The Face Me On Stage series, which have ignited Temple into beautiful glorious chaos over the past six months, got an upgrade last week, taking over the commodious digs at Yue Space. The contenders – the unhinged freewheeling punk stalwarts of Shanghai, Dirty Fingers, and the Beijing ska punk supergroup, Underdog, who emerged in the past year as one of Beijing’s best new acts. And the gamble paid off, as eager audiences surrounded the band pit like a musical Thunderdome of sorts. In actuality there was no malice between the two bands, and the styles couldn’t be any more different – as the frenzy of Dirty Finger’s frantic razor-edged singles was brought back down by Underdog’s lyrically smooth and tender horn-infused ska anthems – a clashing of styles and energies that in some ways emphasized the strengths of each band. A sugar rush of an evening that ended way too soon (after of course, the inevitable yet short-lived jam session between the two bands). But damn – what a rush. Hat tip to Fiona for the additional pictures as my camera finally crapped out and called it a day.
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