Sitting in the lobby of the Lan Kwai Fong Hotel in SoHo, Hong Kong, it’s hard to believe I was going to have a face-to-face interview with the punk pioneer Mark Ramone, who has been the drum master behind the Ramones and Richard Hell & the Voidoids. Unlike the common perception of the mass media towards punkers – rude, outrage, nonsense and any other negative words you can think of – Marky Ramone spoke very polite, and always, with a sense of pride. You can tell he loves what he has been doing in the last 30 years – PUNK.

“You have a strong handshake.” Marky said to me, in strong Brooklyn accent. “So do you!” I replied, laughing. That is how I began the chat with the gentleman in front of me, drinking English tea, down the memory lane to the 70’s.

What do you think about Hong Kong?
I love the city. It’s amazing. It goes with the old and new… Buildings are big. The food is great. It’s like landing on a different planet.

If you could choose to live in any period of time, when would that be? Would it still be the 70′s?
Most people want to go back to their youth, but I want to see what the future is, like the spaceship, how the technology is going to change. I live in the 70’s; I grew up in the 70’s. So now I wanna see what will happen in 2020.

Would you consider trying another kind of music other than punk rock? Many musicians seem to be moving towards blues/country/jazz as they “grow up”.
I love what I play. I have a style. I like keeping it that way. I enjoy this music more than anything else. That doesn’t mean I don’t listen to other kind of music.

I remember you mentioned in an interview that you respect bands like Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, but you never really like their music. Do you still feel the same way?
No. I respect them because they’re technically good. But when I heard them, their songs were too long… too slow. Again, I respect them as musicians, but I’m not a guy who likes technicians. I prefer styles instead of technicians.

Can you name any contemporary bands that you appreciate?
I have a radio in America (which plays punk music) and I get to hear new bands. I like the Riverboat Gamblers, the Loved Ones, Anti-Flag and the Gallows from London.

In one of the Ramone’s video biography, Tommy Ramone said Johnny’s downstroke style was inspired by the intro of Led Zeppelin’s “Communication Breakdown”. Is that true?
Yeah, he loves Jimmy Page. He always like David Bowie’s “Suffragette City”’s de-de-de-dedee-dedee… (trying to play the riff with his air guitar). And he also likes “Communication Breakdown”. Even though he’s not the lead guitar player, those are rhythm songs that’s why he likes that stuff. He idolizes Johnny Thunders from the New York Dolls and the guy from the Stooges.

Ron Asheton?
Yes! So if you bring that up together, you have Johnny Ramone.

What are your inspirations then?
When I first saw The Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show on the television, I was eight-years old. My mother told me to come to the living room, and there was Ringo (Starr). And the next thing I wanted was to play the drums because I loved him. The Beatles looked good as a group. And as I grew up at my early teens, I loved Mitch Mitchell from Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Rich the jazz drummer, Ginger Baker from Cream, and also Keith Moon from the Who. So if you throw that up together, those are my influences.

You also mentioned the Brooklyn in the 70′s was one of the toughest place in the world. What do you think about Brooklyn having become one of the hippest places now?
Brooklyn is great. I am from Brooklyn, so it’s good to see that Brooklyn has a really cool music scene now. I just did a show there a month ago and it was great, being back in my hometown. It’s a sense of pride that you come from there, and you do a show, and “IT’S BROOKLYN!”

Do you think the tough situation back in the days inspired your music and stimulated your creativity?
It definitely inspired us, the Ramones. The way we grow is basically the same. New York is a tough place in 70’s. It was economically depressed; the garbage strikes were everywhere; a lot of gun murders and gangs’ beats. Luckily, we had CBGB to lean on and had a place to play.

What do you think about the punk ethics “live fast die young”?
We never thought that way. I mean, the Ramones started punk rock, so whoever came up with that expression believed in their way. I want to live for a long time, but the way to live is… to be healthy. I mean, it’s just a saying. Let me explain: if somebody came up to you and said “you live fast so you’re going to die young. Now you’re going to die,” I bet you are going to say, “No, please don’t kill me.” (Laughs.) It’s not how human beings are (to die young), unless you do a lot of drugs or drinking. It sounds punk, but in reality, I don’t think people think that way. I don’t. I mean, Lemmy (Motörhead) tried to do it a few years ago, and he’s still alive.

It’s good for him.
M: He’s great. I love him. He lives a long life so far and still going.

I always like the heavy leading drum lines on “Anxiety”. Is the drum more prominent because you co-wrote the song?
Thanks! It was a good song. Well, the prominent (drum sounds) of that album, “Mondo Bizarro”… every arm is different and every producer is different. I’m not going tell the producer what to do. It they want to put the drums at the background, it’s their business; if they want to bring that up, fine.

Do you have any plans to write new materials for this band?
We have already put two singles out. Michale Graves, the band, and I are going to do an album in November. And I almost finish my autobiography. It will cover everything. Everything! It’s not written by a family member or roadie. It’s written by one of the Ramones, so that’s important. It’s the truth. There are too much exaggerations in Ramones’s books. Mine is… (thumb up) The book will be out on Simon & Schuster in 2013.

What’s the difference between playing the Ramones’ songs with Johnny, Joey, and Dee Dee, and with Michale and other musicians?
Same thing. I play the same thing, same way. But I do a few more rules, which I like to do. I feel that many of the Ramones’ songs need a little bit more drum fills. It’s good to play the songs straight, but I feel that some parts would be more interesting to throw some fills in it.

Do you see the Marky Ramone’s Blitzkrieg as a tribute to Joey, Johnny, and Dee Dee?
The songs are too good not to be. I tried doing a solo project with my band, with the originals, but the kids and the older fans want to hear the Ramones’ songs. I said okay, I’m going to do that. I understand it’s a whole new generation, and I’m the only one who’s out there touring. It’s to the whole new generation who wasn’t around Ramones’ time. Michale Graves (frontman of Marky Ramone’s Blitzkrieg) wrote the most popular Misfits’ albums and he sings with me. It’s great. He sings in his way.

I can hear that. He’s not trying to copy.
Yeah. No trying.

Interview by Sylva Lam
Photo by May Lam

Stranger things might have happened, but it was pretty hard to believe that for a show headlined by a Ramone, mobile bar tables had to be pulled out to fill the standing zone so that it would not look so empty. An hour after the doors opened to Marky Ramone’s Blitzkreig’s one-night show in Hong Kong, the venue was still only half-occupied. This was totally unexpected because many previous gigs on the tour were sold-out. One may wonder if it was in protest of Marky Ramone’s selling out, but it turns out many Hong Kong hardcore Ramones’ fans and punk followers did not know Marky was in town due to the poor promotion — it was only listed in Time Out and Hard Rock’s Facebook fan page.

