Cat #: 166TZM
Double vinyl release for Beijing post punk duo.
Tag: post punk
After Argument – This Is Not Your Game – 4th January 2015
Cat #: 165TZM
Following in the footsteps of their critically acclaimed 2013 debut LP Furs of Time [Share the Obstacles], After Argument continue further down an even more refined sonic path, combining avant-garde experimentalism and post punk sensibilities that hint at the gut-level thrust, heft and swing of Television as much as the restless, hook laden fury of early Fugazi, Slint and Mexican psych band Los Dug Dug’s. The band, comprised of legendary P.K.14 vocalist/poet Yang Haisong and Beijing musical luminary Zaza [Eyes Behind] have quickly established themselves as one of China’s foremost punk rooted explorers, filling venues of all shapes and sizes throughout the PRC with a sound, arguably unrivaled and most certainly celebrated by their peers behind the Bamboo Curtain and beyond.
This Is Not Your Game, After Argument’s debut full length for Genjing Records, finds the duo capturing the explosive rush and emotional power of their live shows, where they range from mathy arpeggious interludes through headlong, thunderous charges. Recorded and produced by Yang Haisong at Psychic Kong Studios deep in the heart of the Chinese capital, This Is Not Your Game is an immediate, visceral record. On it, After Argument use riff, repetition, incremental layerings of distortion, bursts of noise and sudden changes in pace and volume – all shot through with a strong sense of poetic melody to provide new ways of seeing and feeling guitar-based rock.
But, more importantly than all that, After Argument manage to infuse emotionally complicated music with a sense of fun. What they offer and the source of their appeal is more a full-bore sensory thrill-ride than anything else. After Argument want to take you to faraway places and show you exciting things through musical algorithms both foreign and familiar to the listener. And This Is Not Your Game is just the key you’ll need to get started on that adventure. So, buckle up, strap on some headphones and enjoy the ride – it’s a one of a kind.
All songs written by After Argument
Recorded at Psychic Kong, Beijing
Mastered by Garrett Haines at Treelady Studio, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
After Argument are:
Zaza and Yang Haisong
Visit them at www.afterargument.com, and also at storecords.bandcamp.com
Cover photo taken by Tanara Stuermer in Tavares Bastos, Rio, Brazil
www.tanarastuermer.com
Artwork by NOHOHONO
The Seaport and The Airport – 11th April 2014
Cat #: 157TZM
- At the end of a long term relationship, when it all comes crashing down and friends disappear. Loneliness sets in and memories warp. “Don’t make me An Old Bride” she’d said.
- She was an old hillside woman in her 70’s and a cold, icy bitch. I used to call her the Black Widow. “…you are becoming the Shell of Your Mother”
After Argument – Furs of Time – 9th February 2014
Cat # 154TZM
Poetic Post Punk.
Licensed from Share in Obstacles.
Yang Haisong (Guitar, Vocals)
Zaza (Drums, Vocals)
Beijing. Since 2011.
P.K.14 – 1984 – 3rd December 2013
Cat #: 151TZM
“1984” is P.K.14’s follow-up to “City Weather Sailing” and comes after a five-year hiatus. The name of the album was inspired by “1984”, the dystopian political fable and the final novel by English writer George Orwell (1903-1950). Most of Orwell’s works have a vitality that has only grown stronger over time. Likewise, P.K.14’s music also has an astonishing, enduring vitality that prompts the listener to think and come to his or her senses.
The band’s fifth studio album, “1984” was recorded in October 2012 at Electrical Audio in Chicago with the help of legendary American producer Steve Albini, whose previous collaborations include Nirvana, The Pixies, Cheap Trick and P.J. Harvey. All tracks were mixed in Sweden by producer Henrik Oja, who also worked on P.K.14’s first three albums.
In a departure from their usual recording process, for this album, the band first went to Sweden to rehearse for a week with Oja, who worked a lot on the guitar and organ. Together they put the final touches to the beautifully crafted sound that has now become P.K.14’s trademark.
As with Orwell’s novel, “1984” is a spotlight in the dark, with songwriter Yang Haisong’s haunting and subtly satirical lyrics speaking of harsh reality.
