 "Photo: Ashley Mattys and Patricck Camacho")
Last Tuesday, the BC Asian Caucus Community and the Korean Student Association presented "From Mind to Mic." The show, held in the intimate Cabaret Room of Vanderslice Hall, featured four different musical acts, all of which brought its own unique touch to the show.
Music resounded through Lower Campus as The Ides warmed up for the show. Students flooded into the Cabaret Room to the sound of electric guitars and keyboard. Right off the bat, it was evident that The Ides were not your typical musicians.
As soon as the show started, the band took the stage and got the show started with tremendous energy and showmanship. The band boasted a keyboardist, two guitarists, a bassist, drummer, and a DJ. While it was hard to discern the lyrics at times because of the mediocre acoustics in the Cabaret room, The Ides' frontman sounded excellent and unique, resembling a blend of Ben Gibbard, Howie Day, and a little Bright Eyes thrown in there.
The indie band's songs also gained much help through the electric beats and bizarre sound produced by the DJ. Often, the sounds were joined by a string of eerie sounds, almost like scratching and shrieking noises. At another point in the show, one of the guitarists busted out a violin and, playing with great energy, proceeded to break multiple bow hairs.
All in all, The Ides' unique style proved the evening's highlight.
Next, pianist Vudoo Soul came on. Vudoo Soul, a one-man show, sang three songs, two of which were love songs. Vudoo Soul is certainly a talented musician, as his voice is very soothing; however, for two of his songs, he was accompanied by a recording of other instruments while he played his piano. It would have been much better if he had teamed up with a few musicians, especially during parts when he decided to dance, since it seemed a little awkward. Despite this, Vudoo Soul managed to get the room dancing and clapping by the end of his set.
Kevin So, a talented guitarist and pianist, then took the crowd by storm. He accompanied his original songs with clever wit and good humor. At one point, So led into the song "New Sensation" by commenting that there needs to be more male Asian porn stars. The song then boasted lyrics like, "It's that sexy Asian / It's the new sensation / Fit for any occasion," and the crowd loved it. In his short set, So was able to get the crowd singing to his lyrics, which is often a hard thing for musicians to do. Unfortunately, the energy came down when So decided to play a 10-minute song entitled, "Day in the Life of Victor Wong." Though the song had a good message and upbeat music, it was much too long to keep the crowd's attention.
Finally, the evening ended with rapper Chan, who started his career in Boston. Fans of hip-hop would have loved his rap styling, but after the first three acts, Chan and his songs seemed a little out of place. It took the crowd awhile to get into the show, and it's debatable whether Chan throwing water on the crowd helped, but soon people began swaying to the beats.
As people filed out of the Cabaret Room, their enthusiasm was still palpable. As a whole, the musicians were on, the atmosphere was relaxed, and it was a great show.
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