At 11pm, Marky and the band came onto the tiny and fully packed stage. Fronted by the legendary drummer Marky and vocalist Michale Graves (ex-Misfits), Marky Ramone’s Blitzkreig kicked off the show with the Ramones’ signature “1, 2, 3, 4!” — the simplest line that can strike millions of die-hard punk fans’ nerves. The band performed about 20 songs (down from 34 in other gigs on the tour) in an hour without encore or any conversation with the audience. It was obvious that the band was upset by the lack of audience and the overall poor promotion, stage setting, and stereo system on the part of the organizer, Hard Rock Cafe Hong Kong.

The signature count from the bassist was followed by a powerful downstroke guitar riff, and, of course, the intense eight-note drum beat by Marky. Graves, coming out in a black leather jacket, rip-off jeans wrapped with duct tape, and Men In Black sunglasses, sung “Chewin’ at a Rhythm on My Bubble Gum…” But the crowd was as static as if they were at a jazz live. It was only until Graves reached the punk-anthem chorus “Rock-Rock-Rockaway Beach… We can hitch a ride to Rockaway Beach”, that part of the crowd started to shake, and the atmosphere got slightly better.

Following “Rockaway Beach” were “Teenage Lobotomy”, “Psychotherapy”, and “Do You Wanna Dance”. Between each song, there was only a four-note pause when the bassist shouted “1-2-3-4!” You could easily feel the intensity from the performance; and for one moment you might think the Joey, Johnny and Dee Dee Ramone were still alive. Even though, in the interview with us, Marky did not agree or denied whether Marky Ramone’s Blitzkreig was a tribute to the Ramones, the gig was run in a tribute-like fashion. The almost full set of Ramones’ songs performed in half-tempo faster than the album version, and the four-note straightforward transition between songs were Ramones signatures. In spite of a shorter set, the band still covered hits like “Havana Affair”, “Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue”, “Rock N’ Roll Highschool”, “I Wanna be Sedated”, “I Don’t Wanna Walk Around With You”, and the HEY-HO-LET’S-GO all-time anthem “Blitzkerieg Bop”. The Misfits + Ramones acoustic set by Michale Graves in other shows on the Blitzkerieg tour was missing, which was a huge disappointment because you can tell from Graves’ solo album and his live videos that he has pushed his music to a whole new level with his acoustic guitar.

The faulty stereo system was another disappointment. When the show began, all you could hear was the instruments’ sound but no words from the microphone. Graves tried to remedy the situation by signaling the sound technician. Unfortunately, the sound technician couldn’t get Graves’ signals, and he had to rush onto the stage during the performance so that Graves could whisper into his ear. It was a shame that there was no obvious improvement afterwards. You would also expect the sound level of the drums would be raised since this was a Marky Ramone-fronted gig. But that, frustratingly, didn’t happen, either.

Despite all the awkward moments of the gig, a few headbangers at the front row did help heating up the crowd. Some even tried to start a mosh pit, though they failed.

Review by Sylva Lam
Photos by May Lam

“Know what you want” is never truer advice when it comes to Wanting Qu, and this is not merely on account of the coincidence of her name. The Harbin-born, Canadian-educated singer-songwriter started by knowing what she wanted and not hesitating to go after them (in 2005, it was music; in 2012, it is even more music and world peace.) Wanting got her music career started when she was signed to Nettwerk as its first Chinese artist in 2009. Her soulful singing and expressive lyrics have since earned her a following. Her biggest hit so far, “Drenched”, exploded on the charts after being discovered and featured in the recent Hong Kong hit film “Love in the Buff”. The stroke of fate that connected her song to the movie brought her to an even wider recognition on both sides of the world, just when she is about to release her debut full-length “Everything In The World”. After a whirlwind tour of premieres in China, Wanting spoke with us about her journey so far from the comfort of her home in Vancouver.

How do you feel about your song picked up by Pang Ho Cheung, director of “Love in the Buff”?
He and his co-writer, Jody, they heard my song at this coffee shop in Beijing, where they were writing the script. The coffee shop continuously played “Drenched”, the demo version of my song. They kind of wrote the script with my song, so they were strongly attached to it. Then Jody asked me if I’m interested in having my song in the sequel of [Love in a Puff]. I’m like, okay, but I have not heard about this movie. She’s like, no problem, we are gonna send you DVD of the first movie. I watched it, not knowing big stars are in this movie. So I felt like it’s probably a good exposure for me to have my song placed in the movie. It’s a good movie, and I think my song fits in the movie well. I was pretty excited for this connection.

How did you feel about the movie? Did you get all the very colloquial Cantonese jokes?
The first time I watched it I didn’t quite get some of the stuff they were saying. I went to Hong Kong for the premiere, I went to Beijing for the premiere, and I went to a different premiere, so I watched the movie three times. So like, by the third time, I think I got some of the stuff that I didn’t catch the first time. I think I might have learned some Cantonese sayings from there.

Did you know how the song was gonna be used in the movie?
No, I didn’t know. I was pretty excited about the trailer (featuring “Drenched”), but I didn’t know anything about how they would place the two songs in the movie, “You Exist In My Song” (“我的歌聲裡”) and “Drenched”. But people who worked on the movie sent emails to me saying, your songs are definitely placed in very important scenes and they definitely add emotional level to the picture. So the first time I watched it, I was just like, ok where is my song? Oh is it this part? Oh no… wait is it this part? No…and then all the way till the end, and I heard my song. The first time I watched it, I was focusing on my music. I couldn’t focus on the dialogue when I heard my music coming out, because I was surprised that they used my live version of the song in that scene. And so I was focusing on like, “Oh my god, this is the live version so it’s not perfect.” But the third time I watched the movie, I was totally focusing on the dialogue, and I think that the song and the dialogue kind of fit perfectly.

It was so unexpected, but it worked so well. We thought it worked really well in the trailer, too. We kept watching it over and over again.
Yeah, I really liked the trailer. And I liked the full production version of this song. But I think it’s a very smart cut for them to use the live (in the movie) because I think the live version makes the movie a little more interesting. Everybody has heard the trailer version, so maybe they want something different for the movie. I like how they cut it at “But it all doesn’t seem to matter anymore…” then they waited for maybe five seconds, and then they go, “When you kiss me on that street” It’s like “Aooh!” (Shrieks and giggles)

Having your song being placed in a movie, does it make you think differently about your other songs, like having a cinematic image in your head when you are writing?
To be honest, I have always written my songs with an image in my head. If it’s not based on my own experiences, then the image in my head is based on movies, or books or my friends’ personal experiences. But for this movie, I have written a song for Miriam Yeung’s character. The way I wrote it was I read the script and I put myself in her shoes. I haven’t seen the movie yet at that point, but reading the script made me imagine the scene. I wrote the song the way it is. It’s called “Love Unconditionally” (“沒有目的地愛了”). I kind of lived through their shoes, and it inspires me and makes me write from different point of view. It’s pretty interesting because one person can only experience so much in life — that’s why you watch movies. So to answer your question, I normally write my songs with pictures in my head. It works perfectly for films, and I wish more people would use more of my songs in films!

