Asiabeats

There is Afrobeat, and there is Asiabeat.

Batik house, Kobe jazz, Mongolian punk, Bombay house, Mat rock, Pinoy funk, J pop, Korean hip hop, Thai dub, Khmer funk, Gila punk, Taiwan rock, Hokkien rap, Beijing rock, Shanghai techno, Hong Kong house, Canto punk, Cantonese blues, Enka mambo, Singapore garage, Indo surf jazz, Taipei electro, Viet rockabilly…

Asia has seen develop from the Sixties vibrant music scenes, original talents, rich modern traditions, and large followings by already three entire generations : Kobe jazz, Japanese rock, Thai rock, Khmer blues, Taiwan rock, Hokkien enka, Shanghai jazz, Cantonese blues, Enka mambo, Vietnamese rockabilly…
However most of the original talents are absent from local charts, media and mainstream awareness, apart from punctual commercial endorsements. The only household names are major label artists, some very good, most untalented, and all forced to record commercial mush, heavily inspired from Western pop.
Hence even local talents are desperate, finding little artistic challenge or support from media and the public. They are often the first ones to denigrate the quality of the local scene.
As a result the majority of the local elite and media still hold their local talents in contempt, preferring songs in English or celebrity pop.

Today Asia counts such original music movements as Mongolian punk, with its Tuva rock counterpart, Bombay house, Mat rock from Malaysia, Pinoy hip hop from the Philippines, J-pop, Korean hip hop, Thai dub, Taiwan rock, Hokkien rap, Beijing rock, Shanghai techno, Hong Kong house, Canto punk, Singapore garage, Indonesian surf jazz, Taipei electro…

In the West, noone knows much about Asian music, apart from the recent Banghra fad, or Gwen Stefani’s Harajuku recuperation. Conventional wisdom both in the East and West still holds Asia for a backward continent too busy working to produce any interesting popular culture outside of lower-tier copycats of the West. Such a perception belongs to the Sixties, it is a generation late. However, they appreciate the tourism, food, movies, exotic homeware, contemporary art, fashion folklore and low-cost manufacturing.

So far only Indian and Middle Eastern compilations manage to cross over into the mainstream, while Chinese, Japanese and Korean cinema has already established worldwide cult followings from art house publics to trend adopters.
And yet Asia has a plethora of true original artists who would open up many ears from the West to the East, to a rich, modern cultural life, beyond the restrictive clichés of the exotic folklore or easy-listening background music favoured in themed events, restaurants and spas.


Overrocket, Japan
Minimal electro pop, new wave and 80’s techno pop.

新裤子 New Pants, China
Rock.
"新的恋爱"

Rik, Thailand
Soul rock diva, ska dub electronica.
"ริค วชิรปิลันธ์ ราสมาลัย Russian Roulette"

超级市场 Supermarket, China
Rock, electronica.
"Dodobia"

Rollercoaster, South Korea
Acid jazz, soul, pop rock, house music.
"D-day"

Siam Dub Monster / The Photo Sticker Machine, Thailand
Trip dub / trip hop / acid jazz.
"Thai Style"

Color Lab, Thailand
Art funk groove.
"Saturday Night"

My Little Airport, Hong Kong
Indie pop.
"Z too A"

Apartmentkhunpa, Thailand
Funk, rock, jazz, blues.

Yat-Kha, Mongolia
Legendary Mongolian rock band with Yat-Kha zither and Kanzat throat-singing by Albert Kuvezin, runner-up or BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music 2006.
"Dorug Dayim"

木马 Muma, China
Rock.
"把嘴唇摘掉"

Dynamite Club, Japan
The self-described Attention Deficit Disorder rock band (surf, country, jazz, math, punk rock, video game, reggae, metal, funk) in New York City.
"New York Kung Fu Society"

Seringai, Indonesia
Alcohol-fueled hardcore rock
"Membakar Jakarta"

About Pop, Thailand
Electro / acoustic pop

Sakana (Pocopen & Nishiwaki), Japan
"Shiroi Machi"

Aaken, France
The “Circlesong” album launched very successfully at Paris’s Café de la Danse in October 2005. Aaken’s cover of Björk’s “Army of Me” was featured on a double cd album by UNICEF, released in February 2005.
"Mot Ngay Nhu Moi Ngay"

Nick Daddy Liang & DJ SL, Taiwan
Soul electro rock, funk house.
"Last night"

Ego-Wrappin’, Japan
They have worked with Little Creatures, Fantastic Plastic Machine, and have contributed to “Ska Stock”, a tribute to the Skatalites.

