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Clockenflap: A Hong Kong Home
Posted on by Christopher Tuazon Posted in Lessons in Purpose
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Clockenflap: A Hong Kong Home

Every year, thousands of Hong Kong residents, young and young at heart, take to the West Kowloon Cultural District for another glorious Clockenflap Festival.  The warm November air and bright city skyline stew together a weekend of celebrating music, art, and people.  The best of Hong Kong shines for seventy-two hours of light and sound, and I wonder: what now?

It took me three years, but last winter came to an understanding: for all the gargantuan acts that attract the masses to this part of the city, something else entirely keeps us there: community.  Now, as a visitor – frequent that may be – I’m curious to see what Clockenflap actually does for the city of Hong Kong.  Does the magic of the Harbour Flap Stage flicker out with the Sunday headliner, or does it linger just long enough to inspire real action?

Golden Rules

Golden Rules

Low Bros

Low Bros

HKwalls

HKwalls

Pete Moser

Pete Moser

Jing Wong

Jing Wong

Mantung

Mantung

Campfire Kit

Campfire Kit

The Fire Nation

The Fire Nation

Titeretú

Titeretú

Finbarr Bermingham

Finbarr Bermingham

Shugo Tokumaru

Shugo Tokumaru

BOOMSHACK

BOOMSHACK

Silent Disco with Dad

Silent Disco with Dad

Mystery Parade

Mystery Parade

King Ly Chee

King Ly Chee

King Ly Chee

King Ly Chee

Cliff

Cliff

Cosmic Caravan

Cosmic Caravan

Potato Sack Race

Potato Sack Race

Saul Williams

Saul Williams

Broods

Broods

A Weekend for Friends

A Weekend for Friends

The Family that Skas together

The Family that Skas together

The Family that Skas together

The Family that Skas together

KING LY CHEE 荔枝王: Common Language
Posted on by Christopher Tuazon Posted in Lessons in Purpose
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KING LY CHEE 荔枝王: Common Language

King Ly Chee (11 of 20)

Adolescence in California lends a steady diet of local music to ignite a fire inside the youth. From the first NOFX Oy! Oy! to last TERROR two-step, punk and hardcore music armed kids like me with something to make us feel alive. For many of us in the West Coast, this music is at the very least is the soundtrack to our angst, and at-times the crucible that forged an identity.

To watch a punk rock scene, then, is to take an honest look at what the local kids are fighting for and against, and what language it speaks.

So what’s the Hong Kong flavor of this genre? If you’re going to ask anyone here, it’s King Ly Chee, a band who, sixteen years strong, has undoubtedly formed what anyone could recognize as the HK hardcore scene.

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Jing Wong: Tangled Up, Tango On
Posted on by Christopher Tuazon Posted in Lessons in Purpose
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Jing Wong: Tangled Up, Tango On

With his new ep, 生活的小偷, singer-songwriter Jing Wong offers a take on classic Cantopop, imbued with his jazz and Britpop upbringing.  These parts create a whole message for his Hong Kong.  On a surprisingly warm November noon behind the Clockenflap main stage, Jing lays out inspirations from and aspirations for a city he doesn’t wish to see leave so soon.

Jing Wong (2 of 4)

Christopher Tuazon: On any given Jing Wong tune, you play around with different genres.  What’s your musical foundation?

Jing Wong: When I went to university in London, my friends and I would mostly play a lot of Beatles covers. That’s one of the reasons why I wanted to go to there. I love Britpop.  Radiohead, Blur, Suede. Plus, when you’re in art school, you get to listen to a lot of weird shit, like Sun Ra.

CT: Pop and jazz definitely come through in your music.

JW: On my own, I’m more of a folk player.  But I love laying jazz riffs with the guys on saxophone and harmonica.  The connection is irreplaceable. Without words, we know where we’re going, and we go there together. It’s amazing. That’s what’s beautiful about Clockenflap, too.

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