Hopefully people will read this and see that!
But they have to let me know first. There are so many short films in China right now, in which they use my songs, and they don’t tell me. They have to let me approve them first — maybe I don’t want to be associated with, for example, a fur company, or if the film is about killing animals. To be very open about it, if I really like the movie, and I think it’s going to work well, life is short, even if they don’t have a huge budget, we will work something out. But it’s about respect, when you want to use something, you need to ask for it first.

On the subject of copyright, since you’re penetrating the Chinese market and you are popular in China, the breach of copyright seems almost inevitable. As you know, and it sucks to say it, China is very disrespectful of the idea of copyright. How do you combat the situation? Not just for use in movies, but all sorts of piracy like dubbing your CDs, etc.
Sometimes I just can’t think too much about it, because I can’t use my Western thinking and apply it to Chinese market. I do think about it once in awhile, but I tell myself that I can’t think too much about this legal stuff. I have to see an opportunity in the problem. The opportunity would be that I get more popular, more people will hear my music, and they would follow me on Weibo and come to my shows. I’ll sell more tickets.

But I have my days. Sometimes I feel like, this movie sucks, why do they use my songs? I have to constantly tell myself that I have to see the positive side effects of this thing. I can’t change how people would do things, but I’m pretty sure in the future, maybe more people will realize how important it is for people who do original music — for singer-songwriters — who really write for the sake of music and not for making money. I just wish more people would know that musicians and songwriters, they are all human beings, they all have these needs. They all need to eat and live and sleep and shelter. Basically what I’m saying is, if people are writing really good songs, but they are not getting any compensation, like a living, to do what they love to do, then they are not gonna do it. Art and culture are just going to die down. No one is going to hear really good music.

There are so many so many great songwriters out there who do exactly what I do, and they are not being heard because they don’t have the means to, or supportive friends and family circles. They need to be heard, but we just have to support them to hear good music. You know what I mean?!

Photo by Jiaming Yan

We do. Let’s backtrack and talk about the beginning when you started. Why did you decide to study abroad in Canada? We read about how you were very insistent to study abroad.
I think maybe around 2000, lots of kids in Mainland China were going overseas to study. I was one of them. I was very intrigued by Western culture because of the movies and the music. All those Schwarzenegger movies and Hollywood movies; and music like Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion. I listened to them and I watched them. I became very interested in seeing the outside world.

So I came out, and Canada was not how I imagined it would be. I went through schooling, but I wasn’t fulfilled in what I was studying in school, and I was still listening to lots and lots of music of different genres. I never knew there are different genres of music existed when I was in China. Then I started singing in a rock band, and after a while I realized I wasn’t singing, I was screaming. So I left and started writing my own stuff, going solo, doing singer-songwriter style in 2008 or 2009.

How does your experience in Canada affect your decision to work in China? Was it something you planned?
You mean like, when I came out, did I want to go back? No! When I first came out, I was like, “Yes! Never gonna go back!” It was mainly because of my very strict mother. I was very happy that I didn’t have to listen to her anymore. But at the same time I still had to get a bachelor for her because she sent me the money to study.

Anyhow, in 2010, I went back to China, where I met a musician in an indie-rock band in Harbin. We became friends because we were both doing music. He told me so many things about the Chinese music industry, and oh my god, I never knew! They have all these really good music and good festivals. That’s when I thought, “Maybe people over here would really like my music as well.” That’s when I decided that I should not give up on the Chinese market.

My manager, when he signed me, he also saw this opportunity in China because I write in both languages. He said that I have this Westernized expression with Chinese melody or something like that. He said, “We would love to work with you in the future. We will go to Asia and North America, even Europe. You will be an international artist, would that be okay with you?” I was like, “Hell yeah! That’s my dream, bring it on. I would love to do that.” It was part of his vision, and also something I really wanted for a long time.

Photo by JonnyPhoto.net

And then older I get, the more mature I get and the more I see, the more I think that I am not just myself, I’m bigger than myself, especially when you are in a foreign country, you are actually representing something that they are very foreign to.

Just recently, I realized that I can’t just be like any of the artist over there in China. I want to bring the good things from here to there, and I want to bring maybe the good things from there to here. If somebody has never met a Chinese person before, and if he or she just happened to walk into a concert I was playing at, and they left with a really good impression about Chinese music and the Chinese, then I think I have done something for the Chinese.

Other than the artists you mentioned, what sort of songs accompanied your childhood or teenage years? Which musicians influenced you as a singer-songwriter?
There were Chinese artists too, Jonathan Lee (李宗盛) and Emil Wakin Chau (周華建). After I came to Canada, I was basically exposed to all kinds of music on the radio. In 2005, I was really listening to Avril Lavigne and Michelle Branch, I was a teen and they were a teen. You know sometimes teenagers are afraid to admit their inner feelings and they try to be this tough chick. I think the music I write now…I grew up now, I don’t have to pretend to be very tough. I can be in touch with my inner feelings and I can write “I cry” or I can tell people that I do that. I don’t have to portray that I’m a very tough chick who never cries and only gets angry. Mainly, Sarah McLachlan’s music made me that way. Her music kind of healed me.

How do you decide whether to write a song in Chinese or in English?
That’s a good question. I definitely want to talk about it. If my experience happened in China or with a Chinese person, then this song is probably going to be in Chinese; and if my experience is with an English person or in the English culture, then this song is going to be in English. However, I did write songs in English for my mom and dad, who don’t understand English. I think this has to do with the fact that I probably don’t want them to fully understand the songs because… (Laughs) I think it’s because if I want to express something very direct, it’s going to be in English. And you know, English is easier to sing in and write as well, melody-wise. With the Chinese language, you have to think about the tones. So I’ll focus on that with Chinese. But I can do both!

You don’t usually do the same song in both Chinese and English. How did you feel about the Chinese version of “Drenched”?
I don’t like translating my own song from one language to another, because there is so much stuff that get lost in translation. I would be okay if, for example, Shawn Yue, he really likes “Drenched”, and he and his team think that it would be great for him to do a Chinese version of it. I was like, go for it! I’m still very strongly attached to my English lyrics, but when I heard Shawn’s version, I really liked it. The lyrics are very tender and touching, and I would never write anything like that. I’m very happy that the Chinese version is the way it is, and I would love to cover it one day. Shawn said that he would also love to sing it on stage with me one day.

When would that one day be?
I don’t know.. when I make my next Chinese album?

