Spratleys Japs are an English psychedelic rock band formed by Cardiacs leader Tim Smith and Joanne Spratley in 1998. The band changed their name to Tim Smith's Spratleys Rats in 2021 to distance themselves from the negative connotations of the derogatory term "Jap". The original name had innocent origins, as Joanne Spratley explained, "When we named the band we thought [japs] sounded like some sweets that you got in a paper bag when you was a kid weighed out by the man behind the counter from on ...read more
Spratleys Japs are an English psychedelic rock band formed by Cardiacs leader Tim Smith and Joanne Spratley in 1998. The band changed their name to Tim Smith's Spratleys Rats in 2021 to distance themselves from the negative connotations of the derogatory term "Jap". The original name had innocent origins, as Joanne Spratley explained, "When we named the band we thought [japs] sounded like some sweets that you got in a paper bag when you was a kid weighed out by the man behind the counter from one of them big dusty jars."In 2016 Joanne Spratley's son Jesse Cutts suggested they should form a band together and in autumn that year she organized a Spratleys Japs concert in Brighton. It took place on 19 November and was billed as "Spratleys Japs Performed Live". The concert did not feature Tim Smith, who remained unable to perform following his 2008 stroke and heart attack (although he attended as an audience member) but did feature Spratley plus musicians drawn from various Brighton bands including Clowwns, Crayola Lectern, Muddy Suzuki and Heavy Lamb. The concert led in turn to a full revival of Spratleys Japs featuring the new lineup, and new single "Her/Hands" in December 2018. « hide
