C!Talk’s You & Me: Culture Jam for Dandelion School

“C!Talk is an intiative of a global organization called World Culture Open and is a series of culture-related performances held in the Beijing MOMA Cinematheque every two months.”

This Saturday, May 19th will see the first of a four-part event series by C!Talk Beijing to raise cultural awareness through performances by local artists and 100% of the ticket sales will go to The Dandelion School of Beijing to provide a chance for underprivileged children to also attend fun theatrical events.

“C!Talk thrives to create an open stage where people can enjoy their rights to arts. The May 19th show will deliver an unforgettably engaging, inspiring, and thoroughly entertaining experience to the Beijing community.” – Janet Kang, organizer for C!Talk Events

Their first event will feature international artists and performers showing their talents around the theme : You & Me.

Performers include Beijing’s beloved and very hilarious Beijing Improv Group along with a Argentinian Tango and talented multicultural musician Rani Geroult.

C!Talk’s Performing Artists:

• Argentinian Tango by Annie Cheung and Mark Jonikas - Annie Cheng is an independent modern dancer & choreographer, Argentine tango instructor and performing arts organizer. Both Annie and her dance partner Mark Jonikas will take you through the concept and demonstration of two sorts of magnetisms in Tango. 

• Rani Geroult - Born in India and raised in France, Rani Geroult has a personal background that binds her to both Western and Eastern cultures. From the self taught musician playing in the streets of Sanary-sur-Mer in France to becoming an international vocal artist in Beijing, Rani has crossed a trajectory and developed a different voice and style taking her to places, and charming international audiences all over the world.  A multicultural and multitalented musician, Rani will perform several improvisational pieces.

• Beijing Improv - Beijing Improv is China’s oldest and largest Improvised Theater organization, produced widely acclaimed monthly comedy shows and winning raving reviews. They will perform several interactive comedy skits created based on the theme “you and me”

• The Buu Club – Created in 2010 by a group of young musicians fascinated with aboriginal music, they aspire to promote freedom, happiness, tolerance, and a natural lifestyle. For this event, they will perform a “conversation” between a Djembe and a Darbuka (Middle Eastern drum). 

“Perhaps the most exciting part of the show is the Buu Club’s  ’Cultural Jam’ performance that invites two different genres of cultures to perform improvisational and interactive ‘jamming,’ and this time we will feature two different types of drums – Djembe and Darbuka.” – Janet Kang

Event tickets are only RMB 30 per person but keep in mind that 100% of ticket sales will be donated to the Dandelion School of Beijing.

To read more about Annie Cheung and Rani Geroult’s performances for C!Talk’s “You & Me” event this Saturday, May 19, check out Global Times article here.

Event Details:

• Date: Saturday, May 19, 2012

• Time: 16:00-17:30

• Location: Beijing MOMA Cinematheque 当代MOMA 百老汇电影中心

• Address: North area of Dongzhimen MOMA, 1 Xiangheyuan Lu, Chaoyang district  朝阳区东直门香河园路1号, 万国城北区（二环路东北角）

• Website: Click here

About C!Talk:

C!TALK is about creative talent sharing. C!TALKs provide with a stage where such cultural wisdom and stories are shared with a larger public. Invited artists from diverse cultural genres will perform on stage and talk with the audiences to share their wisdom, experiences and the stories of tears and laughs.

“1 event ticket per child.”  - Many of us have the memory of heartfelt sensation from being to events such as ballet, musical, orchestra performances or plays. Such sentiment seeds joy and even hope to many people. C!TALKs ask audience to purchase tickets (RMB 30), but 100% of the profit, in turn, are used to support event tickets for children of less privileged, those who don’t have much access to the live theatrical events.

Organized in series bimonthly, each C!TALK session is created by collaboration among diverse groups of people from a local community. It raises awareness of community spirit among the participating artists, organizers, sponsors, volunteers, audiences, and the recipients of donations alike.

The program is designed as a part of ‘creative sharing’ initiative of the World Culture Open, a global network organization which strives to provide open and creative intercultural platform for people to engage, enjoy, embrace and be enriched together, sharing and respecting each other’s cultural experiences and knowledge, as well as dreams and ideas.

Friendly Fires Performs at China Music Valley Festival

The concert I can’t wait to witness: Friendly Fires

After the music festival overload over the 3-day May holiday (four festivals taking place simultaneously across three days is excessive), you might have thought it was all over but the best is yet to come!

In my previous LDS article covering all the music festivals taking place across the month: The Month of May is Music Festival Madness, I had briefly introduced China Music Valley Music Festival, but with all the other music festivals over and done with, you can now focus your attention on CMV who’s bringing 8 groups of international artists, 8 groups of Chinese artists, several electric and jazz artists and even some high-energy aerobics sessions by my favorite Swedish guy wearing bright pink shorts, Heyrobics.

These were the same guys who brought Avril Lavigne, Little Boots, Editors and KT Tunstall last year to Beijing for a rocking 2-day Music Festival.

China Music Valley Music Festival (May 18-20)

The full line-up is spread across three stages (one more stage than last year) with Brit-pop leading CMV with 6 out of the 8 international artists coming from the UK (coincidence that this is happening in this London Olympic Year?)

CMV’s International Artists:

• Legendary Scottish band: The Jesus and Mary Chain
• UK R&B diva who sold over 11 million records worldwide: Joss Stone
• The UK pop icon: Pixie Lott
• Top level European rock band from UK: White Lies
• The famous Scottish band: Glasvegas
• Electric rock band: Friendly Fires
• Fantasy rock band from NYC: School of Seven Bells
• Electric pop band from Finland: Husky Rescue

CMV’s Local Artists:

• Two of the biggest mainland China rock superstars: Xu Wei & Wang Feng
• Indie Rock Star from Taiwan: Mavis Fan & 100%
• Female Eason Chan from Hong Kong: Kay
• The most influencing indie DJ in mainland China: Youdai
• Beijing Brit-pop rock band: The SuperVC
• Electric Band: Nova Heart
• The New Generation Jazz Band: Li Gaoyang Jazz Tribe
• Chinese Princess Mermaid: Blanda Sun
• Beijing new band: G11
• Mainland Top DJ: DJ-A.M.U
• Beijing electric music producer: DJ Howie Lee

For those die-hard music festival goers, fans have the option of camping out there all weekend with the campsite opening up on Friday, May 18 and you can score 3-day tickets for only RMB 150 if you pre-pay before Wednesday, May 16 (regular price is RMB 480 for 3-day pass or RMB 580 if you pay at the door).  To purchase this steal of a deal, go to sendmetickets.com and they can even deliver tickets directly to you!

Camping spots are limited and it’s first come, first serve so act now if this is something you are interested in booking – just email the CMV Committee: cmvfestival@163.com (very official sign-up process).

If you are just interested in going up for with Saturday or Sunday, here’s the breakdown of performances per day with acts displaying backwards chronologically showing headliners first:

CMV Music Festival: Friday’s Line-Up

CMV Music Festival: Saturday’s Line-Up

CMV Music Festival: Sunday’s Line-Up

While the line-up is good both Saturday and Sunday, I’m biased towards Sunday when one of my all-time favorite bands Friendly Fires will be on the YUE stage from 8:40-9:40PM.

