New Music: Eating Music, Young Blood, Dying Art Prod.

Various Artists – Eating With Friends 

Newly formed Shanghai music label made quite a bit of noise in 2018 – putting out a parade of infectious beat-filled electronic wonders from an array of talents dedicated to the communal spirit of making and putting out music (for instance, the vinyl from their last release from Xiamen producer Knopha came with a fragrance card). To celebrate the Year of the Pig, the team have put together a devilishly sexy and old school compilation featuring a slew of guests from just about everywhere. On the mainland front, there’s Shanghai’s Cruel Buddhist (joined by Irish friend 9oundcake), Chengdu’s Eddie Beatz, and former Hangzhou resident saib. Elsewhere we have the Taiwanese talonehead crew, Sicknessmp from Indonesia, Delf from Hong Kong, Beautiful Disco from South Korea, and Budamunk from Japan.

Bandcamp: https://eatingmusiclabel.bandcamp.com/album/eating-with-friends

Various Artists – YOUNG BLOOD 新血计划 VOL.2

Modern Sky shines a lot on some of the up and coming rock and roll talent festering across China with their most recent compilation, aptly titled Young Blood. The second volume in the roundup of bands to keep an eye on in 2019, the release sneaks in everything from shoegaze to rap with ten acts across six cities, proving the varied tastes of audiences (and the tastemakers themselves) these days. Highlights include Shanghai’s RUBUR and Loft Beach (two bands who have been receiving quite a bit of attention as of late) as well as the smooth-going Guangzhou’s Snow Blood, Wuhan’s Mad Rat, Chengdu’s Morse Code, Hubei’s Pi Yiran, and more. Will be interesting to see where these artists end up by the next volume.

QQ: https://y.qq.com/n/yqq/album/0037fjUP2FTwFT.html

Various Artists – Dying Art Productions 

Long-standing underground music label Dying Art Productions, whose affinity for all things heavy have made them beloved all around the globe, have been busy. Their most recent release is the entire 2016-2018 discography from Beijing fastcore favorites Struggle Session – a perfect encapsulation of the band’s manic and infectious allure -nineteen songs that charge through thirty-plus minutes at a frantic giddy pace that would surely set off your grandma’s pacemaker. The label also went ahead and recorded a slew of head-banging worthy bands at last year’s Thrash Till Death Festival held in Beijing including Hell City, Tractor, D-Crash, Wuhan’s Choleraic, Zibo’s Eagerkill, and Shanghai’s Alpaca touching upon everything from black thrash to sludge-metal. Those, as well as Struggle Session’s sludge hammer to social prejudices and hypocrisy,  can be had in cassette form.

Bandcamp: https://dyingartproductionscn.bandcamp.com