HALF JAPANESE - The Band That Would Be King

[petitetrasho]

ok, now zoom out slooooowwwwwly.....

[warmwarmerdisco]

I listen and love this band about three times a year.. maybe. During those infrequent sessions I become curious about how they might actually turn weird and impossible shit into an actual song. I will say in most Half-Jap I can find an element that is nearly familiar to ease my impulsive desire to shut it off.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@warmwarmerdisco Don't fight the feeling.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

Don't fight the feeling. 

[squadcar2525]

shows: good musicians don't always make good music and vice versa

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@squadcar2525 who says they're not "good" musicians if you think the music is good? Just a thought.

[cardigansarecool]

One of the greatest discoveries I've ever made is when I found this DVD at a thrift store for 4 dollars.

[msnikish1]

jad fair is a true artist

[Whitestripes33]

Half Japanese are more about having fun than showcasing talent. Their songs are raw, honest, and better than anything the people who slam them will probably ever make in their lifetime.

[Grunge00125]

you can't say that cause half japanese hasn't made much of their career in 30 years. They're fuckin amazing but they're just good because of their mindset that THEY think it's good, and THEY don't care about skill, wheras even in punk rock most musicians want to at least know something about the instrument. And all in all, actually knowing how to play will get you farther than not, even Kurt Cobain one of their biggest fans admitted that.

[johnshipe]

Put on? Maybe, maybe not. (Like Andy Kaufman)

[shit311]

say whatever you like

theyll be won in the end. time will tell

[Aristurtle89]

5:17 Moe Tucker! :)

[asskickatron]

I saw that documentary of these guys on tv.

[LeSexisme]

I met the Fairs the other week. Good dudes!

[fag0tron]

moe!!!

[GibRipper]

Moe, I knew a guy in Union Town named Moe

[GibRipper]

Uniontown is literally 2 miles from my house. This was a big inspiration for me. Actually in this documentary one of the pictures was taken on my High school tennis courts. Its awesome how this band inspired some of my favorites such as Nirvana. In "With the Lights Out" booklet Kurt clearly states the influence and they even opened for Nirvana in '93 for the In Utero Tour, but were booed off stage. I got to meet Dave Fair who used to work at the local library. Long live underground rock.

[onagus2008]

yeah. where have all the original artists gone?

[Whitestripes33]

No one gets outsider music anymore.

That being said, Half Japanese rules.

[Moldova]

What are you even saying?

[Whitestripes33]

Uh, I'm saying that no one get outsider music anymore and that being said, Half Japanese rules.

What part of that isn't clear?

[Moldova]

I was looking for you to elaborate on/clarify the statement, "no one gets outsider music anymore", which I think is a weird thing to say especially considering the genre. It's also untrue, obviously in a technical sense, but in the way you intended as well. What you "said" is clear, but the thinking behind it isn't.

[SaintRussell1914]

People have never gotten outsider music. That's why it's outsider.

[Moldova]

My point ^ stated better/more directly

[bindelbum]

you guys eat dick

and youre an insult to real musicians...

[jriktor]

track at 3:08?

[killustrator]

something shitty

[boogster123321]

wait till the midnight hour. its a cover

[duckroller9000]

Half Japanese is awesome.

Anybody who says otherwise, is wrong.

Obiously.

Bah.

[oldbreadandgrandsonA]

Not telling

[oldbreadandgrandsonA]

What do you mean, "why?"

[justentime66]

Ha...good point. Oh the awkward truth. Half Japanese is just too Deep and heavy for me to concieve and my taste has been horribly manipulated by commercial/corporate rock! I can't imagine music existing without a ten minute neoclassical guitar solo. Even right now when I try to understand their subtle brilliance my mind begins to smoke and needs to be doused with a cold bucket of Brickney Spears!

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@justentime66 A smoking mind is a thing of beauty.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

A smoking mind is a beautiful mind

[halfjapanesenirvana]

Me, too. 

[justentime66]

This band...I agree!

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@justentime66 Me, too!

