A couple of months ago I became acquainted with the guitarist Zhou Chao, who plays every Monday night with his band at the Melting Pot at 288 Taikang Lu in Shanghai. Zhou Chao's guitar work is deeply rooted in folk and blues styles. Lately he's been experimenting with a more free-form blues with a lot of wah-wah thrown in.
Read MoreHang the Police, We're Here to Rock! The Beijing Pop Festival, Sept 10 and 11 2007
When the capital city of the world’s largest authoritarian police state hosts a rock concert with headliners Public Enemy and Nine Inch Nails, how does it prevent mayhem from breaking out? Answer: police. Lots of em. The Beijing Pop Festival was an impressive contradiction of rock-fueled mayhem that brought performers and audience together, and rigid military discipline that kept them apart.
Read MoreProject Dementia Goes to Shanghai: An Interview with Wu Jun and a Night @ 4Live
While in Shanghai I was able to kill two birds with one stone, or as they say in Chinese, 一举两得 . Three birds really, since I also reuned with my family, but that’s another matter. While Sat and Sun were reserved for the CET fieldtrip (see my previous blog), Friday July 20 was a chance to reengage with Shanghai’s live music scene.
Read MoreA Rocking Week in Beijing: 13 Club and Kaiser
Descriptions of a night at 13 Club, a rock club in Wudaokou, Beijing, and a night hanging out with Chinese American rocker Kaiser Kuo
Read MoreFreedom, Beijing Style
One of my projects while in Beijing is to research and experience the city’s notorious “underground” live music scene. The scene is not that underground really--for several years now clubs have been operating in the open, featuring gritty Chinese rock bands. One such club is 2Kolegas, which opened up two years ago. Run by veteran rocker Liu Miao 刘淼 and his partner , the club is located beyond the Third Ring Road on Liangmaqiao Street. It’s in a Drive-in Movie Theater Park. The area of its location is parkland--meaning field and forest. The club itself is small, and patrons can sit outside on a dirt-grass field and drink their beers while enjoying the (cough, splutter) clear Beijing night air.
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