Teenage Angst

Tank Warehouse + U.C.S. / Falling Daisy /Hello Monkey and others - 本色酒吧 / True Color Bar, DongMen – 26/04/09

It’s not quite the evening, but True Color Bar is so dimly lit that cigarettes gravitate like fireflies through the heavy darkness. Perhaps the management is trying to save electricity, I muse, watching the next band set-up. I have just sat through three or four short performances of mediocre western covers and pop punk wannabes and am wondering if there is going to be anything really worth reporting on. I look up at the band now on stage. The vocalist is immediately eye-catching; heavy-rimmed spectacles, piercings; he parades the stage inspecting his band mates amplifiers and coordinating a swift sound check. When ready, meandering between Mandarin and English he alerts the audience, then raises his fist and steps backwards. The band begins suddenly, heavier than the obesity epidemic, down tuned and confrontational. They are the aptly named, ‘Tank Warehouse.’

After a twenty minute set of ear-splitting hardcore rap metal, my heart is beating like a twelve year old who just discovered “Master of Puppets,” in his older brother’s record collection. I greet the singer, Liu Shuai, stepping of stage and we go for a chat. Behind the mildly satanic and bellicose demeanour, I discover a well spoken, mild mannered Shenzhen University student. A real life Jekyll and Hyde.

“My Dad was an English professor he tells me,” in American accented English. “He prefers British English because it’s more standard but as you can hear, I sound a bit American.”

“Why so?” I ask.

“I listen to so much American music. 80% of the music I listen to is metal. I sleep with headphones on.”

“What language do you sing in?” I had wanted to substitute sing for, growl, but refrained.

“English.”

This is a sticking-point for me as I tend to champion bands that sing in Chinese and do not just mimic their western influences. I tell him I think the best Beijing Rock is performed in Chinese.

“Beijing is a closed scene. I admire the Hong Kong attitude. We must face the world and be international. That’s why I sing in English. Our music is strongly influenced by the west.” Though I believe the Hong Kong music industry has a lot to answer for, ‘Tank Warehouse’ were tight, focused and(when compared with their contemporise on the student circuit) professional, so I let the issue slide.

“Do your parents like your music?”

“Actually they don’t know I play. They want me to concentrate on my studies.”

I am encouraged by this hint of rebellion - there is more to this outing than student geeks ripping of waiguo rock. The show had gone all afternoon. Kids got loose and crazy, crowd-surfed and stage dived whilst outside, oblivious shoppers sought deals on DongMen’s busy streets outside. Though most bands had been unoriginal and limited, the gathering had a real taste of an underground scene and if ‘Tank Warehouse’ are demonstrating anything, it’s that this adolescent scene can produce some talent (and maybe one day some innovation) if nurtured and given enough support. Thus, True Color Bar must be credited for hosting the show.

I ask Liu, “What plans do you have for the future.”

“Just keep going,” he replies.

Sincere, explosive yet imitative ‘Tank warehouse,’ do offer Shenzhen some genuine heavy metal, so if gruesome noise is what you’re missing, keep your ears to the ground and listen out for the sound of caterpillar tracks.
*** 3/5

Innovation in Abundance

The Violent Jokes – Enigma, Shekou – 25/04/09

Drum n Bass shows are ideally set in large clubs populated by artificially energised dance fiends. Enigma on the other hand, is quite the contrary. Big screen sports, pool table, fat business-types and over friendly hostesses was the setting for last Saturday’s live dance showcase. I was doubtful of there being much to write on.

However, once Hong Kong’s Violent Jokes got stuck-in, the inane atmosphere dissolved into the background as Korean vocalist Shadow prowled the stage like Bjork crossed with a leopard. Her vocals sounded like the culmination of an impossible collaboration by Massive Attack and the Velvet Underground’s Nico, whilst her allure was her aloofness aided by the absence of any self-affirming egoism. She was very much the focused artist; shifting in and out of gear appropriately, contrasting MC with R&B diva, whilst sustaing the wild mystique of a rabid Audrey Hepburn.

