While the rest of the world bask in their newfound resolutions for 2017, Beijing quietly sweeps it under the table and goes about smothering their residents. For we all truly know – it ain’t the proper New Year till that rooster comes crowing. And that means we’ve got a few more weeks of shows left before the city all buts shut down. So time to brush off that PM2.5, get back on the wagon, and venture forth. Here’s your weekend gig guide.
FRIDAY JANUARY 6th
Da Bang, Future Orients at Modernsky Lab
Fresh off of both their national tour and European tour, indie dance rock veterans Da Bang head back to homebase aka Modernsky Lab for a special performance alongside fellow dance punk groovers Future Orients. Definitely a band that\’s’ come into their own in recent years – expect a packed house of adoring fans for this one. 100 RMB
Solaris, The Beauty, Lattice, Silent Speech, The White Paper, QianChuan YaoDian ar School
Local promoters Super School Fighter, dedicated to discovering new bands and giving up-and-coming artists a stage to hone their craft, celebrate 4 years with a bash featuring some of this year’s up and comers – with the neo-psychedelic jams of Solaris to The Beauty\’s Britpop tunes, Lattice\’s pop-punk vibe, Silent Speech\’s alt-rock musings, and the post-punk/post-rock creations of The White Paper and QianChuan YaoDian – there’s a bit of something for everyone. FREE
Jungle Mico Project at Temple
The live dub band – and one of Temple’s biggest hitters – return with a surprise 2017 showcase to present their new album Dream Walking. Led by the well known electronic drummer Mico, the ensemble mix elements of ‘live Drum\’n\’Bass, Dubstep, Dub, Break beats, Deep techno and more – all performed live on real instruments in real time.’ Expect a wild n’ out crowd. FREE
Su Zixu, Hadi, and Heike Kagler at Jianghu Bar
Su Zixu, one of 2016’s breakout stars, joins friends at Jianghu Bar for an intimate evening. Known for his sensitive instrumentals and rough voice, he’ll be accompanied on stage by old friends, drummer Hadi and German cellist Heike Kagler, for a show on the theme “the years of the heart,” based on the letters of German poet Paul Ceylan to his lover Inge Bachmann. 85 RMB
Ritual Day, Evil Thorn at Yugong Yishan
Fans of hardcore metal and necrotech rejoice! Known as one of the top metal acts of the past 20 years, Ritual Day are back with four new members –and a new album Devila Grantha. The new album is darker than the first, and the music has extreme rhythm. The band adds elements of Tibetan Buddhism in their songs. They\’re joined by fellow Beijing outfit Evil Thorn in hopes of pummeling you to death with their heavy guitars and hoarse voices. 120 RMB
Sardine is Back and the Wheel is Broken, A. Borealis, Nick Parsons, Xu Ming at Hot Cat Club
Experimental punk rock outfit Sardine is Back and the Wheel is Broken, formed by the likes of scene regulars Djang San, Nathan Borofka, and Ouyang, throw a release party for their scrappy debut alongside friends and fellow singer songwriters. FREE
- PH. Dragon, Sharon at DDC
The rapper with the ‘highest degree’ – that’s the logline for the popular American PhD graduate and rapper Ph. Dragon – whose single \”Meet the Sucker\” dissing YG for encouraging robbery against Chinese in 2016, garnered him much acclaim here in China. He’ll be joined by Shanghai singer Sharon for some fun at DDC. 60 RMB
Yang Mingyi & Wen Li at Yue Space
Henan urban folk singer songwriter, a big deal in his neck of the woods, brings his large Bruce Springsteen homegrown rock and roll to Yue Space. 120 RMB
3 Mosquitos at Modernista
Describing themselves as playing the best rock honey sweet sugar music on earth (?!) 3 Mosquitos invites you to join ‘the space spaceship of joy’. FREE
Sungha Jung (South Korea) at Tango
