Funky Brothers (放客兄弟)
April 6 at 10:50pm, Purple Mushroom Stage
A 10-piece funk band, are you kidding me? Channeling Parliament-Funkadelic, Kool and the Gang and other strains of 1970s funk, disco and soul, this is a party on wheels with soul diva Airy in the driver’s seat. Taipei bars know how dependable the group is when it comes to packing the house, and its reputation continues to grow.
Photo: Steven Vigar and Garret Clarke
www.indievox.com/evelevel
— David Frazier
Dog G (大支)
Photo: Steven Vigar and Garret Clarke
April 6 at 11:40pm, Rock Monkey Stage
Tainan’s Dog G started as a sideman for MC Hotdog (熱狗), but has long since come into his own as Taiwan’s number one rapper. He’s now plugging Ren (人), his first solo album in eight years. For lyrical delivery (and X-large clothing), think Notorious B.I.G., but instead of rhyming about hos and money, his bombast is about being Taiwanese.
www.indievox.com/doggpeople
Photo: Steven Vigar and Garret Clarke
— David Frazier
Otaku 3 (三宅一聲)
April 6 at 11:40pm, Green Snake Stage
Not only is this Taiwan’s best dub reggae band, adapting old Taiwanese nakashi (那卡西) tunes to a dub beat, its members also run the Spring Scream campsite year round, grow their own food and try to live without spending any money. Taiwan’s true (and probably only) rastas!
www.indievox.com/otaku3
— David Frazier
The Clippers (夾子電動大樂隊)
April 6 at 9:10pm, Green Snake Stage
With his band The Clippers, frontman Hsiao-ying (小應) emerged with LTK, also known as Loh Tsui Kweh Commune (濁水溪公社), as a leading force in Taiwan’s underground scene of the 1990s. He’s since done TV variety shows, film acting and standup comedy, but he’s never abandoned his music, which is full of synthesizers, political parody and taike (台客) posturing.
www.indievox.com/clipper
— David Frazier
Inhuman (非人物種)
April 7 at 5:50pm, Yellow Crab Stage
Playing straight-ahead punk rock and dressing like the Blues Brothers, this is a four-piece that you can mosh or skank to — just take your pick. They are also one of the tightest punk bands in Taipei’s scene, which is a credit considering how drunk they get.
www.indievox.com/inhuman
— David Frazier
Mary Bites Kerry (瑪莉咬凱利)
April 7 at 11:40pm, Blue Butterfly Stage
Definitely the most underrated ska band in Taiwan, and for my money they are also one of the best. With a punk core and full horn section, the music cuts the perfect edge between happily hiccupping ska grooves and tight punk energy. Get ready to dance.
zh-tw.facebook.com/MaryBitesKerry
— David Frazier
Aphasia (阿飛西雅)
April 7 at 7:30pm, Blue Butterfly Stage
After about a decade of pioneering instrumental post-rock as The Nipples, this band decided it was time for a new start, so it changed its name to Aphasia. In doing so, the group’s members left behind early Sonic Youth influences and developed a much more mature, powerful and noisily meditative sound — enough to turn a few heads at last year’s SXSW.
aphasiaband.com
— David Frazier
Aurora
April 7 at 8:20pm, Purple Mushroom Stage
Taichung-based group Aurora’s lineup comprises Scottish singer-songwriter Alan McIvor, Spring Scream founder Wade Davis, drummer Peter Holmes of .22 and Sean Luo on electric banjo. The band’s sound ranges from emo to pop and rock to hip-hop with McIvor’s vocals hitting highs and lows that are only matched by his visage, which morphs from teen idol to angst-ridden. McIvor’s moody, emotional and sincere presence is balanced by the talented group of veteran musicians backing him up.
www.indievox.com/aurora
— Alita Rickards
Totem (圖騰樂團)
April 6 at 6:40pm, Green Snake Stage
What’s incredible about Taitung’s Totem is how it’s brought Aboriginal chants and rhythmic sense into songs that are structured like indie rock. It’s six young dudes giving you all the stuff you love from Abo-folk, but it feels more contemporary and upbeat. For musicianship and stage presence, Totem is 100 percent on the money.
