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So Rock! Magazine (我爱摇滚乐) CD Archive Project

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Table of Contents:

We previously talked about 1990s rock magazines in China, as “Punk Generation” (朋克时代) or “Freedom Music” (自由音乐). They pretty much all disappeared after one or two years. One fanzine however became so popular that he was distributed in major Chinese cities, and lasted for more than a decade… I’m talking of course about “So Rock! Magazine” (我爱摇滚乐, literally “I Love Rock and Roll”), published from 1999 to 2013 in Shijiazhuang (yes, you didn’t misread, Shijiazhuang the home of Omnipotent Youth Society [万能青年旅店] and probably one of the most boring city in China).

So Rock! was essential to the musical education of Chinese youth in the 2000s, it featured tons of articles on domestic and foreign bands, scene reports, mostly written by the readers themselves. It also featured social and political commentary (a speech by the then DPP President of Taiwan Chen Shuibian for instance!), but also letters from the readers and articles about anything sub or counter-cultural (like an introduction to the French journal Hara-Kiri, the ancestor of Charlie Hebdo). One of the most important role of So Rock! was to include with each journal a CD (or cassette tape at the beginning) of more or less 10 tracks, featuring obscure or more well known Chinese bands. Some of them obviously recorded their songs at home, but at least they could share their music with the public at a time when internet was not that popular (and not that fast).

The purpose of this article is to display digitalized version of all the So Rock! CDs or cassettes that I have (something like a hundred), with a brief presentation of the bands (fortunately, inside the magazine, So Rock! included a short bio or even interviews of the bands). So this page will be updated constantly (well, at least if I have the courage to do so).

So Rock! Magazine Vol. 18, 2001

Before CDs, there were cassette tapes. This is the oldest tape I found, from the issue 18 of So Rock!, in 2001. It was a “Punk Special” issue, so you can find quite a few important Chinese punk bands of the early 2000. Since it’s a cassette tape, the sound is not very good:

Thanks to Stefan, I was able to find the CD version of the vol. 18, so here’s a CD quality upload of the “Punk Special” playlist:

Here’s the punk tracklist:

1. 瑞路 – “改变娱乐习性”
2. Anarchy Boys – “A Head Without Freedom”
3. 泼耳吐司 – “Our Battle”
4. Mika Bomb – “Contact Tokyo”
5. 洋娃娃7号 – “Get Rid Of”		6. 生命之饼 – “Lazy Punk”
7. 反光镜 – “Han Song”
8. 脑浊 – “欢迎来到北京”
9. 地下婴儿 – “转变只是在一瞬间”

1. 瑞路 – “改变娱乐习性”: Saying that Lucky Way is a punk band is a little far-stretched, but well this blues-rock band was formed in 1994 in Beijing, and their debut album was produced by So Rock! in 2003, entitled “测试” (“Test”).

2. Anarchy Boys – “A Head Without Freedom”: Do I need to introduce Anarchy Boys? Like three other bands on this tape, they were part of the “Wuliao Jundui”. You can find more about them here.

3. 泼耳吐司 – “Our Battle”: Unfortunately I don’t have any reliable information on this band.

4. Mika Bomb – “Contact Tokyo”: A London-based Japanese pop-punk band.

5. 洋娃娃7号 – “Get Rid Of”: Yang Wawa Number 7 is a ska-punk band formed in Beijing in 2001. Two of their songs were featured in the Beijing Punk Vol. 2 compilation made by Scream Records in 2004.

6. 生命之饼 – “Lazy Punk”: Do I have to talk about SMZB? The best Chinese band, period.

7. 反光镜 – “Han Song”: Like Anarchy Boys and Brain Failure, Reflector is part of the famous “Wuliao Jundui”. A ska-punk band at first, Reflector became gradually more mainstream, and adopted a more pop-punk vibe.

8. 脑浊 – “欢迎来到北京”: Brain Failure, one of the earliest Beijing punk band, which toured the US in the mid-2000s. The historical singer Xiao Rong quit the band a couples of years ago. This is an early version of “Coming Down to Beijing” by Brain Failure. Nice.

9. 地下婴儿 – “转变只是在一瞬间”: “Everything change in the blink of an eye”. UnderBaby too. UnderBaby is known for being the first Beijing punk band, you can learn more about UnderBaby here. This song will be published in their latest E.P., “蜕变”, in 2012.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 35, 2004

Here’s the tracklist:

1. 卢小旭 – “传说从前”
2. 孟奇 – “Dub In The Rain”
3. 公羊-13 – “MM残酷真理”
4. 张希 – “我的夏天”
5. 黄杨 – “格式化”		6. 揭 – “幕之歌”
7. 韩丁 – “2004夏日赞歌”
8. 206和思想者 – “第一月章地狱”
9. 修之吐 – “旋月”
10. Lowspirit – “Sink Into The Ocean And Ride On the Moon”

1. 卢小旭 – “传说从前”: Lu Xiaoxu writes that “This song was recorded in early 2004, and consists of a electronic beat, a female voice, a guitar riff and a solo of piano that produce a mysterious atmosphere”. He also adds that “he participated lately with a friend to the establishment of a new record label, ‘She Dance Music’ (喜糖音乐)”. It’s funny because “She Dance Music” – renamed “She Dance Culture” – is now sponsoring e-Sport teams: http://www.shedance.net/

2. 孟奇 – “Dub In The Rain”: Meng Qi: No information available for this Ambient Drum & Bass band.

季节风3. 公羊-13 – “MM残酷真理”: Gong Yang-13: This “NU METAL GRUNGE” band is composed of two people, Bai Long and Lao Zhu, and their photo is really nice. The song is about the corrupted power of money.

4. 张希 – “我的夏天”: We know way too much things about Zhang Xi. He was born in October 1982 in Xiangtan (Hunan). At 10 he began to learn the piano, and at 16 switched to guitar. He fell in love with Rock and Roll at 18, then listened to punk, and finally blues. He loves his mother and his girlfriend introduced him to the Chinese rock community. He spends way too much time alone in his room, where he thinks too much and draws weird pictures of his girlfriend:

5. 黄杨 – “格式化”: So… In his bio Huang Yang says that he’s a man, born in May 1979 and his ID card number is 4205027905XXXXX (let’s protect his anonymity). He began to play rock music at 19 and formed a band. He independently produced 10 songs.

6. 揭 – “幕之歌”: The Death Metal band Jie comes from Shandong, and was formed in 2002. In an interview they said that humanity needs a war to produce new forms of culture and spirit, because they are fed up with this materialistic world where people only care about “which car they want to drive, how big their house is”.

7. 韩丁 – “2004夏日赞歌”: Han Ding is a romantic rocker. He wrote his song, “2004, Summer Day Song of Praise” for his girlfriend, Wen Wen.

8. 206和思想者 – “第一月章地狱”: 206 He Sixiang Zhe, another Death Metal band, this time from Xi’an, formed in 1999. One of their songs was featured in the CD “Xi’an Independent Music Compilation Vol. 1” (“西安独立音乐合辑 Vol 1”).

9. 修之吐 – “旋月”: Xiu Zhi Tu was formed in 2002 in Changsha (Hunan). They started as a funk and folk band, before turning to rock and roll with the arrival of a new drummer. At the time they were searching for a label to produce their album. I hope they found it.

10. Lowspirit – “Sink Into The Ocean And Ride On the Moon”: Lowspirit is a musician from Hefei, graduated from China Science and Technology University. He writes his songs in English and published his first album on April 2003, “Softstar” with the help of the Hefei label “谎言唱片”, and in May 2004 he published his second album, “The World Is Real Except Yourself”.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 38 – January 2005

And the tracklist:

1. 昏热症 – “马戏”
2. Oran – “勇敢”
3. 椭圆问题 – “如梦令”
4. 渡鸦 – “甭过”
5. 獠牙社火 – “一脸老茧”		6. 染 – “Punk Not Dead”
7. 音弑 – “音弑”
8. 枷锁 – “腐室迷”
9. 苔藓乐队 – “抑郁症愚者”
10. 心灵海盗 – “Trapped In A Corner”
11. HYONBLUD – “Scream Bloody Gore”

1. 昏热症 – “马戏”: The Punch-Drunk Symptom is a funk collective, their album “Waiting For Curtain Call” (“等待谢幕”) was released by So Rock! Records on February 2005. They even had a full page in the issue.

2. Oran – “勇敢”: the pop-rock band Oran has nothing to do with the city in Algeria. In fact the name of the band means 偶然 (“incidentally”). The band was formed in 2003 in Chongqing and is very much involved in the local rock scene, and particularly in the live venue “木般”. Their influences are Coldplay and Radiohead.

3. 椭圆问题 – “如梦令”: The band was formed in March 2003 in Shenzhen. Like many other rockers, the singer Bao She began listening to rock music through Cui Jian’s album, then Tang Chao and Hei Bao, before discovering Western metal.

4. 渡鸦 – “甭过”: Duya is a trip-hop band formed in 1996. They released in 2002 an album entitled “生理盐水”.

5. 獠牙社火 – “一脸老茧”: A band inspired by Iggy Pop, The Ramones and Queen.

6. 染 – “Punk Not Dead”: As you might have guessed, The Infection is a punk band. What you might not know is that they formed the band in 2000 in the beautiful city of Shenyang. They practice in the living room of the singer. I guess the lyrics speak for itself.

7. 音弑 – “音弑”: Yinshi comes from Lanzhou, and was formed in 2001.

8. 枷锁 – “腐室迷”: The metal band Jiasuo (Yoke) comes from Xinjiang and was formed in 2002. Their lyrics tackle familial pressure and injustice.

9. 苔藓乐队 – “抑郁症愚者”: The metal band Lichen was formed in Dalian in 1998. They already released several albums, one in 2002 entitled “罪证”, and another one named “圣战” in 2004. The last album, which literally means “Holy War”, is an attack on Japanese people – as the singer puts it, the main theme is “Fuck Japanese!”. Glad to see a moderate and mentally stable metal band.

10. 心灵海盗 – “Trapped In A Corner”: A death metal band from Beijing formed in 2003. Unlike the previous band they seem to have no problem with Japanese people, since they admire the Japanese band “Two Pain Organized”.

11. HYONBLUD – “Scream Bloody Gore”: As the title of the song indicates, this is a “brutal death metal” band, formed in 2003. This song is a tribute to Chuck Schuldiner who died in 2001.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 60 – February 2007

And the tracklist:

1. Yn Gizarm – “山川”
2. 顶楼马戏团 – “朋克都是娘娘腔”
3. Unregenerate Blood – “Family Violence”
4. Grace Latecomer – “Neither Here Nor There”
5. 中国说唱兄弟 (CMCB) – “红烧胖大海”		6. PB33 – “Hello, Let’s Go”
7. The Carteria – “Over My Head”
8. Zaliva-D – “Chemical Climax”
9. Bremen – “Don’t Trust Myself”

1. Yn Gizarm – “山川”: Yn Gizarm define themselves as a “ethnic black metal band”. They were formed in Xi’an in 2002, and their name “Yn Gizarm” in Uyghur means “New city” or “Valorous”.

2. 顶楼马戏团 – “朋克都是娘娘腔”: Top Floor Circus is certainly the best-known Shanghai punk band, formed in 1997 and disbanded only recently. At the time, the band was heavily influenced by the scandalous American punk GG Allin, as their song “GG主义好” (“GGism is Good”) shows. The song “朋克都是娘娘腔” (“All the punks are sissies”) was included in their 19 tracks album “蔕米重访零陵路九十三号” released in 2006. As you can see, the songs are obviously ironic and provocative, and they frequently make fun of other punk band, like The Bricks in the 2013 song “我去SPA你去死吧”.

