Ketchup: A Boy and His Dog and Guitar

"Carefree Loser" by Ketchup (play song)

Hong Kong folk singer Ketchup, aka Ken Tsoi, reminds me of a lone hawk quietly soaring above the glitz and schmaltz of the city's Cantopop scene.

I first became aware of Ketchup when I picked up a quirky little gem of an album called Freeplay (2004), featuring him, Chet Lam, and The Pancakes playing each other's songs in various combinations. The next time I came across Ketchup was on Rebecca Pan's My Dream My Way My Indie Music (2009), where he performed a fabulous cover of her 1967 hit "Solid Gold Rickshaw" — it was my favorite song on the album.

Two months ago in Hong Kong, I spotted his most recent CD His Master's Voice — thanks in no small part to the cool cover art, which features him and his dog in a clever reinvention of the iconic HMV logo.

Singing in English, Ketchup crafts a gently psychedelic sound that alternates between joie de vivre and melancholy like the warmth of the sun playing hide and seek on a cloudy day.

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that His Master's Voice is available online, but you can get two of Ketchup's previous albums at HMV Hong Kong: Old Fashioned Blue Sky (2003) and In Love Again (2005).

*A great big thanks to Ketchup Ken for letting me post a song from his latest CD!