Asians in America : Magazine

Muslim Punk Band The Kominas Hit the Road for the Summer

News Release | July 21 2009

Punk music dealing with Islam and its culture could be taking the stage in your town.

The Kominas are a Punjabi Taqwacore band from the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts. Their music and lyrical imagery draws from anti-colonial and Moghul art, Moorish Science, Five Percenters (”9,000 Miles” is based on a line from the English Lesson C-1 in W.D. Fard’s Supreme Wisdom Lessons, the studied text of the Nation of Islam), Bhangra, Punjabi folklore, Sufi saints from Punjab (Bulleh Shah), Islam, Hinduism and Bollywood (”Dishoom, Baby!” was a tribute to the film Sholay).

The Kominas’ debut album, "Wild Nights in Guantanamo Bay," was released in March of 2008, is available online from iTunes and CD Baby was cited by Boston Globe reviewer Siddhartha Mitter as on of the top ten CD’s of 2008.

Sample Lyrics:
“Lying in a ditch I hung my eyes off the crescent, I rubbed the bristles on my chin, where do I begin? Mere moments away from doomsday, I see the tipping of the scale, you knew how I would fare. So why did you test me if all you really wanted was to singe me?” from ‘9000 Miles’

From Lowell, Massachusetts to Austin, Texas, The Kominas might be bringing their aggressive live show to your city in the next few weeks! Here are a few of their upcoming dates:

7/22 - @ Fat Baby, New York, NY
7/23 - @ Kan Zaman, Cleveland, OH
7/24 - @ The End, Akron, OH
7/25 - @ Doomtheque, Chicago, IL
7/26 - @ The Frequency, Madison, WI

For the FULL tour schedule and band info visit www.myspace.com/thekominas.

Kababayan Fest Draws 30,000

Press Release | July 7 2009

Filipinos celebrate history, performance art, food and more in one of the country's largest cultural festivals.

Kababayan Fest is one of the largest Filipino festivals on the West Coast.This year we are holding it at California’s Great America in Santa Clara, CA on Saturday, July 11th, 2009. This all day event attracts more than 30,000 people to the theme parks in which Kababayan Fest is held each year. It is an all day event comprising of headliner acts, singers, dancers, cultural exhibits, local organizations, vendors, and Filipino heritage.

Admission is only $35.99 and includes Free Admission to the festival including a Free Kababayan Fest T-Shirt if purchased before July 10th, 2009. Only available if purchased through the KababayanFest.com website link.

For more information, check out www.kababayanfest.com.

Fresh Meat Festival Features Bold Transgender and Queer Performance

By Dia Vergados for AsianWeek | June 18 2009

Transgender and queer artists take the stage for four days presenting some of the most exciting and brazen performances as part of a festival unlike any other.

On Thursday June 18th, the nation’s best and boldest transgender and queer performers will kick off the 8th annual Fresh Meat Festival. This year’s Festival lineup includes some of the nation’s finest Asian and Pacific Islander LGBT artists including Taiko Ren, D’Lo and Ryka Aoki de la Cruz.

The Fresh Meat Festival is an annual festival of transgender and queer performance - the first and only event of its kind in the nation. The Fresh Meat Festival has received national attention for its cutting-edge lineup and standing-room-only audiences - and for its celebration of the diversity of the LGBT community.

This year, Fresh Meat is bringing its biggest lineup ever to Project Artaud Theater from June 18-21. Artists from the leading edge meet artists on the cutting edge: from taiko to roots rock, ballroom to hip hop, freestyle to folk, this year’s Festival offers a top-notch roster of transgender and queer trailblazers. Sri Lankan, Japanese American, Appalachian and Mexican-American voices come together in the acclaimed Festival that is still the only event of its kind in North America.

To read the full article, go to AsianWeek.
For more information on the festival, visit Fresh Meat Productions.

Tim Be Told, Asian-American Rockers!

Artist Profile | January 15, 2009

Tim Be Told is an up-and-coming Asian-American rock band based out of Charlottesville, VA.

Combining elements of soul, pop, rock, gospel and blues, Tim Be Told has emerged in the Charlottesville music scene with their own unique sound. After tracking their debut album "Getting By" in the Summer of 2007 and playing their first show a mere few months later, the band has gone on to perform at various East Coast venues such as the Knitting Factory, Jammin Java, and the Satellite Ballroom.

All of the musicians are Asian-American; lead vocal Tim Ouyang is Chinese.

Boasting a strange but tantalizing blend of genres, keep your tabs on Tim Be Told. You can check out their MySpace page here, or their website (which is still under construction) at www.timbetold.com.

Fil-Am Singer Charmaine Clamor Cracks the U.S. World Music Chart

Press Release | November 24, 2008

Filipino-American vocalist Charmaine Clamor, the creator of jazzipino, is back on the World Music chart.

