It’s beyond surreal looking back at Fecking Bahamas as an institution. At first, it was voraciously academic, but had a freewheeling charm to it. For every studious, impossibly detailed article on what math rock really meant, they’d throw a curveball with something oblique, obscure, and objectively weird.
Of course, that was 2014, aka eleven long years ago. Over the next few years, the team grew and sprawled across the globe. Even today when contributors step up, we have to sort through a list of near 100 names, and it really is crazy to think of the sheer amount of work has gone into it. But also, that’s just the writing – yes, we do more than that. Sometimes.
For instance, there’s the compilations from all over the world, the first of which was compiled by none other than one of Fecking Bahamas first contributors, Tak Yamamoto. And it turns out, that legendary Vol. 1 Japan compilation actually helped start something even bigger – Bahamas Fest.
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This year, at potentially our biggest and best-est fest yet, we’ve got bands like JYOCHO, Paranoid Void, WOZNIAK, té, 1inamillion, MIRROR, loqto, Yureka, and several more. You can get your tickets here if you’re going to be in Tokyo October 19th and 20th, but if you want to know more about the fest itself, check out our QNA with Tak below:
FB: Ten years! Or technically maybe eleven? What are your first memories of starting and establishing Bahamas Fest?
Tak: It all started with this guy I really respect, Sugisawa-san, who was a staff member at Shinjuku MARZ. He found the Japanese math rock compilation I released on Fecking Bahamas and hit me up, asking if I wanted to turn it into an event. It was totally random. It was my first event, so I had no idea what I was doing, and honestly, I was a little scared nobody would show up. But everyone was so supportive of an event focused just on math rock, and a ton of people came. I’m seriously grateful for that.
FB: Can you describe your original involvement with Fecking Bahamas for the kids just getting to know the blog?
Tak: Of course, it all kicked off when Nikk, the founder, asked me, “Hey, why don’t you introduce some Japanese math rock?” So, I gathered a bunch of Japanese math rock bands and made a free compilation album.
FB: How did you first encounter math rock?
Tak: When did I first get into math rock? Probably about 15 years ago, I think? There used to be a record shop called Zankyo Records, and I’m pretty sure that’s where I stumbled upon it. They had bands like te’, and that’s where I discovered artists like Adebisi Shank, Tera Melos, Coma Lilies, and 65daysofstatic.
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FB: Japan has some of the best math rock in the world – who are some of your favorite Japanese math rock acts?
Tak: You can’t go wrong with bands like nuito, LITE, JYOCHO, loqto, and 1inamillion. As for newer bands, you should definitely keep an eye on Yureka, Nocturnal Fish and YKD(Yubari Kogyo Danchi).
FB: Do you play music yourself?
Tak: Not at all! I’m useless. I can’t play any instruments and I’m a terrible singer. lol That’s why all I can do is go to shows!
FB: Do you think a person has to be good at math or arithmetic to make good math rock?
Tak: I don’t think so. Some bands are super analytical, while others just get it all by feeling. I think imagination is way more important than math, to begin with.
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FB: You’ve booked some amazing bands over the years – what are some of your favorite memories of booking for the fest?
Tak: I’d have to say getting nuito to play. They said they’d play our 20th anniversary if we have one, but who knows if we’ll even last another 20 years. lol
FB: Do you have any advice for people looking to get better at booking bigger and better bands?
Tak: I just got lucky. I don’t think there’s much to learn from my experience. The only thing is, I only invited bands that I genuinely love.
FB: Do you have a favorite Bahamas Fest?
Tak: All of them! I just hope the events I do in the future become even more my favorite.
FB: 1inamillion has a song “Take Me to the Bahamas Fest.” Even without any direct involvement to the festival itself, it makes us emotional whenever we hear it – what does that song mean to you?
Tak: It felt like the event was finally recognized. It might be the happiest I’ve ever been. I mean, they named a song after the event! Are there any other songs like that out there? As long as this song exists, I pray this event will continue.
(Thanks for reading! If you’re looking for more music, check out our Bandcamp compilations here. If you like us, or possibly even love us, donations are always appreciated at the Buy Me A Coffee page here, but if you’re in a generous mood you can also donate to folks like Doctors Without Borders, the PCRF, Charity Water, Kindness Ranch, One Tail at A Time, Canopy Cat Rescue, or Best Friends Animal Sanctuary that could probably use it more – click on their names above to check ‘em out if you’re so inclined. Thanks again!)