Beijing Music Quickslants: Shanghai Invasion, Rock in Sanlitun and more

interesting weekend ahead y’all with tons of happenings all around Beijing. TEDx is sure to mobilize the masses, Bookswap and board games rocking things along and finally a slew of Shanghai bands coming up to make some noise in Beijing.

Thursday November 11:

Gangzi @ Jianghu:
The Inner-Mongolian Metalhead-turned-folkster will be holding court in jianghu delivering some cool melodies. I caught him twice so far and really dig his style even though he tends to be heavy on the bass notes. And Jianghu is always a fun place to hit.

Friday November 12:

X is Y & Amazing Insurance Salesmen @ Yugong Yishan:
This is where the Shanghai invasion gets started. The guys from X is Y have been all over the place this week and quite proactive about making sure people show up to their show. That type of work ethic on its own is worth checking them out! Beijing’s own AIS rounds up the bill and are always a treat. I haven’t seen them play in a few weeks so I’m looking forward to what’s probably gonna be their last performance in Beijing before heading off to HK and the GBoB finals.

Steely Heart, Candy Monster @ 2 Kolegas:
My favorite talented bored rockers head to the drive in along with Candy Monster. This should be a decent if not remarkable rock show with a good turnout of Chinese audience. Steely Heart usually pulls in a few fans! I haven’t seen candy monster play in so long I forgot what they sound and look like at this point which only means they were not offensive enough for me to remember anything bad about them.

Saturday November 13:

Bookswap & Board Games @ Seqouia Kerry Center:
The November edition was delayed to make place for the Hilton Wine and Food Festival but we’re back with a vengeance! Come and hang out for the afternoon, get some coffee, trade some books and generally be merry. starting at 2:00 pm.

TEDx Beijing:
undoubtedly the biggest event of the weekend. Fantastic guest speakers, great people, tons of ideas and what not. Stay tuned for a list of alternative places/streams to follow the event if you were not one of the lucky few to get tickets.

The Tensional Party @ Mao Live
Great lineup with Flying Mantas, Kick Ass, Dude, Jacky Danny, Los Crasher and Steely Heart. I expect one hell of a rocking party with over the top rock, pardon the redundancy. Kick Ass, Dude and Flying Mantas are both up there in terms of showmanship with Jacky Danny and Los Crashers sounding interesting. Steely Heart seems like the odd band out here when we speak of stage presence and energy.

Boys Climbing Ropes @ 2Kolegas:
Leg two of the Shanghai invasion takes place over at the drive in. I’m really curious about this show but chances are I will miss it in favor of the rocky alternative at Mao. That said, I hear a lot of good about all 3 bands on this bill and it would be interesting to check them all out.

Rustic & Residence A @ Club Le:
probably the most entertaining bill of the evening even though the location is a mystery. The place was designed for jazz and lounge and I’m not sure it can handle the high octaves from Beijing’s current kings of sleaze. Residence A took Beijing by storm during the GBoB final and we’re still talking about how they got disqualified due to the use of pre-recorded sounds. This one will be fun, I’m just not sure Sanlitun knows what’s about to hit it.