Live review from 20th Anniversary Festival Day 2 星期六
密友
兇手
惡果
框
羊咩
風
派對
內傷
Penultimate headliner (is that a thing?) GIMAG stood out for several reasons: one, they themselves described themselves as a ‘more of a jam band’ than an actual performance band; two, they’re an all-star band, band leader Choi Ching is an established singer-songwriter and actress, and was part of Carrier帶菌者 along with drummer Vincent ‘Ah Po’, who has himself been part of many different groups; bassist Joel was part of 草魚禾 (Weed – yes, that’s their actual English name), established in 2006; and guitarist Manping is of Andy is Typing… fame; thirdly, by the time they started playing at around 11pm, they were all pretty drunk. (And Manping kept asking everyone to get drunk as well – drink responsibly kids).
While their English name seems like an acronym, it’s actually not. It’s a stylised transliteration of their Chinese name 極美樂團 – the very beautiful orchestra. And true to that name, their music was indeed very beautiful. With influence from dreampop, psychedelia, punk and even a tiny bit of ska, their songs are wild and peaceful escapades into another universe. In just one 30 minute set, they had Beatle-esque waltzes, Cigarettes After Sex dreampop, theatrical punk and so much more.
Their performance was just as amazing. Without any fuss, they smoothly transitioned between audience interaction, banter, jamming and playing. Most pieces felt slightly improvised – as expected from the ‘jam band’ but it was still obviously rehearsed. Practised but authentic, and never taking themselves too seriously (when they screwed up on their third number 惡果, they just laughed and asked the audience “can we start again? We’re going to start again”). If there were any musical errors, their lively and relaxed demeanours more than made up for it; it did just feel like four incredibly talented friends playing together.
Shout out has to be given in particular to two performers: Choi Ching’s vocals were astounding – strong but sultry, stuttering and shaking yet controlled throughout. And Dale, the 16 year old session guitarist who played along on the corner of the stage. Ah Po would tell us later that she had not practised at all with the band and just decided to join in on a whim. No one could tell.
Ultimately though, the performance was great not necessarily because of their musical skill but because it was fun and real. Choi Ching joked continuously about her bad English, forcing Manping to translate tipsy. They spoke with the audience; they connected with us without putting on an awkward performative facade. And, in respect for the event, gave the Underground one of the best thank yous of the night – bestowing on Chris B the title of “Mother of Hong Kong Rock”.
– Cyril Ma