[justentime66]

bookhouse88, Daniels been making music his entire life (not in 81') and it's great! These ass holes are a mindless gimmick, trying to sell the whole "We're so bad we're good" bullshit.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@justentime66 I don't think that's what is being said here. Untrained people can do interesting things not using traditional tools and techniques, or can be awful. It depends on their sensibilities. And keep in mind that HJ has a broad spectrum of output, you may like their recent ripping performances of Nicole Told Me at the Scala in London that's on YT, or the surprising country rock touch used in Song of Love and Joy at Villette Sonique in Paris

[HorrorFriends]

i love how smug they are. because their so famous and all. good music though.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@HorrorFriends It's all about the music, eh?

[boogster123321]

it love it. they make the least sense about music but at the same they make the most sense at of it.

[oldbreadandgrandsonA]

I hate these fucking dopes.

[Awesomo4003]

these guys have a pretty cool philosophy, would be interesting to meet them

[justentime66]

Jad's a wannabe Daniel Johnston! Tries to sing like him and act like him...hey Jad...Daniel's not a phony playing a role...he's the real deal!

[bookhouse88]

They are definitely similar, but the problem with your theory is that Half Jap predates Daniel Johnston by 4 years (1977 vs 1981).

[wegotrocket]

hey moron, read a book. who came first?

[Cottonpickerr]

It's sucking for the sake of sucking, who cares which came first?

[nsteve111246]

bedroom band, not garage bands, garage bands aspire to be stars...aspire to have managers...these guys promoted and produced themselves. They are a testament to just "expressing". True they are not experimental, retartded..yes, anxious, annoying, ...yes, yes, desperate to some ass, yes, think about the latest brooklyn teen band Al Green, ? inspired by this nerd band?, and Maureen Tucker guest appearances on drums..someone explain how that came about??>>

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@nsteve111246 Moe became a fan when given cassettes of Half Japanese. When she got back into music in the 80's she asked them to be her band. Now, what would you do?

[quadrophrenic]

Half Jap is all about amateurism. They, more than any band, kinda encapsulate that whole attitude of "Well, I'm not Jimi Hendrix, but fuck it, I'm gonna get up there with a guitar and sing songs about high school crushes and vampires, and I'm gonna have fun doing it, because playing music isn't about knowing a billion scales". They pretty much speak for every painfully bad amateur garage band out there, in a really really good way.

[JBHutto]

That sounds more like The Ramones.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@JBHutto The Ramones were a tight rock band in the traditional sense. which Half Japanese clearly wasn't.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@quadrophrenic Fortunately they were better than a "painfully bad amateur garage band." Or we wouldn't be discussing them here and now.

[arranparma]

god there hot

[Darthmagnet]

HaHaHa

That was funny!

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@Darthmagnet I think so.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@arranparma You don't say.

[isp10man]

i hate half-japs...fucking cunt voice pussies

and fuck every one else who diagrees with me

[streetlight3989]

You're extremely mature.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@streetlight3989 I, too, am also mature, and maturing with every single day.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@isp10man Tell it, Brother.

[hwcart]

Tonight, when you're asleep, I'm gonna sneak into your room, and I'm gonna shit in your mouth.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@hwcart Dirty stuff, please don't.

[hwcart]

Tonight, when you're asleep, I'm gonna sneak into your room, and I'm gonna shit in your mouth.

[fortion32]

dude, that's really gross and really funny. how'd he or she take it?

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@fortion32 I don't know.

[isp10man]

i hate that guys voice!!!

he thinks his music is deep but its sucks ass!!!!

FUCK YOU HALF JAPANESE

[carec15]

dude he never said his music was deep i think you just dont understand music exploration your so used to that led zeppelin epic song rock not the abstract experimental side of music

[jonmcroy]

you call THAT abstract experimental, abstract experimental music is like free-form jazz, which is made by people with actual skill and rhythm, this is noise. loud, annoying, semi-mentally challenged noise

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@jonmcroy You may be right.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@carec15 I was talking to Tim F who played in HJ on a couple of records. He was a huge Zeppelin fan.  There's room to like both I think.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@isp10man You are not the only one. My neighbor, a "redneck," hates his voice, too. But then again this guy likes hair metal.

[isp10man]

this band sucks cock and i hope they kill themselves!!!! fucking losers!

HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!! FUCK YOU HALF JAPANESE

and fuck your followers

[boinky333]

Wow. Take it easy.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@boinky333 Let him blow off some steam then maybe he'll get back on his meds.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@isp10man Your hatred is passionate, indeed.

