By Aaron Bleasdale & Douglas Habecker

People often overlook Taichung as a place to see live music. The rap is, if you want to see anything good, go to Taipei. To some extent that's true, if an internationally renowned artist is going to visit only one place in Taiwan, it will be Taipei.
But what if you're here? What if you're in Taichung and just dying for a little of the energy that a CD player can't capture? Well, there are options; it all depends what you're looking for.
If you feel like a beer and are looking for a little rock and roll, you can find a million places to go see cover bands make very game attempts at modern classics. Technically, the music is often surprisingly good, but it's not unusual to hear vocal renditions of Axel Rose and other pop icons that would wither even the most robust of flowers. Mind you, the benefit of the doubt should be given to these brave souls, and one should even applaud the attempt itself. I shudder to think what the average foreigner would sound like if he got up on stage and tried to do justice to any Chinese standard.
A particularly-good cover band is P.K., which can be found at The Pig Pen (41, Ta Guan Rd., tel. 383-4456), affectionately known as "the Pig", on Friday nights. They usually play from around nine to twelve o'clock, after which things degenerate into techno until 4 am. Another decent cover band, the Diplomats, plays at the Pig on Saturdays. Otherwise, the Filipino band Music Station plays on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Schedules may also change.
Among the city's dozens of pubs and clubs featuring live bands, a few others stand out. Of course, there's the popular expat hang-out, Napoli Italian Restaurant and Bar (424, Hua Mei St., tel. 325-8645), which has Thursday jam sessions, when anyone can jump up and play.
The fairly-popular Ala Saxophone Pub (1, Chunghsing 4th Lane; tel. 325-2996) provides a nightly mix of jazz and rock, beginning at 9:15 pm and continuing until 2 am. Rock 'n' roll is provided by the band Rock Mask, which plays from 10:15 pm to midnight, followed by a set of good jazz sax by owner Ala. Just down the road and around the corner is Party Animal Pub (141, Hsiang Shang N. Rd.; tel 325-4247), a traditional-looking place which has live music from 10:15 pm to 2:15 am. Fans of ABBA and tunes from the 60s and 70s can listen to a couple sets by Q Song, who is followed the band Max, which plays a range of old and new covers.
Blue Bay Pub and Restaurant (B1, 247, Taichung Harbor Rd., Sec. 1; tel. 325-9488) also usually has a good weekly line-up of live bands, in addition to the usual deejayed dance music. Bu Bu Disco (6-5, Wenhsin Rd., Sec. 3; tel. 329-1358) and Golden Eye Disco Pub (B1, 1-120, Chunghua Rd., Sec. 1; tel. 220-3388) also have live performances. Be aware that there's a cover charge. Other pubs and restaurants with regular live music include High Live (corner of Taya and Ying Tsai rds.), Cocona (Ching Cheng Rd., near Taichung Harbor Rd.), Mambo Kings, and Sa Sa Ya restaurant and pub (154, Honan Rd.; tel. 293-8850).
Fans of jazz, blues and other sounds from a half-century before will be happy to know that "In The Lounge" plays every Friday night at the Frog I Pub (105, Hua Mei W. St., Sec. 1, tel. 321-1197) from 10:30 pm to 12:30 am. This young expatriate group provides vocal/instrumental jazz, blues and swing favorites from the last 60 years, plus original compositions. Performances take place on the pub's second floor.
If you're a fan of classical music, keep your eyes peeled for posted notices of local high school, university, club and private recitals. There's quite an active interest in western classical music in Taiwan, and the selection of pieces and composers is surprisingly varied. The problem is that most of these notices are posted in Chinese. Knowing a Taiwanese person who also likes classical music (or who can just read the signs) is the best way to see this stuff.
Another possibility, and perhaps the most rewarding, is the endless stream of touring artists and exhibitions that roll through town. While, as noted above, it doesn't compare with the capital city, Taichung gets a regular, fair number of concerts by visiting foreign musicians, from Russian orchestras to Australian jazz ensembles and American New Age musicians.
Your best bet finding this stuff is to keep an eye on the China News and the China Post. Every Friday, these newspapers publish pretty decent weekend entertainment inserts covering film, theater, dance, gallery shows and music. The China News' WEEKEND section is particularly good in that it has a section dedicated to Taichung's cultural stirrings. Just keep an eye out and eventually something will roll into town.
There's lots to see, but if you don't look for it, the best you're likely to end up with is the pleasant little tune that rings out from the garbage collection trucks as they weave their way through the streets. The garbage collectors, I'm sure, have all gone insane by now.