June 6th, 2009 |
Posted in New Music by mache
Andy Best, the reporter of indie Chinese rock in Shanghai, went back to the studio with a new project, Expendable. Supported by Brad Ferguson on the sound controls, the band included Tim Anderson on drums, and Little Punk on vocals, but finally Evans Zhang sang on the recording because Little Punk was too busy with Boys Climbing Ropes. Andy took command of the guitar and the bass.
“Rachel Corrie”, the third song on the EP, is about the 23 year-old member of the International Solidarity Movement who was killed by a bulldozer drove by Israel defense forces when trying to interrupt the demolition of a house pointed as a guerrilla hideout. Choose your Own Heroes is a well done first step. The sound is interesting and attractive, and the lyrics clearly call for social conscience and an awakening against injustice. It is that kind of rock.
Four of the five tracks of Choose your Own Heroes are out now for you to listen to on Neocha. Take your time to check the lyrics by clicking on each of the songs.
Expendable is getting eight more songs ready for a full-length LP, also under the wing of the Shanghai rock production dragon, Brad Ferguson. While working on these songs and recordings, the band is fixing their line-up, testing bass players, and establishing the singer position. A new band is rising in Shanghai.
tags: Andy Best - Boys Climbing Ropes - Brad Ferguson - CONTROL - Emo - Expendable - House - Indie - Listen to - Little Punk - NeoCha - Punk - Rock - Shanghai
May 14th, 2009 |
Posted in New Music by ed
July is traditional Chinese music season in Shanghai, with a series of concerts being staged at the Shanghai Grand theater by the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra and other leading folk musicians. Entitled “Pin Yue Feng Ya” (Elegant Music), the series promises performances on the erhu (by Min Huifen), guzheng (Gong Yi and Luo Xiaoci), bamboo flute (Qian Jun), and pipa (Zhou Tao).
Performances run from May 23 to July 5, at the Shanghai Grand Theater on People’s Avenue. Tickets should set you back between30-80RMB.
Telephone 6283-5288 for further details.
tags: China - Shanghai - Traditional Chinese Music
April 15th, 2009 |
Posted in New Music by ed
(Those are donkey mandibles they are holding, in case you are wondering).
Ever heard of Afro-Peruvian music before? Me neither. But whilst it may sound slightly like a contrived new-age genre (See, for example, Lost Music of Celtarabia), it turns out to have deep roots in the fusion of cultures created by African slaves brought to Peru by the Spanish (I heart you, hive mind). So it’s okay to be intrigued; it does not make you a dirty hippy.
Radiokijada is a collaboration between Christoph Mueller of Gotan Project and Rodolfo Muñoz (percussionist and authentic Peruvian). You can check out their own copy at their MySpace, but essentially this is a mix of European electronic basslines, African rhythms, and jangly Peruvian instruments based on donkey-mandibles. Winner! They recently released an album, Agua E’Nieve, on Wrasse.
There’s an interesting live performance and interview with them on the Beeb, just fast forward through the first irrelevant 10 minutes.
tags: Electronic - Fusion - UK
March 17th, 2009 |
Posted in New Music by mache
A Hawk and a Hacksaw is a band rich in creativity and playfulness. Their music is funny, magical, interesting, and beautiful. It is great news that in May they will release their new album Deliverance, with the first single, “Foni tu Argile”, coming on April 27th.
A Hawk and a Hacksaw is originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.A. The two members are the drummer Jeremy Barnes, formerly of the experimental indie band Neutral Milk Hotel, and violinist Heather Trost. As they say on their myspace page, the rest of the band is composed of “a rooster, a gaggle of geese, bits of tin, two rivers (one in France, one in New Mexico), … a small cat who has three little kittens, an assortment of gongs, wooden percussive implements, and portable drums, the occasional jazz musician, or tuba player, an oud master, three accordions, a romanian brass band, 4 hungarian cosmopolitans and a stroh violin.”
The central couple moved to Budapest after their tour in 2007 where they have strenghtened their Central European influences. We are thrilled and excited to listen to their new album. For now, if you haven’t heard them yet, check out this tune and this video.
[youtube width="300" height="200"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dBD1LttEVk&feature=related[/youtube]
tags: A Hawk and a Hacksaw - Albuquerque - Budapest
