When Shonen Knife broke through to an American audience in 1981, the Japanese trio from Osaka had already been together making albums for nearly a decade, bringing their winning approach—wide-eyed, winsome and fun pop songs delivered in an amped-up, power punk style—to audiences at home.
And the all-female group—led by singer, songwriter and guitarist Naoko Yamano—gained worldwide attention when a fan named Kurt Cobain championed them and booked the group as the opening act on Nirvana’s 1991 European tour just as Nevermind was taking off. Shonen Knife comes to The Ritz on Oct. 18.
Yamano was a rock fan long before she started a band. She recalls attending her first shows when she was 15. “My first concert was Aerosmith, and the second one was Kiss; this was around 1977,” she says. A few years later, inspired by music from her favorite groups—the Beatles, the Ramones, the Buzzcocks and the Jam—she picked up the guitar.
Yamano enlisted younger sister Atsuko as drummer, and bassist Michie Nakatani; her new band played its first gig in March 1982. At the time, the idea of an all-female rock trio was “a bit unusual” for Japanese audiences, but Shonen Knife quickly won them over. “We could gather rather many people to our shows, but the venues were very tiny,” Yamano says. “The reaction was everybody smiling and waving.”
A cult following in the U.S. developed around the band, thanks in part to two American record labels. “Calvin Johnson is owning K Records in Olympia, Washington; he made a contact to me by postal mail,” Yamano recalls. “We exchanged letters, and he decided to release our cassette album [1983’s Burning Farm] on his label.” In 1989, L.A. label Gasatanka invited the band to play its first U.S. show. “There were so many people at the venue, and everybody was shouting and dancing; a very energetic audience,” Yamano recalls. “I was very surprised about that.”
The tour with Nirvana marked another major boost for the band. “Every show was sold out,” Yamano says. “We had a very good chance to play in front of many people. Kurt Cobain was always watching our show, every time [from] the side of the stage. And the other members [of Nirvana] were very kind to us, too.” She recalls Dave Grohl rushing out on stage to help tighten a loose screw on Atsuko’s drum kit.
The Lollapalooza tours of the mid ’90s are legendary for backstage debauchery and wild behavior. But Yamano’s recollections of Shonen Knife’s experience don’t line up with Lolla’s reputation. “It was very peaceful,” she insists. Pressed on the matter, she allows there was a bit of drama. “Michie played Frisbee,” she recalls. “She fell down and injured her knees. But a doctor was touring with the festival.”
Nakatani left Shonen Knife in 1999 and Atsuko Yamano moved over to bass; thus began a 15-year period featuring a succession of drummers. Risa Kawano joined on drums in 2015 and has been with the group ever since. Atsuko left in 2006, but her big sister prevailed upon her to return in 2016; these days she’s back on bass guitar when her schedule allows. “Atsuko is living in Los Angeles,” Yamano explains. “She got used to daily life there, so she [has] time to play rock music again.”
Shonen Knife released Our Best Place in 2023; it’s their 28th album. All the tracks are original songs save for a winning cover of Pilot’s 1974 single, “Just a Smile.” The band truly makes the song its own with a spirited, uptempo arrangement. Another highlight is “Girl’s Rock” [sic], a studio take of a song first heard on the band’s 2006 Live in Osaka. Yamano says that her own songwriting approach has changed a bit from the early days when she penned tracks like “Twist Barbie” and “Cycling is Fun.” She believes that her song construction, development of backing vocal arrangements and guitar riffs have all improved; consistently positive reviews back up that view.
Yamano is nonplussed when asked how long she thought the group would last back when it began. “I’ve never thought about that,” she says. She notes that over the course of the band’s nearly 45-year history, there have been periods of feverish activity followed by quiet times. And she sees no reason to end what has proven to be a very well-received creative long-term endeavor. “I think the Shonen Knife will be over when my life is over,” she says with a smile.
Shonen Knife has been Yamano’s main focus since she was 21; she’ll celebrate her 65th birthday in December. And since the band began, she’s never given much thought to doing anything else. Asked what her career path might have been had the band not taken off, she says, “I worked at a big company for two years and 15 days after I graduated college.” Laughing at the memory, she adds, “Maybe I could earn much money if I continued working at that big company office!”
Shonen Knife and The Pack A.D. play at 8pm on Oct. 18 at The Ritz, 400 S 1st St, San Jose.
