Video Alert: Taqwatour 2007-2009

I stumbled on this video that highlights moments from the Taqwatour in 2007. It features the Kominas, Omar Waqar (Diacritical/Sarmust), Vote Hezbollah, The Secret Trial Five, Al-Thawra, among others.

TaqwaTour 2007-2009 from taqwacore on Vimeo.

Hiep Le and Trang Vo Visit Summer Course on Global Pop

We had the pleasure of having guest performers Khanh Hiep Le and Diem Trang Vo in our class MUSI207/307 Global Pop this week. A song-writer, guitarist, and vocalist, Khanh Hiep Le now works an electrical engineer in San Diego. Le also played professional soccer when he was younger. Vocalist Trang Vo now works as a realtor and lives in Northern Virginia. Both Le and Vo came to the United States from Vietnam in the 1980s.



In their lecture, Hiep and Trang talked to us about their experiences of music-making in the transnational Vietnamese communities on the east and west coast of North America, and across the Pacific Ocean in Vietnam. Recently, Hiep released a solo record of all original songs. The money made from CD sales will go toward a charity group that helps families in Vietnam. In order to accommodate for the project's charitable aims, Hiep produced the CD in Vietnam. Collaborating with a Vancouver-based videographer, Hiep made a music video for “Cuoc Tinh” off of the album.

Trang has performed as a vocalist for over thirty years. She leads the Diamond Band, an 8-piece band consisting of three vocalists. The Diamond Band performs at least once a week for weddings and other celebrations and events in the multiethnic Northern Virginia. Of high demand, the band is booked up until next summer. Trang’s son Ken Nguyen explained that the mission of band is to bring people together through music. The band performs a diverse repertoire ranging from pop songs in Vietnamese to American oldies and Iranian tunes.

Hiep and Trang generously offered their talent to the class. Hiep performed a couple of songs from his album. Interspersed with stories of personal relationships and inspiration and vivid answers to the students’ questions, Hiep’s performance and talk showed not only his passion for music, and more importantly, the deeply meaningful role of music in his life. Trang blessed us with her beautiful voice. With Hiep’s acoustic guitar accompaniment, Trang sang “Noi Long” and “Crazy”, one in Vietnamese and the other in English, reflecting their linguistic and cultural versatility. According to Ken, “it was a real treat,” because Trang never performs without a proper microphone and sound system.



The class reciprocated with their loudest applause. After class, a number of students came up to express gratitude and exchange words with the guests. We thank you, Trang and Hiep!



Here's Hiep's video for “Cuoc Tinh”:

Independent Rock in Hong Kong

While browsing Rice Cooker, a resourceful blog on Southeast Asian (punk) music, I stumbled upon a video on made by Will McCallum of Journalism and Media Studies Centre, University of Hong Kong. This short video features the story of art rock group Chochukmo and other Hong-Kong-based indie rock bands who struggle in the cultural landscape dominated by Cantopop, a mainstream commercial music genre spawned locally.

Like an Ethic: What I Learned from Michael Jackson

During the first 12 years of my life in Taiwan, I was hooked to the practice of "keeping up" with the latest in pop culture in Taiwan and abroad. Through my connection to extended family in the U.S., I was able to obtain nifty cultural artifacts such as Ghostbusters model kit, Strawberry Shortcake blanket, Batman board game, Garfield puzzle set, and New Kids on the Block book covers (only then to find that American textbooks are much larger than their Taiwanese counterparts). The internationalization Toys "R" Us allowed me a more immediate access to American pop culture. I remember asking my parents to take me to the newly built Toys "R" Us in Taipei so I could pick out the items on my birthday wish list. The tremendous selection of made-in-U.S.A. toys in the store was both fascinating and overwhelming.

One day, my uncle, who's only 12 years older than me, said that he had gotten tickets to see Michael Jackson's concert in the largest indoor sports arena in Taipei. Well-versed in American pop music because of MTV (my parents were among the first people to install cable television once it became legal in Taiwan in the late 1980s), I learned of Michael Jackson's high status within the American music industry. I was thrilled to experience the real Michael Jackson live. With our inexpensive tickets, we sat way up high in the stadium among not-so-hardcore international fans of Michael. Witnessing Michael moon-walking across the multicolored stage in his white outfit, although not understanding the lyrics of all his songs, bewildered me.

The King of Pop wielded magic that night. Without understanding the context of American society--racial dynamics, gender relations, etc--I was overtaken by the performance power of Michael Jackson at the age of 9. It was mesmerizing, not like a Disney-sque fairy tale but more like a documentarian snapshot of the American life. Maybe it was the spectacular stage production, the screaming fans, or the astronomical performance venue, or some combination of these things, I remember it as a quintessential "American" experience. Maybe it was then that I became obsessed with live music performances. Maybe it was my first ethnomusicological moment.

After I moved to the US with my family, one of the first things I learned about was the entrenched racial tension between the American blacks and whites. Michael Jackson's "Black or White" suggested that there could be a middle ground, or least it was cool to celebrate social harmony across racial divide. Michael's playful, anti-binary ambiguity in gendered and racial terms compelled me like an ethic. This was my secret identification with MJ.

Like the whole rest of the world, I am mourning the passing of Michael Jackson. I choose not to talk about his life as a celebrity and judge him based on the highly mediated information regarding his biography. Instead I focus on the effects of his music, dance, and artistry as they resonate with my experiences as an Asian American individual and a music lover. Rest in peace, Michael.

