PIMPBOT

I’ve got a soft spot for Pimpbot, the local ska band fronted by talented vocalist/trombonist and recently re-hired radio personality Fernando “The Love Machine” Pacheco.

When I started covering nightlife in Honolulu a decade ago, Pacheco and his buddies Rylan Yee and Tom Coleman were faces I recognized from elsewhere in the Honolulu music scene. Pimpbot was a side project at the time — a way for Pacheco to deal with his need to be a frontman and direct the sound of the music he was making.
I’ll be honest. I wasn’t the biggest fan of 2004's “Vertical Lobster,” the band’s first effort. It was always fun to watch the guys play live, but that magic didn’t seem to translate once they got into the studio. I was more impressed by 2008's “Admit One,” which solidified the band’s sound and showed Pacheco’s growth as a songwriter.

Now, 10 years after Pacheco first got the band together, it boasts its largest lineup to date (five members) and a sound that all the guys agree is the most “authentic-sounding” they’ve ever heard on CD. And despite his role as husband and father, in addition to a new gig at 105.9 KPOI-FM, he couldn’t be happier with the stage he’s at in his musical career.

“In the past, I just had to make a lot of compromises,” Pacheco explained. “Now, having more musicians at my disposal, it’s awesome. I can achieve the sound I have in my head. It’s all matching up.
“I hit this nirvana, where it’s like, I love this lineup. If I can keep this thing going, I’ll keep it up forever. We make our own schedule … and our families are very supportive. So we’re going to keep on doing this while we’re living life.

“Getting married and having kids doesn’t mean you gotta stop.”
According to Coleman, the new album is “the culmination of everything we’ve done so far.” The addition of Nic Ramos to the band “really tightened up our sound,” he said.

“We’ve learned a lot about ska … and we’re still having a great time. That’s why we’re still doing it. It’s still so much fun.”
Pimpbot’s new, self-titled album features more of the entertaining song titles fans have grown to love. Starting with “Meet You at the Bar” and moving into “Hobo Chili” and “Zombie Fasi,” they keep things interesting throughout the 10 tracks on the CD, finishing strong with songs like “Please be a Ninja” and “Beer and Homies.”

“We always want to keep doing things that make us different,” said drummer Eric Lagrimas. “Granted, we’re not the downtown darlings or the current hipster favorites, but we do our thing. And we do it with pride and passion. We eat, breathe and live this s–t. It matters.”

AND WHEN I say I have a soft spot for these guys, I’m not the only one. While it’s Matt “Haz-Matt” Wells’ job to keep tabs on the local rock scene as an on-air personality at Star 101.9 FM, he’s stuck with Pimpbot the last decade for more personal reasons.

“I went to their shows based on other people telling me that I needed to check them out, and then I was lucky enough to end up spending some time with Fern and the guys,” said Wells. “And they’re cool. You like them. How can you go wrong with that? I like the music, and I like the guys themselves.

“What they bring (is) the consistency. Like Fern was saying, they’ve grown into their own skin. They’ve stuck around for a decade, and that’s nothing to short shrift.

“When I grew up, I was a one of those fans of punk and ska in a place where if it wasn’t grunge or country, you were laughed at. If this stuff was around when I was in high school, I would have been all about it.
Now, I look at it from more of an industry eye, but they take me back to when I was just a fan.”
———
Jason Genegabus is Entertainment Editor/Online at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser and has covered the local nightlife, music, bar and entertainment scenes since 2001. Contact him via email at jason@staradvertiser.com. - Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Hailing from Honolulu's bustling capital, Waikiki, six-piece band PIMPBOT pump out a unique brand of schizophrenic ska/punk that welds chilled out saxophone solos with full on reggae infused thrash rock. Their songs are down to earth honest, going as far as exploring the awkward tension that hovers the morning after a one night stand. Songs like this remind us that these are just normal guys with abnormal talent, who happen to realize that even the most mundane occurrences of everyday life can be an adventure. Here's what members Fernando and Eric had to say about performing at SXSW, their music, the spoils of Hawaiian weather and meeting supernatural beings while on tour.

