Feature / One Question Interviews
Japanther

Words: Loren • June 19, 2014

Japanther
Japanther

Ian Vanek (Japanther)

SPB: Is there a regional food you look forward to when you tour?

Vanek: We eat regionally, seasonally and locally as much as possible. Japanther also forage for wild food and eat out of dumpsters. We snack on oranges and avocados off the trees in Cali and make green juice in almost every hotel room. Pizza in Manhattan, salmon in Seattle, crawfish in New Orleans, Tacos in Texas, Vietnamese in Orlando... You get the picture.

Loren • June 19, 2014

Japanther
Japanther

Related features

Wagemaker

One Question Interviews • December 10, 2025

Thomas Harris (Wagemaker) SPB: You went from a full band to doing Wagemaker as a one-person project. Now you’re a duo. What’s the perfect number of people for a band? Harris: My name is Thomas Harris and I sing and play bass alongside Jason LaVeris’s (drums) in the group Wagemaker. … Read more

She/Her Records

One Question Interviews • December 9, 2025

Liza & Misha (She/Her Records) SPB: After the SHEHERCOMP001 when did you know you were going to release albums/EPs/etc? . She/Her Records: We always planned to do solo releases following the first TDoV compilation. SARCOMA was enthusiastic about doing a solo release with us since we first posted our manifesto, … Read more

Glueman

One Question Interviews • December 8, 2025

Matt Glueman (Glueman) SPB: Your new album is simply titled “III”. What about a simple/to-the-point title appeals to you? Matt: Well, we love The Spits. They don’t have album titles, so why should we? GLUEMAN III.  Read more

Pulley and Fire Sale - Double interview

Interviews • December 6, 2025

When two bands come together on a split release, it’s more than just sharing music on vinyl. It’s a conversation in sound. Pulley and Fire Sale recently teamed up for a split 7" through Negative Progression Records that showcases both of their unique voices while still feeling like a cohesive … Read more

Guest Column: Allegedly Records

Regular Columns • December 3, 2025

Music touches the heart and soothes the soul. Through personal connection and community it reaches far beyond a listening experience. While it plays a role in our overall well-being, though, it's only part of the bigger equation. Through the mutual connections that music has brought us at SPB, we learned … Read more

Related news

New solo record from Howardian (Japanther)

Posted in Records on February 27, 2016

The Bronx / Japanther Tourdates

Posted in Tours on February 8, 2010

Related reviews

Japanther

Tut Tut Now Shake Ya Butt
Menlo Park (2008)

In the city of Brooklyn, New York's hippest borough, the pretensions of musicians trying to create songs that are both avant garde and widely accessible (a clear paradox) makes for a stifling scene. Lofts and warehouse spaces across the neighborhoods of Williamsburg and Bushwick are filling with passive young professionals being bludgeoned with art. While every incarnation of noise, folk, … Read more

More from this section

Wagemaker

One Question Interviews • December 10, 2025

Thomas Harris (Wagemaker) SPB: You went from a full band to doing Wagemaker as a one-person project. Now you’re a duo. What’s the perfect number of people for a band? Harris: My name is Thomas Harris and I sing and play bass alongside Jason LaVeris’s (drums) in the group Wagemaker. … Read more

She/Her Records

One Question Interviews • December 9, 2025

Liza & Misha (She/Her Records) SPB: After the SHEHERCOMP001 when did you know you were going to release albums/EPs/etc? . She/Her Records: We always planned to do solo releases following the first TDoV compilation. SARCOMA was enthusiastic about doing a solo release with us since we first posted our manifesto, … Read more

Glueman

One Question Interviews • December 8, 2025

Matt Glueman (Glueman) SPB: Your new album is simply titled “III”. What about a simple/to-the-point title appeals to you? Matt: Well, we love The Spits. They don’t have album titles, so why should we? GLUEMAN III.  Read more