Editor’s Picks Jan. 21-24

Friday:

Maybe Mars Showcase

This is the big one for this week and has already gotten the informative links and downloads treatment from Mp3 Monday. If you don’t already know by now, the show will feature Rustic, 24 Hours, The Gar, and headliners PK14. Good things have been heard by me about all those bands except Rustic, who I just haven’t heard anything about. Their Rock in China page is entertaining though. If you’re here do I actually have to try to convince you to go to this show?

Mao Livehouse, 570 Huaihai Xi Lu near Hongqiao Lu, Building 32

9:30 start

Tickets 60 RMB early or 80 at the door

Back to the Roots

Shelter take a break from their heavy diet of international superstars to feature their (sort of) own Lab Crew. Fortune, HBD, V-Nutz, and Shige have cooked up a new routine with four turntables and three mixers and it should be hot. Show a little love. There are also some CDs for the early birds.

The Shelter, 5 Yongfu Lu near Fuxing Xi Lu

9:00 start

30 RMB cover

Saturday:

The Penelopes

From the people who brought you Papier Tigre (LOgO and Pure) come The Penelopes, a French Dance Rock band. I for one am all for dance bands. DJs are great for dancing, but dancing with a band is another thing and there’s no reason for it to go away. Check out their Myspace. The after party will be musicked by Mau Mau and Adept.

LOgO, 13 Xingfu Lu near Fahuazhen Lu

10:00 start

30 RMB cover

B6

One of the not many Shanghai DJs to begin making a name for himself outside our fair city, B6 returns to present his new sound, which promoters Void see as “the sound of the next decade.” It could happen, and it would be cool if it did. Make your own analysis tonight. Or, rather, don’t analyze tonight, because then you won’t enjoy yourself as much. Just remember what happened and save those memories for later analysis. Sheesh, do I have to tell you everything?

The Shelter, 5 Yongfu Lu near Fuxing Xi Lu

10:00 start

30 RMB cover

Sunday:

Reso 10

I advise you to round out your weekend with some experimental music. That way you’ll go into Monday wondering about what’s hiding in the cracks or waiting around the corner. Studies have shown that listening to experimental music improves your outside the box thinking skills and gets you raises and stuff. I swear. This week the money beckoning cats (apparently they can get you fancy sneakers instead of regular money if you’re into that) of experimental music are Mai Mai, organizer of the whole thing, Sun Ye, and 33, Han Han, and Shen Shu of Duck Fight Goose. Sweet!

YuYinTang, 1731 Yan’an Xi Lu, enter from Kaixuan Lu

9:00-11:00

40 RMB cover

tags: 24 Hours - B6 - DJ Adept - Duck Fight Goose - Fortune - HBD - LOgO - Mai Mai - Mao Livehouse - Mau Mau - PK14 - Pure - Reso - Rustic - S.T.D. - Shige - Sun Ye - The Gar - The Lab Crew - The Penelopes - The Shelter - V-Nutz - YuYinTang

Editor’s Picks, December 10-13

I’m sick of these old geezers telling me what music is, that today’s music sucks, and that the mid-70s to mid-80s were when music was real. Especially when they probably haven’t seen a live show in 20 years. Especially when they haven’t listened fully to a recent song in the last 5, probably. Especially when what they are referencing as the Golden Age in Music consists of gems such as AC/DC, Ratt, and Motley Crue. Listen, I am not discounting the relative merits of those bands or any others you want to throw out there (as limited as they may be), but you are disregarding and completely and willfully ignoring everything that has come afterward simply because you don’t like a few songs you might have heard your seven year-old playing at home. And, by the way, I listen to a lot of music. I probably know more about your era than you do, plus stuff before that, not to mention everything since. So don’t lecture me about music anymore, please, or I will impale you with Neil Peart’s drumstick. Thanks.

Now let’s get to the picks. Of MODERN music.

Thursday, December 10th

Friction Guzheng, 10:30-11:30 PM

Alec Haavik’s Friction 7 meet Guzheng player Kuriko on the JZ stage tonight. The nastiest jazz/funk group in town meets the refined sounds of the Chinese Guzheng? This lovechild is going to be the purtiest multiracial baby in town. And that’s saying something.

JZ Club
46 Fuxing Xi Lu,
Huaihai Zhong Lu
near Yongfu Lu, Metro Line 1 Changshu Lu Station
复兴西路46号
近永福路，地铁1号线常熟路站

No cover (I think)

Friday, December 11th

S.T.D. presents Sulumi and Liman, 10 PM until comatose in alley

Alicia already graced us with a preview of this show and a review of the Sulumi album “Chaotic Dances the Function.” All that, plus a shot of her butt cheek with a Sulumi tattoo in full view! Now that’s how you get on the Layabozi staff. And if you visit LOgO on Friday night you will get to experience the glory of 8-bit and maybe even a second viewing of Alicia’s tattoo. You never know what’s going to happen at LOgO. They even upgraded their sound. Who would have thought that would happen?

