Patrick Lew Hayashi (born Patrick Allan Lew on November 15, 1985) is an Asian-American musician and YouTuber currently performing in the band PLB (Patrick Lew Band). He is also the band's only constant member, sole singer-songwriter and guitarist alongside his younger sister Madeline. He also makes recorded appearances with the San Jose alternative rock band Crazy Loser in a Box!, and on the NorCal independent circuit, with the band Benigneglect. He's also well known as the lead guitarist and co-founding member of the San Francisco based Shoegaze band TheVerse between 2015 and 2019, and as the bassist for the Oakland based Death Metal band Pleasure Gallows during late 2018 and early 2019.
Hayashi made his indie music career debut in 2001, and played guitar and created music for various start-up bands in the Bay Area regional music scene such as Famiglia, Samurai Sorcerers, Band of Asians, all of which would later become the Patrick Lew Band (PLB) in August 2008. Upon rebranding his short-lived bands as PLB in 2008, he began performing and recording with the Patrick Lew Band locally in the East Bay region of the NorCal music scene. This lineup of PLB would record and self-release three albums together between 2008 and 2012: Let It Rise and Against (2009), Murder Bay (2011), and Angry Yellow - EP (2012). After a long period of creative, professional and personal differences within the project and a failed relationship with his former fiancee Faith, the Patrick Lew Band abruptly disbanded in 2012. After a two-year sabbatical, the Patrick Lew Band returned full-time to the music scene in early 2015 as a solo project, later introducing Hayashi's long-lost (kayfabe) younger sister Madeline Lew in the band as the bassist, occasional singer-songwriter and "virtual" band member through Photoshop, CGI and digital special effects. PLB would remain rigorously active in the NorCal regional music scene until late 2017, and earned accolades and credentials for the very first time during their second run in the rock and roll music industry.
In 2015, Patrick Lew Hayashi began branching out of PLB by participating in other musical projects. He began playing lead guitar and co-founded the San Francisco based Shoegaze/Post-Punk band TheVerse with his long-time friends from the community, sporadically touring behind TheVerse regionally between 2016 and 2019. He also briefly performed for the Oakland Death Metal trio Pleasure Gallows as their bass player. In 2018, Hayashi officially joined the San Jose/Silicon Valley based local indie-rock band Crazy Loser in a Box! as their guitarist and occasional full-time band member. After quietly departing TheVerse in mid-2019, Hayashi formed the band Benigneglect with Fil-Am rapper A. K.AYE and began performing monthly residencies at San Francisco's historic DNA Lounge.
Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide in March 2020, Hayashi (alongside Madeline Lew) returned to performing, touring and creating new content and music with Patrick Lew Band (PLB) full-time, embarking on their most profitable period as indie music artists. By mid-2020, PLB had officially reached "global" status in indie music, despite being an unsigned local band and very little to no mainstream marketing and promotion.
Having been recently regarded as prolific by some of his peers in music, which includes PLB's videographer/photographer James Conrad (also a guitarist), Baka Broadcast DJ and close friend Howard Billington, and his bandmate Madoku/Yandie from Crazy Loser in a Box!, the band PLB alongside Patrick and Madeline themselves has reached moderate popularity with audiences on social-media, characterized by their eccentric charisma/stage presence and dynamically anthemic musical abilities. PLB was inducted into the 40 Under 40 Hall of Fame at their alma mater, California State University - East Bay in 2019 for their services to local East Bay music and the Asian-American community. Outside of music, Patrick Lew Hayashi has also made an uncredited cameo appearance in an episode of the critically acclaimed Amazon TV series The Man in the High Castle, and is also a moderately known influencer on Instagram and YouTube.
BAND HISTORY:
In 2001, Patrick Lew Hayashi formed a band under the banner Patrick Lew Band in his hometown of San Francisco, CA, when he was just 15 years old. Most of Hayashi's early years in the indie music circuit was playing in a garage band. In 2005, Hayashi was attending City College of San Francisco and was briefly signed to an indie label based in La Jolla, CA. After he was dropped from his developmental contract with the label, Hayashi decided to book studio time with the help of his friends. Most of the time, Hayashi was on the Internet putting his bands music out there.
