Five Favourites
Ryu Goto

Ryu Goto is a New York-born 20-year-old Japanese violinist, who began playing violin at three. His first tour of Japan in 2006 sold out in all 12 cities in which he played.

What is your favourite musical piece to play?
Quite easily the Beethoven and Brahms violin concertos. I feel they are such staples of violin playing. I think everything from their concept to technical difficulty is unsurpassed. Moreover, they’re so convincingly unified that they are impossible to ignore.

What is your favourite album in 2008 so far?
Asobi Seksu’s Citrus. It is this New York-based band’s sophomore album. It was recorded in 2006, but I only came across it this year. Asobi Seksu are a relatively new band, drawing strong influences from the shoe-gazing genre and conceived by a Japanese-American female singer/
keyboardist and an American bassist. I like them for the texture of their sounds, the multilingual nature of their lyrics, and the fact that they are a new band endeavouring to make their music known.

What is your favourite film?
My Blueberry Nights. I saw this Wong Kar Wai movie on the way to Japan in June, and it is quite possibly the nicest film I have seen in years. It stars Norah Jones, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, and Rachel Weisz. They are all my favourite actors and, coupled with an engaging and dreamy plotline and some of Norah Jones’ new songs, the movie easily tops my favourites list.

What is your favourite city?
New York. This is where everything happens. This is where I grew up. This is where dreams are made and lost.

What is your favourite book of all time?
The Idiot by F. Dostoevsky. It narrates the tale of a truly genial and well-meaning protagonist who is ridiculed as ‘an idiot’ because his honesty leads him to his demise in a socially complex and intriguing society. Besides a great plot and its depiction of an expansive world, it speaks volumes about a crucial truth of all society: that there is much more to societal survival than frankness and a compassionate heart. In the end, unsupported by intellect and social surefootedness, just being a good person can be dangerous.

Ryu Goto will play in our city for the first time with the HK Sinfonietta on July 26 at the HK City Hall’s Concert Hall. The concert begins at 8pm and tickets are $280, $160 and $120 from URBTIX, 2734 9009.

Raw and Unplugged
bc Unplugged returns with three original bands: RICEMAGNET, Hungry Ghosts and Red Star Rising. Check them out at The Wanch (54 Jaffe Road. Wanchai, 2861 1621) on July 17. The gig starts at 9:30pm and entry is free.

Formed in 1999 and based both in Taipei and Hong Kong, RICEMAGNET describe their music as “Red Hot Chili Peppers meets Wu Bai & China Blue”. Translation: a mash-up of sharp guitar, hoarse vocals and some personal and heart-melting lyrics. The band is David Ma on bass and vocals with Yi Ching Chung on guitar and vocals. For bc unplugged, David Ma will play with guest drummer Eric Ng.

You are based here while Yi Ching Chung resides in Taipei. How does the band work?
Our band is always experimenting with different combinations and the ‘Hong Kong chapter’ of the band is usually me covering vocals and guitars with Eric Ng as guest drummer. We have to re-arrange the songs and strip them down, particularly for an unplugged setting, but this way, Yi Ching’s songwriting craft actually shines more. Yi Ching writes all the songs and my inputs are arrangements and sometimes lyrics.

Tell us something about the songs?
The End is an old song from 1999 and will be in our upcoming EP. It is about the sad realization of the end of a relationship. Also check out Eric’s signature groove on Losing. We are quite lucky to have recruited this veteran of rock whose credits include Chyna and Danny Summer’s Visa Band and who has been helping to shape our sound from 2007.

Any favourite unplugged albums?
Baja Sessions by Chris Isaak and Mr Big’s Unplugged Live at the Hard Rock. They represent the two ends of the spectrum – the most primal and the most technical in acoustic guitars. Also the two releases from local singer-songwriter May Ip, who moved to Canada but was active in Hong Kong in the mid-’90s. She inspired me to become a performing musician.

What, for you, is the essential element in an unplugged gig?
An open heart to match the heart of our music. Acoustic music requires the audience to pay attention and get involved emotionally.

