Show Starter

The Hong Kong indie music scene is known for a lot of things. Numerous hardcore bands who sing about peace on earth and hope for life; highest proportion of band members who also happen to be in five other bands. It’s also one of the most complained about things by drunks in bars. But does it have a viable concert culture?

An unprecedented number of big name musicians like Christina Aguilera and The Cure have been confirmed to play Hong Kong this summer. One obvious factor in this increase is the 2005 opening of the AsiaWorld-Arena, a venue big enough to host acts like Coldplay and the Black Eyed Peas. But a subtler factor is that little meme wriggling its way through the corporate machines – “music sells.” Consider that Lane Crawford brought out nu-rave group New Young Pony Club, while Star TV (through Channel V) started music portal AMP, aimed at boosting the profile of aspiring musicians. “Music has always been a way for companies to reach that key demographic of 18s-40s,” says AMP project manager Justin Sweeting. “But in the last few years, companies have gone from fighting to sponsor Cantopop events to fighting to be associated with the alternative.”

It’s not only in the big concert arena where the scene is evolving. Monogel bassist CM notes that marathon band shows have given way to many smaller, more focused gigs. “There’s also more diversity in the events organized – electronic and experimental gigs that weren’t common a few years back,” says Christina Chan of indie label Lona Records. “It seems people are more accepting of alternative shows.”

“Something is definitely happening, and it’s right that big companies support grassroots bands, maybe even to the point of helping them forge a career,” says Sweeting. Corporate investment in music isn’t the most ringing endorsement. But it could be just what is needed for the music scene to evolve further - many local promoters don’t even pay the bands they book, believing that the boost to the band’s reputation is payment enough. While valid on some level, it also means there isn't much money circulating in the local scene and most bands can't take music as more than a hobby.

Another obstacle is the lack of mid-size venues. Sure, 13,500 screaming maniacs can cram in to see Gwen Stefani at the AsiaWorld-Arena, but since when did a band like Nouvelle Vague warrant the Convention Centre? Beijing and Shanghai are established stops for both mega-name artists and more alternative acts; we’re starting to get the big artists, but we lack the venues for the latter. Still, that’s progression, lurching forward. “After all, in Hong Kong, concert culture will start with the mainstream acts before it spills over to the niche market,” says Elaine Ng of indie distributor Love Da Records. And possibly the day’s not too far off when people will talk about music like they talk about summer blockbusters - like you’d have to be an uncultured tool not to have caught the last The Yours show.

It’s a blockbuster summer for live music. What better time to meet our indie pioneers?