2017: Matal v. Tam, Portland, Oregon-based all Asian American dance-rock band The Slants took on the US Patent and Trademark Office to trademark their name. In an unanimous ruling, 8-0, the Supreme Court decided that a federal law prohibiting trademark names that disparage others was unconstitutional because “speech may not be banned on the grounds that it expresses ideas that offend.”
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States said this,
Dance-rock band frontman Simon Tam sought to trademark The Slants. His aim was to reappropriate a term long used to disparage a minority group and to render the term a badge of pride. All of us agreed.
2023: The Slants have released their final full-length album, The Band Plays On, a 14 song collection featuring a plethora of guest vocalists including the likes of Bao, Lola Menthol, Aaron Moxley, Johnny Hi-Fi, and so many more.
On the album Jiang says,
The Band Plays On is a logical evolution for The Slants. There’s a mixture of old and new songs, many reflective of Simon’s and my own personal journeys into music and activism, but presented through collaborations with extremely talented Asian American singers, musicians and producers from across the country. When the band retired from touring in 2019, our focus was on our foundation and supporting, connecting marginalized artists. It made perfect sense to do the same with this album.
Tam further adds,
Even though we were exhausted from over thirteen years on the road, our timing of stepping down from touring as a band right before the pandemic was serendipitous; that down time allowed us to really focus on what mattered for the band. For me, it was focusing on telling our stories, both literally through publishing my memoir, as well creatively through our music. For the first few years, we connected with hundreds of other Asian American artists through the work of our nonprofit, The Slants Foundation, and it really helped us rethink what was possible with our art.
While it may seem the band has been inactive since their EP, The Band Who Must Not be Names (2017), the band debuted their rock opera, Slanted: An American Rock Opera, via the New Works Collective program at the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
The Band Plays On is fourteen lovely tracks that captures the essence of who The Slants were and are and each guest vocal brings an element of themselves to infuse into the history of the band’s storied legacy. Whether you are a long time fan or just discovering The Slants on their final album, The Band Plays On is a poignant journey from start to beginning, showcasing why the band will always be part of music history.
MUST LISTEN TRACKS: “This is Who We Are”, “Will You Let Me Know”, “Ideas of You”, “Life Goes On”
FAVOURITE TRACKS: “This is Who We Are”, “Family”, “Life Goes On”