Describe your sound in your own words.

PIMPBOT's sound has been constantly evolving over the years. Our sound is very chameleon-like, as our writing style adapts to our environment. The band started out playing a lot of Beastie Boys-esque hip hop and funk because we would only be booked at underground hip hop hop shows. As we started to record, our sound captured the 90s ska boom, ska/punk influence. By the time it came to record 'Admit One,' we had a bit more of a straight rock sound because we played less ska shows and performed with more grunge, metal, and pop alternative rock bands. Recently we added a full horn section, so now we have a rock-steady ska sound mixed with some thrash punk. Through all of our changes in the last 9 years, one strain of consistency in our sound is that we've always embraced minor chords with angry lyrics. Whichever genre we attempt to tackle, we make it sound evil.

How did your band form?

PIMPBOT was the product of its predecessor, 'The Honolulu Pub Allstars.' Fernando and Rylan were college classmates and decided to keep a small batch of songs they wrote together and experimented playing with various musicians in Honolulu's underground scene. The line-up has changed dramatically over the years, with a total count of 13 members having come into the band at one point or another.

What are your musical influences?

Rock-steady reggae, two-tone ska, punk, and gangster rap.

How did you come up with your band name?

It's a tribute to the character that was featured on 'Late Night with Conan O'Brien.'

What's your biggest vice?

Hard alcohol and oily bar food.

What's in your festival survival kit?

Fernando: Socks, lip balm, nail clippers.

Eric: Stickers, business cards, sharpies. Deodorant...what's that?

What's your musical guilty pleasure?

Fernando: Vanessa Carlton.

Eric: Matchbox 20.

What's the craziest thing you've seen or experienced while on tour?

Fernando: I got so drunk at a show in Portland, I blacked out at the bar and woke up in my underwear in my friend's bathroom. I tried to pee all over his apartment, so the band locked me in the bathroom and I vomited all over myself.

Eric: Meeting a supernatural being in Gage, New Mexico after SXSW 2009. We were the only van pumping gas in the middle of nowhere and all of a sudden, someone appeared and mentioned they loved our set and told us to call him up in Los Angeles. He gave us his card and all it said was, "The Overlord."

Does being based in Hawaii make touring harder?

Yes, incredibly. Most rock bands in Hawaii have to choose to either record an album or tour for that year because there's only enough money to do one of them. The more members your band has, the harder it is to jump across the Pacific -- in either direction.

Has Hawaiian weather spoiled you in any way?

Yes! We pack 2 jackets on tour because Hawaii residents are known to shiver at temperature below 60 degrees.


John Haefele is a contributor from Seed.com. Learn how you can contribute here. - Spinner / AOL music

It doesn't seem like four years since Pimpbot released its first full-length album, but, yes, it was back in March 2004 that we welcomed the release of "Vertical Lobster." Now, with "Admit One," the band builds on that impressive foundation. Once again the quartet -- Tom Coleman, Eric Lagrimas, Rylan Yee and Fernando "the Love Machine" Pacheco -- step outside the basic rock-club format of guitar, drums, bass, trombone and vocals. Pacheco plays tuba as well as trombone, bassist Yee doubles on keyboards and drummer Lagrimas also plays tenor sax (Coleman and Yee also back Pacheco on the vocals).

The added instruments make the group credible when playing ska as well as when they're rocking hardcore punk. Pacheco presides as the narrator and protagonist in a series of adventures and misadventures -- encountering a transvestite masseuse in a massage parlor, for example.

The foursome looks at relationships from both sides, the good ("Thanks for the Eggs") and the bad ("Apple of My Eye" and another with a title unsuitable to mention in a family newspaper).

"Right Time" takes a subject as old as rock music itself -- that too much of our lives are spent waiting for the good times -- and delivers it in modern style. Pacheco's voice conveys the frustration of waiting, waiting, waiting; the frenetic tempo of the choruses suggests the relief that comes when it's finally time to rock.