Hungry Ghosts
After last year’s eight-track debut Inspired by People, singer-songwriter Luke Chow is taking off again with his band, Hungry Ghosts. Drummer Mike is currently on vacation but Luke, guitarist Paul Lam and bassist Tiffany Laue are confident they will bring you an unplugged set to leave you hungry for more.

What makes the bc unplugged gig different from other Hungry Ghosts gigs?
There will definitely be a difference. For a start our drummer will be in America, so no drums! The choice of songs will be slower and arranged to suit the occasion – less crazy and less noisy electric guitar rock. Still, our performance will be 100% and stage manner as cheeky as usual.

What is the set like?
Most of the acoustic songs we are going to play we don’t normally play plugged in, consequently they are more emotional, though really you have to turn up and experience the songs for yourself. Everyday life and relationships with other people are general themes to most songs… and love.

Name a few things the audience should bring along on July 17.
Glow sticks, whistles, Lani Giro T-shirts, a Lead-1, a Swiss army knife, a sleeping bag, a tent, a torch, a sun hat, a five-string, a fishing rod, a horse!.

Red Star Rising
Steve Cray returns to bc unplugged – this time with his band Red Star Rising. Usually “playing a Fender Stratocaster through 100 watts of Mesa Boogie amp” as Steve describes, RSR will make a more stripped-down and intimate appearance in the coming gig. Here are a few facts on the rock’n’blues veteran and his music.

The band
Vocalist and guitarist Steve Cray studied guitar and lute at the Guildhall School of Music in London. He lives a musical double life by writing solo acoustic material and rock blues tunes for RSR, and most recently he worked with his daughter Sammy Cray, currently based in Spain.
By the time bassist Alex Katusmata entered secondary school, he could already play the organ, classical piano and folk guitar. He made a bit of a turn when he met ELP and Yes – he started playing bass seriously and has been based in Hong Kong as a working musician since 1992.
Influenced by a jazz drummer father, Neil Irwin got his hands on a drum kit at an early age and began working with a rock band at 14. He took a trip to Ghana and Senegal to develop skills in West African drumming, toured Southeast Asia with the Jamaican project United Tribes but then hung up his travelling shoes in the HKSAR.

The Songs
RSR’s sometimes provoking song titles like Footsteps on the Stairs, Shopping Malls and Escalator Girls are reflections of urban life. Dollar Arcade is “all about fantasy worlds... whether sexual, cartoon or religious” according to Steve. The lyrics go like this: “I pay my money/I take my chance/I fancy a bit of part-time romance… I swear that’s Suzie Wong there in the shade, drinking the world’s most expensive lemonade. She takes me by the hand, she lays me down. She says it’s just 10 minutes, you understand.”

The morning after a Thursday gig:
Bosses should ‘unplug’ their sleepy employees and give them the day off.

Dearest Scents

Although they haven’t released an album since forming in 2006, Ontario’s rock/new-wave four-piece Dearest have already toured Asia. But for those who have visited the band’s MySpace page, it is not too difficult to understand – while Dre’s vocals may remind one of Bono, the band’s fresh and catchy melodies – and their publicity pictures – bizarrely remind me of Placebo. “We have never been compared to Placebo but thank you. They are one of my influences and a great band,” says bassist Randie. Dearest also have been compared to everything from U2, Bloc Party and Coldplay to Jimmy Eat World and 30 Seconds to Mars, all of which makes the bassist happy. “None of those bands sound the same, which is a good thing,” he says. “We may sound like a lot of different bands for a lot of different reasons. But it’s a good thing that we can be tossed from one genre to the next but still sound like our band.”

Signed to the Indonesia records label Variant Music, Dearest are taking off for their second Asian tour, during which they will play in Japan, Korea and Hong Kong for the first time. But before kicking off the tour in the HKSAR on July 19, they have been arming themselves with new material – and working hard in the studio for their debut album with producer Dan Brodbeck. So how does it feel to work with the man behind most of the tracks on Dolores O’Riordan’s (The Cranberries’ ex-vocalist) solo debut? “We looked for a producer who really ‘got us’ and really wanted to work with us. Someone who wanted to do it because they loved the songs and not just for the money,” Randie explains. “So many people in the music industry have lost the passion for music and just do it for a pay cheque. But when we met up with Dan he was really excited to work with us, and that’s exactly what we were looking for.”

