Tag: post rock

The Chiang Rai Alternative Hour #23 – 1st February 2020

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Music from 65daysofstatic, Stormy Six, The Controllers, Kerosene 454, Jawbreaker, Die! Die! Die!, Death, Minutemen, Beefeater, Red Cross, Necros, Hanadensha, Versus, Au Pairs, The Paper Chase, Blast, Soul Inc.

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful to see my friend Fern again.

Take a good hard look at people’s ruling principle, especially of the wise, what they run away from, and what they seek out.

Marcus Aurelius

Weight: 80.3kg
Resting heart rate: 44

To-do list

  • Record TCRAH/upload. ½
  • Put together card for Kru Noon.
  • Do more drawing practice.
  • Do the Coursera meditation. ✅
  • Enjoy evening with Amy, Aing and Gus.

Well, looking at these five challenges it seems like I didn’t do much yesterday!

I did spend a bit more time reading as I was diving into the book about a girl’s abduction and trying to imagine myself in her position. I wanted to try to write down being there and all the thoughts going through my mind.

Later, I compared it with being a prisoner within your own mind – a place we can never escape.

I sorted out more CDs and feel that that task is getting closer to completion.

By the evening and time to go out, I was feeling very relaxed and happy.

As we were driving to the evening festival Amy got upset because I didn’t drive the way, the direction, she wanted. Her anger got more and more and I felt very embarrassed in front of Aing, Gus and Nu. There was no real need for it and I tried to brush it off as best I could.

Unfortunately, I was only able to do this for a short time until I felt sadness and anger too. I had to go and sit by myself for 5 minutes and calm my mind. I felt better when I returned but by then I was exhausted. Amy had a few beers and was happy though I was worried that she would drink too much and start getting violent with me again.

Things were ok though Amy was getting louder and I just felt like I wanted to be somewhere quiet. The noise of the festival was relentless, from every direction and incoherent. It gave me a headache. I tried to constantly talk myself in a positive headspace but it just got worse as Amy loudly tried to put me down in front of the others again. I couldn’t/didn’t want to have an argument in front of others and Amy knew this and used it to her advantage.

We got home and things had calmed down until Amy came and started on me again. I was tired and cranky by this point and bit back and we went to sleep unhappy with each other. I feel like there is something else behind this behaviour, not just a desire to try and control me.

I’d like to talk with Amy about this but will have to find the right time and try not to just get into another argument.

Something else that has been bothering me is Amy always talking about how all the money is with her and everything is in her name. At first, it was just a bit of fun but I’m not amused anymore. It feels like a fascist hold over me. I’m ok for her to take care of all that stuff but I don’t need reminding of it every week.

Again, I think Amy is not happy these days and doing these actions to compensate. I’d just like to see her happy and positive again – preferably without alcohol.

Wang Wen – Eight Horses – 3rd January 2015

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Cat #: 163TZM

Wistful, dreamy, romantic, visceral and truly eclectic, Wang Wen, is the diamond in the rough. If there was ever a Chinese language inflected band that proves western-influenced post-rock is spreading throughout the world like wild fire, it is this quintet from the unlikeliest of locals, the heart of PRC shipping mecca, Dalian. Led by singer/ principal songwriter/ guitarist/ laptop maestro/ antiquated electronics aficionado Xie Yugang, Wang Wen formed in 1999. Six albums and one EP later, they haven’t looked back since.

The Eight Horses double LP, Wang Wen’s first for Genjing Records, runs like thick melancholic molasses peppered with progressive indie-rock sensibilities, while consistently flowing and soaring with the beauty of a dream. “There is a Chinese saying, which goes, ‘When I start to move, I can be faster than a rabbit: when I come to a rest I am like a sleeping baby,” elaborates Xie Yugang. “Our music is like this. We want to make fast music that wakes people up, that moves people. Yet again, we want to make calm music that makes people dream like a newborn child.” Sung in contemporary Mandarin with an extremely modern twist, Xie Yugang is true to his word. Check out the drawn-out, melancholic rock eruption that is “Escape From Mother Earth ” and the cathartically concise melancholy of opener “Northern North”.

Is it odd that a band from China could appeal to western audiences? Not according to Xie Yugang, “We all have the same longings and desires,” he says. “Music is the one thing that transcends cultural boundaries. It’s a language that can be understood all over the world.” 

Written and Performed by Wang Wen

Recorded by An Jiguo at Echo Library, Dalian, China in March 2014

Mixed by
Wouter Vlaeminck (The Last Journey, Welcome to Utopia)
Yang Haisong (Sky of Dalian, Ten Thousand Buddhas, Dionysus)
Wang Yanan (Northern North, Escape from Mother Universe)
An Jiguo (The Eight Layer of Hell)

Wang Wen are
Xie Yugang – Guitar & Vocals
Geng Xin – Guitar
Xu Zengzheng – Bass
Zhang Yanfeng – Piano, Strings Arrangement, Melodica
Zhou Lianjiang – Drums
Huang Kai – Trumpet & Alto Horn

Additional Musicians
Qu Ruining and Wang Yanan from Which Park

Cartavetro – Here It Comes, Tramontane! – 1st March 2013

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Cat #: 130TZM

Here it Comes, Tramontane! (a global joint release between 9 labels) featuring Minutemen/Stooges bassist Mike Watt, celebrates CRTVTR’s recent tour of China which was supported by crowd funding with a sizable donation from tenzenmen.

