Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

Accidental Collision is a four-piece, street punk outfit from Chongqing, formed in 2005. They combine obvious style cues from influential North-China punks, Brain Failure and Demerit, with an infectiously positive perspective on the day-to-day grind. Music, and in particular the punks guide to life’s priorities is what gets these boys out of bed in the morning mid-afternoon.

Our basecamp for our four-day expedition through the Chongqing music scene was a small livehouse called Nuts Club, and Lao Gui (the bar owner) our fixer and guide. Back in 2009, long-term Chongqing resident and music promoter, Mike Weed summarized the bar’s appeal, “Packed house, good music, cheap drinks. Can’t ask for much more, especially in the CQ.” We met Mike and many of the local musicians we sought on our first night in CQ, under similar circumstances.

Our chance meeting with Accidental Collision didn’t materialize until our last night in Chongqing. Lao Gui had passed them our number and we arranged to meet them at the bar late on the eve of our final day. Down at the bar, Susu jacked his phone into the venue’s PA and cued a handful of the band’s recent tunes. And in much the same time it took us to fill three bar tables with empty, green bottles of Chongqing beer, we settled on the city’s famous cable car as the location for the following morning’s performance.

A few hours later we were back outside Nuts Club, bleary-eyed and loading equipment into Susu’s hatchback. Twenty minutes driving and another thirty minutes searching for a place to park and we were ready to shoot. Dangling high above China’s iconic Yangtze River, band ripped through an acoustic version of their feel good punk anthem, “We Are The Future”. It turns out the 740 meter long cable, installed in 1982, is a near perfect match for the length of a punk track.

The car’s captive audience, were undoubtedly caught off-guard by the performance. But amongst the 15-odd bemused commuters, a couple of enthusiastic young fans emerged, showing their appreciation as we docked on the other side.

Please enjoy the film and follow the band’s journey via their Weibo stream.

Andy & Charles
DaBaoGe (打包歌)

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

Not to be confused with the colloquial Chinese term “sons of turtles” (loosely translated to “sons of bitches”), Mr Chelonian are a distinguished trio of turtle bandits, with the swagger of seasoned performers. Despite looking a little green in the gills, Li Hongqi lays out a brand new, unreleased and previously unperformed track for us in a single take. In fact, it can’t go un-noted that this film captures the very first time bassist Jiang Han has ever touched an upright (double) bass. We doubt these boys have ever done hard time and the intricate inked artwork saturating Jiang’s skin from collar to cuff is more likely to have emerged from a gallery than a gaol.

To be sure, the wheels of this meandering, acoustic jazz ‘n roll, carry the melody over the large, smooth stones of a cobbled street. The jam is called “Prison Break”, but rather than the quintessential frenzy of escape under cover of darkness, these handsome young artists conjure images of charming the gates open and greeting their warm afternoon of their freedom with a tip of the hat.

In a garden oasis, in the middle of Chengdu city, we captured this very special version of “Prison Break”. Since our meeting, this band on the run has migrated North to Beijing in pursuit of a record deal. The were successfully signed with the Modern Sky label a couple of months ago, who have released the band’s first full-length, self-titled album. Though intended for inclusion on their debut album, “Prison Break” remains a special unreleased track unique to DaBaoGe.

If you don’t have the pleasure of discovering them under cloud of tobacco, in the Gulou District’s Temple Bar, make friends with them on their Douban page.

Enjoy.

Andy & Charles
DaBaoGe (打包歌)

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Location: Shanghai, China

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @Idlebeats

We met Amine through a common friend the photographer Benoit Florencon (Bureau 36), Amine was really excited about the Dabaoge project, he curated this group of musicians for the purpose of performing  tracks for Dabaoge , called The Exquisite Delegates. They had never performed in this configuration before but they pulled through with 2 amazing tracks back to back. The songs were recorded on the corner of Huahai road and Changshu Road which is a very busy intersection in Shanghai and right in front of a police station, we though we would run into some troubles but everything turned out incredibly well. Enjoy the Exquisite Delegates Collective!

Andy & Charles
DaBaoGe (打包歌)

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

Spending the afternoon in Chengdu with Zhang Xiaobing and his smiley, hippy accomplice Zhang Ruoshui was something like I imagine it would have been like hanging out with a young Bob Dylan and John Lennon. To put this reference in context, we have it on good authority that Xiaobing has penned just as many songs as Dylan (at least for his age). He’s written hundreds of songs, mostly during his years as a student of Sichuan University: the very campus we met him on in Spring 2012 to capture a very special version of his provincial swagger, “Goodbye Lennon”.

