Music Industry Insight: Nevin Domer, COO at Maybe Mars

For our September Music Issue, we asked a selection of the city's music experts for their take on the current state of the 'scene' here in the capital. Their insight was adroit, humorous and controversial in equal measure. In this blog series we post the interviews in full. Next up, Nevin Domer, COO at Maybe Mars.

On the best band in the last 12 months
Hedgehog still remains great.

On trends
Dance-rock a la Queen Sea Big Shark and Bigger Bang ... but there are several smaller trends that are gathering momentum in their own groups; glam rock (Jackie Daniel/Los Crashers), synth-rock (Wanderlust) and the noise/experimental scene.

On how Beijing stands up against other musical cities
I think Beijing is much easier for younger bands then other more developed music scenes, however the bands can’t rise as high here as they can in other places.

On the main obstacles for new bands
Lack of understanding how the scene works and inability to take the initiative.

On influences
Many bands still draw their influences from acts that are big abroad but they also follow closely what is happening in the local scene taking cues from older bands, such as Joyside and P.K.14 and current bigger bands such as Queen Sea Big Shark, Carsick Cars and Hedgehog.

On getting a foot in the door
By promoting their own shows and showing promoters and clubs that they can bring out an audience.

On who new bands need to know
There is nobody that holds the “keys” to the scene. Bands will rise on how effectively they can connect to their audience.

On the most accommodating venues in town
D-22 was and What Bar still is, but now there are a plethora of new places that all cater to new acts of various specialized styles: Zaja Lab, XP, Temple, Hot Cat ...

On pitfalls to avoid
They shouldn’t wait for promoters and clubs to contact them. They should be active booking their own shows and cultivating their own audience.

Click here to see the September issue of the Beijinger in full.