Ninja Sex Party (often abbreviated as NSP) is an American musical comedy duo consisting of singer Dan Avidan and keyboardist Brian Wecht. They formed in 2009 in New York City and are currently based in Los Angeles. They are also known as two thirds of the video game-based musical trio Starbomb together with frequent collaborator Arin Hanson. Avidan joined Hanson's YouTube Let's Play webseries Game Grumps as co-host in 2013; Wecht also joined the show in 2015.

The work of Ninja Sex Party typically consists of synthpop or rock-oriented humorous songs, frequently on the topics of sex, seduction, love or fantasy, with Avidan and Wecht portraying the characters of Danny Sexbang, an idiotic, exuberant and strangely-dressed hypersexual Jewish man, and Ninja Brian, an uncommunicative, homicidal ninja; however, their cover albums Under the Covers (2016) and Under the Covers, Vol. II (2017) saw them take on a non-comedic approach to music for the first time, covering songs from the 1970s and 1980s.

To date, NSP has released five studio albums (three consisting of original material, and two cover albums), in addition to two albums as a part of Starbomb. Wecht initially acted as record producer and performed all instruments on their early albums, until they started working with producer Jim Arsenault (and later Jim Roach) and backing band Tupper Ware Remix Party in 2015. Wecht and Avidan have appeared in TWRP's own works, either as individuals or as Ninja Sex Party. Since May 2018, Wecht also portrays Ninja Brian on his own live comedy show titled Ninja Brian's All-Star Variety Luau Spectacular.

Contents 1 Career 1.1 2009–2012: Formation and early career 1.2 2013–2015: Commercial success and side projects 1.3 2016–present: Under the Covers albums and Cool Patrol 2 Public image 3 Members 4 Discography 5 References 6 External links Career 2009–2012: Formation and early career Avidan performing in his previous band, Skyhill.

Avidan, who previously sang in bands such as The Northern Hues and Skyhill, initially conceptualized the band.[1] In need of a band member, Avidan was introduced to Wecht, who was the musical director of a comedy troupe in New York,[2] by a mutual friend at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, Julie Katz, a member of Wecht's comedy troupe (who would later be featured in their music video "The Decision"), to whom Avidan had asked if she knew any musicians.[3][4] The band was formed in February/March 2009 with Avidan going by his stage-name/character "Danny Sexbang" and Wecht going by "Ninja Brian".[4] However, the character "Danny Sexbang" was originally named "Danny Sweetnuts" before being changed to "Sexbang" as Avidan felt the name seemed stronger. [5] Inspired by The Lonely Island and Flight of the Conchords, Ninja Sex Party was about "a Jewish superhero who wears a unitard, with his best friend who's a ninja, and together they sing songs about dicks, and try to hit on women."[3]

In 2009, their first music video was released on YouTube. The song was titled "I Just Wanna (Dance)," released on their first album.

They began performing together that summer, appearing in various film festivals, including SXSW, Dragon Con, and the LACS.[6][7][8] They have been awarded "Best Comedy Video" by Industry Power Play, as well as the "Trophy of Awesomeness" on Vimeo's video website.[9][10] They won "Best Comedy Video Short" and "Best Comedy Song" in Improvisation News' 2010 INNY Awards.[11] Their video "Sex Training" also appeared on the Comedy page of The Huffington Post.[12] All their early music videos were directed, shot, and edited by Jim Turner, who was the only person paid for his involvement; all other people participating were friends working for free.[4]

In 2011, they released their first album, NSFW, on iTunes. It includes many of their songs released via YouTube.

2013–2015: Commercial success and side projects

The band released their second album, Strawberries and Cream, in April 2013. On the week of May 4, 2013, the album debuted at #9 on Billboard's Comedy Albums charts.[13]

In July the band released the single "Party of Three", off their third album. The song featured an appearance by animator and Internet personality Arin Hanson.

In September 2013, the band composed "Dick Figures: The Movie: The Song" for Mondo Media's Dick Figures: The Movie soundtrack.[14]

In late 2013, Avidan, Wecht, and Hanson teamed up to create a side project band named Starbomb, with Avidan as the lead singer-songwriter.[15] The band writes parody songs about video games, bringing together the sexually provocative music stylings of Ninja Sex Party and the video game-based humor of Hanson.

On the week of February 15, 2014, Starbomb, the group's eponymous album, would hold the #1 spot in Comedy Albums for 4 consecutive weeks.[16] Starbomb also reached #1 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers charts for 2 consecutive weeks, starting with the week of January 4, 2014.[17] In July, 2014, Ninja Sex Party performed a concert for San Diego Comic-Con International at Petco Park. They also released the music video for "Why I Cry" during the concert.[18][19]

In 2015, two singles were released by the band Tupper Ware Remix Party, collaborating with Ninja Sex Party, titled "The Hit" and "Baby, NYC"; from that point on, TWRP became NSP's backing band on both live shows and studio releases.[20][21]

Their third album, Attitude City, released on July 17, 2015. It was one of the top 20 best-selling albums on Amazon.com, and peaked at #1 on Billboard's US Comedy Albums chart.[22]

