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Sep
25thQuickslants: Capitan Tifus, Indie Attack, Hardcore Lands and Ningxia Night RetrunsEarly quickslants this week folks after last week that saw no quickslants due to a busier than expected schedule. There’s a good reason for this, namely an Argentinian Ska band, Capitan Tifus, stopping by Yugong Yishan this wednesday.. It’s also a good day to get start planning your gigs for the beginning of the holiday weekend. Shall we get started? Wednesday Sept. 26 Capitan Tifus @ Yugong Yishan “The most promising band from Argentina” has been making noise online checking out the sites and making sure they let everyone know they will be here. I like a hard working band, especially one that sounds good at what they do. The band has been touring the word behind their latest album and promises a high energy show with dancing galore. Thursday Sept. 27 Randy Able Stable@ Temple The rambling americana trouble makers head over to Temple for another evening full of classic ditties and a few originals. These guys are ‘daze favorites for good reasons and always worth checking out when you have a chance. The Temple gigs go on for two sets so definitely worth the trip and… guess what… it’s free! Friday Sept. 28 Indie Night @ 2 Kolegas interesting mix of bands hitting the drive-in friday night: Steely Heart, Wu & The Side Effects, Residence A & Perpetual Motion Machine. I’m not sure why they called it “indie” night as these bands are just good dancing bands. If Ruby wasn’t out of town, she’d be drooling all over [...]
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Jul
31stNews To Ooze: No Megadeth, Welcome Apocalyptica, Beijinger Showcase, Punk & Hardcore FestivalsWell well well… Megadeth’s show on August 3rd has been “postponed” until further notice. This doesn’t really come as a surprise. 2 weeks to the show, no prices were announced, no advertising was printing etc.. I’m not sure the folks from Guitar China have any credibility left outside of a few hardcore fan who believe their “we’re the victim” cries. They had a major fuck up with Dream Theatre not too long ago and now they pulled off this one. The consensus since day one was that it was impossible that Megadeth would be playing Tango: Too small, they’re too expensive and somethings just didn’t add up. On the other hand, Apocalyptica is confirmed to play at Yugong Yishan this September. Originally, rumors had them playing Beijing earlier this summer at the workers’ gym but nothing came out of that. They are reportedly confirmed for September 7th at Yugong Yishan which has the potential for being a madhouse considering the legions of Metallica fans in China and how this is the closest they’ll get to it for a little while. They’re also playing Mao Live in Shanghai. The Beijinger has announced the lineup for their New Music Showcase at 2 Kolegas. Looking good with Subs, Bad Mamasan, Residence A, Amazing Insurance Salesmen, Not There etc…. I can’t complain: half the bands on the lineup were there for ‘dazeFEAST. Hoever, I’m kinda bummed a little bit though because I really was hoping they’d go out and help discover new bands, bring [...]
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Mar
20thHedgehog, Unregenerate Blood, Fever Machine Music Videos, MIDI Trouble and Dong updatesIt’s been one hell of a busy weekend with all the gigs from Jue, BLF and other gigs.. I’ll try and get to them later in the week. There were some gems especially the Steve MacKay and Black Cat Bone Gigs. There were also some good comments thrown around at the Jon Campbell talk that might get their own post later. In the meantime, some news and ramblings MIDI Trouble May is around the corner and there’s absolutely no updates coming out of the MIDI camp concerning a location or a lineup. The lineup is more disturbing because pretty much all the bands that matter have been signed to Modern Sky’s Strawberry. I’m sure they’ll pull a big coup last minute but still, I’m worried. Their Shanghai festival is confirmed though for end of April. Dong Chorus Tours Beijing Wu Hongfei and the Dong Chorus are pretty much on a mini tour of Beijing…how about that? Instead of playing a bunch of cities, they have decided to cover every major venue in town. Yugong and Mako have already happened, next up is 2 Kolegas Thursday March 22 and Mao Livehouse March 25th and Jianghu on March 29th.So if you thought you missed out like i did, do not despair. 3 More chances to catch them. In case you don’t know about them: the Dong Chorus was chosen to be the Intangible Cultural Heritage of The World. It dates back to the Spring and Autumn Period of ancient China, which has [...]
