Considered one of the foundational bands of the indie-punk genre, Shinobu has been cited as an influence by both Joyce Manor and Touché Amoré. But back in 2002, when they began, they mostly seemed to confuse audiences. Back then, they used to describe their unique mixture of punk spirit, improvisational energy, and indie rock sensibility as “kind of loud and annoying,” in their self-written band bio. “Too underappreciated for too long,” is how Vice described them in 2015, when the band released their last album, the kaleidoscopic 10 Thermidor.

Now, ten years later, Shinobu is back with an anniversary reissue of 10 Thermidor on Lauren Records. Both their most respected and most conceptual album, 10 Thermidor is an indie rock fever dream of interrupted revolutions and traumatic echoes. Musically ambitious and dreamily detached, the album was described as “soft but intense” by Punknews, and “fun, catchy, strong,” by Dying Scene, upon initial release. Its re-release via Lauren Records follows a 15-year anniversary version of their previous album Strange Spring Air (2009) on animated zoetrope vinyl.

In their original run, Shinobu were at the front of a wave of millennial DIY indie-punk bands on Asian Man Records, who released the band’s second album, Worstward, Ho!, in 2005. After becoming friends with labelmates Bomb the Music Industry!, Shinobu released their next two records, Strange Spring Air and 10 Thermidor, on Jeff Rosenstock’s Quote Unquote Records (with vinyl co-released by Lauren Records and Really Records).

Originally released in a run of only 500, this new pressing of 10 Thermidor is the first time the album has been available since 2015. Printed on clear vinyl, like a ghostly apparition, it’s only appropriate that this album about echoes and reoccurrences be pressed again now, a decade later.

Let’s call it the same dream again.

Preview a song from the forthcoming SHINOBU album, 10 Thermidor, called “Culture, Inc.” over at the Onion AV Club. Click HERE for that. We’re very excited to share that with you and can’t wait to share the rest of the record with you soon.

What we’re doing for the album is a pre-order meets fundraiser of sorts. Our good friends at LAUREN RECORDS and REALLY RECORDS will be releasing the record and are currently taking orders for the LP (on either translucent red or white vinyl), along with bundles that include extra goodies like an exclusive zine, tape, and t-shirt. Here’s what that insane t-shirt will look like…

The fundraiser part comes in like this: Once we sell $1000 worth of stuff, we’ll release another song. At $2000, yet another song. Upon hitting $3000, we’ll release the whole dang record for free over at Quote Unquote Records. I hope that sounds coooooool.

Peace!
Bob

Shinobu’s Strange Spring Air LP is back in print! You can pick one up directly from us HERE or from our good friends at LAUREN RECORDS who helped us to re-release it. New label artwork, new insert, and the covers on this one are hand-screened (in case you collector nerds wanted to know!)

Shinobu will be touring this summer with our good friends THE WILD and our last show on tour will be at this awesome festival being put on by our friends at Lauren Records:

More info on the tour soon!

Thanks to all the nice people in the world! Life is weird, but also surprisingly nice.

-Bob