Taiwan Grooves

Hello and welcome! Today, we'll explore some K-rock! We have Mamasay Records in the studio, bringing three of their bands to showcase and tour around Taiwan, including BESTFRIEND, deLight, and jinsungyoon. We'll discuss the label's mission, what sets them apart, why BESTFRIEND is based in Osaka, and how bands are selected to be managed.  Mamasay Records, a South Korean music label, is differe...

Today, we will continue our discussion about learning the guitar with Drew. Building on our conversation from last week's episode, we will explore which guitar players have had the greatest influence on his playing style. Additionally, Drew will share his personal teaching philosophy and offer some special advice on how to manage performance anxiety. Growing up in a musical household, music was al...

Welcome to today's episode! Today, I'm joined by Drew, who will be sharing his guitar journey — from being a student to teaching others, offering insights and tips he’s picked up along the way to play more efficiently. We'll dive into how he got started with music, how he began sharing his knowledge, his transition to creating online content, and the inspiration he drew from Japanese s...

Join me and Tanner Williams from The Co-Pilots for the second part of our interview about his band. In this episode, Tanner will break down his latest single for us. We'll also discuss the sound of their upcoming album, the impact of AI music on the industry, and the challenges Tanner faces with his new bandmates. The Co-Pilots are an independent rock project based in Taipei, originally from Pensa...

In today's episode, I am joined by Tanner Williams, a member of The Co-Pilots. We will discuss the band’s lineup changes, the origins of The Co-Pilots, and their move to Taiwan. Additionally, Tanner shares how he took up piano as a guitarist, their debut at a festival in southern Taiwan, and the difference between playing in closed venues versus festivals. The Co-Pilots are an independent ro...

Welcome to the second part of our interview with sitar maestro, Yo, and erhu virtuoso, T.S. Today, they will share with us their favorite experience performing, tell us the origin and background of two of their songs, what kind of rituals they follow, and their plans to play abroad more.  Wooonta is a Taiwanese world music ensemble renowned for their innovative fusion of traditional Eastern i...

Today's episode of Taiwan Grooves will feature two talented musicians who bring us a special combination - sitar and erhu. The duo, T.S. Lo and Yo, will teach us about their instruments of choice, story how they got to playing them, and the origins of the band.  Wooonta is a Taiwanese world music ensemble renowned for their innovative fusion of traditional Eastern instruments and diverse musi...

Welcome to the second part of our interview with The Church of Loops. Brian and John will take us through one of their songs, talk about jamming out songs from scratch and improvisation, and we will also brainstorm ideas for pushing music to reach new listeners.  The Church of Loops creates original music by improvising with loop stations, beatboxing, vocal harmonies, MIDI controlle...

For today's episode, I am joined by two creative minds from The Church of Loops, Brian and John. In part I, we will discuss how they picked the right name for the duo, evolution of their sound and how they develop improvisation skills during life performances.  The Church of Loops creates original music by improvising with loop stations, beatboxing, vocal harmonies, MIDI controllers, and vari...

Welcome to the second part of our interview with Maxwell Lee, a singer, songwriter and composer from the U.S. In this episode, we will talk about some of his past performances, various projects he is involved in and his songs.  In 2022, Maxwell Lee moved to Taipei after being awarded a Gold Card from the Taiwan Ministry of Culture for excellence in the arts. He maintains a busy performing sch...

Join us in today’s episode as I sit down with Max to talk about his journey from classical training to creating his own sound. We will look into his perspective on classical training, letting go of perfection, and his inspiring return to music with more freedom and joy after a hiatus. In 2022, Maxwell Lee moved to Taipei after being awarded a Gold Card from the Taiwan Ministry of Culture for...

Join in to the second episode of interesting chats with a Taiwanese singer, songwriter and producer, Everydaze. Today we will dive into topics such as his significant trip to L.A. and his most recent album - Daze.  Deeply influenced by multiple genres such as Bedroom-Pop, Indie-Pop, R&B, and so-on, Everydaze’s music is a mixture of retro and modern sound, layered by rich g...

