As dozens of Taiwan's rising rock 'n' rollers stand shoulder-to-shoulder, belting out a chorus during a practice session, one can’t help but think of the syrupy refrains of "We Are The World," or the kind-hearted spirit of Band-aid.
"La la la, la la la ... Let us start from here."
But this is not just another charity event. This is what Taiwan's major bands members call the advent of the rock 'n' roll century, at least here at home.
The all-star chorus, clad in white T-shirts, is comprised of five bands: Luan Tan, Mayday, Tolaku, Backquarter and The Chairman. They are the most visible rock bands in Taiwan's pop music market - signing with record labels
such as Mandala, Rock Records, Sony, TCM and Tiger Music - and they will be singing tonight at the Simply Jeans Rock Band Concert (世紀 Band 搖滾).
"Our time has finally come!" Luan Tan's vocal and key person Chen Tai-hsiang (陳秦翔, or A-hsiang) said when the band beat four other rock bands and received their second Golden Melody Award for Best Group. They had won another in 1998.
He was then lifted up and tossed in the air several times by other nominated band members in celebration. It's a celebration that the band sound had been well recognized and become one of dominant music genres in Taiwan's pop
music scene.
At the "victory party" after the awards, Ni Chung-hua (倪重華), chairman of Mandala (真言社) and the so-called godfather of Taiwan's live concerts, said to other heads of record labels, "We should have a concert to let Taiwan's
best bands sing together!"
Tonight will be the realization of that suggestion and an opportunity for a reunion of the brotherhood cherished by the band members, initially forged during their days as underground bands or pub bands.
Tonight's concert also coincides with two other music festivals: the Ho-Hai-Yan Taipei County Rock Festival, which took place last weekend, and the Taiwan Rock Festival (野台開唱), in which Backquarter, Tolaku and The Chairman will also be playing this weekend. But distinct from the
extemporaneous, carnival atmosphere of those two festivals, the Simply Jeans Rock Band Concert is specifically prepared and designed — just like Mandala's unique promotions of Wubai, which consisted of a series of live shows a few years ago. The company has also fostered the success of Lin
Chiang (林強) and Joy Topper (豬頭皮).
The focus of the three-hour show will be a chorus song — "Starting From Here" (從這裡開始), co-written and practiced by the five bands during the past two months. Each band will choose a player to form a new band to play and sing the song. “The song incorporates characteristics of the five bands," said A-hsiang. "We hope to generate a Taiwan rock spirit from the song and hope everybody can sing along," added A-jih (阿吉), from The Chairman. The musicians hope the song will become an anthem of bands in Taiwan.
For the five band members, "Starting From Here" not only stands for the momentous coming of age for rock in Taiwan, but it is also intended to send hope to The Chairman's vocalist, Kuan-yu (冠宇), who now suffers from leukemia and is waiting for marrow transplant surgery. The concert is also a fundraiser for the Children with Cancer Foundation.
According to other Chairman members, Kuan-yu will show up for tonight's concert.
The bands:
Luan Tan
The band's name means playing music in disorder and is, in fact, a music genre in traditional Taiwanese temple music — Pei Kuan (北管). Luan Tan refers to an amateur music style that old Taiwanese play during farming breaks.
The band used the name to express a free music spirit. It also adopted musical elements of Pei Kuan and mixed them with blues-rock. Such a combination is natural for Chen Tai-hsiang, the son of a grocery storeowner from an Ilan fishing village, whose most familiar music in childhood was Taiwanese Opera. And it was such a combination of music that attracted Ni Chung-hua, after Wubai gave Ni a demo tape of Luan Tan — Wu was Chen's guitar teacher.
So Wubai's blues guitar plus old Taiwanese tunes make Luan Tan's music a delicate but powerful combination of music and emotion, winning the band two awards at April's Golden Melody Award.
Luan Tan's early band life was typical of Taiwan's underground bands. They made their livings by taking part-time jobs — from plumber's to construction workers. Says A-hsiang, who wrote the band's first hit single — "Conscience": "Now we don't need to take part-time jobs anymore, but I'm still in debt."
Mayday
The band is mainly marketed as "a student band of the new generation".
Mayday can probably claim bragging rights to having the youngest female fans a band has ever had in Taiwan's short rock 'n' roll history. There are more than 50 websites supporting the band and whenever they appear in public, there's usually a group of make-up laden high school girls in tow.
The popularity may come from the clean, energetic looks of the band members, who average 25 years in age. Their fame also reflects on the music style they play and like. Just like the band's favorite groups, Oasis, The Beatles and Japan's Mr. Children, many of Mayday's songs caters to the new generation.
Lyrical rock songs make up the majority of Mayday's music, with love always being the central theme of the songs. Their hit love song "Chun-chiao and Chih-ming" (春嬌與志明) has held the No. 1 spot at KTVs for 47 weeks, according to Rock Record.
The band's fast-growing teenage female fans have made the band a bit of an idol band. After the group released their new album last week, they had to set out on more than 200 autograph signing sessions. The frenzy of Mayday fans went beyond the expectations of Rock Record's marketing staff, who didn't adopt formalized idol packaging to promote the band
But all the idolatry isn't bothering the band much. "It is always a good thing that more people take to our music even if people take us as pop idols," the group said.
Tolaku
A hedonistic sort of rock 'n' roll. It's said they love music and life, but girls the most. Most of their songs are written for girls.
The Chairman
Before signing with Tiger records, the band used to be "the favorite of pub owners" for its great talent of heating up the atmosphere of its shows with their eccentric, self-deprecating style.
Backquarter
The band has been playing the underground music scene for more than seven years. They are nicknamed the "kings of compilation albums" because their singles are always included on rock compilations. They have signed with the TCM record company.
What Simply Jeans Rock Band Concert (Simply Jeans 世紀 Band 搖滾).
Who Mayday (五月天), The Chairman (董事長), Tolaku (脫拉庫), Backquarter (四分衛), and Luan Tan (亂彈).
When Today, 7 to 10 pm
Where Chiang Kai-shek Memorial
Tickets free
What Taiwan Rock Festival 2000 (野台開唱).
Who Around 100 bands, including Anarchy, LTK, and many of those in the other concerts mentioned above.
When Today through Sunday, 9am to 10pm
Where Children's Amusement Center (兒童育樂中心) on Chungshan North Road (across from the Taipei Fine Arts Museum)
Tickets NT$15 for students, NT$30 for adults
Check the web site: www.taiwanrockfest.com for the complete schedule.
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