Kicked off my Mayday holiday by heading over to Modernsky Lab to say hi to an old Shanghai confederate and also see what all the hype around Belarus’s Molchat Doma was about. The Russian-speaking band from Minsk revels in atmospheric synth-heavy dark wave sounds – think sleek moody synths, hip-swaying drum machines, catchy guitar melodies, and earthy baritone vocals – straight out of the 80s.

Playing to a sold-out crowd – filled with a mix of locals and expats – the band jumped head forth into a long set filled with brooding gothic cold wave, jagged and nervy post punk, and highly danceable synth pop – all handled with modest yet deft musicianship and almost hypnotic propulsion. It’s a tricky balance (especially sans drummer) but after one track I was onboard. A nice surprise.

The post Gig Recap: Molchat Doma (2024.4.30) first appeared on .

Riot in School 返校日 – Those time we wasted on each other 那些我们互相被浪费的时间

Stemming from the tattered remains of their second (yet-to-be-released) full-length album – the latest from Riot in School is essentially a preemptive B-side album. Entitled ‘Those time we wasted on each other’, the four-track release finds the Chengdu alt rock band – known for their grungy gaze-filled noise rock – in fine form, burning brightly as they skip along the edge of their predecessors, savoring the fuzz and buzz of their sound, and tapping into something more elemental as they process the world around them. It’s a riot, one that has us eagerly awaiting their follow-up. 

来自他们尚未发行的第二张全长专辑的残卷，“返校日”的新发行本质上是一张先行 B 面。名为 Those time we wasted on each other 的四曲发行，展现了这支状态极佳的成都另类摇滚乐队，他们以充满垃圾摇滚、盯鞋元素的噪音摇滚而闻名。在前作的边沿试探，玩弄他们声音中的法兹与嗡嗡声，在处理周围世界的过程中挖掘出更多元素。这是一场暴乱，让我们热切期待他们的后续行动。

https://riotinschool.bandcamp.com/album/those-time-we-wasted-on-each-other

https://music.163.com/#/album?id=192347190

CeZhi 册纸 – I Walked Down a Weird Street 我走过一条奇怪的街

Shedding much of the gonzo elements of their past work, as well as the ’toilet厕’ from their name, CeZhi, out of Guangzhou, approach their latest ‘I Walked Down a Weird Street’ with gritty yet vivacious evocation – giving anthropomorphic life to the streets that form the bedrock of their city. Told in an almost novelistic poise, there’s steady propulsion to how the band immerses you into its world, its melodic drive closer to the storytelling bent of acts like Lou Reed and like-minded art punks. They may have lost the bombast, but the new CeZhi finds ways to make their genre-twisting sound ring deeper than ever. 

褪去他们过去作品中的嬉皮要素，以及名字里的“厕”字，来自广州的“册纸”乐队在他们的最新发行《我走过一条奇怪的街》中，以坚韧而生动的回忆赋予构成他们城市基石的街道拟人化的生命。乐队以一种近乎小说的视角讲述故事，旋律驱动仿佛 Lou Reed 和类似趣味的艺术朋克乐队的叙述方式。可能失去了以往的夸张华丽，但新的“册纸”找到了方法，让他们扭曲不同流派的声音比以往任何时候都更加低沉。。

https://music.163.com/#/album?id=189252786

Cheese Rolling 滚奶酪 – 下沉世界的最后狂欢

Guitar rock infused with a Britpop charisma, blues rock scrappiness, and a new wave sincerity, Cheese Rolling doesn’t beat around the bush on their debut EP, making the kind of old school rock n’ roll that feels like a time capsule to a different era. With guitar solos aplenty and cheeky references to the Beatles and a song that feels like a spiritual ode to Oasis, it threatens to veer into, dare I say, cheesy territory, but there’s an earnestness to the band’s embrace of their tropes that’s easy to get swept up in. 

“滚奶酪”在首张 EP 中并不拐弯抹角，他们向吉他摇滚中注入了英伦流行的魅力、蓝调摇滚的狂乱与新浪潮的真诚，创作的老派摇滚乐仿佛一个时间胶囊，将人们带入了不同的年代。大量的吉他独奏，对“披头士”毫不在意的引用，感觉像是“绿洲”精神颂歌的乐曲，我敢说这些都可能会误入俗套，但乐队对自己风格的认真态度却很容易让人进入醉其中。

https://music.163.com/#/album?id=190883769

The post New Music: Riot in School, CeZhi, Cheese Rolling first appeared on .

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.

The post MV Weekly: Life Awaits, eitisga , God of Henan Rap first appeared on .

Neo Bar – the legendary live music venue deep in the heart of Yangpu’s university district – has been giving solace to the young corruptible souls and raising some of Shanghai’s most beloved music acts for a whopping twelve years (across three different locations)! The bright red lights; the dueling movie screenings; the fridge full of Asahi bottles; and its motley crew of rabble-rousers keeping the place afloat – it’s iconic! 

