Some people have a knack for throwing a fun party. They make sure there’s good music and food, quality drinks and a safe way for partygoers to get home at the end of the affair.
“We don’t want to be some faceless promotion company,” said Tristan Newman, half of the duo that forms Perpetual Motion. “We throw events, not bar nights.” Newman and partner Chad Ordoyne proved themselves on Oct. 10 with their successful first venture, the Lost Lagoon party at Wulai.
“We decided to have more Taiwanese bands this time, to make an effort to bring everyone together,” said Ordoyne of this weekend’s The Next Hoorah party near Tucheng MRT Station. “[We] tried to get bands that we thought would go together well, to take you through the day.”
Because the event goes from noon tomorrow until Sunday morning, they “looked at a set list, trying to picture how one [act] will flow into the next so it’s smooth musically. What do you want to hear at two o’clock, at five after a few beers … ?” said Newman.
With that in mind they chose Tyler Dakin and the Long Naked Bottles to play early. “When you start a festival you want to ease into it,” said Newman. “You don’t want really loud music in the afternoon.”
Lead vocalist and guitar player Dakin, formerly of well-known rock and folk band The Anglers, said in an interview last Saturday that the group has “a real desire to play authentically, country, blues, reggae … We’re not too concerned with the party vibe.” Instead, he said the goal is to take music “from the pub to the living room. We want people to come early, eat and listen.”
Drummer Russell Picard uses brushes, which have “a more classic sound — it’s what you hear on a really old record,” he said. “People didn’t start using drumsticks until the 1950s. Tyler doesn’t use effects on [his] guitar. We want it [to be] more traditional.” He was trained on brushes but used to play a lot of funk and punk. “The music [we do] sounds simple but it’s harder this way.”
Instead of the standard bass player, the trio has Roger Smith on keyboards, who provides bass effects. “There’s a perception that you have to play upbeat, danceable [music] but doing slow music stretches you,” he said. “Down-tempo ballads are challenging; you can’t hide behind the rhythm.” He chuckled and leaned in with a gleam in his eyes. “It’s naked music,” said Smith. “Stripped back and slow ... you expose yourself.”
That said, this is not risque music. It’s lazy afternoon tunes that you could listen to at home, and all three recently married members share this intention. “It feels good playing something that my mom, dad, grandma, grandpa could all listen to” said Picard. Dakin agrees: “I want to feel the music could appeal to everybody, I don’t want to exclude anyone.”
Later in the day the party vibe will get going with bands including Coach (教練), which plays popular, funky rock ’n’ roll, heavily influenced by Western rock classics. Other Taiwanese rock bands playing are Monkey Pilot (猴子飛行員), 88 Balaz (88顆芭樂籽), Rabbit Is Rich (兔子很有錢) and Go Chic. The latter plays an engaging show of fashion rock, with a youthful exuberance and silliness that softens and enriches the performance. Rabbit Is Rich, has a Yeah Yeah Yeahs flavor to its music and tosses stereotypes about baby-voiced, mild-mannered local girls out the window.
Also playing is High Tide. This reggae coalition features singer and lyricist Moshe Foster of Public Radio fame, with Michael Tennant from Bopomofo Blues Band (ㄅㄆㄇㄈ) on bass, guitarist and singer Jesse Morden-Green of Johnny Fatstacks, Greg Russell, drummer for punk band Consider the Meek, and Andy Francis of Moneyshot Horns.
DJs Marcus Aurelius and Fratzuki will spin after the bands until the MRT starts running at dawn. Fratzuki played an amazing set at the last Perpetual Motion party and said he has some new electro house and “sunrise Spanish house” lined up. Aurelius plays hip-hop, mashups and funk. Neither resort to repetitive, boring house music of the sort that can alienate a live music crowd. Instead, both are known for their fun and creative mixing and abilities.
There’s more to a good party than just music though. The venue has “a southern Taiwan feeling,” surrounded by mountains, with a fishpond just below the main dance floor, Newman said. The area is covered and there is indoor seating. Ordoyne said that rain would not be a problem, and there will be a coat check.
So far three food vendors have signed up: Bulli’s Kitchen with a range of hot dogs, Pizza Explosion which uses an herbed whole wheat crust and KGB (Kiwi Gourmet Burgers). Ordoyne and Newman both apologized for the lack of veggie burgers at the last event and enlisted KGB specifically the restaurant because makes its own. All drinks will be made with premium brands, and they’ve switched from Jim Beam to Jack Daniels for this event.
Add to that free water, easy access to and from the MRT and a cold beer in your hand at the door. Ordoyne said he wants people to be “already on their way to a good time when they walk in — instead of a drink ticket and having to stand in line at the bar — it’s just a nice touch.”
These little things add up. As Ordoyne said: “That’s the point of our name. We’re perpetually moving forward.”
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