Lupe Fiasco’s Punk Band Project, Japanese Cartoon, Still Rocks as Hard Today as It Did 14 Years Ago

Who would’ve thought that some of the best rock music of the 21st century would come from a brainy rapper?

The year after Chi-town South Sider Kanye West blind-sided pop music by freeing his inner torch singer on the critically acclaimed 808s & Heartbreaks, his West Side connection, Lupe Fiasco, let loose his inner punk rocker on the even more unpredictable In the Jaws of the Lords of Death (2010).

But, in jarring contrast to Ye’s clearly-branded production, Lupe’s guitar-grinding post-punk rock album was clandestinely released to the world wide web under the curiosity-sparking band name Japanese Cartoon.

For weeks after the singles, “Army” (2009) and “Heirplanes” (2010) dropped, which featured Lupe singing, and speaking, in a faux British brogue or “mockney” accent, the rapper from Chicago tried to pretend as though he had nothing to do with the music.

To that end, when confronted on an Internet forum about sounding like the band’s lead vocalist, the artist would even go so far as to say: “I like those kids a lot. Met the bass player overseas last year and their publicist/manager is a good friend from like, childhood. May sign them. Not me singing though.”

And though he wasn’t exactly fooling anyone, Lupe had managed to impress just about everyone who’d had the unexpected pleasure of hearing the 9-track album. An album that, even more unexpectedly, was offered to anyone with access to the Internet as a free online download.

Making the band

Made up of vocalist Wasalu Muhammad Jaco (aka Lupe Fiasco), bass player Graham Burris, keyboardist Matt Nelson, and producer Le Messie, Japanese Cartoon was originally formed in 2008.

Two years later, after the singles for “Army” and “Heirplanes” were released, the album In the Jaws of the Lords of Death dropped on July 16, 2010, by way of the Japanese Cartoon website.

Other musicians cited as collaborators in the digital-only album’s liner notes were Chris Gelbuda, Robert Tucker (Matthew Santos Band), Jonathan Marks (Hey Champ), artist/rapper Bam Alexander, Erik Hammer, Wolfie, and Ian Astbury, the frontman and founding member of The Cult.

“I like those kids a lot. Met the bass player overseas last year and their publicist/manager is a good friend from like, childhood. May sign them. Not me singing though.”

The album In the Jaws of the Lords of Death offered new and old Lupe fans a splendid set of 80s-infused punk rock. An electrifying sonic barrage fueled by the spirit of storied British bands like the Sex Pistols, Joy Division, Radiohead, and even the Washington DC-born Bad Brains.

It was a collection of wickedly cool tunes from a mysterious punk band led by a famous frontman whose Grammy-grabbing forte is hip-hop.

Despite the successful genre-jumping accomplishment, Japanese Cartoon would wind up being little more than a clever experiment by an immensely gifted rapper who seemed to bore quickly and threatened to retire from hip-hop often. Still, the innovative side project would offer Lupe Fiasco a much-needed opportunity to flex more of his creative muscle.

It also gave unexpecting fans the chance to discover that when it comes to making music, Lupe could be an Akira-like force to be reckoned with.

Anime-centric aesthetic

Although the sonic side of Japanese Cartoon stimulated much in the way of buzz at the time, in the view of this cultural critic, too little text was devoted to its high-concept visual aesthetic. An aesthetic that, like the band name, was influenced by Lupe’s (aka Lupin III) lifelong love of anime.

The album’s cover, for example, which featured a tormented-looking cartoon figure with the worst case of yuck mouth you could imagine, is a pen and ink illustration drawn by SHOHEI (Shohei Otomo), the son of the legendary manga creator and anime director Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira).

The band’s black, white, and red logo featured an eye-arresting blend of the band’s name in Japanese kanji letters ribboned below and above the head of a skeletal but oddly kawaii (cute) character wearing a red eye patch.

The character’s head design was a radical but respectful nod to the 1960s anime icon Mighty Atom aka Astroboy.

“Although the sonic side of Japanese Cartoon stimulated much in the way of buzz at the time, in the view of this cultural critic, not enough text was ever devoted to its high-concept visual aesthetic.”

A fairly recent post on Reddit, topped with the proclamation “Japanese Cartoon must return,” features a photo of Lupe first shared to social media by the artist in 2010. Taken late at night on a sidewalk somewhere in Tokyo, Lupe leans with his right elbow angled against a street lamp. His back is turned to the photo taker.

In the pic, Lupe rocks a dark leather jacket adorned with shiny silver studs that dot the shoulders, collar, and epaulets or shoulder straps like starlight. Emblazoned on the back of the jacket is a large, hand-stitched patch of the band’s logo, echoing the DIY chic of motorcycle gang regalia.

Topping off the well-thought-out, post-apocalyptic look is a custom helmet/mask that pulls the Japanese Cartoon logo into the three-dimensional sphere with a mash-up of Astroboy and tokusasu TV’s live-action hero Kamen Rider, complete with bug-like antennae on its brow.

tokusatsu (特撮, Tokusatsu) is a Japanese word that literally means “special effects.”

In reply to the Reddit post, a handful of other fans voiced their shared want of a follow-up album from the long-lost punk band. One, in particular, expressed their love for the project and lamented not having the chance back in 2010 to buy any Japanese Cartoon merch when it was available.

Another shared their still present yearning to own a physical copy of the band’s digital-only album release. A yearning felt by many, myself included.

But my favorite comment came from a devoted fan who was probably a teenager 14 years ago when In the Jaws of the Lords of Death was released. Conveying their long-held hope for the return of Japanese Cartoon they write:

“I’ve been praying for it [for] half my life at this point.”

Paco Taylor is a writer from Chicago. He loves old history books, Japanese giant monster movies, hip-hop, comics, Kit Kats, and kung fu flicks.