MP3 Monday: White
By Morgan Short, Feb 23rd, 2009 | In Nightlife
MP3 Monday is a weekly SmartShanghai column, serving up mp3s from bands living and making music in China (or coming to China, or thinking about coming to China, or whatever). Right click on the links and choose "Save Link As..." to download 'em. Click play to rock 'em.
This weeks MP3s are from Beijing-based experimental noisiness White, ripped off their debut album released in January 2009. I picked up this CD a few months ago at the Maybe Mars record label showcase (part of that Jue Festival). I had heard a bit about White previous to buying the CD, but I was really looking forward to hearing it because Blixa Bargeld, the baddest of The Bad Seeds (formerly I guess), is credited as producer on it.
White is a two-piece comprised of Shou Wang, singer/guitarist of indie/shoegaze behemoth Carsick Cars, and Shenggy, erstwhile drummer of one of the most respected and internationally revered Chinese punk bands, Hang on the Box (hey, even Billy Corgan was a fan). Originally formed in 2005 as an open-ended project by Shou Wang to explore his experimental tendencies outside of Carsick Cars (and overtly paying tribute to Glenn Braca's orchestral tomfoolery), White at one time was comprised of seven members buzzing and popping away with guitars and effects pedals, and then just keyboards and effects pedals. Since meeting up with Shenggy in 2006, White has manifested as a duo, although both Shou Wang and Shenggy play at least 900 different instruments each, including a korg synth, a guitar, pedal boards, organ, samplers, drums, tape manipulation, and a theremin. Woooo-OOoo-Ooooo...
That's the noise a theremin makes, just FYI.
Here is some press release action on what they sound like:
"White's sound is ever evolving, spiralling outwards from the core stars of noise and minimalism to take in everything from the phase patterns of Steve Reich, Throbbing Gristle's aggressive electronic shimmer, Neubauten's rhythmic invention, and the gu Zheng masters of Chinese classical music."
Throbbing Gristle, Neaubauten (which is Bargeld's band) and Steve Reich... austere company. Here's some shimmering, slow-burning, and surprisingly warm tracks indeed coming from people with expressions so blank and shirts so black. Pretty neat:
White ¨C 47 Rockets (For Wan Hu)
White ¨C Bai
As far as I know, White isn't coming to Shanghai anytime soon, as perhaps the continued world domination of Carsick Cars is taking up the majority of Shou Wang's time, but check out their MySpace page here, for lots of YouTube videos of their live performances.
There's also a really good article on the duo in Dusted. Read that one here. Here's the Maybe Mars record label homepage. Hit them up and get them to send you the CD pronto. Or at least keep an eye out for it at the merch table should there be anymore Maybe Mars label showcases.
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