And, just in terms of hygiene you understand, I ask Randie if he really smells like cabbage – as someone claims on the band’s MySpace page. “That was our good friend Chris from Crowned King,” laughs the bass player. “They are also from Canada and are touring Indonesia with us again this summer.” So do we need to bring masks to the upcoming gig? “No, I don’t smell like cabbage. But Chris… you don’t want to know what he smells like!”

Catch Dearest on the second night of the Mind Your Head 3rd Anniversary Show on July 19. Also playing are The LoveSong, UNiXX, JuicyNing, Snoblind and 11 Wishes... Goodbye. On July 18, the line-up is Chui
Ball Tong, An Id Signal, Evocation, Men Sheng, Zoundz and The Squawk. Shows start at 7pm at the City University of HK’s Multi-purpose Room ABC. Tickets at the door cost $130 for one night and $220 for both nights.

Exhibition Continued
From Led Zeppelin to Take That, disbanded groups just like a reunion once in a while. But according to Kubert Leung, his upcoming show, My Beautiful Player, isn’t one of those. Formed in 1985, only to fade from the local scene in the early ’90s, Life Exhibition were considered one of the most avant-garde bands our city has ever produced. Frontman Kubert Leung has now gone solo and produces for other artists, but is still often asked to perform works from his Life Exhibition period. Now he is doing so.
His show is a continuation raher than a reunion of Life Exhibition. Instead of reforming the band with the original members, Leung has invited Guangzhou electronic group Yu Fei Men to perform with him and is expecting the chemistry to interpret the songs. Certainly the group’s upbeat tempo can create a blast, but it is their sentimental side Leung finds most suited to his works. Beijing indie heartthrob Peng Tan will also be a performing guest on the night. “His sentimentality and melancholy remind me how I was when I was young,” Leung chuckles.
My Beautiful Player will not evoke any ‘collective memory’ like Beyond or Grasshoppers did because, as Leung says, Life Exhibition never had mass appeal. Nonetheless, “Maybe people didn’t like our music or had not heard of our songs, but they must have heard of our name in the ’80s. So when they listen to the songs now it may bring out some hidden memory.”
Kubert Leung will perform with Yu Fei Men and Pang Tan on July 19 at HITEC’s Auditorium. The show starts at 8pm, tickets are $250 from HK Ticketing, 31 288 288.

Last Call

Unless you live in a cave or couldn’t care less about international pop music, you should have got your ticket to Travis by now. For those who are going, we have a little reminder: God knows why, but umbrellas are not allowed inside the venue. Still, if you plan to juggle your bumbershoot while singing to the anthem Why Does It Always Rain On Me, take a foldable one. Catch the Scottish boys on July 31 at 8pm. Tickets are $780 and $380 from HK Ticketing, 31 288 288.

Playing at the same arena is nine-time Grammy winner Alicia Keys on her As I Am tour. The 27-year-old R&B singer and actress has admitted her plan is to retire at 30 and travel the world, which means this may be the last time fans can see her perform live locally. The show is on July 29 at 8pm and tickets are $980, $680 and $380 from HK Ticketing, 31 288 288.

Classical Sting

The news has broken without much fanfare, but Sting is due to tour Australia and Asia to promote his acclaimed album, Songs from the Labyrinth, a tribute to the 16th-century Elizabethan composer, John Dowland. Accompanied by classical guitarist Edin Karamazov, Sting will perform for one night only t the HK Polytechnic University Jockey Club’s Auditorium on December 10. Tickets are $2,888, $1,888 and $988 from HK Ticketing, 31 288 288.

Intolerant Reasons

Manila’s metal quartet Intolerant may have a member that used to be one of the co-presidents of the Backstreet Boys Friends Forever Fan Club, but the band sound as hardcore, uncompromising and in-your-face as they look. Absorbing influences from death metal to classic rock ’n’ roll, their upcoming album is tentatively titled Reasons for Unrest – which, according to guitarist Joey, represents both the album and a universal theme for music in general. He and bassist Mic speak to bc.

