The band always reminds people of youth, dreams and purity. American director Jim Jarmusch ( Jim Jarmusch ), who is famous for his "independent" movies, has also been a member of many bands such as The Del-Byzanteens, SQÜRL, and Bad Rabbit. He was an avid participant in the underground music scene in New York in the 1970s and 1980s, and once said in an interview: "Music provides me with something completely different from film production. Expressing myself through music is much more straightforward than making movies. ."
The charm of the band Live is adrenaline rushing, and the excitement that goes straight to the brain is far greater than listening through the screen. We have invited several domestic bands in this issue: Forgotten Club, Mosaic Band, BowAsWell, and watch them express their love and persistence in music in their own way.
As a young super band, Forgotten Club is not like a new band in the strict sense. Each of the four members has a very rich and excellent resume. Under the leadership of lead singer Liu Xin , they successfully brought back the youth and pureness of the band 20 years ago. And use works and actions to tell the audience that they don’t plan to stop here .
Liu Xin suddenly found out that he could eat spicy food recently.
In the days before her life, she was a person who didn't touch pepper. When going out for dinner, friends will also tell the waiter intimately not to put chili in all dishes. An accidental tasting made her discover that she had changed from "physically unacceptable peppers" to a state where she could try. This surprise made Liu Xin lament that people's acceptance range is actually very large. "Many times the limitation comes from the self's subconscious."
Whether it’s forming today’s oblivion club, exploring the style of the band, or facing many things in life,Liu Xin has always adhered to this "eating pepper" mentality-"Don't brainwash yourself and say:'I want to be like this, I can't accept that.' Eating spicy food is the same as life, don't limit yourself."
Tolerant, open, and unlimited is also the first impression Liu Xin gave me during the conversation. Perhaps it was the unrestrained gene in the bones of the Northeast. She told me that there was no need to follow the outline completely. Rather than conducting interviews at a glance, she hopes that the conversation between us will naturally answer one question after another like a friend chatting — Liu Xin is responsible for telling the scenes and behind the scenes about her and the Forgotten Club, and I only need to capture and record Next those stories.
Liu Xin, lead singer of The Forgotten Club
An album that has been late for twenty years
The first story Liu Xin told me was about the band's first album released by The Forgotten Club in June this year "Where Shall We Go". Many people know that the Forgotten Club is still from last year's variety show " Summer 2 ". On the stage of this variety show, lead singer Liu Xin, guitarist Su Hongliang, drummer Dawei and bassist Daniel used Grunge style music to conquer many fans on the scene and behind the screen.
Although that was the band's first public appearance. But in fact, the formation of the Forgotten Club is already in 2017. Four old friends who have known each other for nearly two decades regained their idea of forming a band with each other. However, due to contract restrictions at that time, the Forgotten Club could only publish works in Liu Xin's personal name. In her personal period, the release of the three rock singles "The Lonely Revelry", "Ferris Wheel" and "Feed", and the two trailers of "BIGGEST PART" and "MAKE SOME NOISE" in "Band Summer 2" After the performance of the song, this super band (Superband, a band composed of members who have made achievements and reputations in their respective fields) finally released their first album in June this year.
When you first listen to "Where Shall We Go", you will find that this is actually a rather "old" album. The rough guitar bass in the background is matched with her own slightly neutral and hoarse voice, which instantly brings people back to the days when Grunge was popular all over the world in the 1990s. This also brings out the second feeling of "Where Shall We Go"-personalization. Grunge, a style that prevailed in the 1990s, was originally a rock memory of the band's four-member teenage years.
For Liu Xin personally, choosing the grunge style as the keynote of the band's first album is a way to adjust his emotions on the one hand. "I thought about it very clearly before I became a band. I always hope that music is an emotional output for myself and is the way I communicate with the world." When asked if I would worry about Grunge and the present When there is a certain sense of distance between music fans, she explained. Compared to expressing herself in words, she is better at facing reality in music. This preference for expression is partly due to childhood experience. The parents who do business are often not around, which makes her very afraid of losing people around her. This kind of serious insecurity makes it difficult for her to confide her true inner thoughts in words. "So music is a way for me to self-regulate." She said, "I hope that through music, my mentality can be healthier, and I can face the people and things around me more bravely." This kind of memory comes from the memory of teenagers. The style gave her the power to face the truth.