3. Unregenerate Blood – “Family Violence:” Unregenerate Blood is one of the most prominent hardcore band in China. In 2004 the bassist Li Yang discovered on hardcore internet forums videos of Hatebreed and Settle the Sores before forming his band. They quickly integrated the hardcore scene, and by 2006 they performed at the 无名高地 livehouse in Beijing and also at the Midi Music Festival. The same year they shared the stage with the French skinhead-reggae band Skarface at the New What Bar.

4. Grace Latecomer – “Neither Here Nor There”: A post-rock band from Suzhou, who released their first EP in 2006.

中国说唱兄弟 (CMCB) – “红烧胖大海”: CMCB is the one of the first Beijing hip-hop collective, formed in 2001. They released several album on the label Scream Records, including the classic “谁动了我的炸酱面” (“Who Moved my Zhajiang Noodles?!”) in 2004.

6. PB33 – “Hello, Let’s Go”: “Party Boy 33” is a power-pop band formed in 2005.

7. The Carteria – “Over My Head”: The Carteria is an indie-pop band from Beijing, they released in 2006 their album “Sweet Dreams”.

8. Zaliva-D – “Chemical Climax”: The band describes its style as “SM Industrial Techno”. This electronic duo, formed in Beijing since 2003, consists of musician Li Chao and visual artist Aisin-Gioro Yuanjin. Their latest album, “孽儿谣 Misbegotten Ballads” was released in 2022 on the Shanghai label SVBKVLT:

9. Bremen – “Don’t Trust Myself”: This two-person band was formed in 2003 in Baoding.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 62 – April 2007

Tracklist:

1. 窒息 – “崩溃”
2. My Little Airport – “Coka, I’m Fine”
3. 王磊 – “馨”
4. 李志 – “梵高先生”
5. 分裂 – “The Maker of Mind”		6. The Waker – “Going Dead”
7. Mortal Fools – “Age of Assholes”
8. 瘦人 – “非洲”
9. Zoundz – “Schizophrenic Berserk”

1. 窒息 – “崩溃”: Suffocated (窒息) is an old and famous Chinese metal band formed in Beijing in 1997. They recently toured China for their 20th year anniversary and released a new album, Your Body Is the Hardest Metal. In the interview with So Rock! in 2007 they talked about the fact that you could find Suffocated’s songs in Chinese KTV.

2. My Little Airport – “Coka, I’m Fine”: My Little Airport is an indie anti-folk band from Hong Kong formed in 2001 by Nicole and 阿P. The band is very famous in the indie circle both in HK and China, even if they sing in English and Cantonese. They continue to deliver funny, asburd and politically engaged songs. My personal favourite is a love song dedicated to the former Chief-executive Donald Tsang, “Donald Tsang Please Die”:

3. 王磊 – “馨”: According to the rock critic Yan Jun, Wang Lei’s music is inspired by European indie electronic music.

4. 李志 – “梵高先生”: Li Zhi is a famous Chinese folk-rock musician from Nanjing who published his first album in 2004. The song included in this CD is perhaps his most well known song, “Mr. Van Gogh”, and my personal favourite: “我们生来就是孤独, 我们生来就是孤单”. For obscure reasons, Li Zhi disappeared for a couple of years, probably detained by the authorities.

5. 分裂 – “The Maker of Mind”: The Divide (fenlie), is a very D.I.Y. electro/noise band.

6. The Waker – “Going Dead”: Formed in 2005, The Waker is an “artistic trip-hop” band.

7. Mortal Fools – “Age of Assholes”: An Old-School punk band from Shanghai, their name “Mortal Fools” is written in Chinese “大傻冒”, which is funny. A band that sings “asshole” (傻逼) seven times in a song deserves my respect.

8. 瘦人 – “非洲”: Thin Man is a old rock band, formed in Beijing in 1997. This new song released in 2007 is very different from their old, classic more heavy sound.

9. Zoundz – “Schizophrenic Berserk”: Zoundz is a nü-metal band from Taipei, formed in 2001. A band from Taiwan, another from HK, this CD has a strong “Greater China” vibe! The song of Zoundz is very interesting, it talks about the schizophrenic relation between China and Taiwan (“A mind stands on a line, separated by two countries/We’re sharing out the same body but treats ourselves no harmony”) and criticizes China’s policy toward the island (“Since the first day our mind has split/There are no way we can back together/You just trying to kill me”)

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 64 – June 2007

Tracklist:

1. Last Flight – “War Is The New Peace”
2. Prophetics – “This Is My Church, Please Play With Matches”
3. Niko – “The Sun The Moon The Stars”
4. 风滚草 – “放手”
5. 瑞王坟 – “God Save The Poors”		6. Point Blank – “Right Here Right Now”
7. 低苦艾 – “挽歌”
8. 寂寞 . 夏 . 日 – “一”
9. 便利商店 – “世界”
10. 惘闻 – “思乡病”

Some international acts in this CD, mostly Western metal bands, but also a lot of famous experimental Chinese bands. A good selection I think. Let’s dig into it:

1. Last Flight – “War Is The New Peace”: a metal band from Italy, formed in 2000 in Milan by the friends Giorgio and Marcello. They published their first EP “Have a Shot” in 2003. I must say I didn’t find anything on the Internet about the band.

2. Prophetics – “This Is My Church, Please Play With Matches”: a great song title by a Norwegian death metal band.

3. Niko – “The Sun The Moon The Stars”: Niko is an American lover boy: “You are the sun, the moon, the stars / You are the light inside my world”. Love it.

4. 风滚草 – “放手”: a heavy-pop band formed in October 2001 in Beijing, influenced by hip-hop, EMO, world music and nu-metal. Indeed, you can hear all these influences in one song.

5. 瑞王坟 – “God Save The Poors”: RWF is a punk band formed in Beijing in October 2005. They are heavily influenced by Western bands as Rancid and The Clash. Their song “God Save the Poors” is a direct reference to the Sex Pistols, as the lyrics show: “God save the queen / Let people have something to live on […] Sex Pistols we have nothing, but we are on the train”.

6. Point Blank – “Right Here Right Now”: Point Blank is an international punk oi band formed in 2005: the singer Thomas is French, the guitarist Josh is American, the other guitarist Chen Hao, the bass player Wang Hui and the drummer Zhang Luyin are from Beijing. They performed together with the French skinhead band Skarface at the What Bar in 2006 (and if you remember correctly, we already talked about this concert with Unregenerate Blood). They published their first album, “Made In China” in 2007, you can listen to it online.

7. 低苦艾 – “挽歌”: Low Wormwood is a folk and experimental rock band from Lanzhou. They are well known for their second album, Lanzhou Lanzhou (兰州兰州) published in 2011 by Maybe Mars.

8. 寂寞 . 夏 . 日 – “一”: the famous band Lonely China Day was formed in Beijing in 1996. Their first song was featured in 1996 in the collective album Made In China (摇滚工厂). In 2007 they performed at the SXSW festival in Austin. They have produced beautiful and poetic albums, such as This Readily Assimilative People in 2010.

9. 便利商店 – “世界”: Convenience Store is a power-pop band formed in Beijing in 2001. Their first album, Five Star was released in 2004 and their second, TV Monkey in 2007. Unlike 7/11, Convenience Store is not open at night.

10. 惘闻 – “思乡病”: Wang Wen, the pioneer of experimental rock from Dalian – even if the lead musician Xie Yugang is originally from Tianjin, and moved to Dalian to go to university. Wang Wen’s songs are haunted by the grim atmosphere of Dalian, like Shijiazhuang for Omnipotent Youth Society. Wang Wen really started a new wave of experimental rock, math rock, indie rock in this city bordering North Korea. Now, Xie Yugang has other solo projects, including one with the French guitarist Serge Teyssot-Gay.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 65 – July 2007

Tracklist:

1. 堕天 – “噬菌体”
2. 飘 – “On The Way”
3. 冷酷仙境 – “地上的种子”
4. 黑阳K-Evil – “两个世界”
5. 王啸坤 – “琴麻岛的海”		6. 曹阳与乐队 – “像失去一样简单”
7. Lykaion – “Emptiness”
8. Silent-G – “Depress Angle”
9. 三黄鸡 – “晃晃悠悠”

1. 堕天 – “噬菌体”: The Falling is a Chinese Metalcore and Nu Trash band, formerly known as “大鱼”. The band was formed on June 6th, 2006 – clever, that’s “666”. The singer went abroad to study in England before coming back and forming his band.

2. 飘 – “On The Way”: A band from Hefei (in Anhui province) formed in 2000. They moved to Beijing in 2001. You can hear the influence of classical American rock in this song

3. 冷酷仙境 – “地上的种子”: Cold Fairyland is a progressive rock band from Shanghai formed in 2001. The name is a reference to a Murakami book, “Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World” (“世界尽头与冷酷仙境”), the favorite book of the singer Lin Di. They performed in 2003 with Wild Children (野孩子) in Beijing – this song is a tribute to the singer Xiao Suo who passed away in 2004.

4. 黑阳K-Evil – “两个世界”: Black Sun K-Evil is an independent industrial-music band from Beijing.

5. 王啸坤 – “琴麻岛的海”: Wang Xiaokun – or Essay Wang – was born in Shijiazhuang in 1988, the city of rock. He is a pop singer, who participated in many TV show, and eventually won “我型我秀” in 2007. This song was composed for the movie “Never Ending Sea”, released in 2007.

6. 曹阳与乐队 – “像失去一样简单”: This rock band is now better known as “出口A” (“Exit A”).

7. Lykaion – “Emptiness”: An Italian metal band formed in 2000.

8. Silent-G – “Depress Angle”: Silent-G is an indie pop band formed in 2004. They released the album “JACK IN A BOX” in 2007. They are influenced by David Lynch, Ennio Morricone, and surprisingly by the tribute album “Great Jewish Music: Serge Gainsbourg”.

9. 三黄鸡 – “晃晃悠悠”: An indie rock band from Shanghai formed in 2001. They apparently struggle with the fact that they are growing up in their song: “Goodbye! Youth. Goodbye! Ideal. Goodbye! Friends. Goodbye! Lover”.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 66 – August 2007

Tracklist:

1. 荔枝王 – “Unite Asia”
2. 孔雀 – “Apple”
3. Waterdog – “Out Of Touch”
4. 秀场寡头 – “弥患药”
5. The Heartland – “What A Story”		6. 西皮士 – “Abandoned”
7. Straight Way – “Never Surrender”
8. 瘐毙 – “渴望孤独”
9. 杨嘉松 – “冬天2007”

1. 荔枝王 – “Unite Asia”: King Ly Chee is undoubtedly one of the most famous Hong Kong hardcore band. Formed in 1999 by the singer Riz Farooqi, King Ly Chee did a lot to foster an underground music community in HK. Now disbanded, the band’s name is still on everyone’s mind when talking about Asian hardcore acts. Riz worked hard to connect HK, Chinese and Asian bands together, like this track “Unite Asia” suggests, but also with his website, also called Unite Asia, which provides the world with hardcore news from all over Asia. And he covered “Scream For Life” by SMZB. A man of great taste.

2. 孔雀 – “Apple”: 孔雀 is the old name of the famous indie-pop band Escape Plan (逃跑计划). Formed in 2005 by five guys from the North (mainly Qingdao, Shijiazhuang and Ha’erbin). They performed at the Chaoyang Pop Music Festival in 2005. Now known as Escape Plan, the band performed at the Worker Stadium in 2017, and even participated to the TV-Show “歌手2019”.

