Between the unexpected Jawbox and Black Star reunions, the Yacht Rock superjam, and the Roots subbing as the best backing band in late night (see: Elvis Costello, Monsters Of Folk, Paul Simon, the Lonely Island, Zach Morris), Jimmy Fallon’s music department’s did everything right in ’09 to vault from newcomer to reigning king of late night music. But what cemented Late Night‘s status had less to do with gimmick than with consistently daring booking. And Jimmy started 2010 right last night with Japandroids — the exuberant and punky garage-pop duo that’s probably sold less albums than Fallon’s studio holds people — giving a relatively underexposed band a shot at winning some fans that don’t read blogs or have the legs for CMJ. The Canadians brought “Wet Hair,” a song they Dropped on us last summer, punning in tandem on Bikini Kill and french kissing. When we first heard it the weather matched the wordplay; last night was likely on par with the Vancouver chill they suffered while writing it. So, a jam for all seasons:
Post-Nothing is out via Polyvinyl.
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God dammit… those dancing people look so idiotic, it almost ruins it for me.
this is a decent song for a 12 year old that just got his first guitar, learned three chords, and came up with three lyric lines with his friends that he thinks are witty.
props to fallon for bookin little indies but as far as the music on this one goes- ehhh
You’re a fucking douchebag.
Japandroids are passionate musicians; this song is a fun one and they rocked it. Yes, their lyrics are simple and their songs aren’t too complex, but they’re making music that they love to play and (some) people love to hear. Jimmy is indeed daring to host these guys, I just wish he would let those people standing behind them dance like they should at a real Japandroids show.
sounds like taking back sunday
Anyone that has a problem with the technical proficiency is obviously living before 1976.
Great performance.
You should check out music where the artists actually have talent, you may dig it.
Don’t worry about what poseur friends/bloggies/urban outfitter salespeople tell you- trust me when I say technical musical ability and original creativity can still be cool.
I was starting to think that they didn’t do this song live. Nice.
They don’t. This is the first time they’ve played it. Kind of a genius move, really.
hi uhhhh….i’m 17….read pitchfork daily….uhhh……my fav bands are japandroids and the pains of being pure at heart and cymbals eat guitars. japandroids are just so emotional you know? french kissing some french girls…..they rock so hard….
Hey there… my name is dane… I am too hip for pitchfork and music in general… so instead i come on to this blog and troll people who only got into animal collective after MPP was released… I like own Spirit They’re Gone before anyone like knew about them…
p.s. I am on match.com under the name Dane LennonByrneWilsonLennoxCoxOberstSmithRingo
I saw this after a terrible switchfoot performance on ferguson. I liked the music but lyrically it is aimed at 12 year olds.
come on guys this song is lots of fun. the lyrics are just really funny – don’t take it so seriously.
Actually the harmonics this guy gets out his guitar are pretty interesting. It’s kinda funny to dis “urban outfitter” snobbery and then say it’s not good because it’s not technically proficient.
all it takes is a guitar effects pedal or two and that suspended chord he’s playing…obtainable by any talentless hack with relatively functioning fingers.
i don’t think the stab at urban outfitters was to say there’s something wrong with music snobber, but more that there’s something wrong with music snobbery based on hype and fashion over real musical talent and content.
it’s worth noting the sound on fallon is typically head and shoulders above dave and conan’s, too. letterman books some great acts, but too often the mix is just awful.
these guys are out there having fun and creating music that a lot of people enjoy. let’s all complain about them!!!! how dare they!!!!
Wow, it feels like one dude is posting under multiple names to just take digs at a band.
I thought it was pretty fun! Damn these guys making music because they want to and playing things they might like to play and do fun stuff! aaah!
The performance wasn’t terrible, it just wasn’t anything interesting or impressive to me. It is a fact that the song is very simple in construction, requires little skill to play, and the lyrics are very elementary. That’s not an opinion, it’s like stating that playing tic tac toe is very simple in structure, requires little skill to play, etc. No big deal, the song and performance are just not that impressive.
Blogs like this exist so that people can comment on posts…so it’s ridiculous that you’re suprised people have negative things to say and assuming that it’s the same person posting them just because your feelings are hurt is also absurd.
You’re right it is absurd, so why are you doing it? There’s so many things you said just now that just gave you away, crazy troll.