Cartaverto’s music is suspended between Washington post punk and a touch of diverted contemporary psychedelia. Splatters of post rock, sprays of math. Electro-acoustic feedbacks and vocal loops, remnants of Morricone. They are a power trio and they like to experiment with full range dynamics, surprise the audience, or at least try to. They go around in a van called Flauto. They are part of DisorderDrama, which is the association of reference to the international DIY scene, in Genoa. They support the co-release system, because they like it, because this is the DIY way .

Duck Fight Goose – Sports – 1st July 2012

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Cat #: 097TZM

Sports is the first full-length from widely touted Shanghai artists Duck Fight Goose, fresh from their invite to SXSW and History 7” release earlier this year.

The eleven-track album combines elements of ambient post-rock and math-rock, with heavily textured songs that build layers upon layers before blooming into complex psychedelic mosaics.

Sports represents a creative leap from Duck Fight Goose’s first release, the straightforward math-rock EP, Flow, and has been roundly acclaimed in the Chinese press as one of the best albums of 2012.

Alternative China – 4th April 2012

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Alternative China tumblr

Snapline, Tiny Mix Tapes, Josh Feola, Mao Livehouse, Deadly Cradle Death, Live Music Beijing, Skip Skip Ben Ben, Birdstriking, Chui Wan, White+, Matthew Niederhauser, MDNPhoto, Backyard Surgeons, Shanghai 24/7, Layabozi, Hedgehog, Meat Sucks, Rock In China, Cool Hunting, Xiao He, Yan Jun, Li Daiguo, Tea Rockers Quintet, Torturing Nurse, Deaf Sparrow, Duck Fight Goose, World Of Chinese, King Ly Chee, Shanghaiist, Mr Fossy, Rustic, Pitchfork, Red Rock, Beijing Daze, Jon Campbell, Post Rock, Time Out, Pairs, Foxy Digitalis, UndergroundHK, Bomb Shop, Genjing, SXSW, Core In China

Nikko – About the Spirit – 22nd August 2011

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Cat #: 077TZM

Nikko’s latest release, a double A-side single entitled ‘About the Spirit/Smoke Alarms’, features two new tracks taken from the band’s upcoming sophomore album, due for release later this year. 

The tracks demonstrate a stylistic change in direction that showcases frontman Ryan Potter’s skills as a songwriter and lyricist, along with the band’s collective ability to craft these skills into distinctive and compelling arrangements. 

For special deals with t-shirts go here: 
nikko.bandcamp.com/album/about-the-spirit-smoke-alarms

Limited copies of the 7″ available thru tenzenmen soon.

Nikko: 
Ryan Potter – vocals, electric and acoustic guitars 
Sam Whiting – bass 
Jackson Briggs – lead guitar, slide 
Blair Westbrook – drums, percussion 

Guest vocals on ‘About the Spirit’ by Jacinta Walker 
Violin on ‘About the Spirit’ by Adam Cadell 
Piano on ‘Smoke Alarms’ by Daniel Kassulke 

Recorded by Cameron Smith at The Old Museum and Browning Street Studios in June/July 2011. Mixed by Cameron Smith. Mastered by Naomune Anzai at Reel 2 Real Mix Master. Artwork by Trent Evans. 

Special thanks to Cam Smith, Nao Anzai, Jacinta Walker, Adam Cadell, Daniel Kassulke, Elanor Khan, Trent “Big Dog” Evans, Shaun Tenzenmen, all of our wonderful friends and family, anyone who’s ever bought a recording, come to a show or let us sleep on their floor, and the Brisbane and Australian independent music community. Cheers!

Nikko – The Warm Side – 1st May 2010

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Cat #: 036TZM

The Warm Side is the debut album from Brisbane band, Nikko. It is a collection of nine songs written over the past three years. The album was recorded in August 2009 at Black Box Studios in Brisbane by Melbourne- based engineer Naomune Anzai (Laura, Because of Ghosts) and Matt Taylor. It was mixed and mastered by Naomune Anzai at Reel to Real Mix Master in Melbourne. 

With its eerie yet beautiful guitar melodies, driving rhythm section and droning violin, organ and trumpet parts, The Warm Side encompasses an array of lush textures that create an engaging dynamic. This unique sound embodies what Brisbane has come to expect from Nikko, capturing the energy of the band’s well-renowned live show with the polish of Naomune Anzai’s reputed flair for treating atmospheric rock. This debut album is the culmination of years of solid gigging, self-recording and self-releasing that has seen Nikko refine their genre-blending style.