3. Waterdog – “Out Of Touch”: A rock band from Sweden formed in 1997 by Martin Ekelund.

4. 秀场寡头 -” 弥患药”: “Show Oligarch” released an E.P. in 2007. A very political band, at least according to their Twitter account.

5. The Heartland – “What A Story”: The Heartland were formed in 2004 in Beijing and began their musical career by covering brit-pop songs, as Radiohead, Oasis and Coldplay.

6. 西皮士 – “Abandoned”: “Hippie” is a DIY, humorous musician attending college in Nanchang. He apparently likes to put his head inside a computer.

7. Straight Way – “Never Surrender”: Straight Way is a French band from Paris, who released in 2005 an E.P. titled “Emotions and Anger”.

8. 瘐毙 – “渴望孤独”: A metal band formed in 2004 in Taiyuan. The name means “Die of Disease”.

9. 杨嘉松 – “冬天2007”: Yang Jiasong was born in Beijing, and formed his first rock band back in 1993. In 2003 he released his folk-rock solo album, “Young+Song1”.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 67 – September 2007

This issue is dedicated to the 40 year anniversary of the Hippie movement.

Tracklist:

1. Strength Behind Tears – “Rise Up”
2. 7月16 – “21世纪”
3. 小类与11乐队 – “Modern Way”
4. DIV – “The End”
5. 冷冻街 – “卡带庄园”		6. 面条杀手 – “Girl”
7. Hookah – “Hookah”
8. 吴虹飞 – “乌兰”
9. 血色彩虹 – “黑色沼泽”

1. Strength Behind Tears – “Rise Up”: Strength Behind Tears is an alternative hardcore metal band from the US, they published their first (and apparently last) album in 2007, entitled “Bridges Between Us”.

2. 7月16 – “21世纪”: The band “July 16” was formed in 2001 in Nanjing. The band changed members and style until 2006, when they adopted an indie/alternative rock approach.

3. 小类与11乐队 – “Modern Way”: Xiao Lei and his band were formed in 2006. Xiao Lei himself studied in England when he was 16 (thus the britpop influence), before entering the prestigious Renmin University in Beijing to study journalism.

4. DIV – “The End”: DIV (Die In Velvet) is a famous hardcore band from Hong Kong, formed in 2003. They released an EP in 2006 entitled “Fault and Bad Luck”. You can still catch their (rare) shows in HK, see their facebook page.

5. 冷冻街 – “卡带庄园”: Frozen Street have trouble defining their style, they state that “we are forever free”. The band was formed in 2004 in Nanjing.

6. 面条杀手 – “Girl”: The pop-punk band Noodle Killers was formed in the cold city of Ha’erbin in 2003. They were called “Ketchup” (蕃茄酱) before – but let’s be honest, Noodle Killer is a way better name. Noodle Killers participated to a lot of music festivals in Heilongjiang and in the North in general. Winter is coming.

7. Hookah – “Hookah”: The band Hookah seems to like smoking hookahs (and other stuffs). The ska-punk band was formed in 2007 by members of other famous punk bands, like Angry Jerks and Banana Peel.

8. 吴虹飞 – “乌兰”: Wu Hongfei is a singer, poet, artist born in Xi’an from the Dong ethnic minority (侗族), who graduated from the prestigious Tsinghua University in Beijing. She was the singer of the Beijing folk rock band Happy Avenue (幸福大街).

9. 血色彩虹 – “黑色沼泽”: Blood Rainbow is a death metal band formed in 2005 in Tangshan.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 68 – October 2007

This issue featured a special article entitled “Can Rock Save the World?”

Tracklist:

1. 波澜童话 – “Come On”
2. Ozomatli – “Saturday Night”
3. 九婴 – “Nothing Day”
4. 24 Hours Party People – “Mr. Stevenson”
5. Golden Cage – “Bravadoes”		6. 朱志芳爵士三种奏 – “Funkhead”
7. V-Band – “Could You Call Me Out”
8. 咖啡因 – “Bomb Girl”
9. 澐 – “曾经拥有”

1. 波澜童话 – “Come On”: The grunge band Billowing Fairy Tale (波澜童话) was formed in Beijing in 2003, composed of several members of the old band 白纸 formed in 2000. In 2010 they released their first (and only) album, “开始”.

2. Ozomatli – “Saturday Night”: Ozomatli is a six-piece Latin rock band from the US, formed in 1995 in Los Angeles. They released 8 studio albums so far. This particular song comes from their 2004 album, “Street Signs” and it is a skilful mix of hip-hop and Latin funk rock.

3. 九婴 – “Nothing Day”: 九婴 is a metal band from Shenyang formed in 2000, heavily influenced by Nine Inch Nails.

24 Hours Party People – “Mr. Stevenson”: 24 Hours Party People (composed of the bassist Zhang Chen, the guitarist Ren Yilan and the drummer Li Guanyu) is a post-punk band from Xi’an, formed in 2006 – obviouly in reference to the 2002 UK movie of the same name dedicated to the “Madchester” punk movement of the late 1970s. After performing in Beijing at the legendary D22 in 2007, Maybe Mars released their first and only album “No Party People” (and they changed their names to “24 Hours”) in 2009, produced by Martin Atkins. According to Maybe Mars’ website “Zhang and Li were high school classmates and are now lovers, while Zhang and Ren were university schoolmates and lived in the same dorm. The band’s music is often a reflection of their relationships: constantly-changing but always intense”. They also released a MV of their song “Mr. Stevenson”:

5. Golden Cage – “Bravadoes”: Golden Cage is an indie rock band from Guangzhou formed in 2003. They released 2 albums, 1 EP and one live album.

6. 朱志芳爵士三种奏 – “Funkhead”: Zhu Zhifang is a jazz guitar player from Hangzhou, graduated from Zhejiang University. He formed in 2006 his jazz band with a blues bassist and a drummer who graduated from the Midi School of Music.

7. V-Band – “Could You Call Me Out”: V-Band (formerly known as “Guess”) is a pop-rock band formed in 2006. The lead singer is from Zhengzhou (in the Henan province), where he began to learn guitar at the age of 17.

8. 咖啡因 – “Bomb Girl”: Caffe-In is a ska-pop-punk band composed of musicians from Japan and China, formed in 2004. The lead Japanese singer, Sayu, sings in Chinese, and brings a “kawai” element to the band. Pilot Music released their first album in 2007. They since released 2 other albums.

9. 澐 – “曾经拥有”: A hard-rock band formed in 2004 in the Heilongjiang province by Zheng Xuelai and He Yan.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 69 – November 2007

A special music festival issue.

Tracklist:

1. 与人 – “杭州人民爱晚风”
2. 糖果枪 – “Ten Days”
3. Hang on the Box – “No More Nice Girls”
4. Acrania – “Despair”
5. 反光镜 – “晚安北京”		6. October – “Crash For Loneliness”
7. Burnmark – “Burning”
8. Red Banana – “你的爱总是让我头昏”
9. 陈辉 – “和你一起呼吸”

1. 与人 – “杭州人民爱晚风”: A famous indie-rock band from Hangzhou formed in 2002, 与人 is a very humourous and ironic band. Their songs are known to be very well written, always playing with censorship in a very funny way. Lots of political comments and reference to Chinese history. This particular song, dedicated to the people of Hangzhou, contains lot of sexual references.

2. 糖果枪 – “Ten Days”: Honey Gun, a band formed in 1999, who published their first album, “240km/h”, in 2007 with Pilot Music. A song about the classic American fantasy: “I am a bastard but I made it / The visa to USA / My Dream of Disneyland / Fantasy of Hollywood / Hot girls and sunset strip”.

3. Hang on the Box – “No More Nice Girls”: The first all-female punk band formed in Beijing in 1998 by Wang Yue (GIA). In 2007, HOTB made their big come-back with the album “No More Nice Girl”, before the creation of Wang Yue side-project, “Ourselves Beside Me”.

4. Acrania – “Despair”: a death metal band from Mexico, formed in 2001, previously known as Necrofilia. Great name.

5. 反光镜 – “晚安北京”: the heroes of Chinese pop-punk or the traitors of Chinese punk? Members of the 无聊军队 (Boredom Contingent), the first Beijing punk collective, Reflector has taken since a more mainstream path. Hated by a large part of the punk community, Reflector is consciously erased from Chinese punk-rock history by other bands. “Good Night Beijing” is a good example of their “pop” turn.

6. October – “Crash For Loneliness”: a folk-rock band from Qingdao, formed in October 2002, influenced by Simon and Garfunkel.

7. Burnmark – “Burning”: Burnmark is a metal band, but doesn’t like labels. They play “randomly” after drinking a lot of alcohol.

8. Red Banana – “你的爱总是让我头昏”: Red Banana began in 2004 as a punk band in Hefei (Anhui province), before evolving toward a more indie-rock vibe.

9. 陈辉 – “和你一起呼吸”: Chen Hui is the singer of the famous hard-rock band The Face (面孔), formed in 1989 – Chen Hui integrated the band in 1993. In 2007, Chen Hui published his second solo-album, entitled “Chen Hui”. “The Chinese Bon Jovi”, according to So Rock!. With some capillary differences I might add.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 70 – December 2007

Tracklist:

1. Lunar Eclipse – “复仇者日志”
2. 火星计划 – “梦中人”
3. ConFirm-X – “Dawn of Robot”
4. 跳猴 – “猴子明星梦”
5. Snapline – “Close Your Cold Eyes”		6. PB33 – “看好你的妞”
7. Billdisc – “Galaxy”
8. Candy Monster – “Need’t You To Say”
9. Anti-XXX – “Untitled”

1. Lunar Eclipse – “复仇者日志”: Lunar Eclipse is a metal band from Fujian province, formed in 2003. One of their songs appears in the metal compilation “死夜3”.

2. 火星计划 – “梦中人”: 火星计划 (litteraly Mars Program) is an indie-rock band formed in 2007 and based in Beijing.

3. ConFirm-X – “Dawn of Robot”: An electro-industrial trio from Beijing, Lanzhou and Changsha. They published an EP in 2007 entitled “Confirm-X”.

4. 跳猴 – “猴子明星梦”: Lucky Monkey is a pop-punk band from Beijing, formed in 2005. They published a Demo in 2009.

5. Snapline – “Close Your Cold Eyes”: One of the most influential indie-rock band of the mid-2000s. Snapline was formed in 2005, influenced by Joy Division and New Order, and quickly became famous in the Beijing rock circle, performing almost every week at the late D22. Their first album, “Party’s Over, Pornostar” was published by Maybe Mars – the guys behind the D22 – in 2007. Martin Atkins, the drummer of Public Image Limited, remixed their first album – you can see that in the documentary Atkins produced, “16 Days in China”. In 2012, Snapline published another album, “Phenomena”.

6. PB33 – “看好你的妞”: PB33 is an electro-punk band formed in 2005 by four students of China Communication University. In 2008 they released their first and only album, “Disco Boys & Girls Night Out”.

7. Billdisc – “Galaxy”: Not much is known about Billdisc except he’s a electro musician influenced by the nu-break wave.

8. Candy Monster – “Need’t You To Say”: Another D22 band from the mid-2000s. This emo-punk-grunge band was formed in 2005, led by the singer Bian Bian. There’s an episode of “The Sound Stage” dedicated to them.

