Outtakes

Good news for jazz and blues fans

Jazz and blues aficionados have often found it difficult to get their fix in Hong Kong, but the recent proliferation of venues such as Blue Door, Innonation and Bohemian Lounge prove there's still a healthy market for the genres in this city.

Philia Lounge on Arbuthnot Street in Central is the latest venue to introduce live jazz, and next Thursday will present the first of its live jazz sessions with guitarist Eugene Pao. He won't need any introduction for his local followers, but for the uninitiated Pao put Hong Kong jazz on the map, and has collaborated with famous names including Jimmy Witherspoon, Eddie Gomez, Kazumi Watanabe and Michael Brecker.

At the Philia session, Pao will be joined by other luminaries of the local jazz scene, including bassist Sylvain Gagnon and keyboardist Ted Lo from 9.30pm. Although Pao has recorded numerous film soundtracks and appeared on several albums by local pop stars, he's at his best when improvising live.

Blues fans have perhaps even fewer options in this city and may be unaware that they have a world-class harmonica player in their midst. Henry Chung has boosted his gigging schedule recently, and is showing off the skills he earned while sharing the stage with blues luminaries such as B.B. King.

Chung will also be enlisting the talents of Gagnon on bass, as well as Dan LaVelle (guitar, vocals) and Joel Haggard (drums) when he appears at Blue Door on Cochrane Street, Central, on April 14 from 10.30pm.

Check out the Pretty Girls

One gig that has the indie mob getting their best hipster outfits ready is this month's show by Seattle rockers Pretty Girls Make Graves (below), who will be calling through Hong Kong on April 27 as part of their farewell tour.

And the venue has been confirmed: the Vine Centre at 2/F, Two Chinachem Building, on Des Voeux Road in Central. Tickets cost HK$200 in advance, HK$260 at the door. It will be an all-ages show, so smoking and alcohol are prohibited. This will be your last chance to see a band that's been summed up by one critic as: 'The notion that hard rock should be not only intellectually stimulating and structurally imaginative, but just plain enjoyable, doubles as their theme and M.O.'

Remember Amnesia? Well it's back

The closure of Edge and upcoming end to Les Visages has left even fewer venues for live music, but making a welcome return in a new incarnation is the much-loved Amnesia, which for years offered pretension-free gigs in a grungy but welcoming space on Hollywood Road.

The word is it's reopening in Sheung Wan during the next few months. And even better for those who constantly complained about the sound is that the owners are investing in a whiz-bang new system that should impress even the fussiest bands and DJs.