Oh Yeah!

ALERT: there’s a new band in town and they’re highly original … without doing any originals. If you’re thinking cover/tribute band, you’re absolutely right. However, if your next thought is “How cheesy!”, then you’ll be wrong because HamsterDamnAged is not your typical tribute band. Take into account who they’re emulating, and it’s none other than the edgy, alt-rock band from New York City: Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Like Yeah Yeah Yeahs, HamsterDamnAged also consists of three members, although unlike the original, it’s an all-girl band. Sharon Chong is their Karen O (vocals), with Melina (of Tempered Mental) on guitars and Stephanie on drums. Formed this January, HamsterDamnAged is a fun side-project for these girls who already do music full-time. “We are big fans (of Yeah Yeah Yeahs). We are housemates and this just happens to be one of our housemates-activities. Melina and Steph have wanted to do this for years but they couldn't find a suitable frontman. And so when I came back from Bangkok, they felt that I was perfect for the role and asked me to join,” explains Sharon. HamsterDamnAged doesn’t go to the extent of copying the band’s daring look, but they definitely make up for that by sounding just as amazing live as the original. They’ve done only two gigs, but audiences have thus far been really impressed with their musicality, energy and fun factor. “There were even some that asked us for our CDs, which was really flattering,” adds Sharon. Though the band is currently committed to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs sound, they won’t rule out covering another band one day because “that is the whole point of this band! We have a whole list of our favourite bands that we would like to cover.” On our end, we can’t wait to see each and every incarnation.

You can watch a YouTube clip of HamsterDamnAged in action uploaded by user mForThought. Get in touch with the band by e-mailing hamsterdamnaged3@gmail.com.

TEXT SARAH CHAN

Article taken from KLue Magazine March 2009, Issue 125