Trends are valuable only insofar as they serve as a kind of benchmark for where the greater collective cultural consciousness was at a particular place and time. Something future generations can look back on and say, “Huh, so that’s where we were at 20 years ago? Seems vaguely familiar.”
The real weight is carried by those who attempt to subvert, to supplant, to flip that hive-mind mentality on its tragically unmarred ear.
Anyone can follow a trend. Everyone can merely ape that which came before. Only a few can and will willingly fly in the face of the dominant musical paradigm. It’s in the dark places between the cultural spotlights that the real battles are waged.
Photo courtesy of Blake Liu
Taipei City’s Dark Charybdis (暴噬者) is one of those bands occupying a piece of that amorphous and ever expanding uncharted territory. On the surface, the band might look like just another deathcore band, following the likes of local acts such as Beyond Cure and Sideffect (賽德費) before them. But this is a band finding its own way, looking for a path beyond that which has already been well trodden.
Formed in 2013 by guitarist Lin Hua-chiang (林華強), who also pulls seven-string duty in Emerging from the Cocoon (破繭而出), Dark Charybdis immediately set out to find the common ground between blackened death metal, thrash, and hardcore—a place where bands like Carnifex and Behemoth might logically coexist. In October of 2014, the band had its first show at Revolver in Taipei, with the audience responding more than favorably to the band’s inaugural performance.
In spite of the initial warm welcome to the scene, the lineup, rounded out by vocalist Kenneth Yao (饒亞哲), bassist Chen Jhih-hao (陳之昊), drummer Rus Ho (何強) and rhythm guitarist Ivan Chiu (邱一帆), wasn’t satisfied. Realizing they lacked polish, they started taking an extremely businesslike approach to their craft, recording each show and immediately reviewing the footage after coming off stage to find out which elements of their performance warranted improvement. The result — a carefully cultivated stage presence already well beyond the band’s years.
Photo courtesy of Bleys Bolton
After just a handful of times on stage together, Dark Charybdis has the look of a veteran act honed in the crucible of the tour van. They’ve made a conscious decision to put themselves on the fast track, with nothing less than the highest possible aspirations in mind.
“We want to be the next Chthonic (閃靈),” says Yao of the band’s ultimate goal.
Putting the most successful extreme metal band in the history of Taiwan’s relatively nascent scene in your cross hairs might seem a brash statement, but it is one the band backs up with its actions on and off stage. Chthonic found success first and foremost because the songwriting chops were there, but they managed to stick around in no small part due to their handling of affairs off stage — taking matters such as marketing, tour management, and promotion firmly in their own capable hands. Dark Charybdis have done the very same, with each member of the band taking on a specific duty outside their musical responsibility to the group.
A band with a plan, a niche outside the norm, and the ability to see both through to the end is a dangerous thing. Will Dark Charybdis have what it takes to bring their lofty goals to fruition? It’s still early times. They’re still getting to know one another. They’re still finding their overall identity. But seeing them do their thing on stage, one irrefutable truth becomes immediately clear. They’re dead set on following through, and won’t stop until they’ve seen this thing to its absolute apogee.
■ Dark Charybdis plays in support of the release of its first EP tomorrow night at The Wall, B1, No. 200, Roosevelt Rd, Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路四段200號B1). The show begins at 7:30pm. Tickets are NT$350 in advance, NT$450 at the door.
Touching down on Taiwan today for a quick weekend tour is veteran hard-driving rock act The Sleeves. Based out of Hong Kong, the all-English quintet was born in 2007 of a simple desire to take a step outside the mundane, says frontman Keith Goodman.
“We were basically just a bunch of guys who knew each other through teaching or playing football together and were looking for an excuse not to go home and sit in front of the TV.”
Evolving from a pure cover act, playing songs by the likes of the Arctic Monkeys, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Joy Division and Kings of Leon, The Sleeves gradually evolved into their own fuzzed-out sound, a mix of filthy three-chord punk and introspective indie, along with the power and bombast of classic and garage rock.
These disparate genres were fused together on the band’s first album, Arcade Rock, released in 2011. The following year, the band began touring around Asia in support of the album, and have more than a few battle stories to share from their time on the road.
Visits to Taiwan are few and far between for The Sleeves, last having jumped the strait in 2012 for an appearance at Spring Scream, their first show outside Hong Kong. After the Taiwan tour, the band will focus on songwriting, and later make a return to their native land for a few dates around England. Don’t miss the chance to catch one of the top rock acts of the region this weekend.
■ The Sleeves “Ride the Bullet” Taiwan tour hits Taipei tonight at Revolver, 1-2 Roosevelt Rd, Sec 1, Taipei (台北市中正區羅斯福路一段1-2號). Tickets are NT$300 at the door with a drink, and the show gets underway at 8:30pm. Tomorrow night, the band plays Rocks (岩石音樂), B1, 219 Juguang St, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市莒光街219號B1), before wrapping up the tour at Sound Live House (迴響音樂藝文展演空間), B1-1, 429, Henan Rd, Sec 2, Taichung City (台中市河南路二段429號B1-1) Sunday night.
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