On August 3, 2015, Ninja Sex Party performed with Steel Panther at their House of Blues venue, singing "Party All Day."[23] The bands have collaborated on multiple occasions, with Steel Panther making a cameo in the band's "Road Trip" music video, and providing vocals for "6969."[24][25]

On October 7, 2015, Avidan released the one-track album Firefly with Peter Lennox.[26] The two had previously worked together as the atmospheric band Skyhill from 2006 to 2007.[27] The album was acclaimed for the band's "maturing in both lyrics and sound" over their previous album.[28]

2016–present: Under the Covers albums and Cool Patrol

On February 23, 2016, a music video was released for their cover of "Take On Me"; the video for their cover of "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" was released one week later, on March 1, 2016. On March 4, 2016, Under the Covers was released to the public. The album features guests appearances by Tupper Ware Remix Party and Super Guitar Bros.[29] The album debuted on the Billboard charts at #9 in Top Album Sales, #2 in Independent Albums, #3 in Rock Albums, and #17 in the Top 200 Albums.[30][31][32][33]

One of the band's logos.

On October 18, 2016, a music video was released for the title song of their next comedy album, Cool Patrol.[34] On February 16, 2017, the music video for the second single off Cool Patrol, "Eating Food in the Shower," was released.[35]

On June 28th, 2017, the band announced on their Facebook page that they have completed all the songs for their second cover album, Under the Covers, Vol. II, and its release date of October 27, 2017. The following day, they released the official track listing for the album. On October 11, 2017, they announced that fans can pre-order a deluxe signed version or a deluxe unsigned version, both including posters. The next day, they released a music video for their cover of "Pour Some Sugar on Me".

On October 2, 2017, the band announced that their Rock Hard 2017 Tour was complete, and thanked everyone who participated in the tour.[36]

In November 2017, Avidan mentioned in an episode of Game Grumps that NSP had finished most of the recording of Cool Patrol and that the band is aiming for a June 2018 release for the album.[37][38] On March 6, 2018, the band released their new original song "Orgy for One" alongside its music video on March 6, 2018. Later that day, they confirmed that most of Cool Patrol's post-production was completed, with the band aiming at a "probable July release" which would be preceded with two new original song releases in the meantime.[39] On May 8, 2018, they announced that they were currently recording Under the Covers, Vol. III, and were aiming for a mid-2019 release.[40]

In May 2018, Wecht debuted Ninja Brian's All-Star Variety Luau Spectacular, his own recurring live musical comedy show in which he portrays his Ninja Brian character, minus Avidan.[41][42][43] The band also started a new tour, titled Tour de Force, concurrently with the release of the new album, from June 11 to October 19, 2018.[44]

On June 25, 2018, the band released the music video for the song "Danny Don't You Know", along with the official release date of Cool Patrol, August 17. The video featured actor Finn Wolfhard, a friend of Avidan since he had appeared on Game Grumps in January 2017 and a fan of the band, as a younger Danny Sexbang.[45] The band called "Danny Don't You Know" their "favorite-ever song", both musically and as a video.[46] It became the #1 trending video on YouTube.[47][48]

Public image

The mobile game Shooting Stars features a boss named Grump Dan who is a reference to Danny Sexbang.[49]

Members

Band members

Dan Avidan – lead and backing vocals (2009–present) Brian Wecht – keyboards (2009–present), guitars, bass guitar, drums, backing vocals (2009–2015)

