Nipper



My two friends and I have created a band.
That band is Nipper.
Behold:

Myspace

Last.fm Page

Free MP3 Download


Songs:

Nipper - Where Did You Go? (Where Are My Shoes?)

Vocals: Jason
Lyrics: Bira
Keys: Ali
Beat: Bira


Nipper - Baby Making Practice

Vocals: Ali
Lyrics: Jason
Keys: Bira
Beat: Jason


Nipper - I Climbed A Tree

Vocals: Jason
Lyrics: Bira
Keys: Ali
Beat: Bira


Nipper - Dead Billy's Ankle

Vocals: Ali
Lyrics: Bira
Keys: Bira
Beat: Jason



Nipper - Unimaginal Girl

Vocals: Bira
Lyrics: Ali
Keys: Ali
Beat: Bira



Nipper - Where Did You Go? (Where Are My Shoes?) Outtake



Nipper - I Eat Your

Vocals: Jason
Lyrics: Bira
Keys: Ali
Beat: Bira














Genesis:

A little while ago, Bira, Jason and I were sitting around Bira's apartment in our damp swim trunks, smelling faintly of chlorine, from an afternoon swim. I kept eying Bira's new full length keyboard and eventually slipped away from the conversation to play with it. What little I can play of the piano is purely based on an intuitive tactile relationship to the real thing, and as such, am completely impotent when playing on keyboards. That notwithstanding, I became completely absorbed in the luxurious freedom to assign any instrument to the keys, and began going through all the instruments in his database. It was a thrill to hear semi realistic French horns, oboe, cello etc. all commanded and modified with the same movement of my fingers I've ever only known to create piano sounds.

After about a half hour of methodically going through every instrument in turn and riffing on it for a few minutes, Bira leaned over his computer and improvised a beat that matched well with what I was playing. I continued to play against the beat for another couple minutes while Bira went into the kitchen to scribble on a piece of paper. He returned explaining that he had written lyrics that Jason was to sing over my keyboard playing and beat, and that Jason wasn't allowed to study the lyrics before hand, and any rehearsal or planning was not to be allowed. Jason nervously positioned himself in front of a mic set to record the computer speakers and his voice at the same time, and we set about recording our first song which went on to become "I Eat Your"

The results were hilarious and not all together as terrible as we would have imagined. So we set about recording another. We switched roles at writing lyrics, playing keys, creating the beat etc. An hour later we had written and recorded six songs and one outtake. We then proceeded to change out of our swim shorts and into white pants and sunglasses for a photo shoot in Bira's kitchen.

It then became time to come up with a name. I felt and sting of inspiration and throwing my arms into the air declared "We must call ourselves Hiroshima 3!" An argument ensued as Jason and Bira attempted to explain to me that an ironic American band calling itself Hiroshima 3, is in bad taste. I replied indignantly "What? Hiroshima is a city like any other. People there live, laugh and love like anywhere else. Why should they be forced to exist under the stigma of the bomb, and for that to be their only source of identity?"The argument ended in a stale mate as the only other worthwhile name we managed to come up with was Jason's idea to call us "Ten Piece Nugget".

Bira digitized the recordings from tape, I color corrected the photos and scanned the lyrics and put us online. And in the conversations involved in doing these things, naming and transferring files etc. We kept referring to the band as Hiroshima 3 in absence of a new name, and eventually through repeated use, the name became fixed in our minds, and so the matter was settled. That is until I spoke to my Japanese co-worker, and played him the songs and asked him what he thought of the name. He confirmed my fears that the name was in bad taste and asked if I had any others? I replied with my default name for anything which is "Nipper" (actually I usually go with Ltl Nipper) he liked it and thought it matched the music and vibe much better. So it became. And so it is, forever and always....Nipper.