Joanie Loves Chachi Draw Influence from “Issa Knife” Meme for New Punk Song

Do you remember the rock band Joanie Loves Chachi from 1996 from in Chilliwack, B.C.? The 90’s rock band has recently reunited to bring the world a new album titled, My Brother’s Karate. This record has won the band a Fraser Valley Music Award in the Punk category.

One of the standout songs on this record is called “Issa Knife” which feels like a 90’s skate punk anthem. The sound seems to draw influence from bands like Blink-182, Jimmy Eat World, Third Eye Blind, and Angels & Airwaves. The lyrics? They draw influence from a meme titled “Issa Knife” on YouTube. The band challenged themselves to write a song about a meme and this is the meme that won their hearts and gave them enough inspiration to write a complete song!

The band says “…this particular song was actually built around a meme! There was a meme floating around where a person had a poorly drawn knife tattoo on their forehead, and was asked if that was supposed to be a cross, and his drunken,defiant response was ‘Issa Knife.’ So as a challenge to ourselves we decided to try and write a song about the meme. We figured it was a unique approach to songwriting, and we had fun with it, so we tried to convey that through the lyrics, feel and melody as well.”

Joanie Loves Chachi has a wicked sense of humor that can be heard in their music especially on this song that draws inspiration from a viral meme. Isn’t that a classic pop punk move, to write a song about a meme. Check out the meme here:

My Brother’s Karate was released on June 1st, 2020 and is 11 songs long. Stream it on Spotify now:


Written by Christina Suraci 

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