“You and me walked a long, long road / You and me once left the world behind us / You and me once heard their jeering laughs / They welcomed us to the world of being controlled” (You and Me)
“I’ve already forgotten everything that’s happened / I live in a world without truth / I’ve already forgotten everything that’s happened / That which is miraculous couldn’t be more miraculous / That which is dead couldn’t be more dead” (Crazed Woman)
Yang Haisong’s powerful and poetic texts – and subtexts – hold a mirror up to the world and warn of a life lived in “1984”, where just having a thought can be a very dangerous thing. If that day arrives, at least we know “the Public Kingdom For Teen” will be in our corner, singing a war cry.
The Thaw – 16th October 2013
Cat #: 108TZM
This collection of the thaw recordings is made available as a ‘pay-what-you-want’ option. Any money you wish to contribute will be collected and donated to Animal Lib (animal-lib.org.au/)
The Thaw:
Katrina Byrne
Kathy Keat
Stephanie Phan
Dear Eloise – The Winter That Disappeared – 17th May 2013
Cat #: 136TZM
Since their inception in 2008, Beijing alchemists Dear Eloise have issued a steady stream of releases from their home studio that have been well-received by fans and critics alike despite shying away from performing live (they do not) and courting the media (they do not do that, either), instead quietly giving flight to their indelible fuzz-soaked concoctions and letting them speak for themselves.
“The Winter That Disappeared,” the duo’s fourth 7” on tenzenmen (and seventh release overall), is a departure from the playful shoegaze-influenced pop purity of their earlier work, tacking down a darker path with two self-produced cuts pressed on emerald-green vinyl.
“Vanishing Winter,” the A-side, forcefully announces itself with multi-instrumentalist Yang Haisong’s rhythmic ice-brittle guitar anchored by a trotting bass. In the background, a second unleashed guitar taps out bright arpeggios and Sun Xia’s disembodied ethereal voice rises and falls—nowhere and everywhere. And that ever-present fuzz glows like banked coals.
Behind the omniscient crackling and hissing like crossed wires from a supernatural radio transmission, the simple chord progressions and ghostlike vocals of the B-side, “The Place in White Light,” attempt to penetrate the dissonant wall like green springtime shoots. But they don’t—the static thickens and grows increasingly anxious before the rhythm section, a dirgelike bassline and percussive fills, are abruptly swallowed and extinguished like a candle snuffed by an unworldly presence.
Girls Pissing on Girls Pissing – Eeling – 12th March 2013
Cat #: 138TZM
Try as you might to sum up Girls Pissing on Girls Pissing accurately, the sheer range in dynamics makes the group difficult to pigeonhole; at times post-punk, at other times experimental, even moments of folk. Eeling in every sense evokes the sentiments that this is something unique – not just in regards to its chosen physical release format.
“… an album of new discoveries upon each wonderfully harrowing listen” – Cheese On Toast
Recorded by S. Huf and J. Hobbs
Mixed by S. Huf
Mastered S.Huf
12th Mar 2023 – GPOGP always tickled that weird music itch I enjoyed. I just like music that doesn’t appear to make sense at first.
Fat City/Lu Xin Pei – Super Split – 20th November 2012
Cat #: 117TZM
Fat City and LuXinPei are noise and alternative rock bands. Because two bands share each other’s player or idea and been a longtime friends, they make this SUPER SPLIT together. This split is a collection of the bands’ early songs and soundtrack. Though you can find many music genres here the two bands still keep their love to experiment with various sounds and structures in their songs.
CD version is factory made CD-r.
Imported under license in Australia from Zhu Wenbo by tenzenmen.
And thanks to Nisky to provide the cover picture.
All Songs’ Instruments and Vocal by Fat City and Lu Xin Pei
Record & Mix & Mastering by G.B.J.D. Records
Studio : Kill the Poor, Beijing , China
Date: Apr.-Jun. 2011
Album Cover Picture by Nisky, Shanghai, China
Snapline – Phenomena – 2nd August 2012
Cat #: 112TZM
By the time of release in the US, Snapline’s ‘Future Eyes’ (produced by Martin Atkins (PiL/Pigface)) didn’t meet the constantly evolving vision of the band.
With the support of Beijing label Maybe Mars, the band re-recorded many of the tracks and added others to complete something that more clearly expressed their artistic direction.
For Snapline ‘Phenomena’is a recording of clarity, keeping all the sounds pure – presence, tone, rhythm and frequency are all united. Vibration, sound, recording, phenomena – Snapline softly mix all these things together.
1994ever 