Weekend Gig Guide, Sep 23-25: The Fleshtones, Tulegur, Back to the Future, Desecravity

We here at the Beijinger are pleased to present Live Beijing Music's weekend gig guide, written by head honcho Mr Will Griffith. Will has been running around Beijing for over four years, documenting the city's shows and the requisite onlooking drunkards with various cameras/sound recorder setups, losing plenty of equipment along the away in his attempt to capture Beijing's aural spirit. You'll occasionally catch him pogoing like a madman when he's not got a camera in hand. Take it away, Will ...

Got your fill of mooncake? Enjoying the brisk temperatures as autumn makes its all-too-soon demise? Well at least the music scene’s heating up as September rolls out with new venues to indulge in, visiting punk legends to mosh with, and cafeteria gigs (hells to the yes!) to start a food fight in. Whatever you fancy it’s out there. Here’s your weekend gig guide.

Friday, September 23

Gate to Otherside, Gatsby in a Daze, Backspace at Yue Space
The new Beixinqiao venue, headed by music platform Musikid, throws a ‘I Love Frank Party’ centered on the enormous paper head mache made famous by the eccentric rock band movie ‘Frank’. But enough of that nonsense – the real sell here is that this 400 person capacity venue means business and they’ve got the lineup to prove it including Hangzhou shoegaze indie rockers Gatsby in a Daze, Beijing psych rockers Gate to Otherside, and fresh on the scene synth rockers Backspace. Definitely worth checking out. RMB 80

Da Bang, South Acid MiMi Dance Team at School
Converse once again bangs out a killer two-punch lineup (with an added layer of awesomeness being it’s free) that includes dance rock veterans Da Bang, who will be dropping their newest MV this evening, as well as much hyped Kunming psychedelic dance trio South Acid MiMi Dance Team, who are truly one of a kind. Free

December3am, Jump the Fence, Jordan Darling at Hot Cat Club
One of the city’s freshest new acts – the intoxicatingly good ‘post-kraut Mongolian-infused rock’ duo december3am (proof is in the pudding) join catchy expat trope Jump the Fence and serenader Jordan Darling. Free

Junglemico at Temple
Mixing elements of live drum’n’bass, dubstep, dub, break beats, techno, and more, the Junglemico Project is one of the city’s best live electronica acts – expect a packed house and fans galore. Free

Yanchai, JAM, Ma Xiao, Yeli, 鹿先森at Yugong Yishan
It’s a folk filled autumnal equinox bash at Yugong Yishan as the big venue gathers some of the folk scene’s most promising up and comers including the ethereal Yanchai, the indie pop stylings of Ma Xiao, and more. RMB 150

Tulegur at Snail Club
Tulegur, the veteran Mongolian folk rock duo whose grungy revisionist take on Mongolian music has won acclaim here and aboard, performs. RMB 80

V89, Stockholm Syndrome at Blue Stream Bar
Grunge, and more hard rock vibes at the cute venue next to the Drum and Bell Tower. RMB 50

Zhang Qianqian at 69 Café
Veteran sing-songwriter Zhang Qianqian, a staple of the folk scene, since her debut in 1996 gives a special showcase courtesy at 69 Café. RMB 80

Hot Club of Beijing at DDC
Multi-national gypsy jazz ensemble bring their 1930s swinging jazz, hot latin rhythms, and gypsy waltzes to DDC so best bring your dancing shoes. RMB 50

Xiao8, VV, Li Yong, Shi Xiaofei at Fruityspace
Fruityspace mixes folk and electronica for a friendly gathering of sounds and stories from a range of young artists including Libra blood type A folk singer Shi Xiaofei, Beijing-Thailand hopping electronic musician Xiao8, and more. RMB 40

Kingdom Passion at 13 Club
Alright – have no idea what the hell is going on here but my best guess – Christian rock up the wazoo. Take the lord in your heart and mosh with the best of them – oh you so nutty Wudaoku. 80 RMB

The Groove Collective at Modernista
Feel the soul and fun-loving funk of the long-standing vibers The Groove Collective at the ever lively Modernista on Baochao Hutong. Free

Saturday, September 24

The Fleshstones (USA), Round Eye, Bedstars, Motorbike Girls at School
Legendary New York punks The Fleshtones, one of the NYC punk scenes pioneering bands, bring their forty years of influence and experience to Beijing for their first ever China tour – they’ll be joined by Shanghai doo wop punk lords Round Eye as well as Bedstars and Motorbike Girls for what will surely be a riotous sweat-filled evening. RMB 80 

