Grumpy Old Men in Hong Kong
- art58koen
- 16 minutes ago
- 12 min read
Late October, the Dishonorable Edward Pastanga and I visited Wilhelmus von N's place, as we had been invited once again for a vinyl evening.
I had prepared myself by digging up some old singles and albums from my collection, as well as buying a new platter: Go Go Crankin’ - Paint The White House Black…
Afterwards, we sat down in his vinyl sanctuary, opened the beers, and started playing some discs, which is a kind of ancient ritual for us by now.
Most of the brought along 45s I couldn’t play as W’s record player missed one of those plastic adapters, but we still had more than enough music to enjoy.
Fuelled by copious amounts of beer, conversation typically went all over the place: Artificial Intelligence, politics, music, books, the mystery of the never-matching socks in our households, etc.
Suddenly, W announced that we hadn’t been to any real concert for a while, to which both DEP and I agreed, but didn’t have any suggestions at hand to rectify this sad state of affairs.
Not discouraged at all, W consulted his smartphone and suddenly exclaimed: “Oh, this is cool, Clockenflap Festival in Hong Kong, 5-7 December, we should go there!”
He shared the festival’s lineup with us, of which we recognised exactly two bands: Sparks and Franz Ferdinand…
Even so, we agreed that it really looked cool, and W immediately started booking tickets!
Other details, such as getting there + accommodation, we would look at later…
The rest of the evening continued as usual despite me having a hiccup attack, which was hilarious according to DEP and W.
Once sobered up the next day, I texted DEP: Did he really book tickets for that festival???
To which DEP replied: I think so… SHIT!!!!
It turned out that W had exactly done that, so we started by booking flights and hotels, which was relatively easy.
Both W and I had stayed at separate times during the previous century at Hong Kong’s infamous Chunking Mansions, which was not really an experience we’d like to revisit, to be honest.
Luckily, DEP used to work in Hong Kong for 8 years until recently, and therefore, he immediately became our (un)official guide, something he didn’t seem particularly pleased about.
Anyway, we all met at Suvarnabhumi Airport on the morning of December 5th and had coffee and snacks until it was time to board our plane.
For a relatively short flight, Hong Kong Express was an ok choice, but my knees weren’t that excited…
Upon arrival at the airport, DEP hauled a taxi, of which he had warned us in advance: “Taxi drivers there are all ancient and weird,” which became true in no time.
DEP and W immediately invaded the spacious back seats, which left me up front with my head against the ceiling…
Notwithstanding the discomfort, I was intrigued by the huge amount of knick-knacks in front of me; this collection outshone any Thai taxi driver’s…
More worrying was the driver’s habit of letting his head fall forward every three seconds, which made it look like that any moment he could fall asleep!
Surprisingly enough, we did arrive at the Shangri-La, where DEP and I shared a twin room.
As checking in took a long time, W decided to go ahead to his Holiday place nearby, where he discovered that his room had a wonderful view of the earlier-mentioned Chunking dump…
Around noon, we teamed up at W’s hotel and started looking for a decent place to score some food and beers, which was easily done at the Goose Island Taproom.
There we finally had a good look at the festival’s line-up and tried to pick some interesting bands for the rest of the day.
W’s also set up a Grumpy Old Men online group to share pics and more.
We took a bit of a scenic route, no thanks to DEP’s dubious guiding skills, but just being here in Hong Kong felt great.
In brief, we watched these bands/artists during our short stay:
Friday: Passenger, Sparks, Digitalism DJ-set
Saturday: Phum Viphurit, Chilli Beans, L’Imperatrice
Sunday: Marcin, Jeremy Zucker, TV Girl, Franz Ferdinand, Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Reviews further down...
Our overall impression was that the festival was very well organised (unlike some of the Dutch events I attended back in the day), very clean, plenty of toilets, food stands, beer taps, etc., impressive!
Day 1: After leaving the festival around midnight, we had been up since 4 am, had walked many tens of kilometers, and had nourished ourselves on mostly only beer.
So when W spotted an open local slop house restaurant/establishment, there should be no surprise that we all zoned in on the place like three zombies smelling fresh brains.
As is the case in these situations, the food could have been third-rate but tasted cordon bleu, so we classified it as first-rate food.