LOgO
13 Xingfu Lu,
Changning
near Fahuazhen Lu
幸福路13号
近法华镇路

30 kuai

Saturday, December 12th

Louder.cn presents Lady Killer, 9 PM until the Kedi graveyard shift change

This one garners the coveted Editor’s Pick of the Week Award from your humble prognosticator. Talk about Ladies’ Night! I remember seeing Yen at that weird Samiyam gig at Kathleen’s 5. She was absolutely ripping the place up. Ceiling tiles were cascading down and people were speaking in devilish, electronic tongues. Then she stopped, some other dude got up, and it was not the same. Bummer. Siesta? You may have heard about her once or twice on Layabozi. I have only seen ChaCha with Uprooted, but I was flabbergasted by the whole experience. The others, MIA (no, not THAT one), Kelly Rehab, and VJ Hean, although unknown to me, should totally also not suck. Finally, the flyer is killer so it’s the total package, so to speak.

Dada
115 Xingfu Lu
Changning
near Fahuazhen Lu
幸福路115号
近法华镇路

No cover!

Immaculate Machine, 8-11:30 PM

Welcome to the Canada of the East. Hollerado, these guys, Great Lake Swimmers; it’s like an infestation. This band seems very sensitive to me. I feel like you could put this on, light some candles, and have a very stimulating conversation about Venezuelan land reform with your crush. You know the one from the coffee shop with the sweater and scarf, maybe a canvas bag over her shoulder for carting organic produce? Yeah, her. Do yourself a favor, Sensitive Guy: Invite her to this show. Maybe you two can have mind sex afterward.

YuYinTang
1731 Yan’an Xi Lu,
Changning
Entrance at Kaixuan Lu
延安西路1731号
入口在凯旋路

50 kuai

Ashram, 8 PM-12 AM or so

Hello, MAO Livehouse? Hi, it’s Layabozi. Remember last week when we told you to follow YuYinTang’s example? Well, let’s see how you’re doing: The MONO show rocked and was packed. Nice job there, but it was hard to screw that one up. However, The 0093 Showcase might as well have been held in a phone booth. Then you drew 300 people to a show by the ReTROS who brought 600 to YuYinTang a few months earlier. Furthermore, I could find no mention of this hip Ashram show on any English language websites besides Layabozi. Meanwhile, your own site sucks and, at the time of this writing, I couldn’t even access it. Plus, you are charging the highest ticket prices in town. To top it all off, you are alienating local promoters.

Anyways, what we’re saying is: Please don’t fuck this up. Shanghai needs this larger venue with cool acts coming on a regular basis, but it must be done right. Let’s stick to the script: A good mix of awesome Chinese and foreign bands, good promotion through multiple channels, and affordable prices. Simple, right?

Right? Let’s get it together a little bit, OK?

Anyways, you can check out a very cool review with Ashram right here at Layabozi, the international authority on Italian Neo-Classical Dark-Wave Pop. And you should check out this show if you can.

MAO Livehouse
570 Huaihai Xi Lu
near Hongqiao Lu
淮海西路570号
近红桥路

150 kuai advance, 200 at the door

Sunday, December 13th

Bangourake African Music Night, 8-11 PM

YES! This is a rare opportunity to catch some traditional West African music in Shanghai played by actual West Africans. So don’t miss out on that. It might even make me take the unprecedented step of putting on some pants on a Sunday night. The Canadians last week did not accomplish that.

YuYinTang
1731 Yan’an Xi Lu,
Changning
Entrance at Kaixuan Lu
延安西路1731号
入口在凯旋路

60 kuai

This pick leads us to our first time-waster. Also out of the African Diaspora, using wisdom passed down through the ages, comes this man.

Next: Kind of in the same vein as that one, but not really.

Finally, I was able to track down the photographer who irked me so badly at the YuYinTang Anniversary show.

tags: Ashram - Bangourake - Canadian Invasion - ChaCha - Friction 7 - Great Lake Swimmers - Guzheng - Hollerado - Immaculate Machine - Italian Neo-Classical Dark-Wave Pop - Jane Siesta - JZ - Kelly Rehab - Kuriko - Lady Killer - Liman - LOgO - Louder.cn - Mao Livehouse - MIA - Rebuilding the Right of Statues - S.T.D. - Sulumi - Venezuelan land reform - VJ Hean - Yen - YuYinTang

Sulumi “Chaotic Dances the Function”

Disclosure: Author has the name of the artist tattooed on her butt.  Everything she says may be biased.

Full disclosure: Author has the name of the artist tattooed on her butt.  Everything she says may be biased.

In 1997 Sun Dawei began to play guitar and subsequently joined a band called ‘Underground Baby’ performing live with them.  In the year 2000 he began to create electronic music, often as the inspiration and key member of ‘Panda Twin’.  From the early darker sounds, Sun Dawei then moved into 8-bit music.  (8-bit, for those who have not had the pleasure, is electronic sounds taken from electronic entertainment systems.)  In 2002 he began by releasing his first album on Modern Sky’s label and subsequently he started his own record label, Shanshui Records.  Based in Beijing, the label was first a home to many recording artists throughout Asia and has in recent times expanded more globally. Although Sun Dawei may not be a household name, perhaps you do know him by his pseudonym, Sulumi.