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Feb
15thLive Music Quickslants: Barbacans, Buyi, Dongzi and Backtrack NY Hardcore and moreI love choice… looking at the various things happening around Beijing, it’s good to see pretty much all the venues (except one) back full speed with shows on pretty much every night! While most of Beijing was being romantic or singing along to Avril Lavigne yesterday, some of us were inside Yugong Yishan having a bit of fun (more on that later though). This week, we’re looking at a bit of everything from Japanese Jazz all the way to good old US hardcore with a little folk thrown in for good measure. Let’s see what’s on the menu: Wednesday Feb 15 Grandkey @ Jianghu Japanese Jazz duo (guitar & Keyboards) that is supposedly quite pleasant to listen to will be trying to keep things warm at Jianghu. I haven’t been there in quite sometime and the show is free.. not a bad combination! They sound a bit like elevator music on steroids. Thursday Feb 16 Skyscraper @ JiangJinJiu I’ve been keepin an eye on these cats for a while. They play this weird mix of Funk Reggae but not quite Ska that sounds fun! It’s uptempo, unoriginal but inspired with easy choruses! What I like even more is how they tend to throw in random blues solo pieces in the middle of a song. I’m curious to actually hear them live. Friday Feb 17 Buyi @ Jianghu The Ningxia quartet is back in Beijing, full of lamb and noodles, ready to rock their way around town once again. Someone asked [...]
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Dec
1stLive Music Quickslants: Hedgehog, Trail of Tears, Fish, Dawanggang and Boy Climbing RopeIt’s that time of the year when things are starting to slow down and the choices not as numerous as far as the live music scene goes in Beijing. Still, the next few weeks will have a few gems, or diamonds in the rough that will be well worth your and my time. So, what’s cooking for this end of the week? Thursday December 1st: Take Control @ Mao Heavy night in Gulou with Holland’s NO TURNING BACK stopping in Beijing. New daze favorites, Unregenerate Blood, set to launch their EP the same night with extra help from Return the Truth and XitneverhappenedX … It a tight knit community in Beijing and i expect them to show up in half decent numbers! just beware the center of the pit as they tend to start kicking randomly. Someone still oughta teach these kids how to mosh.. As I said before, I like the Unregenerate Blood kids, they have their heart in the right place. Friday December 2nd Hedgehog @ Yugong Yishan ok.. this one is bound to get crowded with one of Beijing’s favorite bands playing one of the most popular venues.. it sounds like a mad crowd rush waiting to happen but it could be really fun. I’m liking how Hedgehog is growing into this darker heavier entity when most bands tend to mellow down with age. They get some help from Fuzzymood and Spacebitch whom i never heard before. The show is tagged with the line: “Hedgehog rock live [...]
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Nov
29thSS20 brings it on hardcore, Unregenerate Blood ConfirmsI’ve had this one pencilled in for a while now, ever since i got my hands on the double LP with Fanzui Xiangfa and SS20. Hardcore is not my preferred go-to kinda music but when it’s well done, it is definitely worth a listen. That holds especially true for old school hardcore a-la Black Flag. The bill was an interesting lineup with SS20, Unregenerate Blood along with pseudo-punks, Rui Wang Fen… 2 out of 3 ain’t bad as they say! We got there with J-Curls and the Fengman just in time to catch the last few songs from Unregenerate Blood who are proving to be one of the better and most interesting new bands on the scene. That is if you can still call them new considering they’ve been around since 2005 and can’t seem to get a break! They’re extremely solid in all phases of the game with frontman Li You stalking around the stage in an imaginary moshpit. I stood right next to him when Biohazard was playing intercity music festival.. he ain’t no poser! I love these kids and their genuine playing… it’s heavy, sharp, edgy and honest… that’s how i like my hardcore. Rui Wang Fen just didn’t do it for me.. come to think of it, neither J-curls nor the Feng-man seemed overly impressed by their performance. It as bland, uninspired, popish punk that is so freaking recyclable it’s not even funny. The crowd seemed to like and love them… I’m still wondering why! I’ll [...]
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Oct
27thQuickslants: Halloween Comes Early, Ghools, Circus, Moliere and moreHello Halloween! This is the one weekend of the year where audience members might actually out wear better attires than the band members. Sure enough, after last week’s low key offerings, we’re back to having a huge musical weekend. Let’s get going! Thursday Oct. 27: New Forces of Rock @ Mao: A bunch of youngish rock bands take the stage at Mao hoping to pay their dues and gain some experience. I’ve heard some of these names thrown around and I’m quite curious. 16mn, Cheery Mor, Illness Sickness & Pirate Pistol, just to name a few. a good chance to find that diamond in the rough. Le Malade Imaginaire @ The EGG: yeah, it’s not pure rock n roll but Moliere was one of the original rock stars in my book. His play, Le Malade Imaginaire, is being performed at the Egg ( National Center for Performing Arts) from thursday to sunday by one of the best theater groups in the world. Tickets a bit steep with only 400+ remaining for sale. Definitely worth it if you’re a theater fan. Friday Oct. 28: Halloween Comes Early @ Yugong Yishan: Not There, The Randy Able Stable and Christmas join forces for this early halloween edition. Bluegrass, electronica and indie under one roof with a costume contest as well. This might be a fun one if for no other reason that some good musicians are on board and it’s a grassroot show put together by the bands themselves, not some shady promoter. [...]
