Playing Around
By Lydia Smith (that's Guangzhou)
Updated: 2004-04-14 15:40

In 1999 Ken, Ray and Bin and Gil formed one of Guangzhou's newest alternative bands and named it wuliaoqi, meaning Endless. Although some tracks on their debut album Game may seem to be just that, at times they have been known to really rock out.

their style is difficult to define - they incorporate rock, metal and indie stles into a unique sound. "We don't want to fix a stle, we want to take things naturally. What's important isn't they style but the idea the music express," remarked Bin, who did much of the talking for the band.

Despite being local lads they mainly sing in Mandarin. "We're Chinese, we shouldn't restrict our meaning to only Guangdong. However, music shouldn't be limited by language," urged Bin.

While they don't let language define them, they do feel Canto groups have a special flavour due to their southern culture. "Beijing is the centre of politics; and lyrics there may focus on this. Here we have a softer environment and more room to choose."

Choice and individuality are vital to Wuliaoqi's members. Ray and Bin left university because they felt constrained in their studies. This passion for expression is palpable in their music - these guys aren't in it for the money. They produce their own songs and are managing and promoting themselves on this 50-gig tour. Their nine-track album is professionally presented bearing their icon, a handless clock.

the diverse tracks are a mix of mysterious sounding vocals and bass heavy rhythms. Tempos vary as different beats and melodies are introduced revealing the influence of British bands such as Suede and Radiohead. Each member has a different favourite track on the album: For Gil it is the more romantic '21 ri De Yong Tan Diao' whereas Ken prefers 'You Xi's for its instrumental blending'. For Bin it's 'Jing Qian Hui Gu' as the song 'flows freely from his mind.'

This is only the beginning for Wuliaoqi. But if this tight-knit group retains their passion for music and creative induviduality, their success could trly be endless.