A Guide to Chinese Post-rock 重塑你对国内后摇的定义

Post-rock can be perplexing for the uninitiated. With its fluid use of analog and digital instruments, irregular chord progressions, and vocal-less compositions, the subgenre has upended the formulaic structure of traditional rock music. Post-rock songs are more like lengthy, melody-led narratives, designed to evoke powerful emotions and whisk listeners away to distant lands.

China’s first post-rock band wasn’t formed until 1998, but the scene has matured over the past two decades. As bands began experimenting, many started to include traditional instruments, which resulted in sounds with a distinctly Chinese flair. These unique sonic textures are what helped put Chinese post-rock on the map, but many bands are still flying under the radar.

In this edition of Neocha Select, we’ve put together a list of Chinese post-rock bands that we think you should check out. From up-and-comers to veterans, these bands from across the Middle Kingdom offer a gamut of different styles that’ll satisfy music lovers of all persuasions.

Wangwen

Region: Dalian, Liaoning
Year Formed: 1999
Style: Grandiose, Plaintive, Atmospheric

Wangwen is one of the most iconic bands in the Chinese post-rock scene, and they’ve been an international presence since their early years. They’ve crafted a signature sound that’s brash but desolate, forming dense soundscapes tinged with melancholic undertones. It’s precisely the band’s dimensionality that has turned even the harshest critics into fans. Guitarist Yuan Laoqian has summed it up the best, “Post-rock is subversive. It deconstructs melodic structures and explores an instrument’s full spectrum of sounds. It doesn’t follow genre expectations.”

Zhaozhe

Region: Guangdong
Year Formed: 1998
Style: Traditional, Folk, Melodic

In China, Wangwen may be considered the quintessential post-rock band of the north but Zhaoze claims that title for the south. Though both are pioneers of the Chinese post-rock scene, they have vastly different styles. Zhaozhe broke grounds by being the first post-rock band to incorporate traditional Chinese instruments into their music: the result is a captivating sound that seamlessly weaves the elegance of Chinese folk music with the ferocity of rock. Blistering chord changes and nimble strumming on a modified guqin (a seven-stringed Chinese zither) combined with their guitar riffs, basslines, and drums make for emotionally charged tracks that excite the imagination.

Return to Delicate Past

Region: Henan
Year Formed: 2007
Style: Mellow, Ethereal, Romantic

Return to Delicate Past is a post-rock band that doesn’t believe in overengineering their sound. Fitting to their name, the band produces airy compositions through a less-is-more approach, one that implores listeners to sift through each note and take in the melodic details. Their music reminds listeners that simplicity has its merits and rewards those who aren’t afraid of stepping into unfamiliar sonic terrains.

Sparrow

Region: Beijing
Year Formed: 2007
Style: Grandiose, Romantic

Sparrow‘s music marries instrumental ambiance and electronic influences with math-rock time signatures, creating tracks that brim with warmth and strength. Through razor-sharp drum beats and meticulous songwriting, they’ve crafted a distinctive sound that ebbs and swells with intensity, one that listeners can get lost in for days.

Little Wizard

Region: Shaoxing, Zhejiang
Year Formed: 2008
Style: Brash, Dissonant

Despite the electronic and punk influences that appear in their music, Little Wizard has a style that leans towards traditional rock sounds. In their music, the slow burn of emotions found in typical post-rock is nowhere to be found, instead replaced by an unrelenting energy that kicks off on the getgo. Powered along by punk-rock drums and electronic synths, their music hit listeners like a defibrillator to the chest.

Amber

Region: Xi’an, Shanxi
Year Formed: 2008
Style: Rhythmic, Gentle

Though the band was formed in Xi’an, Amber‘s music is far removed from the gravitas that many associate with the ancient Chinese city. Their sound is elegant, mesmerizing, and infused with a contemporary sensibility. The track, “Hangover Star,” is often cited as many people’s first taste of post-rock in China. With recurrent melodies and a slow-ascending emotionality, Amber’s music soars to climactic heights before caressing listeners with euphonic harmonies.

Mofei

Region: Shanghai
Year Formed: 2008
Style: Clean, Down-to-earth

From “Dopamine” to their latest release “Spring Festival,” Mofei has a playful approach to choosing track names. The way they interact with online fans is similarly tongue-in-cheek, often responding to comments with a heavy of self-deprecating humor. The band has crafted a distinguishing sound that’s raw and unpretentious. Listeners won’t find bleary-eyed melancholy or bludgeoning rhythms in their music; what they will find is a sound that, much like the band itself, is introspective, pure, and sincere.

Tation

Region: Qinghai, Xining
Year Found: 2012 年
Style: Chinese-style, Grandiose, Abstract

Tation‘s music is often described as “post-rock from the highlands of China” and it is: the members are all from the snow-capped mountains of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. With their sharp focus on instrumentation, Tation creates meandering tracks that combine classic folk instruments with experimental electronic sounds. Their tracks, through masterful manipulation of tension, take listeners in and out of riotous crescendos and spacious interludes. The band’s Chinese name, Tian Sheng (meaning “sound from the heavens”), is inspired by a line from poet Li Bai’s Gu Feng: “They disappear, suddenly, into the shadows; but the wind returns with a voice from the heavens.” Considering the polarity of their sounds, it’s a name that feels particularly fitting.

Xiantong

Region: Weihai, Shandong
Year Found: 2015 (Disbanded in 2017)
Style: Pure, Unconventional

Guitarist Dong Shu was once asked about his musical aspirations. He answered that he hoped his music could be like a child, able to cast aside worldly cares and exist with a fairy-like sense of wonder. This is how the band name, Xiantong (meaning Fairy Child), came about. The band’s mentality of “ignoring outside influences and going against the mainstream” has attracted them a devout following during their active years. Though the band has since disbanded, their uncompromising approach to music-making is something that can still be appreciated.

Before the Sunrise

Region: Beijing
Year Found: 2015
Style: Soulful, Melodic

Not much information is available online about Before the Sunrise. Even on their official channels, the band’s bio features only two sparse sentences: “Darkness and cold dissipate with the coming dawn. Hope and light are reborn with every rising sun.” Their sound, while classifiable as post-rock, stands out from bands who’ve pigeonholed themselves into the genre—it’s music that has a soul. The band pairs digital sounds with human vocals to create jaunty, hummable tunes. These songs move along at an unhurried pace and often end abruptly, leaving listeners craving for more.

From thunderous cacophanies and soothing stillness to optimism and despair, the appeal of post-rock lies in the universality of its sounds and the emotions they convey. The magic of the genre lies in its ability to captivate the imagination and invite listeners to engage with the music on their own terms.

Due to copyright issues, more songs can be found on the bands’ official channels.

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Contributor: Chen Yuan