In Bloom: Shanghai’s Blossoming Rock Scene

In Bloom: Shanghai’s Blossoming Rock Scene

Beijing is a Rock City, that's where China's best bands come from, right? PK 14, Carsick Cars, Joyside, Snapline, Queen Sea Big Shark… the list goes on. They have the best labels – Maybe Mars, Modern Sky, Acupuncture – and the best venues – D22, Yugong Yishan, Mao, 2 Kolegas… By comparison Shanghai is all skylines, high-heels, martinis and table reservations – nothing to see here, move along now.

Well, that may have once been the case – it may still be for the vast majority of those looking for a night out – but Shanghai's Rock n Roll scene has come a long way in recent years. Often dismissed as a hub for electronic music (which it still is, and proudly so), an ever-growing number of bands, labels and venues have taken it upon themselves to hit-back at their northern oppressors, making, promoting and staging the original, underground music that the city's youth demand.

The lowdown on the scene

So where can you go see some of these great Shanghai bands? Well, there are a few places that rarely disappoint. Take Yuyintang for instance; one of the longest running live music venues, having first opened it's doors way back in 2004, YYT plays host to both local, national and international acts pretty much four nights a week on average. With renovations to the building (which backs on to Tianshan Park, off Yanan Xi Lu) just completed it's now an even more fantastic place to catch an intimate show, now that more people can get in and most can now even see the stage!

For a long time what was lacking in Shanghai in particular was mid-size venues where both well-known international artists demanding a high standard of sound and lighting work and local bands with a growing following could put on quality shows. This is a problem the people behind Mao Livehouse (little sister of Mao Beijing) aimed to solve. Here's what Lisa Movius, manager of Mao, had to say about the development of Shanghai's live music scene and where it's heading in the years to come:

"This is a really exciting and important time for Shanghai rock music. I feel like it is the cusp of a new wave… We now have the bands, the fans, and the support institutions - including venues, labels, and organizations like 0093 - to maintain a heady momentum. With Mao’s move, Yuyintang’s refurbishing, Zhulu Hefeng’s outreach, the return of Top Floor Circus, and the increase in bands’ numbers and quality, Shanghai rock is reaching the point where it cannot be ignored or dismissed – as it unfairly has been for so long.

I’ve been active in and reporting about Shanghai rock since 1998. We’ve gone from having about 20 bands, of which five were any good, to probably some 200, with 40 or 50 noteworthy ones. Financial success and mainstream recognition will remain elusive for the foreseeable future, but we have here a burgeoning scene that has the potential makings of a major musical movement. Culture in Shanghai has sort of been on-hold for several years due to the you-know-what [World Expo], so there is a lot of pent-up energy starting to burst out. This and subsequent years will see more Shanghai bands touring internationally, and holding their own when they do. The present is of course built on the shoulders of the past, and there is a lot of labour and frustration both behind and ahead of the indie music scene, and a lot that can and probably will go wrong, but the prospects of continued evolution are very good, I think".

Vox Pop

While much of this might be true, not everyone sees the future as being quite so rosy for the scene in Shanghai. Here's what some of Shanghai Rock's main players both love and loathe about the scene:

Morgan of Boys Climbing Ropes: "I like how there are all sorts of bands here that share affinities – either socially or aesthetically – but no one really is a copy of each other. People are supportive but with their own sh*t they do their own thing. And we can still play together. Like we play with The Fever Machine and it doesn’t come across as a weird bill, which it might in other places. So you get some variety. I don’t like dealing with any issue at all associated with race, nationality, “expat vs local”, any of that sh*t. It both bores me and I don’t even know how to respond to it really. Wish it wasn’t a factor but sometimes it is. Wish it didn’t enter into conversation but it does."

Guillaume of X is Y: "I love how diverse, supportive and creative the scene is. But I think it lacks a hard working and well-organized label such as Beijing's Maybe Mars."

Nichols of Rainbow Danger Club: "I loathe nothing and love everything. That said, I do wish there was more Chinese/Laowai interaction. That needs to be on every band's to-do list.

For Those About to Rock, We Promote You

Whichever of these views you care to take, there is no doubt that a well-established network of bands and promoters are working tirelessly to make sure you can see quality live music at modern, well-equipped venues, and they're not in it for the money - believe me! And all this in the face of licensing regulations for both venues and performing bands that pose real commercial instability.

Local indie labels such as Zhulu Hefeng and Zang Nan Recordings are run by artists, for artists, meaning that they are known and trusted by all. They’re becoming increasingly businesslike and organised, allowing the Shanghai scene to show its face to the world, along with other key individuals that don't get the credit they deserve, such as record producers Adam Gaensler at Luwan Rock and Brad Ferguson, manager of Duck Fight Goose, among other things.

And the best news of all? New bands are springing up all the time. Take Shanghai Soundtrack, or Phantom Sun (who played their debut gig at Mao as part of Fete de la Musique) for instance. As more and more Chinese kids bring their own interpretations of rock music to the table and foreign rock fans continue to flock to Shanghai in search of this growing scene they've heard so much about, despite all the pitfalls and hurdles that exist, Shanghai Rock is headed in the right direction.

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Keywords: rock music in Shanghai Chinese rock scene best Shanghai bands Beijing rock music

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