CMV Music Festival Details:

• Dates: Friday, May 18- Sunday, May 20, 2012

• Times: Friday from 8:30-11:30PM, Saturday and Sunday from 10AM – 11PM

• Tickets: Purchase a 3-Day Pass for only RMB 150 on sendmetickets.com (normally RMB 480 for pre-sale or RMB 580 at the door for 3-day pass or even 280RMB (per day pre-sale), 350RMB (per day at door)

• Location: Beijing Yuyang International Ski Resort

• Address: Click here for directions and Music Festival Bus Pass

Time Out’s Sunday Salon: Pipa Master Zhang Hongyan

This Sunday, The Bookworm and Time Out Magazine are teaming up to host internationally renowned pipa player Zhang Hongyan (章紅艷) from Zhejiang province as a part of this month’s Sunday Salons, an interactive lecture series that takes you “behind the music” of China.

“Zhang is known for blending Western and Chinese music, her commitment to music education and her refusal to take a “set fee”, receiving anywhere from 500RMB -100,000RMB per concert. For Zhang, it’s about the music, and musicians are there to serve.” 

One of the most technically difficult of China’s traditional instruments to master, the pipa requires “great stamina and flexible fingering”.

*Don’t forget to bring in this month’s copy of Time Out Beijing and entrance ticket is reduced to only RMB 20 (which also includes a free drink courtesy of The Bookworm)!

Event Details:

• Date: Sunday, May 13, 2012

• Time: 7:30PM

• Location: The Bookworm

• Address: Sanlitun Nanjie, 三里屯南街4号楼

• Tickets: 30RMB; 20RMB (if you bring in this month’s copy of Time Out Beijing)

About Zhang Hongyan:

Zhang Hongyan is a renowned pipa recitalist and educator, a professor at the Central Conservatory of Music, a supervisor on the Conservatory’s Master’s degree programme, an executive member of the All China Youth Federation and the Chinese Culture Promotion Society, and formerly a visiting scholar at Columbia University in the United States.

As an outstanding recitalist among the new generation of Chinese musicians, Zhang has garnered attention on the local and international music scene. She has built an extensive repertoire, and her playing exhibits a masterful combination of sheer virtuosity and musicality. She has given numerous solo recitals and touring performances throughout cities in mainland China.

In recent years, her collaboration with the Macao Orchestra has taken her to over twenty cities domestically, including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing, and also overseas to the United States, Germany, France, Italy, Austria, Poland, Korea, Singapore, and to Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao. Zhang has appeared onstage with the China National Symphony Orchestra, the China Philharmonic Orchestra, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Her performances have graced world-famous concert halls, such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, etc. In a bid to amalgamate Chinese and Western music for further development, Zhang experimented with different performing formats, such as pipa with a symphony orchestra, and eclectic ensembles of Chinese plucked-string instruments. She was the first instrumentalist to give a concerto performance with a Western symphony orchestra using a Chinese instrument.

Sunday Salon: Chu Yibing’s China Cello Philharmonic

This Sunday, The Bookworm and Time Out Magazine are teaming up to host one of the most influential cellists in the world, Chu Yibing and the China Cello Philharmonic (Chu and his group of 5 prodigy cellists) as part of this month’s feature Sunday Salons, an interactive lecture series that takes you “behind the music” of China.

“Chu Yibing began playing aged seven, studied in Paris aged seventeen and later became the principal cellist of the Basel Symphony Orchestra, Europe’s second highest-paid cello position. Today, as the Central Conservatory of Music’s Cello Department head, he leads China’s first and only permanent chamber ensemble, the China Cello Philharmonic.” - Time Out Beijing

Chu’s crazy talented group of six cellists regularly tour the world and they are the first Chinese chamber ensemble to play for Chinese President Hu Jintao and the US President Barack Obama.  

The chance to see this ensemble play within the intimate walls of The Bookworm is a very special privilege and a rare chance you won’t want to miss!

*Don’t forget to bring in this month’s copy of Time Out Beijing and entrance ticket is reduced to only RMB 20 (which also includes a free drink courtesy of The Bookworm)!

Event Details:

• Date: Sunday, April 29

• Time: 7:30PM

• Location: The Bookworm

• Address: Sanlitun Nanjie, 三里屯南街4号楼

• Tickets: 30RMB; 20RMB (if you bring in this month’s copy of Time Out Beijing)

China Cello Philharmonic Led by Chu Yibing (far right)

The Month of May is Music Festival Madness

 Music Festival Madness: Strawberry Festival 2011

Get ready for a month of pure music madness, which starts this weekend on Sunday, April 29.

It sucks for most of us who have to work on Saturday, but we are quickly rewarded with a 3-day holiday. Last year’s May holiday saw three music festivals: Strawberry, Midi and newcomer China Music Valley (CMV) which is where I rocked out to Little Boots, Editors, and KT Tunstall.  Click here for my LDS Summary of last year’s triple festival line-up.

This year is even more manic with 4 music festivals happening across the 3-day May holiday followed by CMV Music Festival on May 18 & 19th with big international headliners including one of my favorite bands, Friendly Fires.

Before I get ahead of myself, I’ll focus firstly on what’s most imminent: the upcoming festival line-up for this year’s May 2012 holiday in Beijing (Midi and Strawberry will both also take place in Shanghai).

LumDimSum Breakdown of May Holiday’s Music Festivals:

1. Strawberry Music Festival

The biggest of the four festivals, Strawberry Music Festival has a total of 8 stages, covers the biggest area and will most definitely attracts the biggest crowds. Created by Modern Sky (who will also be celebrating their 15th anniversary), Strawberry has the broadest range of music with the biggest international headliners with Italian twin brothers, Blonde Redhead, headlining as the indie favorite followed by Goose and Laura Jansen (US).

Strawberry Festival Headliners Blonde Redhead Perform on Day 1

Located the same spot as last year at Tongzhou Channel Park, there will be eight stages spread out including the main Strawberry Stage, a Love Stage (pop, alternative, reggae), a School of Rock Stage, a Planet Stage, an Overload Stage (metal) and an electronic stage.