To me, it was the fact that you start new paragraphs like this. And then you go on blathering about “SKILLZ”. Fuck off. Those are two guys making better music than full lineup bands. They aren’t dfa 1979, but I like them. Its the sound I enjoy, and even if its talentless, simple chord progression that a child could play, they gave a great performance. I like garage rock, I like the simplicity. Go masturbate to Van Halen douchebag.
It’s fine for what it is but you guys getting bent out of shape over the criticism are taking it too seriously. Normally I’m fine with “just go with it” fun time music. But this was annoying to me. The lyrics are not witty, I’m sorry. As for technical proficiency. . . so what. It all depends on what you’re going for. They’re not trying to impress anyone (obvs) and guess what? I’m not impressed. I’d rather see Times New Viking but hey, good for Japandroids. btw- can bands stop with the Japan puns please? Japandroids, Japanther, Japancakes. That’s enough already!
You mean Japuns?
they’re okay. like a poor man’s cap’n'jazz. not sure what the hype is about..
Yes, exactly. Japandroids are great to see live because they get so into it and their songs are just lively and fun. I like them a lot, but I also like bands that are more “serious” or complex. I don’t understand what about them could possibly make people so offended and hostile unless they’re the kind of person who hates any band that happens to gain some commercial notice.
This band is great — definitely a record for the summer though. And since when is it requisite for punk (indie punk or otherwise) to have complex chord progressions or labyrinthine lyrics? It looks like you’re looking for something that is distinctly at odds with the tenets of this genre.
Punk songs are the musical equivalent to Hot Pockets- they require no skill to make, they’re done in a minute or two, and they’re usually pretty shitty.
“these guys are out there having fun”
“they are great to see live because they get so into it”
“making music because they want to and playing things they might like to play and do fun stuff”
Great points, kids! All it takes to make good music is having some fun and getting into it. Nevermind having real originality, technique, vision, skill, and all those other annoying things that are ruining today’s popular music.
Sad.
musical talent = proficiency.
bands like japandroids annoy me. don’t get me started on beat happening, or those television personalities. THEY MAKE MY BLOOD BOIL. brb guys, I need to calm down and listen to some dragonforce; those guys know how to play their stuff.
Have you ever thought that it takes some balls to play punk. to stand out in front of everyone and give it all you got. The songs may be short but that’s the point of punk. It’s short and to the point, and say what you want however you want. Hasn’t anyone ever listened to how goofy some ramones lyrics are, but they those songs are still great.
the balls it takes to play punk?! that’s pretty funny. being a clown for kids’ parties takes about the same amount of balls and they’re both pretty fucking lame. i’d love to hear what makes punk more “brave” than say, getting in front of the same amount of people and playing some completely different music while “giving it all you got”…
ya braaa, those punk players are like sooo courageous, dude.
They are a band that bears watching. Their record is pretty nice — Wet Hair is the simplest song, to be sure. But to bash them because on one song last night they didn’t display technical proficiency to your satisfaction last night is to bash the Ramones and Costello and the Pistols and dozens of other great bands that found that you didn’t have to be Jimmy Page or Eric Clapton to advance music (and Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton agree with me, btw).
Of course, douchey posters must be douchey posters, so whatever.
I think Japandroids are a decent band but putting them in the same sentence as the Ramones and Costello is a joke. Costello is so versatile and wrote so many original and intricate songs.
Yes, the Ramones and the Pistols played short, simple punk songs but they innovated and had a lot more character and raw heart put into it. There’s not much original about Japandroids, but they’re fun enough.
What did the Ramones innovate? They shamelessly pilfered from ’50s pop music, ’60s gargage, and early ’70s proto-punk like the Dictators and MC5, and they even acknowledged it. Joey Ramone admitted half of what the band did was image and hype. That’s what half of fucking rock n’ roll is: image and hype.
Seriously though, sometimes you want fillet mignon and sometimes you just want a greasy burger. Unless your vegan, at which point I don’t know how to make an apt comparison you can relate to.
dragonforce haha
This band isn’t Animal Collective (ok) or Grizzly Bear (really boring) therefore they suck.
Stop bringing up bands being technically proficient as somehow being worth a damn, the term reeks of rockist douchebag.
The technical proficiency dude probably has 30 different versions of the same Phish song on his iPod and is just now exploring indie rock because he’s only been listening to one band since he was 15 and smoked pot for the first time. Now it’s 15 years later and his 17 year old Pitchfork reading cousin was like “Dude, Wilco has guitar solos too, you need to branch out” at Christmas dinner and so he downloaded Sky Blue Sky and now all of a sudden he has opinions to share on a blog.