Korean guitarist Sungha Jung kicks off his national tour in Beijing. Known for his finger-picked style, the artist blends elements of classical guitar and relaxed vocals for his signature soft-pop style, and is known in Korea as the \’little prodigy.\’ So cute. 280 RMB
The Beloved Orchestra at Mogu Space
New age folk with electronic flourishes, The Beloved Orchestra, which formed in 2008 and features known musicians Zhang Zhiwei and Yanzi, will perform at the Xizhimen space. 60 RMB
10%HighSpeed at 69 Café
This Dire Straits tribute band bring their roots, blues rock to 69 Café with covers of one of the UK’s favorite bands as well as originals. 60 RMB
Dizzy Di, Baya, Stone at fRUITYSPACE
I didn’t choose the Dub Life but the Dub Life chose me! That’s the basis for tonight’s dub party at the basement hangout fRUITYSPACE as local DJs DizzyDi, Baya, and Stone spin to your dub heart’s delight. FREE
Fengzi at Snail Hostel
Known for his dreamy melodies, and deep lyrics catch folk artist Fengzi whose swinging by Snail Hostel as part of an eight-city “Immediate Departure” tour with his partner, harmonica player Li Zong, singing about his travels across Asia. 50 RMB
New Travel at Blue Stream Bar
60\’s inspired folk band, headed by guitarist Yin Di, and free-spirited Beijing girl Huo Ran, the band is known for their single \”Dream Song\” and their lively stage show. Check them out the cozy Drum Tower joint. 60 RMB
SATURDAY JANUARY 7th
Steely Heart, Penicillin, Candy Monster at School
School Bar goes old school with their lineup tonight providing their fans with a trifecta of bands who perfected their sound and fanbase at the venue, including electro rock ruffians Steely Heart, britpop swooners Penicillin, and doo-wop fanatics Candy Monster. A lineup that killed three years back and one that’ll surely kill now. 60 RMB
Slap at Modernsky Lab
Genre-hopping, satirical cross talking folk rock outfit, one of the scene’s best kept secrets with one the biggest fan bases out there, perform at Modern Sky’s digs for their annual Spring Festival showcase. 120 RMB
Silt & Lotus, The Jungle Fever, Scarlet Horizon, Never Before, Awake Mountians, CA, Bliss Illusion, Snow Windmill, Ancestor, Song of Chu at Yugong Yishan
Say ‘goodbye, the chaotic year’ and get out some of those pent up emotions with this rock heavy, long hair swirling, mosh pit ready hoedown at Yugong Yishan featuring a batch of bands ready to get you bopping your head including stoner metal faves Never Before, ska ragers Jungle Fever and more. 100 RMB
Tulegur at Jianghu Bar
Tulegur, the veteran Mongolian folk rock duo whose grungy revisionist take on Mongolian music has won acclaim both here and aboard, performs tonight at the hutong mainstay Jianghu Bar hot off the release of his latest single ‘The River’. 80 RMB
Sound Sculpture at Meridian Space
The psychedelic ambient trope the Sound Sculpture bring their ethereal, genre-shifting and layered sound to Meridian Space as they’ll live soundtrack the 1922 vampire classic Nosferatu. 40 RMB
Hitobshira, Ogenix, Ephemerality at Temple
‘The hell-spawn of incestuous metal, who have come to ravage the genre and change it for the worse’ – Hitobshira from Shanghai descend upon Temple Bar for a righteous evening of heavy sounds alongside local acts Ogenix and Ephemerality. FREE
WHAI, By Dream, Giant Stain, The Peppercorns at Mars Livehouse
Batong Line located (next to the Communications University) Mars Livehouse is slowly drawing in more and more people and along with them bigger names – tonight they snag electro rock demigods WHAI alongside up and coming post rockers By Dream and more. 80 RMB
SPYPI, Zaliva-D (Li Chao Solo), Luxixi, Joy Ginger, Tsunami at Dada
A Dada event makes it into the weekend gig guide! Gasp! Ask and you shall receive. Besides, they’ve cooked up a pretty sexy lineup in support of SPYFI (aka Senders Chen) and his latest release Let Me Low It. The electronic producer and veteran of the bass scene joins Li Chao of Zaliva-D (who also just released a killer LP on DoHits), Joy Ginger, and more.