Check here soon for an Asiabeats compilation by Kampong Beats.

Asiarocks

The Asian rock I hear beats out any of the little current western rock I hear, which mostly sounds to me like homages and reedits of legends past. However I don't care for Asian rock that copycats Western rock, which cancels out most of MTV Asia and Channel V. There's so much good stuff out there, many of them doing well with constant touring and live shows, where audiences go mad.

From China: here's an extreme introduction: Pangu rock. The man is crazy.
Also Pk14

and Brain Failure, Carsick Cars, Cold Fairy Land, Lonely China Day, muma, New Pants, 苍蝇 ("The Fly"), Red Unit, Ren Yu, Xiao He, Zuo Xiao Zu Zhou, Zhao Ze, Rebuilding the Rights of Statues

...

On the other hand of politicorock there is this Japanese dumbfounding song and even more confounding video that is a waste of time: Riot by Patriot is Not Crime (支那の歌 The Song of China), the same sad nationalistic lame punk that exists throughout Europe.
Still Japan has some great rock bands: Adenosine TriPhosphate, Cocco, Custom Cock Confused Death, self-described attention-deficit-disorder band Dynamite Club (hey Kentaro!), Electric Eel Shock, Guitar Vader, Ringo Shiina, the amazing Ua, Zettaimu...

From HK there's the deservedly famous King Lychee, Climax, Hardpack, Qiu Hong, Monogel, Sanskrit...

From Taiwan I recently discovered 董事長 合唱團 (The Chairman), in the delightful Fokkien rock tradition, 四分衛 (Backquarter), and young Vera Queen. Unfortunately since right about Luan Tan's space rock disbanded at the turn of the century, legendary Taiwan rock has mostly sold out.

In Singapore there's Francis Frightful's infamous O.P., so named because the garment didn't allow them to be called Opposition Party.
Melvyn and Little from fFurious introduced me to the rocking sounds of Force Vomit. They came around to judge the Lomo Wonderland exhibition at the Esplanade, and chose the winners with their eyes closed. Now that's class.
There is also Muon, (hey Ginette!), Objection Overule, Typewriter (hey Chang Kang!), and The Boredphucks (now reincarnated as The Suns):

Ai Sio Gan Mai - Boredphucks
...

In Malaysia I got a compilation at the Click Project, featuring Carburator Dung, which is great kicks. There's also Lang Mang, Ciplak, Meet Uncle Hussain

...

Thailand has a garth of amazing rock.
Futon's Thai songs are infectious and brilliant. Their cover of "I wanna be your dog" is drop dead.
Redtwenty is a young band whose sound is unique and hauting.
The amazing Apartmentkhunpa has their own world too, acid funk rock on ether.
There's of course the incredible Rik Vachirapirum

See also her music videos “Tichila” and “Devi”.
Also check Armchair, Moderndog, Penguin Villa, Scrubb, so::on, Goose, Yellow Fang...

The Philippines has a mature and huge rock scene, of which I only like Francis Magalona (R.I.P.), River Maya, Eraserheads, and the amazing Parokya Ni Edgar.

Indonesia has another beautiful rock scene: The Jonis

And the legendary Dewa 19, Peter Pan, Serigala Jahanam, Adit Bujbunen Al Buse, Kelelawar Malam, The Safari, Slank, Komunal, Ungu, Cokelat, The Polyester Embassy, C'mon Lennon, D'Zeek, The Adams, Ape on the Roof, Seringai, The Upstairs, Zeke & The Popo, Tomorrow People Ensemble, Sajama Cut, ST12, The Brandals, Inspirational Joni

...

Vietnam has some hard bands such as Microwave and Gat Tan Day.

Finally there is Albert Kuvezin's world-famous Yat-Kha from Mongolia.

Check here soon for an Asiarocks compilation by Kampong Beats.