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Music under the stars at Kunming Outdoor Music FestivalMonday, 21st April 2008 ~ Chris ~ Link ~ Comments (5)
The second installment of the Kunming Outdoor Music Festival took place over the weekend in Taiping Town outside of Kunming - this time featuring two days of music from bands based in Kunming and Dali. This edition of the festival attracted around 600 people and featured a greater variety of performers than the last - plus perfect weather for taking in music under the stars. Many of the performers from the first edition of the festival last November made it back to perform on Friday and Saturday nights, including organizers Gouride (狗日的), Tribal Moons, Heiyu (黑宇), and No Answer (打死我也不说). No Answer, whose Chinese name means 'beat me to death and I still won't talk', was arguably the most improved band since the last festival – owing primarily to the addition of vocalist Bai Cai, whose energetic stage presence was able to get the audience more involved than at the band's previous shows （see above image). Drummer Yang Yang also put in a solid performance, confirming her status as one of the more talented young drummers in the Kunming music scene. Perhaps the biggest surprise at the festival was the opening night performance by the rock/reggae hybrid Made in Dali, who were the consensus favorite among people who attended the festival both evenings. There was a sizeable military presence at the festival, with dozens of (officially) off-duty soldiers checking out the variety of musical offerings under a nearly full moon. On Saturday night during an 11 pm set by Co Op Sol (邪作社), formerly known as Rap Republic, two military personnel carriers drove into the festival, lights flashing and sirens blaring. Some of the audience was slightly confused when a few dozen soldiers quickly assembled at the rear of the seating area. Things quickly returned to normal, however, after it became apparent that the soldiers seemed more interested in watching the show than interrupting...好玩嘎！ Photo: Aaron Bono Related Article: Kunming Outdoor Music Festival returns this month Tags: Co Op Sol, Gouride, Kunming Outdoor Music Festival, live music, Made in Dali, No Answer, Rap Republic, soldiers, Taiping Town, 打死我也不说, 邪作社
English movie and discussion at Chicago Coffee Chicago Coffee which also has Monday Chinese corners and Tuesday English corners, will host its weekly English movie and discussion at 7pm. Admission is free with any purchase – call 5389288 for movie details. Friday: Kunming Outdoor Music Festival - Day One The opening of the second edition of the Kunming Outdoor Music Festival takes place at 8:00 tonight in Taiping Town (太平镇) near Anning with event organizers Gouride the first band to take the stage. Here's the schedule for Friday night: 8 pm: Gouride 9 pm: Jinzi 10 pm: Stiop 11 pm: Made in Dali Midnight: Quebec Redneck Bluegrass Project 1 am: Brain Concussion Afterward: DJs Tantrum, Jezz and Menace Friday: DJs with VJ at Speakeasy Speakeasy Bar will be hosting a night of auditory and visual stimulation featuring DJ Liu Yan w/DJ Latino and VJ Li Song tonight beginning at 10pm. Admission is free. Saturday: Kunming Music Festival – Day Two The second day of the Kunming Outdoor Music Festival in Taiping Town starts at 1 pm and is expected to go until early Sunday morning. Here's the all-local lineup for Saturday: 1 pm: Nicole 2 pm: Fang Band 3 pm: Anyeqi 4 pm: Brain Concussion 5 pm: Kouxian 6 pm: Gouride 7 pm: No Answer 8 pm: Tribal Moons 9 pm: Heiyu 10 pm: Broken String 11 pm: Co Op Sol Midnight: Chaling 1 am: Endless Torture 2 am: Noise Addiction Afterward: DJ Moon Unit/DJ Chengcheng Saturday: Happy Hour with DJ Lao Mang Fisherman's Bar will be having its weekly happy hour beer specials all day until 10 pm with DJ Lao Mang playing an eclectic mix of tunes. Admission is free. John & Mattias at TC/G Nordica Scandinavian duo John and Mattias will play an 8 pm show at TC/G Nordica Saturday night. Admission is five yuan. Saturday: Electro night at Uprock Saturday Uprock will host a night of local DJs playing their favorite electronic music. DJs Shonny, Liu Yan and Echoo will play from 10 pm until late in the night – admission is free. Tags: Around Kunming, Co Op Sol, Gouride, Kunming Outdoor Music Festival Kunming Outdoor Music Festival returns this monthMonday, 7th April 2008 ~ Chris ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
With the success of the first Kunming Outdoor Music Festival (昆明露天音乐节) last November, the event's organizers are bringing the all-day – and most of the night – music festival back to Taiping Town outside of Kunming on April 19. The all-local festival should be even more diverse than last time, with bands performing punk, blues, metal, hiphop, punk and bluegrass. The lineup for this edition of the festival includes Heiyu (黑宇), Gouride (狗日的), Broken String (断弦), Endless Torture (无尽折磨), Noise Addiction, No Answer (打死我也不说), Brain Concussion (脑震荡), Co Op Sol (邪作社 – formerly known as Rap Republic), Kouxian (扣弦), Chicken Butt (鸡屁股), Tribal Moons (see above image), Chaling (叉灵), Fang Band (坊乐队), The Quebec Redneck Bluegrass Project and Nicole. The festival starts at noon and will go late into the night – festivalgoers are encouraged to bring tents to stay on the