Cat #: 134TZM
Low Wormwood’s 3rd album.
Tag: Lanzhou
Low Wormwood – Lanzhou Lanzhou – 8th July 2012
Cat #: 098TZM
The cliché goes that some geographical areas are synonymous with certain sounds: Merseybeat from Liverpool, for example, or grunge from Seattle. But it’s also the case that certain bands define their locales. Here, one tends to think of such acts as Arcade Fire, who did just that for Montreal with Funeral and The Suburbs. Such is the case with Low Wormwood, whose latest album, Lanzhou Lanzhou (their second licensed to tenzenmen) is perhaps a defining moment for both the band and the city of the title.
Unlike many bands from Lanzhou, this quartet don’t practise harmony- driven guitar folk. The metrics of this album depart from their early grunge and shoot for a less fiery but more coherent structure, coupling string-soaked flourishes of folk-rock with mundane lyrics about day-to-day living in Lanzhou. It borders on being a concept album, but the catchy rhythms manage to dilute the anthropological solemnity and make this something special.
‘Recording this album is almost like being in a relationship,’ explains lead singer Liu Kun. ‘When you love each other, it really burns. When you hate each other… well, it also burns.’
Liu Kun – Hey, Young Man – 23rd September 2011
Cat #: 072TZM
Liu Kun, born in Zhelaizhai county after the 1980s, firmly believes that he is the descendent of a Roman soldier, who was besieged with his army during a war in Zhelaizhai two thousand years ago. He often dreams of himself being a soldier, raising his sword on a running horse, breaking open a way through brambles and thorns, however, wakes up to find his arms painful and aching, realizes that all was nothing but a dream. Anyway, he isn’t bothered by the mysteries of his DNA at all, because he finds art more fascinating. As a little boy in a town, he was never too eager to show himself by dancing, singing and playing drums and guitars, despite the rough stage of that little shabby theater. There he would feel like being in a dream once the lights were on. Years later, he went to Lanzhou for further education, and that was a university. He soon became a sincere and dedicated lover to drama, joining the school drama troupe, writing plays and acting on stage, he was full of energy to lead his company to success. And quite out of expectancy, a feature program was made for this energetic young man by the local TV station. Anyway, he isn’t bothered by this issue at all. It is the parents who were worried: Will you study ,study, or study?
When graduation time drew near, he encountered a life-long buddy: Rock. Moved by his braveness, purity, and persistence, he followed this buddy onto the road of music, and realized that music is connected with soul. He established the band ‘Rust on the lip’ in 2003, which then got the present name, ‘Low Wormwood’, and became the lead singer. Every year he leads his band for a tour around China and has made several albums: <The absinthe>, <Low Wormwood>, <Upstream of Yellow River>, and <We can’t help kissing each other>. He plays football during part time, meets friends and makes plan for art exhibitions. Cooperated with the Barn Gallery in Lanzhou, he held a modern art exhibition called ‘Replacement’ in 2007, in which his works ‘Sound field in Lanzhou’ and ‘Talk’ were displayed, together with the works of Wang Dong, a young artist. He also planned an art exhibition of sound and devices in 2009.
He met Michael, boss of Maybe Mars, on his tour in Beijing during October 2008. Their ideas on music are unbelievably alike, so he then joined Maybe Mars and co-founded with Xiao He the folk music brand ‘Maybe Horse under Maybe Mars. He published his first record <Hey, Young Man> in 2010.
• 2003 formed the band Low Wormwood in Lanzhou
• 2007-2009 modern art exhibition “Replacement” held in Lanzhou
• 2009 formed Maybe Horse as a unit of Maybe Mars Records
• 2010 debut album released Hey, Young Man
We Can’t Help Kissing Each Other – Low Wormwood – 1st February 2011
Cat #: 046TZM
The band Low Wormwood (Di Ku Ai), which in the corner of Lanzhou, has got the unique pride and mind to view themselves and the world. Picking a wisp of wind from the Yellow River, scooping up a handful of snow from the Qilian Mountain, collecting a piece of sand from loess plateau, then mix them as a kind of style that is impassioned and forceful but not artificial, close to heart but not compromise. They use this kind of independent attitude to compose their music. Independent and psychedelic, based on simple ballad style with multiple instruments and variety samplings, together made their music strong experimental and national colour. They has won high popularity as they published an album and take around tour each year which not only makes them one of the most active and excellent domestic bands but also one of the representative bands of Lanzhou and northwest of China .
We can’t help keep kissing each other, originally released in China in 2008. The poetic lyrics were blue and sensitive. Absolutely, lyrics were always the important part that they valued. Some more mature composed passages made their expressions more powerful and beautiful, but not deliberately luxuriant. The whole album focused on the individuals’ feelings in the changing environment, about some hope and despair, loss and obtaining, when the music developed as movies, you may feel familiar with some plots or have been experienced before. When the once radical angry rock’n roll music intends to become some consumer goods for idealism, their faltering monologue under emotions would enter your heart as an outstanding one among them.
The new album had taken 6 months from choosing songs, recording in studio and to downmix. The former part was done by the experienced sound engineer Yuan Tianfeng from Lanzhou. And the latter part was firstly made by him then the more experienced mixer Dou Tiemin dealt with the post production and mix of the master tape.
It was particularly important to deal with the unique samplings and effects. It was also because of the contemplation of the band and sound engineer, they decided to deepen the integral atmosphere of the songs that appear in the record. The harmonica and harmony were all played by friends, who had tried their best. They made the album more excellent. It can be said that the whole album was elaborate produced by all the people who take a part in.
I used to receive these one-sheets from Maybe Mars in Beijing and have to rewrite them from the Chinglish versions into something a little more comprehensible. But I opted not to even bother with this one, wondering perhaps if it would add some authenticity and make it more obviously Chinese.
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