My friends who are into “technical proficiency” as a condition for quality in music? The ones who wear their suits from their work day to go see Widespread Panic more than one night in a row? The ones who basically dig Trey Anastasio for the same reasons they dig Lebron James or Roger Federer or Tony Hawk (alpha-male domination via technical prowess and virtuosity)? I don’t even try to turn them on to music. Most closed-minded “music fans” on the planet.
sounds like you think the only bands out there with proficiency are jambands…that’s stupid. i won’t even get into how bizarre and off the mark that alpha male comment you made was…yikes
also- the proficiency dude that brought up dragonforce was probably being sarcastic and you missed it. i think he’s on your side, dude. everyone knows dragonforce blows.
no one said japandroids need guitar solos or techincal proficiency to be good, they just need some redeeming quality to justify the hype and tv spot. ya know, besides being a sloppy two piece band that sings mediocre power chord songs with three lyrics.
i’d rather listen to music that’s easy to play and fun (jdroids) than music that’s hard to play and boring (sorry, grizzbear)
Sorry, haters, but this band fucking rules. One of the best shows I saw in 2009. I’ll take a passionate performance over some whack-off guitar solo any day.
Bill Hader ftw
Rockin out and proficiency are not mutally exclusive btw- Ever watch footage of Jimi Hendrix? Dude was off his nut freaking out bu It was amazingly skillful. Also Man Man are amazing musicians that are also total goofballs on stage. Don’t get me wrong I love a one note guitar solo (Neil Young). There’s room for the whole range of amateurish to virtuoso. Both can totally loose their shit and rock out. So pointing out that Jdroids are a bit lame doesn’t make you a snob or a hater, it just makes you someone that prefers something with a little more to chew on.
East Vancouver Shirt.
It looks like all the Superfandroids that are getting bent out of shape are missing the point. I’m pretty sure Needsmoarchords that brought up “proficiency” was being satirical/sarcastic whatever. And the people before him commenting negatively on the performance weren’t saying that you need profiency to make good music…they were just saying this performance wasn’t great. I think the point is that you should have some unique vision, technique, and or skills of some kind to create good music and not just some blah shit that will come and go.
Look at bands a band like Radiohead- I can’t think of a song of theirs that takes “proficiency” to play but it took some real talent to creat them. How about one another personal favorite- Pavement? They sucked at their instruments when they started and their songs aren’t hard to play but they have a vision and real creative originality. Those bands are special, along with many others. I can’t recall any other Japandroid songs so I’m not judging them overall but this song posted here is pretty unspecial. Don’t be angry.
For real Steph, you need to go back and listen more closely to both Radiohead and Pavement. I know this isn’t really the core of the discussion here but your examples of bands that are lacking in technical ability are just profoundly incorrect.
I didn’t mean Radiohead songs are easy to play and I didn’t say they’re “lacking in technical ability”, they take a ton of ability to play. I just mean you don’t have to be a PROFICIENT guitar, key, drum, bass, player to perform the songs, necessarily. And when I say “proficient” i mean it as “Expert”, like a techincal pro. I’m not a stellar guitar player but was able to play (and figure out) most Radiohead songs by the time I was in college…I’m no pro. The point is that Thom and co. have a ton more going for them and what they create/write is spectacular. They don’t need to be shredding guitar gods because they have so much more going on.
Same thing with Pavement. I’m sorry but if you think their songs are hard to learn/play, you don’t know much about musical instruments. Does that matter? No, they have so much more going on and the genius behind the writing is key. It’s raw, noisy, and loose…great shit. That’s why they’re as iconic as they are so many years after they were releasing music. I doubt anyone will be talking about Japandroids next year. Best of luck to them, though.Sorry for the long post, didn’t want to be misunderstood.
I see nothing interesting or new here. A two person band is a big statement, and usually only super talented mega stars pull it off unless you’re a guy/girl combo act. In this case, I don’t see the talent that DFA, or the White Stripes, or Black Keys possess / ed. They have some personality. That’s always good, but the music seems a bit contrived.
“likely on par with the Vancouver chill they suffered while writing it”
this week in Vancouver: 40-48 F
this week in New York: 26-32 F
Funny seeing that eastvan shirt! East Van is our Brooklyn.