Birdstriking, Dirty Fingers, Lonely Leary, Future Orients at Laker’s Pizza
Go back to the future with this nostalgic flashback as D-22 comes back to life for one night only. Well, in spirit at least. The space where the renowned venue once stood in Wudaokou is now a Laker’s Pizza (a cheap beer and grub place where university students mingle) but that ain’t stopping the kids from banging down its doors as Birdstriking (a band birthed from D22) joins Shanghai scrappers Dirty Fingers, as well as Future Orients (fresh off their debut release) and Lonely Leary. Should be a hoot and a chance to relive those Wudaokou glory days one last time. RMB 100

Macondo, Hard Candy Revolution, By Dream at Temple
Feel the righteous healing powers of Temple with a triple punch combo of hard rock featuring power rock instrumentalists Macando, sassy glam outfit Hard Candy Revolution, and post rock kids By Dream.

The Life Journey at Tango
Acclaimed Beijing Britpop outfit The Life Journey, one of my first guilty pleasures in China (I’m lying – they’re straight up good) give a special performance at the massive Lama Temple space, Tango. RMB 180

Early Bus, DJ Rasta at Fruityspace
The basement de facto chill spot Fruityspace gets in on the ska love train with a special performance from ska veterans Early Bus, who have been kicking around the scene since pretty much forever. Gonna get wild folks. Free

Re Botswana Orchestra, Jiang Shan at Ao Club
Catch some of Botswana’s most innovative jazz musicians with the Re Botswana Orchestra who’ll perform alongside Qinghai folk singer-songwriter Jiang Shan at the Qianmen venue Ao Club. RMB 150

The Hunters at Hot Cat Club
Badass cover band pay tribute the Red Hot Chili Pepper’s Blood Sugar Sex Magic album which hit its 25-year anniversary this week. Get your dong out. Free

Liu Donghong at Jianghu Bar
Bluesy folk rock singer-songwriter Liu Donghong a staple of the folk scene brings out his band mates for an intimate show at the hutong hotspot. RMB 100

Ember Swift at DDC
Indie singer-songwriter Ember Swift brings her swag and stylish indie rock to DDC as the longstanding Beijing-based artist presents material from her upcoming album Sticks and Stones, which promises to echo ‘childhood joys while living in an adult world’. RMB 50

Mademoiselle et son Orchestre at Modernista
Premier gypsy jazz outfit bring their sultry upbeat Chanson influenced numbers to the ever chic Modernista. Free

Jordan Darling, Shannon Lethbridge at Mogu Space
Regular acoustic singer-songwriters bring their A game to the Xizhimen space. RMB 60

Sunday, September 25

Desecravity (JAP), Ogenix at Temple
Metal platform Painkiller hosts Japanese technical metal band Desecravity who'll be joined by local electro metal band Ögenix. Free

Golden Rum, Steal, Deep in the Heart, Out to Sea at DDC
It’s a campus rock filled Sunday afternoon as university bands across Beijing join for some sun-filled rock and roll. RMB 40 (2pm start)

16 mins, The Peppercorns at DDC
Alt rock crusaders 16 mins bring their genre-bending sound alongside crooners and hard rock ruffians The Peppercorns for some riotous fun. RMB 40

The Beauty, Self-Portrait, Joker’s Belief, Half Half at School
Celebrate (or grimace) the end of summer with an indie rock bash featuring Britpop serenaders Self Portrait, indie rockers The Beauty, neo-funksters Joker’s Belief, and the female fronted disco punks Half Half. RMB 40

Unforbidden Horse, Liu Mingke, Wanjianxinwen at Mao Livehouse
Southern flavored hard rockers Unforbidden Horse throw a release party for their crunchy new EP Different But Same, with friends of old and new. RMB 80

CD Box, Next Door Band, Mind Notes at Modernsky Lab
Pop rock outfit CD Box content with their name are finally coming around to release their debut album CD and they’re going all out with a heavy pop flavored lineup at Modern Sky’s Galaxy SOHO digs. RMB 100

Seesaw Jazz Quartet at Hot Cat Club
Playing a fusion of jazz in different styles like swing, cool, bebop and hard bop, as well as Latin music and Chinese minority music enjoy the modern jazz stylings Seesaw Jazz Quartet. Free

Wang Yawei at 69 Café
Enjoy some acoustic ballads and soul warming folk courtesy of Wang Yawei this evening at the NLGX joint. RMB 60

Phew! Still hungry for more? For events, videos, and photos from Beijing's thriving music scene, head over to Live Beijing Music or check out all of our live music listings here.

Images: Live Beijing Music, courtesy of the organizers