_{By Joe Metro}

I first encountered Josh Bird, aka LieYing, in 2023 at Velour Live Music Gallery where he played bass for a set with Kieran Hellum. (Funnily enough, that is also the night that Kieran introduced me to Yerba Mate, which has turned into one of my favorite drinks.) I instantly fell in love with Josh’s bass tone and stage presence, both of which are things he carries with him wherever he goes and in whatever he plays. He later filled in on bass for a No Such Animal battle of the bands set, after which we developed more of a friendship as we shot the sh*z in front of Velour and discussed his then-upcoming tour in Asia. I have been hooked on his solo project ever since.

Guerilla, and LieYing’s music in general, provides a great opportunity for the bass to be the focal instrument. If you are not already a fan of the bass, I guarantee that Guerilla will make you fall in love with it. The punchy riffs from this EP deliver a very “fr*ck you” attitude where all one can do is submit to the music as you develop whiplash from headbanging along to each track. I have talked before about how a folk album is perfect for me to listen to on my way to work. Contrasting that, Guerilla supplies the fuel for my road rage as I drive home from my 9 to 5 on the ever-frustrating State Street in Orem and University Avenue in Provo.

LieYing flexes his multilingual talent in multiple tracks on this EP, effortlessly switching from Chinese to English, which is something he had not previously done on his releases. While a majority of the lyrics are in Chinese, LieYing does not alienate you from the angsty punk emotions that Guerilla brings out. He is able to do what most struggle with, which is translating tone and energy from live to recording. As previously stated, his bass tone kicks some major freaking butt, and he accompanies that butt kicking with his singing. He is able to balance a rap-like cadence with singing and screaming. And you know what, it rocks.

“我的牙齒裡有閃電” opens the EP, setting expectations that you are in for a wild 15 minutes. This song would not be out of place as an opening track to a punk-esque movie or as the backdrop to a car chase scene. The chorus goes, “I’ve got lightning in my teeth, and my blood is gasoline.” It’s incredibly punch-y and very go, go, go. While driving with this track playing, the gas pedal speaks to me like the Green Goblin mask – begging me to put the pedal to the metal as I speed past all of these out-of-state college freshmen who don’t know how to drive in Utah yet.

 “蔡英文”, the third track, brings in a nice respite from the heavy-handedness of the rest of the EP without losing the integrity of the EP. It starts softer than most other tracks on the EP, but slowly yet surely builds to delivering that in-your-face energy. If hard rock is not your forte, this is the most accessible track to get into the EP. 

This EP clocks in at just over 15 minutes, and since its release in April 2024, I have spent a whopping seven and a half hours listening to it. With that said, I can understand how some of these tracks can feel one-note with each other to someone who has not spent the amount of time listening to them as I have.

I would love to see an LP from LieYing at some point. I fully understand that a majority of his audience is in Asia, but I would lose it if he threw Utah a bone and played a show out here. 

Make sure to follow LieYing on Instagram! Be sure to listen to “我的牙齒裡有閃電” on Spotify!