campground overnight. Food and drinks will also be on sale throughout the day and evening. Tickets for the festival are 30 yuan at the gate, or 20 yuan if purchased in advance at The Hump Bar, Halfway House, Speakeasy Bar or Laowo Bar. The festival will once again be held at the Wumozhai Jiuzhuang Eco-garden on Xiao Jie in Taiping Town (太平镇小街无墨斋酒庄生态元), near the city of Anning (安宁). According to event organizers, the number 17 bus at Xiao Ximen can be taken to Taiping Town, and there will also be a shuttle bus between Taiping Town and the Arts Theatre at Wuyi Lu and Dongfeng Xi Lu throughout the day for five yuan one way. UPDATE: We have just received notice from the festival's organizers that the festival has been expanded to two days – with a short evening set on Friday, April 18th and 19th, with a few additional bands and DJs. Here's the schedule for the two days: Friday, April 18th 8 pm: Gouride 9 pm: Jinzi 10 pm: Stiop 11 pm: Made in Dali Midnight: Quebec Redneck Bluegrass Project 1 am: Brain Concussion Afterward: DJs Tantrum, Jezz and Menace Saturday, April 19th 1 pm: Nicole 2 pm: Fang Band 3 pm: Anyeqi 4 pm: Brain Concussion 5 pm: Kouxian 6 pm: Gouride 7 pm: No Answer 8 pm: Tribal Moons 9 pm: Heiyu 10 pm: Broken String 11 pm: Co-op Sol Midnight: Chaling 1 am: Endless Torture 2 am: Noise Addiction Afterward: DJ Moon Unit/DJ Chengcheng UPDATE 2: The festival site is rather difficult to find, here's a Chinese map:
Related articles: No Answer - Kunming's riot grrls Kunming Bands to play outdoor music festival Tags: blues, Co Op Sol, Gouride, Heiyu, hiphop, Kunming Outdoor Music Festival, live music, metal, No Answer, punk, Quebec Redneck Bluegrass Project, Rap Republic, Tribal Moons, 打死我也不说, 昆明露天音乐节, 狗日的, 邪作社
Finding the underground scene in any city always takes a little digging - last Friday night it meant searching around a sketchy former 'KTV' near Kunming's north rail station. We were searching for No Answer (打死我也不说), the all-girl punk band that stole the show at a night of music at Shelter Bar earlier that week, despite being the opening act. After making our way down a narrow alley and up two dark flights of stairs, we came upon a red hallway with pink lighting and small rooms named after the Western zodiac. The entire floor of small rooms had been converted into small practice spaces rented by local bands. At the far end of the hallway a rock band was practicing loudly. We were greeted by Shi Yang, No Answer's 18-year-old guitarist, who led us to her band's practice space. Shi Yang and bandmates Jiang Yuhan (bass, 21) and Yang Yang (drums, 19) have been practicing together every day in their small rented space since forming two months ago. Although they've only been playing together for a short time, they are already one of the city's tightest and more interesting musical acts. As with most Chinese punk bands, No Answer is heavily influenced by Western punk bands - Bikini Kill, Action Pact and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs being their favorites. So far Their favourite song to play at the moment - all of their song lyrics are in English - is the edgy "Big Aunty", which explores the feelings of crankiness that accompany premenstrual syndrome. Although Kunming's music scene is typically dominated by men - many of whom dismiss the girls as having too heavy a feminist slant - No Answer said they're just writing about their experiences and feelings. Drummer Yang Yang, who's been playing drums since age nine, said the band wasn't interested in being pigeonholed as feminist. "We're just making music about our lives," she said in between puffs on her cigarette, "Making music that other women can relate to is a way for women here to have more self-respect." Elder band member and bassist Jiang Yuhan said that although the trio is currently playing punk they are also beginning to develop a more New Wave sound with the songs they are currently writing and practicing in their slightly cramped practice space. According to Jiang, the band loves punk but wants to explore other musical styles. "Good music has no style - it's anything that touches one's heart," she said. For the short term, No Answer is working on new songs in preparation for an upcoming demo. The band will also be playing their first festival gig at the Kunming Outdoor Music Festival this Saturday in Taiping town outside of Kunming. They are scheduled to take the stage around 7 pm. Tags: Jiang Yuhan, KTV, Kunming Outdoor Music Festival, live music, No Answer, punk, Shi Yang, Yang Yang Kunming bands to play outdoor music festivalMonday, 22nd October 2007 ~ Chris ~ Link ~ Comments (1)
Tickets for the 14-hour event cost 20 yuan and are on sale around the Wenlin Jie area at Halfway House, Speakeasy Bar, Mingtan Barroom and The Box. Chartered buses to and from the event will be available, and buses from Xiao Ximen are also available, call 13668732582 for more information. (Editor's note: Some posters erroneously advertising this event as taking place on the 9th have been put up around town. We've confirmed with the organizers that this is a mistake and the festival will take place on the 10th.) Tags: arts and entertainment, Kunming Outdoor Music Festival, live music, No Answer, Rap Republic, Tribal Moons |
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