Photos by Daniel Belis
Is it two guys dressed as ninjas, jamming out or is it two ninjas pretending to be in a band? Either way the bass and drum kit combo just work here. Here for your enjoyment, two ninjas: Indo and Outdo.
Smashed Chair: What's it like to be dressed in all black and then you have to factor in the sweat?
Outdo: It gets damn hot and... sweaty. It sucks when it gets in your eyes but whaddya gonna do?
Indo: I sweat like a dog!
SC: Do you think you need a guitar?
Outdo: No. We do have guest ninja guitarists that we love, but it's not necessary to our sound.
Indo: It’s not like we're anti guitar. This is just the format we choose to write music. I like having that space.
SC: Do you think you need a singer?
Outdo: Same answer as above but change "guitar" to "singer".
Indo: We really want to establish ninja academy as an instrumental band. That’s the initial goal. That is what motivated us to play as NA. But we love to change it up from time to time. Who knows maybe one day we will record a vocal album. You never know what a ninja gonna do.
SC: With the word academy you'd think there would be more guys on stage.
Outdo: There are times we have a lot of people. We had 6 the other day at a warehouse party. It always changes although the core (bass/drums) is the only constant. And just wait, there will be a day when we'll have an army of ninjas on stage with us.
Indo: The academy is growing all the time. But the core always remains the same!
SC: Is it all right if we call you math rock?
Outdo: If you feel like you need to.
Indo: How bout ninja rock with calculators!
SC: If not why'd you go with pure instrumentals?
Outdo: That's just how Indo and I have always done it. We've played together forever, just us two jamming on shit and it eventually evolved into what it is. It wasn't a conscious decision, musically speaking.
Indo: Why not. I feel that sometimes lyrics finalize a song. With the
instrumentals, the audience can use the imagination a bit. It can be more interactive in that respect.
SC: What're your fans like?
Outdo: Fucking awesome. We could not be more grateful for them.
Indo: Really nice people.
SC: Are you ever followed by pirates?
Outdo: We have been but they're always too drunk to keep up.
Indo: We killed them all!
SC: Do you practice in Ninja outfits?
Outdo: We sleep in our ninja outfits.
SC: Who are your favorite duos (like yourselves)?
Outdo: El Ten Eleven, Totally Serious, Lightning Bolt... there are so many.
SC: How important is the pedal and how important is the gong?
Outdo: Peddle as in selling shit? Or pedal as in effects? The pedal and gong are not totally necessary but they're nice touches, aren't they?
Indo: We want to strip down a show with no pedals. That would be cool! But the gong stays!
Words by Nathan Solis
