Gig Recap: Scattered Purgatory (TW), IZ, Wang Ziheng, Li Jianhong, Ruo Tan (Yue Space 2017.11.28)

Exploring the other regions of experimentalism, drone, black metal, and improvisational, France/Chinese label WV Sorcerer Productions and Modern Sky offshoot Bad Head teamed up last week for epic evening of noise and its various bedmates. Let’s try to break it down:

Kicking off the evening was Wang Ziheng throwing his weight and breathe into a free improvisation tenor sax set. Nothing too out of hand, but a solid palette cleanser to abandon expectations. Plus, dude behind the bar shaking up a cocktail unsuspectingly joining in on the fun.

Li Jianhong is a pimp. There aren’t too many noise artists who make you scream out in delight but Jianhong is one of them. Turning his guitar into a perpetual motion machine of sound, swaying his entire body to the layers of noise, to the point where I could have swore I was hearing an air raid broadcast, the man knows how to go big.

Based out of France, though raised in Nanjing, Ruo Tan, primered his latest release Stone on the Nanchang label Pest Productions, and gave a set that invoked shamanism in Northern Asia, with distorted tribal dronem synth ambient, and an array of adorably practical insturments from a frying pan contact mic (to my eye at least) and the world’s smallest cymbal.

Next, the debut of Taipei krautrock and metal drone duo Scattered Purgatory (made up of Lu Li-Yang and Lu Jiach). These cats were probably the most structured of the lot comparatively, with a set that mixed club worthy ambient-heavy electronica and psych folk krautrock with ease. Not at all what I was expecting, but quite possibly my favorite act of the night and the act I would most recommend for headphone listening.

IZ, the power house industrial noise duo made of Ürümqi musician Mamer on guitar and Zhang Dong on (the coolest ever industrial fan) drums came out last on a warpath of noise and destruction, throwing listeners into the deep end with a chaotic, harsh, industrial and extremely funky noise set that felt like a glass of cold water to the face and plastered a shit-eating grin on my face. Dude was literally pulling out Home Depot tools out and had transformed his voice to shards via electronic manipulation.

And if that wasn’t enough, folks who stuck it out till the end (mind you it was already well past midnight on a Tuesday) were treated to an all star dream team collaboration between, you guessed it, everyone! So yeah, a heck ton of dudes causing a ruckus every which way. Some might even call it paradise. NOICEEEE!

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