OK, I need to properly geek out in full about this video.



A while back I saw a movie I liked, "Candy Rain", and I liked the soundtrack, too, so I hunted that down. On the soundtrack, the standout song was by a band called Tizzy Bac. I'd noticed their CDs in shops because of their odd name, no Chinese version of it, and unique, artistic album cover art.

Soon after, I saw an ad for a live show on Valentine's Day that they were giving nearby to promote their 3rd and latest CD, so I made note to check them out. I thought they were good and I was intrigued. Not knowing their songs, I didn't get into it, but it was good enough for me to check them out further, so I bought their 2nd CD. I got their 3rd CD soon after and plan to pick up the 1st one. Their album titles are sentences, so there's no quick way to identify them by name. It's part of their artistic sensibility to not be like everyone else.

This video is for a song off the 2nd CD and I've been watching it repeatedly over the past several weeks, sending it to people trying to get them into it to no avail. They're considered an "underground" band here, so no wonder they don't appeal to mainstream tastes. Too bad, because I consider them quality with enough pop-like hook to draw in people if they gave them a chance.

When I saw them live, they were all dressed in black and white, wearing the same clothes as in their promo pic for the new CD (which I later realized was probably part of their subtle brand of quirky humor – the promo pic was movie screen size behind the stage, and I'm sure I'm not the only one in the audience who, during the course of the show, thought, "hey, they're wearing the same clothes!"). The singer was heavily eye-linered so she looked kind of goth, and they all seemed very serious.

But this video shows their humorous, quirky side, having fun, starting from the intro where the mystery man is standing on blocks to make him look taller, but you don't really notice that until he steps off and walks away after giving the folder to the singer. It's silly, subtle, what-the-hell? humor that I like.

The whole restaurant/toilet scene I thought was hilarious, especially the bassist's presentation of what was wrong with the drummer's gut, which could have been done more corny, but thankfully not. The shots in the toilet were painfully well-done and edited.

The chase scene speaks for itself with the bassist running out of the restaurant with his plate, and then the merry-go-round part of the chase with the singer trying to spur on her horse. I guess part of my appreciation is specialized since I recognize probably more than half of the places where they shot – including Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Taipei Children's Park, Xinyi Vieshow theater, Dazhi Bridge and Dajia riverside park where the climax of the song is, starting from 5:25 in the video.

After 3 years here, I've finally started running into some good music here, but this is the first band I've found to rave about. I don't know of any band anywhere that sounds like them, with the unique way she uses piano. They're not geared for the pop market with most of their songs exceeding 5 minutes with extended instrumental sections. Still, they have great melodies and emotional content. They're not like candy, where it sounds catchy but then it wears out. The catchiness of their melodies and hooks takes a few listens to sink in, but then they dig in deep.