For the last several months, Joe and I have been writing the libretto and composing music for a forthcoming opera! We were selected one of the first creative teams for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis' New Works Collective program. We're excited to try help transform this art form by infusing our story and synthpop sound into the work.
The world premiere will be March 16-18 in St. Louis, get tickets and information here - or check out slantedopera.com for videos and more!
We just got back from the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) conference in Philadelphia, PA, where Joe and I got to share stories and storytelling. This was the second time that I've done this event but I wanted to make sure that we could bring our guitars. (when the conference pivoted to a virtual one in 2020, Ronny Chieng graciously agreed to a fire chat with me). We made a lot of new friends, including a group of teachers who volunteered to be our Asian Aunties in the social science world.
I often get asked to speak at events of all kinds - colleges, law conferences, music industry gatherings, etc. - and while I've done my fair share of keynote speeches, I realized that I wanted to use art to bring those stories to life. So, I started sneaking in the occasional song here and there. But when I got accepted for an arts residency at the UNC Process Series, I started on a path to go all out - I didn't just play random songs in The Slants' catalog, I started writing songs specifically about my story and folding them in.
Fast forward to the beginning of 2021: I started meeting folks in the Cincinnati community. One thing led to another, and soon, I was introduced to someone at the Know Theatre of Cincinnati. After a couple of conversations, they wanted to adopt this little project that Joe and I was sharing with the world and turn it into a bona fide songs + storytelling show. We wrote even more songs and made it even more playful, putting in little nods to Dolly Parton and those who embodied a punk rock spirit. We focused less on the law and more on the persistent fight for identity. And, we starting rolling that out at events like NCSS, much like a comedian workshops new material at underground clubs before taking it on tour or taping their Netflix special (speaking of Ronny Chieng, we got to see him test out jokes that he was developing for Asian Comedian Destroys America! while in New York...that same show, Jim Gaffigan dropped by to test out over 45 minutes of horse-related jokes on the unsuspecting crowd).
It's been a lot of fun. We have some more appearances at universities and conferences coming up and some of the songs are going to be on our next album, too. I guess that's the life of a semi-retired musician for you. In either case, we'll have a full musical show to check out next fall. I hope you'll join us there.
~Simon Tam
We're making our first full-band appearance since we retired from touring for a special event at the Songbirds Foundation. We'll be helping raise money for the Guitars for Kids programs by sharing our story and some of our songs. This lineup will feature Simon Tam (bass/keys), Joe X. Jiang (vocals/guitar), and Tyler Chen (drums).
In addition to this event, Simon's custom bass guitar will be added into the vintage collection of instruments that have helped shape pop music at the Songbirds Museum. Join us in Chattanooga, TN on November 15 for this very special event!
This week marked five years since our historic win at the Supreme Court. The decision that day was unanimous, something that seems implausible in our deeply divided times.
As you know, our band retired from live touring in 2019 so we could focus on other projects, including The Slants Foundation. But that doesn't mean that we've been inactive. Although it's been half a decade since our legal journey ended, we've continued to work in arts and activism.
In this year alone, we are:
And, we're still doing some limited appearances as an acoustic duo (with Simon Tam and Joe X. Jiang performing). We'll have more news soon - feel free to check in with us on social media or check back on this website.
Thanks for all of your support!
During lockdown over the past two years, we've been busy writing songs. That's right: we're steadily working our way to a new album.
Many people think that the band completely retired in 2019, after our last show in Portland, Oregon but we didn't - we only decided to step down from live touring (no one knew that a major worldwide pandemic as coming that would make that decision for us anyway). There's a long history of artists who've kept on recording but who also put a pin on touring/live performances: The Beatles, David Bowie, The Talking Heads, Tom Waits...the list goes on. Many of them returned to the stage after a decade or two. While we're not sure if that will ever happen for us, one thing is for certain; we still have at least one album in us.
So, we're pressing on. And in the spirit of our Foundation, we're focusing on collaboration and community: the record will be highlighting voices across our community. Joe and I have written/composed the music, but most of the playing/singing will feature other AAPI artists, new and classic. As Ray Arnold (played by Samuel L. Jackson) famously said in Jurassic Park, "Hold onto your butts."
Stay tuned for more updates on this soon.
We're proud to be debuting a new experience with the International BorderLight Fringe Festival called SLANTED. It's a show of songs and stories, featuring new music that we've written just for this experience. The stories follow the experiences of Simon's memoir, Slanted: How an Asian American Troublemaker Took on the Supreme Court.
You'll be able to watch this show on demand from July 24-31. Tickets are available at a pay-what-you-can rate here. Proceeds help support the BorderLight festival as well as our nonprofit, The Slants Foundation.
May 31, 2021 marks 14 years from our very first show (kicked off at the now defunct Tonic Lounge in Portland, OR). It's also the final day for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.
Here are some recent things to check out from the month:
While we aren't touring and playing these days, we're still keeping busy!
We are proud to join this star-studded lineup of Asian American actors, filmmakers, musicians, and artists to help raise money and awareness for the #StopAAPIHate campaign.
This is a critical time and attacks against our community are on the rise. Learn more about how you can Rock Against Hate at theslants.org/rockagainsthate
Enjoy a special yuletide song for the holidays from nearly every band member past and present. Enjoy this cover of the Ramones' classic, Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight), that was recorded (virtually) especially for The Slants Foundation. Watch it here:
To learn more about our nonprofit organization, visit www.theslants.org
Simon Tam joins former band members Tyler Chen, Thai Dao, and Jonathan Fontanilla to talk about the making of our third full-length release, The Yellow Album.
Check it out here:
