RABBITHOLE | XHARKIE

RABBIT HOLE

ONCE UPON A TIME

1985 - 1989｜Exo-Womb Genesis : A Blessed Freak

1985｜Born in Taipei, Taiwan on August 31, 1985, under an inexplicable blessing. Upon her birth, the renowned Taiwanese poet Chou Meng-tieh, a master of modern Chinese poetry whom she affectionately called 'Grandpa,' bestowed the name 'Fuling,' derived from the phrase 'fú zhì xīnlíng,' meaning 'blessing arrives at the soul,' signifying a moment of divine inspiration. This name, though filled with poetic grace, was not ultimately used.
1986｜Started talking in conversation which freaked all the adults out.
1989｜Began spitting out poems and expressing profound observations about nature, life, and death, shocking those around her. At the age of three, she made striking remarks about the ephemeral nature and transience of existence. Officially confirmed as a freak by adults.

1990 - 1999｜Sonic Odyssey : Rhythm of the Journey Starter Pistol

1990｜Began learning classical piano under the personal guidance of Taiwanese pianist Li Yirong, founder of the International Pacing Art Foundation, authorized by Dr. Robert Pace of Columbia University, and started exploring computer music production.
1992｜Learned classical ballet and modern dance from a contracted instructor from Cloud Gate Dance Theater, who was invited to teach at her elementary school.
1993｜Joined the percussion band at her elementary school and was mentored by Lai Zhongyi, who also taught her football during physical education class.
1997｜Self-taught acoustic guitar and jazz piano, composing rock songs with poetry.
1999｜Enrolled in Taipei Communication Arts (TCA), a branch school collaborated with Tokyo Communication Arts (TCA), based on the Musicians Institute (MI)'s curriculum, studying electric guitar under Jeff Yen and joined a TCA peer's cover band as a guitarist.

2000 - 2009｜Punk Existentialismus : The Radical Pink

2000｜Xharkie thought she will marry a member from BackStreet Boys ( Nick Carter by the way ).
2003｜Founded HOTPINK, Taiwan’s youngest all-female band, and released their demo within a week specifically to register for the Ho-Hai-Yan Rock Festival.
2003｜Performed at the Ho-Hai-Yan Rock Festival, with the process documented in Lungnan Isak Fangas' 'Ocean Fever'.
2003｜Rejected all offers from mainstream record labels to pursue independent music.
2003｜Began performing at various music festivals and venues across Taiwan.
2003｜Participated in Taiwanese female singer Vivian Hsu's music video "Decide to Love You" as the guitarist for both the video and live performance.
2004 HOTPINK became known as the band with the most live performances covering the Riot Grrrl legends Bikini Kill’s songs in Taiwan.
2004｜Joined Taiwanese female singer Sandee Chan for live performances as the guitarist and participated in the execution of her IS PROJECT.
2005｜Joined the Taiwanese indie hardcore band Hindsight 20/20 as the guitarist.
2005｜Started collaborating with Japanese artists and bands visiting Taiwan, providing translation, event coordination, and live performances.
2005｜Filmed the independent movie "What is a Punk Asshole" with the legendary female punk band Ladybug and participated in the movie screenings and live performances at Underworld, a legendary music venue in Taiwan.
2006｜Joined one of Taiwan's largest film post-production companies, Taipei Postproduction, as a linear editing assistant, beginning work in film production and shooting by herself.
2009｜Started playing bass for BBBOMB as a substitute bassist, and later played for other bands in the same role.

