Charlie is Panther, and Panther is some mutant form of Charlie. Churning out shattered pop hits that few have the ears to comprehend, Portland, OR’s Panther is a one-man disaster squad. Panther’s music is hard match of damaged soul, falsetto disco and broken synth fueled freakouts which is as addictive as it is challenging. This solo affair of Charlie Salas-Humara isn’t easily ignored for his unpredictable and energetic solo performances tainted with throbbing bass, minimalistic hooks and jittery dance routines. Panther’s influences run deep and take as much from Pop and R&B as Free Jazz and Punk.
In the past year Panther has infiltrated MTV2 (up for Video of the Year), Spin Magazine, and modern dance academia. While touring with both Ratatat and Gossip, he has managed to polarize audiences thoroughly between the immediate super-fans and super confused gawkers. Panther live is as much dance as it is music and as much art as it is performance.
Secret Lawns is the eagerly anticipated full-length follow up from last year’s Yourself 12”. Listening to Secret Lawns you’ll discover Charlie knows no boundaries, not only in terms of genre but also social and societal. Panther recorded and played all of the instruments himself, excluding the guest accompaniments from members of YACHT, White Rainbow, Plants, Point Line Plane, and E*Rock on a few of the tracks.
The first 1000 copies of Secret Lawns come with a limited edition DVD which features several videos as well as the debut of Floor Dancing.
Stay tuned for Spring 2007 tour dates, including SXSW.
MP3: “How Well Can You Swim?” http://panthertouch.com/press/HowWellCanYouSwim.mp3
VIDEO: “You Don’t Want Yr Nails Done” http://www.whiteyfilms.com/panther.html
Photos, bio, album art: http://panthertouch.com/press/