Liu Xin, lead singer of Forgotten Club
This kind of intuitive personal emotion is not only in the music style and content expression, but also in the visual. If you look closely at the cover of "Where Shall We Go", the pink leopard pattern in the background is actually hand-drawn by the band-although travel is restricted during the epidemic and it is impossible to take promotional photos as a last resort, it is also very good. Pass the kind of youth complex. "I have liked animal patterns since I was a child. (I used pink leopard print for the cover) I want to take out some of the things in my previous memories, so that I have a feeling of completely returning to the state of the year."
Liu Xin hopes to be there Transformation in the eyes of the public,It's back to the state it was 20 years ago. ""Where Shall We Go" is an album that is twenty years late for me."
In addition to the expression of personal emotions, she also incorporated her thinking during the epidemic into the album. Like the song "Where Shall We Go" on the same list at the beginning of the album is a reflection on the damage she caused to humans during the epidemic isolation. In the song, she asked "Where shall we go?" over and over again, and filled the lyrics with all kinds of shocking intentions, and then used a playful tone to remind the audience that such behavior would eventually hurt herself. Another song "Somebody You Never Know" turns the perspective to the selfless medical staff and volunteers during the epidemic. These people, whom we may never know the name for our entire lives, became our most powerful guardians at that time.
As for the song that impressed her the most, Liu Xin jokingly said: "Every song is very impressive. After all, I wrote it up late at night."
Pure Forgotten Club
Liu The second story Xin tells is about the Forgotten Club band itself.
If "Where Shall We Go" is an album created in the state 20 years ago, then the super band of Forgotten Club will not be the same band 20 years ago.
"The band I made twenty years ago was disbanded because I went to Shenyang to study." She began to recall, "The other reason was that I was not good at creating at that time." Her parents were both soldiers. The family environment does not have many creative advantages. Although she knew a group of people who played rock and roll in Harbin because of learning guitar, but in general, the number was not that many. In this environment, her creative talents have not been well developed. It was precisely because of the lack of self-creation and self-confidence that she felt that she did not have the conditions to be the master of the band.
When she regained her dream of a band at this age, everything became much purer for her. "It's like the utopia of my childhood dreams."
For a new band without any experience, band members must not only consider creation, but also consider the improvement of their own style, the proficiency of instrument expression, and most importantly, the band's revenue and expenditure." At this age, we basically don’t have to worry about economic issues. . "Liu Xin said, "After all, in addition to the band, everyone has their own business: I have been in the pop circle for so many years and have accumulated a certain amount; our guitarist Su Hongliang has his own music company; Dawei has always As a drummer, I have a lot of performances. Although in the eyes of outsiders, we are in an old age and a small age. But I think it is at this age that we can regard the Forgotten Club as a place to vent our emotions and make each other feel comfortable. "
This "advantage" also allows the band itself to spend more time purely outputting what they want to express, first have precipitation and then consider the issue of commercial value.
Don't be bound by rules_ strong4strong
The third story, short but equally interesting, is about the future of the Forgotten Club.
Although the Forgotten Club begins with memories, Liu Xin does not want his band to be fixed on Grunge.
"After all, this era is progressing, and I don't want the Forgotten Club to just stay in memory.
Speaking of this, she shared her experience of "eating peppers". For her, these memories are a way to cut into the band at the moment, and are the "not spicy" in her memory. But the future will be various. Her style is pepper, waiting for her to explore more possibilities. "Life is like this, don't be constrained by the so-called restrictions imposed by the outside world. Instead, you should follow your own heart and do it bravely and boldly when you want to, and don't care about the opinions of others. For the Forgotten Club, this future may be the inspiration for the Blues style brought by the relaxed state during a vacation. ”
As for the near future,The repeated epidemics made it impossible for the Forgotten Club to completely let go of the tour. Last year's first round of tour was first postponed and then cancelled due to the epidemic. This year, some cities missed offline for the same reason.
