Super Junky Monkey is an all female

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese funk metal group.

History

Beginning

Their first release was in 1994: a live recording called ''

Cabbage Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of ''Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.&nb ...

'', originally released as an audio recording, but also released as a video recording later that year. This was quickly followed in 1995 by the studio album ''

Screw Up ''Screw Up'' is the 1994 debut studio album by Japanese group Super Junky Monkey Super Junky Monkey is an all female Japanese funk metal group. History Beginning Their first release was in 1994: a live recording called ''Cabbage'', originally ...

'', which features some of the songs from ''Cabbage'' as well as some new tracks. The band released two full-length albums, both of which were released internationally. Additionally, in Japan, they released several EP's and 3 concert videos. The band's performances of "Skysurfers!!" and "I Call Myself Sliced Ice" were used as the opening and end credits music, respectively, for the second season of the American animated series, '' Skysurfer Strike Force''. The album ''

Super Junky Alien ''Super Junky Alien'' is a 1996 EP by Japanese group Super Junky Monkey Super Junky Monkey is an all female Japanese funk metal group. History Beginning Their first release was in 1994: a live recording called ''Cabbage'', originally released a ...

'' features a bonus 1996 cover of the MTV Top of the Hour tune.

Death of Mutsumi

On February 5, 1999, Mutsumi Fukuhara committed suicide by leaping from the balcony of her apartment in Osaka, leaving behind her husband and one-year-old son. The other band members decided not to continue without her and instead moved on to other projects. Several years after Mutsumi's death, the band released the material they were working on at the time as the ''E-KISS-O'' EP and the greatest hits ''Songs Are Our Universe''. ''E-KISS-O'' includes three songs with Mutsumi's vocals and two instrumentals. ''Songs of Our Universe'' features two unreleased tracks and several videos. On June 20, 2009, the remaining three members of Super Junky Monkey reunited to commemorate the tenth anniversary of Mutsumi's death with a performance at the Liquid Room in Tokyo,

Musical style

They performed and merged various styles and genres of music, including hardcore, heavy metal, hip hop, jazz, avant-garde, noise rock and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

. Influences on the band members include Steve Vai, Jaco Pastorius, Madball,

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

and

Mr. Bungle Mr. Bungle is an American experimental rock band formed in Eureka, California in 1985. Having gone through many incarnations throughout their career, the band is best known for music created during their most experimental era. During this time, ...

. AllMusic states "A quick description of the band would be 'Japanese all-girl

Faith No More Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1979. Before settling on the current name in July 1983, the band performed under the names Sharp Young Men and later Faith No Man. Bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist/r ...

or Primus'".

Members

* Mutsumi "623" Fukuhara, ''née'' Takahashi — vocals * Keiko — guitar (later joined Ex-Girl) * Shinobu Kawai — bass (many projects, include Tricomi) * Matsudaaahh!! — drums (in a band called Weeee?)

Discography

CDs

Japanese release Videos

* 1994.11.01　- ライブVIDEO「キャベツビデヲ」- RIOT LABEL RIVD-001 * 1995.04.21 - VIDEO「DEATHI」- Sony RECORDS SRVM444 * 1996.04.21 - ライブVIDEO「HOLY MOTHER OF MEATLOAF」- Sony RECORDS SRVM514

Japanese Compilation Albums

* Benten Bentoh - Po Po Bar * Japanese Homegrown Vol. 1 - Another Mother (remix of Mother) * Japanese Homegrown Vol. 2 - If - take 2 (possibly another take) * Soy Milk Vol. 1 - Towering Man (also on E Kiss O)

References

External links

KURUGE TRAVOLTA - bassist Shinobu Kawai's site
{{Authority control All-female bands Japanese alternative metal musical groups Japanese avant-garde metal musical groups 1999 disestablishments in Japan Musical groups disestablished in 1999 Funk metal musical groups