You once mentioned that you are conscious about releasing demos, because they are often being compared to the final product. Does the initial reception of a song affect the creative choices you make for the final studio version?
I make a demo, which is normally done within a day, and then I put it online for people to stream and listen to online. I was hoping that they would just listen to it and give me feedback. It’s like trying to see if the song would be anyone’s favorite song, or if it’s popular, I can decide to put whichever song in the album. Making demo is also a process of knowing what we should add or what we should not do for the album version. If the demo version got in everybody’s iPod, then it’s hard for me to change that demo for the album version. People would feel a little bit disconnected to the album version because they have listened to the demo for so many times. If I wanted them to have my demo, I would set it up as “able to download”. I didn’t check that because I didn’t want them to have it in their iPod.

Listen to “Life Is Like A Song”, from her new album here.
Wanting – Life Is Like A Song by Nettwerk Music Group

You are often very opinionated on Weibo, and you seem to be really determined in your ways, sticking very much to your own principles. Does that personality or that side of you ever come into conflict with the business side of music, since artists often do not have much control after the creative process.
With my label, they signed me knowing me that, so they are ready for that. And they are very supportive for me and who I am. But with some of the fans on Weibo, because they only started following me recently or only followed me because they are fans of the artists of the songs I covered. They didn’t do any research about me and they don’t know that I do my own original stuff. They should know that people who do original music and lyrics are very opinionated because they are not afraid to put that into music and into lyrics, and let the world hear it. So sometimes if I say something on Weibo that shows that opinionated side of me, they get very offended for some reason. Then maybe you should realize that this is not someone you want to follow, or if you don’t want to hear this, you can just unfollow. You don’t really have to say something like, “Oh, she has become famous now so she acts this way.” I mean, come on, I have never changed. This is who I am, you never knew me.

For example, I got very very mad at this guy or girl, the fan who basically used my video and put in his or her own website and lyrics, and the lyrics were wrong. I felt that my video, which I had put so much effort and time into making myself, got sabotaged by whatever he put in there. And I was worried that if anyone sees the video for the first time and saw his or her version, they would not like this artist or not like my song. I was very upset and I said something on Weibo. Lots of people got mad at me for using that language. They saw me as not being thankful for someone who wanted to spread my music, but they didn’t understand why I was upset. But there are fans who are supportive for what I said and what I did. And for those who didn’t know the real story and who the real Wanting is, I’m not very sad that they unfollowed me. (Laughs) I’m just like, okay, maybe you would understand one day. Some magical event would happen and then you would understand.

You have always put yourself forward and you are really confident, judging by your approaching Nettwerk’s Terry back when you hadn’t even started, and getting the housecleaning job that we read about…
Sorry to cut your question. When I met Terry in 2005, I looked terrible. I dressed like a young immature teenager. (Laughs) But I think he got the sense that I was very sincere and I was very nervous when I talked to him. (Mimics herself) “Terry! You don’t know me, but I know you! I just want you to remember my name: my name is Wanting. Wanting, Wanting, Wanting, like you are wanting something, wanting something!” (Laughs) He didn’t remember me five years later, but he heard my music and then he loved my music. Eventually he signed me.

The original question was, what motivates you be so confident and doing even seemingly outrageous things?
I think it’s the end goal that’s making me wanting to do all these things. My end goal, music-wise, is to have as many people as possible to hear my music. I want my music to touch them in certain ways, and they would remember me when I die. Just to be on an even higher level, abstract-thinking, I really want my music to create world peace. No, seriously. If you think on one level, and then you think of a higher one — I have been thinking, and this is what I concluded: world peace. So my motivation would definitely be coming from my final goal. I just have to conquer every single difficulty to get to the next level. Running to Terry and speak to him was just one of the steps to get to my goal, and I did it. And maybe having a drink or two would help the courage.

About your rock band, The Wanting Band, other than realizing that it was screaming and not singing, was there anything else you gained from it somehow?
All of that experience were very helpful for what I’m doing right now, whether it’s playing in front of three people in a big place, or singing in a really cracky microphone and not having any monitors on the stage. They made me learn and know what I need and what I don’t want on stage later on.

I want more people to understand that singing at home probably sounds a lot better than you hear in a live performance or its video online, because if people were talking in the crowd or if you don’t hear yourself through the monitors, then you sing off tune. I think that with the fact that I’m getting a lot more popular and play bigger shows, the equipments are getting better and better, I would have in-ear monitors and have a better on-stage setup. Then the performance would probably be so much better. I don’t want people to think that I can’t sing because they see a really bad live footage of me singing on stage online and think, “She sings off tune!” Well, I did sing off-tune at that time, but it’s because I couldn’t hear myself…

What is your process of coming up with an album?
I don’t dedicate a month or two to write an album, I just experience life. I live, and if I experienced something that I want to make a record of it and express it, then I make a song. I can’t write songs just to fill the gap, like we need one more song for the album let’s write it. Every song speaks to me in a way, every time I listen to a song I wrote, it brings me back to that time when I wrote it.

You took a road trip in 2010 that became very inspiring for you. How does location inspire your music?
If you guys ever have the chance to come to British Columbia (BC), you could rent a car and drive from BC to Alberta. It was in March or April, in BC, it went from green trees to white, white as in snow. Then as soon as it hit Alberta, everything was gold because of the long wheat fields and just really big mountains. It was really pretty, and I have never seen or experienced that before. And being by yourself, you think a lot when you are by yourself driving in car for 14 hours. It was very inspiring to me, and I realized that these mountains, trees, and oceans, they are here longer than you, or him, or her. They have been here for decades and years and thousand years, and you are only here for a moment compared to them. It just made me realize that we need to have respect for these things. It’s like when you see an old and wrinkly person, you got to have respect for them because they are here on this Earth breathing so much longer than you. The least you can do is respect them. Sometimes war or money, stuff that human beings are fighting for is really not worth it. We just have to love one another, love the mountains and trees, and help the people who are in need and not being greedy and want everything like “me me me me me!”

(Pause)
Sorry, whenever I think about that trip it makes me very speechless, because it makes me feel like what I’m doing is really nothing compared to all these enormous landscape.

Can we ask about your name? So you came to Canada, and they ask you for an English name, so you just go with Wanting?
In China, you have find yourself a name in English class, so I was going through the dictionary and I went through all the As. Then I got to B and saw “Betty”. I was like, “Oh! ‘Betty’ is pretty cool”, but I didn’t want to be like everyone else who has “Betty”. I wanted to spell it differently so I made my name “Beddy”, because it still sounds like Betty but it’s spelled differently. One day in high school, one of my instructors told me, “You know, you really should not use Beddy because it sounded weird and wrong. It reads wrong. It might mean something different. You don’t want to mean it that way.” I was like, “Oh really? I’ll change it back to Betty.” Then after a while, a white friend said, “Why don’t you just use your Chinese name?” Even at the time, I was writing my Chinese name as “Wan Ting”, and [my friends] were like, “Wan Ting… wanting, like you are wanting something! You are Wanting!” And that’s when I realized that Western people might not pronounce it right as “wǎn tíng”, but it’s actually my name. I thought maybe this would be a great stage name as well.