Asian American / transnational musical tributes to Michael Jackson

Asian American / transnational musical tributes to Michael Jackson:

Bamboo Shoots did a mash up of the Indian (Bollywood) Thriller video with their song "Hey Girl." The syncing between the audio and the video is almost impeccable. Well done, guys!



David Choi, a self-made Youtube star, recorded a cover of Michael's song "Ben." David Choi uploaded this video two days before MJ's shocking death. The somber sincerity profused in this performance, rather ominously, coincides with the world's lament over the loss of MJ.

My Students' Creative Use of Media for an Assignment

My students in MUSI207/307 "World Music": Popular Music and Transnationalism made a video instead of a typical reading discussion today. The assignment asks them to have mastery over the assigned reading and come up with a list of discussion questions. Along with the interactive video, these questions were read by one of the students in class [not included in the video]. And following each question was a class discussion sprung off from the question. I thought that this video 'discussion' was very creative and entertaining, perhaps verging on being 'inappropriate' for a class. But - I decided to post it to 'show off' these students' creative use of digital technology. Yes, I am proud.

Video: Who Are The Kominas?

In this video, the Kominas discuss the community aspects of taqwacore. They also talk about their lyrical and asethetic ambivalence between satire and politics. They mention the South Asian affiliations and various streams associated with the Kominas. Maybe this is the reason that Omar Waqar sits with the Kominas as if he's one of the Kominas. Can I be a "Komina" too?

I'm working on booking a show in Charlottesville for the Kominas and Omar's new band Sarmust. Look out, Charlottesville!

Shilp Ray's Outdoor Acoustic Set @ Northside

Because of fatigue from my day job (now teaching a summer school), I missed the entire weekend's festivities at Northside Festival, for that matter. Thanks to blogs and other indie media outlet, I can catch some moments of fun in Billyburg this weekend.

Here's Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers playing an acoustic set at the corner of North 6th and Wythe @ Northside Festival. Video, courtesy of Johnny Diamond at The L Magazine.



Here are some pictures of Shilpa's set posted on The L Magazine blog.

Press Release: 'Hay Qua' Unveils Jam-Packed, Out-of-the-Box Line-Up of Rising Asian American Innovators

From Food to Fashion: 'Hay Qua' Unveils Jam-Packed, Out-of-the-Box Line-Up of Rising Asian American Innovators

"Hay Qua!" Mini-Fest
Saturday, June 27th / 10-4PM
The Bitter End (147 Bleecker St)
Register: www.thatsneaat.com

NEW YORK, NY (June 13, 2009) -- New York is the stuff of dreams, and "Hay Qua!" celebrates this day and night. On Saturday, June 27th, the mini-fest is celebrating big with an impressive roster of passionate, creative thinkers/performers who have continuously pursued their dreams.

In inviting the renown presenters to share their ideas/insights, projects, and anecdotes, "Hay Qua!" hopes to inspire its audience to revisit their own dreams, to draw inspiration, to connect with one another, to wonder, to take away something new, to bring something forth. To witness the beauty of the human imagination at work.

A sampling of imaginative minds at "Hay Qua!":

Alex Nguyen, Trumpet Player // www.alexnguyenmusic.com
Ali Wong, "Best Comedian 2009" by SF Weekly // www.aliwong.com
An Xuan Nguyen, Owner of 'BEP' // www.beprestaurant.blogspot.com
Bao Nguyen, Photographer // www.baonguyenphotography.com
Doan Hoang, Director of 'Oh Saigon' // www.ohsaigon.com
Ina Adele Ray, Director of 'El Paso, Vietnam' // www.adeleray.com
Jared Rehberg, 'Operation Babylift' // www.thebabylift.com
Kim Spurlock, Director of 'Buoi Chieu' // www.kimspurlock.com
Phong Bui, Publisher of 'The Brooklyn Rail' // www.brooklynrail.org
Tam Ngo, Reviewer for 'Serious Eats' // www.seriouseats.com
Thu Tran, TV Host of IFC's Food Party // www.thutranthutran.com
Tracy Nguyen, Publicist for Estelle // www.iprmktg.com
Tuan Bui, Owner of 'An Choi' // www.anchoinyc.com
Vinh Hua, Spoken Word Artist // www.vinh-hua.com
Yen Ha, Partner at FRONT STUDIOS Architects // www.frontstudio.com

But hurry, folks. The "Hay Qua!" + Kollaboration Combo Tickets are now $50 and are only available until 6/22, or until it's SOLD OUT – whichever comes first! Join others from as far as Canada, California, Oregon, Arizona, Louisiana, DC and and as close as Philly and Connecticut. And if you're in a group, email thatsneaat@gmail.com for the group discount and accommodation help!

Contact: Lisa Nguyen
Communications Director
(303) 808-136
ln.lisanguyen@gmail.com
thatsneaat.carbonmade.com

An Old Video of Kite Operations

This is an older video (circa 2007) of Kite Operations playing "The Last Flight Out Left Without Warning" off of Heart Attacks, Back to Back. Ready for some sweet guitar feedback and noise!

Kite Operations will be releasing their third album Festival in September. Expect to find order within chaos, and chaos within order.

Kite Operations - the Last Flight Out Left With No Warning from KOA Records on Vimeo.