Alien Huang G.Host Singapore Concert 2012
The Coliseum, Hard Rock Hotel Singapore
Last Saturday

Alien and ghost were both present at Taiwanese singer Huang Hung-sheng’s gig.
Taking inspiration from his Mandarin nickname Xiao Gui, literally Little Ghost, the first part of the show had a gothic vibe to it with visuals of a moonlit night and a brick fortress shown on the screen.
The 29-year-old dressed the part with an all-black outfit topped with a dark turquoise cape and ash-grey hair.
The songs fit the theme too from Ghost Hits The Wall to a cover of Mayday’s Night Visit From A Vampire.
And then during the encore, he appeared on stage with a headband with his English name Alien lit up in red over it.
Ghost or alien, the 1,300-strong crowd loved it all. And thanks to the intimate venue, the 21/2-hour-long concert felt more like a cosy fan meet.
From the first song, the fans were up on their feet, screaming over Huang’s every move and energetically waving their light sticks to the music. They even responded in one voice when he bantered with the crowd and threw out questions.
Luckily for Huang, his fans are also a very forgiving lot.
He is not the strongest singer live and had some problems with pitch at a few points. This was most noticeable on For Myself when the entire first stanza was off. But he could do no wrong in the eyes of his adoring fans.
While his vocals could do with some improvement, what he has going for him is an affable personality that is easy to like. You also want to root for him given his early struggles in showbusiness. He had to tough it out before finding success as a host of the popular variety show 100% Entertainment in 2006 and later as a solo singer with the albums Love Hero (2009) and Break Heart, Black Heart (2011).
The hardworking entertainer has also ventured into acting, and clips from his works – comedy Already Famous (2011), drama Din Tao: Leader Of The Parade (2012) and MediaCorp nostalgia series Joys Of Life (2012) – played when he sang tracks associated with them.
As a surprise treat for his Singaporean fans, he also sang the theme song from the popular MediaCorp drama Good Morning, Sir! (1989), adding a dash of rock to the ditty.
He had also put effort into learning the guitar so that he could strum along as he sang Forgot How To Be Happy. Although he seemed quite relieved to set it aside after half a song so that he could concentrate on just singing.
A late costume change had him appearing from head-to-toe in a suit of colourful floral patterns. Somehow, he managed to not appear like a, um, blooming idiot.
It was, admittedly, an appropriate get-up for the song Toy Gun And Roses. The track was one of the highlights of his debut disc Love Hero which offered rock flavoured with youthfulness and a sprinkling of attitude.
The final song of the night was Disdain. Huang urged his fans to sing along and added: “It’s my biggest hit. If you don’t know how to sing it, at least try and match the mouth movements.”
He need not have worried. His fervent fans almost drowned him out with their singing.
(ST)