It would be easy to find political reference in the lyrics. But that wouldn’t do justice to the debris of influences, collected from East and West of the digital wall and cemented into this contemporary folk tune. A musical reference to John Lennon seems far too abstract (at least in this tune), but his ideology is an obvious inspiration. We’re picking up subtle vibes of naïve, fading youthful ambition, the uncomfortable reality of being pushed into the world before you’re ready and the legacy spawned by those who chose their own path and either fell or were cut down – as Lennon himself was. It’s precisely this youthful innocence that leaps off the screen at 3min 05 sec as the sunshine from a beaming student, rains down on Xiaobing and Ruoshui as they shimmy past. It’s our favourite moment in the film and a reminder that the spirit of youth and music go hand in hand.

This is just the beginning. Our film with Xiaobing is the first in a series of videos we shot on the road, early in 2012. Expect a handful more DaBaoGe films from Chengdu, Chongqing and Wuhan. Goodbye Lennon, hello Chengdu.

Andy & Charles
DaBaoGe (打包歌)

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

We randomly met the Horde at a Shanghai rooftop party over Chinese New Year. We were watching the fireworks going off when we got talking to Franco –one of the band’s vocalists. After telling us a little bit about his music, we jumped at the opportunity to collaborate on a video together.

It took a bit of time to set things up, but we finally managed to find a suitable location. We wanted a place that has something to do with trains. Luckily for us Shanghai’s full of hidden gems and after spending a day looking around the Longhua area—where the Japanese built an airport and other facilities during the war—we found an old train station that was completely run-down.

We got kicked out by security at the first attempt to enter the place, but we persevered and came back a week later in the morning. This time the security guard let us play. I hope you enjoy this two track medley known as Shanghai Train/Peripheral Thought by The Horde.

Charles & Andy
DaBaoGe (打包歌)

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: Psydee八空文文都是我
Cover Art:  Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

“At least Beijing’s horrible pollution is good for something,” a friend said, when commenting on the dreamy hues bouncing between Shouwang‘s face, his guitar and the surrounding apartment complexes. From Shouwang’s 23rd floor rooftop, the toxic dust and the cold, distressed textures of the city become beautiful. In this way at least, this shoot was like walking amongst the ancient Greek sirens: an island meadow, “starred with flowers” with a suave gentleman perched in place of the myth’s treacherous winged maidens, at home among the clouds. It’s a wintery melody, performed in the dusk of Beijing’s warmth, that not only awed us with a likeness to the moment and place, but beckoned us closer and closer to the island’s edge, leaning out, desperate to bring a piece of this fable home.

In the end, an Australian native Cockatoo can be heard screeching through the chords. This lone bird, pacing along the upper most ledge was a beautiful twist of circumstance in our documentary and a the perfect segue into Shouwang’s first Australian tour later this month, with the Carsick Cars.

We also captured, Shouwang communicating with the mysterious cockatoo and an amazing version of Shouwang’s single “Invisible Love” in second, unreleased video. If you want to see it, send us an email or a Weibo and we’ll send you the private link.

Charles & Andy

DaBaoGe (打包歌)

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

We were invited to shoot a video with French band Fortune during the Modern Sky Festival in October last year.

Delighted at the opportunity we hopped on the fast train to Beijing and met with the the band after their afternoon concert at the Huairou Ski Resort where the festival was being held. Together with another band’s acoustic guitar and a keyboard we went looking for a good spot to shoot a video together.

The festival took place just below the Great Wall of China but as hiking wasn’t really an option we settled for a boat in a man-made lake nearby occupied by Beijing families with puppies coming out for a rent-a-rod-and-fish experience. The guys decided to record one of their singles “Bully” and did so in a harmonious mix of fish, ducks and Chinese amateur fishermen.

Charles & Andy
DaBaoGe (打包歌)

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

Mr Graceless are a 3-piece indie rock band formed in 2009, with members hailing from all over China and now based in Beijing. Zhang QiuShuang (guitar and vocals) is from Sichuan, YuanShuai (usually on bass) from Shaanxi and Zhao JiuLong (drums) from Beijing. The band recently released their debut album ‘The Tree Ever Green’ and we caught up with them for a special version of “Throw That Block”, off the new album.

The Mr Graceless manager, TR—who incidentally took his name from the logo on his PC a decade or so ago—called us late last year and suggested a day on the ice. It was early December though and the lake hadn’t yet frozen over. “It usually freezes the week after Christmas,” TR explained. “Let’s catch-up then”.

So for a few weeks, we watched the weather reports religiously and probed friends who’d visited the popular bar area surrounding the lake. Finally, we received word that the lake had frozen over and the ice was teeming with ice chairs, ice bikes and people stumbling around on skates, like newborn foals. The Houhai lake, it seems, is where Beijingers go to play in the bitter, winter months.