What about your last name “Qu”, which is related to music in Chinese — when you are growing up, did you feel that it was destined that you are doing music?
I always felt my last name is very interesting for sure. I don’t know a lot of people with my last name. So I really like my last name, and I really like singing when I was young. I can talk about it in interviews and maybe at my shows. Like when I play in front of a Western crowd, I’ll say, “My name is Wanting, like you are wanting something. My last name is Q-U. It’s pronounced “Qu” and it means music, melody and song.” And everybody’s like, “Ooh!” I’m like, “That’s right!”

What are you immediate future plans after releasing the album?
Definitely tour. I guess just getting myself exposed to more people, to have them to know who I am. One step at a time. Touring is something I would do after this release. Because you know, supply and demand. People ask for it, then you give it to them.

Jessie keeps thinking that you should be on Warped Tour.
I would love to. I hear you. I go to music festivals. There’s one in Seattle called Sasquatch. I’ve gone to Lilith Fair. We have festivals here in Vancouver, and they bring really good musicians over here to play. Every time I see them on stage, I want to be on that stage. I would love to go.

Afterword

Wanting made the almost two-hour-long interview even more enjoyable with her animated hand gestures and chattiness. We also found a photo of her in a blue dress at the Hong Kong International Film Festival opening ceremony, and complimented her self-indulging pose. Wanting said she was just being a goofball. “It was my first time being on red carpet, so I was just having a good time. The rest of the people are very rigid and conservative. They are all like this (strikes a rigid pose), but I’m just like, ‘All right! Cheers!’ Everyone else was like whispering, (whispers) ‘Cheers.’” It was only afterwards when she looked at the photo and noticed that she was not in the group. “I was in my own zone.”

FOLLOW WANTING
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Interview by Jaime Chu, Jessie Lau and Sherlock Lam

Jonathan Campbell, behind him: photo of Cui Jian performing with The Rolling Stones in 2006

I first came across the name Jonathan Campbell in August 2011 when I was preparing for the Demerit interview. As a fellow Toronto resident — I was immediately fascinated by his bio and adventure in China and couldn’t wait until I read his book, Red Rock: The Long Strange March of Chinese Rock and Roll.  A few months later, in January 2012, I found out that Jonathan would be a speaker at an event held by University of Toronto’s Pan-Asia Student Society, which I’m part of. But to my dismay, Jonathan wasn’t able to get as in depth on Chinese rock as I wished at the event because of time constraints.

But I found another opportunity when Jonathan Campbell officially launched the book in Toronto at the Gladstone Hotel on March 24th. The best part of it all was the fact that I could finally get my first taste of Chinese rock because bands Nova Heart and Shanren performed as well (courtesy of Canadian Music Week). In addition to Jonathan, music journalist and ALDTV host Al Di and Helen Feng of Nova Heart joined to discuss Chinese yaogun (that’s rock and roll in Chinese, but Jonathan Campbell believes it’s something more than a simple translation).

Nova Heart

Nova Heart

The event started with a short set by Nova Heart, the solo project of Helen Feng, who is known as the “Queen of Beijing Rock”. Nova Heart is a great mix of electronic beats and Helen Feng’s ghostly vocals. The resulting ethereal quality was quite memorable. After that, Jonathan talked about Red Rock a little bit and showed some video clips of Cui Jian (whom he cites as the father of Chinese rock and roll) and the documentary of SUBS to stress his point that yaogun (搖滾) is different from the Western notion of rock n’ roll (樂與怒). The panel between Jonathan, Helen and Al Di that followed was a quite interesting discussion. I learned a few fun things, for example, that China has an anti-lips syncing law. Helen’s sharing of her musical experience in China and her upbringing in North America was quite insightful as well.

Jonathan Campbell, Helen Feng of Nova Hear, Al Di

The talk concluded with the folk-yaogunners Shanren’s fun set. I think most of the audience wasn’t sure what to expect when Shanren climbed on stage — at least, I wasn’t. As a music photographer and a devoted Warped Tour-goer, I thought nothing would shock me as far as performances go. But I was in awe when Shanren played its first note. In fact, I believe I was completely dumbfounded because it was nothing like I have seen or experienced before. Sure, I suppose I have heard of traditional Chinese music and some Chinese folk at some point of my Chinese existence. But it was an entirely different experience when Chinese folk elements were combined with rock and roll. It was like nothing you have ever listened to — something that couldn’t exist in Western rock and roll but was purely yaogun. Shanren also got the crowd moving in what is known as “Chinese disco dancing”. The crowd had such a great time that they demanded an encore.

Shanren

Thank you Jonathan Campbell, This Is Not A Reading Series and the Gladstone Hotel for the one of a kind event!

Photography and recap by Jessie Lau

On March 18, the Israeli female-fronted art-rock band Eatliz put on a fabulous show at Hidden Agenda, Hong Kong, as the second stop of the band’s first tour in China. As you may expect, the vocalist would always stand out from other bandmates in a female-fronted band. And so as Eatliz: when Lee Triffon, the charming female vocalist, came onto the stage, the audience just couldn’t take their eyes off her. Other than the great performance by Eatliz, the opening set by Turtle Giants from Macau and the unexpected police inspection in the middle of show were certainly other highlights of the night.

Overall speaking, the gig was an 8 out of 10 — one point off for the unreasonable police inspection and the other for the bounce-back of the stereo system. But sometimes you just can’t ask for technical perfection for an underground venue. The crowd was good — loose enough that it didn’t feel like you were in a headbanging metal gig; and yet not too loose that you could still feel the intensity within the crowd. It was difficult to find a single person in the audience who wasn’t dancing or shaking along with the beats. The stage was frankly too small for a six-piece band to perform, and the headroom was way too low for a five-feet-ten person to stand on stage. You could see Triffon playing with the beam above her head while she danced. However, the small space did help heating up the atmosphere and tightening the bond within the band.

The set by Eatliz was only about an hour long. I couldn’t help but wonder why they created such a short setlist when they had three albums’ materials to choose from. They had selected songs from all of their previous albums (“Violently Delicate”, “Delicately Violent”, “Teasing Nature”) plus one new song — “Big Phoney Eyes”, which will be featured in their upcoming album. The crowd’s reaction towards the new material was pretty good. It was arranged in the signature Eatliz formula . Personally, I am expecting a great video of “Big Phoney Eyes”, since the band has been known for making awesome videos for their songs.

