Second Hand Roses to rock Beijing with their biggest show

Illuminated by a single spotlight, Liang Long walks onto the stage and sits on a small wooden chair.

The lead singer and songwriter of indie rock band Second Hand Roses doesn't need to say much to attract attention. His trademark flowery jacket, bright red lipstick and round vintage sunglasses naturally conjure up waves of screams from the audiences. Holding a pair of cymbals, he shakes them slightly, while asking the crowd, "Shall we start?"

The curtain rises. On stage are band members Yao Lan on guitar, Li Ziqiang on bass, Wu Zekun on Chinese traditional instruments, mainly the suona, and Sun Quan on drums. Wearing black suits and sunglasses, they look like bodyguards standing behind Liang.

The next 40 minutes see the band performing songs from their latest album, Stealing the Show, which continues their bold combination of traditional Chinese instruments with hard rock beats. The ironic humor in the lyrics, which the band is known for, adds fire to the show.

They also announce their upcoming concert, which will be the band's largest show ever. It will be held on Dec 7 at the Workers' Gymnasium in Beijing.

"We only have 16 days to sell tickets since we just received permission to hold the concert," says Liang. "But we are not worried about the empty seats because Second Hand Roses is different."

Liang, 36, has reason to be confident now that the band has a large fan base in China.

Stealing the Show, their first album in eight years, is also their debut collaboration with Modernsky Records, one of the largest indie music labels in China. One of the band's biggest fans, renowned artist Zhang Xiaogang, painted the cover for the album, which has the five members appearing in the shape of their Chinese zodiac signs.

Besides the music, the strong visual impact brought by Liang, who has dressed up in various costumes, like qipao, high heels and army suit, is also a big selling point for their concert.

"I put on heavy makeup because I was not confident enough to perform in the beginning. I felt safe behind the mask and I could go wild naturally onstage," says Liang. "I never thought about the makeup seriously until more fans told me that the way I look matches well with the ideas in our songs. Then I decided to make it as a symbol for Second Hand Roses."

"Second Hand Roses is good at mixing diversified elements. The more different those elements are, the more interesting the result will be," says Liang, adding that one song from the new album is a remix of We Will Rock You by Queen and there are others which mix with old Chinese folk songs.

The first and most successful element the band has fused into their music is errenzhuan, a folk song-and-dance act that was popular in Northeast China.

Liang says he was inspired to include errenzhuan, which he grew up with though he didn't like it at first.

As an angry young man living in Beijing, Liang felt lost, his ambitions stymied. He returned to his hometown Harbin in Heilongjiang province and worked for local groups, who played music at weddings and funerals to make ends meet.

"Those two months made me feel real," he says. The experience also inspired him to write one of Second Hand Roses' most famous songs, Cai Hua, or Picking Flowers.

Renowned music critic Huang Liaoyuan, who is also the band's manager, met the musicians in 2000 and was impressed by their style.

"Though they have only released three albums in 15 years, each one is unique and pioneering in Chinese rock music history," he says.

"When all the rockers yelled out their anger through rock music, Second Hand Roses used a hilarious approach to express their thoughts, which was very refreshing for me then," he says.

With the help of Huang, the band is also working on its first theater drama, which will be completed next year. According to Liang, the story will be based on his early experience as a security guard in Beijing before he founded the band.

"We will push our music up to another crazy level because we want to be different," Liang says.

chennan@chinadaily.com.cn