Washed with some more beer (by this time, any creativity to imbibe alternative liquids had been repressed in our subconscious, so when asked what we would like to drink, we all called out beer in unison like some deranged AI bot). This after midnight dinner deviation probably saved us from massive hangovers the next day!
Finally back in our room, I was enjoying a hot shower for half a minute, when suddenly everything went pitch-black…
No power failure, but just before DEP went to sleep or passed out, he managed to find the master switch of all the lights!
Day 2: Painfully frustrating (despite a successful record shop visit!), it became frightfully obvious that our decrepit bodies no longer could survive standing for more than 3 hours straight, no matter how much we shuffled around: lower back aches, leg cramps, and sore feet, our litany of complaints could have come from a bunch of pensioners in a nursing home.
Therefore, we sadly voted to skip Bloc Party’s performance as this was scheduled for several hours later…
Here too, afterwards we decided to have some snacks & drinks. It was before midnight, so W wanted a craft beer rather than any old beer.
It took a while to find something, but once we were seated and eating, W suddenly looked up and said to us: “Look, isn’t that the singer from Sparks?”
Indeed, just a table away from us were the Mael Brothers and a few ladies doing the same as us!
A little later, we briefly stopped at their table, just to tell them how much we had enjoyed their performance, and then left them in peace.
Not sure if this short interruption by ancient fans was appreciated, but it felt like the right thing to do!
W actually thought they did - they seemed to be genuinely appreciative of the positive comments - and in comparison, us as fans were quite young!
Day 3: We decided to give up on My Bloody Valentine and instead rest our broken bodies as this was the very last act and we had to catch the first 07.50 flight back to Bangkok the next day…
Even so, we considered this a very successful/hilarious trip worth repeating!
Also, the fact of W booking the tickets on the spur of the (drunken) moment was great, because we all agreed that if he hadn’t done this, the whole thing would have never happened!
THE REVIEWS:
Name: Passenger
Date Performing: Friday, 5 December 2025
Profile:
Forever synonymous with his 2012 megahit ‘Let Her Go’, which has racked up more than 6 billion plays across YouTube and Spotify, British singer-songwriter Michael David Rosenberg has built a career on crafting bittersweet indie-folk ballads that tug tenderly at the heartstrings. Under the moniker Passenger, the prolific Rosenberg has released 13 studio albums stretching from 2007’s ‘Wicked Man's Rest’ to 2022’s ‘Birds That Flew and Ships That Sailed’ while performing tours across six continents. Don’t miss his first-ever show in Hong Kong.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Entertaining acoustic stuff, good interaction with the public.
Wilhelmus von N: If you like buskers, you like Passenger. It takes courage to be alone with a guitar on stage. Knows how to involve the crowd, but there is only so much you can do with a guitar to really get the crowd going.
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Chatty. He enjoyed sharing his new stuff, but no one in the crowd really recognized any of it. This became more obvious when he got a huge roar near the end when he played the only song everyone knew. Can imagine it gets tiring to play one song all the time, although he put on a brave face, claiming he enjoyed playing it.
Name: Sparks
Date Performing: Friday, 5 December 2025
Profile:
An influence on everyone from Queen and the Pet Shop Boys to Björk and Duran Duran, brothers Ron and Russell Mael—aka Sparks—have been at the cutting edge of art-pop for more than half a century. From the electro-disco sounds of 1970s hits ‘This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us’ and ‘The Number One Song in Heaven’, to the Giorgio Moroder-inspired synth-pop of the ‘80s, to the supergroup FFS that they formed with Franz Ferdinand in 2017, the duo have blazed a shimmering trail for creative envelope-pushing and genre-defying eclecticism. Making their Hong Kong debut on the back of this year’s ‘Mad!’, their 26th studio album, Sparks are guaranteed to beguile.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Epic stuff! But how can Russell Mael (77!) jump around on stage like that? And Ron Mael doing his Suburban Homeboy shuffle was priceless!
Wilhelmus von N: I just want to age like Russell. They played an amazing set!
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Excellent fun from the very off when they sang "Shall we start?". Great show, good music. Embarrassing for the grumpy old men who, quite rightly, avoid jumping around like that, especially in public.
