eitisga 一天世界 – Great Moon Hoax 月球骗局

Beijing instrumental groove stirrers eitisga – fresh off the release of their debut EP – with SpaceFruity Records – bring forth their latest music video for the track ‘Great Moon Hoax. Courtesy of eitisga guitarist (as well as known independent director/photographer) Wang Haonan and animation director Cassie Shao – it’s a fun riff on the myth of the fabricated moon landing – as well as the notion of ‘having the entire universe in your pocket’. A great melding of styles that captures the song’s rhythmic pleasures and shifts perfectly.

Life Awaits – Butterflies

Beijing melodic hardcore band Life Awaits – known for delivering one sonic catharsis after another via earnest, gut-wrenching vocals, guitar-darting breakdowns, and tranquil, synth-laden waves of ambience return with a new music video for single ‘Butterflies’. Exploring the anatomy of butterflies and humans – how they are entwined – and the perverse ways we try to shape those around us. It’s that later idea where the video veers into Silence of the Lambs territory – with darkened laboratories, dreamlike visions of horror and nefarious surgeries being conducted. Expertly crafted.

The God of Henan Rap 河南说唱之神 – Factory 工厂

Blue-collar emo rap that cuts deep – you may not be a fan of the rap stylings of Henan rapper 河南说唱之神 but there’s no denying its potent message – “I don’t love this place. I was just born here.” Set against the backdrop of rural China and the communities built around factories, it tackles many’s desperate pleas to escape the lower class and avoid following the footsteps left by their families. A much-welcomed relief from the glossier more vapid rappers from about China, it’s clear The God of Henan Rap has struck a chord.

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Backspace 退格 – Narcissus’s Death 自卑的冠军

Beijing’s Backspace – known for their intrepid psych-laced indie rock – are prepping for the release of their third full-length LP next week with new some new singles including ‘Narcissus’s Death’ – which gets a killer music video as well courtesy of director/writer Lodliet Wang. It’s a loose, playful and metaphysical stroll through the psyche of its protagonist – the champion of inferiority – as he goes on a scavenger hunt of sorts across Beijing to become a humble champion. A sublime track.

Seon Ga – For Heaven’s Sake, Stop It!

Seon Ga – the pairing of prolific producers thruoutin and Yu Hein, based in Beijing and Guangzhou, found synthesis within their musical backgrounds and sonic wavelengths on ‘Fixing Messages,’ released with Jyugam late last year. And in perfect sales-pitch mode – they’ve got ‘drones for drones’ – as Scottish photographer and filmmaker Graeme Nicol headed to the mountains of Kawagarpo and the Mekong/Lancang River in Yubeng, Yunnan to film some truly incredible drone footage – which flows perfectly alongside the music. Check out all the videos here.

Feardrops – It Never Happened

Another raucous dance punk number from Shenzhen-based Anglo-Italian indie rock duo Feardrops (made up of Junks frontman David William Kay and Pet Conspiracy mainstay Edo De Bastiani) – It Never Happened – an indictment of the entertainment industry (I feel like news is the main culprit here) and how it winds us up in its pursuit of our wallets. As per usual, vibrant DIY vibes from the Feardrops team and a killer chorus to boot.

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Horse Radio – One Day

Inner Mongolian Beijing-based outfit Horse Radio return with a new single – the buoyant and exploratory ‘One Day’. The band continues to inject elements of krautrock, psychedelic music, electronica and experimental tones into their ancestor music – giving them room to breathe and allowing them to chart their own course. The video is full of gorgeous vistas of the Mongolian grasslands.

Steve Rocks – I CAN BE YOUR FRANKENSTEIN

88risng electronic producer and musician Steve Rocks, also known as the rocker and vocalist behind synthpop outfit Brides Crisis新娘危机, brings his love for 70s/80s asian pop and vintage rock and roll to mad life on his latest single ‘I CAN BE YOUR FRANKENSTEIN’. Considered a ‘sadomasochistic love story full of conquest, compromise and submission’ the music video is a cheerful pop art concoction, evoking something you might come across on MTV in the mid-80s.

gilded forest – Are You Happy Now?

While Beijing-based neo folk-laced indie rockers gilded forest have found themselves separated geographically the band is still very much active – and they’ve got a new single to prove it!  ‘Are You Happy Now?,’ a slow burn of a song, gets a neon-drenched MV courtesy of Cynthia Lin and Dawei. Centered on the insomnia struggles of lead singer Queyue who eventually falls deep into a dream world of swirling colors and raucous sound alongside her fellow bandmates. The band will be hitting the road in Europe at the end of April.

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Incentive Dry 干诱因 – Noonday Demon

Incentive Dry from Beijing, a fever dream of brooding alt rock, experimental electronica, bookish post punk, theatrical cold wave, and then some paints a dystopian future in their MV for single ‘Noonday Demon’. Like a steampunk version of A Clockwork Orange, the video directed in stark black and white by Wang Haonan follows our protagonist, who lives and seemingly works via a special contraption that blurs reality and dreams – a blur of subconscious memories and embedded images turning our human vessels into mindless drones. Great stuff.

LATENINE6 雷玖陆 – Special Guest 特别来宾

Shanghai-based rapper LATENINE6 brings his conceptual LP – the bubbly and genre-shifting THE LATENIGHT SHOW – to visual life on his latest music video – ‘Special Guest’. Centered around an interview talk show – the video features our protagonist Lei Jiulu aka LATENINE6 switching between host and various personalities including an Oscar winner, a rock star, a freelance writer, and social elites – an interview essentially with oneself. Like the rapper’s modest yet spirited flow, it’s a fun little video cleverly put together.

GUJI – Mao Suit

Guji, a synth pop project cooked up Shanghai’s most devious characters, evoke a spirit of punk and new wave at its campy best – a playful, sardonic, and mischievous neon-caked sound that takes the framework of acts such as Devo and B-52s, injecting it with dual harmonies, and retro drum machines that time travel you back to the 80s. Their music videos are always a masterclass in DIY attitude, satirical bite and pop aplomb – and ‘Mao Suit’ is no different. You better believe this baby ain’t allowed here in China.

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NaraBara – Dab Hi

NaraBara – the music collective led by prolific producer and singer Yider, finds refuge in the complex harmonies and intricate rhythms of jazz – injecting new life into the ‘mystical storytelling and atmospheric qualities of Mongolian folk’. That fascinating juxtaposition is brought to even stranger life on the band’s new MV – Dab Hi – written and directed by the visionary storyteller, Teom Chen, who has created a non-anthropocentric world where pigeons are the most powerful creatures and the band members’ only hope is selling chairs to pigeons. Beautifully bizarre and singular.

Mdprl & GitBu$y Trio -Chicken 鸡

Mdprl & GitBu$y Trio, a Cantonese alternative and instrumental hip hop group from Guangzhou bring cheeky irrelevant to their love for food on their new single – soon to be released as a 7’’ on Space Fruity Records. Buoy by a breezy jazz charm, ramshackle hip hop swagger, and a laidback demeanor that one can only find down south, Mdprl gives listeners a rundown of his deep affinity for chicken and duck – listing off various Cantonese cooking methods and techniques. It’ll work up an appetite.

eitisga 一天世界 – Water & Dreams 水与梦

Beijing instrumental groove stirrers eitisga stimulate the senses on their new single ‘Water and Dreams’ – their first off of an upcoming release with Space Fruity Records. A lucid water-logged video, made by video artist Zhao Yanbin, works delirious wonders across different mediums — a vibe that fits the song’s rhythmic pleasures and shifts perfectly. A dizzying daydream brought to visual life.

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