Live Music Quickslants: Barbacans, Buyi, Dongzi and Backtrack NY Hardcore and more

I 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 me why I keep mentioning them on the blog once.. the answer is simple: I like the band! They’re a hard-working hard-nosed band that gives their best with every performance. I have not managed to see them outside of 2 Kolegas in years and maybe it is time. It’s bluesy, it’s got heart and they know how to put on a good show.

Backtrack @ Mao Live
Hardcore straight from New York… I just listened to some samples from these kids and I liked what i heard. Not old school hardcore but solid good heavy music, ripe for moshing! Unregenerate Blood, daze favorites, and Return the Truth who just released an album will be there to provide some support. This is gonna be a good heavy one folks!

Saturday Feb 18

Barbacans @ Temple
Italian Punk courtesy of the good folks from This Town Touring. Ruby has been talking them up but I do believe her to be a bit biased on this 😉 Still, it should be a good little heavy one at Temple. Perpetual Motion Machine opens up the festivities.. It’s a bizarre match but then again, why not be open minded?

Dongzi @ Jianghu
One of my favorite folksters in China! I’ve gone on and on about how much I appreciate Dongzi’s dedication to his music as well as his social involvement. He’s been somewhat part of just about every charity show there was in Beijing over the past few months. I believe the new album is slowly shaping up and we should expect a bunch of new songs on Saturday. Seriously folks, this guys is heavily underrated and deserves more recognition. Music got soul, voice got feelings and the guitar gently weeps under his plucking. I’ve never been to Hubei but if that’s what it sounds like, sign me up.

Sunday Feb 19th

Fighting @ Mao:
Flaming Heat (Rikki Sixx), Jacky Danny, Pirate Pistol and a few more younglings will be on display sunday night at Mao. There’s gonna be some outlandish hair, 80s flavor and some eardrum piercing high notes. There are a few names on the bill that i don’t recognize but I can tell you it could be tons of fun. Just don’t go there expecting the next coming of Bon Jovi or Motley Crue… think about it more as tongue-in-cheek rock. This might be my opportunity to finally catch the new Jacky Danny lineup as they have proven elusive… I’ve missed every freaking set they played since getting a new guitar player.