Name: Digitalism DJ set
Date Performing: Friday, 5 December 2025
Profile:
One of the leading lights of the wave of anarchic electro acts that dominated the club scene at the end of the Noughties—alongside the likes of Boys Noize, MSTRKRFT and The Bloody Beetroots—German duo Digitalism have been packing out dancefloors around the world for more than twenty years. Across four studio albums, from 2007’s ‘Idealism’ to 2019’s ‘JPEG’, as well as countless explosive live shows, Jens Moelle and İsmail Tüfekçi have turned blending electro-house, dance punk, and electronic rock into an art form. Don’t miss their DJ set when they play Clockenflap for the very first time.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: DJ shite
Wilhelmus von N: Forgettable. Which I apparently did instantly.
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Don't recall them. Must have been thinking about anything else.
Name: Phum Viphurit
Date Performing: Saturday, 6 December 2025
Profile:
With a sound that blends indie-rock with neo-soul and folk, singer-songwriter Viphurit Siritip (better known by his nickname, Phum) is one of the most exciting acts to have emerged from the Thai music scene in recent years. He debuted with the album ‘Manchild’ in 2017, but it was the 2018 single ‘Lover Boy’ that really made people sit up and take notice, racking up more than 200 million plays across Spotify and YouTube. He last played Hong Kong in April 2023 in support of his second album, ‘The Greng Jai Piece’, so if you missed him then, make sure you get your tickets for this one.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Funky band, cool background videos too.
Wilhelmus von N: Really enjoyed this band - flute, violins, and all. Technically, really good, and they clearly had a ton of fun being on stage. Great background videos too!
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Started inauspiciously with a head-wobbling love song kind of track that Thai girls love. Once they got going though, it turns out they are well funky with excellent production management. Fun show.
Name: Chilli Beans.
Date Performing: Saturday, 6 December 2025
Profile:
Composed of lead vocalist Moto, bassist Maika, and guitarist Lily, Tokyo trio Chilli Beans. have crafted a sound that deftly blends indie-rock with J-Pop. Formed in 2019 and taking their name from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the band released their debut EP
‘d a n c i n g a l o n e‘ in summer 2021, following it up with their self-titled debut album a year later, and acclaimed sophomore LP ‘Welcome to My Castle’ in late 2023. Don’t miss their Clockenflap debut!
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Cute girl band who can rock!
Wilhelmus von N: They rocked - good bass player too!
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Fun and rocking with cuteness overload from the lead singer.
Name: L'Impératrice
Date Performing: Saturday, 6 December 2025
Profile:
Formed in Paris in 2012, L’Impératrice have forged a reputation for brilliantly blending pop, electronica, and nu-disco. Following a string of earworm EPs, the band released their hugely anticipated first album, ‘Matahari’, in 2018, following it up with 2021’s ‘Tako Tsubo’ and 2024’s excellent ‘Pulsar’. Having recently added new vocalist Louve to the group’s lineup, L’Impératrice are set to win legions of new fans when they make their Hong Kong debut on Saturda,y December 6.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Loud but fun, at times a bit like Level 42.
Wilhelmus von N: For me, the best discovery of this Clockenflap. Funky, some Level 42 bass action, and sampling Massive Attack (Diamonds in the back, sunroof down, digging the scene... ). As it's all in French, it's hard to sing along and to remember songs, but I find myself listening to their playlist and liking their tunes more and more.
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: It had a good beat, and you can dance to it. They played a great many songs, but I cannot recall a single one, and if they played the song again, I would not recognize ever having heard it. Ultimately, the songs had no real distinguishing feature, unlike the lead singer who was extraordinarily lithe and had two very distinguishing features.....her voice and her dancing (not what Wilhelmus was thinking).
