“Some albums move you. Others push you to buy a guitar. Cloud Nothings do both.” – Consequence of Sound
A band incapable of writing a bad song.
Just put on any Cloud Nothings track and you’ll find something that’ll stick in your head. Their prolific lo-fi rock is fun, frenetic and crisp. Crunchy guitars, hammering drums. That sense of endless youth and a spirit of reckless abandon.
Frontman Dylan Baldi is a bit of a pop-prodigy, a man whose brain conjures hook after tuneful hook – a constant stream of impossibly catchy singalong choruses. And also the occasional full-throated scream which “continue,” he says, “the family tradition of yelling at kids.”
Except this time, the kids will be yelling alongside. On stage, Cloud Nothings are spry and jumpy and tense – pedal-to-the-floor, tension-igniting rock’n’roll. For the faithful, it’s a slice of pop-punk Nirvana.
Friday April 14 at Modernsky Lab Beijing and Saturday, April 15 at Yuyintang Shanghai.Two thoroughly fuzzed-out evenings, with Backspace (Beijing) and Lao Ayi (Shanghai) on support.
Cloud Nothings is the brainchild of Dylan, a Cleveland, Ohio native who was still in his teens when the buzz about his music started. Baldi was majoring in audio recording at college when he dropped out to focus on the music he was making at home. After a few months, he uploaded the songs “Hey Cool Kid” and “Whaddaya Wanna Know” to his MySpace page, which led to gigs with Woods and Real Estate, and a slew of early singles. On the strength of all this music, Baldi signed to tastemakers Carpark in the U.S. and to Wichita Records in the U.K.
Along with dates with Wavves, Titus Andronicus, and Best Coast, Baldi began work on Cloud Nothings’ self-titled full-length debut, which arrived in January 2011. Later that year, they went into the studio with Steve Albini, birthing 2012’s much rawer, heavier Attack on Memory (which received a hipster-approved 8.6 on Pitchfork).
By this time, a few ‘basic principles’ had been established for what would become the Cloud Nothings signature: breakneck pace, chaotic instrumental landscapes and consistently noisy guitars. Every Cloud Nothings album now represented a different ‘take’ on this core ethos, Where Attack on Memory was freewheeling lo-fi, 2014’s Here and Nowhere Else added some psych and experimental stylings to the mix.
Just this month, the formula took another left turn. 2017’s Life Without Soundis being hailed as their most ‘mature’ work yet – shaving off the rougher edges of their past sound for something more like a brilliant sheen. The occasional guttural roars are still present, thankfully.
Friday, February 14 at Beijing’s Modern Sky Lab with Backspace. Saturday, February 15 at Shanghai’s YYT with Lao Ayi. We’re expecting to pogo to the stratosphere.
Split Works Presents: Cloud Nothings
【Beijing】
Date: Friday, 14 April, 8:30pm
Venue: Modernsky Lab
Address: Galaxy SOHO, Chaoyangmen, B1/F, Bldg. D, Rm. 5-108, Dongcheng District
(东城区朝阳门银河SOHO D座B1层5-108)
Tickets: 120 RMB (Presale)/150 RMB (Door)
Pre-sale Link: https://yoopay.cn/event/CloudNothingsBJ
Support: Backspace
* Pre-sales end at 12 noon, Apr.14th, 2017
Tickets once sold cannot be refunded!
【Shanghai】
Date: Saturday, 15 April, 8:30pm
Venue: Yuyintang
Address: 851 Kaixuan Road near West Yan’an Road
(凯旋路851号,近延安西路口)
Tickets: 120 RMB (Presale)/150 RMB (Door)
Pre-sale Llink: https://yoopay.cn/event/CloudNothingsSH
Support: Lao Ayi、masterliar
* Pre-sales end at 12 noon, Apr.15th, 2017
Tickets once sold cannot be refunded!
Links
Split Works official website：www.spli-t.com
Cloud Nothings official website: http://www.cloudnothings.com
Backspace on Douban: https://site.douban.com/backspace717/
About Split Works:
Split Works has been rocking in the free (ish) world since 2006. Working with inspirational artists from across the globe, the good people at Split Works HQ have been a key contributor to the continued rise of China’s music scene.
Split Works has launched five music festivals and promoted over 400 tours to 30 Chinese cities, always striving to stay true to a familiar refrain: the music has to be special, every single time. From Godspeed You! Black Emperor to Sonic Youth, from Thee Oh Sees to Mac Demarco and Shabazz Palaces, from Black Rabbit to JUE and Wooozy to Concrete & Grass and More Music. We love music, we love China and we love you.