Strawberry Main Stage

Highlights of Strawberry: Day 1: Hanggai, Re-Tros (重塑雕像的权利), Blonde Redhead (all three on main Strawberry stage) and Jeans Team (Planet Stage); Day 2: Goose and Queen Sea Big Shark (strawberry stage), General Elektrik and Tahiti 80 (Planet Stage), DJ Bite-Size Buddha and DJ Spooky (electronic stage); Day 3: Brain Failure, Carsick Cars, Laura Jansen (US), Xie TianXiao 谢天笑 (all on main Strawberry stage), Hedgehog (Love Stage), The On-Fires (AU), Fever Machine (US) and Pitchturner (DE) (all three on Planet Stage), and DJ Slide (electronic stage)

Here’s the 3-Day Strawberry Line-Up:

Day 1: Sunday, April 29

Strawberry Stage
13:30-14:10 Da Bang
14:30-15:10 Xi Ban (戏班)
15:30-16:10 Hanggai (杭盖)
16:30-17:10 Cao Fang (曹方)
17:30-18:30 Re-Tros (重塑雕像的权利)
19:00-20:00 Blonde Redhead (US)
20:30-21:30 New Pants (新裤子)

Love Stage
12:30-13:00 Twinkle Star
13:30-14:00 CNdY
14:30-15:10 Is and Ism（JP）
15:50-16:30 Waa Wei 魏如萱（TW）
17:10-17:50 Zhou Yunpeng（周云蓬）
18:30-19:10 Convenience Store（便利商店）
19:50-20:30 Reflector（反光镜）

Planet Stage
13:00-13:30 Streets Kill Strange Animals（街道杀死奇怪的动物）
14:00-14:30 Wang Shengnan（王胜男）
15:10-15:50 Killersoap（HK）
16:30-17:10 The Mystery Lights (US)
17:50-18:30 Arms and Legs (US)
19:10-19:50 Kulu （梁晓雪）
20:30-21:10 Jeans Team（DE）

Overload Stage
15:00-15:40 Tarot Saint（塔罗圣徒）
16:00-16:40 Nuclear Fusion G （核聚变G)
17:00-17:40 Bloody Climax（血腥高潮）
17:40-18:40 A.J.K (玉麟军 )
19:00-20:00 Voodoo Kungfu （零壹）
20:20-21:20 Tomahawk （战斧）

Electronic Stage
14:00-15:00 Jiongjiong
15:00-16:00 Nassdak (ES)
16:00-17:00 Pipesmokers (IT)
17:00-18:00 DJ Thome Tomato (US)
18:00-19:00 Elvis T (TW)
19:00-20:00 DJ Wengweng
20:00-21:30 Strip Steve (FR)

 Day 2: Monday, April 31

Strawberry Stage
13:30-14:10 Namo（南无）
14:30-15:10 No Fish (非鱼）
15:30-16:10 Perdel （逃跑计划）
16:30-17:10 Yiko (曾轶可)
17:30-18:30 Goose（BEL）
19:00-20:00 Zhang Chu（张楚）
20:30-21:30 Queen Sea Big Shark  (后海大鲨鱼)

Love Stage
12:30-13:00 Fuzzy Mood
13:30-14:00 Hogan (IRL)
14:30-15:10 AV Okubo (AV大久保 ）
15:50-16:30 A-BOYS
17:10-17:50 Shuang Zi Yu Ci （爽子与瓷）
18:30-19:10 熊宝贝（TW）
19:50-20:30 Second Hand Rose（二手玫瑰）

Planet Stage
13:00-13:30 Dúo De Guitarras Umbral (UY)
14:00-14:30 Trebunie-Tutki Family (PL)
15:10-15:50 EKEE & Zarahn（HK）
16:30-17:10 Party Horse（UK）
17:50-18:30 General Elektriks（FR）
19:10-19:50 旅行团
20:30-21:10 Tahiti 80（FR）

Overload Stage
15:00-15:40 Death Pack（死亡契约）
16:00-16:40 Dark Haze （霾晦）
17:00-17:40 Crack （裂缝）
17:40-18:40 Die From Sorrow （郁 ）
19:00-20:00 Hades（冥界）
20:20-21:20 Suffocated （窒息）

Electronic Stage
14:00-15:00 Peipei
15:00-16:00 Liz
16:00-17:00 Kai Ze
17:00-18:00 Boflex (US)
18:00-19:00 Bite-Size Buddha (US)
19:00-20:00 Do Hits
20:00-21:30 DJ Spooky (US)

 Day 3: Tuesday, May 1

Strawberry Stage
13:30-14:10 Candy Monster（糖果怪兽）
14:30-15:10 Steely Heart
15:30-16:10 Brain Failure （脑浊）
16:30-17:10 Carsick Cars
17:30-18:30 Crowd Lu 卢广仲（TW）
19:00-20:00 Laura Jansen（US）
20:30-21:30 XTX（谢天笑）

Love Stage
12:30-13:00 Wanderlust
13:30-14:00 Rat Pac (浩子)
14:30-15:10 Josie Ho (何超仪) & The Uni Boys（HK）
15:50-16:30 LURE （诱导社）
17:10-17:50 Ivana Wong 王菀之（HK）
18:30-19:10 Huang Yida 黄义达（SG）
19:50-20:30 Hedgehog (刺猬)

Planet Stage
13:00-13:30 CAssette
14:00-14:30 范世琪&张萱
15:10-15:50 The On Fires(AU)
16:30-17:10 The Fever Machine(US)
17:50-18:30 Tree Music (树）
19:10-19:50 Haya (乐团)
20:30-21:10 Pitchtuner（DE）

Overload Stage
15:00-15:40 Surprise
16:00-16:40 641
17:00-17:40 Four Five (肆伍)
17:40-18:40 Gear & Eraser (齿轮橡皮）
19:00-20:00 Twisted Machine （扭曲机器）
20:20-21:20 Liquid Oxygen (液氧罐头）

Electronic Stage
14:00-15:00 Mo Bass
15:00-16:00 Donky Tonk (UK)
16:00-17:00 Slide (UK)
17:00-18:00 Oshi (FR)
18:00-19:00 Microgram (IL)
19:00-20:00 Psytrance Pete (UK)
20:00-21:30 Djedjotonic (FR)

**Full Line-Up should include Acapella Stage and Campus Stage, click here for complete list.

Tickets: You can score presale tickets from ¥60/day via Piao.com.cn, Tel: 400-610-3721. Or, buy tickets at the door. RMB 100 per day or RMB 240 for 3 Day Pass.
Getting there: Take the Batong Subway Line to Tongzhou Beiyuan. There, you will find Modern Sky free shuttle buses, which depart every 20-30 minutes between 10am and 6pm. Return buses are available every 20 minutes from 6-10:30 pm with the last bus at 10:30pm. Alternatively, you can take a cab to Tongzhou Canal Park (通州运河公园) from the Tongzhou Beiyuan stop for about RMB30.

2. Midi Music Festival 2012

The oldest of the bunch, Midi Music Festival is in its 13th year and this year, they’ve moved from Haidian Park to The Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park off of Line 15 and nearby the airport. A legendary rock festival started by Midi School of Music, this festival has the most loyal following. Never have I seen to many punk rock kids with crazy mohawks in one location.

Wonder what’s with the profile of the man wearing a gas mask? It’s actually quite similar to the face mask I wear biking around Beijing and it’s calling attention to China’s growing environmental problem, particularly its poor air quality.

“The theme this year is ‘PM 2.5′ also called ‘lung particles’, refers to the particles less than or equal to 2.5 microns in diameter in the air. That’s less than 1/20 of a human hair! Although the earth’s atmospheric composition consists of very small quantities of PM2.5, it has an important affect on air quality and visibility. PM2.5 contains large amounts of toxic and hazardous substances, remain longer in the atmosphere allowing it to travel long distances and thus may have a greater impact on human health and air quality.  Avant-guarde artist Zhu Wei designed this year’s poster, describing a future scene where all people care about environment.” 

