Your faithful editor is back from a three-week trip to Taiwan, the island nation/renegade Chinese province (take your pick) where I lived for nearly four years. It was ten years ago that I left Taiwan, but that distinctive Taiwan vibe was still there when I returned--crowded, lively, warm, friendly, fearlessly high-tech, surprisingly traditional. I'll chronicle my journey in five or so entries, each focusing on a different aspect of pop music:

There will be an overview of the Taiwanese soundscape, a report on the challenges of hunting vintage vinyl in a place where no one keeps anything old, an audio journey to the heart of the island in search of old people singing karaoke on the radio, a look at indie rock in Taiwan and a wide-ranging interview with one of the genre's most interesting artists. I've also accrued over fifty Taiwan LPs and CDs on this trip, so there's lots of Taiwan goodness to come...

On a sad note, one of my cameras broke right before I left and the other got lost, so please pardon the lack of pics.