Tributes have been paid to David Fair, co-founder of art-punk band Half Japanese, who has died at the age of 74. Fair formed the influential DIY outfit with his brother Jad in the mid-1970s after the pair relocated from Michigan to Maryland, and the band's rule-breaking, lo-fi approach went on to shape a generation of alternative musicians. His death was confirmed on 30 August by Thick Syrup Records, whose founder Travis McElroy described Fair as a "genuinely good, one-of-a-kind human being" who showed that "music didn't have to follow any rules".

Half Japanese released their debut EP, 'Calling All Girls', in 1977, followed by their first album, '1/2 Gentlemen/Not Beasts', in 1980; Fair remained in the line-up for several more records before departing in 1987, though he continued to collaborate with Jad on and off for decades afterwards. The band is credited as a major influence on 1990s alternative acts including Sonic Youth and Nirvana, who invited them to open on their 1993 'In Utero' tour. Further tributes have come from Fair's brother Jad and producer Don Fleming, who revealed that Fair had been undergoing cancer treatment in recent years, though no official cause of death has been confirmed.