The music scene in Taipei is small. That’s not a slight on our beloved capital. Just a statement of fact that rings true in any major metropolis around the world. Even if you live in one of the vaunted steel and concrete arbiters of global music culture — Berlin, New York, or god forbid, Los Angeles — though there may be more bands and certainly more places to play, the music scene still largely boils down to a few key players and a handful of groups. So when it comes to coverage of the local scene, it can all seem like one long, painfully monotonous rehash cycle.
That’s why it’s always a refreshing jingling of the bells when a new band with some serious chops comes along and begins gaining traction — and that’s just what Taipei rock-grunge band Stranger (陌生人) is doing. The band was started by David Kuo (郭哲瑋, guitar) and Tim Hong (洪彬展, drums), lifelong friends originally from Greater Taichung who both spent their early childhood to late teen years in Bangkok, Thailand. Kuo picked up guitar in the sixth grade but wasn’t serious about playing the instrument until his mid-teens.
“What got me into playing bands was Guns ‘n’ Roses. That changed my life,” Kuo says of his early influences.
Photo Courtesy of Stranger
For Hong, a former jock who’s game of choice was basketball, the flash of inspiration would come later, when he returned to his native land to attend university. Prior to that, music was relegated to the world of radio play and the likes of Maroon 5.
“I wasn’t really following music that much,” Hong says.
Then, after borrowing some music from Kuo, Hong heard Stairway to Heaven, and from then on bands like Maroon 5 were dead to him — thankfully. Soon after he picked up the drums so he and Kuo could start jamming together. Bass and singer duo, brothers A-Shin (葉欲新) and Julian Yeh (葉欲竹) were brought in, and Stranger was born in late 2012. They wrote songs the old fashioned way, Kuo adds.
“We jam it out,” he says over an alcoholic beverage in a Taipei City park on a chilly night last month. “For me it was the quickest way to get chemistry.”
Once the songs come together, Julian handles the lyrics. In the songs they’ve demoed so far, which run the mix from a full-on ballad to stomping blues-infused numbers bordering on heavy rock, the words are a mix of Mandarin and English, with the latter seeming to prevail. There’s nothing calculated about it, though. It’s all about which language they feel is best to convey a certain emotion.
“We always compromise with each other,” Hong says. “I think it’s all about the feel in the end. If the feel is right, we’ll go with it. It doesn’t have to be, ‘You have to write English songs, you have to write Chinese songs.’”
For Kuo, the same kind of philosophy applies to his songwriting. When it comes to practical band experience, most of the players aside from himself are relative rookies. Though he considers himself the band leader and shot caller when it comes to final approval, he wants his band mates to enjoy the ride.
“It really just comes down to feeling. I really don’t want to go for this vibe, or the whole band’s gonna go for this vibe, because a lot of them just started out. I wanted them to figure it out, to enjoy writing,” he says of his measured approach.
Despite Kuo being the main songwriter, the band’s songs are a product of each of the members’ life experiences. The aforementioned ballad, End of the Line, for example, is about a particularly painful breakup Hong went through.
“I like the feeling of playing that song every time,” says Hong, reflecting on the experience in a soft-spoken tone. “You would think about all the bad decisions that you made. I learn a lot from it.”
The band’s name itself is also deeply personal to all the members, especially Kuo and Hong. The two share a special bond, both being Taiwanese but having spent the bulk of their lives abroad. Now in their mid-twenties, they have spent the past six years or so getting reacquainted with a homeland that was mainly relegated to summer and holiday visits in the past. The adjustment, says Hong, hasn’t been easy.
“Everyone seems like a stranger to me. I can’t relate myself to them. I think sometimes people out there are strange.”
Luckily for Hong, he and the rest of Stranger have music to help them through hard times. Their first live show took place just over a year ago, and they’ve got about 10 shows under their belt at this point, though their rich, well-structured songs have the feel of a far more seasoned act. They’re currently putting the finishing touches on a demo they plan to hand out for free, with an eye toward releasing an EP next year.
All of this comes out of the band’s own pockets. Forget any rich expat kid stereotypes. Kuo and Hong work for a living, and don’t get a dime from mommy and daddy. So when they say they’re prepared to starve to go on tour, it’s not an empty statement with a trust fund behind it. Hong ends the interview with an indication that this new blood is indeed ready to bleed for their art.
“I don’t mind,” he says with a sardonic laugh. “We’re broke every month.”
■ Stranger plays tomorrow night at Revolver, 1-2 Roosevelt Road, Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路一段1-2號). Other bands on the bill are Anteater (食蟻獸), Destroyers (擊沈女孩) and BB Bomb (BB彈). Doors open at 9pm and the show starts at 9:30pm. Tickets are NT$350 with one drink.
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