2012 Beijing Midi Music Festival will feature four stages – Tang, Song, Yuan and Qing (also the names of four of China’s long dynasties) with Tang and Song being the main stages and Yuan taking on as the electronic stage organized by the “Yen” electronic music label.  Qing is the stage dedicated to the winners of the Midi Campus Competition and weibo competition.

Here’s the 3-day Midi Festival Line-Up:

Day 1: Sunday, April 29

Tang Stage
12:00-13:00 VANS No Room For Rock Stars 纪录片首映记者会
13:30-14:00 Stolen 秘密行动
14:20-14:50 The Falling 堕天
15:10-15:40 待定
16:10-16:50 Zou You 左右
17:20-18:00 Useless ID（Isarel）
18:30-19:10 Twisted Machine 扭曲机器 
19:40-20:20 王勇独联体
20:50-21:30 Zhang Chu 张楚

Song Stage
13:00-13:30 Ego Fall 颠覆M
13:50-14:20 Wang Wei 王威
14:40-15:10 Logic Control 逻辑失控 
15:30-16:00 Slap 耳光
16:20-16:50 Goldcrush（Sweden）
17:10-17:40 No Fish 非鱼 
18:10-18:50 Suffocated 窒息 
19:20-20:00 La Souris Deglinguee (France)
20:30-21:10 Yaksa 夜叉

Clear Stage 
13:40-14:00 Summer Breeze
14:20-14:40 Perpetual Motion Machine 永动机
15:00-15:30 Pinocchio 匹诺槽
15:50-16:20 Why Lazy
16:40-17:10 The Power Powder 大粉
17:30-18:00 Shut up! Shut down!
18:20-18:50 Island Mood 岛屿心情
19:10-19:40 Lost 代凡与迷失乐队 
20:00-20:30 Dark Haze 霾晦
21:00-21:30 The Samans 萨满
22:00-22:30 R.W.F 瑞王坟

Yuan Stage
13:30-14:45 Liz
14:45-16:00 Jerryson
16:00-17:30 Ouyang
17:30-19:00 Blackie
19:00-20:30 Ben Huang
20:30-22:00 Mickey Zhang feat. Shao Feng 黄少峰

A Photo by Matthew Niederhauser for the New York Times

Day 2: Monday, April 30

Tang Stage
13:30-14:00 The Wheels
14:20-14:50 Larry’s Pizza
15:10-15:40 Monstereo（Norway）
16:10-16:50 Liquid Oxygen 液氧罐头
17:20-18:00 CMCB
18:30-19:10 Brain Failure 脑浊
19:40-20:20 Section 6 Hip Hop Crew
20:50-21:30 He Yong *(Mos Def has been cancelled)

Song Stage
13:00-13:30 Screaming Christ 惊叫基督
13:50-14:20 56 Degrees 56度
14:40-15:10 Skyscraper 摩天楼
15:30-16:00 Little Fish（UK）
16:20-16:50 Iron Kite 铁风筝
17:10-17:40 Hao Yun 郝云
18:10-18:50 Backyard Surgeons（Australia）
19:20-20:00 Voodoo Kungfu 零壹
20:30-21:10 Muma & Third Party 木玛&Third Party

Clear Stage 
13:00-13:20 Angel Monoplane 单翼天使
13:40-14:00 Los Crasher
14:20-14:40 Upper Class 上层社会
15:00-15:30 Surprise 意外惊喜
15:50-16:20 魇
16:40-17:10 Jia Huizhen 贾慧真
17:30-18:00 Residence A A公馆
18:20-18:50 Christmas
19:10-19:40 Hell City
20:00-20:30 Dagon Power 大红袍
21:00-21:30 Billow’s Fairy Tale 波澜童话
22:00-22:30 Zuo Bin (Z Brock) 左斌

Yuan Stage
13:30-14:45 DJ Gary
14:45-16:00 Harry Ho
16:00-17:30 LYDNB
17:30-19:00 Eddie Lv
19:00-20:30 DJ Usami
20:30-22:00 Dio

Day 3: Tuesday, May 1

Tang Stage
13:30-14:00 Multi-Ego 猫踢狗
14:20-14:50 Tookoo
15:10-15:40 Blackhead 黑撒
16:10-16:50 Frosty Eve 霜冻前夜
17:20-18:00 Nasser（France）
18:30-19:10 Subs
19:40-20:20 Good 4 Nothing（Japan）
20:50-21:30 Miserable Faith 痛仰

Song Stage
13:00-13:30 S.A.W 锯
13:50-14:20 Raging Mob
14:40-15:10 Arcane Saints（Australia）
15:30-16:00 Yiu 耀 
16:20-16:50 A.J.K 玉麟军
17:10-17:40 Misandao 蜜三刀
18:10-18:50 The Ordeal（Germany）
19:20-20:00 Perdel 逃跑计划
20:30-21:10 F.I.S (Fall in Sex) 秋天的虫子

Clear Stage 
13:00-13:20 Jacky Danny
13:40-14:00 Gemini 双子座
14:20-14:40 Androsace 点地梅
15:00-15:30 Saving Molly 拯救茉莉
15:50-16:20 Twinkle Star 闪星
16:40-17:10 The Amazing Insurance Salesmen 保险超人
17:30-18:00 NewTank 
18:20-18:50 树与颜色
19:10-19:40 The Lifeless 
20:00-20:30 Trouble Maker 捣蛋鬼
21:00-21:30 Norcelement 天行健
22:00-22:30 Five Point Zero 永恒之翼

Yuan Stage
13:30-14:45 自然
14:45-16:00 X Lee
16:00-17:30 Huangweiwei
17:30-19:00 Zhiqi
19:00-20:30 Jerry K
20:30-22:00 Yang Bing

Tickets: RMB 100 per day pre-sale; RMB 120 per day at entrance; RMB 240 for a 3-day pass

How to Get there: The Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park off of Line 15 and nearby the airport.

3. Ditan Folk Festival

This will be the most chilled-out option for those looking for a more relaxed environment to spend their May holiday. Unlike the other festivals, this one is conveniently located in the city, you can bring whatever food and booze you want for an all-day picnic sitting out in a lovely park soaking up some sun (but also plenty of shaded areas for those who burn easily).

Unlike the other festivals, Ditan Folk Festival only features one stage playing folk rock throughout the two-day festival (April 30-May 1) which means don’t have to pick up and move from stage to stage and you can literally just park yourselves in one spot and set-up an all-day picnic.

Ditan Folk Festival

Set-Up your All-Day Picnic at Ditan Folk Festival

Started four years ago, Ditan Folk Festival will be hosting international acts and China’s biggest folk acts, with their line-up including Shanren, Xiao He, Dolan, Buyi, Lidong, Zhang Si’an, Randy Able Stable and Mama Funker.

