Bloody Panda is a

doom metal Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' ...

band based in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History

Formation (2003-2004)

The band was formed in 2003 by Yoshiko Ohara, an established

visual artist The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts al ...

based in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

, Japan, who "decided to spend her savings on a trip to New York City, brand new recording equipment in tow, with the idea that she’d move to America to make music, this despite the unfortunate fact that she didn’t know how to play an instrument of any kind." Ohara then posted advertisements for band members that read, "Seeking guitarist, bassist and drummer to form the biggest band in the world, as soon as possible. Must have dark personalities." One such ad posted in a local record store, caught the attention of trio Josh Rothenberger (guitar), Bryan Camphire (bass), and Blake McDowell (organ), who responded and subsequently joined Ohara's project, ultimately rounded out by "respected

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and world music drummer/

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

-ist/

tabla A tabla, bn, তবলা, prs, طبلا, gu, તબલા, hi, तबला, kn, ತಬಲಾ, ml, തബല, mr, तबला, ne, तबला, or, ତବଲା, ps, طبله, pa, ਤਬਲਾ, ta, தபலா, te, తబల� ...

-ist" Dan Weiss.

Touring (2005-2006)

Bloody_Panda_at_the_Club_Midway%2C_New_York_City_%282007%29%2C_No

Between 2005 and 2006, the quintet played around New York City opening for such diverse acts as

Akron/Family Akron/Family were an American folk-influenced experimental rock band active from 2002 to 2013. Former members have lived in Portland, Oregon; Los Angeles, California; and Joshua Tree, California. Music and history Though each member of the band� ...

Genghis Tron Genghis Tron is an American four-piece cybergrind band formed in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States, and latterly based in Brooklyn, New York and San Francisco, California. The band signed to Relapse Records after releasing two recordings ...

, and

Mouth of the Architect Mouth of the Architect is an American heavy metal band from Dayton, Ohio, creating music influenced by and similar to Neurosis, Isis, Pelican, Cult of Luna, and various post-metal bands. They are signed to Translation Loss Records and have relea ...

. '' College Music Journal'' commented on Bloody Panda's live performances stating, "Known for their daring stage shows, the band performs in executioner's hoods and robes to amplify their

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up i ...

-meets-

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

(or

Sunn O))) Sunn O))) (pronounced "sun") is an American experimental metal band formed in 1998 in Seattle, Washington. The band is known for their distinctive visual style and slow, heavy sound, which blends diverse genres including doom metal, drone, bla ...

-like)

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...

work." The band released—through

Holy Roar Holy Roar Records was an independent record label run by Alex Fitzpatrick. The label began in January 2006 and put out its first release in June 2006, the Phoenix Bodies album, ''Raise the Bullshit flag''. Fitzpatrick originally joked that the ...

—a

split album A split album (or split) is a music album that includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There are also singles and EPs of the same variety, which are often called "split singles" and "split EPs" respectively. Split albums differ from "var ...

with

avant-garde metal Avant-garde metal (also known as avant-metal, experimental metal, and experimental) is a subgenre of heavy metal music loosely defined by use of experimentation and innovative, avant-garde elements, including non-standard and unconventional soun ...

group

Kayo Dot Kayo Dot is an American avant-garde metal group. Formed in 2003 by Toby Driver after the break-up of ''maudlin of the Well'', they released their debut album ''Choirs of the Eye'' on John Zorn's Tzadik Records that same year. Since then, Kayo ...

in early 2007, and also recorded a cover of

Eyehategod Eyehategod (also abbreviated and referred to as EHG) is an American sludge metal band from New Orleans, Louisiana who formed in 1988. They have become one of the better known bands to emerge from the NOLA metal scene. Their core lineup has re ...

's "Anxiety Hangover" for the tribute album ''

For the Sick ''For the Sick'' is the title of the various artist tribute album to one of the most influential sludge metal bands, Eyehategod. It was released through Emetic Records on March 20, 2007. Track listing CD 1 # Dot(.) – "Man is Too Ignorant to E ...

''. At this time, the debut album by the "enigmatic metal band with the

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

name" had become one of the most anticipated full-lengths in 2007.

''Pheromone'' (2007)

Produced by Jason Marcucci, who has previously worked with

The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, keyboards, bass, drums, vocals), Derek Brown (keyb ...

and

The White Stripes The White Stripes were an American rock duo from Detroit formed in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (songwriter, vocals, guitar, piano, and mandolin) and Meg White (drums and vocals). After releasing several singles and three albums with ...

, Bloody Panda's first full-length, ''

Pheromone A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...

'', was released in April 2007 by

Level Plane Records Level Plane was an American independent record label based in New York City that was founded in early 1997 by Greg Drudy for the release of Saetia's first 7". Drudy ran the label until it ceased to exist in 2009. It released records in a variet ...

, which had signed a

recording contract A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist (or group), where the artist makes a record (or series of records) for the label to sell and promote. Artists ...

with the band earlier in that year. ''

Decibel The decibel (symbol: dB) is a relative unit of measurement equal to one tenth of a bel (B). It expresses the ratio of two values of a power or root-power quantity on a logarithmic scale. Two signals whose levels differ by one decibel have a po ...

'' magazine defined the album as "moody," definition complemented by

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

writer Adrien Begrand, who stated, "Singing in both

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

, Ohara could be singing in

Esperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communi ...

for all we care, as her melodic chants are often difficult to discern, but despite the fact that her lyrics to possess a poetic quality, ''Pheromone'' is more about mood than message, her vocals every bit as entrancing as the arrangement behind her."

''Summon'' (2009-present)

Their second album, ''

Summon Evocation is the act of evoking, calling upon, or summoning a spirit, demon, deity or other supernatural agents, in the Western mystery tradition. Comparable practices exist in many religions and magical traditions and may employ the use of m ...

'', was released in 2009 on

Profound Lore Profound Lore Records is a Canadian independent record label founded in May 2004, which "began as the 'hobby-like venture' of a few friends but, over the past six years, the label has evolved into a one-man enterprise, shaped a distinct 'aesthet ...

. Jonathan Horsley of ''

Terrorizer Terrorizer is an American grindcore band formed in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. After disbanding, its members gained recognition by playing in influential extreme metal bands, such as Morbid Angel ( David Vincent, Pete Sandoval), Napalm D ...

'' commented that "Bloody Panda may be too experimental to win your heart, but they demand your complete, undivided attention."Jonathan Horsley, "Choice Cuts," ''Terrorizer'' No. 188, September 2009, p. 20.

Members

*Bryan Camphire - bass, samples & backing vocals *Lev Weinstein - drums *Josh Rothenberger - guitar & synthesizer *Yoshiko Ohara - lead vocals *Blake McDowell - organ & backing vocals *Gerry Mak - throat singing & vocals

Former members

*Michael Harriff - drums (before Bloody Panda, Josh, Bryan and Michael were in a prog metal band calle
Oryx
that disbanded after eventually failing to find a vocalist) *Dan Weiss - drums *Richard Swartz - drums

Discography

*''

Promo Promo or promos may refer to: Promotions and advertising *Promo (media), a form of commercial advertising used to promote television or radio programs *Promo (professional wrestling), a televised interview in which a wrestler's on-screen personali ...

'' EP (2004) *

/Bloody Panda Split (2006) *''

'' LP (2007) *''

'' LP (2009) *'' Summon: Invocation'' LP (2011)

References

External links

Bloody Panda's official website
{{Authority control American doom metal musical groups Heavy metal musical groups from New York (state) Musical groups established in 2003 Musical groups from New York City Musical quintets Level Plane Records artists Profound Lore Records artists