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“Now it’s clearer once and for all that the continuing existence of this group is reason enough alone to believe in the exceptional potential of music, not just to expand our minds but to fuel our hearts. We’re on a ladder to God, and Swans are leading the way” – Drowned in Sound
This February, Split Works invites you to a pre-JUE audience with Swans. The band that laid the groundwork for post rock stalwarts Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Mogwai, and Isis, will alight on Shanghai and Beijing for debut shows in a land where post rock reigns emperor of the underground. You do not want to miss the massive, raw, hypnotic, and all-encompassing energy of Swans.
Swans, led by Michael Gira, formed in 1982 amongst a climate that bred the likes of Sonic Youth and Lydia Lunch. They spearheaded the No Wave movement before disbanding in 1997. After a more than ten-year hiatus, Michael Gira gathered Norman Westberg, Christoph Hahn, Phil Puleo, Thor Harris, and Christopher Pravdica together and created the albums My Father Will Guide Me Up A Rope To The Sky (2010) and 2012’s The Seer.
In May 2014, Swans came out with their third album since reuniting – To Be Kind. The record includes a score of guests including St. Vincent, Little Annie, Cold Specks, and previous Swans member Bill Reiflin. To Be Kind shows a more tender side to Swans, while still encompassing dark undertones and hypnotic trance-like sounds the band is known for. It is the first Swans album to break the top 40 charts in both Europe and the U.S.
“Avant-garde to the extreme, Gira’s music is an all-encompassing experience that somehow affects your entire sensory system. You don’t just hear it or listen to it, but feel it.” － NME
Split Works looks forward to seeing you at Swans as a pre-JUE concert!
Swans Concert Details
【SHANGHAI】
Date: February 3, 2015 – Tuesday
Time：8pm
Door：220RMB
Presale: 180RMB
Venue: QSW Centre 1F – Q.Hall.
Address: No. 179 Yichang Rd., nr. Jiangning Rd.
Presale Link: https://yoopay.cn/event/swansShanghai
【BEIJING】
Date: February 4, 2015 – Wednesday
Time：8pm
Door：220RMB
Presale: 180RMB
Venue: Yugong Yishan
Address: 3-2 Zhangzizhong Lu, Dongcheng District (东城区张自忠路3-2号)
Presale Link: https://yoopay.cn/event/swansBeijing
Links
Split Works official website：www.spli-t.com
NME album review: http://www.nme.com/reviews/swans/15298#AlGf0LcW40J70PGJ.99
Drowned in Sound review: http://drownedinsound.com/releases/18213/reviews/4147719
Young God Records : http://younggodrecords.com/collections/swans
Mute Records: http://mute.com/
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 four music festivals (with a 5th in the works) 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 More Music, we love music, we love China and we love you.
Get up close and personal: Wechat (@splitworks), Facebook (splitworks), Instagram (@splitworks), Twitter (@splitworks), Weibo (@splitworks潮流音乐), Douban (Split Works) and www.spli-t.com[:zh]
这是一件疯狂的、富有吸引力的、极具野心的、与众不同的艺术作品。 ——NME对《To Be Kind》的评价
2015年2月，作为《觉》音乐+艺术节的预热演出，美国传奇摇滚乐团Swans受邀来到中国，并将在上海和北京两地作专场演出。众所周知Swans是一支不断挑战后朋、实验噪音和前卫音乐疆界的传奇乐团。他们在纯器乐音乐方面的创新更是影响了一代后摇乐队：Godspeed You! Black Emperor、Mogwai以及Isis等等。这是Swans创团至今首次踏上中国的土地，相信所有的乐迷都会抓住这次难能可贵的观赏机会。
早在80年代，作为纽约地下界No Wave运动中的骨干分子，Swans就和Sonic Youth、Lydia Lunch齐名，在后朋、噪音、实验等领域都占有一席之地。1997年乐队解散，灵魂人物Michael Gira以The Angel Of Light之名转投实验民谣领域，并继续经营极具性格的自家厂牌Young God（旗下拥有Akron/Family、Devendra Banhart、David Coulter等优秀乐队）。而出人意料的是，十三年后，昔日黑暗天鹅王子Gira再次化身Swans重现江湖。
多数老牌乐队重组不过是为了捞钱，但Swans满血复活后的状态实则惊人。 正如Gira所说，重组Swans并不是出于怀旧之情，而是一个全新的开始。复出当年低调发行的《My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky》的确证实了Gira的野心。专辑延续了Swans极简暴力的音乐美学，加入了更多实验性的因子，而丰富的旋律和考究的音色则更显迷幻和前卫的特质，从头到尾依然是Gira永不妥协的重口味。对于新乐迷来说，Swans的新作品相比早期更入时、更大气，而对于自《Swans Are Dead》苦等了13年的老乐迷来说，听到的则是更多的惊喜。在各大音乐媒体的一片叫好声中，Swans堪称当年最靠谱的复出乐队。卷土重来的Swans的每一张专辑质量都相当之高，在离2012年的传奇之作《The Seer》发行不到两年，最新双CD力作《To Be Kind》在今年上半年重磅出击，横扫各大评论网站，在挑剔的Pitchfork上拿到了9.2的高分，而Swans也凭借这张新作在创团三十多年来首次在美国和欧洲荣登Top 40榜单。
Swans是一支令人琢磨不透的实验先锋乐队，尽管老牌，但是他们听上去一点不像是从80年代穿越而来，反而更新鲜，更具实验性，完全没有年代感。虽然他们的音乐对于大多数乐迷来说不会是轻松的听觉体验，但相信你聆听过后，依然会肯定他们的音乐能力。2015年2月，让新老乐迷在Swans演出现场相聚！
演出信息
【上海站】
日期：2015年2月3日 星期二
时间：20:00
票价：220元（现场）/180元（预售）
场馆：浅水湾文化艺术中心一楼大剧场
地址：普陀区宜昌路179号，近江宁路
预售链接：https://yoopay.cn/event/swansShanghai
【北京站】
日期：2015年2月4日 星期三
时间：20:00
票价：220元（现场）/180元（预售）
场馆：愚公移山
地址：东城区张自忠路3-2号
预售链接：https://yoopay.cn/event/swansBeijing
相关链接
Split Works官网：www.spli-t.com
NME音乐评论： http://www.nme.com/reviews/swans/15298#AlGf0LcW40J70PGJ.99
Young God Records官网：http://younggodrecords.com/collections/swans
Mute Records：http://mute.com
关于Split Works
Split Works是一家基于上海和北京的外资音乐演出公司，一直和诸多国际品牌进行合作，始终围绕音乐、品牌、创意和青年文化组织和推广各类活动。2006年成立至今，Split Works已为Sonic Youth、Diplo、Owl City、Jose Gonzalez、Ghostface Killah、Andrew Bird等众多艺术家举办过中国及亚洲地区的演出，并成功举办了2007年 “十跃”音乐节以及2011年在北京上海跨城上演的黑兔音乐节。从2009年起，Split Works每年春季主办的《觉》音乐+艺术节是一个为期三周的，将国内外的优秀音乐人、创意艺术家和爱好者聚集在一起的开源城市音乐艺术节。[:]