This is a pity for her: "As the band’s first album and first tour, in fact, I really hope that everyone can listen to the scene up close. I also hope that the Forgotten Club can interact with the recording The room is in a completely different state to present this album. "Although it is regrettable, safety is the first priority. As for the end of the epidemic, Liu Xin is ready to realize a wish he has always wanted to achieve-to go to the beach with the remaining three partners to take a vacation and create. "There are a lot of things I want to do, but it's really better to stay at home as much as possible during this time." But as expressed in the work, the Forgotten Club will not be trapped by the current restrictions. They will definitely find new breakthroughs in their own way, and use this to create works that belong only to them.
On the eve of the start of the new tour "Macros", mosaic band shared with us the image of the "Electrification 2.0" version of the band, the feelings of the music scene in Chengdu, and their thoughts during the epidemic.
The repeated epidemics have affected the creation and life of many musicians, and Mosaic Band is no exception.
As they were preparing for their new tour in 2021, Macross, an epidemic broke out in Guangzhou. As a result, the planned Guangzhou station was forced to cancel. Next is Nanjing Station. When I turned on the computer to reorganize our conversation, I saw on Weibo that the performances at Chongqing Station and Suzhou Station were also forced to reschedule due to the requirements of epidemic prevention and control. "I hope that this matter will pass quickly, although it may take a long time." Xia Ying said helplessly in the face of repeated epidemics.
But despite this, the mosaic did not stop creating at the worst of the epidemic last year. "Excellence made a lot of new things during that time and sent them to everyone. Although there is no way to rehearse together offline, they are accumulating in private." For Xia Ying and other members, although online communication is definitely There is a difference between face-to-face communication, but in general "feel okay."
And this time, on the eve of the Macross tour, they chatted with me about new tours, new discoveries and new Chengdu.
Chocolate and Bomber
In 1977, Giorgio Moroder, the father of Italo Disco, and Donna Summer, the queen of disco, released a single "I Feel Love" that changed the course of electronic music. In disco music at that time, although the synthesizer , which marked the electrification, has become a feature in the melody. But the general of the song is still controlled by the gorgeous and exaggerated orchestral soundtrack and the finely rhythmic funk rhythm.
And "I Feel Love" is not like other gorgeous to death disco music, it enters the public's field of vision with an all-round upgrade: all orchestras are replaced by high-powered synthesizers, all The elements that are full of temperature have turned into icy and advancing sound effects. In the studio, the melody has been arranged long ago, and the only thing recorded with Donna Summer’s voice is the broken drum beats in the background. Romantic feelings are no longer the intuitive feeling that music gives people, it is more like a microcosm of grand issues such as the universe and the future. So far, Giorgio Moroder and Donna Summer, who have cooperated many times, have completed the further electrification of their own and the entire popular music.
This attempt not only inspired the birth of schools such as Hi-RNG and Techno that emphasize high energy and industrial sense, but also added a touch of color to the fascinating era that was shining with golden light at that time. After that, Italo Disco, which continued to grow and develop, also began to express its vision for the future with music on the basis of such a different color. The musician puts himself in a space scene, neon lights and metal costumes interact with each other, and classical music is deconstructed by a synthesizer. Created a virtual city that belongs to the past, the present and the future at the same time.
And now Mosaic bands are doing the same with their own style. When we were interviewing, they were rehearsing before the debut of their new tour "Macros" in a rehearsal room in Shanghai. And just through the trailer they released on the band's Weibo, I have already felt their intention to further "cold" and "energetic" their music. The previous member Zhuoyue described the music of Mosaic as "it can be chocolate or bomber". During the interview, he added: "Like the single "Love Light" released this year is chocolate like "Neon Sweetheart", but this time you will feel the bomber side at the scene of Macross. For example, before In the promotional video, the song in it is called "Rider Rider", which is actually our bomber."
