Long Blade Records

The Swords of Fatima - The Swords of Fatima

SOF SHORT BIO:

Many worlds converge into the sound of The Swords of Fatima: Bollywood, belly dance, flamenco, punk, surf, garage, country, and dark psyche folk. Some say that they are the only band to play multiple genres in every song. Some call them Tibetan Spy Music. Some try to compare them to something more familiar like Siouxsie and the Banshees, X-Ray Spex, or Dick Dale. Front woman, Buko Pan Guerra, guitarist and singer, previously known as the "Bad Ass Bitch with a Banjo" (coined by Sean Carnage) and as Lady Simmons when she played bass for Lily and the Ladies. Still attached to her banjo (her best friend for many years), plays her guitar in a banjo-styled tuning. She is fascinated by ancient stories and music from her heritage: Filipino, Turkish, Armenian, Spanish, Malaysian, and Indian. Her main influences for writing music are ancient folktales, caravans in the desert, sails sailing across the sea, Arabian nights, shamans, kundalini text, her grandmother (who is a faith healer), Samurai films, and classical music. Kim Fredrick of Punk Globe says “Buko sounds as though she has twelve hands when she plays.” Nick Scott is the architect behind the drums. Nick has many years developing his craft behind the set with POPDeFECT and Project K. Since forming in 2007, they have crafted the sound of Southeast Asian Disco Surf Punk madness that the band has become today.

The first CD "Two Days, Two Swords, Walk Alone at Midnight" (2009) was recorded by Scott Taylor (Velouria, The Black Watch) at the Sweatshop and mastered by Mark Chalecki (Capital Mastering).

The second CD "Eeka Eeka Boom Boom" (2010) was recorded by David Irish (Irish Brothers, Trash Monsters) at Pot 'o Gold studios in Orange.

The third CD "Monsoon and Sandstorms" (2010) was recorded by David Irish (Irish Brothers, Trash Monsters) at Pot 'o Gold studios in Orange. It features songs inspired by the Tibetan and Egyptian Books of the Dead, cobras, and fireflies.

The fourth CD "Blazing Towards the Golden Mirage" (releasing June 2014) was recorded by David Irish (Irish Brothers, Trash Monsters) at Pot 'o Gold studios in Orange. It is their “ROCK” album. This is a concept album – The fast more rocking songs will be in the beginning and take you through a journey to the Golden Oasis/Golden Temple which a fictional place in the middle of the desert as the main character searches for their true love. The “Golden Mirage” was a famous racehorse; some songs were based on his descendants. The “Golden Mirage” is also a metaphor for the obsession of looking for gold, a few gold mines are mentioned as well.

SOF EXTENDED BIO:

At age 16, Nickei learned to play the drums by listening to the Ramones’ Rocket To Russia over and over on a $75.00 Sears True Tone drum set. Shortly before grunge took over Seattle, Nickei moved to Los Angeles to conquer the world with pop-punk band POPDeFECT. After 20 years, POPDeFECT called it quits and played their last show in their hometown of Seattle on November 25, 2002. Nickei continued playing drums in Masher, Project K and The Shards. In 2003, Buko and Nickei’s paths crossed when she replaced the original bass player of Project K, Io Perry. Io had left the band to join Tito and Tarantula, who also shared the Sweatshop until Tito (The Plugz, The Cruzados) moved to Texas. Overwhelmed with playing in two bands, Buko also left Project K to continue full-time as bassist for the all-girl glam psych band Lily and The Ladies. Lily and The Ladies ruled the Silverlake scene for the 3 years they were together. The Ladies played their last show at the Roxy with road manager Tim “Sugarpie” Ferris for his band’s Celebrity Skin’s 20-year reunion show. After the Ladies ended, Buko started a solo career on her banjo playing dark psych-folk originals.

At age 11, Buko first started on bass then a guitar a year later. She has performed in bands since the age of 15, although none ever gained much attention. Buko also played banjo briefly in Throw Rag’s side project, Sun Trash back in 2008. In 2003, a burglar broke into her apartment and stole her guitar and bass. She was left to play her banjo. She taught herself the claw hammer style but longed to play a sitar or oud. Later after years of belly dancing training, she developed an obsession for flamenco. She was then trained in flamenco dance and taught herself flamenco guitar. Her main influences for writing music are ancient folktales, caravans in the desert, sails sailing across the sea, Arabian nights, shamans, kundalini text, her grandmother (who is a faith healer), documentaries, Samurai films, and classical music. “In Search for Power” was written after she read the “The Serpent Power” (a book about Chakras). She wrote, “Call in the Reinforcements”, after watching The Shadow Warrior a film by Akira Kurosawa. From the day dreams of riding camels through the desert dunes, fighting storms in the ocean, swimming with the giant squids in the Sea of Cortez, or roaming the streets in Morocco.

SOF FRENCH BIO FROM 2012:

Des mondes multiples s’entrechoquent et qui font tout le son de The swords of Fatima : du Bollywood, de la belly dance, du flamenco, du punk, du surf, du garage, de la country, et du dark psyche folk. Certains disent qu’ils sont le seul groupe à allier autant de style musicaux. D’autres les surnomment « Tibetan Spy Music ». D’autres encore font la tentative de les rapprocher de ceux qui leur sonnent plus familiers : Siouxsie and the Banshees, X-Ray Spex, ou encore Dick Dale. Au devant de la scène, Buko Pan Guerra, guitariste et chanteuse, joue de son instrument comme elle joue de son banjo. Les cultures traditionnelles et les musiques qui vont avec la fascinent, comme celles des Philipines, de Turquie, d’Arménie, d’Espagne, de Malaisie et d’Inde. Et c’est de ces contes anciens qu’elle s’inspire pour écrire et composer, de ces images de caravanes remuant le sable du désert, de ces marins qui affrontent la mer, des images de nuits arabiques viennent se loger dans son mental, bref, tout ce qui nourrit son imaginaire mystique. Kim Fredrick de ‘Punk Globe’ dit à son propos : “Buko joue comme si douze mains tenaient son manche. » Derrière sa batterie, Nick Scott est quant à lui l’architecte du groupe. Depuis 2007, ils forgent ensemble ce son si particulier.

A leur actif, deux albums : « Two Days, Two Swords, Walk Alone at Midnight » (2009) et « Eeka Eeka Boom Boom » (2010). Le troisième est prévu pour octobre 2012 – leurs chansons sont directement inspirées du Livre tibétain de la vie et de la mort.

SOF SPANISH BIO FROM 2014:

The Swords of Fatima son la cantante y guitarrista Buko Pan Guerra y el batería Nick Scott. Y a partir de aquí la cosa se pone difícil de explicar. Teniendo en cuenta que Buko se hacía llamar «Bad Ass Bitch with a Banjo», que entre sus influencias conviven los Gipsy Kings con Joy Division y que se describen a sí mismos como una “voladura disco punk bollywoodiense”, os podríamos contar la trilogía de El Padrino que iba a dar igual. Como unos Deerhoof jugando a ser Mr Bungle, de repente te ponen en mitad de un templo tibetano como te llevan al pantano sureño con escala en el badulaque de Apu.

TSOF ABRIDGED PERFORMANCE LIST

The Bancroft, San Diego, CA