[:en]
“Primitive Calculators aren’t alone with a strong understanding of how fucked the world is, but what sets them apart from just about everybody is their understanding of how to mirror it back in a way that captures fathomless absurdity in a drawn-out guttural sound.” – Tiny Mix Tapes
Genjing Records as part of JUE | Music + Art are proud to present the brash, visceral sound of Primitive Calculators to Beijing and Shanghai. Once one of the rawest acts of the 70’s Australian punk scene, 35 years later they’re back and meaner than ever.
Primitive Calculators formed in 1978 in Melbourne, Australia. Their music was influenced by proto-punk acts like The Godz and The Velvet Underground, Texan 1960s psychedelic punk, James Brown, and The Silver Apples as well as Australian bands like Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs. They are often compared to The Screamers from Los Angeles, Suicide, and bands from New York’s No Wave music scene.
They released their debut single “I Can’t Stop It / Do That Dance” in 1979 and were instrumental in organizing a series of gigs named “Little Band nights,” where hastily-formed bands would play for 15 minutes each. This led to the recording of a compilation EP. They became known for their use of a screeching Mosrite Ventures model guitar, primitive synthesizers (a Wasp and Roland SH2), an electronic organ played through effects pedals, and an extra fast drum machine (Roland CR-78).
The Primitive Calculators played their last gig in March 1980, though their self-titled live album came out in the early 1980s. The band reformed briefly in 1986 to perform a live version of their song “Pumping Ugly Muscle” in the Richard Lowenstein film “Dogs In Space” (they later appeared in Lowenstein’s 2009 documentary We’re Livin’ on Dog Food).
Interest in the band was sustained though, and their recordings continued to be re-released until January 2009, when the band reformed for the inaugural Australian All Tomorrow’s Parties music festival, curated by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. The band subsequently commenced the recording of a new album, called The World Is Fucked, which was released in 2013. Lead singer Stuart Grant explained the album title in a December 2013 interview:
“The album is called The World is Fucked because that’s what we believe. The world’s not any better now – in fact, it’s worse. I can remember when the hippopotamus and rhinoceros weren’t endangered species. I can remember when there was opposition, and when Chicago School economics wasn’t a naturalized reality of life. And the anger in our music is because it doesn’t need to be like that – and we don’t need to be this nasty society.”
JUE x Wizard Tang “Limitless” Photography Exhibition Opening Party
The JUE x Wizard Tang “Limitless” Photo Exhibit will hold its opening party in conjunction with Primitive Calculators in Beijing. Audience members can check out stunning photos of “Limitless” on the second floor exhibition space at Yugong Yishan!
Show Details
【BEIJING】
Date: March 13, 2015 – Friday
Time: 9pm
Door: 80RMB/60RMB (student)
Venue: Yugong Yishan
Address: 3-2 Zhang Zhizhong Road, Dongcheng District (北京市东城区张自忠路3-2号)
Support: Birdstriking, SUBS
【SHANGHAI】
Date: March 20, 2015 – Friday
Time：9pm
Door: 80RMB/60RMB (student)
Venue: Yuyintang
Address: 851 Kaixuan Road, Changning (上海凯旋路851号)
Support: Snapline and Sontag Shogun
Links
JUE | Music + Art official website：www.juefestival.com
Primitive Calculators
Artist website: http://primitivecalculators.com/
Snapline
Douban: http://site.douban.com/snapline/
Birstriking
Maybe Mars Label site: http://maybemars.org/index.php/artists/birdstriking/?lang=en
SUBS
Douban: http://site.douban.com/subs/
About JUE | Music + Art:
觉 / JUE – to sense (as in: an assault on all 5 senses)
JUE | Music + Art was founded in 2009 to bring the creative communities of Shanghai & Beijing closer. Every year since then, promoters Split Works have pooled their resources with those of their favorite friends from across the artistic spectrum to present a multi-venue, multi-disciplinary romp across the middle of March. If you want a snapshot of where China is creatively, you could do worse than spending a week at JUE | Music + Art.