9. Anti-XXX – “Untitled”: A death-metal band part of the “Dying Art” project. You can learn more about Dying Art in this interview. You can also listen to the music they produce in their bandcamp page.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 71 – January 2008

Tracklist:

1. The Reason – “The Upset Late Fall”
2. A.J. Alex – “China Man With France Girl (Live)”
3. A.J. Alex – “Don’t Put Your Heart On a Rock N Roll Star”
4. Heaven’s Night – “Big Muff”
5. The Roy – “Sunny Day”		6. Infidel – “镜子”
7. 穿心莲 – “水的轨迹”
8. 黑撒 – “贫嘴高中生的幸福生活”
9. 黑撒 – “城市夜生活的副作用”
10. 刚子 – “苏鲁锭”

1. The Reason – “The Upset Late Fall”: The Reason is a reasonably famous emo band, formed in 2006. Do not mistake the band The Reason with the song “The Reason” by Hoobastank. You do remember that song don’t you?

2 & 3. A.J. Alex – “China Man With France Girl (Live)” and “Don’t Put Your Heart On a Rock N Roll Star”: Two songs by A.J. Alex. If I must be honest, I never heard of A.J. Alex before today. Apparently he’s a folk singer and a poet, who often collaborate with his friend Yan One. He has a pretty full Douban page, and seems to continue singing. He published a book with Yan One in 2019 entitled “Village of Chaos”(混沌). The first song is about a Chinese man whose heart is broken by a French girl, the second one about a ex-girlfriend who got married with a violent rock star and is expecting a child.

4. Heaven’s Night – “Big Muff”: Heaven’s Night is a grunge band from Hefei (in Anhui province), composed of a worker, a doctor and a Beijing opera actor. They published in 2007 their first E.P. entitled “Weak as Bullet”.

5. The Roy – “Sunny Day”: A band formed in 2006, influenced by Coldplay and Radiohead. They published an EP entitled “A Life With No Sadness”.

6. Infidel – “镜子”: Infidel is a death core band formed in 2007 influenced by the New wave of America Heavy Metal.

7. 穿心莲 – “水的轨迹”: 穿心莲 is a lofi band formed by Song Song (宋松), a graduate from The Central Academy of Fine Arts.

8 & 9. 黑撒 – “贫嘴高中生的幸福生活” and “城市夜生活的副作用”: Black Head is a hip-hop crew from Xi’an, who published their first E.P. back in 2007, entitled “起的比鸡还早”. Their songs were very humoristic, the first one makes fun of the classic children song “如果感到幸福你就拍拍手”. Weirdly enough, in 2019 they participated to the indie-rock TV Show “乐队的夏天” with a mix of folk songs and Shaanxi rap about Xi’an food.

10. 刚子 – “苏鲁锭”: Gangzi is better known as the singer of Tulegur, a famous Mongolian folk rock band. The pionner of Mongolian grunge and “nomad rock”. He recently published “The River” with his band Tulegur.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 72 – February 2008

Tracklist:

1. 弥藏 – “I Don’t Want A Baby”
2. 清醒 – “壹”
3. 梵高 – “冬”
4. 黄色潜水艇 – “时光”
5. 黄色潜水艇 – “小丑”		6. 相对论 – “压路机”
7. 印度草 – “Forest Of The Aerolite”
8. 微 – “季节风”
9. 反应堆 – “When You Look At Him”
10. Self-Party – “再见，选装楼梯”

1. 弥藏 – “I Don’t Want A Baby”: 弥藏 is a blues-rock band formed in November 2001 in Beijing when the singer and the bassist of the band 梦魇, formed in 1997, decided to create a band with the guitarist and the drummer of 引号. The band is influenced by The Doors, Led Zeppelin or Stevie Ray Vaughan. In 2008 they published their first EP, Goodbye 1968. They recently published a new album, “上帝不爱布鲁斯” (God Ain’t Love No Blues).

2. 清醒 – “壹”: Sober is a well-known brit-pop band, maybe the first Chinese version of Oasis. Formed in the late 1980s, Sober released its first album, 好极了！？ in 1997 – the first album published by Modern Sky 摩登天空, and the first commercial “hit” of the new Beijing rock scene of the 1990s. Well, Shen Lihui, the singer of Sober, is also the infamous boss of Modern Sky, known for its role in the (over)commercialization of Chinese indie-rock, and its critic of the political activism of 1980s Chinese rockers. If you want to know more about Shen Lihui and Modern Sky, I recommend the excellent article by Andreas Steen, “Sound, Protest and Business. Modern Sky Co. and the New Ideology of Chinese Rock” (Berliner China-Hefte, 2000). This is the song that started all of this, “好极了”:

3. 梵高 – “冬”: Another example of the post-rock vibe from the North (like Wang Wen for instance), 梵高 was created in 2000 in Dalian as a grunge band, influenced by Nirvana, before becoming a post-rock band influenced by Mogwai and Godspeed You! Black Emperor.

4 & 5. 黄色潜水艇 – “时光” and “小丑”: Yellow Submarine is a rock band formed in 2002, who published their first album in 2007. Needless to say, they like the Beatles.

6. 相对论 – “压路机”: An industrial metal band formed in 2002.

7. 印度草 – “Forest Of The Aerolite”: “The Indian Grass”. If that’s not clear enough, the band explains it: “Indian grass means Indian weed”. The band was formed in 2007, and our boy A. J. Alex (we talked about him in the last issue) plays the organ in this song.

8. 微 – “季节风”: An indie pop band from Guangzhou.

9. 反应堆 – “When You Look At Him”: Maybe the only band I heard of coming from Zhuzhou in Hunan province. A Scream Emo band formed in 2004 under the name “感觉” (Emotion) – maybe too Emo for an Emo band?

10. Self-Party – “再见，选装楼梯”: A Hangzhou shoegaze band, known before as “Monkey Power”. Typical lyrics for a shoegaze band: “Before I found the effectual key […] Guilty love is a suicide”.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 73 – March 2008

Tracklist:

1. 甜蜜的孩子 – “Hello Bomb”
2. 谢天笑 – “无”
3. Civily – “Yellow Stamp is Mine”
4. CMCB – “回到自己”
5. Epicidemik – “Free”		6. oNEwAY – “South of the Clue”
7. 钟茌 – “Easy World”
8. 钟茌 – “From the Moon”
9. 王威 – “Paris”
10. Muscle Snog – “Mind Shop is on Sale”

1. 甜蜜的孩子 – “Hello Bomb”: The Honeys were formed in 1997 in Shanghai, most of the members come from Hangzhou’s Academy of Fine Arts. They try to incorporate Chinese elements to their rock songs.

2. 谢天笑 – “无”: XTX (Xie Tian Xiao) is perhaps one of the most famous and talented rocker of his generation. XTX came to Beijing from his hometown in Shandong province in 1991, and formed in 1994 a grunge/rock band named “Cold Blooded Animal” 冷血动物. He released a first album in 2000 with Scream Records. In 2005 he released a second album, taking the name “XTX and Cold Blooded Animal”. This song, “无”, marks an evolution in the sound of XTX, since he integrated more Chinese instruments – like the guzheng 古筝 – in his music. According to the legend, his father, a guzheng musician, advised him to integrate Chinese sounds in order to sell more albums abroad. XTX is also a very funny guy, his facial expressions have been transformed into GIFs used in the Chinese internet.

3. Civily – Yellow Stamp is Mine: Civily is a young Sichuan kid born in 1987, influenced by Metallica, Pantera and Oasis (yes, it’s very broad). He sent his demo to So Rock! and got his song published.

4. CMCB – “回到自己”: Chinese MC Brothers, one of China’s oldest rap crew. Their first album was published by Scream Records. Another one of their songs was published in a So Rock CD in 2007. They recently released a new E.P., “再見!說唱!” (Goodbye! Hip-Hop!), a testimony of their underground spirit (for instance the sentence “我們一直在地下” in the song “讓自己醒著”).

5. Epicidemik – “Free”: An American metal band.

6. oNEwAY – “South of the Clue”: Formed in 2006, the post rock band oNEwAY integrates some elements from ethnic minorities culture.

7. 钟茌 – “Easy World” and 8. 钟茌 – “From the Moon”: Zhong Chi is a female musician from Shanghai doing trip-hop songs by herself. She released in 2007 her album “Easy World”.

9. 王威 – “Paris”: Wang Wei moved to Paris when he was 13, and graduated in 1998 from the “Atlas Academy of Music” (I guess they meant “ATLA – École des musiques actuelles”). In 2002, Wang Wei returned to China, and formed the band “Smoking Kills” in Shanghai. In 2007 he published a first album, “On The Road”. But let’s go back to the song, “Paris” with a sample of the lyrics: “Paris is the first time I fall in Love / Is the city of my dream / Is where I grow / Bar in everywhere / And Champs Elysées in Christmas / Full of beautiful girls / The city full of the romance”. It’s hard to avoid the clichés apparently, even when you live in Paris. Wang Wei released in 2013 his album “Paris”.

10. Muscle Snog – “Mind Shop is on Sale”: A noise-rock band from Shanghai, signed by – who else? – Maybe Mars, formed in 2006 and disbanded in 2010. The band was composed of three members, Maimai, Fan Xiaoruo and Hei Xiongmao. Luckily for us, Maybe Mars released their album in 2009, entitled “Mind Shop”.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 80 – October 2008

Tracklist:

1. 颠覆M – “重生”
2. 小熊饼干 – “I Love Myself Used To Love You”
3. 丑角 – “我需要”
4. 董佳佳 – “Snow”
5. 诅咒橙子 – “请宽恕我”		6. 花童 – “进入中”
7. 羊秘密 – “铁森林”
8. 月蚀 – “From Hell”
9. 寂寞 . 夏 . 日 – “草木中国”

1. 颠覆M – “重生”: Ego-Fall is an Inner-Mongolian trash-metal band from Hulunbuir, formed in January 2000. Very influential in the trash-metal scene in Beijing, Ego-Fall released several albums over the years, as “Spirit of Mongolia” (蒙古精神) in 2008. The Mongolian-metal vibe is currently represented in the more mainstream metal scene by Nine Treasures. In 2016, Ego-Fall went on an European tour, and came back with this “documentary”:

2. 小熊饼干 – “I Love Myself Used To Love You”: A power-pop band from Xinjiang, BearBiscuit released 3 albums in three years, between 2007 and 2009. They released their last album back in 2012, “如果” (If). They gave an interview to 牛人酷 in 2012 for their Beijing tour:

3. 丑角 – “我需要”: 丑角 is a hardcore hand formed in Xi’an, influenced by 1980s funk and trash metal.

4. 董佳佳 – “Snow”: Dong Jiajia, born in 1987, is a folk musician who graduated from Beijing International Studies University, influenced by Radiohead and Muse.

5. 诅咒橙子 – “请宽恕我”: Cursed Orange is a trash metal band from Handan in Hebei province. They describe their style as a mix of Iron Maiden and punk music.

6. 花童 – “进入中”: 花童 is an old rock band formed in 1998. They describe their music as “electro-rock”. They released in 2013 an EP, “Rock Life”. Here’s the MV for the song “Rock Life”:

7. 羊秘密 – “铁森林”: Secret Young is a sadcore band formed in 2000. They released an EP in 2001.

8. 月蚀 – “From Hell”: A metal band from Fujian, formed in 2003, who released a Demo in 2007 entitled “Lunar Eclipse”.

