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YAMAHA Asian Beat Band Competition 2009 Hong Kong (FINAL)

Overview

Review

YAMAHA Asian Beat Band Competition 2009 Hong Kong – Final
Event Review

High Voltage, High Energy - YAMAHA Asian Beat Band Competition is the real deal for amateur bands to showcase their music talents while competing for a great grand-prize package. This year more than 70 bands exercised their right to rock and submitted their demo tapes. On 21st September 2009, 16 finalists competed head to head and Blaster, an exuberant five-piece was crowned Hong Kong's regional Champion, winning them a trip to Yokohama, Japan and to represent the territory at the YAMAHA Asian Beat vs. Tokyo Band Summit Grand Final.

Folding in grits of Rock 'n' Roll, chunks of Funk and a dash of Canton-Pop, the infinite cool of Blaster's hybrid music operates at several levels. First, they transformed what is normally considered as noise into a creative prelude, best described as a cocktail of urban sound samples. Audible pedestrian signals, heavy rumbles of the traffic have never sounded hipper. Then, it was the vocalist Yiu-Hin Chan's high-voltage performance - a binding agent that bonds the band and the audience so well. He's not a rock-star wannabe but someone who never holds his lung-power in reserve. Best Keyboard Player Anton Lau remained as the most occupied member of the band, triggering samples, inserting whole-tone fill-ins that relieved the low frequency clusters of the guitar players.

Still in their twenties, the troupe is trying their best to strike a nice balance between work and their musical indulgences. "Like many Hong Kong indie musicians we all have to work during the day. So it's not uncommon for us to start our rehearsals late at night. That's how we train ourselves to stay focused and be determined. Thus, winning this live championship means a lot to us. It's like an assurance to our effort, since Asian Beat is an indicator contest for local bands, and in terms of scale, it's largest of its kind" says guitarist Neil Lau.

Moving on this year's Best Vocalist Award is shared between two outstanding vocalists. Rocky Chan, the frontman from first runner-up band Killer Soap is one of them. Sounding a bit like Jason Marz, Rocky is the sort of vocalist that earns himself much credit and applause with his easy-to-like and distinguishable vocal quality. Celebrating their fifth anniversary this year, Killer Soap is a Rock act with a growing fan base. Their guitar shred work in the introduction of "Reason" was wild and raw; to take the excitement to the next level, these returning finalists put emphasis on the weak beat, yielding an explosive and robust sound.

Second-runner-up band RED is a melodic metal/power metal hurricane headlined by Ray Chan, the second recipient of Best Vocalist Award. Born with a unique voice that is hard, contagious and strong, he is one of the hidden gems of the local entertainment scene. Apart from knowing how to mingle simple melodies with sophisticated arrangement, these HKUST undergraduate students also have the right wardrobe ingredients to pull off the look of a hair metal band. X-Japan, Stratovarius and acts alike are their heroes and saints, however, unlike most Euro-Metal bands' whose themes are often dark and depressing, "World Wide Will" is an anthem written to express the band's positive outlook of a better world.

Sharing a similar sonic appeal with RED, shredders Chapman Li and Kin-Leung Poon from Castle are thrilled by crowned continuously as this year's Best Guitarists. With dense-guitar solos and double-lead passages, they led their fellow members to the climax of "Soldier", an upbeat composition that adheres to a right-defending theme.

Panning our spotlight from the Rock/Metal circle to Jazz and Fusion, Simplicity's drummer Eason Siu has a bag of complex rhythm and fill-ins to watch for. Leaving the stage with Best Drummer Award, the chops-intensive player introduced certain finesse into "Pupa", the band's very first fusion attempt.

If there were a poll to nominate the audience's favorite act of the evening, Ocean Boulevard would unmistakably be one of the top-threes. Formed by four Japanese expatriates living and working in Hong Kong, their vocalist Miss Saki Ohara greeted the audience in fluent Cantonese, enjoyed chatting with MC Marco Hung as her band members calibrated their gear. Playing with an astute simplicity, Best Bassist Junichi Yamanaka's sound was nothing short of phenomenal. It was neither too edgy nor commanding, a perfect companion to "Southern Island", a Bossa Nova tune the team wrote collaboratively in winter, while dreaming for a tropical get-away.

Other than the winners, emerging bands like Superimposed Tritonic Motifs、Peri M and The Grand Experiment demonstrated growth with an encouraging level of proficiency and confidence. The Grand Experiment's down-tempo work is a tasteful collision of melancholic guitar works with Electronic, creating a signature ambience that embraces the elegance of Impressionism. Together with the heart-stopping plaintive vocal, their work is fresh yet ethereal.

In one month's time, our winning team Blaster will participate the YAMAHA Asian Beat vs. Tokyo Band Summit Grand Final in Japan. "It's our responsibility to represent Hong Kong. While we all feel committed to do so, we'll also try to relax and enjoy the whole experience." says Anton Lau, still thrilled. Blaster is carrying out a series of intensive rehearsals to bring out the best from themselves. Show your support to the band!