This is music for dancing to. It’s garage, and this is obvious in the gritty, oily quality of the music — it sticks. The high energy of the tracks and the catchy refrains of this boot-kickin’, leg-shakin’, moonshine-drinkin’ throwdown would make even Grandma dance. And coming soon is an opportunity to do just that — the Deadly Vibes play Taipei’s Underworld on Saturday. The group’s official CD release party is not until May 31, but the album is already available at Underworld, the Armory in Tainan, Join Us in Kaohsiung and Taichung’s 89k. On the Net: www.myspace.com/thedeadlyvibes.
— Alita Rickards
Starting things off with a slammin’ track from Shy Kick Apple, this compilation is a good introduction to emerging artists in Taiwan’s underground music scene. More than just a CD, this album is a compilation of independent artists and musicians, brought to you by independent artists and musicians, for independent artists.
It’s also a representative sample of one of the most exciting emerging independent arts scenes in Taiwan. Shy Kick Apple — their name is an acronym for ska — incorporates Mandarin vocals and a flute into the upbeat genre. Veraqueen brings things down a notch with singer-songwriter stylings over electronic beats. And listeners craving a fix for that uniquely Asian electro-heavy indie-pop sound will find a solid intro to that genre in Taiwan on tracks by Digihai and Go Chic.
Like a Star is a compilation of songs by bands directly involved with White Label, an art market staged at Ximending’s Red House (西門紅樓) and organized by Come With Us. It captures the essence of that scene in a powerful but tasteful package and is a great primer for those who want to be up-to-date on the latest developments in Taiwanese indie rock.
— NATHAN DAVIS
RSS