Hainan-born electronic producer Guzz, known for his dreamlike pastiche of traditional Asian sounds spliced with contemporary electronica is simply put, one of the finest in the scene – a visionary whose ability to create lush, fantastical worlds of sound never ceases to amaze me (he ever produced some of my favorite albums over the past couple of years including last year’s Fantasia in the Wind 风中的幻想曲). So was hard to pass up an opportunity to check him out (and avoid my eventual demise over at Neo).

Truly striking work – Guzz performed a slew of his tracks taking over duties of piano and melodica – the latter instrument which has never sounded better or more evocative. The artist also gave listeners (most of whom wisely took to the floor to soak in the stunning visuals) a taste of his roots with – with a couple of repurposed Hainan folk songs stuck in the middle. Really love how he splices and terraforms electronic sounds into something contemporary and orchestral – making me wonder if someone will ever give this man a full-blown orchestra in the future. It’s soundtrack music that’s deeply woven. Support from Hangzhou’s own sound explorer Cai Lanbing of kirakiro and Jimaoda.

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ROMO 如梦 – 影子的最后变化

Up and coming post punk outfit ROMO, out of Wuhan, bring anxious melodic discourse to the front on their debut 影子的最后变化, released on Maybe Mars. With an emphasis on the bendy knot-inducing guitar noise and propulsive bass (which really pops here) that the genre is known for, ROMO may not be forging new ground but they understand how to tap into the primal, ‘nails to wall’ elemental qualities of their sound. And while there are more than a few roaring singles on here, evoking fellow contemporaries like Fazi and Lonely Leary, the band excels when it allows its rigid yet evocative rhythms to move at their own pace, giving way its frontman’s rustic, penetrating yet calm vocals. A heck of an introduction.

来自武汉的新晋后朋乐队如梦，在他们的首张专辑《影子的最后变化》（由兵马司发行）中把令人焦虑的旋律呈现在你面前。如梦强调了这个类型（后朋）所特有的扭曲缠绕的吉他噪音和具有推动性的低音部分（在专辑里十分突出），他们可能没有开拓新的领域，但他们知道如何挖掘他们声音中原始的、”钉入墙中”的品质。虽然这里有很带有嘶吼的单曲，让人联想到 Fazi 和 Lonely Leary 等同时代的乐队，但当乐队允许其僵硬但令人回味的节奏按照自己的步频移动，为主唱质朴、有力而平静的歌声让出空间，他们的表现非常出色。这是一张很好的让你认知他们的专辑。

• https://music.163.com/#/album?id=131346582
• https://downloads.maybemars.org/album/–6

MFmachine 没发霉 – A Bigger Splash 落水火箭

A gleeful, bubbly mix of math rock theatrics, funk-inflicted indie pop and dream pop wanderlust, MF Machine bring a lot to the table on their busy, exuberant debut EP. calling to mine an array of Japanese acts such as Ringo Sheena and T-Square, there’s a fizzy bubblegum flavor that permeates across each track – giving its jazz and electronica elements a fantastical feel that never comes across as trite or false. It never takes itself too seriously and seems to be having a ball twisting itself into strange new positions, all the while keeping its dreamy core center soothing to the ears.

MF Machine 是戏剧性的数摇、趣味性的独立流行和梦泡的混合体，他们在繁忙而充满活力的首张 EP 中带来了很多东西。他们称自己在挖掘 Ringo Sheena 和 T-Square 等日本乐队的作品，有一种气泡糖的味道渗透到每一首歌曲中——赋予其爵士乐和电子乐元素的幻想之感，但从未显得老套或虚假。它从不太过严肃地看待自己，似乎有一个球体把它扭曲到新奇的位置上，并保持梦幻般的核心，令人听来十分舒服。

https://y.qq.com/n/yqq/album/00335Bzm35j5my.html

Guzz – Seven Days and Twelve Nights 七天十二夜

Electronic producer Guzz heads back into his mist-covered flowing pastiche of traditional Asian sounds spliced with contemporary electronica on ‘Seven Days and Twelve Nights’. Leaning more into his soundtracking sensibilities this time round – while the producer’s latest may lack the high-hued tropical decor of his 2019 release, it makes up for in warmth and narrative pull. The innovative use of acoustic instruments only adds to the organic aura of the whole thing, casting a spell that’s equal parts enchanting and humanizing, akin to sitting on a lakeside at dawn amongst low-bearing clouds.