The guys' range as writers and social commentators is represented at one end by "Eat My Lyrics," an obscenity-rich rant against "haters that drink haterade," and at the other by the subtle messages conveyed in "CK" and "Baseball." The former is Pimpbot's comment on drunken driving (they're against it); the latter is apparently about an embarrassing male problem.

-John Berger

"Admit One"
Pimpbot (Pass Out)
3/14/08 - Honolulu Star Bulletin

Distinguishing notes: Pimpbot is an Island-based band well known to the night owls; its foray into rock realms has made it a local fave. Thus, "Admit One" is your backstage pass to the group's nerve center. But the blunt language is not for everyone.

Pimpbot is Fernando "The Love Machine" Pacheco, lead singer, trombone, tuba; Tom "Tommy Utah" Coleman, guitars, background vocals; Rylan "Big Sexy" Yee, bass, keyboards, background vocals; and Eric "The Biz" Lagrimas, drums, percussion, tenor sax.

It writes its own tunes, and pounds out themes that have some everyday relevance. The rainbow of rock ranges includes the soaring "Day Into Night," the gasoline-influenced "Driving on E," the frenzy of love on "Apple of My Eye." But parents, be warned: Some lyrics, such as those on "Eat My Lyric" and "Just Fine," tell it too frankly for young ones.

# Our take: Don't knock the rock; give a listen and you'll find creative boldness from Pimpbot, which, of course, will make you feel a bit older — like, when did rock get so darn say-it-like-it-is, in-your-face?

- Wayne Harada

March 14, 2008

"Admit One" by Pimpbot
Pass Out Records
Genre: Rock, ska - Honolulu Advertiser

Pimbot’s new album, Admit One, is exactly as it sounds - a ticket into the Pimpbot experience where ska, reggae, punk, rock, hip-hop and a little bit of humor collide.

It’s an amusement park ride of sounds that they say has really found its own voice through the group’s seven years of performing. As lead singer and trombone player Fernando Pacheco nicely puts, “I guess we made it a little less ADD.”

Fernando and his band members Tom Coleman, Rylan Yee and Eric Lagrimas have equally gelled, crediting their friendship to their similar likes and their love of music.

“We come together, we practice together and beside from that we still all hang out as friends,” says Eric. “I feel very fortunate to be in a situation where we have the music and, outside of that, we have the friend relationship as well.”

The group also agrees that their new album is much more refined and a big step forward. The album has been four years in the making and features 12 original tracks mixed by Eddie C from the Voodoo Glowskulls.

“I cut back about writing about food,"says Fernando. “This one may be a little more relationship heavy. During the process of writing songs for this album I went through a bad relationship. And some of the songs are about the woman who is my wife now, and how awesome she is. So it’s a roller coaster of emotions, rather than a roller coaster of food.”

March is a huge month for Pimpbot - not only is it releasing its album, but the band is also celebrating its seventh anniversary and will be leaving for its first international tour to Canada. To celebrate, the band is doing it in Pimpbot fashion with a 3-in-1 rager at Don Ho’s March 8.

The anniversary/CD release/send-off party welcomes everyone 21 and over to enjoy samplings from Pimpbot’s new album as well as performances by Missing Dave,82Fifty and Breaking the Innocent. Hosted by Kathy with a K, the evening begins at 10 p.m. Cover is $7.

For those who can’t wait that long for a taste of Pimpbot, catch the band tonight (Feb. 29) 10 p.m. at Boardriders in Kailua with Mistermeaner and Joey Baggadonuts. For more info, visit www.myspace.com/pimpbot
Q’nA

Pimpbot: Tom, Rylan, Eric and Fernando
Pimpbot: Tom, Rylan, Eric and Fernando

What high school did you graduate from?

Tom: Maryknoll High School.

Fernando: Pearl City, home of the Chargers.

Rylan: Waipahu High School.

Eric: Waipahu High School. But technically, in the Pimpbot press kit we’re from Waikiki because Wave Waikiki was our home.

Do you consider yourselves good role models for the younger kids who come to your shows?

