Results tagged “sinanlu”

"People say they love hip hop, but then they go to Guandii. To me, we’ve never had hip hop in China. We just took things from the States. It’s never been homegrown. And I really hope we can have a scene to call our own."

Shanghai. It is all happening. Here's the proof:

Hollywood is a new DVD shop just a few doors away from Oscars (nee Ka De Club) in Taikang Lu. This new DVD emporium stocks an amazing range of new and old American, Chinese and international titles. It is very similar to its neighbour, but with more choice and better merchandising. All of the films are boxed in hardcases on tall shelves along wide aisles. Hollywood is spacious and the layout makes it almost possible to find what you want. One day they may even get round to filing titles into alphabetical order, grouping them by genre.

Still recovering from your May Holiday partying? Well, there's no respite. Here are a few things that Shanghaiist is keeping an eye on over the coming week.

Though only in its infancy, newly launched online portal NeoCha has already got its eyes on the big time. The web project purports to bring together Chinese creative clans and facilitate the discovery of original music, art, events and goods.

With a few honourable exceptions, quality electronic music in Shanghai is hard to find. In such a commercial city, bars and clubs have high rents to pay. So obviously, events where there isn't anyone from the top 100 ranked DJ list playing are rubbish and not worth going to.

From the blog Shopgirl's Shanghai we learned that Swedish clothing store H&M is going to have a flagship store in Shanghai, to be located where Benetton used to be (Huai Hai Lu/Si Nan Lu) and will be opened on April 12 of this year. Their official website confirms this date and doesn't say much else. According to answers.com this isn't their first store in Asia; a Hong Kong store was opened in in late 2006.

We came across this store during a stroll on Jianguo Lu. Having recently bought an Astro Boy (60s Japanese anime) DVD, we were quick to notice an inflatable Atom Boy or two smiling blankly next to some flashing Christmas bulb lights in a display window, and we had no choice but to go and walk in. According to Jeff, the co-owner/manager (he wasn't that specific), while both he and the other guy had day jobs doing design and other such stuff, that they had collected a bunch of old toys and other kitschy items (transparent, inflatable Hitchcock pillow with the director's silhouette and some fake "bird shit" stains on them—a reference to a certain movie about creepy birds) and decided to sell them. The store is tiny, but strangely cozy—Jeff sat in a sofa chair, drawing some weird sci-fi type illustration while we perused the goods. We didn't ask much about the prices, but if you're interested, check out some of the photos we took of the place to get a sense of what they are selling. Also, check out their origami business cards—a piece of black paper with a map and their address folded into a black swan.

After almost half a year, Shanghai’s iconic “alternative lifestyle nightclub”, Home Bar, officially reopened last week under its new brand, Pinkhome. It has been transformed from its previous existence into what is China’s first gay multiplex including a dance club, restaurant/lounge, and hotel. As some readers may remember, there was a pre-soft (is that a word?) opening last October for the bar, after which the establishment was closed again until renovations were completed. For those of us privy to that event, the ground floor décor looked much the same as it did in October, though, vastly different from the old, gritty, but lovable Home.

There is a catch of course, 40 RMB to get in to La Fabrique and drinks only stay cheap till 11 pm, but, that's a better deal than just about anywhere else for those not in the city on expense accounts, and, once you've sunk a few cheap ones, you can get on down and enjoy one of the few nights in Shanghai where the music being played is not the usual cover band guff, commercial hip-hop or other cheesy shite pervading the scene here.

Born in Venezuala, raised in Chile, based in Berlin and now appearing in Shanghai -- that is the acclaimed pop/rock producer turned DJ, Argenis Brito.

If you have a real job, you'll likely be working. But if you're like Shanghaiist -- and you're also American -- you may be watching some good, old fashioned ganlanqiu ... American football ... the National Football League conference championships ... the two games that determine the contestants in Super Bowl XL (40, not "extra large"). The Pittsburgh Steelers play at the Denver Broncos in the American Football Conference championship at 4 a.m. And with a somewhat more bearable 7:30 a.m. kickoff, the National Football Conference championship pits the Carolina Panthers on the road against the Seattle Seahawks.

Madam Zung almost lasted a year, not too shabby considering Shanghai's wintry climate for bars. Keeping with a recent trend, the Madam is closing up shop for good. SOCIAList hinted at this yesterday, but now we've got quotes. And everyone likes quotes.

Yes, they are cheap. But Shanghai buses are often overcrowded and overhot. They are also slow, and Shanghaiist is already habitually late. Now we have another excuse for not getting on the bus -- they keep bursting into flames. Thursday afternoon, an hour before rush hour, a No. 920 bus caught fire on Huaihai Zhong Lu, one of the city's busiest streets, near Sinan Lu. Flames engulfed the bus, destroying it and stopping traffic for more than 30 minutes. Amazingly, there were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. This was the second bus fire in Shanghai is less than a week. On Saturday, a No. 715 bus caught fire at the intersection of Xizang Nan Lu and Fangxie Lu in Huangpu District. Again, no injuries were reported.

What was that NWA song again? "Love Tha Police"? "Truck Tha Police"? "Funk Tha Police"? Well, whatever it was, that song came to mind when Shanghaiist learned that every hipster's favorite Shanghai bar -- Tang Hui Pub -- was being forced to shut its doors. "We're in a quiet neighborhood, and the police are always coming in," explained bar owner Zooma, who is also the soulful and spasmodic frontman for the band Xingfu 13, which kicked ass last Friday at the Shanghaiist launch party. The bar, located on tiny Xingfu Lu in Changning District, will close sometime in November.

Shanghaiist recently headed over to the Benetton Building to check out a photo exhibition entitled Becoming Shanghai, Three Memories of a City's Transformation (作为上海，一个城市变化的三种记忆), featuring the work of three photographers -- Greg Girard, Fritz Hoffman and Jan Siefke. Greg Girard's preface to the exhibition states :

Colonel Kurtz's nightmare might have been watching a snail crawl along the edge of a straight razor, but ours is shopping. What an odious pursuit. Shanghaiist would rather have dental work done than get dragged through boutiques and malls -- particularly in this city, where the footpaths are clogged with touts, bargain hunters and middle-aged women selling tea eggs.

Backyard Cafe on Jianguo Lu