Simon Griffin from the UK and Claudio Canzonetta from Italy, instrument hopped as they provided a trip-hop, electro, drum n bass soundtrack, that combined with elements of rock and funk, to give their music a cross-over appeal. As Canzonetta lamented, “Rave began with live bands like Prodigy. Now it is all DJs.” The bands mission he says is to get live music back into the clubs. “We think this makes the difference.”

And this may seem viable when you have band so adapt at riding down the crossroads of musical traffic. ‘Me as a wolf with Dolby Surround Sound,’ is a richly, dark drum n bass ride with divergent classical strings samples, where as ‘Dangerous’ is a trip hop, 80s electro jingle with some live funk guitar and bass thrown into the mix, displaying maturity and prowess.

Regulars on the HK circuit, Violent Jokes plan to make more trips around Asia and to the mainland this year, so whether a rocker or a groover, keep your ear to the ground for more news. Myspace.com/violentjokeshk **** 4/5

Far From Unruly

The Hooligans – c:union, Guangzhou – 24/4/09

A Hooligan in British culture is not a name any erudite person would self-apply. As a band name, The Hooligans conjures up some idea of an unruly hardcore punk outfit, out to propagate Anarchy in the PRC. Guangzhou based rock outfit, The Hooligans are anything but a motley crew revolutionaries. Made up of Chris Martin and Smitti from California, Cliff Johnson from Vancouver as well as GZ locals, Xu Ge and A Gu, The Hooligans are a middle class, cosmopolitan club who predominantly play blues based American rock from the 60s-70s. Following the recipe of many a pub band before them - playing to thinly populated blues bars on Sunday nights throughout the west - their performance was only a notch above the pack of classic rock cover artists.

Ability was in no short supply with every instrumentalist holding their corner. Energy levels didn’t waver throughout the lengthy hour and a half-set and the choice of covers - from The Band’s ‘Up On Cripple Creek,’ through to lengthy Allman Brothers-esque ‘Norwegian Wood’ – displayed discernment and finesse. Vocalists / Guitarists Martin and Johnson gave soulful if imitative performances that sustained a reasonable level interest and appreciation from the largely local audience and a few original songs gave some credence to artistic integrity that c:union has earned its reputation promoting.

Having only been together for a year or so, one can only hope that with time the band will begin to pen more of their own material and make music that is slight less cliché and more innovative. Though likable, tight and competent, The Hooligans lacked the orginality that could distinguish them in any way from my father's classic rock collection and had it not been for the buzzing atmosphere in c:union, I might have well stayed in and watched the Last waltz. ** 2/5

Going Underground

At opposite ends of Nanshan, two pillars emerge to support the emerging Shenzhen underground.