I find their whole “lack of talent” approach very daring.
just to clarify, i like japandroids! my failed attempt at sarcasm (which is sometimes hard to convey over the internet), was just showing how silly it sounds to equate “good” music with proficiency.
Damn you haters! Japandroids makes good fun music that makes you wanna propel out of your chair as you are listening to it.
So…you have to be good at guitar, but pressing one note on a keyboard over and over again is massive technical skill? Look at the music that gets posted on this website…you guys are fucking idiots.
Its funny to see the extent to which people will try to degrade a band just because they don’t like them. How about you go and argue about things like politics where something can be argued about. People like the music and the techniques of how its played aren’t going to change how it sounds to them. If what entertain’s me doesn’t entertain you then be a little more considerate and shut your mouth. Music is an abstract art it only exists in the time its played and listened to, so you can analyze it all you want but it mostly depends on how it sounds to the individual while they are listening to it.
Bob Seger says simple is good, but Japandroids is just okay. Reminds me of some of them them bands I saw in Katmandu. But whatever, man, good luck to them. I am happy for them kids that can remember their phrases enough to repeat em. Ted Nugent is a badass. You guys should check him out.
I used to have the ‘Cat Scratch Fever’ LP. It went well with my Black Oak Arkansas, Johnny Winter and Charlie Daniels Band LPs. Who do you suppose would be the closest thing I could get to that these days?
Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears.
I read a comment over on the Owl City bashfest saying that usually Stereogum commentors were a positive bunch of people and they just needed one band to bash. I’m not buying it.
I don’t care for this band at all but don’t think that all of the people that love them are ignorant and/or stupid. Watching people slap each other around verbally on the message boards is a strangely compelling sort of entertainment though…
I think it was a great performance ! It was so awesome that they played on the show!
this band is a product of pitchfork and stereogum hype. talentless, pointless, and skill-less. to be honest I’d rather listen to Owl City at least that guy can sing in key and play his instrument.
This music is easy to play!!! I don’t like it!!! Wahhh wahhh.. I am a classically trained guitarist.. studied music theory, history, harmony out the wazzoo. I can appreciate technical music.. but i can also appreciate the opposite. It’s fun summery type music.
No one is going to care about this band five years from now.
I still remember Harvey Danger.
Fantastic band who does a really good job at the style of music they’re trying to convey. Too bad that people think certain bands are products of blog hype, personally I enjoyed this record immensely long before pitchfork and stereogum sunk it’s teeth in. It’s no technically dense Grizzly Bear, but for what it is it’s perfect.
These dudes came to Halifax a couple months ago, no clue who they were.. Blew me away, simple stupid. Best show in a while.
I really don’t get the hype around this band!!! They aren’t bad, but the lyrics really are aimed at 12 year olds and I can’t get into the emo meets indie vocals.
Wavves, Youthless and No Age are way better duo’s than Japandroid but people are just into the newest thing…
Oh yeah!!!! And the last song on their album, I Quit Girls sounds exactly like Mayonnaise by Smashing Pumpkins.
Say what you will, I don’t care. I couldn’t resist it.
Very well done, esp. on the Wallace Wells picture.
Sounds like a Kidz Bob version of a No Age song.
Kidz Bob? I hate that guy…
Check out Swearing at Motorists if you’re looking for a top-notch two-piece – “Number 7 Uptown” or “More Songs from the Mellow Struggle” – beats the spit out of the White Stripes or these Japandroid jokers. Think, depth of emotion – not, necessarily, fun. Or, “art” and not “kitsch.”
Are you serious?
I dont think the lyics are aimed at 12 year olds, actually. i feel like this is more of a nostalgic sort of band… they’re good with evoking memory through a simple sound and set-up. The entire album is kind of that way. And no, I don’t read Pitchfork, NME, and honestly don’t read stereogum all that often.
Also, people claim Buckethead is technically proficient, but have you heard any of his solo work? BORING. AS. HELL.
Seen them in person, too. Their drummer is awesome.
A NOT horrible band who’d otherwise go unnoticed,
pitchfork sticks a big hard one in them,
hipster zombies follow
very average band. lyrics way too repetitive and cliche. basically, they should be playing the local pub infront of 20 people. god bless the miracle of internet hegemony.
um, i like el ten eleven.
I lol’d at some of these comments. Sounds like all the negative comments are coming from typical butthurt elitist guitar store employees, who still think other people actually enjoy listening to them wank off a Les Paul in their bedroom.
Japandroids play good old fashoined emotional rock songs. Just go with it