2010 - 2019｜Horizon and Perspective : Sketching

2010｜Invited to perform at the MIDI Festival, one of the largest music festivals in China, with performances in Guangzhou and Hong Kong.
2011｜Invited to perform at the MUSIX Music Festival in Okinawa, Japan; the event was canceled due to the 3/11 earthquake. Within three days of the earthquake, she flew to Japan to hold a fundraising event, donating all performance and album sales revenue to the Japanese Red Cross.
2011｜Due to the fundraising trip to Japan, the album originally intended for full production, "(THIS IS) WHAT TOOK ME SO LONG," was rushed to release in an unfinished state without post-production to raise funds for disaster relief.
2013｜Performed as a guest guitarist for Taiwanese ska band SKARAOKE at the MEGAPORT Festival and other performances.
2013｜Made her debut as a DJ, invited to perform at Underworld - listen to the mixtape HERE.
2013｜Began sketching and watercolor painting in preparation for a new album "FRAGILE," originally intended as a HOTPINK album.
2014｜Disbanded HOTPINK and began independently producing the album "FRAGILE" under the name XHARKIE.
2015｜Performed in Hong Kong for the first time under the name XHARKIE and formed another music project with friends in Hong Kong and performed in Hong Kong.
2017｜XHARKIE went on a tour in Tokyo, Japan, and conducted the first round of post-production for the album "FRAGILE."
2017｜Invited to participate in the 17th Ho-Hai-Yan Rock Festival as one of the 17 guitarists representing Taiwan for a special performance.
2018｜The story of HOTPINK’s formation in 2003 was compiled in the book "Silent Rock" by Wu Xiaorong and Zhao Zhuhan.
2018 | Hospitalized for medication adjustments, immediately resumed performing activities after discharge.
2018｜Returned as a DJ and was invited to perform at the Love Love Rock festival, performing alongside the lead vocal of 88 Balaz.
2018｜Invited to the Professor Chen Wen-Chen Memorial Foundation to give a talk and perform, including singing "Formosa (The Beautiful Island) " and "The Days without Smoking," both of which were banned in Taiwan in the early years.
2019｜XHARKIE toured Tokyo again and completed the final post-production for the album "FRAGILE."
2019｜The album "FRAGILE" received funding from the Bureau of Audiovisual and Music Industry Development, a division of Taiwan's Ministry of Culture.

2020 - 2025｜Metamorphosis : The Current Movement of the Chaotic Symphony

2020｜Released the album "FRAGILE," which was exclusively available in physical form for three and a half years, during Covid 19 she still ran a Taiwan tour and joined several radio interviews.
2022｜Ceased all live music performances and continued producing music, painting, and literary works, as well as preparing a fashion brand.
2022｜Served as the translation director for the Taiwan exhibition of "Sneakers: Unboxed," a permanent exhibition at the London Design Museum, UK.
2023｜Participated in an exhibition at Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art in Japan with her design works.
2024｜The physical album "FRAGILE" was digitally released by the Japanese record company HOWLING BULL after three and a half years.
2024｜Launched her painting brand HOTCOCOAZOO and began collaborating with music venues for joint exhibitions.

2025｜Still alive. Don’t know why.

Discography

■ H O T P I N K

H O L Y S H I T D E M O A L B U M

( 2 0 0 3 )

HORNY STARFISH PREFERS NOT TO TAKE BREAKFAST
WEEKENDS
NIGHTMARE
HAHAHA
HAWAIIAN DREAMING

This demo album was an accidental creation. At the time, HOTPINK had no plans for any live performances. The inspiration for its production came from an unpleasant experience: during a drummer audition at a McDonald's below Tower Records in Taipei’s East District, a disrespectful and sarcastic remark was made. In response, a registration form for the Ho-Hai-Yan Rock Festival was seized on a whim, leading to the decision to create this album.

The five tracks were recorded within a week, and the entire album artwork was hand-drawn, manually assembled and printed at convenience stores. The album was never officially sold; instead, it was submitted as part of the festival application. This unexpected turn of events led to HOTPINK’s debut and garnered significant attention. Despite never being officially released, fans still request professionally recorded versions of some tracks.

■ H O T P I N K

( T H I S I S ) W H A T T O O K M E S O L O N G
( 2 0 1 1 )

DO YOU KNOW
HOW MANY STARS DO YOU HAVE
I’D RATHER DIE
HAPPY GIRL
SKINHEAD GIRL & METALHEAD BOY
RAINBOW

This album was another unexpected creation. It was initially intended to be a fully produced project despite severe financial limitations. However, during production, the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami (the 311 Earthquake) struck Japan. At the time, HOTPINK had been invited to perform at a music festival in Okinawa, but the event was canceled due to the disaster. As a result, the album was rushed to completion, pressed directly onto CDs without post-production.

HOTPINK brought the album to Japan to support disaster relief fundraising efforts. Despite strong advice against traveling to Japan at the time, HOTPINK persisted. The album was later released in Taiwan in its raw, unpolished state, as HOTPINK believed that in this case, attitude and action were more important than achieving artistic perfection. This gesture earned the band deep respect from Japanese fans.