Funky (Wen Fung) is a larger than life character. Tall, thick-set and intense, he looks more like a North-Easterner than a Hunanese. Yet he is proud to be a Southerner. When I tell him Beijiningers often say the south has no culture he grows annoyed and scoffs at the idea. “Guangzhou is full of culture, Changsha; so many cities are full of culture.” He shakes his head with distaste. “What do they know?” he asks dismissively.
After three years working as a professional drummer in LA, Funky returned to his beloved Shenzhen believing in the potential and opportunity the new city had for creating an underground music scene. He is now the music promoter and drummer extraordinaire of ‘c:union,’ (一渡堂) a music and art cooperative that relocated to the Loft Art District late last year. After Funky extinguishes his cigarette, we continue to discuss the criticisms labelled on Shenzhen by artists based in Xian, Beijing or even Guangzhou. “They say there is no history here and therefore no culture. They say the musicians are all money motivated. They miss what makes Shenzhen unique. It’s a migrant city and attracts high-calibre people from all over China and abroad. It’s the perfect melting pot - an excellent base for creating an art-scene. We have musicians from Xinjiang, Shanxi, Beijing and America, regularly playing in c:union; it’s an eclectic mix.”
I ask him if he thinks there is an underground scene in Shenzhen.
“What is underground music?” he replies. “Can underground music be professional or is it amateur by nature? Can underground musicians be famous? Let me explain to you,” he lights another cigarette and gulps at his tea. “Yerboli (Xinjiang folk singer and resident c:union musician) is professional. We just toured in Taiwan, next Beijing and perhaps Europe in the near future. This is not amateur. Is Yerboli famous? He’s not a KTV star, he is not on television or in magazines, but he is known throughout the artistic circles in China. So he is famous, and he is a professional. He is also a permanent Shenzhen based underground artist.”
Yerboli’s Band seems to summarize what Funky means when he talks about cosmopolitan Shenzhen. The band is made up of members from every corner of China, from inner-Mongolia, to Hunan from Beijing to Xinjiang.
I tell him what most disappoints me about musicians in Shenzhen is that they are all about making money and playing covers. He agrees this is a problem.
“Everyone wants to copy the western style. Bars employ business-musicians and cover artists. We in c:union are trying to change this culture, invest in talent and work as a family. I only allow original music to be played at the bar and I give people opportunities - whether they are from Mongolia or the US, if they have talent, I will let them play and if they are professional and popular, I will get my returns.”
Funky is not only promoting local talent but bringing touring bands to the city as well. Last week saw rockabilly band ‘El Destroyo’ shake the house and this Thursday the 19th Chinese punk pioneers ‘Reflector’ will be playing.
“They were one of the fist Chinese punk outfits to visit the US,” he claims proudly.
I conclude are discussion by asking him what he envisions for the future. As he nurtures local talent and promotes touring artists what will be the fruits of his labour? Characteristically Hunanese, he relays his optimism for the future ambiguously, by modifying the famous Chairman Mao by saying; “if good people are many, strength will be even greater.”
At the other end of Nanshan district Leon Clark, slap bass player in Punk/Funk outfit ‘Bolt Action’ is busy erecting another pillar in the newly carved-out underground cavern. “Two week ago we held a show in Jim’s Bar in Shekou.” The modestly titled, ‘Greatest Live Show in the History of Shenzhen,’ attracted nearly five-hundred people. “This proves there is an appetite in the city for good live music!” he exclaims.
Leon had been trying to promote such an event for sometime. Inspired by the RocknRoll review shows of the US and the Hong Kong underground sessions, Leon felt that Shenzhen musicians needed a break. However, when he tried to put his plan into action, bar managers all around the city seemed closed to the idea of a giant jam session. “I could get shows for my band,” he says leaning forward, “but they didn’t want the storm that I suggested come with it.” By “storm” Leon meant new and inexperienced bands.
Perhaps this is the problem, I suggest to him: The closed mindset of the bar managers. If nobody nurtures talent it will die out or go elsewhere. Leon agrees, saying this mentality is what had motivated him to put the show on.
“It was a chance for non-house bands to play, meet and interact with other musicians. Other bars didn’t want to gamble on such a project. Jim’s bar took a chance with us.”
Judging by the highlights on Leon’s on you tube channel, the musicians quite literally took Shekou by storm, prompting Jim’s bar to agree to second event to be held on April the 24th.
Like Funky, Leon is all about community. “Musicians and bands shouldn’t compete with one another. We should help each other.” Indeed, Leon seems to live by this philosophy, putting student bands from Shenzhen Polytechnic and Shenzhen University (Lava and Domestic Jokers, respectively) on the bill with mature, ex-pat rock outfits.
When I express that I feel there should still be some measure of quality control, even when your trying to help new-comers, Leon simply says: “The next event will be better,” before boldly adding “and all original music. No covers.”
While bars in Coco Park and Shekou still populate their stages with show bands and cover artists, it would seem that the cracks are beginning to show. An appetite amongst foreigners and locals alike for high quality and original music was perhaps, inevitable. Whether or not the optimism of Funky or Leon manages to create an established scene in the future, remains to be seen, but for now at least, any interested customer or aspiring musician can ignore the karaoke house and go rock-out instead.