They're one of my favorite bands, so I searched and found this:
"China Crisis live at the PICC
a night filled with good music
inspired by the downtown lights and the night spectacle of the bay area
the strains of their music still echoing in my head
oh, and I got lights in my brain
tragedy and mystery
"Saint Kevin taught me how
John the boxer is braver now
Phil the captain of the cause
Fight for right, for what is yours"
- Highest High
Certainly poignant terms when compared to senseless drivel like "It’s getting hot in here, so take off all your clothes." It’s funny when you think about it. There are no longer groups, like China Crisis, whose voice is not just of the fleeting and ephemeral kind and whose meaning is as significant as the musical sincerity that they wore on their sleeves. The pop or pap that the kids of today are tuning to rarely possesses the quality of the kind of music that we used to have back in the glory days. The lyrics are rarely as affecting as back then when bands, groups and artists (when they can still be referred truly as such and not just the performers that their counterparts are today) stood for something and all conveyed importance and implication, either in general or in introspective personal lights. Now we just have futile, trifling and utterly atrocious manufactured bollocks. People who just rattle on about their fast cars, the gorgeous ‘booty’ of their women, how much money they possess and how tough they are. Hey, if one is indeed rough and tough then there is no utter need to sing about it. Aside from this prevalence of adverse machismo is the fact that people no longer hold much importance to music the way we used to. Add to this the sheer number of assembly line type of contrived music and voila … we now have a very depressing scenario on our hands.
When I learned that China Crisis was coming to our cursed shores, I was instantly thrilled by the prospect. Being part of the groups that I grew up to, the band that Gary Daly and Eddie Lundon helmed was a significant part of my life. Their melodies and poetry gave me wonderful insights, fueled my desires, inspired my prose, lit up my world, destroyed my sense and sensibility, built it up again and ultimately provided me with the necessary anthems that my youth needed. Needless to say, although I was not much a big fan of them back in the 80’s as I was more ravaged by the ragged and dark beauty of groups like Joy Division or New Order, they were memorable heroes of the past who came back now to haunt me. And being aware of the fact that they were influenced by and once opened for the Dislocation Dance, a very vital and imperative aspect of my musical life, is just a wonderful footnote that I can’t successfully ignore.
they worked with fire and skill
We arrived at the gates of the PICC just in the nick of time. We were greeted at the massive expanse of the lobby by a couple of friends who arrived before us. As we got inside and was situated on very good and quite strategic seats, we ever so gradually built up our anticipation. The show began without an opening act as China Crisis proceeded to lit up the entire hall with their bright music. The backup band once again did a very superb job evident as the strains of the first song, Strength Of Character, was up in the air. They were composed of notable local musicians like Rico Blanco (Rivermaya), Mark Escueta (Rivermaya), Zac Lucero (Imago) and Buddy Zabala (Eraserheads). They provided Gary and Eddie the right brand of percussive beats and jangle and chime that China Crisis was known for.
The sound was absolutely brill. I almost cannot distinguish the immediate differences between China Crisis as a live act and China Crisis on the records because Gary and Eddie’s voice are almost the same as they were back in the heydays. And the quality of the backup’s playing was absolutely stunning. They surely did us proud. The Crisis played their flagship and instantly recognizable songs like Tragedy And Mystery, African And White, Black Man Ray, King In A Catholic Style and the very huge Wishful Thinking. They were still the sophisticated band that I knew back then and the rendition of their classics were quite close to the originals that were put on vinyl and tape. Their more detached and not so familiar tunes, but equally great nonetheless, like Highest High, You Did Cut Me, Strength of Character and Gift Of Freedom were also fantastic numbers. The duo entertained their way through the songs with their deliciously witty remarks made all the more endearing because of the earnestness of their accents and tone of voice. They came back for an encore to the approving roars of the crowd.
wishful thinking
The experience was an unforgettable and rewarding one. Gary and Eddie still had it in them and the backup band gave them the right amount of support for them to pull it off without upstaging the duo. As we left PICC, we also left with our hearts filled, however corny it may seem, with a sense of being back in time. We had our nightcap meals somewhere in a fast food joint in the city and it felt like time stood still. All in all, that night was a memorable one and I can’t help but think that I was lucky for having seen them onstage even if I was fifteen years or so late. "
― Patrick South (Patrick South), Friday, 18 July 2003 13:54 (twenty-two years ago)
four years pass...
I totally confused them with Wang Chung in the '80s. So, are they another band like Talk Talk, who just seemed like a umpteenth-generation new wave pop band then, but are taken seriously by people now? (Or maybe they were actually big stars in the UK back then? I had no idea until just this second that they could somebody's favorite band. But then, I guess every band is somebody's favorite, right?)
― xhuxk, Monday, 14 April 2008 00:58 (eighteen years ago)
four years pass...
one year passes...
four years pass...