NEO BAR returns! The legendary live music venue deep in the heart of Shanghai’s university district has been giving solace to the young, corruptible souls and raising some of Shanghai’s most beloved music acts for over twelve years! The bright red lights; the dueling movie screenings; the fridge full of Asahi bottles; and its motley crew of rabble-rousers keeping the place afloat - it’s iconic! Now, after lying dormant for two years, the bar is entering its latest phase - with a new setup in Hongkou (with two spaces!). This weekend they’ll be hosting a soft opening of sorts - a three-day festival with a lineup full of nice surprises. Night one features Kunming electro pop singer StarStar alongside NEO regulars Dirty Fingers and Sunken Square, the latter of whom will be presenting their new album. Night two features Kunming cold wave favorites Cephalosis as well as the Hangzhou-based musician Cai Lanbing - a classically trained pianist whose tastes have branched into jazz, electronica, and more avant-garde peculiarities over the years. Night three goes out strong with instrumental rock act An Corporation and Jimaoda, whose primal rhythms and sprawling arrangements are layered with pathos, grounding their delirious, delightfully off-kilter folk-laced psych-pop ramblings in unexpected ways. Expect things to get messy.

Nearly a quarter-century after first emerging from Taiwan's indie underground, beloved quartet Freckles are back in action, bringing their wonderfully offbeat brand of indie pop to Shanghai for their first mainland show since reuniting. Formed in 2003 and led by singer-songwriter Lin Yile (aka Benben), the band made a name for themselves with their quirky storytelling, whimsical daydreams and infectious melodies, standing out from the louder, heavier sounds dominating Taiwan's underground at the time. Their 2017 album Imperfect Lover saw them embrace breezy city pop, reggae, folk and retro grooves, becoming something of a cult favorite along the way. Now reunited after years pursuing separate musical adventures, Freckles return with their playful spirit intact, offering a rare chance to catch one of Taiwan's most endearing indie outfits back together on stage.

A full-bodied slab of math rock leaning heart-on-your-sleeve indie rock - Quadrant, out of Beijing, finds that sweet spot between the woozy and the virtuosic on their robust debut. Tracking the changing seasons not only outside but within themselves, the young earnest band can at times feel like a cross between the more ethereal Glow Curve and the more buoyant Elephant Gym - immersive, affecting, sweeping, and even funky at times. Its soft-spoken dream pop vocals are never undercut by the production - which is far from clean-cut - with some real evocation coming from their instruments. The band is on the road in support of their debut.

Swiss trio Schnellertollermeier has been churning out a heady mix of krautrock, math rock, and noise for well over a decade, their brand of invigorating, intoxicating, and endlessly imaginative music. They return to China this week courtesy of SoundFact, who have been on fire as of late with their bookings, for a special showcase at Singer Space. So if you’re itching for complex melodies, trance-like rhythms, high-wire interplay - an uncompromising mix of jazz, punk, and rock that’ll rock you out of your socks - look no further. With a reputation for electrifying live performances and a new double album, Shadow Web, in tow, Schnellertollermeier bring their uncompromising sonic gymnastics to Shanghai for a night of instrumental music that refuses to sit still.

Curated by Shanghai analog collector, manipulator, and ‘aggrandizer of disorganization’ Globe Discount Centre, CAMPAIGN 1 gathers a wide range of Shanghai-based experimental musicians - a motley crew of ‘longtime scene stalwarts, up-and-comers, locals and expats from 3.5 corners of the globe’. Veering from the harsher edge of the noise spectrum with acts like Torturing Nurse to more mischievous and chameleon acts like MAI mai (whose track has the vaguest sense of melody), there’s a lot to take in here. The tape release show looks to be the perfect love letter to Shanghai's noise scene - with an array of musicians and artists looking to test your boundaries. Earplugs recommended.

The black metal scene’s most legendary acts join forces for an epic evening of soul-shattering music. There’s apocalyptic black metal act Death Descents, out of Wuhan, who lean into the theatricality of the genre, offering up a bone-crushing, soul-wavering descent into the depths of hellfire. Tai'an black metal pioneers Dark Fount lean more into the riff-heavy elements of Norwegian black metal, painting its sweeping passages in a turbulence of ‘coldness and fury’. Blackened death metal outfit Bergrisar, out of Tianjin, evokes heavyweights like Behemoth and Belphegor - pummeling audiences with frantic tremolo picking and thunderous drums - a whirlwind of dark atmospheric harmonies that comes at you fast and furiously. Rounding out the cast are GOATAPOTHEOSIS, Skeletal Augury, and Resurrection. Things will get heavy.