Sonar Lights Live in Hong Kong

02-05-14

Wow! It’s not often we get super talented musicians from Texas wanting to play at The Underground and we are eternally grateful it came
in the form of Sonar Lights, guys, we now know why Midi Festival keeps inviting you back! Thanks so much to The Time Traveller who opened up the showcase with their solid set. Thanks to Sean & Saffron Cafe for hosting this event, big thanks to the amazing Calvin Wong on sound & Angus Leung on photography and to Jon Lee for the reviews.
Love Chris B x


U0014.JPG U0016.JPG U0018.JPG U0020.JPG U0022.JPG U0023.JPG U0027.JPG U0030.JPG U0031.JPG U0032.JPG U0033.JPG U0035.JPG U0036.JPG U0041.JPG U0042.JPG U0043.JPG U0050.JPG U0051.JPG U0053.JPG U0055.JPG U0056.JPG U0057.JPG U0058.JPG

The Time Traveller

  1. 春天不見了
  2. times and memories
  3. 沒下次
  4. set me free
  5. 枯石

These days it seems it is customary that bands open with an instrumental track. This is not a complaint. Coldplay have done it for years with aplomb.  It’s a great way to make sure things are sounding good for your set, and The Time Travellers took that excellent opportunity to get everyone in the mood for their set.

I was told before that The Time Travellers used to sing in English however this set, the majority of songs were in Cantonese and I applaud them for that. Some bands seem awkward when they are forced to sing in a language that is not their mother tongue and in this case their Cantonese vocals always seemed stronger than the English songs. The originators of Canto rock Beyond and Paul Wong’s solo stuff paved the way for local bands like Dear Jane and now The Time Traveller.

The Time Traveller, seem to have a bit of everything in their music.  Their first two songs 春天不見, and Times and Memories really set the tone for their set.  Their sound can be described as very Coldplayesque with a bit of an edge. They were louder than what their music style suggests but it works.  The distortion in the guitars and the intricate drum parts give each song a slight intricacy and detail that most bands in Hong Kong don’t seem to pay attention to.

Their third song, 沒下次 ushered in the middle of the set, and they slowed things down, but that doesn’t mean it was boring. Power ballads seem to be lacking in the HK rock scene, it’s mainly reserved for pop. People thinking that bands have to just rock hard 24/7 but when it’s done right, it’s a beautiful thing, and they do it right.  This song reminded me of more recent Green Day of 21 Guns and Give me Novocaine.

Fourth song Set Me Free, almost had a jazzy feel to it in the verses, probably helped by the progression from the keys and the swing on the drums.  Now I haven’t said much, about the keys but being, the only XX chromosome in the band, she more than adequately held her own.  Her instrument, is not the focus of the band’s sound, but make no mistake, her keys are the thing that gives The Time Traveller, their mood.  It has a slightly edgy and ethereal effect and just gives them a very interesting dynamic.

Side note: throughout their set, Saffron were playing Pink Floyd’s Live at the Greek, and for some reason, that weird PF vibe fit their set perfectly.  It was almost like a music video within a music video, a very surreal experience which is kinda what their music encompasses.

Their last song,枯石, kept the power ballad going, but it’s not to say it was not full of energy. The Time Traveller are a great band. It’s original approach to the typical rock sound, coupled by the Cantonese lyrics and local attitude make them a band to watch. I was a big fan by the end of their set and it looked like Sonar Lights were too, as they stayed till their very last chord before they prepared to go on stage.

I can only hope that there will be more bands like them, that can ride that wave and continue adding to a list of already stellar local acts that sing in Cantonese, cause let’s face it, music is the universal language.  If it’s right, the head will bob no matter how you sing.
– Jon Lee
jonleehk (twitter)
theriothk (instagram)
facebook.com/drummerjonlee


U0059.JPG

U0061.JPG U0063.JPG U0065.JPG U0067.JPG U000.JPG U002.JPG U003.JPG U004.JPG U006.JPG U009.JPG U0010.JPG U0013.JPG

Sonar Lights (USA 美國)

  1. Goodman
  2. Oversaturated
  3. Smells like teen spirit (cover)
  4. The enemy within
  5. Eleanor rigby (cover)
  6. Warpigs (cover)
  7. Game
  8. Endorphin
  9. Mr Knowitall
  10. I am the highway
  11. Wardance

There are times when a band strikes the first riff and you instantly know that you’re in for a treat. Sonar Lights is that band.  Despite being jet-lagged, they put all their energy into a performance that begged to be enjoyed by thousands.

Though their set was filled with a few covers including a tribute to Nirvana and Kurt Cobain (his death almost 20 years ago to the day definitely dates me), an amazing rock rendition of Eleanor Rigby that brought a huge smile to my face, and a solid cover of War Pigs by Black Sabbath, the band truly shines on their originals.

The band were incredibly tight and hit all the marks (the drummer did miss the white pants memo, but I digress). Their opening song, Goodman and Oversaturated is just a solid combination of Audioslave and Rise Against riffs and vocals.  In the chorus, lead singer George Miadis has that Chris Cornell growl that so many rockers crave but can never quite get.

Their next original, The Enemy Within, was just another addition to a solid rock tune. As a three piece band, Sonar Lights definitely figured out a way to give an appearance of there being more than three members, through their guitarist’s clever use of effects and EQ. Bassist Artell only has a single pedal, but he knows how to use that power and sometimes that is all you need to rock out. Every note he plays perfectly compliments the guitar riffs while simultaneously locking in to the pounding of Roy Oeto’s drums, which btw check out his solo at Guitar Center’s Drum Off.

Game, another rocking original had this awesome Rise Against feel to it.  The crunchy guitars coupled by some solid vocal work made for a head banging track and a great return to the set after Rigby and War Pigs.  Though Saffron is a bakery and is not the best fit for a couple of rock bands on a Friday night, Sonar Lights, still brought it and made sure that the small crowd that gathered had a great time.

As I am writing this review, I am reminded by how many good songs they had, I instantly regret not running out front to get a CD, however I just went to iTunes so technology saves the day again.

Mr Knowitall, was an angry track, which I am sure everyone in the room dedicated it to resident HK (self-proclaimed) know it all Calvin Wong.  Fast, punkish and dark, Mr. Knowitall had all the chords that Kurt himself would have been proud of and the angsty lyrics that bore the brunt of his frustration.

Wardance, their final song started like how 1/3 of Dream Theater songs start but went into all these cool directions that made musicians such as myself pretty giddy.  With a crazy drum solo in the first half of the songs that brought the house down, and probably made the cake in the shop suddenly wake up. Wardance isn’t your typical closer, It just builds bit by bit into a deafening finale. And each increasing part, showcases each member’s insane musical abilities but also the band’s togetherness. Vocals also start getting more frantic as the music picks up place and George’s voice starts sounding like Serj Tankian from System of a Down. Come to think of it, there is a bit of Serj in a few of their other songs.

Sonar Lights rocked. I could have only hoped that they had a larger audience to play for because they deserve as much.  At least there will be more at the Midi Festival so that should be a good representation. Saffron is a hard place to play at and for, but those who were fortunate enough to be there, were certainly treated to a band that is technical, talented and damn fun to watch.

I can only hope that these boys come back again and are given a proper venue and audience, cause they deserve that.  I’ll be first in line for tickets.

Jon Lee
jonleehk (twitter)
theriothk (instagram)
facebook.com/drummerjonlee

Poster by ​Angus Leung​
Photos by Angus Leung
海報由Angus Leung。
由​Angus Leung攝影。

Be Sociable, Share!