Eric: I guess it would depend on what show.I know we’ve played some all-ages shows, but there are some shows that we tailor to the occasion. But I think overall we’re good role models.

Fernando: As far as me being a horn player, I think it could be for all those kids in band class. Stick with your instrument and you don’t have to be ashamed. Keep playing music if you feel like it. But if it were any of our birthdays and you were to come to that show, we probably wouldn’t be good role models.

What do you think defines good music?

Tom: Besides the fact that we’re playing it? (laughs)

Fernando: I think, for a successful band, part of it is musical talent and part of it is the crowd reaction. We really focus on overall reaction. We don’t want people just sitting there.It’s all about having a good time, too.

Eric: Going off of what Fernando said, I think with good music it is the whole experience, such as the lyrics, the vibe and just the people around you. And how the artist reaches out to the fans as well.

What is something interesting that many people don’t know about you?

Fernando: My thumbs are double jointed and I have asthma.

Tom: I play classical guitar.

Eric: People think I’m a drummer, but I’m actually a tenor saxophone player - that’s my primary instrument. And I also studied jazz saxophone in college. Early on with Pimpbot I would play my saxophone, but it was just too much to carry my drums and my saxophone. So now I have a recorder, that little flutophone that elementary school kids play. So I tend to bust that out during the live shows.

Rylan: I’m classically trained in piano.

Aside from music, what else occupies a lot of your time?

Eric: I actually teach at Honolulu Community College. I teach their Survey of Music Business class for the MELE program. And my girlfriend.

Fernando: Yeah, being married takes up a lot of time. Plus I spend a lot of time working on the Pimpbot touring and networking.

Tom: I teach guitar a lot. It does-n’t pay that well, but I consider it a hobby and it’s very fun.

Rylan: I like to edit videos together. I’m trying to learn to design web-sites again because everything has changed so much.

-Melissa Moniz
Feb 29, 2008 - Midweek Magazine

Pimpbottin’ - The evolving band marks five years at the Wave.

The term "necktie party" is old-time slang for a lynching, but Fernando, the single-monikered leader of Pimpbot, says no gallows humor was intended when the band picked it as the theme for its fifth anniversary party at the Wave Waikiki this weekend.

Necktie Party
Celebrating Pimpbot's 5th anniversary, with opening band Missing Dave:

Where: Wave Waikiki, 1877 Kalakaua Ave.

When: 9 p.m. Friday; Pimpbot takes stage at midnight

Minimum age: 21

Call: 941-0424

"I thought it's kind of ironic that everybody dresses like a ska band except ska bands these days. A lot of people are wearing snap-caps, and everybody's wearing ties and stuff -- they're all dressing like ska bands used to dress, and I thought Pimpbot would try to take the neckties back," Fernando says.

Expect the band to play for at least 90 minutes and "cover all the bases."

"We're going to be doing some songs from 'Vertical Lobster,' our first full-length CD. We'll be doing 'Careless Whisper,' our single that was nominated for the Hawaii Music Awards, and we'll be doing a bunch of new stuff that will be on our next album."

The existence of Pimpbot -- let alone its survival for five years, two mainland tours and the success of "Vertical Lobster" -- is a tribute to the flexibility and open minds of the members. Fernando is also a member of Go Jimmy Go; he formed Pimpbot "as an experimental thing" to play music that didn't fit GJG's repertoire.

The sense of experimentation is alive and well five years later. Fernando is working with a new sound in local rock by playing tuba on some new material.

"The tuba is my main instrument anyway. That's what I played at the University of Hawaii (and) I'm classically trained in tuba. I just taught myself trombone on the side to be in a band ... but we're just at the point now where we're working (tuba) into the set more, just to the point where if you're going to a Pimpbot show you're gonna see a tuba."

And hear it as well. The first Pimpbot song to use tube, "Maggots," is on the set list for Friday.

art
COURTESY TINA LAU
The band's ready to get this party started. They are, from left, Fernando (psst, his last name's Pacheco), Eric Lagrimas, Tom Coleman and Rylan Lee.