Name: Marcin
Date Performing: Sunday, 7 December 2025
Profile:
Having shot to fame in his native Poland in 2015 at the tender age of 15, Marcin Patrzałek has gone on to become one of the world’s most respected rising guitarists. Known for crafting a sound that combines acoustic guitar with electronic and orchestral production elements, Patrzałek—better known simply as Marcin—has won praise from guitar heroes such as Slash, Tom Morello, Paul Stanley, and Dweezil Zappa, while his 2024 album ‘Dragon in Harmony’ saw him collaborate with Portugal. The Man, Tim Henson of Polyphia, Delaney Bailey, and Ichika Nito. He has also carved out a reputation as a spellbinding live act, so don’t miss his Hong Kong debut.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Clever, but boring after a while, showoff…
Wilhelmus von N: No wonder he's a hit on TikTok
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Extraordinary guitar player, clearly sleeps with his instrument and plays it in his sleep. The guitar that is, not what Wilhelmus was thinking. Something to be seen live, not really suitable for say listening to on a long drive.
Name: Jeremy Zucker
Date Performing: Sunday, 7 December 2025
Profile:
Best known for his 2019 single ‘Comethru’, which has racked up more than 1.5 billion plays across Spotify and YouTube, as well as the hits ‘You Were Good to Me’ and ‘All the Kids Are Depressed’, Jeremy Zucker is one of the most compelling singer-songwriters to come out of the US in recent years. Influenced by acts such as Bon Iver, Mac Miller, and Jon Bellion, Zucker makes his Hong Kong debut fresh from dropping his acclaimed third album, the just-released ‘Garden State’.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Ouch, delete!
Wilhelmus von N: Time to get another beer....
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Oh yeah. Him.
Name: TV Girl
Date Performing: Sunday, 7 December 2025
Profile:
Combining lo-fi indie-pop with earworm samples largely plundered from forgotten 1960s musical gems, San Diego trio TV Girl have an infectiously hypnotic sound that recalls bands like Beach House and Cigarettes After Sex as well as mellifluous musical magpies like The Avalanches and The Go! Team. Since debuting with the 2014 album ‘French Exit’, which spawned the huge hit ‘Lovers Rock’ (1.3 billion Spotify plays and counting), the band have gone from strength to strength, and will make their Hong Kong debut at Clockenflap on the back of ‘Fauxllennium’, their recent collaboration with electropop innovator George Clanton.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Better than expected.
Wilhelmus von N: Enjoyable for a few numbers - West Coast American pop.
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Oddly enjoyable, I would add them to a playlist. Not something to get lost in for hours though.
Name: Franz Ferdinand
Date Performing: Sunday, 7 December 2025
Profile:
The band that kickstarted a vibrant new era of British indie fever in 2004 with their eponymously titled, Mercury Prize-winning debut album, veteran Scottish art-rockers Franz Ferdinand are still a band at the very top of their game. From angular cult classics like ‘Michael’ and ‘Do You Want To’ to swaggering anthems like ‘This Fire’ and ‘Take Me Out’, Alex Kapranos and Co. have a back catalogue that’s guaranteed to make music fans move. Fresh from releasing their sixth studio album, ‘The Human Fear’, Franz Ferdinand play Hong Kong for the first time since 2018, returning to the Clockenflap stage for the first time since 2013. Don’t miss this one!
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Highlight of the festival, they ROCKED!
Wilhelmus von N: I am a big fan to start with, and they were my main reason to sign up for this year's Clockenflap. And boy, they rock! What is it with Glasgow and great bands?
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Proper rock band. Absolute highlight. Wanted to go back and listen to their entire back catalogue.
Name: Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Date Performing: Sunday, 7 December 2025
Profile:
Part of the first-wave of post-rock pioneers, Montreal’s Godspeed You! Black Emperor remain one of the genre’s most respected and influential acts. Since forming in 1994, the brooding collective have carved out a reputation as the post-rock band’s post-rock band, releasing eight studio albums and gaining a reputation for mesmerising live shows that combine exceptional musicianship with slow-building fury and visceral intensity. Bringing their exceptional show (including live projections), they play Hong Kong for the first time since 2016 on the back of their 2024 album ‘No Title as of 13 February 2024 28,340 Dead’.
Grumpy Old Men Verdict:
Art58Koen: Nah, didn’t really work for me…
Wilhelmus von N: What?
The Dishonorable Edward Pastanga: Noise.
Afterwards, we submitted our in-depth reviews to Clockenflap's organizers, who were mightily impressed and consequently released a special MP3 compilation, which is riding the Hong Kong charts right now!
Unbelievable, right?! Right! ;-)
This exclusive compilation can be found at:
Download link is in the comments.
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