This metaphor is very interesting and vivid, such as "Neon Sweetheart" and "Love Song 2016" which are highly sung. The single is their chocolate. Under their "ambiguous rock" concept, the synthesizer is like a neon light dotted with atmosphere at night, conveying a hazy romance. Just like what they said, the new single "Love Light" released this year is also chocolate. It's just not that "mellow", the melody like City-Pop and Nu-Disco brings fresh and bright colors to the whole song, and the still ambiguous lyrics seem to be made for summer. But this is not to say that they have only had a chocolate moment. The synthesizer that is constantly advancing in "Back to the Future" is the ammunition thrown by their bombers.
Correspondingly, the concept of "Electrification 2.0" proposed by "Macros" is not their first attempt. In June 2019, they had already performed a special performance of "Back to the Future Synth Live" in Beijing. With the name of the song and the concept behind it, the synthesizer's attributes beyond time and space are amplified. "It's just that we have made it into a larger venue for performance." For Xia Ying, they are not creating an experience that has never been tried before. Instead, it amplifies the synthesizer elements rooted in the band's genes and brings the audience the most direct experience offline in the form of a tour.
Then "Macros" officially met with the audience,Those visual and lighting installations full of retro-futurism immediately became the dazzling focus of the performance. In order to complete this Synth Live, they also started with the synthesizer, incorporating synthesizers of different models and ages into the arrangement of the live tracks. In addition to the synthesizer music that was close to the 1980s in form, they also incorporated more content from that era. The sound of low-fidelity effect and the cold electronic pulse make people feel like they are on the underground dance floor. During the performance, they chose to cover Kraftwerk's classic "The Model" to enhance the atmosphere of the overall space-time tunnel. The whole performance was also naturally divided into three parts, "Future-Labyrinth-Retro" following the arrangement of the music. The three time and space are intertwined to complete such a performance that spans time and space.
When I asked whether their new album would be a bomber or chocolate, Xia Ying did not give me a specific answer. "It will definitely be different from the previous two." He said, "It will definitely be boring to keep repeating the previous things. We are not such a peaceful band, we will not always be in the same style." Maybe we can. See the third type of mosaic besides Chocolate and Bomber.
Before starting this article, you may wish to open the homepages of major music streaming platforms. Then you can find that words such as "healing", "comfort", "relaxation" and "decompression" always occupy some A section that you can’t ignore-if you feel good, just click on one and continue to look down while listening.
If the word "band" is mentioned in the 1980s and 1990s and even now, many people will think of "rebellion", "passion", and "impact"-these are also the epitome of domestic independent music . ; So, do those bands that try to make "comfort" and "relax" music represent a new trend?
is inseparable from the band’s producer
In 2019, three slightly young youths stood on the stage of Beijing Candy Live, preparing to perform.Nearly a thousand people stood waiting in the audience-if not counting the previous performance in fRUITYSPACE, which was more like a small bar, then this would be BowAsWell's first official performance.
The name often reflects a person's personality-although almost all of them are taken by their parents. It sounds mysterious, but it is not unreasonable to think carefully: a person's character is inseparable from his growth, let alone, in order to better integrate into the society, our behavior often does not exceed others' expectations. This kind of psychological suggestion was retained by Yichi in his music project. "BowAsWell" is a literal translation of the word "chi" into "bow" and "also" in English.
BowAsWell's main brain Zhang Yichi
The first official performance for the iconic band BADBADNOTGOOD as a warm-up guest, made BowAsWell's main brain Zhang Yichi insomnia for several days. After all, this is just the beginning of his music project BowAsWell.
set the time back for another ten years. In 2009, the Autobots of " Transformers 2 " occupied the topic of teenagers, and Green Day, which contributed to the film episode "21 Gun". At a family gathering, cousin Zhang Yichi excitedly rushed into the room to turn on the computer, yelled to relax, and shared Green Day with the latter: "You have to listen, this band is special!"
Exciting The melody, vocals, and the always-present distortion of the guitar immediately captured a young heart. He suddenly changed from the ignorant boy who listened to Jay Chou hits on the radio to plunge into punk rock_ span3span A passionate youth in the world who doesn't look back.
You might think that the relaxation after this will definitely walk the old road along countless bands—listen to songs, form bands, perform, write songs, post works—and walk down like a gourd, but one Chi "went off", of course he formed a band, but after several years of running the band, he gradually realized that the band was more like a process of "compromising with each other".