When the time came, we opted for the serenity of the less popular side of the lake, called Xihai. It was after midday on Saturday, but deathly quiet and the wind carried sounds that I’d never noticed in Beijing before , particularly the haunting sirens from a kit of homing pigeons circling above, like a squadron of WWII fighters.

We noticed the modest band of three trudging across the outskirts of the lake, lead by YuanShuai (guitar and vocals) in his indie-hunter stylings, complete with Ushanka hat. The camera caught him by surprise…”I’m shy,” he chuckled nervously, while Zhao JiuLong (drums) and Zhang QiuShuang (rhythm guitar and vocals) attempted to warm up with what looked like an improvised 80s-style aerobics routine. Together members of Mr Graceless, have a boyish charm that infects you before they even begin playing.

Here, their song, “Throw That Block” is mixed with the ambiance of lovers learning to skate, hockey players passing their puck, and old Olympic speed skating hopefuls weaving through the stray toddlers. Though the band sight influences like The Beatles, Stone Roses and The Strokes, we can’t help but hear a touch of Kurt Cobain in the contrast between the sweet acoustic riffs and abrasive chorus. That is to say, we love it.

If you’re in China, make sure you catch Mr Graceless on their national tour happening right now. And don’t forget to pick up a copy of their new album, ‘The Tree Ever Green’.

Andy & Charles
DaBaoGe

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

Skip Skip Benben are a patchwork of different bands and different genres, with Monkey (猴子) on drums, Steven Zhou (周乃仁) from Birdstriking and ½ Heavy Korean on Bass and Taiwanese native Benben (斑班) from Freckles, Boyz & Girl and Carsick Cars on guitar and vocals. Our meeting with the band was preceded by weeks of anticipation, for a lot of which we didn’t even know the name of this brilliant new[ish] Beijing act.

Back on the 18^th October 2011, we walked into a surprise show from Beijing indie stalwarts P.K.14, at D-22 in Beijing’s university district. Shortly after arriving, our friend Josh of China music and culture blog, pangbianr slid out from behind the bar to say hello. In passing, he mentioned that he knew a Taiwanese folk singer called Benben that he wanted to introduce us to later that evening, “I think she’d be great for your DaBaoGe project,” he said.

In the haze of the beer, smoke and distorted guitars, it was another two visits in as many weeks, to the now defunct D-22 venue, before we pieced together the story behind Skip Skip Benben: an appealing blend of alt-folk, psychedelic indie rock and down-tempo, tropicana grooves. Off-stage, Benben is intensely shy and we tried, in vain to convince her to venture outside the crocheted-kitcsh security of her nostalgically decorated apartment. We could hardly blame her though; it was easily one of the coldest days we’d seen in 2011.

One song. One take. Skip-skip done, done. We reviewed the sound and it was…magical. In fact, we’ve had the audio take from this recording looping over and over in our music library, listening to it every day since that frigid morning in December. We hope you enjoy it too.

Check out more knick-knacks from the band on their blog.

If you’re in Beijing or Shanghai, you can catch them live at one of their upcoming shows:
25th Feb in Beijing with The Pains Of Being Pure Heart @ 愚公移山 (Yu Gong Yi Shan)
8th Mar in Shanghai with Next Year’s Love @ 育音堂 (Yuyintang)

Andy & Charles
DaBaoGe (打包歌)

Watch elsewhere: 土豆网 [中文] | youtube | vimeo

Translation: 年轻帮Satan
Cover Art: Nini Sum @ Idlebeats

Another shoot beginning on a sharp Winter morning in Beijing, this time at 7am. The practice space leased by Residence A is well past the 5th ring road, in a district called Tongzhou, which only just scrapes into the capital’s city limits. With a little bit of imagination, the pokey enclosure becomes a safari hut, retrofitted to the baron rooftop plains of a semi-abandoned commercial building.

It’s dark inside the tiny room. We could be camping in the middle of the countryside under the fluorescent light of a rectangular moon. The warm glow of the fire emanates from the center of the room as Zhaozhao strums his acoustic guitar, supported by his band of brothers Xiao Bing and Chen Shao, as he wails into the darkness. Panning around the camp circle, the familiar patterns of wildlife reveal themselves, then retreat again and the song loops over and over like a campfire favourite.

After almost 10 minutes the song comes to a close. The last chord is absorbed by the artificial night sky and a soft exhale of satisfaction pierces the deathly silence.

We’ll be watching with interest as this very young Beijing outfit becomes a fixture of the city’s prolific independent music scene. Stay tuned to their douban page for new tracks from their debut album.

Andy & Charles
DaBaoGe