“JUE sneaks into the city streets and lights the creative torch ablaze. The freshest international artists and locally-rooted creative join forces to switch on the creative pulse of these cities. When JUE is happening, the whole city seems alive” – Jetty @ Sina Weibo Music
We look forward to welcoming you…
About Genjing Records:
Genjing Records is a Beijing-based record label specializing in vinyl releases of Chinese artists. Genjing serves as a promotional resource in support of the Chinese DIY community and spreads information about Chinese bands abroad while raising awareness of international DIY scenes within China. Genjing products are available through mail order and global partner labels. Information about each release, as well as news and interviews concerning China’s vinyl community can be found on the Genjing Webste: genjingrecords.com [:zh]
“多少有人已经意识到这个世界有多么糟糕，但几乎没人能像Primitive Calculators那样，将自己的作品当作一面镜子，用歌声将社会现实反射传达给听众。” ——Tiny Mix Tapes
Primitive Calculators粗狂爆裂的嗓音即将响彻《觉》音乐＋艺术节北京与上海现场的上空。作为70年代澳大利亚最原始的朋克乐队之一，他们35年后的卷土归来意味深远。
1978年，Primitive Calculators在澳大利亚墨尔本成立。Proto-Punk代表乐队The Gods和The Velvet Underground，60年代美国迷幻朋克鼻祖James Brown、The Silver Apples，以及澳洲传奇前辈Billy Thorpe、The Aztecs 都对他们产生过深远影响。他们也经常被拿来与The Screamers和Suicide 乐队相提并论。
1979年，乐队发行了首张单曲《 I Can’t Stop It / Do That Dance》，并在当时的“Little Band Nights”系列活动的演出中崭露头角。他们因独特古怪的乐器引起了大家的兴趣和关注，比如尖锐声响的前卫吉他， 原始效果器（黄蜂和Roland SH2）, 一个从效果器里发声的电子器械，还有一个节奏极快的电子鼓（Roland CR-78）。
Primitive Calculators 最后一次演出是在1980年3月，他们的同名现场专辑也在80年代初发行。乐队在1986年短暂地重组小聚，在Richard Lowenstein执导的电影《Dogs In Space》里现身，并现场表演了代表作《Pumping Ugly Muscle》。
十多年过去，人们对乐队的兴趣非但没随时间消散，反而怀念有加。正如大家期待的那样，他们受邀在澳洲All Tomorrow’s Parties 音乐节（由Nick Cave和the Bad Seeds举办）公开亮相并正式宣告复出，同时之前的作品也在2009年1月再版发行。之后乐队开始着手录制新专辑《The World Is Fucked》，并在2013年成功发行。主唱Stuart Grant在采访中谈及专辑名这样说道：
“专辑名之所以叫做The World Is Fucked, 因为我们确实这么认为。这个世界没有越来越好——相反，越来越让我们失望。我至今还记得河马犀牛还不是稀有动物的时候；我记得反对派正常存在的时候，芝加哥学校经济并不是生活压力的时候。我们的愤怒来自这些恶果的不必要性——我们没必要把社会搞的那么糟。”
Primitive Calculators在北京的专场演出将同时作为“觉·无界”蛊师摄影展的开幕派对呈现。乐迷在一楼观看演出之余也可上二楼展厅欣赏蛊师富有冲击力的现场记录影像。
演出信息
【北京站】
日期：2015年3月13日 星期五
时间：21:00
场馆：愚公移山
地址：东城区张自忠路3-2号
票价：80元（现场）/ 60元（学生）
现场支持：Birdstriking / SUBS
【上海站】
日期：2015年3月20日 星期五
时间：21:00
场馆：育音堂
地址：凯旋路851号，近延安西路
票价：80元（现场）/ 60元（学生）
现场支持：Sontag Shogun / Snapline
相关链接：
《觉》音乐+艺术节 官网：www.juefestival.com
《觉》官网微博：@觉音乐艺术节
Primitive Calculators
官网：http://primitivecalculators.com/
Sontag Shogun
官网：http://www.sontagshogun.com
Snapline
豆瓣主页：http://site.douban.com/snapline/
Birdstriking
豆瓣主页：http://site.douban.com/birdstriking/
SUBS
豆瓣主页：http://site.douban.com/subs/
关于《觉》音乐+艺术节
觉 / JUE – 去感知 (接受5种感官的洗礼)
2009年诞生的《觉》音乐+艺术节，始终致力于帮助增强创意社团之间的交流。每年三月中旬的上海和北京，主办方Split Works“开功”将自己丰富的音乐资源与朋友们的艺术资源整合起来，呈现出一场多场馆多类型的音乐艺术盛筵。想亲身体验中国最有趣的创意景致？请来《觉》感受一整个星期吧！
“《觉》潜入城市的街头巷尾，发起了关于创意的火炬接力。全球最新锐的音乐人和艺术家，与扎根在本地的创意工作者走到一起，用创造力接通城市的脉搏，让整个城市，在有《觉》的日子里，实实在在地鲜活起来。”——Jetty | 新浪微博音乐高级策划经理
我们期待你的到来！
关于根茎唱片
根茎唱片是一个基于北京，专门发行中国乐队、艺术家的黑胶唱片的厂牌；同时致力于在中国宣传黑胶唱片和DIY文化，同时增强中国当下音乐场景与世界各地的DIY文化场景的联系；并目标成为一个支持中国DIY社区的、在海外传播中国乐队信息同时在中国提升国际间DIY合作意识的宣传资源。[:]