Thanks for that…sometimes, on some threads, I forget I’m on Forumosa and need to be reminded of the fact.
Some call it blues, some call it jazz, some call it country, some call it hillybilly swing – the Muddy Basin Ramblers love to it play it all.
muddybasin.com/
王宏恩
youtube.com/watch?v=6iyMoJEz … re=related
youtube.com/watch?v=4AE4NNTt … _embedded#
mymedia.yam.com/m/352643
Simple, natural but irresistible, that is the power of Biung’s songs. As a young man from the aboriginal Bunun tribe of Taiwan, Biung writes and sings his songs in his mother language as if he is a…
Biung- The Hunter- Buklavu / 王宏恩- 獵人- 布谷拉夫 youtube.com/watch?v=PkrMQ-G64jQ
Biung- Biung- Happy Together / 王宏恩- Biung- 歡聚歌 youtube.com/watch?v=aBuw109GnYs&feature=fvw
王宏恩-戰舞 youtube.com/watch?v=MuqCHxuwWBA
王宏恩 巴冷公主 KTV youtube.com/watch?v=5SnLTcNZ2yw
A-mei
She was born in the rugged mountains of eastern Taiwan and is the third youngest of nine siblings. A-mei made her debut in the world of music in 1996, achieving instant commercial success. She has frequently been called a diva of the Mandarin pop music scene, as well as the “Pride of Taiwan”. She has won numerous music awards and is extremely popular within Mandarin-speaking world.
youtube.com/watch?v=LJlHxWr1 … re=related
Thanks for all the recommendations! You guys rock. Now I’ll have lots of music to remind me of Taiwan while I’m at home for Christmas. :bravo:
If you like Wu Bai you might also like Di Ke Niu Zai.
Fan Shou Qu Ai ( 放手去爱 ) - youtube.com/watch?v=leiJLKHEx6o
Ai Wo DE Ren He Wo Ai De Ren ( 爱我的人和我爱的人 ) - youtube.com/watch?v=bIdDREW-Weo
He’s not Taiwanese (although he lives here, I think), but I also quite like Ah Niu…
Mamak档 - 阿牛 youtube.com/watch?v=jfgMGOOJ … re=related
This is one of my favourites - 我和我的四個妹妹 youtube.com/watch?v=IX2nHON5 … re=related
This is another (Ah Niu) one I really like. It’s an oldie, so you may have heard it. If not, here you go!
阿牛- 對面的女孩看過來 youtube.com/watch?v=GX5GcdIo … re=related
I like the Taiwanese oldies stations that the taxi drivers always listen to (you know the Japanese style ballads with all the vibrato singing). Not sure how to track down any of that style of music though. I suppose I could utilize the girlfriend or steal some vinyl off the walls of one of those traditional tea houses.
Wu Bai is the shizz though, kinda like a Taiwanese Bon Jovi but not a total douche. I want to see one of his shows sometime.
I think there might be a few ok indie rock bands in taiwan…hang out at the wall and ask around…I’m a hip-hop guy so i’m screwed…Taiwanese hip hop is terrible…i’ve yet to hear anything worth listening to
I used to be a huge fan of Jay Chou.
He had great work always, just the last 2 or 3 cd’s he seems to loose his touch.
Check him out anyway, very recognizable sound.
You can pick out other bands he produced right aways as being “his style”.
Now he has more aspiration to become a movie actor but if you ask me, he sucks at that.
I like Malaysian Chinese Michael. Not very productive anymore. Might be too sweet for your likings though. Listen to Tiger Huang, Little Yellow Tiger. The women is a bitch, even to her own fans, but a very good singer. You can even see her perform live every Thursday at a bar on AnHe. Worth the money. Also good are Faye Wong (or Wong Faye, whatever), A Mei, Wang Lee Homo and Sodagreen (not this years work).
If you can stand that constant babbling of those dj’s at ICRT, thats where you can bump into good stuff and probably read a play list somewhere too. Another station is Kiss FM, but fully in Mandarin. My cd collection is 2/3 in Mandarin and with that I am considered a nut case in Holland. Now living in Taiwan I found out that many Taiwanese who tend to hang out with foreigners mostly are not into Mandarin music either but often even have a thing for classical music. So be it… Amazing you love KTV’s, I can’t stand them, no matter what language they sing in.
:happybiker:
Do you understand Chinese, and or Taiwanese for that matter? That would be an essential first component of getting your head around the local hip hop, surely. MC Hotdog’s cool as the drool.
Umm, technically, that might not be hip hop. Life’s just so confusing nowadays.
HG
[quote=“FransInTaiwan”]Amazing you love KTV’s, I can’t stand them, no matter what language they sing in.
[/quote]
What’s wrong with KTV? I like the idea of singing with people you know rather than in front of a roomful of total strangers. Well, actually, I would enjoy singing in front of a roomful of strangers, but that’s just me. 
Do you understand Chinese, and or Taiwanese for that matter? That would be an essential first component of getting your head around the local hip hop, surely. MC Hotdog’s cool as the drool.
Umm, technically, that might not be hip hop. Life’s just so confusing nowadays.
HG[/quote]
I do speak Chinese but not well enough to decipher hip hop lyrics…I have however had some translated and still not impressed…the fact is even most people back home can’t understand what american mc’s are saying (other than the catchy chorus) so content to most people isn’t the way they judge music…and I know thousands of taiwanese are bopping their heads to the latest Jay-z track and you can’t tell me they know what he’s saying…so, even if the lyrical content of Taiwanese Mc’s is notable, they should write essays cause the production of the music just isn’t there…
Zhang Zhen Yue. I have detractors, but he’s good.
I have a Singaporean friend who I used to share music with. Whoever went to Asia bought a bunch of cd’s and we both enjoyed that a lot. One of the artists was always Jay Chao. Though my friends mother tongue is Mandarin, he could barely understand a word of Jay’s babbeling. I heard the same from several Taiwanese people.
Makes one wonder how important understanding really is. For me personally it doesn’t at all. I enjoy the brilliant mix (or “fusion” if you like) of Jay’s use of Eastern and Western instruments and music styles. Nobody could do that better than him.
English songs off course I sort of do understand, but I have to admit; I never pay much attention to what they sing, if you can decode their real meaning at all. I remember it took me at least ten years to find out that the Police was singing about a hooker in the song Roxanne. 
I went a couple of years back and totally disappointed. Expecting solid stadium rock with all the classic tunes, lots of memorable riffs, but it was all wispy and folksy and never seemed to get under way properly. Towards the end it all got a bit weird with a Britney Spears style line dance troupe getting involved, with WB as Britney in the middle.
They had a couple guest acts (interspersed through the performance, oddly). One was Yang Nai Wen and she’s tops. (Australian I think, so doesn’t count for this thread?)