Shanren 山人 Folk Band

Here’s the 2-Day Line-Up:

1st Day: Monday, April 31st

Time: 2:30 pm to 9:00 pm

Song Dongye 宋冬野 
Ma Di (Sesame Oil Leaves) 马頔 
Mirror 镜子 
Zhao Lei 赵雷 
Dreamer 白若溪 
纬青 (Taiwan) & LAG Orchestra 
Randy Abel Stable (USA)
Polad&David (Iran)
Dolan 都兰 
Xiao He 小河 
Zhang Sian （France）
SoundScape（Canada, France, Iran)
Shanren 山人 

2nd Day: Tuesday, May 1st

Time: 2:30 pm to 9:00 pm

The Power Powder 大粉 
Bloody Woods
Wu Siyao (April) 吴思瑶 
Mama Funker (Brazil)
Li Dong 立東 
叶尔波利 (Yerboli) & 文锋 & 次仁央吉
Nancy J Brown (UK)
Afrokoko Roots（Africa）
Hoochie Coochie Gentlemen 浪荡绅士 
Zhang Quan 张佺 
Buyi 布衣 
Traveler 旅行者

Tickets: RMB 60 per day pre-sale; RMB 80 per day at entrance; RMB 50 for students, RMB 120 for 2-day pass

How to Get there: Ditan Park (地坛公园); take subway line 2 to Lama Temple or Andingmen station.

4. MMAX Chaoyang International Pop Music Festival

Very little information is out there regarding this fourth festival and maybe that’s partly because this is their first year entering the “Music Festival Madness” and maybe because there is also quite a lot of overlap between this one and the others - Queen Sea Big Shark, Hedgehog, Carsick Cars, Hanggai, New Pants and a few of their DJ’s.

Here’s the MMAX 3-Day Line-Up:

Day 1: Sunday, April 29

14:30—15:10 GALA
15:30—16:10 Hedgehog 刺猬
16:30—17:20 Long Shen Dao 龙神道
17:40—18:20 Faith Yang 杨乃文
18:50—19:50 Queen Sea Big Shark 后海大鲨鱼
20:20—21:30 Yu Quan 羽泉

16:00-17:00 Guzz
17:00-18:00 DJ Monk
18:00-19:00 HBD
19:00-20:00 Sulumi
20:00-21:00 Lin Feng

Day 2: Monday, April 30

14:30—15:10 Carsick Cars
15:30—16:10 Hanggia 杭盖
16:30—17:20 Chusheng Chen 陈楚生
17:40—18:20 Zhang Xuan 张悬
18:50—19:50 Miserable Faith 痛仰
20:20—21:30 Pu Shu 朴树

16:00-17:00 Ceezy
17:00-18:00 Cavia
18:00-19:00 Ssoso
19:00-20:00 A.M.U
20:00-21:00 Ben Huang

Day 3: Tuesday, May 1

14:30—15:10 The Life Journey 旅行团
15:30—16:10 Tan Weiwei 谭维维
16:30—17:20 Peng Tan 彭坦
17:40—18:20 Hao Yun 郝云
18:50—19:50 New Pants 新裤子
20:20—21:30 Anthony Wang 黄耀明

16:00-17:00 Sig
17:00-18:00 Billy Starman
18:00-19:00 Howie Lee
19:00-20:00 Terry Tu
20:00-21:00 Elvis T

Tickets: RMB 60 per day pre-sale; RMB 80 per day at entrance; RMB 120 2-day pass

Pre-sale Online: http://www.damai.cn/ticket_35914.html

How to Get There: Chaoyang Sports Centre

• Take subway line 2 to Dongsishitiao, walk to Dongsi Qiao Dong and take the 758 to Pingfang Xikou. You can also just take a cab to Chaoyang Tiyu Zhongxin (朝阳体育中心) at Yaojiayuan Lu (姚家园路).

…But the music festival I’m most excited about is the China Music Valley Festival, which takes place out in Pinggu in a couple weeks from May 18-20 featuring big, BIG bands like Friendly Fires, Joss Stone and Jesus and Mary Chain.

Click here for CMV’s full line-up.

More info to come soon!

LDS Hook-Up: The Crunk Master Comes to Spark

Fun fact: American rapper and entertainer Lil Jon‘s real name is Jonathan Smith.

Who would guess that this guy pictured above wearing sunglasses with long dreads and a crown on his head while holding a bling’d out goblet in one hand and super thick gold chain reading “cRuNk AiN’t DeAd” has such a proper, run-of-the-mill name?

Fun fact #2: Lil Jon is coming to China for the first time and playing at Spark.

Thanks to the Street Hustle Promotions Team, they are the guys who are making this happen and lucky for you, they love LumDimSum and on behalf of Lil Jon, they are putting out a beacon to get Spark packed out with a ton of girls and they’ve asked me to put the word out.

Here is a short video of Lil Jon saying “你好” to Beijingers with clips of his live performances on Youku.com:

I love how Lil Jon is being promoted here -

“Exuberant, loud-mouthed, and regularly adorned with a bejeweled pimp chalice at hand, Lil Jon was the charismatic figurehead of the Dirty South crunk movement that arose from the Atlanta area around the turn of the century. Now a entrepreneur, actor, and still the greatest entertainer in the world, Lil Jon ends his China tour in Beijing.” - The Street Hustle Promotions Team

There is no doubt this entertainer is ambitious with his career as an disc jockey turned rapper, music producer, entrepreneur and even actor?  I’m not sure how convinced I am of his acting skills, but he’s got the personality that’s won him international fame as an entertainer and he knows it -

“My personality has taken me further then music could have taken me alone.”

- Lil Jon in his interview with theBeijinger’s Jonathan White

A few more great excerpts from theBeijinger.com‘s interview with Lil Jon -

theBeijinger: How Crunk are you on a scale of one to “too crunk”?

Lil Jon: The most crunk! How could you ask me a question like that? Who could be more crunk than the crunk master?

theBeijinger: Who’s the better Lil Jon – is it you or the fellow from Robin Hood? 

Lil Jon: Ha ha ha! The fellow from Robin Hood never made it to Beijing, so based on that I think I am the one and only Lil Jon.

For the full interview, click here.

LDS HOOK-UP

Thanks to Street Hustle Promotions, a lucky LDS reader will get the chance to win a pair of tickets to see Lil Jon live!

For your chance to win 2 FREE TICKETS to the Lil Jon Concert on Sunday, April 22, answer the following question in the comment section:

If you could take a shot with Lil Jon, what liquor would you ask him to pour you?  

To answer, click here and scroll down to comment section.  Be sure to leave your email address so I contact the winner directly!

Deadline is Wednesday, April 18 at 12PM Noon.

Pre-Sale Tickets are RMB 50 for ladies, RMB 200 for gents. At the door, it’s RMB 100 for ladies or RMB 300 for men.

Sorry guys, Lil Jon is clearly sexist and the obvious price difference in gender is blatantly ensuring there will be way more hot chicks than dudes on his dance floor so you’ll have to suck it up and pay more than double to get in, but that also means there will be that many more girls for you to check out.  No pain, no gain?

Official ticket booking websites: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com or damai.cn

Event Details:

• Date: Sunday, April 22, 2012

• Time: 10:00PM

• Location: Spark Nightclub

• Address: B108, The Place, 9 Guanghua Lu, 光华路9号世贸天阶B108

• Tickets: RMB 100 for ladies and RMB 300 for gents; Pre-sale: RMB 50 for ladies & RMB 100 for men

Buy Tickets: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com or damai.cn

Save the Date: 

Grand Master Flash is coming to Beijing the week after Lil Jon on April 28 at Yugongyishan.