[54spiritedwill54]

this is great...and mo tucker thrown in for good measure. super.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@54spiritedwill54 I agree.

[banjowv]

rock and droll

[KENVAIL]

i enjoyed this movie but i didn't like the constant bashing of major record labels, the one guy ripping on the beatles and stones in the movie seemed a little ridiculous. there's room for underground and mainstream music, i like both.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@KENVAIL Good point. The drummer ripping on the record industry pushing Styx and Supertramp on us wasn't too off though, was he?

[truthisugly]

I can walk to thier house. Uniontown MD. I met Dave Fair

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@truthisugly Breakfast at Baugher's?

[namtap]

I love how this could easily come off as a mockumentary in the realm of all of those Christopher Guest movies, even though Half Japanese is completely real, and completely like they present themselves in this documentary. It's quite hilarious. I love Half Japanese.

[6beelze6bub6]

you like these guys.....try out swell maps.

[LesPaulXXX]

i'm still trying to figure out if this is the greatest "tongue in cheek" joke i've ever seen. a conspiracy against reality...

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@LesPaulXXX Me too.

[LesPaulXXX]

this could possibly be the worst band ever..

[dennisandvicki]

School of Love is pretty much the greatest song ever.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@dennisandvicki Do you know where I can find guitar tabs for that one?

[fantasykiss08]

does anyone know the name of the song that their playing at 3:50?

[ultradamno]

"The Thing With A Hook"

[ssxj88]

These guys blow.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@ssxj88 Who do you like?

[jessicagallagher]

Half Japanese are so entertaining....and fantastic!

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@jessicagallagher That is such a positive comment. I like that.

[DOWDLE]

Love this movie,..they just don't come any cooler then Jad,...the Man Himself...

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@DOWDLE He certainly is one of a kind.

[TeenageWildlife]

i totally respect the ethos that drives the stuff they do, but the music itself doesn't appeal to me. good to see Moe Tucker on this though.

[melancholicgaze]

Your right

the music doesnt captivate me

I admit that when I first saw this on the DOC channel

i was horrified

now i can stand it lol

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@melancholicgaze Slippery slope

[fag0tron]

yeah, same here.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@TeenageWildlife Bowie appeals to you, that is obvious.

[veritas1005]

3 best bands of all time nirvana, half japanese & beat happening

[plumgreen]

it's not fucking about punk OR ANYTHING ELSE. like he says, they were just trying to make what they wanted to make as good as they could do. it's called liking to play music. a punk is someone getting fucked in the ass in a prison.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@plumgreen A very original take.

[PhishPhan89]

who cares what label music is you should like good tunes for what they are half japanese didnt set out saying we are gonna be punk there sound just came out that way. they rule and if you dont like them thats cool too.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@PhishPhan89 Phish and Half Japanese. You must be a music lover.

[dansftown]

This was one of the best documentaries I've ever seen, those of you who hate Half Japanese need to relax and realize what they were doing. They're just having fun and making music, it's actually very refreshing.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@dansftown Like an ice cold Upper 10 on a hot day in Luxor.

[suckstones]

Believe me I do know punk.  Half Japanese is not punk, it is PUKE

[JeffKatz]

You DO know that Social Distortion doesn't count right? Your ignorance is hilarious!

[suckstones]

Ok Ok you got me dude. I am an ignorant idiot.

This band, if that is what you say, still is THE WORST BAND OF ALL TIME. And they are BORING and if you think that is punk, sorry

[JeffKatz]

I'm sorry that your attention span of a kindergardener finds Half Japanese so boring. I'm sure the Green Day album in your mini-van is much more palatable.

[suckstones]

Hey, it is my wife's mini-van for one. And two, you really have me all wrong. Not that it bothers me, I play my Fender guitar in my basment, which sounds a whole lot better then that stuff.

So what other Bands do you DIG?

[JeffKatz]

I'm sure I would only embarrass myself if I were to list off bands to such a punk historian such as yourself.

[suckstones]

I am not a punk historian, never claimed to be. But you can not tell me that is punk. Not sure what it is?

