Fish Narc
fish narc | |
|---|---|
 Fish Narc photographed in Sacramento in 2023 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Benjamin Friars-Funkhouser |
| Also known as | Fish Narc |
| Born | 1992 |
| Origin | Seattle, Washington |
| Genres | Emo, indie rock, post-punk, emo rap |
| Years active | 2014–present |
Benjamin Friars-Funkhouser (b. 1992) known professionally as Fish Narc (stylized as fish narc), is an American musician and producer from Seattle, Washington. He has contributed to the development of the emo rap subgenre and as a member of underground rap collectives Thraxxhouse and GothBoiClique, producing Lil Peep’s Goth Angel Sinner LP, and collaborating with Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Lil Tracy (Yung Bruh), Horse Head[1] and Cold Hart. His production work is notable for use of live guitar playing instead of samples.[2]
Since 2020, he has released solo albums Wildfire (2020),[3] Camouflage (2022), and Fruiting Body (2023), and toured with a band.[4]
Early life
[edit]Friars-Funkhouser was born and raised around Seattle, Washington,[5] and was introduced to music from 2000s rock FM radio. He started out as a musician while a teenager in Seattle's punk and experimental scenes of the mid-00s. He participated in the mid to late 2000s seattle DIY movement/community, attending, booking, and performing in DIY shows from 2009 to 2015 in the Pacific Northwest. His band Hausu released one album on Hardly Art in 2013 before disbanding.[6]
Musical eras
[edit]Thraxxhouse and GothBoiClique era
[edit]He picked up music software and started making industrial, noise and techno around 2014. He joined Thraxxhouse,[7] one of several artist collectives started by former Raider Klan members, after its dissolution, in late 2014. While living in Los Angeles, California he began to collaborate with Lil Tracy, and became a member of GothBoiClique due to his background of singing in rock bands.[8] His first production credit is "neurotic" by Yung Bruh. He then produced for dozens of artists in the underground scenes in Seattle and Los Angeles, and submitted two pseudonymous vocal tracks to GothBoiClique's 2016 album, Yeah It's True.
After Lil Peep invited him to Los Angeles to work on Come Over When You’re Sober in March 2017, he would move back to California. He lived in MacArthur Park neighborhood and collaborated with GothBoiClique members in studios in Hollywood and the San Gabriel Valley with producers Bighead, Nedarb, and others. He became one of Lil Peep’s main producers and the architect of the sound of his final project Goth Angel Sinner, with a more stripped recording style and minimal guitar beats with 808s.[9][10] He also produced Horse Head's This Mess Is My Mess LP from 2017. He has several unreleased songs with Juice Wrld. In 2018, he collaborated with producer Clams Casino on an EP with Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Spider Webs.
New solo music
[edit]In 2018, he moved to New York City with Yawns and Cold Hart of GothBoiClique, following Lil Tracy and Nick Blanco, setting up a studio in Brooklyn, NY and developing hybrid rock style beats that fused indie, punk, and post-punk elements with 808s and rap production techniques.
His solo music draws on punk and alternative rock, as well as his background in Soundcloud rap. His first solo album WiLDFiRE came out in July 2020.
He moved to Olympia, Washington during the pandemic. He initially self-released the album fruiting body in 2023 with the Seattle producer and artist keyblayde808, before it was picked up by K Records for vinyl and cassette. The album touches on indie and postpunk influences, combining with modern Soundcloud rap stylings.
His current songwriting is influenced by 1980s punk, with a current touring band including bass, guitar, and drums.
Discography
[edit]Studio albums
[edit]As lead artist
[edit]| Title | Label | Release date | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wildfire | GOTHBOICLIQUE for streaming, Pop Wig for vinyl | July 17, 2020 | digital, vinyl |
| Camouflage | GOTHBOICLIQUE | January 01, 2022 | digital |
| Fruiting Body | self-released streaming, K records for vinyl and cassette[11] | June 01, 2023 | digital, vinyl, cassette |
With Hausu
[edit]| Title | Label | Release date | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Hardly Art (streaming, vinyl and CD), Bridgetown (cassette) | June 25, 2013 | digital, vinyl, CD, cassette |
With Gothboiclique
[edit]| Title | Label | Release date | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yeah It's True | June 25, 2016 |
As executive/featured producer
[edit]| Title | Label | Release date | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| This Mess Is My Mess – with Horse Head | September 26, 2017 | self-released | |
| Segador de Almas – with Goa | La Vendición records | May 03, 2019 | self-released |
Mixtapes and EPs
[edit]As lead artist
[edit]| Title | Label | Release date | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foraging Wild Mushrooms | GOTHBOICLIQUE (streaming), Bratty Dog (cassette) | June 11, 2021 | digital, cassette |
| Hunter EP | self-released | May February 16, 2023 | digital |
As executive/featured producer
[edit]| Title | Label | Release date | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Night Angels – with Swan Lingo | September 21, 2018 | digital | |
| Spider Webs – with Wicca Phase Springs Eternal & Clams Casino | Dark Medicine | November 23, 2018 | digital |
| Goth Angel Sinner – with Lil Peep | Columbia | October 31, 2019 | digital, vinyl, CD as part of Everybody's Everything compilation album |
References
[edit]- ^ "11 songs that Horse Head and fish narc are playing on the road". Alternative Press Magazine. March 14, 2024.
- ^ Lesuer, Mike (July 17, 2020). "Fish Narc's Hybrid Queries". Flood Magazine.
- ^ Hahn, Bryan (March 17, 2020). "fish narc announces debut album details, shares "New MEDiCATiON" video". The Fader.
- ^ Matson, Andrew (July 23, 2020). "fish narc's Life After Emo Rap". Office.
- ^ Angell, Jack (February 27, 2020). "Listen to fish narc's Mix for Underground Underdogs". Underground Underdogs.
- ^ Bryan, Miles (December 2013). "Total Immersion". Reed Magazine.
- ^ "fish narc, Horse Head are back!". K Records. January 11, 2024.
- ^ Darville, Jordan (May 31, 2019). "Fish Narc, Lil Tracy, Zubin and Fantasy Camp share "Why?"". The Fader.
- ^ Matson, Andrew (November 18, 2019). "Goth Angel Sinner Rides Again [Interview]". Passion of the Weiss.
- ^ Bernstein, Jonathan (November 18, 2019). "Lil Peep's Producers Had One Goal for New Posthumous Album: Don't Change Anything". Rolling Stone.
- ^ "Collections – fish narc". K Records. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
External links
[edit]- fish narc channel – Youtube
- fish narc discography at Discogs
- Hyson, James; Ford, Skyler (2021). "Foraging Wild Mushrooms – official documentary" (video). youtube.com. fish narc.
- The Soft Moon and fish narc Let It All Out [Interview], Talkhouse, September 27, 2022
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