Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏÍø

is a weekly Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏÍø column, serving up songs from bands living and making music in China (or coming to China, or thinking about coming to China, or whatever). Copyright holders: if you would like your song removed, please contact us , and we'll honor your request promptly.

Yes it’s Monday again and we have about three minutes to reminiscence over the party pictures of prettier people’s lives before the next holiday weekend kicks off this Wednesday evening. If you were one of the 10,000 people who braved the rain for last weekend’s MIDI Festival, a.k.a. Shanghai Woodstock ’14, then you’ll be happy to know that the impending that starts on Thursday is supposed to be rain free for all three days. This year is a banger with artists like Explosions in the Sky, Low Wormwood, le Justice, Hedghog, Cut Copy, and a zeppelin filled lineup of Chinese and foreign artists. Pick up your presale tickets and stay tuned for more Strawberry updates.

Today I’m going to share some music from another festival across the pond. Rainbow Disco Club (RDC) is an annual outdoor dance event from Tokyo, and this year the RDC kids are doing a on Friday with artists Prins Thomas and Hessle Audio playing alongside AC Slater in the Ice Cream Truck room. AC Slater is playing Strawberry and this is their official after-party, which also includes local trouble makers Mau Mau, the UHHH, Teasy, and more. Let’s get into some of that Rainbow Disco Club chk chk boom music while we drudge through the next three days of work. But I’m telling you kids, up here in my mind I’m already laid out on that sweet concrete slab called the sipping on a Bacardi Breezer, because that’s the only drink available at Strawberry.



Tokyo’s Rainbow Disco Club has become one of the most well known events in the land of the rising sun. They had a solid start in 2010, hosting the legendary DJ Harvey, then ran into some trouble when their 2011 festival was canceled due to that earthquake that ravaged the island. Then in 2012, a typhoon turned their Harumi Port Terminal location into a swimming pool, resulting in yet another cancellation. 2013 went off without a hitch and fast forward to 2014 and our humble PRC town is lucky enough to host a RDC showcase gig which features Norwegian disco producer Prins Thomas at his first show in China.

Prins Thomas is a personal favorite of mine, with much of his work incorporating everything from kraut rock to spaced-out pysch on top of those sweet house and techno beats. Thomas first made a name for himself releasing work with fellow Scandinavian producer Lindstrøm on Eskimo records. Pushing the space disco envelope even further, Mr. Thomas has also released on labels like Kompakt, Rong, and Bull Pupp. Along with original compositions, the pysch boy from Norway has countless remixes under his belt for artists such as Alexander Robotnick and Black Devil Disco Club. There is just something about his cosmic tunes that make you want to forget the world of conventional dance music forever and buy a poncho didgeridoo combo outfit to replace all those Ed Hardy shirts in your closet. Check out some Prins Thomas tracks here and see you on the Milky Way this Friday at Arkham.

Prins Thomas - Granparadiso


Lindstrom and Prins Thomas - Swoon




RDC has strong ties with the website and also , both of which Hessle Audio represent for. They're also playing this Friday. is first a record label and second a DJ crew made up of Ben UFO, Pearson Sound, and Pangaea. All three will be in town for Friday’s gig, which has one of the best lineups of the year so far. Ben UFO distinguishes himself by strictly DJing and not producing, but Pangaea and Pearson Sound put out tracks in the realm of Dubstep and UK Garage.

David Kennedy aka Pearson Sound has been slinging his brand of bangers for the past eight years or so and more recently has been taking influences from classic grime artists like Dizzee Rascal. Straying away from slick, formulaic dubstep, Kennedy and his crew at Hessle Audio are just a bunch of music dorks who love dubstep, grime, and UK garage. Let’s check out a Pearson Sound track along with a little introduction video of Ben UFO.

Pearson Sound - PLSN


Ben UFO – Introduction




Representing the Strawberry festival official after-party is heavy bass house artist . Having done work with the infamous records for years, AC Slater also slings his own tracks on his Brooklyn based Party Like Us label. His label also recently struck a partnership with Dim Mak, which is scheduled to flood the market with that high energy bass music representing the best of underground house. Friday you can expect AC Slater to play tracks from labels like Rinse, Black Butter, Dirtybird, and of course Trouble & Bass. The self-taught producer / remixer has over 30 releases under his name making him one of the most blogged about electronic artists out there. With roots in Happy Hardcore that date back to the year 2000, Slater has collaborated with some of the bass world’s best artists like Drop the Lime, Brak, and Daywalker. Keeping hope alive that decent hardcore can still come out of America check out AC Slater this Friday in the Ice Cream Truck room.

AC Slater & Flinch - Moonlight


Alright, breaks over kids. Get your nose back to the grindstone and remember - those grey clouds will clear up soon and labor day is just over the horizon.


***