In terms of performance, the whole band seemed to cooperate flawlessly. Triffon was a charming frontwoman. Dressed in a bodysuit, high-waist leather pants and 5-inch high heels, Triffon looked wonderful under the limelight. Apart from her beauty, she was definitely a talented vocalist. The high-low-high pitch was definitely not easy to achieve, especially in a live show, but never missing a beat or a note during her performance, Triffon sounded just the same as the studio version, only with more emotion and passion. She also always tried to interact with the crowd with her singing and dancing from the stage. Most of the time, other band members were concentrated on playing their own instruments. They sometimes jumped and headbanged together, from which you could tell they were truly having fun on stage. Their beats and the riffs were impeccable; you could easily notice that the band had put so much effort in the composition and arrangement. They had fused some Israeli musical arrangement into their music, and it was amazing to hear such “Middle-Eastern notes” being played live with the Western guitar and drums. Last time I was amazed by such Western-Eastern musical fusion was seeing the psychedelic Brit Pop band Kula Shaker.

Turtle Giant

As for the Turtle Giants, they had put on a 1-hour set before Eatliz, which was a bit too long for an opening act. They had covered songs ranging from post-rock to alt and emoish-punk. One thing to note was they picked up quite quickly after the police intrusion — at 8:30pm, a team of 20 policemen and one fireman rushed into the venue for a “fire-service inspection“, which was an unusual practice in Hong Kong. After the “30-minute-inspection”, nobody was arrested, and the police force left under the flashlight of the media. Luckily, the Turtle Giant was able to bring the audience back to the “gig-mode”.

This was the first time for me to see Eatliz live and they blew my mind. Their music recalled some of Blonde Redhead’s but to a less electronica extent. And somehow their live set had the shadow of Kula Shaker and No Doubt ‘s performance. The only complaint was I expected there to be at least some videos accompanied with the performance — it is one of Eatliz’s strengths in live shows, after all. Sadly, the venue could not provide such technical supports. But anyone who likes alternative/indie/psychedelia music should not miss Eatliz when they tour at somewhere near you.

Here is the complete setlist for their Hong Kong gig:
1. Berlin
2. Hey
3. Big Fish
4. Zoo
5. Attractive
6. Nine
7. Big Phoney Eyes * new song
8. Lose This Child
9. Food Fighters
10. Say Where
11. Your House
12. Mountain Top
13. Mystical Lady

Review by Sylva Lam
Photography by May Lam

One of the advantages of a side project is that it can easily elude the responsibilities of definition and permanence. From the start, the Israeli supergroup Eatliz has been about, in guitarist and all-around mastermind Guy Ben Shetrit’s words, “defining the undefined” — the sumptuously colorful instrumentation and vocalist Lee Triffon’s voice that is sometimes eerily reminiscent of Björk should be signs enough. On the eve of the band’s first tour in China and Hong Kong, we had a chat with Guy and the band’s tour manager Orly Yaakobi. Guy dispensed a few amusing insights about the band that might even be previously unknown to the rest of the members.

M: Misunderrated
G: Guy Ben Shetrit of Eatliz
O: Orly Yaakobi, band manager

M: Eatliz has been described as “art rock”, and you have said it is “complicated pop”. How would you describe your music?
G: Categorizing is difficult, always. Are we a metal band? No, we are not. Alternative band, avant-garde? No, we are not. We are touching a lot of genres. (Laughs) To describe it…it’s like going into a hot bath and then running into cold shower.

M: Does that affect what people expect of you, if they have never seen the band before?
G: Generally, our audience expect of us the unexpected. That’s pretty cool, I guess.

M: Since so many elements come together in your music, what is the driving force behind the synthesis?
G: Israel is a melting pot. There are a lot of nationalities; Jews from all over the world come to live here. The differences in tradition among the many nationalities bring in lots of colors and music. I guess that’s how.

M: Eatliz started as your side project. How is it different from Infectzia?
G: The main difference is Infectzia — which means “infection”, by the way — is a band that sings lyrics in Hebrew. There is often black humor in the lyrics. We’ve got the Jack Black of Israel, Nir Tarter, who was the lead singer of Infectzia. He’s a real joker.

M: How has Eatliz evolved since it started in 2001, with members coming and going, too?
G: Two of our guitarists were…sick. One of them had cancer, and the other died from AIDS. (Pause) No, no, it’s not true. (Laughs) What was the question again? (How has the band changed or how did it come to what it is now?) It’s a long, long story. I don’t want to bore you. People come in and out. It’s my project, mainly. I’m the director, and the main writer and composer. As long I am still here, Eatliz still exists. That’s how I see it. The other musicians are definitely one of the best musicians here in Israel. So I pick them up, and they have the urge to go out there and do their own stuff. I’m just delaying their private projects.

M: Why did you choose animation as a medium for some of your music videos? What does it mean to you?
G: Well, you know how they say, animation picked me and I didn’t pick it. No. I came from a classical art background, I learned it in high school — art, sculpture, painting, etc. There is something in animation that is a combination of timing. When I was writing material for Infectzia, I was the drummer. I’ve got good rhythm. So the combination of movement, painting, and good rhythm, that’s exactly me. That’s was oddly the natural thing to do. It was all of me.

M: How did you decide which songs to make into an animation music video?
G: I think it’s the songs that have…a star quality. Animation is lots of work; you should put your money on the good stuff. Two of the animation music videos were actually picked by the director himself. I only participated in the “Lose This Child” video, which is set on the beach, and I directed the “Hey” video, with the frog and the girl, which you are so fascinated with, I guess, ‘cause it’s very good. It’s mine. (Pause) I’m kidding.

O: Two of the songs were picked by the director because he had a personal connection with this song, without us coming to him and say, “Hey, maybe you wanna do video for it?” He just chose them for himself.

M: So Guy had to share the creative process with someone — you have to let somebody else be in charge…
G: Are you trying to say I’m a control freak?

M: No, not really..
O: It’s okay!

M: Since the band pretty much comes from you and the creative forces are behind you, but for the music videos, you had to share some power with the director. How does the creative process work then?
G: When we are talking about it, Yuval (Nathan) directing a video for Eatliz, I just let it go because I’m trusting him full on. So it’s okay. But let’s see, when we are talking about live videos like “Fire”, I’m pretty nudge, if you know what I mean, because I like to see results and I want to be in every moment of the process by doing it. It’s like supervising it.

M: Can you talk a little bit about your collaboration with Yan Wei, the Chinese artist, who made some of your posters and the artwork?
G: Yan Wei and I went to school in Hong Kong together… (Wow, what?) You already can’t believe what I’m saying, eh? (What? Back track. Can you tell us about that?) No, I didn’t meet her in Hong Kong. That’s a lie. I will give you three options, and you will spot the true one, okay? (Okay. You spoiled the last question. That’s what we were going to ask you at the end.) No, let’s forget about it. Let’s get to the truth. I should say — Orly here really looked for some Chinese material for the flyer, and we already talked about it and got some overview about everything. So she collected some work from some Chinese artists for me, and I just, you know, picked the right one. I think she prayed deep inside that I would pick the Yan Wei one. Maybe Orly can say some words about it.