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Aug
9thNever Mind The Bollocks, Those Are The Beijing Punksmy oh my what a night saturday was! I had been looking forward to the Punk festival for a few weeks now but nothing prepared me for the amount of fun and atmosphere that this was…. easily the best one of the series so far and definitely the most organized, especially compared to last year’s clusterfuck! Ruby got there before me and sent word that the place was already packed around 6:00 pm. It was indeed and would remain so for pretty much the whole freaking night! Bodies were inside the pit, in the hallways, on the sidewalk and generally all over the place. Mohawks were widely visible, in all shapes and sizes, with Ramones shirts, fishnet stalkings, doc marten boots and other usual goodness. I’m not gonna cover every single thing but here are the highlights: – The audience was amazing! The place basically was full from beginning to end with a surprising amount of people there for Skarving who had the benefit of a good time slot. Probably the biggest audience of the night where there was no possibility to move. The Music – Return the Truth did some decent hardcore punk. I liked their performance where they were joined by the lead singer of Unregenerated Blood – The Unsafe, whom I was excited to see playing live again, had a so so performance! Their choice of songs was a bit strange as they went more on pop punk metal run punctuated by a few good trashy performances. [...]
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Aug
4thquickslants: Punks in Love, Reggae Parties and a Swapping good timeA strange weekend ahead in Beijing with some pretty low key events taking place all around the city, a few of which have really cool potential. The biggie of Course is the 8th annual Punk Festival at Mao Livehouse.. It might be one of the few times ‘daze and Beijing Gig Guide agree as to the “gig of the week” Friday August 5th: All My Faith Lost @ The One Club: They’re described as Italian neo-folk whatever that means but they sound halfway decent. Apparently, the visuals at their gigs are quite impressive and they’re good about creating an athmosphere. It’s definitely a sleeper hit IMHO. I haven’t been to The One in quite some time so I might have to trip it there. Hollow Shadow @ Hot Cat Club: This one screams “car crash waiting to happen” but again, it could be a good one. front-man of Goth Band IDH releasing his own solo effort which is supposedly more on the folksy side of things. In a night where not much else is really happening, it could be cool to check out something different. Satuday August 6th: Bookswap & Board Games @ Sequoia: The August edition of this monthly event will be bittersweet with us saying goodbye to one of the original founding members as she prepares her post-China life. So come by between 2 and 6 pm for bookswapping, board gaming and saying goodbye to one of the original founders of this Beijing institution. Punks in Love @ [...]
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Jun
30thQuickslants: Gangzi, Proximity Butterfly, Metal Mania and moreWell folks, last weekend was fun but this week ain’t looking too shabby if you ask me! Quite a decent variety of pretty darn good music will be available all around town for your listening pleasure from punk to bluegrass, going through psychedelic rock…. it’s all there! so let’s get started with it! Thursday June 30th: Gangzi @jiangjinjiu: Well, Jiangjinjiu somehow survived that chai-ing announcement and it pretty rocking. Gangzi, the inner-mongolian wonder kid, is on the hook thursday night for a jolly folky grassland themed night. I dig Dongzi’s shows even though he hasn’t done anything different over the past 3 or 4 months playing the same set over and over. A good option if you’re in the area! Zhou YunPeng @ Jianghu: Lao Zhou is one of the nicer, more talented folksters around Beijing. akin to the Chinese Stevie Wonder if he were Chinese and played guitar. The guy is a true legend around Beijing and has been playing the capital with a lesser frequency over the past year. His shows are actually quite remarkable and deserve more recognition. Friday July 1st: Wu & Side Effects + Steely Heart @ 2Kolegas: Fresh from their amazing performance at ‘dazeFEAST, Wu comes back to the drive in with a vengeance. My favorite bored rockers, Steely Heart, are there to lend a hand. Kick Ass, who haven’t been around since 2010, are back in Beijing as well that night. I’m curious as to how the band will present itself after a [...]
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