a Casio SK-1, and also sings. They have recorded with Plan It X Records, Tapes Records, and the Menlo Park label. Japanther has been featured in Vice, The New York Times, Gothamist, Dallas Observer, Razorcake, and New York magazine among others. In the first two years of the band, they toured nine times.
In April 2006, Japanther teamed up with Aquadoom, a synchronized swimming group at New York University to play the Dangerous When Wet event at the school’s Palladium Pool. On July 2, 2006, Japanther played under a plastic tarp in the rain at CitySol, an annual summer music and market series on Manhattan’s East River waterfront (Stuyvesant Cove Park) to raise awareness for environmental issues. Listen at Last.fm445 Followers See all
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losanjealous on Japanther
about 1 month agoRECOMMENDED more here
TheOwlMag on Japanther
5 months agoArtist: Japanther Album: Tut Tut Now Shake Ya Butt Label: Wantage Records Rating: Buy it >>
Brooklyn’s Japanther resides on a different plane in the vast soundscape that is the NYC scene. Brooklyn beams youth and DIY, and if there’s a flagship ready to carry its freak flag, Japanther has to be considered. They’re elder statesmen by now, first breaking on the scene way back yonder in 2001. Along the way, the duo of Ian Vanek and Matt Reilly have performed concerts to raise awareness surrounding environmental issues, released a million EPs and albums, and continue to amass a loyal concertgoing crowd known for chaos and electricity. Almost all of it while maintaining underground cred.
Which brings us to Tut Tut Now Shake Ya Butt. After being hailed for their relentless lo-fi art-punk thrashings, their latest is still a uniquely experimental indie spattering of fuzz, keyboards, and fierce manimal drumming, but Tut Tut sounds exposed. In other words, Japanther clarifies it best in the track “Um Like Yer Smile is Totally Ruling Me Right Now”: “When I look around I can’t see the things my parents promised me / We’ve come so far / But how far have we gone off track / It’s time to look at what we’ve done.”
Tut Tut is sometimes a confused battle between the creepy talky interludes and mix of tracks leaning more toward a No Age/Liars collaboration rather than a Japanther masterpiece. Their legacy isn’t in jeopardy—however, fans will likely pause in disappointment and take their medicine in stride.
- Review submitted by Carnie Fulton.
more at theowlmag.comBuzz Bands LA on Japanther
8 months agoJapanther may be the hardest-working punks to come out of Brooklyn. Matt Reilly and Ian Vanek are rowdy, loud and definitely too absurd for your parents. No matter where Japanther goes, mosh pits ensue, but it doesn't mean that Reilly and Vanek are just messing around. Counting their collection of 7-inches, EPs and albums (and excluding any compilations), the duo's got 21 releases under their belt, with their latest record "Beets, Limes and Rice" out now on Recess Records. Those lyrics hidden in all that speedy drumming and shouting don't just pose as the spirit of punk. They go more here
covertcuriosity on Japanther
over 2 years agoHere's a three-fer, because I'm on a roll, and because the last two Japanther tracks I put up disappeared. more at blogspot.com
covertcuriosity on Japanther
over 2 years agoHere's a three-fer, because I'm on a roll, and because the last two Japanther tracks I put up disappeared. more at blogspot.com
covertcuriosity on Japanther
over 2 years agoJapanther. more at blogspot.com
covertcuriosity on Japanther
over 2 years agoJapanther. more at blogspot.com
allmusic on Japanther
over 4 years agoWith Reilly singing while playing a three-stringed bass as Vanek simultaneously attacked a drum kit and a bank of electronic equipment playing found and mutated cassettes, both of them singing into microphones fashioned out of old-fashioned telephone handsets, they're like a more playful and even more self-conscious updating of the late-'70s no wave scene, though a thorough rooting in the skatepunk scene as youngsters keeps things from getting too precious. more at www.allmusic.com