We made it down the mountain around 4am and met a couple on a motorbike going up, looking for the How? Hgih party at a Mucha tea house last weekend. We said it was a long way, they asked if it was any good. We said, `yeah' and they were off on what he called
"a mission."
PHOTO: JULES QUARTLY, TAIPEI TIMES
It was worth it, sorry, to the faint hearts who didn't make it. The weather was cool but stayed clear most of the time and the party was full, with some good sets and one that was exceptional.
The promised minibus service worked, the planning was sound and beers were NT$100. There were two stages, one in a grove and the other on the tea house balcony looking over Taipei's fluorescence.
DJ Em Lee was the best DJ on the night, breaking and delivering beats, always doing something to tweak his records to their best advantage. It was his leaving card, as he's off to Beijing on a film course. We look forward to him coming back.
Among the early DJs there were a few sparks. In the hip-hop arena, Marcus Aurelius slammed down the vinyl. We liked the tunes and energy but he can be rough. His CD is smoother with more foreplay and less banging it in.
The only criticism of the party was that, though it was a mixed crowd, the mix was mainly foreigners. Better promotion with local Chinese-language media would have helped.
How? Hgih was a party that had an underground feel, which is welcome in the days of superclub domination in Taipei.
AXD is the only Taipei club that consistently plays underground music. Sasha, though not exactly underground, is supposed to be coming in November and I can't imagine any better place to listen to him, especially after his disastrous New Year's appearance in Taipei a few years ago.
Of the underground promoters, Deep Inside at Eden, by DJs Saucey and SL, has built up a solid following; La Groove puts down some tasty stuff; and DJ Edmund's AAAportIS Productions is about to roll with Back2Back weekly parties in Shihlin.
"The underground in Taipei is definitely thriving," said DJ K Fancy, one of the people behind a party Thursday at Club 70s in the Living Mall, which will be the opener of a weekly Thursday event called Shag -- as in shag rug. To start things off they've invited DJ Dizzy, who's a major presence in the West Coast house scene. The following week DJ Chozie, whose residency at Room18 and pop star romantic liaisons made him famous island-wide, will be back from China to man the decks. We've also heard of plans to host Twister and "Disco Bingo" further down the line. Hey, why not?
"Every time I go out there's a new party promoter," Fancy said. "The underground has been forced to play by the rules because all the bigger places were being closed down. Now, it's just the two places, It's been like that for a while. But the gravity is shifting. I hear a lot of people saying they wish there were some different places to go."
Fancy said the How? Hgih turnout of around 350 people showed that a lot of people would go a long way for a decent party -- or to satisfy their curiosity.
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