Hail the Music Man

[ 08-05-2009 ]

Hail the Music Man

Wang Lee Hom rocked the crowd at Bukit Jalil last weekend as he flaunted his vocal and musical skills.

By OH ING YEEN
entertainment@thestar.com.my

MERE adjectives can’t seem to justify Wang Lee Hom’s mind-blowing performance at the Music Man Live in Malaysia concert at the Bukit Jalil NAtional Stadium last Saturday.
    The American-born Taiwan-based artiste was in top form and lived up to his reputation as Music Man as he flaunted his vocals and musical skills on the piano, guitar, violin and drums.
    The crowd went into into a frenzy when Wang sedcended from the top with his Chinese-ink painting guitar and kick-started the concert with fast numbers What’s Rock with Rock and W-H-Y, which set the tone for the evening.
    The dashing singer then morphed into Music Man and wielded his prized possession - the Bahamut, the custom made G-Clef Dragon-shaped electric guitar.
    “I have a friend who came all the way from Ireland, let us hear him roar,”he said when introducing his Bahamut.
    It was truly a feast for the senses, with the computer-generated visuals shown on the LED screens on stage, showing an animation of Wang as the superhero Music Man who defeated demons with his trusty weapon, the Bahamut.
    Coming from a classical music background, Wang showed a different side when he delivered fast songs such as Gai Shi Ying Xiong (Heroes of Earth) and Dirty Love with ease.
    Aside from Music Man, Wang should also add another feather to his cap - Music Man - with his magic tricks that left the audience amazed. Firstly, he re-enacted the music video of Change Me, in which he played four different characters (drummer, vocalist, guitarist, bassist) simultaneously, which was made possible in the MV with multimedia effects. However, to put the act live on stage was a feat as he first appered as the drummer, Xiao Li, and started playing the drums. Then the vocalist Wang Lee Hom walked on stage and started singing. Close-ups shown on the screen showed that all four were Wang, leaving the audience wondering how he split into four characters at the same time.
    The second trick was when he disappeared from the stage after getting into a contraption and suddenly popped out from the middle of the stadium!
    He displayed his mastery of the musical instrumentals when he performed violin solo on When You Wish Upon a Star.
    “It was a simple yet meaningful song that inspired me,”he said, reminiscing about his collaboration with the KL symphony some years ago.
    It was a touching performance as he played the violin for Luo Ye Gui Gen (Falling Leaf Return to Roots), accompanied by images from Lust, Caution, the Ang Lee-directed movie which Wang acted in.
    It was clear that Wang was in his element as he worked his magic on the piano, performing Ni Bu Zai (You’re Not There) and Wei Yi (The One and Only).
    There were a few costume changes, such as the studded vest that showed off his welltoned bod, as Wang let his music do most of the talking insted.
    “I like making music, I think I’m like a music gypsy and I may be different from the idol that people think I am, but today I want to show you the real world of Lee Hom,”he said, before singing Can You Feel My World and No Reason To Pay Attention To You.
    Wang sure knew how to work the crowd as he interacted with them and asked them to sing along. But it was apparent that the local and foreign fans from Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, China, Singapore, Australia and Japan, who knew the lyrics to the songs by heart, needed no cajoling. He endeared himself to his fans as he greeted them in their native languages.
    He also showed off some dance moves which had the crowd screaming for more.
    At the end of the show, after much demand from the crowd screaming”Encore!”, Wang finally reappeared on stage playing the piano.
    “I’d like to give kisses to everyone but because of the AH1N1 flu pandemic, I’ll just dedicate Kiss Goodbye to all of you,” he quipped, before bidding farewell. The night ended with Wang playing the piano and singing What’s Wrong With Rock.
    All in all, it was a memorable perfoamnce. The opening acts were by Malaysian Idol season 2 winner Danell Lee and Project Superstar 2008 winner Kay.

Music Man Live in Malaysia concert was organised by Galaxy and support by Tourism Malaysia.