O: We really wanted to collaborate with Chinese artists, mostly because I found out this very great Chinese portal, and I was just astonished because I didn’t know anything about Chinese art. We saw her work and just one photo really caught my eye. We contacted her and told her about Eatliz. Gladly, she really liked the music; she even planned to come to the show in Beijing. It’s really cool because when we come to new territories we like to also try to collaborate or do something with the local culture, and not just come and do the show — to mix it with ourselves somehow, instead of just isolated.

M: If your studio caught on fire, what two items would each of your save?
G: I think you should ask me, “Who other two persons I would throw in the fire.” (That works too.) It depends what’s inside the studio. I think if my cat is inside, I will be most happy to leave her there. And I’m just, you know, thinking out loud. (Maybe if it’s easier for you to answer, you can just say who you would want to throw into the fire.) That was a joke, don’t be so mean to my people. People would have suffered enough fire in this light. (You started it.) I know. I deserve it. Okay, maybe my guitar… (Maybe?) I’m just so happy to see the flames, why bother? It’s so beautiful. Maybe the manager will save something for me.

O: The manager will run to the fire and try to save everything; the artists are just standing outside, enjoying the flames.

The band will be touring China this month and Misunderrated is covering the show in Hong Kong!

Interview by Jaime Chu and Jessie Lau

August Burns Red

I had never listened to August Burns Red before I caught them on A Day To Remember Toursick two years ago. Since then, I have made sure that I see them play whenever I could — they put on such a great show. Without a doubt, I went to the Sound Academy on a chilly February evening to see their headlining tour with Silverstein, Texas In July, and I, The Breather.

Silverstein

The first act, Christian metal band I, The Breather from Baltimore, Maryland, did an impressive job of opening the show. The entire line up consisted of hardcore/metal bands and it was extremely important to start the show the right way. Many people were still making their way into the venue when the band started to play, but by the end of the first or second song, a mosh pit had formed. I, The Breather’s performance was so powerful that the crowd was chanting “one more song” at the end of their set, which doesn’t usually happen with the opening act. The next band Texas In July manage to keep the momentum going but it was a bit of a cool off after I, The Breather’s melodic breakdowns and growls. Canadian band Silverstein was the next to perform and the locals were warmly received. The band played a couple songs from their new album, titled “Short Songs” (which are really of short songs). During one of the “Short Songs”, the band members switched roles and guitar player Josh Bradford went to sing and vocalist Shane Told played drums instead. Silverstein’s set flew by really quickly.

Shane Told of Silverstein

August Burns Red

The best thing about August Burns Red is that fact that I don’t even have to know their music to enjoy myself. The band had great stage presence, especially vocalist Jake Luhrs, who easily captured the attention with his epic stances and movements, he always looked like as if he was commanding a crowd on that stage. Walking out to screams and cheers, the band opened with “Empire”, a track from their new album “Leveler”. The band asked the crowd to take out lighters and cellphones and to “take it slow” during“Mariana’s Trench”. A solo drumming session between August Burns Red’s drummer Matt Greiner and Adam Gray of Texas In July concluded the first part of the set while the rest of the band left the stage. In fact, some people were already making their way out of the venue. Even I hesitated if there would still be an encore because the wait for the encore longer than usual. And then the band finally the band came back out for an encore of two songs and completed the night with “Composure”. Then I got home and listened to their latest album “Leveler” on YouTube, and thought to myself, “What have I been missing all along?”.

August Burns Red

August Burns Red

Photography and review by Jessie Lau

You see, I wasn’t planning on going to this show, I mean, I just covered them in May! But then, The Maine had never played The Mod Club in the eight or so times they have played in Toronto, and I love The Mod Club (which has become the Virgin Mobile Mod Club, oh)! A friend later told me that the band is actually playing their new album from start to finish and there is no opening band. And I thought, “seriously?! I have to go to that!”

And so there I was.

Counting my fingers, it was my sixth time seeing The Maine. It is a great experience to witness how far a band has come in the last few years. And the main goal of the Pioneer tour is to recognize that achievement as well as the fans that have been there. The Pioneer tour was all about The Maine and the fans. Halfway through the first part of the night, where The Maine performs track-by-track from their new record Pioneer, lead singer John O’Callaghan explained their purpose for the special tour, that they have put a lot of effort into the new album and the band is really proud of it, and that it really means a lot to “know people still give a shit (about the band)”. Considering how often a band puts out a new album only to have fans saying how the older material sounds better and/or wishing the band plays more oldies at the show, The Maine certainly took a big risk with the tour. Luckily, it was well received as they played a sold out show in Toronto. The band also took some time to talk about the songs, for example, O’Callaghan said that “Jenny” was about his mother.

Fortunately for those fans who came to hear the band playing old songs, they were also satisfied because the concert was split into two halves, the first part was the performance of Pioneer and the second half was dedicated to the other songs. There was an intermission between the two sets during which the band took a break and showed the crowd a mockumentary styled retrospective video by the band, depicting how the band perceived the last few years of the band’s development. The Maine caricatured their entire existence as a band into an entertaining and heartfelt video, which the crowd enjoyed immensely. In the short video, The Maine reenacted their first photoshoot as a band, recording in the studio, and more photoshoots, “behind the scenes” of their music video shoots and signing to a major label. And of course, depicting drummer Pat Kirch’s addiction with cupcakes.

After the screening of the humorous mockumentary, the band came out on stage again. There were a lamp at each side of the stage, creating a homey atmosphere. On this part of the night, O’Callaghan said “hopefully this would be the singalong portion”. The band began with “Inside of You” and also “Everything I Ask For”, which were singles from their previous albums. The first few songs of the second set were played on acoustic guitars which separated that night from the usual concerts of The Maine. The performance of the rearranged version of “Everything I Ask For” was probably the best one I have seen out of half a dozen shows – it was fun and the fans sang along to every word. Even when O’Callaghan took a moment to say something to his guitarist Jared Monaco, the fans continued to sing on and O’Callaghan motioned to the crowd as if saying “you’ve all got it”. In addition, the band played an alternate version of “Saving Grace”. The highlight of the night was when the band played “Ho Ho Hopefully”, a song from the band’s Christmas EP released in 2008, a song which probably isn’t suitable to play at other shows not in December. The Maine ended the night with “Into Your Arms” in which O’Callaghan playfully replaces the lyrics from “she had the most amazing smile” to “the most disgusting rash”. After the band left the stage around 9:30pm, the crowd had no intention of leaving and began an encore chant. A few seconds later, a crew member came on stage and announced “it [encore] ain’t gonna happen” and told everyone to begin to line up at the merch table where they were holding a meet and greet inside the venue, and only autographs were allowed at the meet and greet in order to move the line up. I was the only few who left the venue shortly after, almost everyone stayed for the meet and greet.