In today's episode I am joined by Everydaze, a Taiwanese singer, songwriter and producer. Together we will look at how one can pursue music career with no music education, writing songs in English. We will also briefly talk about the song Blur and also find out if Everydaze is still producing for other artists. Additionally, we will address  how self sufficient one can be when makin...

Join into a single episode with Indonesian rapper Mario Zwinkle from Megaport Festival in Kaohsiung. We had an interview after his performance where he shared what brought him to Megaport, origin of getting into rap music, process of writing lyrics as well as what we can expect from Mario in the upcoming months. Besides this, Mario will enlighten us about his rituals and religious discip...

Welcome to the second part of meeting members of That's My Shhh at Megaport Festival. This episode wraps up the interview, including stories of how one gets in and some fan interactions.  That’s My Shhh was originally developed in 2015 as an event to break down walls between musicians and dancers, and provide Taiwanese artists a safe space where they could be creatively free, void of re...

In today's episode, I will be interviewing all 14 members from That's My Shhh (TMS) at one of the biggest music festivals in Taiwan - Megaport Festival. The first episode will include introduction of the members and what this collaboration is about, their view on Taiwanese music industry, their cross-collaboration, and finding balance in presenting every individual. That’s My Shhh was o...

Welcome to the second episode of exploring Pagan folk music with two members of Flint And Steel - Dusla and Era, two Live Action Role Players, who decided to create their own music that would fit their stories. In this episode we will talk about releasing albums, their plan to upgrade their live performances and how to go about promoting music. Towards the end, we will shift the foc...

Join our today's episode, where I will be interviewing two LARP enthusiasts and story writers, Era and Dusla, who will share the motivation behind the band, their own created language and past musical experience, their favorite experience, and they will also describe two of their songs.  Flint and Steel (逐火) is a pagan folk band from Taiwan. We blend historical music with fantasy eleme...

Greetings and join us in the second part of understanding music of the earth with King Sing and Falk. This time we will talk about their favorite performance, creative strategies to gain more exposure and journey of producing their recent album. The band 大地之歌 (Sonus de Gaia) was founded in 2016 by Taiwanese guitarist King Sing, who invited José to Taiwan to...

Hello and welcome! In today’s episode, I am excited to introduce you to two members of Sonus de Gaia, King Sing and Falk. We'll discuss the band's inception, how the two members came together and their musical backgrounds. We’ll also briefly touch on the types of music and languages that influence Sonus de Gaia, as well as how rehearsing and producing new music works among the internat...

Tune into the second part of interviewing Urban Fungus! In this one, we will be covering his songwriting inspiration, how a song comes to life, his attitude towards making music and potential future plans for Bouzouki dub. Urban Fungus aka Petr Danda is a Czech architect and musician interested in psychedelic music.  His main project, in a classic band formation, could be labeled as...

In today's episode, Urban Fungus shares his inspiration that shaped two projects he has been working on, origins of him coming across an ancient Greek instrument and future projects of the band. Urban Fungus aka Petr Danda is a Czech architect and musician interested in psychedelic music.  His main project, in a classic band formation, could be labeled as hazy, sun-infused psychedelic rock, a...

Are you curious on what it is like to be a composer? Do you need some motivation and valuable advice to get you started on creating music? Then tune into today's episode, where we will be discussing different work that Mitch has worked on,  Mitch Lin is a Taiwanese composer with a Master of Music degree in film scoring from New York University, and is currently a Lecturer at the Music In...

Mitch Lin is a Taiwanese composer with a Master of Music degree in film scoring from New York University, and is currently a Lecturer at the Music Institute of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (Taiwan). Mitch Lin has been immersed in music for over 25 years. His music is full of elegant melody, colourful harmony, and blends a wide range of genres. Specializing in orchestral music, his soun...

Welcome to the second part of the interview with Chen Yi-heng (陳以恆), who recently released a new album titled "can cancan cancancan." In this segment, we will discuss his future plans, the importance of speaking Taiwanese, and the roles of branding and marketing for artists. Chen Yi-heng, living in Taipei, likes to tell foreign friends that he is from Anping, Tainan. Traveling back and forth be...