Collision Dreamer, Lost in Space, Thank Ray, Pathogens, Hell’s Gate at Mao Livehouse
Local promotion team Crazy Nights puts together a Saturday/Sunday rager featuring the scene’s youngest, most hot bloodied bands – night one features britpop rockers Collision Dreamer and hardcore acrobats Lost in Space, among others. 70 RMB
Time Capsule at Yue Space
Britpop influenced indie rock outfit Time Capsule celebrate ten years of melodic song writing and powerhouse performances with a special Yue Space showcase. 100 RMB
Goodbye Sunset, Time So Fast, Black Lotus, Purgatory, The Three Quarters Dead, Wuyinli at 13 Club
Not keen on the forthcoming exams, Wudaoku’s 13 Club has been together a lineup full of metal, skateboard punk, and then some, to help students put their mind at ease and doing some real studying. The studying of rock and rolllll (so lame I know). 80 RMB
The Spice Cabinet at DDC
The Spice Cabinet is the jazz machine that slices, dices and reworks every pop number into the frenzy of a pop modern dance beat of wonder. It\’s pop according to jazz, sprinkled with funk, hip-hop, bebop, rock and a heavy dose of avant-garde. 50 RMB
Rudra’s Sage at Mogu Space
Philippines born sitar player Rudra’s Sage, a scene regular since the heydays of River Bar in Sanlitun, returns to Beijing with his sitar for a intimate performance in Xizhimen. 60 RMB
Ambulance of Love at Hot Cat Club
A host of bands including the aptly named Ambulance of Love get down and heavy at the Fangjia Hutong hotspot. FREE
Uighur Sama at Modernista
A mixture of traditional Arabic songs and lively Spanish rumba classics, with lyrics both in English and Uyghur, Uighur Sama continue bringing the energetic sounds of Xinjiang to China´s capital. FREE
SUNDAY JANUARY 8th
Gate to Otherside, Dice, Motorbike Girls, Yummie Commies at School
To heck with work! School sets loose an explosive lineup that may just have me calling in sick Monday. Psych-infused indie rockers Gate to Otherside, poised to release their debut on Maybe Mars this year, join full-on mind sweeping psychedelic duo The Dice, as well as garage rockers Motorbike Girls, and the new project from members of Bedstars and Misandao – Yummie Commies (and the award for band name of the week goes to…). Not a bad roundup. 60 RMB
Madame and the Houseguests, ZhangJiadi at Yue Space
Built on the strengths of singer Xu Yuhan’s warm, sultry vocals, and the other musicians’ solid songwriting and arranging skills, Madame and the Houseguests is an up-and-coming quintet that blends rock, folk, and psychedlia into a style of their own – really, you will find them sound like no other young bands in Beijing. Color me intrigued. 60 RMB
Hua Zhou, Zhang Yide at Yugong Yishan
90s generation folk singer Hua Zhou, whose unique, foul mouthed yet oh so sweet brand of folk music has generated quite the fanbase, joins her fellow folk singer-songwriter cohort Zhang Yide, for an intimate, surely banter-filled, night of tightly-woven story telling. Expect a packed house for the beloved artists. 120 RMB
Jordan Darling, Wusuozai, Tong at DDC
Indie female night at DDC – catch some of the scene’s strongest female voices – from the folksy Jordan Darling, to the baroque powerful indietronica of Wusuozai, and finally the indie pop flavoring of all girl band Tong – it’s an eclectic array of sounds. 50 RMB
Labour Glory, Gentle Grape, Mind Walker In Rye, 0190, PON, SummerX at Mao Livehouse
Local promotion team Crazy Nights puts together a Saturday/Sunday rager featuring the scene’s youngest, most hot bloodied bands – night two features pop punks Gentle Grape and 0190, among others. 70 RMB
Liu Xingke, Feng Chong at Mogu Space
Folk and contemporary Chinese blues as Liu Xingke and Feng Chong go unplugged at the Xizhimen space. 60 RMB
Cai Wenbo at 69 Café
The singer-songwriter hits up 69 Café as apart of his Beijing-Tianjin-Hubei tour to promote his latest album Iron and Steel Company. 60 RMB
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