For ten days in March, JUE Music and Art Festival will take over the city for the seventh year straight. Here are our highlights from the program, check back later this week for our interviews with Japanese experimental rockers, Boris (Sat, Mar 14); dub influenced London DJ, The Bug (Fri, Mar 20); and French chanteuse, Émilie Simon (Fri, Mar 20).
Thursday March 12
Wizard Tang - Limitless
Veteran rock photographer Wizard Tang steps into the spotlight with his latest exhibition, ‘Limitless.’ Featuring stunning images captured as official photographer at festivals like MIDI, Strawberry and Japan’s mammoth Summer Sonic, Tang takes advantage of his official status by mixing intimate portraits of bands like Metallica, Second Hand Rose and Queen Sea Big Shark with wild on-stage shots. The exhibition’s opening party goes down in conjunction with the Genjing Records showcase featuring Primitive Calculators on March 13.
> Free entry; Mar 12-22; Yugong Yishan
Friday March 13
Primitive Calculators
One of Australia’s original and meanest punk acts headlines Genjing Records’ showcase. Formed in 1978, Primitive Calculators only lasted for two years but their influence on the country’s music scene remains. Reunited since 2009, they released The World is F*cked in 2013. Supporting them are local heroes Birdstriking and SUBS.
Primitive Calculators Soundcloud
> RMB60-80; Mar 13, 9pm-late; Yugong Yishan
Saturday March 14
Logos x Forma
Wooozy Offline returns with a duel headliner. First up, Logos has been tearing up the London underground with his hypnotic futuristic take on grime. He founded the Different Circles label with Mumdance and the two are working on a full-length compilation of club tracks. Forma, meanwhile, has been a standout in the international synth scene with releases like OFF/ON and Cool Haptics EP. The trio are celebrated for improvisational live shows that expertly straddle dance-friendly techno and rock-ish noise. Support comes from Microlab, Evan, Jackie and Sleepless.
> RMB80; Mar 14, 10pm-late; Dada
Monday March 16
Bookworm Translation Slam Music Edition
The JUE Festival teams up with the Bookworm for a party that will warm the hearts of anglophiles and sinophiles alike. Mesmerizing northeast folk singer Song Yuzhe will perform his graceful songs while translators compare, contrast and clash over the nuances of his tracks.
The perennial man of mystery has yet to release a full-length album since blowing up the hip-hop world eight years ago with Myspace upload, Act I: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge). Nonetheless, the New Orleans rapper has all the bona fides (a deal with Jay Z’s Roc Nation, a co-sign from P Diddy, beats from Just Blaze, a baby with Erykah Badu) and, in 2014, he finally dropped his first original song in three years. Even without new material, classics like ‘Exhibit A’ will be enough to draw hip-hop heads to Yugong Yishan. Joining in the fun is Miss Ko, the Queens-born rhymer who has effectively taken over Taiwan’s rap scene, scoring a coveted Golden Melody Award and receiving praise from singer-songwriter Wang Leehom and Run-DMC.
> RMB150-220; Mar 17, 9pm-late; Yugong Yishan
Thursday 19 March
Awesome Tapes from Africa
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While on a research trip to Congo, ethnomusicology student Brian Shimkovitz began amassing a cassette collection of Africa’s music, from rhumba to tsongo disco, Ethio-soul and everything in between. What started in 2006 as a blog has since turned into a full-fledged label that has connected artists like Hailu Mergia to global audience through vinyl re-issues. It’s also turned into a constant party, with Shimkovitz rocking a twin-cassette tape deck for sets blending folkloric pop, hip hop beats and left-field dancefloor gems.
Awesome Tapes From Africa Soundcloud
> RMB50; Mar 19, 10pm-late; Dada
Saturday March 21
Yozoh
South Korea may best be known for the mammoth K-pop industry but there’s a thriving indie scene developing. One of its shining stars is folk pop princess Yozoh. Since emerging in 2008 with the charming My Name is Yozoh, she’s become an icon, penning theme songs for hit dramas like Coffee Price and New Heart. Having dipped into acting and book-writing, it was back to music in 2013 with her sophomore album Use of My Own.
> RMB120-180; Mar 21, 8.30pm-late; Yugong Yishan
JUE Film Night
Three films exploring new wave and the simultaneous emergence of Chinese rock music will be screened at the Power Station of Art. First up, Wham! In China, Foreign Skies documents the landmark China tour by the 80s pop duo while Christiane F.’s We Children from Bahnhof Zoo examines the impact of David Bowie on West Berlin youth. Last year’s The Stuart Hall Project, celebrating the well-known British cultural theorist, will also receive its first public screening on the Chinese Mainland. Music scholars, including Second Hand Rose’s drummer Jeroen Groenwegen-Lau, will take part in a panel discussion from 5-6pm.
> RMB60 or RMB30/film; Mar 21, 1.30-9.30pm; UCCA
Sunday March 22
The Loop Line 3 BRT
The LOOP and Pangbianr team up for a rocking bus ride to mark the end of JUE Festival. Local favorites Alpine Decline, Charm, Zhang Shouwang, DJ Kippy and Compact Dicks will perform live on a bus following Route 3 throughout the day. Jing-A beer will also be setting up shop at the back of the bus for all your craft beer needs. It will be a fully functional ride, with the bus making its regular stops and admission the normal fare. For real-time info on the bus, visit www.bjbus.com and record sounds you hear on the bus using the Loop Beijing app.
> Price of a Beijing Bus fare; Mar 22, 2-8pm; Route 3 buses
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