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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
More and more Beijing bands are making the journey across China to perform in Kunming and elsewhere in Yunnan – in the next week two of the capital's more popular bands will perform, with good turnouts expected for both shows. The first band to roll into town is Candy Gun (糖果枪), which will play Speakeasy Bar at 9:30 pm on Sunday night. The four-piece band plays rather heavy rock with lyrics that touch upon struggle, love, loneliness and perseverance. Tickets for the show are 30 yuan for the general public and 25 yuan for students. Next Wednesday, Beijing pop punk/ska/hardcore mainstays Reflector (反光镜) will play the Laowo Bar - across from the Yunnan Art Institute's main gate just off of Kunrui Lu. Reflector is one of the first Chinese rock bands to tour the US, an experience that helped the band hone their live shows. Special opening act No Answer will kick things off at 9 pm - admission is 30 yuan. Tags: Candy Gun, live music, punk, Reflector
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
Xiao Rong, vocalist/guitarist of Beijing punk rock stalwarts Brain Failure (脑浊), has played punk music long enough to know what makes a great live show. For him, it's all about the communication and interaction between the band and the audience. "You see, we're playing punk rock and punk rock is very simple and popular. It's not only about your own personality, it's about making all the young people unite together and have fun. Our band and the people listening to us are entertaining each other. That's what's important: communication by music. And we're a band that wants to communicate. We're not going to go up there and say, 'Hey, this is me and you have to watch.'" The band, composed of vocalist/guitarist Xiao Rong, bassist Ma Jiliang, guitarist/vocalist Wang Jian and drummer Xu Lin, put on an energetic and tight show last night at Speakeasy Bar for a crowd of more than 300. The band tore through dozens of catchy, anthemic songs while sweaty local youth danced and moshed - a few even attempted to crowd surf. Brain Failure proved itself capable of getting the audience into the act, getting nearly everyone present clapping to the beat or yelling back in call-and-response sessions. His hair dyed in leopard spots, Xiao Rong was a blur on stage as he jumped around and switched places with the equally energetic Ma. More than half way through their nearly two-hour set, he yelled to the crowd several times: "Are you tired?" The crowd roared back louder each time.
We talked with a soft-spoken, polite Xiao Rong prior to the show to ask him about the changing music scene in China and Brain Failure's experiences as the first Chinese punk band to tour extensively in the US. GoKunming: Is this your first time in Kunming? Xiao Rong: Actually, it's the second time I've been here with a band. The last time was about ten years ago. I love this city because of the weather. GK: It's changed a lot… Xiao Rong: Yeah. Coming here, I thought I would at least recognize Jianshe Lu and Wenlin Jie, but I couldn't even recognize it. GK: Now you're touring in China. How long will the tour be? Xiao Rong: This tour is happening in three rounds, each about two or three weeks. We're on the last round now. Shanghai, Nanchang, Changsha, Guiyang, Xi'an, and then we went back to Beijing for the Midi Music Festival on May first through the fourth. GK: How has it been touring this time? Do you think the music scenes have changed in these places? Xiao Rong: I feel many places have changed. For example, in Shanghai, now the market is getting bigger and the people are really choosing which bands they want to see. One or two years ago, it was like "Oh, there's something happening this weekend!" but now it's much more common. People are actually coming to see you, not just coming for something to do. GK: What are some of your favorite places to play in China? Xiao Rong: Basically all the big cities. Shanghai, Wuhan, Xi'an. With those places we can sell out the place, about 300 people per show. GK: How did you get the opportunity to tour outside of China, especially in the US? Xiao Rong: We got the opportunity because we were lucky. We worked hard and accepted all the opportunities that came to us. We've toured the whole U.S. about six or seven times now. We've played probably 500 shows. We were very lucky to get to know some people. For example, the Dropkick Murphys who then produced our record and took us on tour and introduced a lot of good bands to us. [Dropkick Murphys bassist] Ken Casey likes foreign cultures and Asian culture very much and we got a lot of help from him. GK: How did audiences receive you in the States? Xiao Rong: Actually, it