On November 15, 2006, which was also Patrick Lew Hayashi's 21st birthday, the Patrick Lew Band released their debut album JUMP, RATTLE, AND ROLL on CDBaby. Patrick Lew Band would begin to sporadically play small shows in the San Francisco area by 2007 with a frequently changing line-up. Their first single AZN GIRLS was posted online during late 2007, leading to a critical backlash among the band on social-media over unbeknownst reasons. Around this same period, the bands chiptune rearranged cover of the Nirvana song Drain You was published on Nirvanaclub.com.
During 2009, Patrick Lew Band began making their strides in the regional music scene and on the Internet. Their song Everyone Loves Ashley brought them to notoriety and initial indie-level fame. Between 2009 to 2012, the band would write and record up to as many as 60 songs per year in their home studio.
To have something to fall back on, Hayashi taught himself the fundamentals of the indie music business and being his own entrepreneur. During this period, Patrick Lew Band had aborted plans to tour locally. However, the group would perform live in the Antioch area occasionally during some of 2011. Some of these performances can be found and since leaked on Patrick Lew- Hayashi's official YouTube channel.
Between 2009 to 2012, the Patrick Lew Band self-released their music online: Let It Rise And Against (2009), Murder Bay (2011) and the EP Angry Yellow (2012). On February 4, 2012, Patrick Lew Band performed at Dolores Park in San Francisco.
After taking a few years away from the indies because of a failed common-law marriage and very well documented personal problems, Hayashi made his return to music with the Patrick Lew Band by the beginning of 2015. Embarking on his most profitable and memorable run in the indie music circuit.
2015 began with Hayashi being appointed the Ambassador for Antennas Direct. And conducting a televised interview with the 24 HOUR K-POP music TV channel in the San Francisco Bay Area. Around this same period, Patrick Lew Hayashi introduced a crossdressing M2F alter ego by the name of Madeline Lew Hayashi into the band. Created from digital special effects, CGI and Photoshop. In a music marketing storyline, Madelines role in the band is described as, the long lost younger sister of Patrick Lew, saving the band from failure and bringing his band and his music back to prominence.
Madeline Lew's introduction into the Patrick Lew Band as a virtual band member and mascot brought Patrick Lews profitability back to prominence in the music scene and helped Patrick Lew Band achieve publicity and moderate indie-level success that he did not accomplish prior to 2015. The success and exposure that the Patrick Lew Band received during this period included a couple music blogs writing about the Patrick Lew Band online and being mentioned on-air on Bay Area rock FM radio station 107.7 THE BONE. The band was mostly recording in their home studio in San Francisco. By 2016, the band launched their own label and multimedia start-up Lewnatic HQ. The band was often working on new music in their home recording studio between 2015 and early 2017. The Patrick Lew Band would release their album OAKLAND on Valentines Day 2017. He and his alter ego Madeline Lew would perform at Brick & Mortar Music Hall on October 8, 2017.
By the end of 2017, the Patrick Lew Band no longer was a full-time responsibility as Hayashi began working a stable full-time job at Chocolate Heaven Pier 39. He also began only sporadically making studio recording appearances with the band as he branched his talents to other outlets and playing music with local bands outside of Patrick Lew Band. On June 7, 2019. Patrick Lew-Hayashi received the 40 Under 40 award at his alma mater CSU East Bay. He would become the first major Japanese-American male to receive the high honor.
Outside of PLB. Hayashi has also performed, recorded and toured with other bands in the Bay Area. And made a brief uncredited cameo appearance on the acclaimed Amazon TV series Man in the High Castle on Season 4 and Episode 1. He also is a moderately known and prolific social-media influencer and persona, most notably on YouTube and Instagram.
The Patrick Lew Band made their return full-time to the music scene on March 17, 2020. And have since returned to performing, recording and creating. And embarked on their most prolific period to date as an exclusively Internet rock band. They have since self-released several new albums and EPs on Apple Music and Spotify with their vendor CDBaby. And received numerous press and credentials as indie music artists since their 2020 return.