[PaulaArnkvern]

The fact that you don't know who Half Japanese are, or their historical significance is actually beyond me. Have you heard of a band called Nirvana? Well after Kurt died the band played one last show as a tribute to him, and who did Krist and Dave ask to take the vocals for Kurt? Jad Fair from Half Japanese of course! They were one of Kurt's favorite bands, and one of the most influential groups of the punk rock movement. An occasional trip to the library wouldn't kill you!

[suckstones]

Yeah, Nirvana was a GREAT band. Where did the "last" concert take place? Please explain to me how, or why, they are one of the most influential groups of punk rock.

[PaulaArnkvern]

They played at the Capitol Theater in Olympia, WA (just down the road from Kurt's hometown of Aberdeen, WA). It was well documented - Rolling Stone and Spin both wrote pieces on it. The appearance was unannounced at a music festival called Yoyo-a-Gogo.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@PaulaArnkvern Do you think Jad could sing Nirvana songs? With the melodies intact? (Not a smart-ass question but a sincere one)

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@JeffKatz Jeff, list away. I always welcome good recommendations.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@JeffKatz Before Green Day got rich and soft they were a strong sounding little band. Not too original or challenging perhaps.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@suckstones At least your don't seem mean in your expression of dislike. Fair enough.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@JeffKatz Laughing beats hating. Good attitude, sir.

[yummybacon]

pffft. Its real punk.

[suckstones]

the dude with the big glasses says he never played an instrument before his band formed.. He still ain't playing an instrument.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@yummybacon a different side of punk.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@suckstones Don't eat it.

[suckstones]

boring,they sound like a 5th grade garage band.

The dork leader says he never played an instument before his band, he still doesn't. I have never hated a band more in my 38 nyears of existence

Please stop them

[JeffKatz]

I'm glad to see that there are still people out there that require their entertainment to be spoon fed to them. How was that new U2 album or that special edition 'Lion King' DVD? I'll bet you were excited about those! I'm sure you don't own a single Beat Happening record, so how could you be expected to understand Half Japanese or the roots of punk? I'd stick with something simple like John Mayer or Stevie Ray Vaughan if I were you.

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@JeffKatz Earliest Half Japanese is a challenge to listen to for even the heartiest. Lester Bangs admits this in his essay on Horrible Noise. But challenges are good, and rewarding sometimes.

[suckstones]

Please. I watched a documentary on D.O.C. channel last night. I never thought their could be a worst band in my life. These morons suck

[steliocockey]

cremate my body

[LaDeenaJ]

Where do they get the name Half Japanese?

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@LaDeenaJ Out of a hat

[atskater99]

this whole movie is on the documentary channel. like 195 on dish tv i saw it and i really wanna get into them its hard to find their music

[ohadrean]

the first punk rock band

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@ohadrean In a sense...innocence

[Berardinonize]

- Want to see a Half-French Band ?

(click on my name and choose "WORK IN PROGRESS")

welcome

[halfjapanesenirvana]

@Berardinonize Do I have to?

[jealousagain38]

Amazing, I just got into them through their Greatest Hits collection. They're my new favorite band.

[DOWDLE]

THIS COULD BE THE NIGHT

[Sickboy5th]

Thank you fo rposting this. I love you!

[appelsin9]

lmao i like these guys.

[blixaps]

THIS ISSSSSSSSSSSSSSS GREAT !!! I laughed so hard I was in tears - inspired bullshitters - I love 1/2 Japanese- the guitar playing lesson- the Berlin story- oh man- thanks- one of my favorite records is Jad's "Everyone knew but me"

[rss313]

Amazing. I'd love to see the whole movie.

[Degenerateen]

Half Japanese is great. I've had their dvd in my Netflix queue for a long time. I think I'll rent it after watching this.

[AlexKong]

"Charmed Life" is, in my opinion, the best rock´n´roll record ever made.

[JxDanger]

i've been trying to be a "good" guitarist for a long time. but then i heard what that guy said in the beginning about the science of a guitar. why didn't i think of that before? now it's so easy

[rtrav]

this is great...and mo tucker thrown in for good measure. super.

[nomno]

thank you!

i went to see jad fair one time at the knitting factory in nyc, one of the best shows i have seen!

he was also so friendly and acsesible to everybody,

got an album signed by him.

[bricitybrac]

I'm envious of their confidence.

[hanniballecturer]

thanks, please post more