Our live music picks for this weekend, picked by Will of LiveMusicChina.com
A New Year for old-school metal, as the third annual United for Thrash Festival commences with some of the thrashiest, most gnarly acts joining forces for an evening of authentic, no-frills heavy metal with special guests Hyena from Peru - purveyors of that classic heavy metal sound in the vein of bands like Judas Priest, Raven, or Saxon – direct, explosive, and unapologetic. They join a murderer’s row of acts including old-school thrash metal acts Eagerkill from Zibo, Ominous from Nanchang, and Plunder from Fuzhou (not afraid to add a little death metal into the mix). Plus, for something more traditional and heavy metal, you’ve got Doyslayer from Hangzhou, Silver Falcon from Nanjing, and Immolate from Nanchang. Righteous metal for those who keep it old school.
An eclectic batch of bands look to kick-start your weekend tonight at Yuyintown Basement - with some tasty treats including one of the scene’s hottest new acts, handycam, who craft art rock equal parts abrasive and beguiling - injected with experimental alt-rock grit, jazzy prog rock finesse, and avant-pop charisma. Joining them are ABYSM, the new trip hop dark wave act fronted by singer Ma Lu and rounded out by veteran musical mercenaries to create an immersive electro rock experience. Rounding out the lineup is the lyrically rich and tender instrumental rock act A Deteriorating Stance, and Berklee College of Music graduate singer-songwriter Erin.
A killer one-two punch combo over at Encore Space. Suzhou’s Yinmachi have been relying on their pastiche of post-punk, cold wave, surf, and funk rock for years now, steadily building a diehard fanbase with their combustible live shows. Injecting their sound with propulsive allure, chugging guitars, infectious zeal, and an old-school punk magnetism - the latter of which adds a bolt of riotous fun into the band’s taut instrumentation, not afraid to shift into surf rock overdrive should the mood strike. They’ll be joining fellow Beijing act Residence A. Beloved for their catchy, melodic, and often life-affirming anthems, they’ve grown a wider and deeper fanbase - shifting their sound to more retro pop sensibilities in the process.
Some of the metal scene’s most nefarious and extreme participants converge on Cave Art Venue courtesy of emerging label Anti Propaganda Propaganda for an evening of blood-curdling and soul-crushing metal to taint your heart just right. Acts include legendary black metal bands Frozen Moon from Jinzhou and Skeletal Augury from Beijing; blackened crust punk act T.O.S. from Suzhou; thrash metal ruffians Richard & Vendatta from Beijing; Sabist, who deal out ‘snarky, sleazy, and doomy’ rock and roll, and the mysterious pagan black metal act Aldeke. Hell yeah.
A new generation of emo acts tear out their bleeding hearts over at Coven as indie music promoters cat beer round up the hottest and newest acts to come out of the emo scene. On the docket, you’ve got Zhejiang250 - the emo punk superband made up of members from The Farmers, Falling Nana, and The Beneficial Society - a cathartic, chaotic, red-blooded, and visceral punch of a band. Also on the bill, Nanjing’s used to be sad - bringing some twinkle emo and math rock aesthetics into their sound, and the aptly named Loneliness Is Not Temporary - who cite themselves as the ‘worst emo band ever’. Blood, sweat, and tears will be on hand.
Mosh Space’s ‘For Indie’ series continues over in Yangpu, and they’ve got a pretty stellar lineup tonight. Shanghai shoegaze act Ordinary Nothing, Hangzhou emo math rock act Lux Radio, and slowgaze act Whatever - who are promising to be one of Shanghai’s coolest new acts - crafting bone-cutting, brooding shoegaze at its most primal, sparse, and patient - and surprisingly poignant. Sleeper gig here - featuring bands I have a feeling we’ll be a lot more about in the coming year.
