I know Kung Fu

June 2, 2006 11:43 AM

'Kung Fu.' A power trio (quartet, maybe) whose most salient trait was the singing. Anyone else ever see them?

I've had even less luck with this one than with the 'Denis Johnson poem', and I hope someone remembers these guys. I saw them once in the Reed College SU, probably on Nitrogen Day, probably in 1997.

The singing, you ask? It was actually more of a power-yodeling. Which is why I would hear them again if I could. With all my heart.

posted by rebirtha to media & arts (5 comments total)

Based on name and date alone... could it have been Karate? Factoring in the power-yodeling, probably not.
posted by adamkempa at 12:55 PM on June 2, 2006

I saw them a couple of times, because I used to work with Bill and Justin (from the band).

Their website seems to be down, http://www.iknowkungfu.com

I think they still have CDs for sale, on amazon.

I know they are grown-ups now with kids, mortgages, and such.
posted by wogbat at 1:00 PM on June 2, 2006

wogbat, is it the same band? The web site indicates they formed after I graduated, a couple years after I saw them. Amazon.com lists them as "iknowkungfu" and a reviewer makes comment about their "witty geared-up lyrics". I seem mostly to remember that the singing was more like yodeling, incongruous in the context of a power trio(?) format.

A guy who was with me at the show remembers them as well, and thinks they may have formed another incarnation after what we saw. Does this jibe with what you know?
posted by rebirtha at 2:27 PM on June 2, 2006

They were Bill, Justin, Dave?, and Dave?...something like that. They always played with a band called "Catholic School Girls" in and around Portland, OR or Vancouver, WA.

I got to know them in...2000. But now I'm believing that we're talking about a different group. These guys weren't what you might call, um, good at singing. They were considered themselves somewhat punkísh and played for the beer more than anything...does that sound like what you're talking about? And they were called "Iknowkungfu" not "Kung Fu". But the similarities in name are a bit, well, scary.
posted by wogbat at 3:13 PM on June 2, 2006

You could also download some of their mp3s from the amazon site to see if it is the same....I'm doubting it.
posted by wogbat at 3:16 PM on June 2, 2006