SmartShanghai | MP3 Monday: The Molds

MP3 Monday: The Molds

By Morgan Short, Jan 11th, 2010 | In Nightlife

Right in the middle of a somewhat erratic January schedule for newish live house MAO Shanghai is this big Maybe Mars record label showcase on January 22. For the past couple years, Maybe Mars bands have attracted good crowds in Shanghai when they come down by themselves, but manage to really get the kids out when they come down in a group. The first MM label showcase of 2010 sees PK14, joined by The Gar, 24 Hours, and Rustic. If you go by douban buzzzzzz on the MAO Shanghai events page, it looks like it’s going to be the show of the month. At 80rmb at the door and 60rmb pre-sales, ticket prices are pretty reasonable as well, so it should be well attended.

Anyways, so I was looking through my old CDs for MP3s for that, but came across this debut CD by another pretty neat-o Beijing band called The Molds. I first saw The Molds a couple years ago in Beijing and really liked them because although they seemed like they were invested in the whole Beijing post punk zeitgeist of those years, they were taking it in a different direction by doing dreamy, druggy fuzz a la Jesus and Mary Chain. They were also (are also?) rewinding the clock to 50’s clean classic RnR as well, with much love to The Cramps, but sounding at times more like The Animals. It’s pretty cool to see those influences in a band amongst a lot of other bands pushing to either a more amped up synth revivalist dancey punk sound or a 90’s American college rock/ shoegaze thing.

Since forming in 2006, they’ve only made it down to Shanghai for one weekend under the aegis of a couple of guys from The Rogue Transmission, Dan Shapiro and Fabien. They did one show at YYT and one at Dream Factory. They were selling this CD, which is called “A Cowboy Never Saw a Horse”, and these songs are from that.

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It’s kind of hard to tell what’s going on up in Beijing sometimes, but as far as I know these guys are still playing out, and I hope they make it back down to Shanghai soon. And yeah, but there’s that Maybe Mars showcase in January, and -- hey, what’s this -- it looks like there’s another one planned for the end of February with Carsick Cars and AV Okubo playing MAO Shanghai.

But here's The Molds on MySpace, and here's their douban where you can order this CD.

Here’s a bonus one from The Limit, another band shrouded in mystery, which sort of fits somehow.

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