Eric Lagrimas (drums/tenor sax) recently became the new "Bot" in the lineup. The others in the band, Rylan Yee (bass) and Tom Coleman (guitar), also have other groups on the side -- Lee started the surf band Dr. Zaius and Coleman is with the hard-core 2 Face 2.

"Pimpbot is cool in the way that we really encourage each other to just experiment even if it's not with our band," Fernando said.

Fernando will be doing a lot of traveling this year. Go Jimmy Go goes to Japan in April. Pimpbot, Missing Dave and The Crud leave for the mainland in October for two-week self-contained "Rock from the Rock" tour.

"We spoke to Jason Miller (of Hawaiian Express and 808shows.com) and he said there haven't been three bands from Hawaii that have toured together in about 10 years ... and we're really looking forward to it."

Pimpbot has played to mainland audiences before, but Fernando says "Rock from the Rock" will be a different experience.

"We were playing big ska shows with traditional (ska) bands ... and then (the audience) sees us with distortion pedals, screaming 'What's up? We're the Pimpbot!' and they'd freak out. This is really our first tour where we're not really basing it on the ska scene. Pimpbot has kind of evolved into a rock band with horns."



By John Berger
jberger@starbulletin.com
March 10, 2006

- Honolulu Star Bulletin

Firing up the machine, Distinct musical personalities come together for unique sounds of Pimpbot

It's appropriate that the guys that are Pimpbot are chilling in the cocktail lounge of Waikiki's Wailana Coffee House, talking and joking over food and drinks after a recent weekday soundcheck at the nearby Wave Waikiki. A cheesy karaoke version of "Venus in Blue Jeans" threatens to drown out the give-and-take conversation.

Named after a character in a recurring skit on the late-night Conan O'Brien TV show, Pimpbot's crazy quilt music is much like that '50s-styled sci-fi robot with a '70s black street attitude.

Everyone in the band brings a distinct personality to the Pimpbot's lounge punk/ska sound. "The Love Machine" (a k a Fernando Pacheco, singer and trombonist who's also a member of the popular Go Jimmy Go) fronts the band with his mack daddy ways. He's backed by "Ry-Ry" (Rylan Lee) workin' that reverberating electric Roland keyboard; the very rock-starish "Jolomite" (Joel Tokunaga from Hellbound Hounds and Extra Stout) doing his best junior version of Keith Richards; and "Basey" (Shannon Ogura from an as-of-yet-unnamed emocore band) playing the prerequisite "quiet one" role in the band.

Ogura played yin to MC A-Train's (Alex Nagata of The Sticklers) pounding rhythmic yang recently, but with the addition of former Big Toe drummer Chris LaPan, Nagata will be screaming his gibberish in front of the drum kit now. For the opening of the Save Ferris gig next Friday, two horn players from the local first-wave ska band The Redlight will help power up the band's already amped-up stage show.


art
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Pimpbot drummer Alex Nagata is keeper of the beats and the group's small, but growing, fan club.


Pimpbot's droll sense of humor is also reflected in its all-original repertoire that includes such should-be classics as "Ragamuffin," "Pentatonic Reggae G-Thing" and the singalong ode to obesity, "Phat Fish," with its memorable line, "no hot chicas coming my way!"

The band will celebrate one year of existence next month and the members have enjoyed the ride.

"Before this band," Pacheco said, "I had been in other bands with these guys, but not all at once. Actually, I was scared to see how we all would play together; I really wanted to write my own music and start again in another band apart from Go Jimmy Go and keep the creative power. Pimpbot originally started out playing just ska, but then we started experimenting with some hip-hop."

"I used to hate ska," chimed in Nagata, "but then I saw the light and, besides, I wanted to broaden my horizons beyond The Sticklers."

"I used to enjoy ska before I played in this band," joked Lee.

Both Lee and Pacheco were in a Pimpbot prototype called the Honolulu Pub All-Stars.

"A lot of my songs laid the foundation for this band," Pacheco said. "After we got a set's worth, then the songwriting became more collaborative."