www.indievox.com/totembass
— David Frazier
88 Balaz (88顆芭樂籽)
April 7 at 10pm, Green Snake Stage
One of Taiwan’s best live bands, 88 Balaz has been perfecting high-energy stage antics and breakneck, skuzzy rock ’n’ roll for more than a decade. Lead singer Ah-Chiang (阿強) is one of the few in Taiwan who can belt out songs Jerry Lee Lewis-style — full of emotion and spraying sweat into the crowd.
www.indievox.com/88blaz
— David Frazier
Enno (鄭宜農)
April 7 at 4:10pm, Rock Monkey Stage
Daughter of a well-known film producer, Enno Cheng (鄭宜農) is perhaps the next Cheer Chen (陳綺貞), a singer-songwriter with a girlishly confident voice who plays her own guitar and sings about precious moments in life. She’s got a considerable following of college-aged “culture youth” (文藝青年). Expect them to line up for autographs after the show.
www.indievox.com/enno
— David Frazier
The Hsu-nami
April 6 at 10pm and April 7 at 11:40pm, both at Rock Monkey Stage
New York-based group The Hsu-nami is back for a second tour of Taiwan with Kou Chou Ching (拷秋勤), The Chairman (董事長樂團) and Three Sheet. The band’s weird post-rock, hardcore music is led by Taiwanese American Jack Hsu (許正杰), who makes his erhu (二胡) wail like a banshee. The group rocks out with head thrashing, energetic stage antics and anthemic instrumental songs.
www.indievox.com/hsunami
— Alita Rickards
Kou Chou Ching (拷秋勤)
April 6 at 9:10pm and April 7 at 9:10pm with Three Sheet, Rock Monkey Stage
Kuo Chou Ching embodies a fusion of traditional Taiwanese folk influences and fresh MC rhymes from duo Fan Chiang (范姜) and fishLin. The group layers scratching over tracks, raps in several of the languages spoken in Taiwan and plays traditional instruments like the suona (嗩吶). The lyrics convey anti-establishment messages that question authority and cultural barriers while maintaining a cheeky sense of humor.
www.indievox.com/kou
— Alita Rickards
Three Sheet
April 6 at 10:50 pm and April 7 at 9:10pm with Kou Chou Ching (拷秋勤), Rock Monkey Stage
In a reader poll in The Coast last year, Three Sheet was voted the best band in Halifax, Canada. The live hip-hop group has toured extensively over the past year promoting its second album, Sheet Music. The band — a guitarist, bassist and three vocalists — prides itself on creating fully live music, with no samples, loops, or synthetic drum beats. The lyrics move from meandering chilled out spoken-word with a retro 1970s feel to popping emceeing from Matthew Kliffer and Vanessa Furlong. Add to that pounding beatbox rhythms by Eric McIntyre and dance-enhancing funky guitar and bass lines from Ryan O’Quinn and Kevin Tilley, respectively, and you’ve got a full sound that has won the group numerous award nominations.
www.indievox.com/threesheet
— Alita Rickards
High Tide
April 7 at 10pm, Red Centipede Stage
High Tide’s soul-influenced reggae, funk, live dub and ska and Moshe Foster’s warm, smooth crooning never fail to fill the dance floor. The guitar riffs put out by Foster and Alexander John Ives (lead guitar) have a narcotic influence and Mike Tennant’s bass lines get the hips moving. The horn section punctuates and uplifts the tempo, with Andy Francis on trombone, Macgregor Ian Wooley on saxophone, and Wesley James on trumpet. Gregory Russell takes care of the beats on both live drums and sample machine.
www.indievox.com/hightide
— Alita Rickards
Chthonic (閃靈)
April 7 at 9:10 pm, Green Snake Stage
Chthonic (閃靈) brings black metal back to Spring Scream during a break in the band’s heavy touring schedule. Wildly popular at live shows across North America and in Europe, the musicians, led by Freddy Lim (林昶佐), are as much political activists as rock stars, promoting Taiwan independence and the rights of Tibetans. Black-and-white face paint accentuates the grimaces and growls of the group’s members as they wail and pound out a metal fury of anger, injustice and angst.