Early bird tickets (first 200) RMB 150, Pre-sale is RMB 200, Door is RMB 300. 

Go to sendmetickets.com to get your early bird tickets!

Party for the Awesome Miao: Lantern Fundraiser Party

All the people in the world are believed to be connected by six degrees of separation.  I believe the degree of separation in Beijing is as small as one and 99% of the time, that link is Miao.

Miao Wong is Beijing’s party princess. She is the heart and spirit behind what drives Acupuncture Records, Lantern, and Intro, and the woman who brings non-stop energy to Beijing’s electronic scene.

Without her even knowing it, Beijing’s connectors (have you read Malcolm Gladwell’s “The Tipping Point“?) have huddled together to rally the broader Beijing community to come out and show their support for Miao by throwing a massive party to help her fundraise both her surgery and speedy recovery.

Thanks to one of Beijing’s biggest connectors, Svante Jerling, co-founder of exclusive social networking site P1.cn, he’s helped to lock-in Beijing’s favorite DJ’s (who have all volunteered both their talent and time) to play together for one night at Lantern. Smashing line-up includes DJ Patrick Yu, Elvis T., DJ Saul D, DJ Chozie, and DJ Weng Weng!

100% of your entrance fee and 10% of the bar tab will be donated to Miao’s surgery fund so she can recover quickly and rejoin the party scene with us.

Let’s get the party started for Miao!

Please do your part by spreading the word and together, we can reach the masses and support not a great cause, but to support a dynamic, fun-loving, kind-hearted and high-spirited woman, to show our love and appreciation for the beloved Miao.

*To anyone who wants to show their support, but is unable to go to Lantern on Friday night, you can contact me separately (kristen@lumdimsum.com) and I can arrange for your red envelope donation to be added to her total fund.

Event Details:

• Date: Friday, April 6, 2012

• Time: 10PM-onwards

• Entrance: RMB 100 or Red Envelope (it all goes to Miao!)

• Location: Lantern

• Address: 100m north of Workers’ Stadium West Gate, Gongti Xilu, Chaoyang District 朝阳区工体西路工体西门往北走100米

LDS Hook-Up: LumDim-SUM41 Comes to China

Canadian Rock Group SUM41 is Performing in China for the first time

Once again, the Street Hustle Promo Team is hooking up a lucky LDS reader to win FREE SUM41 concert tickets.

After an intimate concert at Yugongyishan with Simple Plan earlier this year, Street Hustle is going big again with this next concert next week at Beijing’s MasterCard Stadium (previously known as WuKeSong Stadium).

Next Wednesday, April 4 (04.04), Canadian rock band SUM41 will be playing in Beijing as a part of their 2012 World Tour.  Originally called Kaspir, the band changed their name to SUM41 when they performed for a Supernova show on September 28, 1996 which happened to be the 41st day of summer.

Although this fun-loving rock group is pretty addicted to traveling with over 300 concerts a year in conjunction with lengthy world tours, this will be their first time performing in China with shows in both Beijing (4.4.12) & Shanghai (4.6.12).

I admit I haven’t heard much of this band before writing this post, but I enjoyed reading some interviews I found online.  Here’s a clip from one interview with Livewire’s Phil Bonyata and SUM41′s Deryck Whibley (lead vocals and rhythm guitar) -

Livewire: So, in my past interview with you a couple of years ago, you refer to yourselves as the “ugly goons from Canada.” Now with the new hairstyle has that changed? I think you’re better looking. 

Deryck: I just refered to ourselves last night as “four ugly assholes having a good time.” (laughs) 

Livewire: Describe Sum 41 in a few words.

Deryck: (laughs) Young, dumb and full of cum. 

For full interview, click here.

Deryck Whibley (front)

To see SUM41 perform live their hits like “Blood in my Eyes” and tracks from their debut album “All Killer, No Filler”, get the LDS Hook-UP!

LDS HOOK-UP

Thanks to Street Hustle Promotions, a lucky LDS reader will get the chance to win a pair of tickets to see SUM41 live!

For your chance to win 2 FREE TICKETS to the SUM41 Concert on Wednesday, April 4, answer the following question in the comment section:

If you had the chance to interview Deryck Whibley and ask one question, what would you ask?  

To answer, click here and scroll down to comment section.  Be sure to leave your email address so I contact the winner directly!

Deadline is Wednesday, April 4 at 12PM Noon.

Tickets are RMB 180 380 480 580 1080 1280. Official ticket booking websites: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com or damai.cn

For those of you who are going, don’t forget to stop by Nathan’s Famous concession stand in the stadium to get your chili cheese dog fix!

Event Details:

• Date: Wednesday, April 4, 2012

• Time: 7:30PM

• Location: Wukesong Stadium (formerly known as Wukesong Stadium)

• Address: Fuxing Lu in Haidian District, 海淀区复兴路五棵松文化体育中心

• Tickets: RMB 180, 380, 480, 580, 1080, and 1280

• Buy Tickets: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com or damai.cn

  

LumDimSummary: Death Cab for Cutie Beijing Concert

“Whoever is in charge of the fog, can you turn it down a bit? It’s a f*cking KISS concert up here.”

- Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie(vocals, guitar, piano and drums extraordinaire)

American Indie-rock band Death Cab for Cutie from Seattle, Washington is the big headlining act for the 4th annual JUE | Music + Art Festival, put together by the Splitworks team.

Last year JUE brought one of my favorite bands Whitest Boy Alive to Yugongyishan and with Death Cab for Cutie headlining this year’s festival, they’ve managed to top last year and it’s only just the beginning!

Running from March 9 (starting with WHALE! as their launch party)-March 25, expect plenty more alternative, creative and progressive arts and music events across the next few weeks.

“Performance art, film, spoken word, street art, workshops, photography exhibitions, live music, madness… all of these things and more fall under the creative umbrella that is JUE.” – Split Works Team, hosts of JUE Music + Art Festival

I’m a huge fan, but seeing this concert in person was beyond expectations. They were phenomenal live and I’m pretty sure everyone else who crammed into Tango Club on Saturday night would agree that Death Cab is not only talented, they are mind-blowing-ly awesome.

It was nice to hear everyone singing along to the songs, especially “Transatlanticism” and “I Will Follow You into the Dark” which Ben dedicated to Nathaniel Davis, one of the founders of Spitworks (such a nice guy). If only he dedicated “Soul Meets Body” to me (can’t stop listening to this song on repeat!).

Best bit? When Ben Gibbard goes nuts on the drums (see photo below).  No wonder he’s the guy who got Zooey Deschanel.

LumDimSum Snapshots of Death Cab for Cutie Concert:

Take a Bow Death Cab! Beijing loves you!

