Japanese bands rule at Formoz

By David Frazier
STAFF REPORTER
Friday, Aug 16, 2002, Page 17

fter taking out a 20-year installment loan to pay for Megadeth and the other big acts last year, Formoz organizers have decided to pull the music festival's scale back within reason for 2002. Headliners for the Sept. 6 to 8 event will consist of four top Japanese bands, which organizer Freddy Lin said "are not only more what local people want to hear, they're also a lot cheaper."

The four headliners are Mono, Exias-J, Jack or Jive and Brahman, all of which belong to different genres within the spectrum of contemporary rock. Lin said that a survey on the formoz.com Web site allowed local fans to suggest bands they wanted to hear, and the results overwhelmingly pointed to Japanese bands, with suggestions including the four bands finally chosen.

"I didn't even know about some of the bands, but that was what people wanted, and it's fine with me. It's also good because the bands are fresher and more exciting. Also, we can make ticket prices more reasonable," Lin said.

Tickets the three-day festival will cost NT$950, a big cut compared to the NT$3,500 many whined about and even more refused to pay last year. But then again there's no Megadeth, Biohazard and Yo La Tengo -- all of which performed at last year's inaugural Formoz, along with three big Japanese acts and bands from Hong Kong and Singapore.

The NT$950 passes entitle holders to see three stages worth of performances over three days, as well as a special display of pro-wrestling, free admission to the Taipei rock club Zeitgeist (聖界) for pre-Formoz parties on Aug. 30 and 31 and a Hong Kong Attack party on Sept. 9, and a punk rock event featuring a second performance by Brahman to be held in Taichung some time in September.

The venue for this year's Formoz Festival is the old Chungshan Hall (中山堂) and the plaza in front of it. Located at 98 Yenping South Road (延平南路98號), the site is in the heart of old Taipei, just a few minutes walk from Hsimenting. The outdoor plaza will hold two outdoor stages where local bands will play free of charge. Admission will only be charged for the four Japanese headliners, all of which will perform Sunday inside Chungshan Hall, and the pro wrestling, which will be in the plaza and available to viewers for NT$50. Three-day passes are currently available over the Internet at www.formoz.com, and will be sold at Zeitgeist beginning next week. Zeitgeist is located at B1, 122 Chunghsiao E. Rd., Sec. 2 (忠孝東路二段122號B1).

Formoz 2002 headliners:

Mono is a four-person group from Tokyo devoted to intense, cerebral instrumentals. Aside from My Bloody Valentine and the no-vocals compositions of Sonic Youth (both the band and solo projects by Jim O'Rourke), Mono cites few influences. The group is fairly new, and by all indications, very up and coming. Since forming in February of 2000, they've toured the US at least four times, appearing at big name venues like CBGB in New York and Austin, Texas' SXSW festival. So far they've only released one full-length album, Under the Pipal Tree, but reviews have been positive, calling the music everything from "powerful" to "gorgeous."

Exias-J is a musician's collective with jazz roots and a penchant for improv and abstraction. The name is short for Experimental Improvisers' Association of Japan, and though the cast changes continually, the current lineup includes electric guitar, saxophone, percussion and double bass. Founded in 1999 by Kondo Hideaki, Exias-J claims to disparately focus on "composition-oriented music," "the dynamism of free improvisation," and deviation from music until it is unrecognizable as music.

Jack or Jive is a Japanese goth duo responsible for around 20 albums since forming in 1989. Stage performances are fronted by the spooky, ethereal antics of vocalist Makoto Hattori, and supported by Chako, who combines prerecorded background tracks with various types of live embellishments. Though the visual aspects of Jack or Jive performances are strong, the group does not quite count as "visual rock." The emphasis is still on the music.

Brahman is a big name in Japan, though little known outside it. The four-man group plays a mainstreamish vein of hardcore and punk that sells lots of CDs and last month vaulted them into a huge set in Japan's mega-music festival, Fuji Rock. The band's lineup may be pretty standard -- vocal, guitar, bass and drum -- but the music rocks. Fans who liked the Garlic Boys at last year's Formoz will no doubt enjoy Brahman, another key element of Japan's hardcore scene.