While the guys want to conquer the Entire Universe As We Know It, their small rabid fan base grew out of Nagata's day job. "They're friends of mine from the Old Spaghetti Factory. They like our idea of craziness, the whole pimpin' thing."

Pacheco's on-stage look has evolved a bit as well. "I first dressed like a two-tone rude boy, but after a King's Crab gig, Drago from (the popular Arizona ska band) Warsaw took me aside and said 'I have something for you.' He gave me a wig from his girlfriend, and when I put on shades to go with it, it felt really cool, and the crowd reacted to the look.

"I always wanted to create a gimmick with this band, and since the wig is now one of our trademarks, I accessorize around it." (That evening's onstage wardrobe included a hip-hop Kangol hat and a heavy metal stud bracelet.)

Lee, a ska and surf music enthusiast who's played music since he was 8, said that "our songs in the future will be noisier with synth sounds and weird stuff."

"And dirty, raunchy rock 'n' roll," Tokunaga added enthusiastically.

As "Summer Love" wafted over the karaoke sound system, the ever-philosophical Nagata said that "the music is the journey, not the destination."

"We want to push the musical limits in Pimpbot," said Tokunaga, looking very much the rock star in black, black eyeliner, black-painted fingernails and a bit of color in his hair.

"We're an event band," Pacheco said. "We like to do one big show guaranteed to kick ass." And, according to Nagata, Pimpbot does not play music appropriate for guys to practice their pickup lines.


Pimpbot
Where: Wave Waikiki, 1877 Kalakaua Ave.
When: 10 p.m. to midnight Monday
Admission: $5 for 21 and older; $10 for ages 18-20
Call: 941-0424
Also: Opening for Save Ferris 7 p.m. March 1 at World Cafe. Tickets $17.50. Call 599-4450.


"It's impossible to talk to girls while we're playing because they'll be too busy flocking to us."

Their dreams of success are boundless (and ridiculous) to the point of MTV notoriety. "We aspire to be on TRL," Lee said. "We want to get our videos played and have some idiot chick screaming, 'Oh my God, I LOVE Pimpbot!!' "

But first things first. The band has already recorded a couple of songs at Junk Studios (where Nagata performs engineering duties as well) and, somewhere down the line, Pacheco plans to help the band get some mainland gigs through contacts made during Go Jimmy Go's last tour.

And remember, Pimpbot is not a gag band.

"We like to have fun onstage," Ogura said, "but we're serious about our music."

"We all come from underground punk bands," added Tokunaga, "and at this point in our musical lives, we're ready to take it to the next level. Punk rock can only take you so far -- playing in front of 10 kids in the basement of a house -- and this band is the best vehicle out of that. We're the funniest, most outrageous, over-the-top band you're going to see, but it's not a joke to us."

Pacheco has admired his bandmates' stick-to-it-tiveness. "My promotions job at Star 101, I know, holds the band back a bit, but I'm impressed and stoked by the other guys' commitment to pick up the slack and keep it going. It means it's all worth it."

And Pimpbot has continued with the support of the clubbers, like those who go to their occasional Pussycat Lounge gigs at the Wave. "We get no Go Jimmy Go fan crossover," Pacheco said. "That band builds its audience with BBQs and family picnics."

And if Pimpbot blows up big-time MTV-wise, the guys can look forward to their own VH-1 "Behind the Music" program. Pacheco laughingly says that "the story for us will be that drugs tore us apart, we ended up partying too much and become incoherent and go into rehab with beer bellies on us, and one guy gets so pissed off at the rest of the band that he doesn't join the reunion tour."

"And Fernando will be working at KUMU then, and I'll be still working at the now-Ancient Spaghetti Factory." said Nagata.

By Gary C. W. Chun
gchun@starbulletin.com
Feb 22, 2002


- Honolulu Star Bulletin

"A Pimpbot show is a sight to behold..."

"Pimpbot proved that they're well worth the price of admission..."


