Pitchfork: Ninja High School to Release Tomlab Debut LP

Ninja High School to Release Tomlab Debut LP

This is fairly run-of-the-mill music news: young, fresh new artists sign to hot indie label, buzz buzz, who what, etc etc. But then you take a closer look. The label: Tomlab Records, home to mild-mannered artists such as Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Patrick Wolf, The Books, and Niobe. And the new artists: Ninja High School, a self-described "positive hardcore dance-rap" group. Yes, slightly different than the whimpers and murmurs of their labelmates.

The Toronto band released the �We Win� EP in 2004 on Blocks Recording Club and a single on Tomlab's Alphabet Series this past spring. Now, they�re set to release their first full-length album, Young Adults Against Suicide, on the German label on November 15. Ninja High School was started by rapper Matt Collins and blossomed from a one-man project to a collective �inspired by Public Enemy, Pavement, Jamaican dancehall, and Miami bass�. That just might be the physics formula for a new bomb. Or something equally explosive. NHS also really like exclamation points and have no relation to the comic book "Ninja High School," according to their website. Members of fellow Toronto crazy crews the Hidden Cameras and Barcelona Pavilion have been known to contribute to the collective�s mayhem-making.

NHS has no confirmed tour dates at the moment but say that there are talks of making their way over to Europe. In the meantime, go to their website for samples from the upcoming album and their first single.