■ X H A R K I E

F R A G I L E

( 2 0 2 0 )

YACCHIMATTANA
ONE WAY TICKET
HAPPY ENDING
CATSKY SERENADE
SISTER
WEEKEND
SUZUKI
NIGHTMARE
MY WAY OR NO WAY
LITTLE TRAIN
HAMIURI
FIRST SONG

Since most of HOTPINK’s opportunities and works were based on unexpected events, after another unforeseen incident, Xharkie disbanded HOTPINK. From that moment on, Xharkie made a firm decision: "Enough. No more accidents."

This was her first time experiencing a solo project without a team. As an insecure yet determined producer, she took charge of every aspect, from drums, bass, guitar, and vocals to harmonies, lyrics, and the whole design and album art, continuing the previously determined album title "FRAGILE" from the HOTPINK era.

The recording process began in Okinawa, where XHARKIE invited the drummer from 'Jigoku Guruma’, a band from Okinawa, Japan to record the drums. The bass, guitar, and vocals were later recorded in Taiwan. In 2017, XHARKIE entrusted Andrew Foulds (drummer of BBQ CHICKENS, a band formed by Ken Yokoyama, the guitarist of Hi-STANDARD) in Japan with the album’s mixing and post-production. After a year and a half of meticulous review, XHARKIE decided to re-record all vocals and harmonies, returning to Japan in 2019 for a second round of mixing and mastering. Due to the high production standards and intricate details, the entire process took six years.

In 2019, the album received allowance support from the Bureau of Audiovisual and Music Industry Development, a division of Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture. Under the project’s deadline, "FRAGILE" was officially released on August 31, 2020. XHARKIE herself remained somewhat dissatisfied with the final product.

The album’s studio and live musicians included artists from Hong Kong (such as the drummer for Eason Chan’s concert tours), Taiwan (including bassist Seadog from 'Major in Body Bear' and members from the punk band 'Punkhoo'), and Japan (featuring the drummer of 'Jigoku Guruma’ and the vocalist from ‘Nature Living’).

XHARKIE hand-drew an entire comic book for the album's artwork. She also insisted on releasing only physical copies to observe its reception in the digital streaming era. After three and a half years of this experiment, "FRAGILE" was finally released on digital platforms by the Japanese record label HOWLING BULL on March 15, 2024. "There are some young folks bought CD Players for listening to my CD, I can release the streaming now." said Xharkie. The album includes 12 songs selected from XHARKIE’s compositions between 1997 and 2017.

Related Films, Music, and Books

■ FILMS ■

Documentary " O c e a n F e v e r "

( Filming year : 2003 / Release year : 2004 )

Director: L u n g n a n I s a k F a n g a s (TAIWAN)

Film Festival Selections/Awards:

2004 Taiwan International Documentary Film Festival

2004 Korea Busan International Film Festival (Official Selection)

2004 Taipei Film Festival (Special Jury Award, Audience's Choice Best Film)

2005 Geneva Black Film Festival

This documentary authentically captures the journey of HOTPINK, Taiwan's youngest all-female band, as they participated in the Ocean Music Festival. The film highlights the consensus of the festival's jury, selecting a few bands and documenting the emotional experiences of each person on the big stage by the sea that summer. The DVD cover features the film title 'fever' in a pink font." Why?

■ BOOKS ■

" S i l e n t R o c k "

( Published in 2018 )

Authors: W u X i a o r o n g , Z h a o Z h u h a n (TAIWAN)

This book revisits the bands that participated in the Ocean Music Festival and the Taiwanese music scene, paying tribute to these moments from a fan's perspective after many years.

■ MUSIC ■

" T a i p e i N a r r a t i v e P o e m "

( featuring the song " T a i p e i " )

Composer/Lyricist: L i n g L i n g ( a.k.a. X i n j u n D u a n )

Produced by: Black Tree Culture | Distributed by: HOVE Entertainment

"Taipei Narrative Poem" is a heartfelt and humorous reflection of a former Chinese exiled musician's emotional memories of Taipei. His music reflects Taiwan's influence on an outsider's soul and invites us to re-examine the city's beauty and scars. Ling Ling (a.k.a. Xinjun Duan) included Freddy, the lead singer of the band "CHTHONIC" and Xharkie in the lyrics of the song 'Taipei' to represent Taipei.

"Taipei, I have friends like Freddy and Xharkie,
They are steadfast, unyielding, straightforward, and innocent,
They always display their true colours" — [ Taipei ]