电子制作人 Guzz 在《七天十二夜》中回到了他那被迷雾覆盖的、流动的亚洲传统声音与现代电子乐的拼贴中。这一次，他更倾向赋予其配乐之感——虽然这位制作人的最新作品可能缺乏他 2019 年发行的带有强烈热情色彩的装饰，但它在温暖和叙事性方面有所弥补。对原声乐器的创新使用只增加有机光环，投下了一个咒语，既迷人又人性十足，就像在黎明时分坐在低矮的云层中的湖边一样。

• https://music.163.com/#/album?id=130723330
• https://guzz.bandcamp.com/album/seven-days-and-twelve-nights

Nerve Passenger 神经旅人 – 在我变成你之前

Shanghai’s Nerve Passenger take their grandiose evocative indie rock to new heights on their new LP Before I Become You. Taking the emotional raw thrust of core music and stripping it back to its primary colors, Nerve Passenger can circumvent many of the pratfalls those bands fall into – namely over-the-top musicality and unearned emotional catharsis. Laced in with everything from shoegaze and emo rock to post rock and arena rock, the band, fronted by twin brothers, effortlessly blends reverb-heavy instrumental rock with pieced bleeding heart vocals, caravanning over piercing guitars soothing and soaring drums. It packs a punch.

上海的神经旅人乐队在他们的新专辑《在我变成你之前》中把他们宏大诱人的独立摇滚带到了新的高度。把音乐的核心情感原动力剥离到它的原色，神经旅人可以规避那些乐队陷入的许多陷阱——即过度的音乐性和不劳而获的情感宣泄。这支由双胞胎兄弟领导的乐队，毫不费力地将混响十足的器乐摇滚与拼凑的滴血心声融合在一起，在刺耳的吉他舒缓和舒缓飙升的鼓中穿梭。冲击力十足。

• https://music.163.com/#/album?id=129074014

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Slot Canyons – Lake of Reflections (Wuhan/Field Ring Recordings)

Guzz – No-mind 无念 (Beijing/Self-Released)

Wanderlust – (d：re) (Toronto x Tianjin/Self-Released)

GG Lobster – Rivaldo Top 10 Goals (Hangzhou/FunctionLab)

Siyunge x LST – A Full Moon Walk 满月行走 (Beijing/Self-Released)

Another Van – FuXing Park 4AM (Shanghai/Self-Released)

Solent – Submerging (Beijing/Jingweir) 

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Poetry in Shorts 短裤里的诗歌 – 我还喜欢你

Rugged garage rock twisted around the zombified corpse of psychedelic-inflicted blues-rock with more than enough grit, Poetry in Shorts feels like a breath of fresh air – a band that knows exactly the kind of sound they’re going for whilst managing to add in their own flavor. While the scrappy, smoky-lounge, tin-canned production of the wonderfully laid out album has it’s own charm (and avoids many of the pratfalls of rock bands hitting the studio) the true strength of the release lies in the rich lyrics and penetrating vocals. There’s a vitality and an innovative mischievous to the way the band, made up of members of fellow Shanghai punk outfit Dirty Fingers (whose hiatus earlier this year sparked the former into charging full steam ahead), tackle issues beholden to young adults, particularly young adults trying to make it as rock stars. It’s a fearless album that feels authentic in its downtrodden and deviant luck. One of the best of the year.

Xiami: https://www.xiami.com/album/9cKfBPf3094

Netease: https://music.163.com/#/album?id=81179934

Guzz – Walking in a Boundless Dream 走不出的梦境

Steering away from the heavier bass sound his previous albums were infused with, Beijing-based producer Guzz has created an album of glistening beauty – a high-hued, mist-covered flowing pastiche of traditional Asian sounds spliced with contemporary electronica. With an emphasis on digitally-created sounds (in fact, all of the instruments heard here were made via software) and inspired by traditional instruments of Myanma, India, and Japan, it’s clear the artist is angling for something entirely new. A cross between a scrolling Super Nintendo soundtrack and an archeological excavation, it’s an endlessly rewarding album that’s light on its feet and brimming with ideas and otherworldly sounds that feel organic. Call it Asian new wave – or just sit back and soak in the atmosphere.

Bandcamp: https://guzz.bandcamp.com/album/-

Netease: https://music.163.com/#/album?id=81413602

Xiami: https://www.xiami.com/album/yhZtpw9ab1e

Aming Liang – Touching the Vibration at the Edge of the Glowing White Sun

Aming Liang, known to most for his abrasive and downright hypnotic role in Shanghai psych-rockers Mirrors, has long been active as an experimental musician in Beijing and Shanghai with a keen ear for noise and psychedelic sounds. The multi-talented artist shows off his improvisational skills on ‘Touching the Vibration at the Edge of the Glowing White Sun’ – which collects several improvised piano pieces with ‘sounds of the outer and inner world captured’. Released on the freshly minted Foreign Lands Records, also based out of Shanghai, it’s a surprisingly delicate and dream-like piece of work whose subtle menacing undertones make it ripe for a David Lynch short. As the musician puts it himself: ‘A soundtrack to the questions we have no answers to’.

Bandcamp: https://foreignlandsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/touching-the-vibration-at-the-edge-of-the-glowing-white-sun

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