Melt-Banana

Melt-Banana formed in Tokyo in 1992 and have spent their career compressing noise rock, hardcore and grindcore into songs that often last under a minute. The core of the band is vocalist Yasuko Onuki, whose high, clipped delivery cuts through the din, and guitarist Ichirou Agata, who uses effects pedals to produce sirens, squeals and electronic-sounding blasts rather than conventional riffs.

Their records tend toward extreme brevity and sharp turns, with tempos that shift without warning, and the group has toured widely outside Japan, playing to punk, metal and experimental audiences alike. Later work has leaned further on programmed backing, but the essential combination of speed, distortion and pop-shaped hooks has stayed intact.