About JUE | Music + Art Festival 2012:

Upcoming Line-Up of Events in Beijing:

• March 16: Steve Mackay (the Stooges)

• March 17: Qu Wanting

• March 18: Courtney Wing

• March 20: Beyond Bibimbap: Creative Korean Cuisine

• March 24: 87fei87: TAXEE TAPES EDITIONS

• March 25: JUE Hear + See with Devil Music Ensemble + Eatliz

For information on JUE | Music + Art 2012 events, check out their website.

Death Cab for Cutie Headlining JUE Music + Art 2012

Death Cab for Cutie (Press Photo by Danny Clinch)

People have been going nuts for American Indie-rock band Death Cab for Cutie tickets since word first got out that they’d be coming to China this year and thanks to JUE | Music + Art Festival, the Splitworks team has brought the arrival of Death Cab for Cutie for two performances in Shanghai (March 9) and Beijing (March 10)!

Beijing’s performance will be held at the 3rd floor of Tango at 8PM on Saturday, March 10 and pre-sale tickets are available now! See below for ticket sale info.

“Fresh off the heels of another Grammy nomination for their seventh studio album, Codes and Keys, Ben Gibbard, Nick Harmer, Chris Walla and Jason McGerr bring with them the melodies that charmed a generation of young music lovers and lyrics that made their hearts melt to the shores of China. Whether you love the sweetness of early singles like “A Movie Script Ending” or the complex later work of “I Will Possess Your Heart” and “You Are A Tourist,” the band’s unwavering commitment to sonic exploration and lyrical ambition promises an epic night of rock from one of America’s favourite indie rock bands.”

 Death Cab for Cutie by Autumn de Wilde (Photo taken in Greek Theatre, LA)

Death Cab for Cutie by Autumn de Wilde

Death Cab for Cutie Concert in Calgary

Concert Details:

• Date: Saturday, March 10
• Time: 8PM
• Location: 3rd Floor of Tango
• Address: 79 Hepingli Xijie, Dongcheng district  东城区和平里西街79号

Ticketing Info:

• Ticket Price: 280 RMB (Presale) /360 RMB (Door)
• Ticket Info Hotline: 1870 113 3908 (Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, EN + CN)
• Presale tickets available:
• -       Taobao (in Chinese): http://splitworks.taobao.com/
• -       Tango 1st Floor Ticketing Desk (Mon-Sun, 24 hrs)
• Address: 79 Hepingli Xijie, Dongcheng District
• -       Crêpanini (Mon-Sun, 9am-12 midnight)
• Address: Nali Patio, 81 Sanlitun Beilu, Chaoyang District
• -       Lush (Open 24 Hours)
• Address: 2/F, Bldg 1, Huaqing Jiayuan, Chengfu Lu (across from the Wudaokou light-rail station), Haidian District
• Website:  www.lushbeijing.com
• -       NLGX Design Store (Mon-Sun,10 AM – 10 PM)
• Address: #33 Nanluoguxiang, Dongcheng District
• Website: www.nlgx.org

About JUE | Music + Art Festival 2012:

Celebrating it’s 4th year, JUE (觉) is sn independent urban arts and music festival in both Shanghai and Beijing that spans over a few weeks collecting alternative, creative and progressive arts and music events from March 9-March 25.

“Performance art, film, spoken word, street art, workshops, photography exhibitions, live music, madness… all of these things and more fall under the creative umbrella that is JUE.” – Split Works Team, hosts of JUE Music + Art Festival

Last year they brought one of my favorite bands Whitest Boy Alive to Yugongyishan and with Death Cab for Cutie and Summer Lei (雷光夏) as headlining acts in this year’s line-up, 2012 is looking bigger than ever!

So it’s very appropriate that WHALE! is their official opening party to launch this creative festival of talent.

(What is WHALE!? Just ask Bobby Dropper.  He explains it best here.)

JUE | Music + Art 2012

Emergency WHALE! at 4corners! Tonight!

Blue Alert! It’s a WHALE! Emergency TONIGHT!

WHALE! is holding a last-minute emergency party tonight, Friday, January 27, 2012 at the newly opened 4corners肆角餐吧 bar by the Drum and Bell Tower in Gulou.

Previously, WHALE! parties were rocking Beijing with monthly gigs around town, but since winter hit, it’s been a few months without some WHALE! fun.

So what calls WHALE! out of hibernation?  A member of the WHALE! family is leaving Beijing for a few months and this is his unofficial leaving party.

Who is leaving you ask?  Well, they are all masked by alias names, but here’s one hint: It’s the only DJ who changes his alias name every WHALE! party. This time around, his name is DJ No Requests.

Who is WHALE!?  Check out CW’s article on WHALE!’s DJs here.

If WHALE! is a new concept for you, the best way to sum it up quickly: WHALE! is “200 tons of danceable rock and electro in the deep, dark hutong”.  

And the eclectic music mix will be played by the regular WHALE! DJ Line-up featuring DJ Assassin Eyes, Bobby Dropper,  DJ Fun Party, DJ Dirty Pirate and our beloved DJ No Requests.

This has been something in the works the past weeks, but they’ve only just announced it and as this is the unofficial leaving party of DJ No Requests, there will also be an unofficial dress theme: Cardigans.

I was hoping to find some quirky picture of a whale wearing a cardigan, but I guess it figures the reverse is more likely.

So here you have it: Whales knitted onto a cardigan.

Close enough.

…or perhaps you prefer this knit WHALE!?

OK. Enough fun for now.

Time to WHALE! at 4corners! TONIGHT!

Click here to see pictures from previous WHALE! parties:

• WHALE! on a Rainy Night in the Deep, Dark Hutongs
• “W” is for WHALE!
• A WHALE! of a Good Time

Event Details:

• Date: Friday, January 27, 2012
• Time: 10PM-late
• Location: 4corners 肆角餐吧
• Address:  By Drum and Bell Tower on DaShibei Hutong 西城, 大石碑胡同27号 (See map below)
• FREE ENTRY 

Say Goodbye to D-22 this Friday, the 13th with Mohanik

After six strong years as one of Beijing’s iconic live music venues, D-22 is officially closing their doors this Friday, the 13th of January.  Over the years, this little WDK rock venue has built a tight music-loving community committed to the local music scene and they have undoubtedly helped to open doors and jump-start the fame of many of Beijing’s most well-known bands like Carsick Cars and Hedgehog.

Going off with a bang, they are hosting Mongolian garage rock/punk band Mohanik (from Ulan Bator) as their first act of their closing night.

In the middle of the 4 day China tour (from Hohhot to Beijing to Ningbo to Shanghai), this will be their second stop, but D-22′s first act of the night followed by Shanghai metalheads Moon Tyrant, Beijing surf-rock band The Flying Mantas, and a DJ set from DJ B.O. (aka Brian Offenther, Shanghai-based music promoter Trash A Go-Go).

Click here for Time Out Beijing’s recent interview with Mohanik.

Come out and bid D-22 farewell, though Michael Pettis had said in a few interviews that they plan to open a new music venue to accommodate “today’s Beijing”.

• See interview with Michael Pettis by pangbianr.com here: Michael Pettis on the End of D-22

• See interview with Michael Pettis by Andy Best on Kungfuology.com here: D22 Closing: Full Interview with founder Michael Pettis 

Event Details: 

• Date: Friday, January 13, 2012
• Time: 10PM
• Location: D-22
• Address: 242 Chengfu Lu, Haidian district 海淀区成府路242号
• Website: Click here.

