My-Q makes it!

After ages of hearing that former guitarist for local punk band NOPDOGS Mike Yu had headed to Korea to try and make it as a K-pop star, the prophesy has been fulfilled.

Under the alias MY-Q, our man is out there with a new album, and is trying his luck with the likes of Se7en and Rain. Far from his previous punk rock slashings, the new stuff, from pumping opener "She was sexy" (I'm sure some of you out there can relate), candy-electro number "Falling for you", to booty-ballad "Lately", has got an R&B vibe about it.

The Lately video sees our man looking pretty suave, and a couple of twists (right) such as flying dogs and coffee cups add to the intrigue... Think something was lost in translation there, but never mind! Go Mike!

Partners in penetration

Fresh from the ashes of local rock band The Academy, bassist Dave Wong and drummer Paul MacLean are pulling out the stops and penetrating hearts and minds with their new duo DP.

Mixing a bit of metal, grunge and psych-rock, the boys recently blasted out at yumla. Although immediately drawing comparisons with now broken up Canadian duo Death from Above 1979 for aesthetic reasons rather than sound, it was cool to see that DP have chucked out imitation and forged a unique sense of direction. And with their pop sensibility and instrumental breakouts, DP should have enough material to record a decent EP at the very least.

But the real question to ask is are they going to market themselves as sort of suave romantic Air Supply tandem, or more on the edgy rock duo model shown by the White Stripes? Well, it’s really neither because although they have a rockier edge, they weren’t in matching outfits (a shame) and they definitely did not play soft rock grooves, though it must be said they should reconsider if they want that coveted duet with Kenny G at some point in the future.

The venue: Although yumla is predominantly known as a place for DJs and underground styles of dance music, the live music thing is certainly a decent fit for them. The only thing that could be said is that the crowd did not really get into the moshing and head-banging aspect, but whether or not that’s because of the crowd or venue it’s hard to say. Props to yumla for trying new things out, and most importantly, for staying unpretentious!

Let's go Deeper

I’d been waiting for a new Deep 吳浩康 album but was pretty bummed to hear he has just released a 新曲 + 精選 greatest hits record with only three new songs on it. Some of the new videos for the tracks 懲罰自己, 自卑 and 情誡 have been on Road Show, and at least look decent, but given that its Deep that's not very hard. What do the tracks actually sound like? Don't ask me buddy, I haven't heard them yet. Unfortunately, I’m hardly going to get the album considering I have all his previous stuff. Let's hope a new album is coming soon!

After some pretty decent tracks off the 2006 album Documentary, including 故園風雨後 and 宇宙大王, its looking pretty good for our man, and hopefully over all controversy with his previous drugs bust. Definitely looking forward to see if any concerts are coming in the near future.