Playlist Rewind: Shonen Knife at Johnny Brenda's

Photo by Flickr user Helena P.

When watching a concert, there are many thoughts that may pop into one's head. "Oh, this is pretty cool, maybe I'll buy their album." Or, "This is putting me to sleep." When I saw Shonen Knife live at Johnny Brenda's on Monday, the thought that immediately popped into my head was, "I wish I could bake this band in to a cake so I could eat them!" That's a weird thing to say, but Naoko (guitar), Etsuko (drums) and Ritsuko (bass) would totally understand I meant it as a compliment.

From their album covers, it may seem like Shonen Knife is just another young, cute Japanese girl-band, but do not be fooled: they've been producing their own brand of poppy garage rock for twenty-seven years and have gained quite a cult following. Yes, they wear matching outfits and the ones they wore at the show on Monday kind of looked like Powerpuff Girl dresses, but what about when Naoko and Ritsuko start head-banging in unison? Meanwhile Etsuko is completely murdering the drums and wearing a serene smile the entire time.

The sound is a combination of The Ramones and Buzzcocks, laden with girl group harmonies, and lyrics alternating between Japanese and English. My favorite song off of their new album has to be "BBQ Party," with a chorus that involves screaming: "Pig out! Pig out! Pig out!" Shonen Knife also has a bit of a penchant for Paul McCartney; they've not only covered Beatles songs throughout their career, but have a version of Wings' "Jet" on their new album.

The lineup has changed over the years, Ritsuko being the latest addition on bass. The night of the performance she was wearing a ponytail directly on top of her head that swung around ferociously throughout the show, so she fits right in with the other two members. We got an extra special surprise when Atsuko, Naoko's sister, founding member and former bassist, came on stage and sang "Fruits and Vegetables."

The band's newest release Super Group is a testament to their return to the power trio format. It's entirely in English, and claims "to go back to the starting point of rock." It's a bit of a nebulous statement, I'll admit. But Naoko cleared everything up for me when she giggled and said that she's been listening to a lot of classic rock and metal lately, and proceeded to play "Pyramid Power" which is straight-up, no joke heavy metal, complete with a scorching solo.

The opener for Shonen Knife was Jeff the Brotherhood, and they were a treat as well. The band consisted solely of drums and guitar played by two shaggy-haired Tennessee boys, and my friend described them perfectly as "Sabbath, with riffs played twice as fast." No complaints here.

Shonen Knife's promise is that their new album makes everybody happy. All the smiling, the candy-colored outfits and songs about food may certainly seem its all there to make you happy, but let's not forget this band held their own on the road for over two decades, including during Nirvana's Nevermind tour. When you see Shonen Knife live, you're watching them, nodding your head to the beat, then the playful bopping and toe-tapping turns into the pogo and then ... wait a minute, did they all three just explode into a giant comic book star-shaped "POW"?

At the end of the show, after the audience begged them back onstage for an encore, the three women stood together with their arms in a triangular formation to represent their solidarity as a trio. Shonen Knife, you are a super group indeed!