LiveBeijingMusic.com calls itself the ‘Chinese Capital Reference’, and with a quick glance over the website, it’s easy to see why it’s become the ultimate muso’s voice of authority in Beijing: with a real-time Google gig map, fresh reviews every day and their own weekly mix-tape, it’s a local music blog to be reckoned with.
The site is authored by Will Griffith, a Beijing resident who is truly immersed in the country’s music culture. He has selected some of his favourite contemporary music coming out of Beijing for & Of Other Things – borrowed from writing he has used for his own blog posts, writing contributed to the blogger, journalist, DJ collective Beehive, and some new stuff just for us. We gave you his first installment of music two months ago, now it’s time to sink your ears into part two!
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Artist: Omnipotent Youth Society
Track: Kill The One from Shijiazhuang
Place: Shijiazhuang
“Incorporating a mix of instrumentals – from violins to trumpets – Omnipotent Youth Society is music at both its most intimate and all encompassing – the quartet provides social commentary through their lush music without once stepping into over sentiment.”
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Artist: Demerit
Track: Voice of the People
Place: Beijing
“Punk is alive and well in Beijing and there is no better representation of that than Demerit – the hardcore punk band that has stuck to their punk roots throughout the years. A gut punch of energy, their true values shine through one of their slower-paced anthems and it’s a stunner.”
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Artist: Li Dong
Track: Vibrant Poetry
Place: Beijing
“In the past decade there’s been an emergence of Ningxia folk rock that’s taken the capital by storm – with Li Dong leading the charge. Full of warmth and ragged spirit, the band uses an accordion to fine effect, is is a breathe of fresh air in a smog-filled city.”
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Artist: White +
Track: Red
Place: Beijing
“It’s been amazing seeing how electronic music has shaped and influenced artists of all ilks – Zhang Shouwang, lead singer of Carsick Cars has particularly taken a fondness to it, creating a symphony of adrenaline-packed music that feels fully organic and innovative. This cut features another genre of music that’s slowly finding its place in China – rap – and the combination of the two is mesmerising ”
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Artist: Zhaoze
Track: The World is a Blue Stone
Place: Beijing
“Post rock is arguably one of the most popular genres in China – pretty much a go-to spot for any international touring post rock group. For those curious how well post rock translates into Chinese I‘d recommend checking out Zhaoze. They create intoxicatingly beautiful soundscapes with their exquisite use of the Chinese instrument, the guqin.”
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CAMA’s Eliza Lomas is on a mission to find a huge array of great Asian music, digging through different times, countries and genres, with a regular monthly selection.
