The Star Online: Entertainment: Music
The Star Online: Entertainment: Music |
| Posted: Gary Chaw Ge invited Star2 into his home, where we discovered just how much the so-called 'bad boy of music' has grown up. THE first thing you see when you step into Gary Chaw Ge's home in Kuala Lumpur is a HUGE black horse statue-cum-lamp standing right in the middle of his living room. "You know why I bought it?" the Sabah-born, Taiwan-based singer-songwriter asked upon seeing the quizzical look on my face. "Because people used to call me hei ma ("dark horse" in Mandarin), so I decided that I should get one for real!" Chaw, who will be kicking off his nationwide Gary Chaw Sensationally Live Tour Malaysia 2013 on Sept 14, has certainly been a dark horse throughout his music career. Since the beginning he has always been considered one of the most enigmatic of all the Malaysian artistes currently based in Taiwan, with a reputation for being something of a rebel and troublemaker. The first time I met Chaw in 2006, he was a sullen, slightly awkward 27-year-old singer who had just released his first Taiwanese album Blue. Within these past seven years, his life has been a series of improbable highs and desperate lows, and I could immediately sense that the Gary Chaw I was interviewing this time around was not the Gary Chaw I met back then. "What have I been doing these past seven years? I've been busy growing up! I got married and had two kids," he said proudly (Chaw has a five-year-old son and a three-year-old daughter with his wife, make-up artist Wu Su-ling). In a more sombre tone, he added that the past seven years had not been easy for him despite his success. "I'm the only Malaysian artiste who was ever awarded the best male singer in Taiwan, and I got that on the second album. That was way too fast for me," rued Chaw, who was named best Mandarin male singer at the 2008 Golden Melody Awards. Considering how hard he had to struggle to even get his first album out, you'd think he would have felt entitled to that early success. "Not really. I was just glad I had the chance to release an album, and then everything came so fast I didn't have time to digest it all ... "When I got the award, I was actually depressed at the time. That depression started a long time ago. I felt useless and (felt like) a burden to my family ... and I had nothing to lose. So I took the risk of leaving Malaysia because I felt I had nothing left here," he said. "I went to Taiwan and it was tough for the first couple of years. I didn't even have enough money to eat. I slept in the studio on sofas for a year and a half before I managed to sell one song, and finally had money to rent a place."  Chaw at home, with his black horse lamp in the middle of his living room. It didn't help that Chaw had to put up with the indignity of being considered "too ugly" to be a proper artiste and enduring rejection after rejection by record labels until Rock Records finally signed him in 2003, and eventually released his debut album Blue in 2006. Still, that didn't cure Chaw of his depression. If anything, becoming an artiste just made it worse. He got a reputation for being a rebellious bad boy, and for getting violently drunk, infamously getting arrested after a drunken brawl with Hong Kong singer Justin Lo in 2009. When I bring up the incident, Chaw winced visibly. "Everything, the good, the bad, the highs and lows were all squashed into that one period of time. Got into trouble in Hong Kong, had to go to court, got arrested ..." he said with a sigh. "I was almost an alcoholic – and I can admit that now. At that time, it was almost as if I HAD to drink, it's not that I love alcohol, it's just that I didn't like being sober." It also didn't help that when Chaw's wife got pregnant in Malaysia, he could not tell anyone about it at the time. "I couldn't even tell anyone I was getting married ... I was caught getting married! Even my company didn't know I got married," he recalled. "It's not like I kept it a secret, I just didn't tell anyone because my wife didn't want me to. So when the news came out I was actually happy because I didn't have to hide anymore." He certainly looks a lot happier and relaxed now than he did in 2006. His new role as a family man has changed his perspective on life. "When I had my first child. I realised that NOTHING is more important than this little baby in my hand," he said firmly. "No awards, fame or fortune is more important than that boy in my hands ... and my daughter confirmed that. There must be a reason I work hard, and now, I know it's because of my family." These days, even his music has taken a different turn, with Chaw finally getting to do something he always wanted to do – play in a band. In 2011, Chaw roped in session musicians Musa's Trio (comprising pianist Martin "Musa" Musaubach, bassist Lautaro "LuKa" Bellucca and percussionist Adriano Moreira) to record the Project Sensation 1: Jazz album, and they have been playing together since then. According to Chaw, the idea of forming a band is something he has always wanted to do. "I've always wanted to be in a band where I could play some jazz, and sing the songs I was influenced by when I was a kid, and do it the way I want to do it." As for the upcoming tour, Chaw will continue to draw inspiration from Project Sensation's free-spirited and casual ideals, and try to make each performance a unique one. He