原文连结: https://goo.gl/qXEHZy
Taiwanese Band Mayday Talks 20-Year Career
台湾乐团五月天谈论二十年生涯。
7/31/2017 by Tamar Herman
Twenty years in, Taiwanese band Mayday is a phenomenon on par with the rock
acts of bygone eras.
Multiple generations of music listeners have bonded with the five men: lead
vocalist and primary songwriter Ashin (Chen Shin Hung), band leader and
guitarist Monster (Wen Shang Yi), bassist Masa (Tsai Shen Yen), guitarist
Stone (Shi Chin Hang) and drummer Guan You (Liu Yen Ming). Five former high
school friends, they became emblematic of Taiwan's youth culture in their
early days and have a career propelled on intense concert experiences and
inspirational rock music that blurs the lines of alternative and pop.
Though their fame is limited in scope primarily to the East Asian music
market, Mayday is one of the world's best-selling bands: According to
Alibaba's Ali Music Group, their latest album, last July's History of
Tomorrow, saw more than 200 million digital sales in Taiwan and China alone,
proving that time is doing nothing to minimize the band's success. (For
reference, 2016's top-selling album in the U.S, Drake's Views, racked up
4.14 million equivalent album units that year, according to Nielsen Music.)
The same album took home the best Mandarin album of the year award at this
year's Golden Melody Awards in June, the most prestigious music awards
ceremony in the Chinese-speaking world.
While they're on the cusp of middle age, the band members have a boyish charm
to them that attracts both new and old listeners to their music two decades
in. Sitting on a ledge with his feet dangling behind him, Masa, the youngest
member at 40, radiated enthusiasm as he took in the view of the lower
Manhattan skyline. In the States to prep for the upcoming U.S. stops of their
Life tour, and to see U2's Joshua Tree tour, Ashin, Masa and Monster spoke to
Billboard about their extensive career.
- 五月天在早期为台湾青少年文化的象征，后来致力于演唱会演出与音乐创作，
他们的音乐模糊了另类摇滚与流行音乐的界线。
尽管音乐市场仅限在东亚，五月天是世界上畅销的乐团之一：据阿里巴巴集团的阿里
音乐（Ali Music Group）统计，他们的最新专辑，去年7月发行的《自传》，单在台
湾和中国，便有超过2亿的数位销售。
《自传》获得今年金曲奖的最佳国语专辑。
步入中年之际，团员有着男孩般的魅力，二十年来吸引著旧有与新进听众聆听他们的
音乐。最年轻的成员玛莎，在欣赏曼哈顿下城的天际线时，散发著热情。阿信、玛莎
、怪兽到美是为了即将到来的《人生无限公司》美国巡回场次作事前准备，并观赏
Ｕ２演唱会。
With the casual air of friends who have spent far too much time together