What is the story behind the band’s name?
Mic: For the name Intolerant, we play on the fact that it can either mean something negative or positive, depending on how you perceive it. One could be intolerant of society, ignorance and violence etc. When we thought about it, all of the proposed band names we had in the beginning were more or less synonymous with intolerance.

So I guess the theme to your music is also very uncompromising?
Mic: It’s more of a socio-political thing, plus our personal experiences. Being the pessimists that we are, we always see the negative side of things. But it’s not something we always condone.
Joey: It may sound cheesy, but we’re inspired and moved by almost everything that happens to us and/or the people we know. And it’s not necessarily pressing, current or deep issues – it’s mainly the stuff that goes through our minds on a daily basis. Honestly though, it’s nothing we’re overtly sensitive about. We all agree that writing and creating music is first and foremost an enjoyable experience. We’re more of a crazy bunch of guys in a band, as opposed to musicians with pitchforks rallying about gas prices and shit.

Is death a major issue though? After all you have song titles like My Demise, Death Roll Rising and God of War…
Joey: Not to get too philosophical about things, I honestly think death is the perfect reflection of life as we see it. I guess it just takes on a lighter role in our songs, mainly because of our age and environment here in the Philippines. Contrary to what other people may think, it’s not really death in the darkest, most menacing sense, it’s death as a fact of life that we all have to face. Our songs are our struggles to realize that and deal with the concept. And no, we’re not trying to scare anybody. We just happen to deliver our message in an in-your-face manner.
Mic: All our songs have different stories but if you sum them up, they do have a central theme. My Demise is written by our vocalist Russell, who almost died of dengue fever, so it’s sort of a dengue awareness song! Death Toll Rising was inspired by the tsunami tragedy a few years ago, and generally all the conflict and calamities happening all over the world. God of War is obviously inspired by the game. We play on the notion that old metal songs are usually inspired by mythology. We put a modern twist to the songwriting ethic by using video game mythology instead of the whole Dungeons and Dragons approach of metal decades ago. It’s pretty tongue-in-cheek. Like we said, we don’t take ourselves too seriously.

So Joey, you were once a fan of BSB, huh? There is no ‘tough metal dude hates boy bands’ thing for you?
Joey: Well, yeah, I’m a pretty open-minded guy. I grew up in Okinawa, Japan, on a military base, so most of my childhood was like listening to one radio station with popular music on 24/7. No rock, no metal, no hardcore till I was in high school.

Intolerant are Russell Dela Cruz on vocals and guitar, Joey Dizon on guitar, Pepo Gohu on drums and bassist Mic Gallegos. Catch them playing at Warehouse with supporting bands Shepherds the Weak, Maniac, Evocation on July 19. Tickets are $100 from Records Rendezvous or $120 at the door.

Underground2
In two underground shows in consecutive weeks, a wide range of indie music will be reaching out with a little something for everyone. For Underground 63, the line-up is alternative-rock-mashed-post-grunge Forget the G from Macau, big band Transnoodle, down-tempo/drum ’n’ bass trio Violent Jokes and John Mayer-crazed Supper Moment. The show starts at 8pm at The Cavern on July 19 and entry costs $100. Then get ready for Underground 64 for bedroom folk musician Clementine is my Sunshine, aesthetic-rock trio The Dummy, hard-rocker The Sinister Left, Asian Beat Band Competition 2007 1st runners-up Empty Tomb and the raw four-piece OI SQUAD. That show is on July 25 andstarts at 9:30pm at Club Cixi. Entry is $100.

