The first time I saw Japandroids, they were crammed onto the tiny stage at Hoko's Sushi Restaurant in Vancouver. They were also forced to cram as many songs as possible into a truncated 20-minute set in order to make the Eastside business' early curfew for live music. Due to the circumstances, the duo -- made up of guitarist/singer Brian King and drummer/singer David Prowse -- were in a surly mood. They didn't address the audience after rushing onto stage and pronouncing "we're going to be really fucking loud" and at some point Brian's guitar was tossed aside in frustration. When I approached them after the show, they were adamant that it was one of the "worst gigs [they'd] ever played." At that point in time, I wasn't really in a position to say otherwise, but I did know for a fact that I hadn't seen anyone play with the same sort of reckless intensity for as long as I could remember. They were in better spirits when we sat down to discuss just what makes Japandroids tick.

"I wanted to call the band Pleasure Droids and Dave didn't want to tell his parents that he played in a band called Pleasure Droids," explains King of how the duo got their moniker, before Prowse interjects. "I don't think I wanted to tell anyone that I played in a band called Pleasure Droids," says the drummer, who was pushing for "Japanese Scream," until they decided to split the difference. Before settling on a name, they had to settle on a line up.

"Originally we were going to be a three-piece and Dave was going to play drums and I was going to play guitar and we were going to look for a singer. We wanted a female singer," explains Prowse. "Then we just said 'fuck it,'" says King, of the decision to forgo their search in favour of taking up vocal duties themselves. "I don't really think we could find someone else who would want to hang out with us long enough to be in a band anyways," King notes with a laugh. "Now that we've been playing for awhile I can't imagine any girl that would want to hang out with us that much time and deal with all the bullshit we deal with together. We've got more issues than a ten piece band." Ironically, it's their limited membership that causes some of those issues.

"We basically need the Kiss Army is what we need," jokes King, as the topic turns to the less glamorous side of making music. "It's just the two of us right now. We do everything. We work at this on weekends and at night and in all our spare time. We work day jobs just like everyone else," he continues. "The idea of this getting any bigger�?� I can't imagine how we'd even deal with that." With that in mind, the pair is still plowing ahead with future plans, albeit at their own pace.

With a self-released EP -- the 5-song collection entitled All Lies-- out now, and another EP "99% done," Japandroids sights are set on bigger things. "I think the next step after that would be recording a proper full-length," says King. It might take awhile for things to catch up with their artistic ambition though. "I don't think it'll take us that long to get enough music, but it'll definitely take awhile for us to get enough money to record it and put it out," he explains, reflecting on the realities that any band adopting a DIY approach faces. If all the work is getting them down, it certainly isn't reflected when they get together to perform.

When the topic turns to the duo's live show, King declares that "there's only one band that I think we both like: they're called the Sonics." Japandroids blend of shifting rhythms and wall-of-sound fuzz isn't exactly a close aural fit with the Seattle garage rock pioneers, but the influence is still evident. "We're stealing their energy and we're stealing their rawness, but we're not really stealing their sound," he explains. "Most of the bands that I really listen to and really like - you can't really emulate them in a two-piece. As much as I would love for us to be a two man Guns N Roses, it just ain't going to happen." Maybe not, but they certainly have an appetite for destruction.

"I think we both want to be a live band," explains Prowse. "You're trying to kill yourself out there if you can. That's the kind of thing that we want people to take home with them on a CD," says King.

<p><em>Japandroids are currently taking applications for fan club members who are willing to stuff envelopes with CDs, change guitar strings, and feed Brian's cats. The All Lies EP is out now. To make an inquiry, or to see what drummer David Browse looks like, please go <a href="http://www.myspace.com/japandroids"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">here</span></a>.</em> <br /><br /> Words by Quinn Omori<br /> Photos by Luke Simcoe</p>