Tokyo Police Club
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 2005 |
| Headquarters | Newmarket, Ontario , Canada |
| Products | Indie rock music |
Tokyo Police Club was an indie rock group originating from Newmarket, Ontario, Canada. Established in 2005, the lineup included vocalist and bassist Dave Monks, keyboardist Graham Wright, guitarist Josh Hook, and drummer Greg Alsop. They first gained recognition with their 2006 debut EP A Lesson in Crime, followed by the albums Elephant Shell (2008) and Champ (2010). Throughout the 2010s, the band released three more studio albums. Tokyo Police Club earned two nominations for the Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year, once in 2011 for Champ and again in 2019 for TPC.
The band officially ended their career after a farewell tour concluding in November 2024.
2005–2007: Origins and initial development
David Monks, Graham Wright, Josh Hook, and Greg Alsop all grew up together and attended school in Newmarket, Ontario. Before forming Tokyo Police Club in 2004, they played as a high school band named Suburbia. The name Tokyo Police Club was created using an online Band Name Generator.
Starting with small performances around Toronto, they soon received an invitation to perform at the Pop Montreal festival and subsequently signed with Toronto-based label Paper Bag Records. Both Monks and Alsop left their college studies to focus fully on their music careers.
Their first release was the EP A Lesson in Crime (2006), which comprised several brief tracks totaling under seventeen minutes. That same year, they appeared at events such as Edgefest and the inaugural Osheaga Festival.
In 2007, Tokyo Police Club issued the Smith EP and secured a deal with Saddle Creek Records during a concert in Omaha, Nebraska; this label later released their first full-length album. The single "Your English Is Good" debuted in July and was included on their album Elephant Shell. The band also performed at prominent festivals like Coachella, Lollapalooza, Bumbershoot, the Glastonbury Festival, and the Reading and Leeds Festival.
2008–2012: First album launch and notable achievements
Tokyo Police Club released their debut LP, Elephant Shell, in 2008. It was initially made available through the US iTunes Store on March 25, followed by a North American release via Saddle Creek Records in April, and then distributed across the U.K. and Europe by Memphis Industries in May. That year, they played at major festivals including Roskilde Festival, Rock am Ring, and San Diego’s Street Scene. Additionally, they joined the final six weeks of Weezer's Troublemaker Tour alongside Angels and Airwaves.
In 2010, Tokyo Police Club appeared at both the Bonnaroo Music Festival and San Francisco's Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival. Their sophomore album Champ, produced by Rob Schnapf, was released in June and later featured on the !Earshot National Top 50 Chart that autumn.
On March 27, 2011, the band performed "Bambi" during the 40th Juno Awards ceremony. In June of that year, their music video for "Wait Up (Boots of Danger)" received a nomination from MuchMusic for best indie video. They also released 10 Days. 10 Covers. 10 Years., a collection covering one song from each year between 2001 and 2010.
By December 2011, Tokyo Police Club introduced a new track titled "Beaches" during live performances. In 2012, they toured North America supporting Foster the People on their Torches tour alongside Kimbra. During this period, Graham Wright contributed programming work for CBC Radio 3.
2013–2018: Forcefield and TPC
Following a relatively subdued phase after 2012, the group unveiled a nine-minute lyric video for "Argentina (Pts. I, II, and III)" in December 2013. Both "Beaches" and "Argentina" were included on their album Forcefield, which was released on March 24, 2014. That summer, the band performed at the Calgary Stampede and recorded two tracks for the Daytrotter Sessions.
In 2016, Tokyo Police Club introduced the Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness project—comprising two EPs that were later merged into a full-length album—showcasing a spontaneous recording style reminiscent of their earlier efforts. Additionally, they released an expanded tenth anniversary edition of A Lesson in Crime.
Throughout 2018, the band continued crafting new songs,[1] culminating in the October 5 release of TPC, which earned a Juno Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year.[2] Following this, in October 2020 they issued TPC DLX, an EP featuring additional tracks from the TPC recording sessions alongside acoustic renditions.[3]
2020–2024: Reissues and disbandment
In December 2020, Tokyo Police Club announced a special tenth anniversary reissue of their album Champ, which was released in March 2021 and accompanied by the single "Hundred Dollar Day."
The band disclosed plans in March 2023 for a fifteenth anniversary edition of their debut record Elephant Shell, scheduled for release on May 5, 2023.
On January 23, 2024, Tokyo Police Club declared their decision to disband, with farewell concerts planned at History in Toronto during November 2024. Ahead of these final appearances, they released their concluding single, "Just A Scratch" / "Catch Me If You Can," on March 12, 2024.
Television
Tokyo Police Club made their American television debut on April 19, 2007, performing "Nature of the Experiment" on the Late Show with David Letterman. They returned one year later to perform "Tessellate" from the album Elephant Shell.
On November 16, 2008, they appeared as the fictional band "Cold Splash" in the Desperate Housewives episode titled "City on Fire," performing the song "In A Cave". In December of that year, they performed "Your English is Good" on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Their third appearance on the Late Show occurred on June 28, 2010, when they played "Wait Up (Boots of Danger)" from Champ.
Band members
- Dave Monks – lead vocals, bass guitar, guitar
- Graham Wright – keyboards, guitar, vocals
- Josh Hook – guitar, vocals
- Greg Alsop – drums, percussion
Discography
- A Lesson in Crime (2006)
- Smith EP (2007)
- Elephant Shell (2008)
- Champ (2010)
- Ten Songs, Ten Years, Ten Days (2011)
- Forcefield (2014)
- Melon Collie and the Infinite Radness: Parts One & Two (2016)
- TPC (2018)
Accolades
| Year | Organization | Category | Work Nominated | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | MTVu Woodie Awards | Best Emerging Artist | Tokyo Police Club | Template:Nom |
| 2007 | MuchMusic Video Awards | Best Independent Video | "Cheer It On" | Template:Nom |
| 2008 | Juno Awards | Video of the Year | "Cheer It On" | Template:Nom |
| 2009 | Juno Awards | Group of the Year | Tokyo Police Club | Template:Nom |
| 2011 | Juno Awards | Alternative Album of the Year | Champ | Template:Nom |
| 2011 | MuchMusic Video Awards | Indie Video of the Year | "Wait Up (Boots of Danger)" | Template:Nom |
| 2014 | MuchMusic Video Awards | Rock/Alternative Video of the Year | "Hot Tonight" | Template:Nom |
| 2014 | MuchMusic Video Awards | Post-Production of the Year | "Hot Tonight" | Template:Nom |
| 2019 | Juno Awards | Alternative Album of the Year | TPC | Template:Nom |
External links
- ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- Articles with short description
- Canadian indie rock groups
- Saddle Creek Records artists
- Musical groups from Newmarket, Ontario
- Paper Bag Records artists
- Musical groups established in 2005
- 2005 establishments in Ontario
- Memphis Industries artists
- Dine Alone Records artists
- Mom + Pop Music artists
- Musical groups disestablished in 2024
- 2024 disestablishments in Ontario
- Pages with script errors