9. 寂寞 . 夏 . 日 – “草木中国”: Lonely China Day, a famous indie post-rock band from Beijing formed in 1998, influenced by Sigur Rós, featured also in the June 2007 So Rock! CD. “Foraging China”, the beautiful song featured in this issue, is included in their 2007 album, Sorrow. Their 2010 album, This Readily Assimilative People is perhaps one of the most influential Chinese post-rock album. They kind of disappeared after this last album.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 87 – June 2009

Tracklist:

1. 但丁之舟 – “Final Victory”
2. 但丁之舟 – “Warrior’s Ballad”
3. In It – “Rather Than Love”
4. 嘎调 – “Love For Life”
5. Retriever – “Money”		6. 超人田田 – “Superism (中国特色)”
7. Infidel – “春分”
8. 巡航线 – “My Electronic”
9. Fading Horizon – “Twice”

1 & 2. 但丁之舟 – “Final Victory” & “Warrior’s Ballad”: Barque of Dante is a melodic power metal band formed in 2004 in Mianyang, the second largest city in Sichuan. They published a first EP in 2004, entitled “Paen For Hero”, and they started again to record music after the Sichuan earthquake of 2008, releasing a new album in May 2009, entitled “最后的胜利”.

3. In It – “Rather Than Love”: An electronic instrumental band, led by Anubis, born in 1990 in Kunming, who studied at the Communication University of China in Beijing. In It released in 2009 the EP “Give me Truth!”, and in 2013 “None of That Matters”.

4. 嘎调 – “Love For Life”: The Gar is one of the poster band of the Great D22/Maybe Mars era. The band was founded in 2007, and in 2009 released their first album, entitled “The Gar”. The bassist Wen Jie left the band after this first album, but the band moved on with the arrival of a new member, Bo Xuan, and released a new EP in 2012, “The City of Burning Identities”.

5. Retriever – “Money”: A hard rock band founded in 2006 in Changsha, the capital of Hunan province. They participated to the festival “Peace and Love” in Wuhan in 2008.

6. 超人田田 – “Superism (中国特色)”: Super TianTian is an rock band founded in 2006 in Chengdu, now touring China with its “Funny Punnk/Rock Musical”.

7. Infidel – “春分”: A metal band from Changsha influenced by the New Wave of America Heavy Metal (it’s a thing, called NWOAHM).

8. 巡航线 – “My Electronic”: “Circle Line” is a electronic band led by the DJ Xia Tao (X76).

9. Fading Horizon – “Twice”: A post-punk band from Nanjing founded in 2007, influenced by Joy Division and The Chameleons. They released in 2009 an album entitled “Name it Yourself”, which contains the song “Bloody Square”…

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 95 – February 2010

Tracklist:

1. Time In Muscat – “Isadora”
2. 十元店 – “让我们抱得更紧”
3. Belly Mountain – “The Campus Is Burning”
4. Johnny 23 – “Red Bird”
5. 苔藓 – “出卖灵魂”		6. 霾晦 – “悲凄之树”
7. 迷失乐园 – “简单”
8. 波激小丝 – “西腔星人”
9. 瘐毙 – “孤魂”

1. Time In Muscat – “Isadora”: The post-rock band Time In Muscat was formed in 2008 in Nanjing. They released in 2009 their first EP, “Names”, on the label Lost Eraser. If you really want to know the time in Muscat (Oman), you can check on this website.

2. 十元店 – “让我们抱得更紧”: Ten 4 All is a pop-punk-rock band formed in October 2002 in the old city of Handan in Hebei province. They released their first and only album in 2010, entitled “Miracle in this Moment” (刹那间的奇迹)

3. Belly Mountain – “The Campus Is Burning”: A duo formed in Shanghai in 2008 when “Freaky” met “Muddy” on the website Douban. The electro post-rock band became a quartet with the arrival of Sparkler and yks. You can check their Douban page for new songs.

4. Johnny 23 – “Red Bird”: An American rock band. One of the members, Stephen Imwalle is also a film director, who shot in 2007 the documentary “Twenty Pieces of Silver” – you can listen to the soundtrack on their bandcamp.

5. 苔藓 – “出卖灵魂”: A deathtrash band formed in Dalian in 1998. They released in 2003 their first album, “罪证”, and their second album “圣战” the year after.

6. 霾晦 – “悲凄之树”: Dark Haze is a death metal band formed in 2008. For their ten years anniversary, they performed at the 13 Club in Beijing, and you can see their complete set on video:

7. 迷失乐园 – “简单”: A rock band from Taiyuan formed in 2004.

8. 波激小丝 – “西腔星人”: Boojie is an indie-rock band from Shanghai. They published their first album, “Reserved” on the label Modern Sky in 2009, and performed quite regularly at the D22 during its golden era.

9. 瘐毙 – “孤魂”: Another band from Taiyuan, also formed in 2004.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 98 – May 2010

Tracklist:

1. 歇斯 – “水晶流动境域”
2. The Medullary Paralysis – “Fashion Slave”
3. 塔罗圣徒 – “争夺”
4. 天杵 – “倾听”
5. Hair Peace Salon – “In Tune”		6. 岛屿心情 – “Waiting For You”
7. 陈劲 – “自由穿行”
8. 雷子 – “北京的冬天”
9. 时过夏末 – “谢谢”

1. 歇斯 – “水晶流动境域”: Xie Si 歇斯 (also known as 杨长勇) is one of the oldest Chinese guitar hero, he played with Joe Satriani and was the Chinese representative of the international brand Music Man. In 1978, he studied at the Central Academy of Drama, majoring in opera percussion.

2. The Medullary Paralysis – “Fashion Slave”: an Italian alternative glam rock band formed in the province of Padua in early 2007. They describe their style as a mix of Smashing Pumpkins, Marilyn Manson and Tears for Fears. The musicians always dress in latex while performing. In 2009 they released the EP We Don’t Drink, We Don’t Take Drugs, We Don’t Have Sex, We Feel Compassion (a sad title for a band). In 2010 they extensively toured China and Hong Kong, they participated to the “Hutong Jam” series, playing Chinese pipa and waist drum. According to their website, their new album is coming soon (since 2013)… There is a recording of their “Hutong jam”, and it’s very weird:

3. 塔罗圣徒 – “争夺”: a trash metal band from Beijing, formed in 2007.

4. 天杵 – “倾听”: Vajara (གནམ་ལྕགས་རོལ་ཚོགས།) is the first Tibetan rock band, formed in 1999. They released two albums and participated in 2005 to the Beijing Midi Music Festival. According to the drummer, they first listened to Cui Jian’s albums in 1992, before coming to Beijing to study at the Midi School of Music. They sing in Tibetan, also incorporating Tibetan instruments into their music.

5. Hair Peace Salon – “In Tune”: Hair Peace Salon is a power pop band from Minsk, Belarus, influenced by British indie rock, founded in 1998. They sing in English, “In Tune” was their second EP.

6. 岛屿心情 – “Waiting For You”: Island Mood is a ska-punk-blues-rock band from Xi’an founded in 2007. For those who watch 乐队的夏天 (The Big Band) season 2 on iQiyi, Island Mood is also the band eliminated by Mosaic 马赛克 during the second tour.

7. 陈劲 – “自由穿行”: Chen Jin, also the bassist of Second Hand Rose and previously member of the old rock bands 宝贝兄弟 and 红色部队, released in 2010 his solo album, “自由穿行”.

8. 雷子 – “北京的冬天”: Lei Zi was influenced by rock and roll when he was in high school in the 1990s, and began playing the guitar. He went to a university in Beijing, and moved to Yunnan from 2006 to 2007, before finally forming the band 拳头 in 2008.

9. 时过夏末 – “谢谢”: an indie-experimental rock band from Changsha in Hunan province

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 99 – June 2010

Tracklist:

1. 刘堃 – “嘿，青年，你要去哪？”
2. 刘堃 – “冥想中心”
3. 海龟先生 – “男孩别哭”
4. 热超波 – “在路上”
5. Little Sleep – “亲爱的亲爱的往事”		6. Miracle – “Dream Part 1”
7. S.A.W – “矛盾反抗”
8. 黑宇 – “自己的神明”
9. 愚人船 – “超级Party”
10. Maze – “Float Mountains”

Another June issue of So Rock!, the cover is a subtle reference to Tiananmen. Maybe some of the songs as well?

1 & 2. 刘堃 – “嘿，青年，你要去哪？” & “冥想中心”: Liu Kun is a musician, also known as the singer of the folk-rock band 低苦艾 (Low Wormwood, formed in 2003), who released their most famous album, “兰州兰州” (“Lanzhou, Lanzhou”) in 2011 on Maybe Mars. Liu Kun released in 2010 his solo album, “嘿，青年!”, which could translate into “Hey, Youth!”, also on Maybe Mars. Liu Kun was born in the 1980’s in Zhelaizhai county (Gansu province) before moving to Lanzhou. The first song, “Hey, Youth, Where are you going”, is a poem dedicated to Beijing youth, who lives in Wudaokou and Zhongguancun, who prefers drinking red wine, coffee, and sings in English, who stayed in China rather than go to New York. Sound effects and additional vocals by the famous folk-rocker Xiao He 小河.

3. 海龟先生 – “男孩别哭”: Mr. Sea Turtle 海龟先生 is a famous ska-rock band from Guangxi, formed in 2004. “男孩别哭” (Boy Don’t Cry) is their most famous song. They participated to the first season of The Big Band 乐队的夏天, and had to change the lyrics “Buy Buy Buy A One Night Stand” (into “Bye Bye Bye on Night Stand”, lol) to please iQiyi – and probably our friends from the SAPPRFT.

4. 热超波 – “在路上”: The Trouble 热超波 is a 6-piece international ska-punk band from Chengdu, with American and Japanese musicians.

5. Little Sleep – “亲爱的亲爱的往事”: A rock band from Xi’an formed in 2009.

6. Miracle – “Dream Part 1”: A band from Xinxiang (Henan), formed around 2000.

7. S.A.W – “矛盾反抗”: A Nu-Metal band formed in 2005, whose name is a reference to the 2004 horror movie. In 2010 they released an album, “年轻反抗” (Youth Rebellion) on Dime Records (the label managed by the guys from 军械所 and 13 Club). They performed quite a lot at 13 Club back in the days.

8. 黑宇 – “自己的神明”: A metalcore band from Kunming (Yunnan), inspired by Children of Bodom, formed in 2002. They won the silver medal at the Yunnan Rock Competition (云南摇滚乐队大赛)

9. 愚人船 – “超级Party”: Ships of Fools, an “idealist” post-punk band from Chongqing, formed in 2004 (there’s another band called 愚人船 from Taiwan, which is all very confusing).

10. Maze – “Float Mountains”: A pop-rock band from Beijing. They toured Southern China – 12 cities – in 2009. The song “Float Mountains” is a reference to a poem by Gary Snyder.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 100 – July 2010

The 100th issue of So Rock! A special issue of the magazine with all the one hundred covers displayed in the issue!

1. Punk God – “为穷人摇滚”
2. 罔闻 – “合乐（器乐曲）”
3. 阿修罗 – “Come On And Sing This Song”
4. 耳光 – “相忘于江湖”		5. 万能青年旅店 – “泰皇岛”
6. 爆浆 – “战斗”
7. 驳倒 – “亚克西”
8. 什么 – “来猜猜”
9. October – “Lady 1st”

1. Punk God – “为穷人摇滚”: Punk God, 盘古 in Chinese (also in the Chinese mythology the primordial being who separated heaven and earth, and a Chinese iOs jailbreaking team) is a legendary punk band from Jiangxi, created in 1996 by the singer Ao Bo. A very political band, touching every taboo of contemporary China. In 2004 they participated to the annual festival “Say Yes To Taiwan” organized by the metal singer turned politician Freddy Lim. While on stage, Ao Bo wore a Taiwan independence badge. They were warned not to come back to China, they since live in exile in Sweden, where they still produce anti-CCP albums on their Soundcloud page.

