The first day of Hong Kong’s Clockenflap festival concluded last week with a performance by Primal Scream, featuring a greatest hits set at Kowloon Waterfront Park.
This show was significant as it marked the band’s debut in Asia with their new permanent bassist Simone Butler, who was officially announced as Mani’s successor in October.
After Bobby Gillespie welcomed the crowd of 10,000 at the festival’s picturesque location in the heart of Hong Kong’s iconic Victoria Harbour, the band kicked off the performance with their recent ten-minute track ‘2012.’ They then delivered a concise, hour-long set filled with greatest hits including ‘Swastika Eyes,’ ‘Movin’ On Up,’ and an energetically received ‘Loaded.’
Before Primal Scream took the stage, Azealia Banks introduced the audience to New York hip-hop. Her hour-long set, featuring DJ Cosmo and two backing dancers clad in all black, showcased her new single ‘Jumanji,’ along with ‘1991’ and ‘Liquorish,’ which she referred to as “the Azealia anthem,” before closing her performance with the YouTube sensation ‘212.’
The first day of the event also highlighted other international artists such as Lucy Rose and the Brooklyn funk collective !!!, whose frontman Nic Offer enthusiastically remarked, “People ask us what we think of this festival… duh.. just look at it. We usually play shitty fucking warehouses, this is beautiful!”
Now in its fourth year, Clockenflap is recognized as the first music festival to be held in Hong Kong and is acknowledged for its pioneering influence in fostering the Chinese indie and alternative music landscapes. In addition to showcasing international talent, it also featured prominent performances from local indie rock groups like Chochukmo, the quirky Flaming Lips-inspired G La G La Di Guo, and the punk band Sandwich from the Philippines.
Primal Scream performed:
‘2012’
‘Swastika Eyes’
‘Movin’ On Up’
‘Slip Inside This House’
‘Accelerator’
‘Damaged’
‘Relativity’
‘Shoot Speed/Kill Light’
‘Loaded’
‘Come Together’
‘Country Girl’
‘Jailbird’
‘Rocks’
by Wallace McTavish