As expected, the team celebrated the only way they knew how last weekend – with two nights of music – with some of my favorite acts to have graced the stage over the years. 

I wisely avoided night one out of fear for my liver – and subconsciously made up for it on night two. Things got messy. Night two featured two of Xinxiang’s most feverish live acts – punk stalwarts Pumpkins and Colombian Col, who have turned their madcap, visceral and  irreverent noise rock into sermon – developing cult-like status in just under a year. Joining them were Beijing rap rock outfit Cypher T and Shanghai’s own psych blues rockers Poetry in Shorts. 

A symphony of debauchery it was – one that my body is still reeling from. And if anyone can find my broken glasses please do reach out to me! 

The post Gig Recap : NEO 12-Year Anniversary (2024.4.27) first appeared on .

Stick Xiaoming Again And Again 反复攻击小明 – Stick Xiaoming Again And Again 反复攻击小明

One of the punk scene’s beacon of lights – Stick Xiaoming Again And Again 反复攻击小明 from Hangzhou return with latest self-titled LP – which they consider themselves their first ‘studio’ album. An amalgamation of the band’s various modes and temperaments – hardcore, punk, and folk – it feels in many ways like a scrapbook tracing the band’s past to the present. There’s an authenticity to the band’s barbed critiques – whether it’s a heartfelt eulogy for punk music or a commentary on mankind’s inability to evolve – that cuts deep. Extra point for bringing in American drummer Urian Hackney (of Iggy Pop, The Armed, and Rough Francis) and Jajatao frontman Liu Yucao to produce. True blue punk. 

朋克场景中的明灯——杭州的“反复攻击小明”携同名专辑回归——也是他们自认为的第一张“录音室”专辑。融合了乐队的各样风格与模式：硬核、朋克、民谣，感觉像是他们过去到现在的一本剪贴簿。不论是对朋克乐发自内心的赞颂还是对人类无法进化的批判，乐队的批评都有种真实性。另外值得一提的是，乐队请到了美国鼓手 Urian Hackney（Iggy Pop、The Armed和 Rough Francis 的鼓手）参与了鼓的部分的录制和假假條主唱刘与操担任制作。真正的蓝调朋克。

https://music.163.com/#/album?id=191603492

Demonslaught 666 – Endless Witchcraft

One of the metal scene’s thrashiest, gnarliest and most invigorating acts out there – Demonslaught 666 – based in Zhengzhou – lay it all down on their new LP Endless Witchcraft, released with Beijing label Awakening Records and Vicious Witch Records in the UK. Blackened speed metal that evokes everyone from Hellripper to Sodom, their sound comes charging at you like a freight train, with hooks that grip you, demonic vocals that shake you, and a production that’s crisp and lean (mixing and mastering courtesy of renowned German audio engineer Marco Brinkmann). Glorious. 

金属场景中最为激流、最为狂野也最令人瞩目的乐队之一，来自郑州的 Demonslaught 666 在北京厂牌觉醒唱片和英国厂牌 Vicious Witch Records 发行的全长专辑 Endless Witchcraft 中展露一切。黑化的速度金属让人联想到从 Hellripper 到 Sodom 的所有乐队，他们的声音像一列货运列车向你驶来，勾人心弦，恶魔般的人声动摇人心，并有着清脆而精干的制作（德国著名音响工程师 Marco Brinkmann 负责混音和母带）。令人赞不绝口。

https://demonslaught666.bandcamp.com/album/phantom-witch

https://music.163.com/#/album?id=191242047

Broken Shaft 断轴 – Still Alive

Picking up stakes and moving from Lanzhou to Guangzhou – hardcore outfit Broken Shaft has gone through quite the geographical shift – one that saw them become a part of GZHC, and eventually make speedway on their latest LP, aptly named Still Alive. Pure unfiltered hardcore punk, it’s a riotous rallying call against ‘bad behavior’ in all shapes and forms – from moral kidnapping to emotional blackmail – and anything that infringes on one‘s interests. Crisp production, potent in-your-face vocals, pummeling drums, and metal-laced guitar riffs – you know the drill. 

从兰州搬到广州并吸收了新成员，硬核乐队“断轴”经历了相当大的地理变迁，在这过程中他们成为了 GZHC 的一员，并最终在他们的最新发行中实现了高速发展，专辑被巧妙地命名为 Still Alive。未经修饰的纯粹硬核朋克，是对反对各种形式和形态的“不良行为”的暴乱号召，从道德绑架到情感勒索，再到任何侵犯个人利益的行为。清脆的制作、直指人心的人声、猛烈的鼓点、金属味十足的吉他旋律——你知道的，这些杀器。

https://music.163.com/#/album?id=190970937

https://brokenshafthardcorechina.bandcamp.com/album/still-alive

The post New Music: Stick Xiaoming Again and Again, Demonslaught 666, Broken Shaft first appeared on .