I recently asked myself this question after attending two parties where the crowds congregated in the VIP sections rather than catch the major acts who were performing on stage. Is the draw of perceived status more enticing than hearing current international acts? Do people in Hong Kong care about music? (more…)

Thursday night another member of the Ed Banger crew descended on Hong Kong’s club Volar. The producer / d.j. Vicarious Bliss, a label-mate of Justice, Uffie, and Busy P, played a mixture of Electro, Rock, and even some New Order, (which was fitting, since they were an early proponent of the mixture of these two musical styles). The packed club-side of Volar was moving despite a severe rainstorm earlier in the night and a few moments of technical difficulties. (more…)

Thursday night was the third edition of the IMAGE Top Model event at Volar. What started off as a networking event for the modeling industry and a showcase for new talent, has morphed into a runway competition that packs the club. (more…)

Legendary French d.j. / producer Laurent Garnier played at Volar on Thursday night. For those who don’t know, he’s been a top name in electronic music for fifteen years, since the early days of raves and techno. The fact that he’s remained relevant for so long is no easy feat, especially considering the high turnover rate in dance music.

Starting off at one am, Volar was packed with his fans even before he manned the decks. The crowd was overwhelmingly foreigners who had paid a cover charge to get in. A good percentage of the French expat population of Hong Kong were seemingly in attendance.

Beginning with a smooth transition from the previous d.j., he quickly broke into his signature blend of classic melodic techno. It was refreshing to hear, and was exactly what the packed crowd was craving. The place went nuts as his techno set began, with models jumping onto the stage and the capacity dance floor convulsing.

Laurent Garnier’s somewhat clean techno is a big contrast to the dirty, discord-heavy sound of last week’s Justice / Busy P. It just goes to show that there’s room for many different flavors of party-rocking dance music!

Volar solidified its reputation as Hong Kong’s top club for cutting-edge d.j. / performers by hosting French dynamic duo Justice, and Ed Banger label owner Busy P on Friday night.

Volar vs. Dragon-i

Competition in club-land is a good thing for music lovers. Volar has recently carved out a successful niche. While Dragon-i brings classic d.j. / producers such as the legends, Little Louie Vega and D.J. Jazzy Jeff, Volar has differentiated themselves by bringing the most up-to-date d.j. acts around. In the past year they have brought forth a smorgasbord of new talents. (more…)

As a former British colony, in addition to inheriting a love of the Rolls Royce, Hong Kong inherited a love of “football” from the English. Over the last few weeks, productivity throughout the territory has slid as World Cup games are televised here live at ten at night and at three in the morning!

The World Cup action is not just confined to homes or pubs. Even two of the more sophisticated nightclubs, Dragon-i and Volar, have been transformed into multi-screened sports bars. Famous d.j.s have been sidelined by crowds glued to close matches.

Below, fans watch the England match intently at Dragon-i. Click for a larger image:

In some places, crowds spill out onto the street to watch the games.

Often different nationalities congregate together to support their home teams.

Even local supermarkets have developed promotional campaigns based on the series.

Perhaps one ingredient that adds to the excitement for some is the fact that gambling on football matches is now legal through the Hong Kong Jockey Club. Although this is relatively new (launched during the 2003-2004 season), it already accounts for significant revenues and is projected to earn almost half the amount that the Hong Kong Jockey Club makes through horse race betting.

Last night I checked out the 20th anniversary of the Hysteric-mini event put on by the Japanese brand Hysteric Glamour. The event coincided with the opening of an exhibition at the Visual Arts Centre that traveled from Tokyo, featuring works from artists who have collaborated with Hysteric Glamour over the years. It’s an impressive mix of artists including Stash, Kostas, Pushead, Frank Kozik, Will Sweeney, and many more.

The venue for the party was Volar and it featured a group of Hip Hop dancers. It seems like nearly every event has dancers. Sometimes, it’s a little too much. The quality of the dancers and choreography ranges widely. This time however, the dancers were excellent, and definitely added to the event. There were two performances during the night, one in the main room, and another in the lounge side. Although they were working with limited space, the dancers were doing elaborate moves and worked well together. This performance was one of the best I’ve seen in Hong Kong.

Many of the artists with work in the show were at the event. I bumped into Stash who I met during the Sneaker Pimps exhibition in Shanghai. On my way out I received a cool Hysteric Glamour gift - a special bandana with a skull design on it!

Last night Japan’s D.J. Krush made an appearance in H.K. I’ve been hearing about this guy for at least ten years, and I was excited to check him out live. Krush just came out with a new album, so he must be touring to promote it. I got to the club about 30 minutes after he started. The place was crowded, and the turnout of Krush fans was large. Members of the club, Volar, got free entry, others had to pay $250 HKD (about $32 USD) to get in.

Normally, the better clubs in Hong Kong don’t charge for entry, except on nights with special guest d.j.s. On regular nights, door policies vary, and some require some sort of “membership” to get in. Dragon-i and Volar are the top two clubs at bringing international d.j.s. If you’re a club regular however, even on special d.j. nights, you will get in free.

Getting back to the music, Krush played exactly as I expected: sophisticated, experimental - yet soulful Hip Hop. His turntable skills were sharp. The crowd was trying to groove, however some of the songs were just not meant for dancing. At several points he brought them back with some uptempo, soulful beats. It was fun to hear a d.j. who has a particular, distinct sound do his thing. He didn’t try to win everyone over, or compromise his music.

The photo below shows fans crushing the stage to get a look.

Here’s Krush in the mix - note that he was playing records!

I was back at Rockit for the third year in a row. Rockit is a music festival that takes place in the center of Hong Kong Island, in Victoria Park in Causeway Bay. This year it was a two day event held on Saturday and Sunday. Usually it’s a mixture of international acts and local talent. The talent ranges from Japanese punk bands to Brasilian Drum N Bass D.J.s. It’s been a fun event since the first one, and I try to support it every year. This year I bought a special ticket that allowed me open bar - which was dangerous… however, I didn’t drink on Saturday since I had to d.j. at Volar later that night.

I got to the park around 3 to check out the new band Soler perform. Soler is a band formed by two twin brothers, Dino and Julio. I met them at another singer’s birthday party at my friend’s lounge around 8 months ago. I’ve heard them perform a few times and they are definitely talented musicians. Unlike other local acts, they are not a manufactured Pop group, and can really sing and play instruments.

The weather was perfect for an outdoor concert and I had fun walking around the park, bumping into different friends and checking out the music.

The two highlights of the two day event were Uptown Rockers, and D.J. Marky. My friends Drafus, Simon and Sean were performing this year as the d.j. trio - Uptown Rockers. They usually d.j at the small music club Yumla in Soho. For their Rockit performance they had to condense their usual 5 hour set into a 30 mintue slot! They had the crowd really rocking. I have some video, and if I can figure out how to integrate it, I’ll post it here.

D.J. Marky has performed every year at Rockit. He’s got tons of energy when he d.j.s and it’s fun to watch him bounce around behind the decks. He scratches over the drum n bass music and plays with excellent song selection. He also has an M.C. - Stamina M.C. who gets the crowd even more amped by his rapping over the fast beats. The whole crowd jumps around in a frenzy and this year was no different.