#kanpai!

Canon in my kokoro 💜

TO ALL THE BANGERS, BEER DRINKERS, & HELL-RAISERS -- THIS ONE'S FOR YOU -- KANPAI!

PIC INFO: Spotlight on vocalist/lyricist Phil Anselmo of American groove/thrash metal band PANTERA, photographed in Japan during the band's "Vulgar Display of Power" Tour, c. summer '92. 📸: Joe Giron.

"In July of 1992 the band made their first trek to Japan for a headlining tour. There were dates in Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya. Every show sold out and the fans were amazing. Traditionally, Japanese fans stay in their seats and show their appreciation by clapping, but Pantera’s infectious “power” metal had the crowds on their feet at every show.

To liven up the backstage hours before the band hit the stage, we did a bunch of portrait sessions using Japanese props and signage.

We also discovered Kirin and Asahi beer on this trip. The best part was that they sold small "pony" kegs in vending machines on the street. Any time we ventured out of our hotel, we’d load up to bring back to our rooms. One night, we were riding back to our hotel in a cab when we spied a beer vending machine at an intersection and attempted to hop out of the cab. Our cabbie thought we were skipping out on the fare and freaked, but we somehow convinced him to pull over so we could stock up."

-- JOE GIRON (PANTERA photographer on the band's exploits in Japan)

When Sakura Haruno walked into Kanpai! bar with her fiancé, Sasuke Uchiha, on the eve of her wedding, she wasn’t expecting to sit there by herself for hours, only to have her engagement broken off because Sasuke finally got permission from his family to marry someone he actually loved. She also wasn’t expecting to work there, but after her ex-fiancé stopped funding her way through med school, she didn’t really have a choice. Luckily, the owner of the bar, Kakashi Hatake, a veteran who bought the place to fulfill his best friend’s dream, took pity on her. Really, lucky her.

Making umeshu is as easy as one, two, three, four.