is also taking a different approach this time around – the tour will take him all over Malaysia for medium- and small-scale shows that will be almost like a full-fledged concerts, but much more intimate and music-oriented. "Most Chinese artistes, like me before, just do it in Bukit Jalil, but never go somewhere else like Kuching, Penang or Johor for a concert. I never understand that ... why force the fans to come down to KL to see us?" he said. "For this year's tour, I want to do something new – I don't want the fans to come to KL, I'm going to go TO them!" Organised by GS Group, the Gary Chaw Sensationally Live Tour Malaysia 2013 will kick off on Sept 14, 8pm, at Menara PGRM in Kuala Lumpur. Tickets are priced at RM368, RM248, RM188 and RM98. The prices stated do not include the RM3 handling charge.Tickets can be purchased via any Ticket-Charge outlets. For more information call 03-9222 8811 or visit www.ticketcharge.com.my. |
| Posted: Taiwanese artiste Michelle Chen's debut album is her pet project, which takes listeners into her private realm. TAIWANESE starlet Michelle Chen Yan Xi is quite the contrary to her perceived public persona. Chen's charming smile and cutesy girl-next-door demeanour often endears her to many, but beyond her gentle disposition lies someone who is no pushover and clearly knows what she wants to achieve. With gutsy determination and perseverance, the 30-year-old took to writing her own songs during her initial years in showbiz. Now, almost six years later, Chen has released her first studio album, which she had written mostly by herself, a dream come true for the actress who's aspired for a singing career. Chen, who rose to fame as the sweet-faced schoolgirl in the 2011 Taiwanese sleeper-hit You Are The Apple Of My Eye – a role which had gained her a Best Actress nomination at the 48th Golden Horse Awards in 2011 – says she never forgot her singing ambition and love for music, even though she'd been immersed in acting for the last six years. The album, Me, Myself And I, is a play on sarcasm about being alone, and offers a peek at her baring her soul. It contains 10 tracks, five of which are self-penned and the rest co-composed with friends. "Every song tells a story about my life, my experiences, and thoughts on love and family relationships, which I feel will help people know the real Michelle Chen," said the porcelain-skinned actor/singer during a press conference in Kuala Lumpur. It was her first time in Malaysia meeting fans as part of her promo tour, presented by Universal Music Malaysia. "I started writing after returning from the United States (for studies) in 2008, but I was new then and no one would compose songs for me. "The music industry was lagging somewhat at that point, so I was advised to give acting a try, just to get a breakthrough, though it wasn't my first love," she added in her decent, almost fluid English learnt from her university days abroad. So, what's the real Michelle Chen like in person? By her own admission, she's a positive person, but she's also quick to admit that she is quite the walking contradiction. "I am sensitive yet rationale at the same time. Sensitive, because I consider myself to be emotional about love, and feelings of others and my own, but sensibility creeps in when I know that I put work above everything else." While she may be sensitive about her musical endeavours, Chen says she is usually not so when it comes to scrutiny of her acting performances. "With this album, I might be sensitive with comments, good or bad. That's because this is something I really care about and it was to prove to myself that I could to do it. "I find it important to absorb feedback, so that I can improve on my flaws, and turn them into positive energy to channel into my next album," she philosophised. The graduate from the University of Southern Carolina, who majored in marketing and minored in fine arts, says both acting and singing are two very different mediums: acting calls for her to be in the shoes of a scripted character while singing allows her to sometimes share personal stories with her voice. "Singing is still new to me. I never expected the kind of attention paid to my singing, but I guess my songwriting and composition gave people something to talk about. "The feeling is strange now that my album is out, because I've wanted to do this for so long. But I'm happy I managed to release this before turning 30." On the album's direction, she said it is essentially pop, but differs from the typical Chinese pop that fills the airwaves. Western influences abound, with edgy nuances to the songs, some of which are in English. Media members were also quick to zoom in on her love life. Flashing her winsome smile, she coyly answered that she will leave things to fate but feels that it is important for two people in a relationship to be happy. To relax, she goes for dinners with friends and family, and enjoys a spot of karaoke. As for her musical "skills," they are limited, as she can only play a bit of guitar and piano. Any musings on her life now that she's hit 30? For one, Chen wishes that she will have more control over her life and learn to live it at a slower pace. "This is not my preferred lifestyle; I'd like to find a better balance between work and personal life. Hopefully, people can relate to the warm feelings and hopeful endings that my songs evoke, which is to continuously stay positive even if you are at a loss," she concluded. Michelle Chen's Me, Myself and I is available at CD Rama and Speedy outlets nationwide. For enquiries, call 03-7958 7433. |
