Shonen Knife, Osaka Ramones: Tribute To The Ramones

By Matt Keeley

Sometimes the redundant can be awesome. Shonen Knife‘s own music is quite Ramonesy, so some out there might not see the point of them doing a full album of Ramones covers. Those people who I may have just made up are stupid. Shonen Knife are awesome, as are the Ramones. How can you go wrong with an album of Shonen Knife—a band that was dubbed the “Osaka Ramones” by a Ramone himself—doing Ramones covers? You can’t. QED.
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Let’s Have Fun With Shonen Knife: A Video Interview

By Matt Keeley

I have been listening to Shonen Knife for literally half my life. I’m 30 now, so do the math! That being said, I’ve only been able to see them live twice: once on the Gokigen Tour in 2005, and recently for the new album Free Time. There’ve been line-up changes since the first time, but the sound is the same and just as good as it always was.

I was so thrilled to interview Shonen Knife before their show at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle—the first stop on the new US tour. I got to talk to all of them and ask Naoko Yamano about her songwriting, finding records in Japan when she was growing up, Japanese vs. English, writing about animals and food, and more, including the band’s recent experience playing in China. She even tells a scary story, seeing as it is the Halloween issue and all!
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