Back by popular demand, Liquid Lifestyle Promotions presents Flava Friday with QBert tonight at Luxy. Tomorrow the Filipino-American will head down to Taichung to play at Xaga in Taichung. The club is located at Tiger City, 120 Henan Rd Sec 3, Taichung (台中市河南路三段120號老虎城). Call (04) 2326-7373 or visit www.xaga.com.tw.
Although his percussive music is not to everyone's taste, the turntablist's scratching skills are impressive, and have raised the rafters on his previous visits.
And as Taichung's new addition to the fold, Xaga, puts a stamp on the local scene, the good people of Taiwan's third city can expect many of the top-notch DJs that play Luxy to make it down.
PHOTO COURTESY OF CUBE
Moving on to Taiwan-based talent, Michael Phonic started DJing over 11 years ago, playing ambient music to weary Toronto ravers. Then, when he moved to Taipei in 2001, he switched over to house and techno. What hasn't changed, however, is his belief in vinyl. Playing MP3s at clubs, he says, is a disservice to both clubbers and producers.
Staying true to his word, his latest mix CDs This City is Made of Light and La Fille aux Cheveux de Lin are MP3 free. Both double discs, they showcase the depth and breadth of Michael's record collection. The first, This City, is a romp through minimal, electro, and acid techno. Monstrous basslines, robotic sguiggles and blips, as well as New Romantic vocals feature throughout. Michael's capable mixing glues it all together, letting each track breath, taking us from minimal groovers to 4am club territory.
La Fille aux Cheveux de Lin is a completely different affair.
Warm jazz breaks from Rainer Truby and the Kyoto Jazz Massive begin the mix. From there, the beats go 4/4 and soulful vocals with organ melodies take over. The BPM jumps up when the Lawnchair Generals' micro-funk house drops by, but Herbert and Nouvelle Vague chill everything out in the end. It's an exciting and unique mix from a DJ who's obviously a diehard music fan with a deep knowledge of dance music. To snag a copy of your own visit web.mac.com/michaelphonic.
In what is being billed as the last beach party of the season, Summer Groove will provide three stages — two electronic music stages and a hip-hop stage — featuring “Taiwan's top DJ talent,” including Andrew Ford and Paul Energy. The first electronic music area also features a foam party. Admission is NT$350, or NT$300 when purchased in advance.
Admission includes access to all of Summerland and its activities, rides and facilities.
For discount pre-sale tickets, call Andrew 09 3344 6553 or send an e-mail to Andrew@DJAndrewFord.com.
Greenbay is located one hour outside of Taipei City. Take a bus from Taipei Main Station or on stops along Zhongxiao East Road bound for Jinshan (金山) to Greenbay (翡翠灣) in Taipei County. The stop is located in front of the Greenbay Howard Beach Resort. Summerland is a three-minute walk up the street. For more information, visit www.summer-aquarian.com.
May 6 to May 12 Those who follow the Chinese-language news may have noticed the usage of the term zhuge (豬哥, literally ‘pig brother,’ a male pig raised for breeding purposes) in reports concerning the ongoing #Metoo scandal in the entertainment industry. The term’s modern connotations can range from womanizer or lecher to sexual predator, but it once referred to an important rural trade. Until the 1970s, it was a common sight to see a breeder herding a single “zhuge” down a rustic path with a bamboo whip, often traveling large distances over rugged terrain to service local families. Not only
Ahead of incoming president William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20 there appear to be signs that he is signaling to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and that the Chinese side is also signaling to the Taiwan side. This raises a lot of questions, including what is the CCP up to, who are they signaling to, what are they signaling, how with the various actors in Taiwan respond and where this could ultimately go. In the last column, published on May 2, we examined the curious case of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) heavyweight Tseng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) — currently vice premier
The last time Mrs Hsieh came to Cihu Park in Taoyuan was almost 50 years ago, on a school trip to the grave of Taiwan’s recently deceased dictator. Busloads of children were brought in to pay their respects to Chiang Kai-shek (蔣中正), known as Generalissimo, who had died at 87, after decades ruling Taiwan under brutal martial law. “There were a lot of buses, and there was a long queue,” Hsieh recalled. “It was a school rule. We had to bow, and then we went home.” Chiang’s body is still there, under guard in a mausoleum at the end of a path
Last week the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) released a set of very strange numbers on Taiwan’s wealth distribution. Duly quoted in the Taipei Times, the report said that “The Gini coefficient for Taiwanese households… was 0.606 at the end of 2021, lower than Australia’s 0.611, the UK’s 0.620, Japan’s 0.678, France’s 0.676 and Germany’s 0.727, the agency said in a report.” The Gini coefficient is a measure of relative inequality, usually of wealth or income, though it can be used to evaluate other forms of inequality. However, for most nations it is a number from .25 to .50