Enjoying the sounds of Asia live

By Brontë H. Lacsamana, Reporter

Concert Review
ASIYA Asian Music Festival and Conference
Oct. 12
World Trade Center, Pasay City

WITH THE boom of music streaming platforms leading to an ease of discovering songs and artists from all over the world, the Philippines recently saw a unique music festival that is the first of its kind in the country.

ASIYA, pronounced “I see ya” with an A, brought together musicians and festival organizers from around the region to perform as well as to discuss the shifting music landscape across Asia.

The likes of Filipino pop girl group BINI, South Korean indie rock band HYUKOH, and Taiwanese jazz synth-pop band Sunset Rollercoaster were headliners. The conference section of the festival held keynote talks and panel discussions from representatives of different music festivals such as Japan’s Fuji Rock and Summer Sonic, South Korea’s Busan Rock, Hong Kong’s Clockenflap, and Singapore-based traveling festival AXEAN.

Organized by Filipino events production company Karpos Multimedia, already known for helming the annual outdoor music and arts festival Wanderland, the live music portion was an interesting showcase of Asian artists.

The two-day event was held on Oct. 12 and 13, each day commencing with the conferences at 10 a.m. up to 2:30 p.m., then proceeding with the highly anticipated live music section from 3 p.m. all the way to midnight. Conference tickets and concert tickets were sold separately.

BusinessWorld attended the live music section of the first day of the festival, which began with Filipino multi-instrumentalist Gabba showing off his distinct guitar riffs and rhythmic drumming sensibilities in a full set. This was followed by Thai solo act Numcha, bringing an indie pop flavor to the show with her delicate yet catchy hits like “Keep Cold” and “Dirty Shoes.”

Filipino singer-songwriter Reese Lansangan continued the chill vibe with her folk-pop tunes. Now based in Japan, the performance at ASIYA was a special homecoming of sorts for the musician, who brought with her a solid full band.

Next up was Malaysian indie trio Babychair, performing for the first time in the Philippines, with easygoing hits like “Oh It’s You” warming up the cold indoor venue at the World Trade Center. Filipino funk pop band Flu turned it up a notch and kept the crowd dancing with their set, at one point calling Numcha back onstage for a song they did together this year, called “I’ll Be Mine.”

There was a notable jump in energy when Japanese pop singer Imase took the stage, his danceable tunes “Nagisa” and “Night Dancer” keeping the audience pumping. He also hyped up the crowd with his cheerful antics and occasional prepared Filipino notes — one of which praised the local creamy vegetable dish gising-gising as his favorite so far during this trip.

Filipino electronic band UDD continued the dance party atmosphere, with R&B singer ZOYA joining them as they performed their recent collaboration, “Kapoy.”

When South Korean indie soloist Colde came on, a lot of girls started screaming, his reputation as a Korean R&B powerhouse preceding him (though before this, he was known by a handful as half of the sadly now-disbanded hiphop duo Offonoff). Colde’s full set finished very strongly, alternating between soulful singing and energetic rap with hits like “Control Me,” “I Color You,” “WA-R-R,” “After Everything,” and “Star.” He ended with “Dance,” a little treat for the longtime Offonoff fans.

After that, the iconic Filipino rock band Urbandub brought in a warm embrace of local music, with popular tunes such as “First of Summer” and “Evidence” comprising their nostalgic set.

The day-one headliners, however, easily stole the night. Seoul-based rock outfit HYUKOH and Taipei-based synth-pop act Sunset Rollercoaster collaborated on a short album titled AAA earlier this year, a rare meeting of minds of two of the best indie artists in Asia today. It was HYUKOH’s first time to perform in the Philippines — long overdue since they are a pillar of the K-rock niche — while it was Sunset Rollercoaster’s second visit, after Wanderland last year.

Entering under the spotlight as a super-collective with about nine members onstage, they ensured that the soundscape was ready for them, with rumbling sounds pulled from their collaboration album welcoming them. All of them wore quirky animal-inspired headpieces and clothing, making them look endearingly caricaturish under the colorful stage lights.

They opened with a rock version of Johann Debussy’s “Clair de Lune,” which led into “Kite War,” an epic and rich symphony of synth keyboards and saxophone which opened their joint album. Towards the end, it satisfyingly exploded into a full-on rock track with the guitarists going crazy, and was even better than how it sounded on the record.

“Burgundy Red,” a Sunset Rollercoaster tune, followed to provide a calm before the storm that was their collaboration hit track “Young Man,” a high-energy crowd pleaser. The heaviest rock performances of the set were this writer’s favorite part, all HYUKOH songs: “Flat dog,” “Wanli,” and “New Born,” featuring guitar-led crescendoes that glowed red under stage lights. “Y” was another standout, again from the two bands’ joint album, the six-minute groovy jam session of the bunch highlighted by a beautiful saxophone solo bouncing off the bass.

To close, they pleased the crowd with a one-two punch — HYUKOH’s romantic ballad “LOVE YA!,” which lead singer Oh Hyuk dedicated to the crowd, and Sunset Rollercoaster’s “My Jinji,” a memorable viral hit that was most people’s introduction to the band, which lead singer Tseng Kuo-Heng dubbed the AAA version. Needless to say, the audience went wild for them.

While most Filipinos tend to think of K-pop and Japanese anime songs when asked about Asian music outside of the Philippines, the landscape is definitely growing with the democratization of music production and the advent of online music streaming. ASIYA’s conference section is proof of this, with topics like “Beyond the Pops of East Asia” and “New Favorites of Southeast Asia” among the panel discussions held during the two-day event.

It’s only right that this developing synergy is being cultivated by music festivals and event organizers, with the artists themselves doing collaborations of their own, like Filipino band Flu with Thai soloist Numcha, and South Korean band HYUKOH with Taiwanese band Sunset Rollercoaster. This era of music is exciting to behold.