all happened step by step. We played at South By Southwest and then CMJ [CMJ Music Marathon in New York City], these kinds of music industry promotions. At the beginning, [laughs] it was like a cultural exchange, called like Asian Night. And people would come wanting to listen to "Chinese music," but we weren't really playing that kind of music. We didn't want people coming to the show because they wanted to see some Chinese people. But, as we played more local venues it went really well. GK: Was touring in the US more challenging than touring in China? Xiao Rong: Compared to touring in China, I think it's much easier in the States because in the States or Europe or Japan there's already an industry, so everything's pretty professional. You have a booking agent and they're making money, the promoters are making money, the clubs are making money and finally the bands are making money. So I think that's a good circle to do business. GK: Do you think China's rock scene is going to develop in the same way? Xiao Rong: I believe one day it's going to happen, but it's going to take a lot of people working. In China, I think it would be great if there was a bigger rock music industry. It could give a lot of young people jobs. There are many things a person could do in the music industry besides just being a musician. GK: This February you and Big D and the Kids Table got together and released a split album called "Boston to Beijing", how did this come about? Xiao Rong: We met them in 2005 in Boston. We played a big Halloween show with them and we've know them ever since. On the album the first six tracks are us and the last six are them. Also, Dicky Barrett of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones sings on some songs. GK: Lastly, where are you going next? Xiao Rong: Chengdu. We're taking trains all the way. It's a little dangerous, you're always afraid you won't get to the show on time. Tags: arts and entertainment, Brain Failure, live music, punk, Xiao Rong
Beijing punks Brain Failure (脑浊) have confirmed their upcoming performance at Speakeasy Bar this Thursday night. The show is a rescheduled gig to make up for the cancellation of the band's Kunming show last November due to an injury sustained by band member Xiao Rong while touring in central China. The band, one of China's more international rock acts, toured the US last year with major acts including Dropkick Murphys and Against All Authority. After signing to Japanese independent label Bad News Records, Brain Failure has performed at major US festivals including the Warped Tour, South by Southwest and College Music Journal's music festival in New York City. The band has been together since the late 1990s and sings in Chinese and English. You can listen to a few Brain Failure MP3s here - it sounds like they've listened to plenty of Clash and Operation Ivy. Their show at Speakeasy begins at 9:30 and has a 35-yuan admission fee (30 yuan for students). The first 30 at the show will receive a free copy of music zine Pocket Magazine. Tags: arts and entertainment, Brain Failure, live music, punk, Speakeasy Bar Kunming punk stalwarts Smegma Riot left town today, launching their first tour of China to promote their new album "A lovely touch of brutality". The two-week, seven-city tour will take the Riot to Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Changsha, Wuhan, Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu before they return to Kunming for a show on May 19 at an as yet undetermined venue. Here's the schedule: May 1 - Guangzhou - C:Union May 2 - Guangzhou - C:Union May 4 - Shenzhen - Base Bar May 6 - Changsha - To be announced May 8 - Wuhan - Vox Bar May 10 - Shanghai - Live Bar May 12 - Beijing - 13 Club May 15 - Chengdu - Hemp House Tags: punk, Smegma Riot Oi! German hardcore punk band The 4 Sivits will play a 9:30 show tonight at Speakeasy Bar tonight.
Speakeasy Bar 说吧 445 Dongfeng Xi Lu 东风西路445号 5332569 Tags: punk, The 4 Sivits Changsha band Psycho Candy to play The HumpTuesday, 20th March 2007 ~ Xiao Lu ~ Link ~ Comments (0)Interestingly, most of the band's lyrics are sung in English - mp3s can be checked out on their Yeskee page. The band appears to be fans of British band Bloc Party, whose song 'Helicopter' they rip off at the beginning of the track 'Turtle Mood'. The show will start at 9pm and tickets will cost 15 yuan. Word from the organizers is that the Italian band Smegma Riot is also playing the same night, although it's unclear whether they will precede or follow Psycho Candy. After the bands there will be a dance party featuring DJ Martin. The Hump Bar 驼峰酒吧 Jinbi Plaza 金碧路金马碧鸡广场 Tel: 3640359 Tags: live music, Psycho Candy, punk, Smegma Riot Next 1 2 |
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