Lo-Pan

Lo-Pan
Lo-Pan
	;
Background information
Origin	Columbus, Ohio, USA
Genres	Stoner Rock, Stoner Metal
Years active	2005 - Present
Labels	Small Stone Records, Aqualamb, Burnt Herd
Website	Lo-Pan Facebook

Lo-Pan are a stoner rock band based out of Columbus, Ohio and founded in 2005. Known for their colossal yet catchy sound, Lo-Pan would be a staple of the late 2000s stoner rock scene, signing to Small Stone Records and releasing three of their first four albums on the label. With a career spanning fifteen years the quartet have released five studio albums and have toured through North America and Europe.

The band's name is shared with a character from the 1986 film Big Trouble in Little China.

History[]

The band formed in 2005 with bassist Skot Thompson, drummer Jesse Bartz, and guitarist Brian Fristoe. Singer Jeff Martin joined the following year. The band shares its name with a villain in the comedy-martial arts film Big Trouble in Little China.^[1] Lo-Pan started with a stoner rock sound but have since added elements of traditional hard rock and heavy metal.^[2] They released a self-titled album in 2006 followed by some small-scale tours.

Sometime after Lo-Pan would sign with Small Stone Records, which released the album Sasquanaut in 2009.^[3], leading to more frequent tours with the likes of Devil To Pay and Backwoods Payback, along with appearances at SXSW. A third album in Salvador would see release in 2011, praised by AllMusic for achieving "a fluid balance of guitar-driven muscle and songwriting immediacy," with a nod to "remarkable singer" Jeff Martin.^[4]

Lo-Pan's 2014 album Colossus received widespread praise from the hard rock and heavy metal communities. MetalSucks called the album "heavy, hooky" and "a juggernaut that will bring joy to your bros."^[5] Reviewer Birdie Garcia described the album as "a unique high steppin’ tune in its unusual doom presence, something that has a groove but can also be blasted on the road while going a million miles to nowhere,"^[6] while Sputnikmusic praised the album for "bludgeoning the listener with a cavalcade of gargantuan riffs from the ground up. Brian Fristoe left the band shortly after the release of Colossus and was replaced by Brujas del Sol guitarist Adrian Zambrano.^[7] The band would also notably tour Europe for the first time in 2015.

Lo-Pan released the five-song EP In Tensions in early 2017 via Aqualamb Records. The Obelisk named the EP as its best short release of the year.^[8] Shortly after the EP was recorded, Zambrano departed due to the rigors of the band's touring schedule, and was replaced by Sleepers Awake guitarist Chris Thompson (no relation to bassist Skot Thompson).^[9]

The band's fifth full-length album, Subtle, was released in May 2019. The album earned positive reviews from Kerrang!, which praised its "intense, swirling tunes that float with both an otherworldly grace and a devastating menace," Decibel Magazine, which called the album "a gem,"^[10] and Consequence of Sound, which noted "Jeff Martin’s soaring vocals over sludgy riffs, providing a nice dichotomy of melodic and heavy."^[11]

Discography[]

Lo-Pan (Studio Album) (2006, Burnt Herd)
Sasquanaut (Studio Album) (2009, Small Stone Records)
Salvador (Studio Album) (2011, Small Stone Records)
Colossus (Studio Album) (2014, Small Stone Records)
In Tensions (EP) (2017, Aqualamb)
Subtle (Studio Album) (2019, Aqualamb)

Members[]

Jeff Martin - Vocals (2005 - Present)
J. Bartz - Drums (2005 - Present)
Skot Thompson - Bass (2005 - Present)
Chris Thompson - Guitar (2016 - Present)
Brian Fistoe - Guitar (2005 - 2014)
Adrian Zambrano - Guitar (2014 - 2016)

List of Known Tours[]

2009 Mini-Tour (With Venomin James) (2009)^[12]
June 2010 North American Tour (With Backwoods Payback) (2010)^[13]^[14]
July 2010 North American Tour (With Devil To Pay) (2010)^[15]
2011 SXSW Tour (With Backwoods Payback) (2011)^[16]
2011 Fall North American Tour (2011)^[17]
Fall 2012 North American Tour (With High on Fire, Goatwhore) (2012)^[18]
June 2013 North American Tour (With Torche, KEN Mode) (2013)^[19]
July 2013 North American Tour (With Devil To Pay) (2013)^[20]
July 2013 Mini-Tour (With Borracho) (2013)^[21]
July 2013 Mini-Tour (With Gozu) (2013)^[22]
August 2013 North American Tour (With Weedeater) (2013)^[23]
2014 North American Tour (With Black Cobra) (2014)^[24]
NXNE Tour 2015 (With Against The Grain) (2015)^[25]
European Tour 2015 (With Abrahma, Black Pyramid) (2015)^[26]
Spring 2016 North American Tour (With Bongzilla, Black Cobra, Kings Destroy, Against The Grain) (2016)^[27]
Summer 2016 North American Tour (With The Atomic Bitchwax, Dirty Streets) (2016)^[28]
Spring 2017 North American Tour (With The Obsessed, Karma To Burn) (2017)^[29]
Fall 2017 North American Tour (With Lazer/Wulf) (2017)^[30]
2018 North American Tour (With ASG, Beitthemeans) (2018)^[31]
A Quest To Believe, A Call To The Void (With Corrosion of Conformity, Crowbar, Quaker City Night Hawks) (2019)^[32]
2019 European Tour (With Steak, Elephant Tree) (2019)^[33]

External Links[]

References[]

[1] Kerrang!

[2] Angry Metal Guy

[3] AllMusic

[4] AllMusic

[5] MetalSucks

[6] MXDWN

[7] The Obelisk

[8] The Obelisk

[9] The Obelisk

[10] Decibel

[11] Consequence of Sound

[12] Last.fm

[13] Lo-Pan Facebook

[14] Last.fm

[15] Lo-Pan Facebook

[16] Lo-Pan Official via Wayback Machine

[17] Last.fm

[18] Last.fm

[19] Lo-Pan Facebook

[20] Lo-Pan Facebook

[21] Lo-Pan Facebook

[22] Lo-Pan Facebook

[23] Lo-Pan Facebook

[24] Lo-Pan Facebook

[25] Lo-Pan Facebook

[26] Lo-Pan Facebook

[27] Lo-Pan Facebook

[28] Lo-Pan Facebook

[29] Lo-Pan Facebook

[30] Lo-Pan Facebook

[31] Lo-Pan Facebook

[32] Lo-Pan Facebook

[33] Lo-Pan Facebook

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