2. 罔闻 – “合乐（器乐曲）”: Wang Wen is a monument of post-rock, formed in 1999 in the cold city of Dalian. They are still producing new amazing albums. They released more than 7 studio albums since 2002, and Wang Wen’s leader, Xie Yugang, has collaborated with numerous artists, from Yang Haisong (PK14) to the French guitarist Serge Teyssot-Gay (Noir Désir). Here is one of my favourite album, “Invisible City”, released in 2018:

3. 阿修罗 – “Come On And Sing This Song”: 阿修罗 or Asura is, in Buddhism, a demigod or titan. The band Asura was formed in 1998. The singer’s name is 泰然, like me.

4. 耳光 – “相忘于江湖”: Erguang, the slang expression for “Slap”, is a very famous rock band formed in 1998, mixing Chinese opera, folk music and rock and roll. They went viral in 2012 with their song “Bureau Chief Mr. Wolf’s 18 Touches” (狼局长十八摸), a political satire on Chinese bureaucracy, that was later banned.

5. 万能青年旅店 – “秦皇岛”: I don’t need to introduce Omnipotent Youth Society, the indie rock kings from Shijiazhuang, the rock city, where So Rock! was published. The song 秦皇岛 (Qinhuangdao, a port city on the coast of China in northern Hebei province) is included in their debut album, released in 2010, which had a huge impact on sinophone indie rock music. They released their long awaited second album, “冀西南林路行” in December 2020, breaking some kind of record on NetEase.

6. 爆浆 – “战斗”: the Trash metal band “Explosicum” was formed in 2005 in Nanchang. They released in 2008 their first album “Conflict”.

7. 驳倒 – “亚克西”: According to this Zhihu page, 驳倒 is composed of “two idiots. But I like them very much!”.

8. 什么 – “来猜猜”: What?

9. October – “Lady 1st”: A band formed in 2002 in Qingdao. They first began by copying other bands’ songs, before finding their own voice.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 104 – November 2010

1. 万能青年旅店 – “在这颗行星所有的酒馆”
2. A公馆 – “我就在”
3. 黑方格 – “这里是家乡”
4. 黑骑士 – “虎虎虎”
5. 真相 – “Atrocity”		6. 板砖 – “Heart Break Ska”
7. Kaoh – “十年不晚”
8. 吴虹飞&幸福大街 – “冷兵器”
9. 吴虹飞&幸福大街 – “魏晋”

1. 万能青年旅店 – “在这颗行星所有的酒馆”: We don’t need to introduce Omnipotent Youth Society, the most famous Chinese indie-rock band, formed in the 1990s in Shijiazhuang, So Rock! Magazine hometown. At the beginning, the band was named “The Nico”, influenced by the American band “Blind Melon”, blues and alternative rock. This November 2010 issue of So Rock! Magazine is dedicated to the release of their first eponymous CD, with the front and back cover inspired by their album. “在这颗行星所有的酒馆” is one of their most famous song.

2. A公馆 – “我就在”: Residence A is a quite famous rock band, formed in 2009 in Beijing. They released in 2009 their first EP, “A”, in 2012 their first album “请用身体砸碎欲望逃生”, and another EP in 2013, “这个时代的爱”. They participated in 2017 to the second season of “中国乐队”. The singer was one of the first Beijing indie rocker to participate to a talent show contest on national TV in 2015 (on “中国好歌曲”).

3. 黑方格 – “这里是家乡”: 黑方格 or “HeyFunk” is a funk-rock band formed in 2009 by three classmates at the Jiamusi University in Heilongjiang province.

4. 黑骑士 – “虎虎虎”: Dark Night comes from Mile, in Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan province. The bassist Ka Bing founded the first rock band of Mile, “金属工人”, before forming Dark Night in 2010.

5. 真相 – “Atrocity”: Dinkumoil is a metal band formed in Beijing in July 2007. They qualify themselves as an underground metal band, and signed on the label Dying Art to release their first album, “Metal Weld” in 2010.

6. 板砖 – “Heart Break Ska”: The Bricks is a ska-punk band formed in 2001 in Hangzhou. We already talked about them here (in French), they’re a pretty well known band with a cult following since the release of their first album in 2003, “吗乐隔壁你的生活” (“MLGB U Life”) and their famous song “我是你的卫生巾” (“I’m your sanitary napkin”) on their label, MLGB Records (吗乐隔壁 – homonymous of “妈了个逼”, your mom’s pussy). In 2010 they moved to the countryside and released their album “村头朋克的派对” (“Country Punk’s Party”). The Shanghai punk band Top Floor Circus has a very funny song about them, “我去SPA，你去死吧” (“I go to SPA, you go die”).

8. 吴虹飞&幸福大街 – “冷兵器” / 9. 吴虹飞&幸福大街 – “魏晋”: Wu Hongfei is the singer of 幸福大街 (Happy Avenue), a rock band formed in 1999. Wu Hongfei is a singer, poet, artist born in Xi’an from the Dong ethnic minority (侗族), who graduated from the prestigious Tsinghua University in Beijing – one of her song was included in the So Rock! Magazine vol. 67 (2007).

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 111 – June 2011

1. TBOR – “Back to 17”
2. TBOR – “Trapper”
3. 麦子与微 – “诗了你的青春”
4. 逆耳 – “Larus Canus”
5. 南无 – “八零后”		6. Sick Of You – “Great Loser”
7. Magic Bus – “Come Back Man”
8. 伤逝 – “每个人的一生都是一场悲剧”
9. 永恒之翼 – “乱世之争”

1 & 2. TBOR – “Back to 17” & “Trapper”: TBOR is a rock band from Xi’an, formed in 2009. They have lately adopted a more electro-rock sound, as in this song released in 2020, “Adult Lullaby”.

3. 麦子与微 – “诗了你的青春”: Mai Zi is a poet, a vagabond and a rocker. In the 1990s, he was the singer of the band 微.

4. 逆耳 – “Larus Canus”: A grunge band formed in 2002, The Grinding Ear 逆耳 released its first album in 2004, entitled “逆耳”. They disbanded in 2006 when the lead singer went abroad, before reforming in 2009 when he came back to China. They released a new single in 2020, entitled “Scenes of Escape”. Their apparent come-back made it to Zhihu.

5. 南无 – “八零后”: Nanwu is an indie-rock band formed in 2007, they defined their style as inspired from traditional Chinese culture mixed with youthful humor. They call their style “南无文艺” (Nanwu Literature and Art). They participated to the first season of The Big Band 乐队的夏天.

6. Sick Of You – “Great Loser”: An indie band formed in 2008 in Chongqing, at the Chongqing Technology and Business University.

7. Magic Bus – “Come Back Man”: A failry well known Beijing rock band formed in 2009. They released two albums and a MV.

8. 伤逝 – “每个人的一生都是一场悲剧”: 伤逝 is an indie band formed in 2000, they released their first album in 2011, “再相见时”. Their name literally means “Mourning the dead”, and the song “Everyone’s life is a tragedy”, so I think they’re fairly depressed.

9. 永恒之翼 – “乱世之争”: A metal band formed at the Beijing Midi School of Music in 2009. They independently produced two EPs. You can catch a 2017 interview online, if you – like me – miss the thick Beijing accent of the metal scene:

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 112 – July 2011

1. Dethtopia – “和城市一起落寞”
2. Meat Sucks – “Fight For What’s Mine”
3. Sick Of You – “Sick Dreamer”
4. Summer Sunshine – “黎明黄昏”
5. 从未发生 – “We Are Not Your Fxxking Friends”
6. 教父 – “我走了”
7. 梦灵 – “丝绸之路”
8. 三轮跑车 – “你知道你是谁吗？”
9. 散木偶 – “阳光下的罪恶”

1. Dethtopia – “和城市一起落寞”: Dethtopia is a metal band from Xi’an formed in 2010. They released an EP in 2011, “Black City”. Apparently they finally added an “a” to their band name recently, so now it’s “Deathtopia“. Which makes sense. Also they don’t like people laughing in their Douban page.

2. Meat Sucks – “Fight For What’s Mine”: A post-hardcore/screamo/emo band from the great city of Wuhan. They released a first EP in 2011, entitled “Meat Sucks”, and another one in 2013, “Start Over”. In their bio, they say they “hope to bring to the punk capital Wuhan a new youth spirit and a new voice”.

3. Sick Of You – “Sick Dreamer”: The indie rock band Sick Of You (now disbanded) was formed at the Chongqing Technology and Business University in 2008.

4. Summer Sunshine – “黎明黄昏”: Summer Sunshine, the self-proclaimed best Beijing punk band. Well that’s what they said during their (short) participation to the second season of “The Big Band” 乐队的夏天.

5. 从未发生 – “We Are Not Your Fxxking Friends”: 从未发生 (It Never Happened) is an hardcore band, formed in 2006. The band members comes from various Chinese cities, but are based in Beijing. They claim to be the first Chinese hardcore melodic band. They released two EP and one album, including one entitled “This Is My Fxxking Answer”.

6. 教父 – “我走了”: Godfather is an alterative rock band based in Luoyang since 2004. They mix Chinese traditional elements into their music, as Sun Tzu’s The art of war. Well, their 2004 album is entitled《孙子兵法》, so i guess it makes sense.

7. 梦灵 – “丝绸之路”: Dream Spirit was formed in Shandong province in 2005, and now the band lives in Beijing. Since they were born near Taishan, they claim to be influenced by Confucian tradition. Their 2019 EP is entitled “Warriors of heaven’s descend”. You can also listen to their latest single, “Sea of Blood”:

8. 三轮跑车 – “你知道你是谁吗？”: A rock band from Zhuhai formed in May 2008.

9. 散木偶 – “阳光下的罪恶”: A grunge band formed in 2004 in Shijiazhuang rock city. They released two EPs, including “时代” (“Generation”) in 2010. “这是最好的时代，这是最坏的时代……” as they describe their album. They are still performing, if you wonder what a grunge band looks like 15 years after.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 113 – August 2011

First special issue in collaboration with the Chinese label AreaDeath Productions also known as Xmusic, located in Gulou, Beijing, created in 2004. This issue CD features only foreign metal bands collaborating with the Chinese label.

1. Thy Rites – “Thy Infernal Coronation”
2. Antacid – “Metalstrike Hammer”
3. Hatred – “Santan’s CallDevil Sword”
4. Nadimac – “Metal Je Rat”
5. Germ Bomb – “Infected”		6. Acid Speech – “Corrosive Riot”
7. Generichrist – “Strangulation Of A Twisted Mind”
8. Annathema – “To Hell And Back”
9. Annathema – “Empire of Noise”

1. Thy Rites – “Thy Infernal Coronation”: A Brazilian death/black metal band, active since 2005. According to their Bandcamp page, “Thy Rites was summoned in 2005 to praise the satanic strength and desecrate the weakling light of Jehova.”

2. Antacid – “Metalstrike Hammer”: A malaysian trash-metal band formed in 2003.

3. Hatred – “Santan’s CallDevil Sword”: Heavy/speed metal band from the Columbian underground metal scene, formed in 2004 and influenced by Motorhead, Iron Maiden, Tank or Accept. They also have a Bandcamp page.

4. Nadimac – “Metal Je Rat”: Надимач, a Serbian trash metal/crossover band formed in 2003

5. Germ Bomb – “Infected”: A Swedish trash metal band active since 2009. Here’s their Bandcamp page.

6. Acid Speech – “Corrosive Riot”: A Brazilian trash metal band formed in 2007. They released in 2009 a demo, “Corrosive Riot” on Areadeath production.

