WHEN it comes to showcase rock festivals featuring independent bands, Britain has Reading and Glastonbury, the United States has Lollapalooza, and Hong Kong has . . . well, so far Hong Kong has had zip.
But, come September 3 and 4, the territory will at last stage its own, albeit modest, festival dedicated to bands that normally trail way behind mainstream acts in the popularity stakes.
The Hong Kong International Independent Festival '93 will see more than a dozen different performers taking to the stage at Kowloon's Ko Shan Theatre. Although the majority are from Hong Kong, there will also be three leading Japanese indie acts.
The best known is alternative artist Tenko, a woman whose refusal to conform to the traditional stereotype of demure Japanese womanhood first won her a following in New York in the mid-1980s.
Joining her will be composer-promoter Otomo Yoshihide and the intriguing-sounding group The Gerogerigegege, a bunch with a reputation for appearing in S & M bars.
Hong Kong's representatives may be a little less provocative, but they represent the best of the alternative scene. Independent stalwarts such as AMK, Third Party and Endeavour are predictable entries, but the presence of former Tat Ming Pair guitarist-writer Tats Lau lends the lineup broader commercial appeal.
The storming angry young men of HUH?! are also on the bill, while another recent success story, Andy Ingkavet and Hot Sauce, will offer more mainstream content.