The weekend begins with a pair of Irish imports parachuting into Luxy. Chris Agnelli and Robbie Nelson have been a duo on the decks since 1997 as well as writing and producing their own trance dance material. Their classics Everyday and El Nino helped define the Ibiza sound. Their major remixes include tracks from U2, Ferry Corsten and Armin van Buuren. They've provided six guest mixes for BBC Radio One and appeared on Top of the Pops. Their gig tonight is the first leg of a tour that will take them to Singapore and Bali before buzzing on to Oz.
Swank makes a splash in Taichung tomorrow with the third annual Aquaboogie. Highlights this year include the poolside palatables as Taichung's FM Bar and Restaurant will be there all day serving up a limited menu, and Shawn Kidd from The Dive Cafe will be blending up his famous Rum Bellini's. Harbin beer will be on tap and there'll be plenty of free Swank T-shirts on the rack. On the music menu is "everything from hip hop to electro," according to the organizers, with Swank DJs Declan, D'Jones, Matty D and Kriz. Joining them will be Taipei's old skool principal, Marcus Aurelius and Jr. and Megan spinning deep funky house. Revevolution's Chi Funk and Boyan from Bobo's will also be on hand. Things will get going at 1pm and continue until 10pm. The pool is inside Zhongzhung Park, at 100 Xuexi Rd in Taichung (台中市北區學士路100號) Check out http://www.swank-dj.com for more information, including directions in both Chinese and English and a printable map. And if a long hot day in the sun isn't enough for you, Aquaboogie will dry off at Panerai Bar starting around 11pm. Admission is free and beers will cost NT$100. Panerai is located in Taichung at 560 Wenshin Rd Sec 1 (台中市文新路一段560號).
Also tomorrow night, albeit closer to home, Eden will host a special edition of Deep Inside. What's special? Well, as half of the regular Deep Inside duo, DJ Saucey, is on hiatus, DJ SL will be joined by Pierre and Marc Ketts of the Beat Symposium. Eden is at 12F, 98 Zhongxiao E Rd, Sec 4, in Taipei (北市忠孝東路四段98號12號).
PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAIWAN FOOD FESTIVAL
In other news, Brian McGuire, who dance floor fans will remember as the towering DJ from LA who paid an extended visit to Taipei over the winter, appeared on the UK's DJ Source Radio (http://www.djsourceradio.co.uk) with his set Live in Taipei this past Sunday. While the set wasn't live, it was a mix of sets he performed during his stay here. We learned of it too late to include in last week's The Vinyl Word, but tuned in for a bit of dance floor deja vu. Way to go, Brian, and we hope you make it back again soon.
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
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