An Interview With
The Fabulous Ms. Ligaya
Vancouver’s underground music scene, the rock and roll, punk, indie, DIY cesspool of creativity has always been as interesting and intriguing as it has been incestuous, as most of the musicians who are based here will typically be in several bands simultaneously, and likewise, many bands will have a large alumni of former members, to the point it can be difficult to keep track of who plays in what band at any given time. One such band was JP5 which I filmed a few times around the turn of the century. I was friends with drummer Ted Simm (SNFU, Chickenhawk, TED, Trousermouth) and Dirty Kurt Robertson (Real McKenzies, SNFU, and too many others to list) and heard good things about the band, so I was more than happy to film them live.
Singer/songwriter Gerry-Jenn’s energy was unassailable and was as central to the band’s live performance as Dirty Kurt’s blistering guitar work and signature facial contortions. But what really caught my eye when I first saw JP5 live was the undeniable stage presence of bassist, The Fabulous Ms. Ligaya, or Li.
There is no shortage of female performers who get gigs because they are pretty, but then fail to impress once on stage. So it was very refreshing to see a tall, confident, beautiful and powerful woman killing it on bass while owning her share of the stage with grace and attitude, but without any attempt to steal any of the spotlight. And although we never really hung out or talked much, I have remained an admiring fan of Li and would occasionally catch her performing over the years in various bands. So I was positively delighted when Ginger asked me if I would interview Li for Punk Globe’s anniversary issue. This being my first interview for PG, I hope it is as compelling to read as it was for me to write…
You can read the interview here: Zig Zigler from Punk Globe interviews Ms. Ligaya