www.indievox.com/chthonic
— Alita Rickards
Skycruiser
April 5 at 12:50pm, Blue Butterfly Stage
Skycruiser is a Ween tribute band that is so catchy and sincere even the most hardcore cover-song-bigot can’t stop dancing. Lead singer Toby Garrod has come along leaps and bounds. Best claim to fame? Ween, a phenomenal band whose songs span multiple genres, is a fan of Skycruiser’s Facebook page. With Ben Smith (formerly of Roxymoron) on bass, Greg Russell on drums, Stewart Haston on rhythm guitar, fashionista Crystal Shien (線世瑋) on keyboard, and rock-poster-boy Alexander John Ives on lead guitar, the band is irresistible.
www.indievox.com/skycruiser
— Alita Rickards
My Skin Against Your Skin
April 6 at 10pm, Purple Mushroom Stage
The team of lead vocalist and frontwoman Andrea Huang (黃盈誼) and Yu Si-lu (尤世儒) on bass has created a fully developed sound. The group’s new EP is based on the idea of a soundtrack to a movie that doesn’t yet exist. These polished rockers have an uber-cool stage presence and composure, which make Huang’s occasional on-stage descents into madness so much more exciting.
www.indievox.com/msays
— Alita Rickards
The Chairman (董事長樂團)
April 7 at 10:50pm, Rock Monkey Stage
Currently on tour with Kou Chou Ching (拷秋勤), The Hsu-nami and Three Sheet, Taiwanese indie-rock group The Chairman has been playing since the late 1990s. With lyrics in both Hoklo (commonly referred to as Taiwanese) and Mandarin, the award-winning group blends electronic, punk and post-rock sounds with traditional instruments that add a folk sound to the music. The group has eight albums under its belt.
www.indievox.com/chairman
— Alita Rickards
Dark Eyes Gypsy Jazz Band
April 8 at 6:40pm, Green Snake Stage
Dark Eyes Gypsy Jazz Band plays old-time music with subtle charm using instruments that include the double bass, accordion and clarinet. The big band sound of these National Taiwan University students is happy, mellow and charming. Perfect for sundown as the festival wraps up.
www.indievox.com/darkeyesjazzband
— Alita Rickards
Sept.16 to Sept. 22 The “anti-communist train” with then-president Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣介石) face plastered on the engine puffed along the “sugar railway” (糖業鐵路) in May 1955, drawing enthusiastic crowds at 103 stops covering nearly 1,200km. An estimated 1.58 million spectators were treated to propaganda films, plays and received free sugar products. By this time, the state-run Taiwan Sugar Corporation (台糖, Taisugar) had managed to connect the previously separate east-west lines established by Japanese-era sugar factories, allowing the anti-communist train to travel easily from Taichung to Pingtung’s Donggang Township (東港). Last Sunday’s feature (Taiwan in Time: The sugar express) covered the inauguration of the
The corruption cases surrounding former Taipei Mayor and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) head Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) are just one item in the endless cycle of noise and fuss obscuring Taiwan’s deep and urgent structural and social problems. Even the case itself, as James Baron observed in an excellent piece at the Diplomat last week, is only one manifestation of the greater problem of deep-rooted corruption in land development. Last week the government announced a program to permit 25,000 foreign university students, primarily from the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia, to work in Taiwan after graduation for 2-4 years. That number is a
In a stark demonstration of how award-winning breakthroughs can come from the most unlikely directions, researchers have won an Ig Nobel prize for discovering that mammals can breathe through their anuses. After a series of tests on mice, rats and pigs, Japanese scientists found the animals absorb oxygen delivered through the rectum, work that underpins a clinical trial to see whether the procedure can treat respiratory failure. The team is among 10 recognized in this year’s Ig Nobel awards (see below for more), the irreverent accolades given for achievements that “first make people laugh, and then make them think.” They are not
This Qing Dynasty trail takes hikers from renowned hot springs in the East Rift Valley, up to the top of the Coastal Mountain Range, and down to the Pacific Short vacations to eastern Taiwan often require choosing between the Rift Valley with its pineapple fields, rice paddies and broader range of amenities, or the less populated coastal route for its ocean scenery. For those who can’t decide, why not try both? The Antong Traversing Trail (安通越嶺道) provides just such an opportunity. Built 149 years ago, the trail linked up these two formerly isolated parts of the island by crossing over the Coastal Mountain Range. After decades of serving as a convenient path for local Amis, Han settlers, missionaries and smugglers, the trail fell into disuse once modern roadways were built