JazzWeek, the official monitor of American world music radio play, announced today that Clamor's new album "My Harana: A Filipino Serenade" debuts at #7 on the current World Music chart.

Historic First: A Filipino-American Wins Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition

Press Release | October 26, 2008

The Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition is the most prestigious jazz competition in the world. It has launched the careers of a number of major jazz greats including Joshua Redman, Jane Monheit, and Joey DeFrancesco. This year, a Filipino-American, Jon Irabagon, won the competition. 

In addition to a $20,000 scholarship, Irabagon was also awarded a recording contract with Concord Music Group. The label plans to release Jon's album in mid-2009.

Viet Pop & Ethnic Minority Music of North Vietnam

Quincy Tran for AIA | September 5, 2008

What is it about Vietnamese Pop and durian fruit that remain forever intertwined in my mind like deadly partners in crime? I see the two robbing banks, committing murders, and killing babies as they laugh and heckle me for sitting on the sidelines, a mere bystander shaking in horror.

Both are consumed by Vietnamese around the world with unabashed vigor, both are tastes I could never acquire, and both illicit a strong bowel reaction from me upon ingestion. The fact that I could never fully embrace these two shibboleths of the Vietnamese always made me feel horribly whitewashed and out of place. And though my feeling about durian has tempered with age, my distaste for Viet-Pop has not.

The moments in my childhood without it were few and far between, I grew up in Houston after all, the Vietnamese Mecca of Texas, so if Viet Pop wasn’t being played by my mother, it would be my sisters, or my parents friends, or the pho noodle shop, or the Vietnamese mall, or the car at the stoplight next to us. Life simply didn’t exist without out it. And because of its constant presence, I initially had as much of an opinion about it as I did for the white walls of my lower middle class suburban home at 6451Woodland Trails. As I got older and puberty came crashing into my existence, the music, like those white walls, became mundane, confining, and filled me with weariness and ennui. The music became synonymous with the tedium I felt with life in general, and I wanted nothing more than to break out, be free from my insular life, but in terms of Vietnamese music, was there nothing else? Unfortunately for me Viet Pop was the entirety of Vietnamese music.

Love Psychedelico's USA release

Press Release | September 3, 2008

Love Psychedelico is one of the biggest rock bands in Japan, selling over 4 million albums.

Their USA debut, "This Is Love Psychedelico," debuts on JapanFiles.com this week, featuring the hits "Standing Bird," "Fantastic World," and "Lady Madonna."

The digital release on JapanFiles.com comes just in time for their upcoming Southern California performance on September 4th in Santa Monica.

Kumi and Naoki, two obsessives of the British Invasion and 70's classic rock, formed LOVE PSYCHEDELICO in 1997 in Tokyo. With an ear for big hooks and even bigger guitar, the duo digested and reconfigured their influences with equal nods to the dance floor, the mod squad, and Laurel Canyon.

Dr. Shakahashi’s Does it Again!

Press Release | July 31, 2008

Dr. Shakahashi creates a second tribute to RCT.

Born in Kalihi, Hawaii, Kenneth Kudo (also known as “Dr. Shakahashi”) has created another homage to the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team. His first song “Go For Broke” was originally written by Harry Hamada over 60 years ago. Currently it has over 16,000 hits on youtube since its inception in November 2007.

This is Kudo’s second tribute to the 100th/442nd RCT titled, “Go For Broke Tribute To 442 Heroes” which can be found at http://youtube.com/watch?v=GXNzwhDz4Wg. Original lyrics provided by Bob Dylan’s “My Back Pages.” A proud Vietnam veteran himself, Kudo sings tributes to 100th/442nd as his way of giving thanks. Kudo acknowledges that much of his life’s opportunities resulted from the actions of the Nisei. In this video, scenes from the original movie, “Go For Broke” with Van Johnson along with clips from Medal of Honor recipients Barney Hajiro, Dan Inouye, George “Joe” Sakato and Shizuya Hayashi are included. The video ends with a touching photo taken by Ronald Yamada showing Sadaichi Kubota paying tribute to his friend, Tadao Beanie Hayashi. Kubota, sadly, passed away shortly after this photo was taken.

Ten Years Techno! JapanFiles.com welcomes HIMAWARI

Press Release | July 21, 2008

Ten year techno veterans HIMAWARI debut on JapanFiles.com this week with their two CDs "Mineral" (2001) and "Pomposo" (2005).

Formed in 1998 in New York City (and currently now based in Tokyo), HIMAWARI is Takeshi Ichikawa and Lena. They originally met at a Ryuichi Sakamoto event in the city and quickly realized they shared a similar vision for music making.

While based in NYC, HIMAWARI performed regularly at club events in the metro area, and large-scale loft parties in Brooklyn with as many as 3,000 attendees. HIMA also played such events as the CMJ Music Marathon, and were regulars in the Moby VJ Team MOVEMENT events.