Green!Eyes , Cicada

Green!Eyes is a Taiwan indie band that’s been active roughly 8 years. The band was, is, and probably will never be big due to the fact that these cool dudes hate commercial marketing and purposely avoid public attention. Interestingly, all of Green!Eyes songs are composed in English, which are much more affluential from an international perspective. After a couple of listenings, it is obvious that the band’s style is heavily influenced by indie rock, soft-rock, jazz, country/folk and definitely lo-fi with their recording model. I personally found Green!Eyes have a very mature performing style in various live recordings. Their live songs are naturally mesmerizing: sophisticated guitar solos along with clever drumming encompass the vital vibe that differentiates the classic from the conventional, and Yu-Chen’s very distinct singing/hairstyle might be another factor that makes Green!Eyes stand out from norm.

Check them out if you are a hard-core rock fan who wants to start exploring indie and folk rock. This perfect interface band will tame your ears with funky drums and sweet sweet semi-jazz guitar, but just enough to keep your rock soul still intrigued by squeaky solos and clean bass-lines.

words by Nancy Chen

Cicada

Taiwanese female fronted chamber ensemble Cicada is led by the composer/pianist Jesy Chiang with members including Anne (violin), Wan-Ing (cello), and Wei-lun (guitar). They released the acclaimed EP "Over the Sea/Under the Water" following the debut performance as the opening act for Ólafur Arnalds' concert in Taipei in 2010,.

Cicada interwove the subtle sensitivity and delicacy to the composition. Its mixture of contemporary classical music and vague oriental feel is fresh sonic experience to listeners. Cicada is also known for its connection with artists in various areas. Each release features stunning cover art by rising female artists in Taiwan.

成軍於2009年，Cicada以鋼琴、木吉他、小提琴、大提琴四種樂器交織而成。之所以取名為Cicada（蟬）是因為，人們察覺到蟬的出現，往往是聽到牠們的聲音，而不是看見其形體。

樂團的核心人物是江致潔，自幼學習鋼琴，對創作有很高的熱忱。2011年，Cicada 的第一場公開演出，是為冰島鋼琴作曲家 Ólafur Arnalds 台北演唱會開場；2011年推出首張正式專輯《散落的時光》，創作概念延伸自2011年的EP《Over the Sea / Under the Water》；今年，Cicada最新發行的迷你專輯則是以「少女」為題，拆散既有編制，以輕巧的配器呈現截然不同的面貌。