So those free Maybe Mars tickets we told you we'd give away earlier this week - good job to Sean Dickinson and Stephanie Liu for being the quickest on the draw, sending us emails so quick the contest was over almost as soon as it began. For the rest of you, even if you have to pay that 80RMB at the door, it's totally worth it. Not only will you get to see Chinese rock gods P.K. 14, girl rock powerhouses Ourself Beside Me, dancey anthem wailers 24 Hours and fun pop punk newcomers Rustic will be hitting the stage as well. Plus, drinks at Mao Livehouse (570 Huaihai Xi Lu near Hongqiao Lu 淮海西路570号 近红桥路) always fall on the cheap side! more ›

Shanghaiist lists all the live music performances you might want to check out from now to Sunday this week. For fun things that aren't live music, take a peek at our Pencil This In (out every Monday!) more ›

Shanghai experienced an electric night of punk rock this past Saturday as Carsick Cars and P.K.14 shared a stage with Brooklyn-based These Are Powers at Zhijiang Dream Factory. After Carsick Cars sampled some songs from their new album, show-goers were surprised to find These Are Powers playing, leaving P.K.14 to headline the show. Regardless of lineup, all three bands delivered an intense show in the Factory that was gritty, energetic and altogether rocking. more ›

In a music industry complicated by media censorship, internet piracy, and a mainstream aversion to anything outside of mando-pop, PK14 is refreshingly honest. When asked how the band handles such political and commercial pressures, front man Yang Haisong replied “we just write what we feel like writing.” Yang's approach to music is not complicated by external pressures but rather by his own motivation to say what he feels needs to be said. more ›

So if last weekend was all about local bands for local people, this weekend is dominated by wai di ren. Whether it's "ghost punks" from some little hamlet in the US of A, northern monkeys from the capital or a band from the harmonious region of Xinjiang, there's a distinct outsider flavour to the next couple of days. more ›

These Are Powers, an American collaboration between ex-Liars bassist Pat Noecker, singer Anna Barie and drummer/producer Bill Salas will be hitting Zhijiang Dream Factory as part of a Maybe Mars lineup with P.K.14 and Carsick Cars on Saturday. more ›

Things are showing no sign of slowing down live music-wise at the moment. The next few weeks are going to see the long awaited Hard Queen EP release party, Battles with PK14 and their new proteges and a welcome return for Re-TROS. Then there's the 5th anniversary of Shanghai's premier noise outfit Torturing Nurse to look forward to, which is bound to be crazy. Meanwhile a new album will see the always brilliant Hedgehog heading to Shanghai on April 11th. Not only that, next weekend will see Fucked Up in town. They're out in Nanjing this weekend at the Castle Bar if you fancy hopping on the high speed train to go see them but if you decide to wait until they hit Shanghai, there's plenty to keep you occupied here while you wait. more ›

Maybe Shanghai's local music scene people were all at last Sunday's Oscars and are thus still sleeping off the hangovers, but things are pretty quiet in terms of live music this weekend. Still, thankfully, there is a little something for all you band lovers to attach yourselves to. more ›

Via City Weekend we learn that the documentary film about last year's Converse-sponsored (and Split Works organized) Love Noise rock music tour of China is now viewable at a DVD player near you. Love Noise put Beijing bands PK14 and Queen Sea Big Shark on a converted bus and sent them on a two-week, six-city tour during the height of Olympics craziness last August. The trailer to the Love Noise film is embedded in this post, and after the jump you'll find a slew of related clips, uploaded to YouTube six days ago. The director's first name is Hammer, so it's got to be good. more ›

After months of nothing more than a trickle of live shows, there is a flood of gigs this weekend and Shanghaiist is left wondering how to manage with all the choices. Tonight at Yuyintang, Tookoo will be playing with 3 other bands. Being called everything from EMO to Indie, Tookoo is puts on a solid performance and we expect the small confines of YYT to be bursting with people. more ›

These days it seems Vice magazine is trying its hand at almost everything. Besides the iconic music magazine and record label they do some interesting web documentaries at VBS. Like every other news organization in the world they decided in the spirit of the Olympics to do a month of pieces on Beijing and China. Since their main focus is music they did a bunch of interesting little stories on bands like PK-14, Subs, Demerit, Mi San Dao and more. Check them out here. This morning we were having trouble loading vidoes on the VBS webpage, try youtube if you have the same problem. more ›

Cold Fairyland are one of those rare Shanghai bands that consistently put out original music and have steadily been growing an overseas following. Check them out Friday at Yuyintang to see why everyone is raving about their melancholic folk sound. Jazz singer Pete Moore who will be performing at Labella's Cafe is also worth a look. For fiddle fans head to Two Cities gallery where fiddle master Hanneke Cassel is in town with guitarist Christopher Lewis. more ›

It might have been one day earlier than planned but, after they rescued the Dandi Wind gig, Shanghaiist checked out the renewed Windows Tembo last night and we liked what we saw. Having made Live Bar the place that it is, we had every faith that Brad Ferguson would turn this slightly more central location into a great place for live music too and, if last night's show is anything to go by, it is going to quickly establish itself as one of Shanghai's premier gig venues. more ›

Time Magazine recently published a list (click here) of, what they consider, to be the top 5 Asian bands to watch in Asia for 2008. Representing China is PK-14, a band that Time is describing as postfolk. Shanghaiist isn't exactly sure what the hell postfolk is, or if it is an accurate description of the music...but we don't really care, no matter how you describe PK-14's music..it still rocks. The band is currently in Sweden recording their new album which is scheduled for release on Bing Ma Si later this spring. more ›

We don't feel right doing many concert reviews, mainly because of our relationships with the bands, and the realization after years of live shows that the quality depends as much on the venue, backline, PA, sound guy, etc...as it does the band. Plus we don't like to judge people who are capable of doing things we can't (clarification: we don't like judging people we think are cool, we have no problem judging all you uncool... more ›

For all of those of you who stayed at home, hunched over the computer, waiting for an update on the happenings in live music this weekend....well, we apologize. Dust yourself off, pick up the shaver and take a shower, today is a big day for music. Getting things started early, 4:30pm at 4Live, are Taiwan indie pop duo, Natural Q. Seems to be the season for indie pop, after performances last month by Carrchy and... more ›

If you are like us at Shanghaiist..... then weeks in advance you strategically map out a strategy to maximize potential fun for the weekend. So here are a few noteworthy events coming up that we think should not be missed and we are always (sometimes..maybe) right when it comes to picking events. The 8th of December will be a big night with PK-14 back in town as is Coldcut w/ DJ Nu-Mark and Pfadfinderei. PK-14... more ›