On The Scene: XP 16-05-2012

I’ve been itching to check out the ‘new D-22’, XP in all its glory since the Sally Can’t Dance Festival, and though I wanted to hold off till one of their Sunday parties, which seem like a great addition to the weekly lineup, but I just couldn’t resist. So against the efforts of my friends to keep me away and get over to Temple (which I eventually did anyway), I trucked over to the XP (or XiaoPing) to check out electronic artist thruoutin and the one-man band Low Bow.

Coming into thruoutin’s set, and yes, I did make a late entrance, I immediately felt like I had found myself in a dinky desolate submarine – sparse clicks and beeps here and there, echoing along the walls before disappearing forever. In time though, more lively auditory treats began to join in, and the sound took a turn for something that I suppose could be treated as more whimsical, albeit with some dark edges. It’s electronic music with a more relaxed and fluid pace than what I’m used to here. And when Brad Seippel, the man behind the music, gets out his pipa, you really are seeing something special. Unfortunately, I was only able too capture the last few minutes of thruoutin ‘s set, which really doesn’t do the rest of his set justice, but it’d be cruel for me to keep it just for meselfs

I think they’re just something about electronic music and string instruments that just feels right. Run over to his bandcamp page you can download his just-released album “Dots” – it’s a great listen, full of wonderful soundscapes, turns, and lyrics – thruoutin is definitely someone you’re going to want to keep your eye on in the near future.

While thruoutin’s layered sound was seduced my earlobes, Low Bow did the exact opposite. This was a bombardment on my earlobes, and I mean that in the best possible way.

A guitar, a drum (abridged) set, heavy distortion, some looping, and a man’s Id flying all over the place – that pretty much sums up Low Bow, the juggernaut of a performer in Richard Deorian. There is something strangely fascinating and downright captivating about Low Bow – from the blues-ravaged guitar, to Deorian’s Elvis-like snarl, even to the whole shoty set-up, and missed beats here or there.

In the end, it feels raw and genuine. I can definitely think of a few friends who would claim that they could easily pull this off, but they would be missing the point – this man has the balls to put it out there and give it all he’s got – and thus, has created something that’s singular. Check out some more over Low Bow over here.

A pretty great way to start my (hopefully) love affair with XP and perhaps inch my way more and more into the DIY-music scene in Beijing. Oh, and check out the latest Jingwier zine (and old ones too) – they’re a great window into the DIY and experimental music scene here in the Big Red. Click on the picture to upload it.

Note: Didn’t catch Arm Trick as I hobbled over to Temple to catch WHAI