| Posted: Rock legends Ann and Nancy Wilson stand the test of time. The Seattle-bred band Heart is a classic-rock legend with its music still in regular rotation, pioneer status among women in rock and membership in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But the band, led by sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson (ages 63 and 59 respectively), isn't just riding the coattails of a catalogue of hits that began with 1970s rock staples such as Barracuda, Magic Man, Crazy On You, Dog & Butterfly and Straight On. Nor is Heart content to rely on slick, chart-topping, 1980s arena power ballads such as These Dreams, What About Love and Alone. But after spending a sizable portion of the 1990s and much of the 2000s with side projects such as the acoustic-driven Lovemongers, Heart has so far kept the 2010s action-packed. Following a six-year recording break, the band released Red Velvet Car in 2010, earning its first Billboard Top 10 album in 20 years, along with the DVD Night At Sky Church. Heart hit the road for a yearlong tour of the United States and Canada, and followed that up with a successful co-headlining jaunt with Def Leppard in the summer of 2011. The band continued its revitalisation in 2012 with a box set of hits, live cuts and demos called Strange Euphoria, and the Wilson sisters' bestselling memoir, Kicking And Dreaming: A Story Of Heart, Soul, And Rock And Roll, co-written with Charles R. Cross. The book follows the sisters from their childhood through the 1970s, when they spent considerable energy fending off the advances of famous and infamous suitors, and answering endless stupid questions about their ability to be women who rock; and in the 1980s, when they succumbed to the pressure to be sexy, cleavage-bearing hit makers, which brought them their biggest commercial if not creative success. "Preparing our book made me realise how many deep challenges we have faced over the years," Ann Wilson said by e-mail from the tour, where preserving her voice is paramount. "And that, in almost all cases, I would do things no differently." Last fall, Heart released its 14th studio album, the rocking Fanatic, which made the Billboard Top 25 and peaked at No 12 on rock albums chart. Heart wrapped up a superb 2012 by going viral. During the annual televised Kennedy Centers Honors ceremony, the band performed Led Zeppelin's Stairway To Heaven, complete with strings, a choir and tour mate Jason Bonham on drums. The performance not only drew a standing ovation from the crowd and the band's surviving members, but has garnered more than six million hits on YouTube. Also in 2012, Heart was chosen for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, an honour that many fans believed should have been bestowed closer to the band's first year of eligibility back in 2001, but Ann Wilson feels otherwise. "It was a great honour to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," Ann said. "I personally felt the timing was perfect. I think our true eligibility had a lot to do with our latter-day albums, Red Velvet Car and Fanatic. Certainly the work of the '80s had little to do with us as artistes. I was greatly thrilled and pleased it happened when it did." Ann, who mentioned the Moody Blues as another band long overdue for induction, is clearly proud of Heart's recent musical activity. Fanatic, made with co-producer Ben Mink, is a rock record with Ann still in control of her big voice, and her harmonies with Nancy still ring clear. The songs, all co-written by the Wilson sisters, mix tough mid-tempo rock riffage in tunes such as the title track and Dear Old America, with the folk influences that marked their early albums on Walkin' Good, a duet between Nancy Wilson and Sarah McLachlan. Rock may not be the dominant force in mainstream pop music that it was back when the Wilson sisters were threatening to go Crazy On You. Other genres including hip-hop, EDM, dance music, indie folk and the increasing hybridisation of styles are what's being hyped and downloaded. Add the fact that seemingly anyone with a decent laptop, a few choice pieces of software and a little bit of talent can quickly become a buzzed-about "artiste" before ever playing a show, and the current music landscape may seem a bit scattered for folks who grew up in the major-label era. But Ann said having rock not be at the top of the pop heap could be the best thing for it. "I believe that rock is at its most vital when it does not rule the mainstream. Rock is at its most vital in rebellion," she said. As for the democratisation of music brought on in part by the Internet and affordable music-making software, Ann is a bit less sanguine: "When everyone is an 'artiste' then no one is a particularly good artiste. While the democratisation of the process does put a guitar or paintbrush in the hand of every man, it takes the uniqueness out of the form, and nothing is special." She continued: "From a music business aspect, the live performance is more important than ever. That is good because not just anyone can succeed in the reality of live art." – Akron Beacon Journal/McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
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