Even though I hadn’t listened to Pioneer until that night, it was a delightful experience witnessing the band’s growth, culminating in one show. The sound of the new album is definitely a departure from the band’s earliest work, but consistent with the direction of their sophomore album as they take a more old school alternative rock turn instead of the typical catchy pop rock tunes. An Alternative Press review of The Maine’s new album ends with, “Out of all the bands borne out of Warped Tour Nation, we never would’ve guessed the Maine would be the ones putting out rock records this consistently unique, interesting and, well, great.” As I was listening to the new record, I honestly thought that if I hadn’t been listening to The Maine since their first album, I probably would not be into the band because the new sound is not what I usually listen to. What makes me enjoy the new record is probably having the chance to experience their musical journey, which is what would keep me going to see the band time after time. And hey, O’Callaghan announced they would be returning in Spring, guess who would be there?

Photography and review by Jessie Lau

Evanescence

Everyone probably knows at least one song from a Gothic metal band. In 2004, Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” became a radio hit, which made the band a household name and earned them two Grammy Awards. It’s been five years since their last album, the band finally returned to the stage along with a brand new self-titled album which has been in the works for the last couple of years. On a chilly and rainy Tuesday night, Evanescence performed at Toronto’s Sound Academy to a sold out crowd.

每個人應該至少認得一首哥德金屬樂曲。Evanescence的“Bring Me To Life“在二零零四年成為電台大熱，令樂隊名字變得街知巷聞，更為他們贏得兩個格林美獎項。自五年前上一張專輯後，樂隊終於推出了用了幾年時間製作、以樂隊名字作標題的全新大碟，並且回到台上。在一個下著雨、冷冷的星期二晚上，Evanescence在多倫多的Sound Academy演出了一場爆滿的音樂會。

Rival Sons

Openers of the tour included rock band Rival Sons and The Pretty Reckless. Californian blues rock band Rival Sons seems a odd choice for the bill, they played a half an hour set which was interesting to see considering the crowd were more prepared for some Gothic music rather than some old school rock. The band sounded great nonetheless and lead singer Jay Buchanan was the enticing subject to photograph.

The Pretty Reckless

Having seen The Pretty Reckless on Vans Warped Tour 2009, where photographers were not permitted in the photo pit,  I was pleasantly surprised to find out we were allowed to photograph the performance. The 18-year-old Taylor Momsen fronts the alternative rock band; she was the last one to join the stage in her signature risque stage outfits: a tight white studded dress, garter stockings and  a pair of knee high buckled platform boots. (Incidentally, that was the same outfit when I last photographed her!) As enticing her performance could be, it got boring after awhile as she didn’t do anything else other than risque dance moves. However, despite constantly tiptoeing the fine line between a stripper and a singer, it’s undeniable that she has some powerful vocals. In addition to “Zombie”, ‘Goin’ Down”, “My Medicine”, “Just Tonight”, “Makes Me Wanna Die” and “Factory Girl”, the band covered Audioslave’s “Like A Stone”. Halfway through the set, Momsen asked the crowd “how many of you guys are drinking?”. After a show of hands, the 18 year old Momsen said, “really? I thought there would be more of you!” With her sexually charged performances and rock star attitude, Momsen indeed is not your average 18 year old at all. Rock on, girl!

The Pretty Reckless

The Pretty Reckless

Evanescence

Before Evanescence took the stage, there was a scattered chant going on that called for the lead vocalist’s name “Amy Lee” (overhead: “Isn’t it funny how people are screaming for ‘Amy Lee’ not ‘Evanescence’?”). It was really exciting to see the backdrop with the gigantic Evanescence logo that also changes into other graphics, the backdrop was gloriously illuminated by changing lights. Drummer Will Hunt began the intro with a drum solo and the rest of the band slowly joined in for “What You Want”, the first single from the new release. After the song, Lee talked about how the album is currently #1 in the US and #2 in Canada, how excited they are about the new album and that they will be playing a lot of the new songs. Lee, also a classically trained pianist, also played the keyboard and the Baldwin piano on a raised platform in front of the stage. Even though I haven’t listened to the band’s new material until then, I thoroughly enjoyed every moment because the band simply sounds great. Lee’s high pitched vocals are dark, mysterious and beautiful. It’s an incredible experience watching the band live because it’s really hard not to completely immerse oneself in the impressive atmosphere. Admittedly, it was rather disappointing to hear “Bring Me To Life” live because it lacks the male vocals as in the album version, but fans took it upon themselves to scream the parts back. After ending with “Bring Me To Life”, the band returned for an encore and ended with the piano ballad “My Immortal”, another singalong favorite.

Evanescence

Evanescence

English text and photos by Jessie Lau
Translated and edited by Jaime Chu

From the band's Facebook page

It was a Saturday night when my friends down the dormitory corridor discovered that their favourite band was going to play in town. Out of curiosity, I wanted a taste of the music scene here and joined in purchasing a ticket. The Irish band is called And So I Watch You From Afar (ASIWYFA. I know, not the best acronym around) and I liked the poetic portrayal the name gave. Little did I know I was in for a night of awesome instrumental rock.

October 17th marked the Durham stop of their winter tour at the city’s Live Lounge. The venue was cozy with a bar and there was enough space in front of the stage, which quite suited the group. After two opening acts that didn’t achieve much to warm up the audience, ASIWYFA appeared on stage preparing the equipments. And then the lights dimmed. My friends and I immediately went in front of the stage and read the set list: “BEAUTIFULUNIVERSEMASTERCHAMPION”, “Gang”, “Search:Party:Animal”, “A Little bit of Solidarity goes a Long Way”, “”7 Billion People All Alive At Once”, “D Is For Django the Bastard”, “S Is For Salamander” and “Don’t Waste Time Doing Things You Hate”.

In fact, I have never heard of this band before. But what better way is there to experience a band for a first time than a live gig?  The visual set-up of the performance was already stunning.

Standing at the very front was a novel experience, especially when the sound I heard was felt at the same time as physical vibrations. While drummer Chris Wee (half-naked)  provided the solid and powerful rhythms, guitarist Rory Friers and bassist Jonathan Adger were amazing at performing their respective parts. Their dedication to even a small venue was proved by the energetic jumps on amps. Special credit should be given to Friers when he encountered technical difficulties that lasted for about five minutes and tried his best to fix it without interrupting the show. His supportive band members were more than able to deliver music of the same quality during that short period.The crowd, although not a large one, enjoyed the instrumental rock band’s music thoroughly. We clapped and jumped along the great rhythm and guitar riffs. The interactiveness between the performer and the audience could not be better illustrated at the end of the show when the guitarists jumped off stage into the crowd still playing those awesome notes, then leaving their guitars with the audience.

Written and translated by Sherlock Lam
Edited by Jaime Chu