On the Record: SNSOS and the Art of Genre Weaving

On the Record is your guide to the past, present, and future of Beijing's music scene. 

SNSOS

Name: SNSOS (She Never Sings Our Songs)

Current Lineup: Chen Zeyang (Guitar), Zhu Yifeng (Guitar), Passerwoo (Bass), Erzu Guoji (Drums)

Established: 2014

Record(s): 1 full-length + 1 EP

Label(s): Self-released

Influences: Toe, Number Girl, American Football, Bon Iver

Stream: Bandcamp, Facebook

Who are they: SNSOS… five seemingly innocuous letters that, when taken together, are doubtlessly greater than the parts. And much like their name, the band itself, when coming together in a soaring, explosive instrumental crescendo conveys a power and dynamic that is much, much greater than its parts; two guitars, a bass, and drums. They traffic in shimmering firework displays of post-rock panache which dissipate into a dream-pop ash, only to rise again into a mushroom cloud of carefully designed cacophony (excuse the oxymoron) before falling quiet once more.

Otherwise known as She Never Sings Our Songs, SNSOS is a name that’s been hard to miss when scrolling through Beijing show listings over the past few years. They play constantly and have become favorites for bills ranging from American indie-rockers Colin Phils and French math-rock outfit Totorro to hometown heroes Birdstriking, Default, and Lonely Leary. Given the frequency with which they perform, it’s clear that they’ve caught the ear of more than a few promoters around town, and for good reason.

The band first started jamming in 2014, however, it wasn’t until December 2017 that the world saw the release of their self-titled debut. It’s an ambitious ten-track effort that proves their three years spent diligently rehearsing and weaving instruments in and out of one another were not spent in vain. Their songs meander through a landscape of multiple genres and sounds, from the US plains of 90s mid-west emo to the frenetic halls of Japanese art-rock, with regenerative bedroom pop stopovers peppered throughout. Although largely instrumental, they aren’t afraid to use vocals when it suits their needs, like on “天地無用” Tiāndì Wúyòng, a six-minute-long track that functions as a microcosm of the band’s stylistic range. 

In the same way that stand-up comedians take a wealth of material and hone it down to a “tight 15,” SNSOS’s 2019 follow-up EP, Line, is a three-song masterclass in everything they exercised on their previous effort. The opening track, “Kinsella said, stay home” draws much more heavily on vocals and that iconic 90s mid-west emo sound – even going so far as to namecheck veteran of the Chicago indie scene, Mike Kinsella – so it’ll be interesting to see what She Never Sings Our Songs turns out for their sophomore release. Until then, however, rest assured it won’t be long until these guys are hitting Beijing stages once again.

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Images courtesy of SNSOS