Summer Sonata
When Hong Kong-born piano soloist Cindy Ho met violinist Kitty Cheung the pair clicked instantly – for both are lovers of chamber music. Ho has given recitals at the 2007 Edinburgh Fringe Festival and St Martin-in-the-Fields in London as part of the Pianists of the World Series, but she and Cheung, a soloist with the likes of the London Symphony Orchestra and the New York String Orchestra, decided to play something different for classical music fans in our city. Which fits – in their first concert in London the duet scaled the rarely performed Schnittke’s Sonata No 3 for Violin and Piano. Their coming HK concert will also be a homage to sonatas, ranging from an early 19th century Viennese classic to a late German Romantic work and from early 20th century French impressionism to a sonata based on Moravian folk music. The programme covers works by Schubert, Brahms, Janacek and Debussy. “I am sure no one will dislike Schubert and Brahms,” says Ho. “Theirs are among the most popular sonatas of all time.” The Janacek and Debussy sonatas may not be as popular, but to Ho the composers have both contributed important chamber works: “Janacek and Debussy only wrote one sonata for violin and piano. These two sonatas, from our point of view, are equally enjoyable and we would like to introduce them to our Hong Kong audience.”
Cindy Ho and Kitty Cheung’s An Evening of Favourite Sonatas will be staged on August 9 at the HK City Hall’s Theatre. The performance commences at 8pm and tickets are $250, $180 and $120 from URBTIX, 2734 9009.
Kooks’ in HK
If you still have money to spare this summer, here is one more piece of good news: British indie rock four-piece The Kooks are coming to town in August. Flying in from the sun and beaches of Brighton, the band promise their music will give people a night out to remember. The Kooks were nominated as the British Breakthrough Act at the 2007 BRIT Awards and their latest album, Konk, topped the UK album charts. The boys are playing in here on August 21 at the HITEC Star Hall. Tickets are $580 and $380 from HK Ticketing, 31 288 288.
A-Party
When Akon’s multi-platinum debut Trouble hit the streets in 2003, that Bobby Vinton-sampled Lonely was the song we could not avoid on the radio and may have guiltily fell in love with after a couple of hundred replays. How surprising, then, not to find a single mention of the song in the artist’s recent press release. But no matter, with other hit tunes like Locked Up, Smack That and Sorry, Blame It On Me - published after the controversial on-stage simulated sex with an underage girl. The multi-Grammy nominated Akon will be at the Asia World Expo on July 26 at 8:30pm. Get tickets from HK Ticketing, 31 288 288 at $980, $680, $380.

Travelling Phonics
One can say Stereophonics have gone through a glorious decade – they have released six albums since 1997, five of which topped the UK album charts, they have scored millions of record sales and packed out world tours. Yet, like every other successful band, they reached the breaking point of that “album-tour-album-tour” lifestyle, as frontman Kelly Jones calls it. So the Welsh trio took some time out in 2006 and came back last October with the album Pull the Pin. It also topped the UK charts, but the band’s latest single My Friends only reached number 32 – not a very impressive position. Still, it hardly phases the band. “We are like a fine vintage wine, we get better with age!” says bassist Richard Jones. “We’ve always stayed true to our original belief -– to be ourselves and be 100% behind everything we do, even though sometimes the critics might not agree with us.”

The band have been back on the road for a month – and Richard still finds it fascinating. They have performed in some new countries like Russia, Latvia, Singapore and Thailand, as well as Richard’s personal favourite, Australia. “I love the vastness of the place and the diversity of each area.” And the best crowd so far? “It’d be wrong for me to pick particular places, but Scotland definitely has the craziest crowd!” he says. Although South America – where drummer Javier Weyler originated – is among Richard’s picks for the trio to visit, they have a packed schedule after the current summer tour. “Writing, recording and releasing new material. Hopefully a new album next year and maybe a new single later this year” are all on the cards. It might sound ambitious, but not as much as the current mission of the Welsh rockers – in Richard’s own words to “challenge ourselves on every album by finding a new sound the Stereophonics haven’t shown yet.”

Catch Stereophonics with opening act Soler at HITEC Star Hall on July 24. The show starts at 8pm and tickets are $580 and $380 from HK Ticketing, 31 288 288.

Popp Beat

A plumber by day and an old-school rocker by night for 27 years, Bill Popp has quite the reputation in the New York underground scene, including as ‘the downtown Elton John’. His band Bill Popp and the Tapes has recently released My Lonely Mind and now the singer cum keyboardist will bring his tunes and tools to The Wanch to play with Hong Kong’s own versatile blues harmonica player Henry Chung. The gig will start at 9:30pm on July 24 and entry is free.