Beijing Bop
‘I’m not sure what you mean by indie,” Matteo, the Sardinian bass player of Beijing-based trashcore punk band Deprive, told this musically illiterate author. “To me, there are two main definitions. First, indie as in independent, which could encompass any music genre, any artist or musician not signed to major or big labels. Second, indie as in that genre that puts on the alternative mask but what it really aspires to is airtime.” And so, adhering to the first definition and accompanied by a sneering score of grungy guitar riffs, a voyage into the belly of the beast unfolds: Time to hit those Beijing underground notes.
Much like a riff, a pattern of notes repeated throughout a musical piece, yours truly over the, (literally “because, therefore”). Heavy guitar slashes and sharp blasts from a , a type of Chinese horn, penetrated the air and eardrums alike. One of the biggest Beijing bands at the time, Second Hand Rose (Ershou Meigui) brought a distinct mix of full-bodied rock ‘n roll, prime punk and traditional Chinese instrumentation such as the , dating back to the Han Dynasty (202 B.C.–A.D. 220), to the scene. The band reveled in taboos like innuendo-laced lyrics and genderbending costumes with a hint of Peking Opera, embracing all the contradictions of being a modern Chinese artist; they floated in the twilight zone between their underground roots and the mainstream madding crowds. The Amsterdam audience devoured their performance with ravenous gusto and asked for seconds.
