TEKE::TEKE - Montreal, QC

Biography

Japanese psych-punk group TEKE::TEKE are intimately familiar with duality, of splitting reality between past and present, complex melodies and hushed interludes, intense action and lingering response. After building their sound through careful assembly of countless splinters of Japanese folk, psychedelia, Brazilian surf rock, and other far-flung touchstones, the Montreal-based seven-piece indulged in and learned from stretching out in free-floating experimentation on the road. Now on their sophomore album, Hagata (out now via Kill Rock Stars), TEKE::TEKE move fully in the space between, embracing the power of mythic pairings and identities lived at once. Matching muscly intensity with moments of cloudy meditation—like a world-class high jumper finding bliss at the apex of their leap—the group frame expressive compositions with regal flute, rich horns, ecstatic guitar, and a thumping rhythm section.

In May 2024, TEKE::TEKE's song Meikyu was included in the official trailer for Ubisoft's new video game, Assassin's Creed: Shadows (link below).

Recent Press

"The highlight of my weekend was happening upon the Canadian Japanese rock band TEKE::TEKE. […] They were one of those bands, helped by the alternately angry and welcoming charisma of the singer Maya Kuroki, who nobody knew before and everyone was talking about afterwards."
- The Times UK

"Spitfire songs...frenzied mishmash of guitars, trombone, assorted Japanese instruments, and Kuroki’s singing — guttural, physical shrieks in her native tongue — bears a manic energy that bleeds into even the ballads. ....engaging in a cross-continental musical scramble while flirting with detonation."
- The New Yorker

"The Montreal pysch band's second album plays like the soundtrack to the craziest cult film never made."
- Brooklyn Vegan

"'Garakuta' is a wild concoction of flutes, psychedelic guitars, unrelenting pace and circuitous fun. Can you imagine Amon Düül tripping on acid in the middle of Japan? Something like that."
- Shindig Magazine

"There is but one TEKE::TEKE, a band that simply defies all expectations, creating cinematic “punk” music at its most imaginative. There’s little that can prepare you for their sound, and most attempts to explain the magic of the Montreal-based septet fall short. Their music demands to be experienced, their record’s as immersive as they are unpredictable."
- Post-Trash

"...this music instantly puts you in a Seijun Suzuki ultra-cool world."
- The Wire

"Mischievous, unrestrained, and daring, the Montreal psych-rock collective’s second album boldly redefines a sound they’d already redefined."
- FLOOD Magazine

"Teke::Teke from Montreal, whose offbeat fusion of Japanese surf-rock, traditional folk and pure punk joy marks them out as something very special indeed."
- The Line of Best Fit