7. Generichrist – “Strangulation Of A Twisted Mind”: An American death/trash metal band from Florida, formed in 2002. They also have a Bandcamp page.

8 & 9. Annathema – “To Hell And Back” and “Empire of Noise”: An old Serbian (ex-Yugoslavia) speed/trash metal band formed in 1982. They have a MySpace page so they’re old.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 114 – September 2011

The second special issue in collaboration with the Beijing label AreaDeath, featuring foreign metal bands.

1. Archenemy – “Bodily Harm”
2. Archenemy – “Violent Abuse”
3. Devastation – “Devastation”
4. Devastation – “Necromancy”
5. Midian – “Legend of Sleepy Hollow”		6. Midian – “The Last War”
7. Prellude – “A Estrada do Rock”
8. Prellude – “The Great War”
9. Annathema – “The Dream”
10. Savage Death – “Savage Death”

1 & 2. Archenemy – “Bodily Harm” &”Violent Abuse”: A trash/death metal band from Los Angeles (USA). They released their first album in 2008 on the label Hells Headbangers, before releasing it in China through AreaDeath in 2010.

3 & 4. Devastation – “Devastation” & “Necromancy”: An old school Croatian trash metal band formed in 1986 in Pula. They disbanded and reformed several times, and are still releasing songs on their Bandcamp page!

5 & 6. Midian – “Legend of Sleepy Hollow” & “The Last War”: A New Jersey trash metal band formed in 1988 under the name Mercenari. More info on their Facebook page.

7 & 8. Prellude – “A Estrada do Rock” & “The Great War”: An heavy metal band from Brazil formed in 1995.

9. Annathema – “The Dream”: Already featured in the previous issue, an old Serbian (ex-Yugoslavia) speed/trash metal band formed in 1982.

10. Savage Death – “Savage Death”: An American trash metal band, formed in 1985. In 2010, AreaDeath released a best of, entitled “Crucified After The Genocide”.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 115 – October 2011

1. 天堂 – “少年”
2. 糖衣娃娃 – “1983”
3. 秋子 – “半夜日出”
4. O.I.C – “Missing You”
5. O.I.C – “我，机器夫人”		6. Kick Ass – “Shadow of Your Blight”
7. Balance Support – “反方向潜行”
8. 撒旦之瞳 – “恐怖宣言”
9. 撒旦之瞳 – “圣徒”

1. 天堂 – “少年”: An old and famous rock band formed in 1993. Back in 2011 they released their 6th album, “爱在摇滚的岁月”. If you like that 1990s Chinese rock feeling, I recommend 天堂 MV, “慈悲”:

2. 糖衣娃娃 – “1983”: Icing Dolls was formed in 2006. They released their first album, “1983” in 2010.

3. 秋子 – “半夜日出”: 秋子 released a 5 songs EP, entitled “半夜日出” (Lunisolar Splendour). 秋子 wishes to blend Chinese traditional music and Western rock in his music. He does have a Douban page (not updated since 2011).

4 & 5. O.I.C – “Missing You” & “我，机器夫人”: O.I.C was formed in 2006, they have released one E.P., and their Douban also hasn’t been updated since 2011.

6. Kick Ass – “Shadow of Your Blight”: Kick Ass was formed in 2010, inspired by 1980’s hard rock. Their last performance seems to have been in October 2012 at Beijing’s Mao Livehouse (and I may have been there).

7. Balance Support – “反方向潜行”: Formed in 2010 in Baoding in Hebei province. Their Douban page also seems to indicate they stopped playing in 2011.

8 & 9. 撒旦之瞳 – “恐怖宣言” & “圣徒”: “Pupils of Satan” a metal band from Lanzhou. Their last recorded song was included in a collective album released in 2015, “西风烈花开花败“”

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 117 – December 2011

1. Frankenstyle – “Styropore”
2. The Gray – “You Have Stolen My Heart”
3. 浮尘 – “花开花败”
4. 机车绅士 – “梦想点亮黑夜”
5. 虚言症 – “Taken”		6. S-mud 酒精坏名声 – “Harley Is A Fucking Rabbit”
7. S-mud 酒精坏名声 – “Dizzy Lady”
8. 衣湿 – “从前有座山”
9. 小巫师 – “白日梦”

1. Frankenstyle – “Styropore”: Frankenstyle is an Austrian punk band founded by Martin Liter King and Baldrian Grounded. They toured China in 2004 and 2005. They released their first album, “Old Chords & New Cuts” independently in 2009. Their second album, “New Catastrophic Stories” was released on the Wuhanese label “Wuhan Prison” – they also have a Douban page. The Chinese bassist living in Austria Zhong Yuxin (Sick Zhong) eventually joined them, before forming his own band, The Sino Heart.

2. The Gray – “You Have Stolen My Heart”: The Gray is a grunge band heavily influenced by Nirvana. They do have a Douban page, but they seem to have stopped making music since 2014. As a grunge band, they participated to numerous Nirvana tribute concerts, as this one back in 2013:

3. 浮尘 – “花开花败”: a rock band from Tianjin, formed in 2004. Their songs were included in the collective albums 天津疯味 3 and 4. Their EP “只等夏天” was released in 2011. They also have a Douban page.

4. 机车绅士 – “梦想点亮黑夜”: an indie rock band formed in 2010 in Beijing. They released in 2014 their EP, “送你一匹马”. They toured a lot until 2014. They changed their name to “潜水大象” in 2018 and released two other EPs.

5. 虚言症 – “Taken”: Mythomania is a rock band formed in 2010 in Beijing. They released their first EP, “23:59:59” in 2010. They have a Douban page and an already full QQ music fan page.

6 & 7. S-mud 酒精坏名声 – “Harley Is A Fucking Rabbit” and “Dizzy Lady”: S-mud is a quite humourous indie rock band, singing about sex and alcohol. They formed the band in 2011, with a singer from Dongbei, a guitarist from Shijiazhuang, a bassist from Baoding a drummer from Yinchuan, but they all reside in Chengdu. They also have a Douban page (it really was the hype at the time).

8. 衣湿 – “从前有座山”: a folk band from Zhuhai (which is quite rare) formed in 2010 by a veterinarian and a teacher. The band blends various genre and Chinese style musics, and sings mostly in Sichuan hua. They also have a Douban page. They signed on Modern Sky and their last album, “龍門陣” was released in 2018. They participated to the 2021 Youku show “草莓星球来的人” (Strawberry Man):

9. 小巫师 – “白日梦”: Little Wizard is a math-rock band formed in Shaoxing in 2008. They released plenty of albums and EPs, notably the vinyl “Little Wizard II”, the EP “街区” in 2018, and “Little Wizard III” in 2021. They also sell very nice t-shirts.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 118 – January 2012

1. SS20 – “Heilige Scheisse”
2. FUZZ – “控制”
3. FUZZ – “Lady First”
4. 玛丽隔壁 – “Na Na Na”
5. 未来小子 – “2196”		6. 夭夭 – “把世界留下”
7. 雷米 – “聚源路”
8. 企鹅 – “我们是快乐的企鹅”
9. 企鹅 – “学习机”

1. SS20 – “Heilige Scheisse”: SS20 is an hardcore punk band influenced by d-beat from Germany formed in 2007 (not to be confused with the American punk band SS-20 or the French hardcore band SS 20, a very common band name I presume). In 2010 they released a split vinyl with the Chinese hardcore band Fanzui Xiangfa 犯罪宪法, and in 2011 another with the Qingdao/Beijing punk band Demerit 过失. They toured China in 2011, and they have a Bandcamp page.

2 & 3. FUZZ – “控制” and “Lady First”: 法茲 or Fuzz is a well-known post-punk band formed in Xi’an in 2010, before moving to Beijing. They have released numerous albums, the last one “Folding Story / 折叠故事” in 2022, a concept album depicting “the story of an ordinary person from being born, to growing up, running away, and finding their way in life”. They also participated to the season 2 of “The Big Band”, singing “控制”, but unfortunately failed to impress the public.

4. 玛丽隔壁 – “Na Na Na”: an indie band from Ma’anshan in Anhui province. A very clever name, “Marie’s Neighboor” sounds like the famous insult “your mother’s cunt” (MLGB, also the name of The Bricks’ music label). But they changed their name to “浪！浪！浪！” more recently, according to their Douban page.

5. 未来小子 – “2196”: we don’t know much about 未来小子, except he recorded the song by himself, and likes things from the future (as his name and the title of the song point out). He hopes to make friends with other people that share the same interest.

6. 夭夭 – “把世界留下”: The name of the band “夭夭” comes from Thailand, meaning a man with a beautiful mind. They disbanded in 2013.

7. 雷米 – “聚源路”: the indie-pop band LIMI, or “Life In My Imagination” was formed in 2009 in Zhengzhou. They released in 2016 an album, “低俗诗人” (Tacky Poet), you can listen to it here.

8 & 9. 企鹅 – “我们是快乐的企鹅” and “学习机”: a rock band from Kunming, formed by four 12 to 14 years old kids in 2009 when they were in elementary school (they are 22-24 years old today, I feel old). Their favourite band is Sum 41. Their song “学习机” (Learning Machine) is a very powerful song about school and family pressure. Their Douban page is full of kids complaining about schoolteachers physical and moral abuse.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 119 – February 2012

1. Jacky Danny – “From The 80s”
2. Jacky Danny – “The Cowboys Ain’t Dyin'”
3. 塔罗圣徒 – “悲怆之秋”
4. 黑骑士 – “阿修罗的愤恨”
5. 夜莺 – “思念”		6. 斗兽棋 – “睡觉真快乐”
7. 飞行员与mm – “杀死艺术家”
8. 点地梅 – “Trap In Time”
9. 点地梅 – “Black Box”

1 & 2. Jacky Danny – “From The 80s” and “The Cowboys Ain’t Dyin'”: A Beijing old-school rock and roll band, inspired by Anglo-American rock bands, as The Rolling Stones, Guns’N’Roses, AC/DC, etc. Their name is of course a reference to a famous brand of whisky. Thery refer to themselves as “this generation of rock’n’roll assholes” (这个时代的Rock N’ Roll Assholes). They firmly believe in their foreign influence, despising bands that reclaim a “Chinese” sound in their music. They recently reformed the band to tour China. There’s an interesting interview of Jacky Danny on “The Sound Stage” (I really miss this show – it did more for China’s “soft power” than all of the Confucius Institutes):

3. 塔罗圣徒 – “悲怆之秋”: Tarot Saint is a trash-metal band formed in Beijing in 2007. They have released multiple EPs and CDs, the last one being “我愿意” (I Will) in 2016.

4. 黑骑士 – “阿修罗的愤恨”: We already talked about Dark Night in a previous issue, a metal band from Mile, in Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan province, who describe themselves as a “worker-metal band” 金属工人.

5. 夜莺 – “思念”: Nightingale is a Beijing metal band formed in 2005 with a female vocalist, they released their first album in 2012, “月光下的舞蹈”.

6. 斗兽棋 – “睡觉真快乐”: The first two-person alternative band from Tianjin, formed in 1999, they changed their name to 斗兽棋 in 2009, they produce lo-fi and DIY songs. They released an EP in 2012, “内向”.

7. 飞行员与mm – “杀死艺术家”: A Beijing pop-punk band formed in 2000, who released their EP, “让SB闭嘴” in 2012. Pilot & mm is now a music studio located in Beijing, where bands can practice and record their music from 80 元 per hour.