Sulumi is made a name for himself as a “Game Boy DJ”, using the systems to put together bleeps and blips to create loud, happy, hardcore, and totally danceable music.  Other than providing tracks on recent compilation albums for both Shanshui and Kill Club, Sulumi released his fourth full-length album, “Chaotic Dances the Function”, late in 2008 on his own Shanshui Records label.

“Chaotic Dances the Function” is packed with Game Boy laden songs, including a few old gems, namely ‘City’ from his most recent EP ‘What has happened to me in this world’, a song that has high energy and never fails to get the crowd moving.  The album opens with ‘Sweetly’, a nice slow intro to what quickly becomes a high-energy dance party, not without the countdown, of course.  It also includes a remix of a USK, another 8-bit artist from Japan who has also been released on Shanshui Records, a track titled ‘Kill Me Sweetly (Love Me Sweetly)’.

Sulumi brings you on a journey through the wonders of 8-bit.  There is the light, poppy, bubbly sound reminiscent of capturing princesses from the castles; he in turn gives you the dark, heavy rhythmic sounds of hunting out and shooting aliens.  Although short at nine tracks, the sound stays fresh, upbeat and, before you know it, you will be bobbing your head in public to the digital sounds and rhythm of the metro under your feet.  Even though the album is great, seeing him live is a special experience that everyone in the greater China area should have.

The best track on the album is the last track, featuring a live show that Sulumi performed at LOgO in May of 2007 for the Shanshui China Tour.  For any Sulumi fan, it is an excellent trip down memory lane.  If you listen closely, you can hear your friends shouting Sulumi’s name before he begins.  You can hear the happiness and pogo dancing of everyone in the crowd.  If you listen close enough, I think you can even remember what most of the high-energy crowd was wearing. In fact, by listening, I myself remember stealing Sulumi’s hat and running out to the street to refuel from the BBQ man outside, although that might have just been me and a few select others.

The second best part about this album is that it’s free!  You can download the zip file from Neocha.

Please enjoy these wonderful electronic sounds yourself.

Postnote: Get yourself to LoGo on Friday, December 11, 2009 to hear for yourself the joy of Sulumi.  Pray he brings his Game Boys!  In fact, myspace his ass and make sure he does.

tags: 8-bit - China - LOgO - S.T.D. - Shanshui records - Sulumi

Live and Undead Recap

Friday’s YACHT show at YuYinTang was a straight-up banger, as predicted right here on Layabozi.com. The Violent Phlegms did not disappoint, living up to the high expectations that many in the crowd had for them. Fabi, sporting a dirty-blonde, 80s hair metal wig and American flag bandana, fought through some sound problems on the acoustic bass to really anchor the songs sonically. Adam was spot-on in his vocals and managed to alloy the tracks with strains of his signature snappy guitar solos. Dave on the drums also turned in a more then serviceable performance. Props to the band  for their bit of performance art on the final cut, “Country Death March”.

The Youth and the Destroyer came on next for a pretty short set. I had moved outside to answer nature’s call and found myself hard-pressed to press myself back inside (it was one of those BIG YuYinTang shows) so I missed it.

I finally wedged myself back into the middle of the floor for a good view of Resist Resist’s set, who I had not seen before, so I was excited. This is an electro-type band with keyboards, live and pre-recorded drums, general digital kookiness from Morgan, and lead vocals from Lucy. I was happy with Resist Resist from a sound standpoint (I love that poppy, synthy tomfoolery), but I would have liked to see a bit more energy from Lucy. She looked great, but she was doing a kind of stoic, Kraftwerk-type thing, when I was really looking for more Debbie Harry.

YACHT ascended the stage promptly after that set and they turned in a monumental performance, the likes of which I was not entirely expecting. I don’t know exactly why. I think I was expecting more knob-twiddling than disco-dancing. Thankfully, we got the latter. I have not seen many shows at YuYinTang in which the floor was completely packed and people were dancing, jumping, and moshing clear to the back. YACHT really brought it out in us. I had absconded to the alcove area behind the sound board for the beginning of the set, but three songs in I was worming my way into the black heart of the maelstrom with an intrepid co-worker. Here I promptly lost my flip-flop in the tumult (got it back, in case you’re wondering). Everyone was bouncing and gyrating, hands in the air, the mass of bodies becoming one amorphous organism spurred on by the bass and the duo’s dynamism. The tunes were pure dance-abilly and YACHT did not disappoint in my original posit that they are very supercalifragilistic, extra-stylistic. Jona was clad head-to-toe in white, Claire in an all-black cape/dress. They turned the stage into a full-on Monster Mash and everyone was loving it. They were even coaxed into an encore, which you don’t see very often at YuYinTang.

All in all, it was a great set from YACHT, the supporting bands did their jobs, and I was happy to be in support of this show in my own little way. I hope you all enjoyed it, too.

Look for the definitive YACHT interview in a future post.

tags: Resist Resist - Rock - S.T.D. - Shanghai - The Violent Phlegms - The Youth and the Destroyer - YACHT - YuYinTang