It honestly feels a little weird hearing a 19-year old talking about performing for over 10 years, but that is not an exaggeration for Taiwanese ukulele wizard Feng E, whose stardom began when 10 years old. But even before that, he was covering songs and sharing those on Youtube even back when he was 6 years old. Talk about getting an early start!
This tour is his second in the states, and the event space in Portland, Hoku Events on Madison, feels pretty informal – there aren’t any grand curtains, and we can even see suitcases on stage – but it matches Feng E’s vibe. He’s a no-frills kind of guy, dressed in an unbuttoned button-down and jeans; he walks through the audience to get to the stage, preferring to impress the audience with virtuosity rather than fancy concert trappings. His deadpan voice and haughty look give the impression that he’s very serious, but we quickly see his sense of humor. He promotes his upcoming album, Grand Tour, sharing that 10 out of the 11 tracks are originals and that he collaborated with musicians on various instruments, including traditional Taiwanese instruments. “That cost me a lot of money, so that’s why I’m doing this tour,” he says wryly.
Half of his set is from this new album, including “Bigger than Nothing, Smaller than Something,” “Little Do We Know,” Bach’s “Cello Suite No. 3 in C Major, Bourrée,” and “Intertwined.” The fingerstyle technique he has mastered essentially allows one instrument to combine percussion, harmony, and melody so seamlessly that it’s hard to disentangle the many layers going on all at once. Sometimes, the layers are in conversation with each other, passing variants of the theme back and forth. Other times, they support an overarching melody. At one point in the show, he breaks down some of those layers using “Billie Jean”: bass drum-like thumps, bass line, chucking (palm muting), chords/harmony, and of course, the main melody. There are also all kinds of other sounds he can coax from the instrument including harmonics, metallic whirring from sliding up and down the strings, and snare drum-like tapping.
He shares that he wrote the song “8” 10 years ago and how it is a “time machine” for him to tap into what was going on for him at that time. Amidst the space-like whirrs in the backing track, it starts off with moderately slow, almost somber arpeggios and then accelerates to a simple and sweet melody. It gets even more agitated and strummy, with more syncopation in the melody, and once it reaches a triumphant peak, it comes back to the quiet mood of the beginning section.
Before moving on to the Bach arrangement, he talks about how he was always bad at reading music, even after learning piano at a young age, but it turns out he can pretty much play anything by ear thanks to his perfect pitch. Even with his auditory talents, he found this piece challenging to arrange without using the sheet music. However, “I like playing this piece [by Bach] because I don’t have to pay him,” he chuckles. The original piece is often played with a lot of détaché (separate) bowstrokes, so the short sustain of a note on the ukulele works well for this piece. It’s an elegant read of a classic cello piece, though a slightly more relaxed tempo would allow the music to breathe a little more.
He then demonstrates, to the amusement of the audience, his abilities to play only with his left hand while casually sipping water and taking a selfie with his right hand. He also showcases the various pedals on his pedalboard that create effects like reducing the length of notes, adding distortion, and delaying notes. Getting to hear some of the pedals in isolation turns the rest of the show into a fun game of trying to figure out which combination of pedals is being used at any point. After an intermission prescribed by Feng E’s doctor to mitigate strain on his wrists, he returns to perform some covers and more originals. He covers “Fix You” by Coldplay and “Careless Whisper” by George Michael, both of which also appear in Feng E’s 2024 album Rock/Uke. He subverts the stereotypical interpretations of those songs — instead of an overly sensual read of “Careless Whisper,” he opts for a more delicate, almost melancholic, touch. And instead of going with the classic slow, quiet read of “Fix You,” he has a glimmery, optimistic take on the song. If the original is like having someone sit with you in the depths of sadness, Feng E’s rendition is like someone leading you into a sunny field to frolic and marvel at the delight of being alive. It doesn’t minimize your pain, but it does remind you that there is so much more to life.
He closes the set with a couple math-rock-ish songs: “Get Up,” which goes in and out of the jilted time signature of 7/4, and “Resonance,” a discombobulating but delightfully groovy song replete with percussive effects and rhythmic twists and turns. “I enjoy adding confusion to the groove,” he admits, which explains why every time it feels like you’ve figured out the rhythmic pattern of a section, it changes.
You know the feeling of listening to a song and realizing that you’ve zoned out because your brain has figured out what’s coming next already? Feng E’s musical style, with its well-crafted buildups and increasingly complex variations, seems specifically designed to circumvent this attentional departure. Even when the songs go for over five minutes with only a few themes, they never feel long or repetitive because there’s always something different about each repetition of a theme or motif. Whether it’s a percussive effect, different time signatures or rhythms, or a new set of harmonies, these variations keep a song incessantly interesting while keeping it cohesive. After such a riveting journey, the final reprise of the original theme feels like a true homecoming. It’s a treat to witness this level of mastery and artistic maturity at such a young age.