- Dean Carrico, Honolulu Weekly (Apr 09, 2008) - Honolulu Weekly

By Don Robbins
Staff Writer

Members of the Waikiki-based rock band Pimpbot say they're excited by their invitation to perform at the upcoming South by Southwest (SXSW) Music and Media Conference.
Advertisement

The event will be held March 18-22, in Austin, Texas band members will also do a supporting tour as they make their trek to and from Austin, playing in various cities in California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

Hawaii Music Awards-nominated Pimpbot has been a four-piece fixture in Hawaii's nightlife scene for seven years.

Pimpbot consists of Manoa resident Tom Coleman on guitar, Makiki resident Eric Lagrimas playing drums, with Makiki resident Fernando Pacheco on vocals and trombone and Waipahu resident Rylan Yee on bass.

"Pimpbot is thrilled about this opportunity to represent Hawaii in this type of capacity. We promise, we won't let you down," said Pacheco.

Lagrimas said, "South By Southwest is one of the most important events in the music industry. We're looking forward to sharing our brand of rock/reggae/ska with a touch of aloha."

According to SXSW's Pacific Region representative, Phil Tripp, "The last Hawaii-based musical artist to perform at SXSW was Hapa."

The conference is designed to showcase hundreds of musical acts from around the globe on over 80 stages in downtown Austin.

By day, conference registrants do business in the SXSW Trade Show in the Austin Convention Center and participate in a full agenda of panel discussions featuring hundreds of speakers of international stature.

Now in its 23rd year, the SXSW Festival also consists of the SXSW Film Conference & Festival and the SXSW Interactive Festival.

In addition, the band's Myspace page lists several upcoming area shows this month. They include one at 8 p.m. Jan. 24 at Higher Ground Coffee and Music Cafe in Wahiawa, and 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 28 at the In Yo Face Improv's Variety Show at Pipeline Cafe in Honolulu.

Other upcoming shows are both scheduled for Jan. 31, one at 1 p.m. at Kamehameha Schools Surf Sample Sale in Honolulu and another 8 p.m. event during the Wave Waikiki Reunion Party at Pipeline Cafe.

According to Lagrimas, in 2008, their second CD, "Admit One" included songs such as "Baseball" and "CK." Following the release, they embarked on a two-week Canadian tour and he said "the band is currently eyeing up several international opportunities in 2009." Influence include all waves of ska, classical, jazz, punk, hard-core, reggae, hip-hop and salsa.

For information, visit Pimpbot's Myspace site at www.myspace.com/pimpbot and the SXSW site at www.sxsw.com.


http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20090114/COMPUB07/901140315/1244 - East Oahu People

By Dan Cowan

After their whirlwind winter tour of Western Canada the 4 Pimpbots are now safely back in the USA for their Seattle show tonight. Tomorrow they return to Honolulu with big smiles on their faces because they really had a great time and made a whole bunch of new fans and band friends. The whole tour was one of sharing the stage (and gear) with some of the best up and coming local bands in each city they played ie: Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver.

They have a whole new music collection after swapping a copy of their new "Admit One" CD released 2 weeks ago for a copy of each of the other bands CDs. T- shirts as well of course. The band was pleasantly surprised how well they were received at each of the shows in cities where they had never played before. Their quick 1 week tour ended perfectly with their last show in Vancouver having the best crowd of all.

Skaspot Live is proud and pleased to have been part of this tour has officially been named as Pimpbots' Canadian Representative. Discussions begin soon about a tour of Eastern Canada. Pimpbot plans to send over a few other great Hawaiian ska bands to follow in their footsteps. True Indy warriors and pioneers these Pimpbot guys. A smart lean and mean ska machine, that's Pimpbot. Other young indie bands take notice, this is how you do it. Here's an amazing and inspiring fact: They are going home having made money on a promotional tour, the kind of tour that typically cost bands thousands of dollars just to promote their latest release. They not only did not lose money, they made money. It can be done folks!


http://skaspotlive.ning.com/profiles/blogs/2000126:BlogPost:504 - SkaSpotLive