8 & 9. 点地梅 – “Trap In Time” and “Black Box”: Androsace is an international band formed in 2010 by the singer from Dali (Yunnan) Leng Ci with an Italian drummer, a French bassist and a Uyghur guitarist from Xinjiang. They define their style as “trash national minorities music” (少数民族垃圾乐). Influenced by punk, grunge, alternative rock, and even metal, the band’s name comes from a tiny wildflower that can grow anywhere, even on rocks.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 120 – March 2012

1. Los Crasher – “Kick Your Ass”
2. Los Crasher – “It Won’t Be All Right”
3. 刺猬 – “燃烧的心”
4. 龙神道 – “心在指引方向”
5. 死亡契约 – “血腥祭祀”		6. 人彘 – “饮鸩止渴”
7. 奚想 – “飞”
8. 黑方格 – “他和她”
9. 米粉 – “一切会过去”

1 & 2. Los Crasher – “Kick Your Ass” and “It Won’t Be All Right”: Los Crasher is a band formed in Beijing in 2010. Like Jacky Danny they are heavily influenced by classic rock and roll, old school rock and glam rock. They reelased their first EP, “Junkies On The Balcony” in 2012. Like Jacky Danny they were also featured in an episode of The Sound Stage:

3. 刺猬 – “燃烧的心”: Do I even need to introduce Hedgehog? An alternative rock band formed in Beijing in 2005, the poster-child of the D22 era, the heroes of the new Beijing sound of the mid-2000s. They participated to (and won) the first season of The Big Band 乐队的夏天, which made them very famous for the mainstream public, and in particular their incredible female drummer Atom (Shi Lu). They released 11 albums (!) in 14 years.

4. 龙神道 – “心在指引方向”: Another famous band from the 2010s, Long Shen Dao, or LSD, one of the most famous Chinese raggae band, formed in Beijing in 2006, with members of Cold Blooded Animal (冷血动物), the first band of Xie Tian Xiao (XTX), Buyi 布衣, Second Hand Rose 二手玫瑰, or Zhang Chu 张楚. They have released two albums, the latest, Freedom 自由, in 2016.

5. 死亡契约 – “血腥祭祀”: A metal “super-group” formed in Beijing in May 2010. They released one album in 2018, Reincarnation Of Asura Road 轮回修罗之道 and an EP in 2020, Sand&Sea 砂与海.

6. 人彘 – “饮鸩止渴”: A metal band from Shijiazhuang (rock city!) formed in 2005. They released an album in 2010 on the label Brutal Reign Productions, “忤逆的遗物”.

7. 奚想 – “飞”: 奚想 comes from Xinjiang, he entered the rock circle in 1999 and joined the band 玛雅 in 2003. He has a Douban page here.

8. 黑方格 – “他和她”: HeyFunk is a funk-rock band formed in 2009 by three classmates at the Jiamusi University in Heilongjiang province. They were included in a previous issue of So Rock!

9. 米粉 – “一切会过去”: 米粉 (Rice Noodle), the previous name of the Guangzhou based band best known as Mabang 马帮, from Liuzhou (Guangxi). They sing in the Guiliu dialect, a mix of rock, folk, and raggae, what they call “southern style world music”. A recent book (that I warmly recommend) by Adam Kielman, Sonic Mobilities. Producing Worlds in Southern China, talks more precisely about the band.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 121 – April 2012 (Special Issue Asian Metal)

1. 懲罰者 – “Public Servants (人民”公仆“)”
2. 骸骨占卜 – “Winds Of Black Vomit Angel”
3. 永无宁日 – “Dagon”
4. 永无宁日 – “Graceful Dinner”
5. 尸厨 – “腐朽为食”
6. Voidd – “Evil Death”
7. Church Of Misery – “Room 213 (Jeffrey Dahmer)”
8. Abhorer – “Saith… Empyrean Sabaoth of Azarak”
9. Rudra – “Twilight Of Duality”

1. 懲罰者 – “Public Servants (人民”公仆“)”: Punisher 懲罰者 is an old-school trash metal band formed in 2010 in Jinzhou (Liaoning province), signed on the Beijing label Dying Art Prod. The lyrics of the song are overtly political, So Rock! only printed the pinyin.

2. 骸骨占卜 – “Winds Of Black Vomit Angel”: Skeletal Augury is an underground Trash metal band from Beijing formed in 2008, inspired by Root, Typhon or Mayhem. They released on Pest Productions their first album in 2009, “Victory of the Holocaust”, and in 2014, “Bless Of Destroyed Raped Dismembered Flesh” (尸骸的祈福). I’m not going to comment the titles.

3 & 4. 永无宁日 – “Dagon” and “Graceful Dinner”: Chaotic Aeon is an old-school Death metal band from Xi’an, formed in 2006. They released a demo on the New Zealand label Taphephobia Productions in 2008, and an EP in 2009 on the Chinese label Pest Productions. They had a big line-up change after the release of their EP. They are also inspired by H.P. Lovecraft, as shown by the song “Dagon”.

5. 尸厨 – “腐朽为食”: A death metal band from Beijing formed in 2003. They released their first EP in 2009, “Disembowelment”. They didn’t provide the lyrics to So Rock! because, according to them, “the priority of the song is vocal mimicry, it’s mainly roaring”.

6. Voidd – “Evil Death”: Voidd is a famous death metal band from Nagoya, Japan, formed in 1989. The Chinese label Area Death Production released a reedition of their album “Desperate Truth”.

7. Church Of Misery – “Room 213 (Jeffrey Dahmer)”: Church of Misery is another famous doom metal band from Japan (Tokyo), formed in 1995. This song in reference to the American serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was released in their first EP, “Taste the Pain” (1998) – way before the Netflix series.

8. Abhorer – “Saith… Empyrean Sabbath of Azarak”: An old metal band from Singapore formed in 1987 (under the name Tombcrusher), now disbanded.

9. Rudra – “Twilight Of Duality”: Rudra is another Singaporian band formed in 1992. They play a blend of Death and Trash metal, with sanskrit lyrics and buddhist themes, in a genre that the band has named “Vedic Metal”.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 122 – May 2012

1. 耀乐团 – “米迪拉”
2. 魔术师 – “夜空下”
3. 16分钟 – “沉默的鸟”
4. 从未发生 – “I Saw The Crime”
5. 北落师门 – “维摩”		6. 魔幻指纹 – “自由”
7. 重返袖珍时光 – “蓿（乐器曲）”
8. 贾慧真 – “阶梯”
9. 乌托林 – “怕黑的女人”

1. 耀乐团 – “米迪拉”: The Honor – or Yaoband – is an indie electro-rock band formed during the 2010 winter in Beijing. They mix Chinese pop music with rave music. Members of The Honor are also well-known music producers of Mandopop. They released in 2012 their first EP, “Selection I · 择“. They have since released 3 more albums, and their latest single, “麻辣”, is a tribute to spicy food, obviously.

2. 魔术师 – “夜空下”: Magic Lion is a post-punk band from Shanghai formed by a few rebellious young people. The singer Qiu Jun formed in 2001 the band 画皮乐队, before changing its name to 发条橙 (A Clockwork Orange) in 2003, and enventually creating Magic Lion in 2008.

3. 16分钟 – “沉默的鸟”: 16 Minutes is an indie alternative band formed in 2011 in Beijing by the singer Sindy from Xinjiang and the guitarist Robin from New Zealand. They think of themselves as the Chinese Radiohead – a clear influence on the band. The band’s name is a reference to Warhol’s 15 minutes of fame – just a bit longer. They were featured on The Sound Stage:

4. 从未发生 – “I Saw The Crime”: It Never Happened is a hardcore band from Beijing formed in 2008. They write their lyrics inspired by their own life. They released an EP, “This Is My Fxxking Answer” in 2011:

5. 北落师门 – “维摩”: Fomalhaut is a progressive metal band from Beijing formed in 2006. The band members all come from the Wudaokou Vocational and Technical School (五道口职业技术学院).

6. 魔幻指纹 – “自由”: Originally named 指纹 in 1996, the band changed its name into 魔幻指纹 in 2002. They mix Chinese folk music with British funk music.

7. 重返袖珍时光 – “蓿（乐器曲）”: Back Pocket Time – or now called “Return to Delicate Past” is a post-rock band formed in 2005, still touring today. They released several albums since then.

8. 贾慧真 – “阶梯”: Jia Huizhen (the name of the lead singer) is an electronic duo. Jia Huizhen released a new album in 2016, entitled “11”:

9. 乌托林 – “怕黑的女人”: 乌托林 comes from Changzhi in Shanxi province. They make folk music.

So Rock! Magazine CD Vol. 123 – June 2012

1. Speckmann – “Fallen From Grace”
2. Dismantle – “Dwelling (In Darkness)”
3. Dismantle – “The Beyond”
4. 精神错乱 – “娶个媳妇多两个妈”
5. 精神错乱 – “在这儿死活特别不重要”		6. La’ Bridge – “Plate From Mars (无人声电子乐)”
7. 缓冲溶液 – “坏给我”
8. 焦油含量7 – “风铃”
9. 黑木耳 – “哈利撸呀”

1. Speckmann – “Fallen From Grace”: Paul Speckmann is an American bassist. He formed his first metal band Warcry in 1982, before starting a death metal band, Master.

2 & 3. Dismantle – “Dwelling (In Darkness)” & “The Beyond”: Dismantle is a trash metal band from California formed in 2006 with satanic themes.

4 & 5. 精神错乱 – “娶个媳妇多两个妈” & “在这儿死活特别不重要”: Delirious is an oldschool gindcore band from Nanjing. They indicate in their Douban page that they advocate violence and brainlessness. They opened in Nanjing for SMZB’s 20th year anniversary tour, so they might be a cool band. The band logo is quite… audacious.

6. La’ Bridge – “Plate From Mars (无人声电子乐)”: La’ Bridge is an electronic, ambient and new age duo. According to their bio, one of La’ Bridge member is an ordinary teacher from Guangzhou, the other one is a Hong Kong drifter (港漂) “rotten girl” (腐女) who makes music.

7. 缓冲溶液 – “坏给我”: 缓冲溶液 is a pop-rock band formed by four friends from the University of Sichuan in Chengdu. They released an EP, “Before 20”.

8. 焦油含量7 – “风铃”: 焦油含量7 (before known as 花童) is a grunge band formed in 2009 in Tokyo (Japan) by four Chinese guys living in Japan. They were the first Chinese band to release independently an album in Tokyo.

9. 黑木耳 – “哈利撸呀”: Black Fungus is an old-school metal band of three big dickheads, or as they say, diaosi 屌丝. They describe their style as diaosi metal. Two of the members of Black Fungus formed a new band in 2012, Electric Lady. They used to share on their Douban their WeChat text with strangers, if you like swearwords, it’s a work of art.

OpenEdition vous propose de citer ce billet de la manière suivante :
Nathanel Amar (10 septembre 2021). So Rock! Magazine (我爱摇滚乐) CD Archive Project. Scream For Life. Consulté le 4 décembre 2024 à l’adresse https://doi.org/10.58079/twyy

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4 réponses

  1. Orangegoat72 dit :
    26/07/2023 à 14:21

    For Any Information You Can’t Find, Check This Website: http://www.yaogun.com/wiki/%E3%83%A1%E3%82%A4%E3%83%B3%E3%83%9A%E3%83%BC%E3%82%B8

    Répondre
  2. Megumi dit :
    11/06/2020 à 20:29

    Thank you! I discovered so many bands through this magazine, and when i left China i lost most of my materials

    Répondre
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