LDS Hook-Up: 2 Free Tickets to Simple Plan Concert

Canadian rock band Simple Plan is back in Beijing to debut their upcoming Asia Tour. Performing at Yugongyishan, this concert will be a nice change of pace from the massive stadiums hosting thousands of fans. With a capacity of only 700 pax, fans can get up-close and personal with Simple Plan.

“Simple Plan had a spunky, energetic punk sound, textured like Cheap Trick, but raw like Pennywise.”

A group of five former high school pals Pierre Bouvier, Jeff Stinco, David Desrosiers, Sebastien Lefebvre and Chuck Comeau who came together in 1999 to form this multi-award winning punk-pop band with hit singles like “I’m Just A Kid”, “Welcome to My Life” and “Jet Lag”.  

Here’s your chance to see them perform live!

LDS HOOK-UP

Thanks to Street Hustle Promotions, a lucky LDS reader will get the chance to win a pair of tickets to see Simple Plan live!

For your chance to win 2 FREE TICKETS to the Simple Plan Concert on Friday, January 6, answer the following question in the comment section:

Who is your favorite member of the Simple Plan band and why?

To answer, click here and scroll down to comment section.  Be sure to leave your email address so I contact the winner directly!

Deadline is Monday, January 2 at 12PM Noon.

Tickets are RMB 380 at the door (pre-sale tickets are SOLD OUT!). Official ticket booking websites: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com

Event Details:

• Date: Friday, January 6, 2012
• Time: 7:30PM
• Location: Yugongyishan
• Address: 3-2 Zhang Zizhong Road
• Tickets: RMB 380 (door)
• Buy Tickets: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com

Jungle Bells: DJ Goldie and Syndicate at Yigongyishan

DJ Goldie is back in Beijing for the fourth time (that’s how much we love this guy) and he is back playing at Yugongyishan tonight Friday, December 23 at 10PM.

His previous set in 2008 was voted “Night of the Year” in theBeijinger’s Bar & Clubs awards where he “played an unbelievable 4-hour mix of unreleased tracks that tore Yugong Yishan to pieces.”

More than just a DJ, Goldie’s also an actor with a role in Guy Ritchie’s “Snatch” and the James Bond film “The World is Not Enough”.  This guy also happens to be a graffiti artist, drum ‘n’ bass icon, DJ and producer.

“Goldie is a total original, a multi-talented complex shape shifter, who’s sold more than 2.5 million records worldwide.”

Event Details:

• Date: Friday, December 23, 2011
• Time: 10PM
• Tickets: RMB 70 (pre-sale), RMB 100 (door)
• Ticket Locations: Cafe Zarah, NLGX Design and Yugongyishan
• Ticket Online: www.clubzone.cn
• Location: Yugongyishan
• Address:  3-2 Zhangzizhong Lu, Dongcheng district, 东城区张自忠路3-2号段祺瑞执政府旧址西院
• Website: Click here.

LDS Hook-Up: 2 FREE Tickets to Booey Lehoo Concert

 Will.i.am & Hillary Clinton – What a combo!

The Booey Lehoo Concert has been on the radar for ages now and plenty of hype that goes with having such a diverse range of people teaming together to make this happen ie Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and, of course, Hillary Clinton and will.i.am (pic above) discussing the importance of educational and cultural ties between the US and China, a long-term initiative starting with a concert in Beijing to plant the seeds of global understanding with the younger generations.  Read State Department story here.

Taking place at Beijing’s National Stadium this Saturday, December 17, 2011, the concert will be featuring both US artists including will.i.am, apl.de.ap and John Legend and Chinese artists Shunza and Sa Dingding. It is organized by APSA (Americans Promoting Study Abroad), The Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation, and Crooked Timber Media with the goal of giving American high school students from low-income families public a full scholarship from seven US cities to study in Beijing on a program that focuses on “language acquisition, cultural understanding, leadership development, and exposure to international careers”.   The initiative will also provide a similar opportunity for Chinese students to study abroad in the United States.

“The Concert culminates a week of events celebrating China-US cultural and educational exchange. Together, the US and Chinese artists will stage an evening celebration of the possibilities when Americans and Chinese work together creatively.”

Check out Booey Lehoo’s list of performing artists:

will.i.am

“In order to become responsible global citizens, young people need to experience the world around them. Kids from underserved communities rarely have the opportunity to study and travel abroad, and we want to change that. We must make sure that American students have the cultural awareness and skills necessary to succeed in a global economy.” - will.i.am on this concert to benefit President Obama’s 100,000 Strong Initiative

Sa DingDing

John Legend

Shunza

apl.de.ap

LDS HOOK-UP

Thanks to Street Hustle Promotions, a lucky LDS reader will get the chance to win a pair of tickets to see will.i.am, John Legend, Sa DingDing, etc. perform for this charity concert.

For your chance to win 2 FREE TICKETS to the Booey Lehoo Concert this Saturday night, answer the following question in the comment section:

What does “Booey Lehoo” mean and if you could rename this concert, what would you call it?

To answer, click here and scroll down to comment section.  Be sure to leave your email address so I contact the winner directly!

Deadline is Thursday, December 15 at 12PM Noon.

If will.i.am is excited enough about his trip to Beijing to speak some Mandarin, that should inspire us enough to buy more tickets to support this initiative:

See Youtube link here.  See more videos here.

Event Details:

• Date: Saturday, December 17, 2011
• Time: 7:30PM
• Location: National Indoor Stadium 国家体育馆
• Address: Olympic Green, Beichen Lu (Inside Olympic Green, northwest corner of the Datun Lu and Beichen Donglu intersection), Chaoyang District 朝阳区北辰路奥林匹克公园 (奥林匹克公园内，大屯路和北辰东路十字路口西北角)
• Tickets: RMB 280/480/680/880/1680
• Buy Tickets: Click here to purchase your tickets or you can also order from sendmetickets.com here and they’ll deliver directly to you.
• Follow on Weibo: Click here

Save-the-Date: Simple Plan Concert on January 6, 2012

Canadian rock band Simple Plan is back in Beijing to debut their upcoming Asia Tour. Performing at Yugongyishan, this concert will be a nice change of pace from the massive stadiums hosting thousands of fans. With a capacity of only 700 pax, fans can get up-close and personal with Simple Plan.

A group of five former high school pals Pierre Bouvier, Jeff Stinco, David Desrosiers, Sebastien Lefebvre and Chuck Comeau who came together in 1999 to form this multi-award winning punk-pop band with hit singles like “I’m Just A Kid”, “Welcome to My Life” and “Jet Lag”.

Tickets are RMB 280 pre-sale and RMB 380 at the door. Official ticket booking websites: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com

Event Details:

• Date: Friday, January 6, 2012
• Time: 7:30PM
• Location: Yugongyishan
• Address: 3-2 Zhang Zizhong Road
• Tickets: RMB 280 (pre-sale) or RMB 380 (door)
• Buy Tickets: Piao.com.cn or sendmetickets.com