Beijing Live Music and other Quickslants: Tattoos, Mantas, Geeks and more music than you can swing a tree at

man.. I don’t recall a weekend this busy in forever and a half at the old ‘jing…. man, it’s litterally a non stop lineup of things taking place from Friday onward. Keep in mind that the Nine Gates Jazz Festival and the Beijing International Music festival are both full swing with some amazing stuff happening and quite affordable.

Friday October 15th

Carrefour Wine fair @ Shuangjing branch:
welcome back to the second one this year… all wines are 20% off over Friday/Saturday/Sunday and a special treat on Friday where just about everything they sell is available for a free tasting starting at 6:00 p.m. This one is legendary folks and always a good time, especially when you consider the variety of carrefour’s portfolio. Only happening at the shuangjing branch.

SUBS + Movie @ Mako Livehouse:
yeah, remember Mako? they’ve been kinda quiet lately but they’re still putting shows together. Apparently this is the beginning of a new series of gigs, similar to the Hot List concept. and guess what? it’s conveniently located across from the above mentioned carrefour!!! hows that for a good coincidence!

Hanggai @ 2 Kolegas:
I love Hanggai but I’m always cautious when they’re headlining in Beijing… short shows are the norm. but I expect things to be different at 2 Kolegas considering Gao Feng is sucha good friend of theirs. They might even premiere some of the new songs they’ve been working on for their upcoming album!

Saturday October 16th:

Bookswap & Boardgames @ Sequoia Kerry Center:
it’s a bit later than usual this month but holidays got in the way. It’s the second edition to be held at the Kerry center after Sequoia on guanghua lu was closed. Expect the bookswap to stay there for the forseable future until our patron saint opens a new branch. starts at 2:00 pm folks!

Tattoo Festival @ 798:
ink, needles, piercings and everything your mama warned you about will be available over in the artsy side of town with tons of artists flying in from all over the world as well as some of the better Chinese ink-meisters. It’s happening all weekend so check it out and get tattooed.. It’s sexy.. because i said so!

Nanluoguxiang Street Fair @ NLGX:
As if you didn’t have enough to do, there’s also the good old nanluoguxiang street festival which is one of my absolute favorite things to do in Beijing. The street is festive, the cars are not allowed in and the music is flowing with a decent number of acts this year both on Saturday and Sunday. Zhang Si’An, Mademoiselle, Blackwater etc…. plenty of good times

Flying Mantas and Friends @ D-22:
yeah.. D-22! I haven’t mentioned them in a while but there is a good reason they’re on here. I might actually get out of my usual comfort zone and go check this one out. The Flying Mantas are basically a renamed You Mei You with Skip Lunch and Cherry Bomb going heavier. it’s oughta be goood! Bedstar and Lazy Camels also on hand.

Zhang Si’An @ Vanguard:
The busiest man on the Beijing music scene is gonna be on hand hutong side. His last gig at jiangjin jiuba turned out to be a lots of fun according to a few people that were there and there is no reason to expect otherwise. The staff at VA shares the same “friendliness” guidelines with those from jiangjinjiu (think cactus thorns) so you better be going there for the music.

man.. that’s just Friday night and saturday…. who got time to be bored in this town? keep in mind that sunday, the carrefour fair, the tattoo expo and nanluoguxiang festival are all happening.