"In the beginning I made my own songs,Later I felt that I must form a band to play music, so I formed a band. Later, I gradually discovered that the accuracy of the band's music could not meet my expectations. To me, the band is more like presenting an exhibition. For example, there are four people, each of whom contributes their talents or ideas in a certain area, and then one person will coordinate everything... You rarely see that there are The combination of paintings-'painting team', right? "Yichi said with a big smile," and I prefer to use painting to make music. "
With this thought, Yi Chi didn't follow the old road that countless predecessors had walked. Instead, he left the band and started writing alone again. "Later I learned that something like Tame Impala sounds very musical. Artists, in fact, are all personal music projects, but they are presented in the form of a band during the performance. "Yi Chi said.
In the studio, Yi Chi has created a lot of demos alone, and of course, there is also the first album "Neon Donuts" which was released last year and was highly acclaimed. Apart from making his own music, Yi Chi had I tried to perform alone, "When I was just in college, a classmate who was doing electronic music asked me to make a performance platter. He made a bunch of drum machines, , and MIDI equipment. I’m in the band, and I’ll do it alone," Yi Chi said with a smile, "Unfortunately, after that performance, I felt a failure, and the overall effect was very poor, because my work had elements such as drums and bass in the production. Without presenting them on the spot, the effect will be greatly reduced. ”
This is a phenomenon: independent producers need bands to present their own music live, and most of these band members are fixed. So next time, when you see a producer live as a whole band, please Don't be surprised, let alone why there is only one person in the promotional photo of a certain "band".
BowAsWell's current members are not only Yi Chi, but also Yi Chi, the guitarist Liu Zifeng, who has been partnering since high school until now, and is also the bassist of Sleeping Dogs. Bassist A Bing (Yichi occasionally acts as the keyboard player of Sleeping Dogs), drummer Gokiel recommended by electronic musician wenliang.
A meaningful "feeling of freedom"
"feeling of freedom" "It is by no means a special case of relaxation.In today's pursuit of the spiritual world and in the new context of the information age, such a sense of "dissociation" is full of meaning.
Speaking of comfortable and relaxing music, some people would think of City-Pop (urban pop), Ambient ( ambient music ) and other music that was fully developed in Japan in the 1970s and 1980s. At that time, Japanese companies and individuals under the economic boom-despite the bubble economy-all wanted to pursue a higher-quality lifestyle after "food and clothing". You can start from the name City-Pop (city pop). Spy on one or two: comfortable and relaxing music with the theme of urban nightlife and summer beach vacation.
Although these musics were forgotten for a while after the bubble economy burst, with the development of the global economy, these musics were picked up again by people, and re-creation based on them was also set off around 2010. The "vapor wave" boom. It is easy to see some inevitable links between economic prosperity and comfortable music-but it brings more than just relaxation.
I studied hard for more than ten years without worrying about food and clothing, and finally got a postgraduate degree in library science, but found that I couldn’t find a suitable job, so I could only go home to "gnaw the old" and try to create something brisk and full The music of hope dissolves life-this is the personal experience of Washed Out, one of the representative artists of Chillwave (cold wave) style, and it is the common epitome of the millennial generation of young people: smooth sailing through the teenage years and rushing to the world with hope , But he was severely knocked sap by reality at the age of rebellion.
"Actually, I did the same. Since I was young, I didn't need to make money for my family, and I didn't have great pressure in life. So I don't reject the feeling of'abundance' in my work. Of course I will not take the initiative to do this. But if someone says so, I will accept it," he paused, and continued, "For me, this kind of music is the world music of the new era. Whether you go to Europe, the Middle East or Africa, you will Hearing this kind of music, it makes me feel a connection with the world. Compared to music that pours power outward, its energy is inward, like a faint light."
Relaxed and comfortable In the tune,The faint sympathy and the sad "sense of freedom" are hidden. Unlike rock and , punk has such a strong "text output", but it can slightly arouse your emotions without occupying your thoughts. It is like a glass of delicious juice in an air-conditioned room in midsummer. Suitable.
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