Masquerader - Singular Point

 Here's another sophomore EP but this time it's from a Taiwanese thrash metal band who make no bones about being anything other than a thrash metal band.  The reference points are definitely 80's thrash and the geographical reference is definitely once again the Bay Area although "Singular Point"'s science fiction cover is more akin to Canadian's Voivod or their young devoted acolytes, Vektor.

Ian Hsiao's vocals  bring Exodus to mind especially in "Thrasher Commandos" which will take many back to a time and a place where those uniformed in high tops and denim jeans and jacket  fought weekend battles against the "glam fags".  There are a few high pitched moments but thankfully no silly falsetto screams.  The drumming is tight and furiously fast and the guitar riffs are weighty and tight despite their seemingly frenetic pace.   The guitar sound is very much in the San Francisco mold although there although there a moments that the aforementioned Canadians come to mind.

There will be some that will say that the lyric could have used a bit more work but for a band whose second language is English, I found these well written compared to a crop of other bands who sail in the same boat.  They deserve bonus points for writing about nuclear power, which is very much a current issue in their homeland of Taiwan.  The S.A.T.A.N nonsense should have been left in the eighties, although Masquerader are hardly alone in writing cliched satanic lyrics.    The overall production is slick.   Masquerader are a force to be reckoned with live and this EP backs up their live show.  All fans of eighties thrash metal should check "Singular Point out.

4/5

Masquerader on facebook

Tizzy Bac - 2006

Tizzy Bac are a hugely popular band in the Chinese island or nation, depending on where you stand on China's politics. Tizzy Bac play piano rock not unlike Ben Fold's Five however unlike Ben Fold's Five, they have a female on piano who also sings.
The one time I saw this band was in a small club in Taichung on a Sunday night and the place filled up quickly. In fact, I saw people being turned away due to overcrowding. In a world where bland Mando-pop rules, Tizzy Bac was a pleasant find.

Here.

Tolaku - Summer band

Tolaku was a Taiwanese band that have taken the Japanese approximation of the English word "Truck" as their band name. The music of Tolaku was desribed to me as silly pop punk way back at the start of this decade. I ended up buying this album to check them out. I'm not sure about the silly part or even the punk part but there's definitely an alternative happy pop element bubbling under here.

I went to see this band when I finally worked out how I could get to the venues in Taipei but when I arrived where the band was playing I was told the show had sold out. Disappointing for me anyway as it was the first Taiwanese band I would have seen that played original material instead of the standard Bon Jovi and Coldplay covers. The album's worth lending your ears to in exchange for a small portion of your life.

The picture above is the back cover of the CD.

Nar.

Neoshark - The Extreme Purgatory - Taiwanese metal

What we have here is an EP from a Taiwanese metal band called Neoshark who wear their influences on their sleeves. They're heavily influenced by Sepultura, Slipknot and Biohazard. The band's lyrics are mostly in Mandarin Chinese. The song Democracy Terrorist echoes Biotech is Godzilla in both sound and theme. The band are now known as Temple of the Brain although their Chinese band moniker is unchanged. The band see themselves as a Chinese band rather than a Taiwanese band so are unlikely to be confronting the UN any time soon.

Gimme Gimme.