Session and touring musicians

Arin Hanson – spoken vocals (2011–present; also performs Starbomb songs at NSP live shows) Tupper Ware Remix Party – backup band (2015–present) Lord Phobos – guitar Commander Meouch – bass guitar, backing vocals Doctor Sung – keytar, synthesizer, modified vocals Havve Hogan – drums Discography Main article: Ninja Sex Party discography Original albums NSFW (2011) Strawberries and Cream (2013) Attitude City (2015) Cool Patrol (2018) Cover albums Under the Covers (2016) Under the Covers, Vol. II (2017) Under the Covers, Vol. III (2019)[40] References ^ Milne, Gregory (July 11, 2013). "Ninja Sex Party: Tales of Strawberries and Cream". Living Myth Magazine. Living Myth Magazine. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ Augustborn, Nicolas (9 January 2013). "Ninja Sex Party Interview". YouTube. Nicolas Augustborn.  ^ a b Nelsen, Lydia (24 May 2013). "Ninja Sex Party Interview on Lydia Wants to Know". YouTube. Third String Kicker. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ a b c "Ninja Sex Party Interview". Double Down the Line. 2010. Retrieved November 6, 2017.  ^ "Q&A with the Grumps! -PART 3 - GrumpOut". GrumpOut. July 7, 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2018.  ^ "SXSW Lineup: Friday, March 11". Sched.org. Sched. March 11, 2011. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ "Music Videos". Dragon Con. September 2011. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ Garcia, Conrad (April 19, 2011). "Live Review: 3rd Annual L.A. Comedy Shorts Festival". DisarrayMagazine.com. Disarray Magazine. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ Industry Power Play (December 11, 2009). "Industry Power Play on Twitter". Twitter. Industry Power Play. Retrieved June 21, 2016. Congrats to last night's winners: Ninja Sex Party, Junk Science, Scott Beowulf, Doble Filo and Meeting of Important People!  ^ Bright, Dennie (December 14, 2009). "The Trophy of Awesomeness". Vimeo. Vimeo, Inc. Retrieved June 21, 2016.  ^ "2010 INNY Award Winners". Improvisation News. ImprovisationNews.com. November 3, 2010. Retrieved June 21, 2016.  ^ Hartsell, Carol (27 January 2011). "'Sex Training' with Ninja Sex Party". Huffington Post.  ^ Comedy Charts, Billboard. "Billboard Comedy Charts". Billboard.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.  ^ "Dick Figures: The Movie (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". iTunes. Apple. September 24, 2013. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ Herrera, Kayla (2016-03-07). "You Need To Watch This Catchy And Adult-Rated Music Video About Legend Of Zelda". CINEMABLEND. Gateway Media. Retrieved 2016-06-15.  ^ Charts, Billboard. "Billboard Comedy Charts". Retrieved 18 March 2014.  ^ Heatseeker Charts, Billboard. "Billboard Heatseeker Chart". Billboard.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.  ^ "Maker Studios to Make an Appearance at Comic-Con 2014". VideoInk.  ^ Maker Studios. "Ninja Sex Party Live at NerdHQ". Polaris.  ^ TWRP (January 23, 2015). "The Hit (feat Ninja Sex Party)". Bandcamp. TWRP. Retrieved June 21, 2016.  ^ TWRP (September 12, 2015). "Baby, NYC (feat Ninja Sex Party)". Bandcamp. TWRP. Retrieved June 21, 2016.  ^ "Comedy Albums". Billboard. Retrieved June 15, 2016.  ^ Elliot, Gordon (4 August 2015). "Steel Panther: House of Blues Webcast". YouTube. Gordon Elliott. Retrieved June 21, 2016.  ^ "Road Trip - NSP". YouTube. Ninja Sex Party. 22 April 2015. Retrieved June 21, 2016.  ^ Ninja Sex Party (July 20, 2015). "Ninja Sex Party · AMA Highlights". AMA Highlights. Reddit. Retrieved June 21, 2016.  ^ Skyhill (October 7, 2015). "Firefly". CDBaby. Skyhill. Retrieved June 17, 2016.  ^ "Biography". Skyhill. Squarespace. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ Tishma, Riley (November 18, 2015). "Skyhill "Firefly" Review". E-Torch!. WordPress. Retrieved June 19, 2016.  ^ Looney, Dylan (March 31, 2016). "NINJA SEX PARTY RELEASES COVER ALBUM". easttennessean.com. The East Tennessean. Retrieved June 16, 2016.  ^ Top 200 Albums, Billboard, 2016-03-26, retrieved 2016-04-26  ^ "Independent Albums". Billboard. 2016-03-26. Retrieved 2016-04-26.  ^ "Rock Albums". Billboard. 2016-03-26. Retrieved 2016-04-26.  ^ "Top Album Sales". Billboard. 2016-03-26. Retrieved 2016-04-26.  ^ "Cool Patrol - NSP", YouTube, Ninja Sex Party, 18 October 2016, retrieved 2017-02-20  ^ "Eating Food In The Shower - NSP", YouTube, Ninja Sex Party, 16 February 2017, retrieved 2017-02-20  ^ https://twitter.com/ninjasexparty/status/914942737635434496 ^ GameGrumps (2017-11-05), Super Mario Odyssey: Wrong Lyrics - PART 4 - Game Grumps, retrieved 2017-11-06  ^ https://www.facebook.com/ninjasexparty/posts/10155100583223927 ^ https://www.facebook.com/ninjasexparty/posts/10155415583303927 ^ a b "tentative album schedule". Ninja Sex Party's official Twitter. May 8, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2018.  ^ ^ ^ ^ https://twitter.com/ninjasexparty/status/992451042251026434 ^ O'Neal, Sean (2018-06-25). "Stranger Things' Finn Wolfhard IS Danny Sexbang for Ninja Sex Party". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2018-06-25.  ^ "What a week! We just:". Ninja Sex Party's Twitter. June 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.  ^ "danny don't you know is #1 on trending rn". Ninja Sex Party's Twitter. June 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.  ^ "Wow! Our video is #1 Trending on Youtube!". Sean Barrett's Twitter. June 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.  ^ "Shooting Stars!". VGFacts. Retrieved 2018-07-27.  External links Official website vteNinja Sex Party Dan Avidan Brian Wecht Original albums NSFW Strawberries and Cream Attitude City Cool Patrol Cover albums Under the Covers Under the Covers, Vol. II Singles "Dinosaur Laser Fight" "Unicorn Wizard" "Dick Figures: The Movie: The Song" "Dragon Slayer" "6969" "Cool Patrol" "Danny Don't You Know" Related articles Discography Game Grumps Starbomb Tupper Ware Remix Party