Taiwan is known for many things – boba tea, Night Markets, Braised Beef Noodles, and not being recognized by the UN.
What I learned in 2021 was that it is also home to an up and coming rock scene. One of the standouts from the 2021 virtual SXSW shows for me was the Chairs – their low key retro ’50s-’60s rock vibes really resonated with me. Fast forward to 2023 and the group finally made it to these shores as part of Taiwanese night at SXSW.
A large crowd at Elysium greeted the group, who wasted no time diving into their groovy weekend dreamy pop tune “Every Day is Sunday”. The Chairs’ set consisted of songs that remind me of a nice hot summer afternoon sitting by the chill resort hotel pool with friends. It’s got relaxed vibes with occasional harmonizing vocals, sometimes in multiple languages – music that just puts you at ease.
The crowd swayed and swooned with the group thoughout the set, ending off with their lead single “Rollin On” which inspired a bit of a sing along.
Good times were had.