Don't Miss:
The Paradox Museum
The first Paradox Museum in Asia with a 1300 square meter on Huaihai Lu space dedicate to filling yourWeChat moments. Good for kids and grown ups.
Tonglefang
Date: Sunday to Tuesday, 12-10pm
Address: 555 Haifang Lu | Details
Price: 85-100rmb
The TÖRGGELEN Jing'an Wine Festival returns for it's 6th edition into the courtyard behind Zeitgeist for 3 days for good wine and food. This year’s festival is a tribute to the Alpine tradition of "Törggelen," where the essence of grape harvest and winemaking comes alive. Explore an exceptional selection of wines, cocktails, spirits, and beers, with a special focus on boutique producers and niche terroirs. Delight in diverse pairings with a variety of cuisines, elevating your tasting journey with each delicious bite. Don't miss out.
Shanghai International Motocross Circuit
Date: Sunday and Monday, 9am-5:30pm
Address: 338 Haiwan Lu | Address & Details
Price: 180-3880rmb
MXGP 2024, the world's premier motocross racing event, the highlight of closed-course, off-road motorcycle racing, is coming to Shanghai after its Shanghai premiere 2019. It is renowned globally alongside F1, WRC, and MOTOGP, which will be held at Shanghai's 336-acre Motocross Circuit in Fengxian. See the culmination of 20 stations and 1,862 races, involving more than 30 teams from more than 20 countries, with more than 70 champion drivers going head-to-head on the dirt track. The races themselves will be surrounded by music stages, high-performance motorcycle demonstrations and exhibitions, professional test drives, and much more.
Shanghai International Dance Center
Date: From Sep 14, 7:30pm/2:00pm/5:00pm
Address: 1650 Hongqiao Lu | Address & Details
Price: 280rmb
Exhale is a Norwegian installation dance theatre. Three performers walk on huge grey materials that slowly rise under them. When fully inflated, the audience are invited inside the big bubble and sees a body in ever-shifting colors floating like a cocoon over their heads. This is the start of the performance Exhale which aims to bring attention to the breath as an interactive element connecting us all.
Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre
Date: Saturday and Sunday, 7:30pm/2:00pm
Address: 288 Anfu Lu | Address & Details
Price: 180-380rmb
The mime Titans performed by OSMOSIS performing arts company from Greece, featuring silent gestures, striking light and shadow effects, and minimalist props, offers an unforgettable journey through the earliest deities of Greek mythology. The director Euripides Laskaridis (director, performer) has been performing since 1995, working with masters of visual Theatre such as Dimitris Papaioannou and Robert Wilson. Expected a theatrical experience merging drama, dance, and visual art at Titans Chinese mainland premiere.
Shanghai International Dance Center
Date: Sunday and Monday, 7:30pm
Address: 1650 Hongqiao Lu | Address & Details
Price: 180-380rmb
Italian choreographer Silvia Gribaudi’s work "Water Lotus" (Graces) draws profound inspiration from Canova's marble statues, "Three Beauties," embodying their radiant and joyful essence. Gribaudi employs a pragmatic, theatrical style laced with black humor to immerse the audience in this unique, vibrant experience. In collaboration with three male actors, she creates a series of dance and comedic vignettes that explore the notion of beauty beyond superficial perfection, inviting the audience to engage with a world where beauty is defined by individual perspective and heartfelt resonance.
Shanghai Concert Hall
Date: Sunday, 2pm
Address: 523 Yan'an Dong Lu | Details
Price: 180rmb
Shanghai Concert Hall will present a Chinese traditional chamber concert featuring music based on the traditional Chinese five-tone scale "Gong, Shang, Jue, Zhi, Yu," which corresponds to the "Spleen, Lung, Liver, Heart, Kidney" in traditional Chinese medicine and the "Earth, Metal, Wood, Fire, Water" elements in Chinese traditional culture. The concert will also integrate live guidance from psychology and art aesthetics, allowing listeners to achieve a peaceful state of mind through the harmonious sounds of traditional Chinese music.
Live Music Picks By Will / LiveChinaMusic |
Will Griffith is a photographer, videographer, writer, and music promoter living in Shanghai. He’s the founder of LiveChinaMusic - a platform dedicated to China's evolving underground music scene.
Singer Space
Date: Saturday, 8pm
Address: 3/F, 1250 Yuyuan Lu | Details
Price: Presale: 190rmb, Full price: 230rmb
Luuv Label - who over the last decade has brought together some of the finest acts in the dream pop realm, as well as some of the finest acts in the Japanese scene, is bringing back Polly - the soaring Tokyo pop act that fuses together shoegaze, post-rock, dream and synth-pop into a delectable feast. With a simmering synth pop veneer that brings to mind acts like Passion Pit or Sigur Ros, the band makes big, fuzzy, and cathartic pop tracks that you either are going to love or hate. Give them a chance, and they might just sweep you off your feet.
Bandai Namco Dream Hall
Date: Sunday, 4:20pm
Address: 179 Yichang Lu | Details
Price: Presale: 180rmb, Full price: 220rmb
Sound of the Youth - a new indoor festival spearheaded by Maybe Mars - looks to capture some of the hottest indie sounds - both here and abroad - over three days in Bandai Namco. It’s a pretty crazy lineup - the perfect deep dive into some of the pioneering indie sounds in China, the freshest new acts catching like wildfire across the country, and some choice cuts from Thailand, Taiwan, Switzerland, and Singapore. Each of the four showcases is worth a look - so no matter what day or venue you pick you’ll surely be content - and likely surprised to discover your new favorite band. Day one has a stellar spread with special guests Soft Pine from Bangkok - a band I caught twice last winter because of how damn good they were - hitting that sweet spot between 90s alt-rock and breezy sun-bleached psych pop - with a rhythmic charge filled with an infectious vitality. Rounding out the evening are krautrock pleasers Backspace from Beijing (another favorite of mine) as well as three-piece psych rock outfit Sweet Sister Session, out of Wuhan - a cesspool of 1960s acid rock filtered through the likes of 13th Floor Elevators, Suicide, and Spacemen3. Rounding out the fun are up-and-coming noise rockers Blue Liquid, out of Nantong, and Incentive Dry - a fever dream of brooding alt-rock, experimental electronica, bookish post-punk, theatrical cold wave, and then some. And this is just night one.
Yuyintang Park
Date: Sunday, 8pm
Address: B1/F, 1398 Yuyuan Lu | Address & Details
Price: 150rmb/person
Emo punk via Japan - four-piece ANORAK! join the resurgence of emo acts since the 2010s - tapping into the Midwest emo sound with a contemporary J-rock touch - with elements of hardcore, pop punk, hip hop, and more bleeding into their rugged scrappy palette. Performing alongside acts like Braid, Chinese Football, Forests, Tiny Moving Parts, Ratboys, DYGL, and more - the band has attracted quite a fanbase for their old school emotionally resonant tunes. Supporting the band on their tour are Suzhou’s Tengguang Agency who make the kind of instrumental rock we need more off - lean and compact - yet with the kind of high-wire math rock musicality that had my ears enraptured.
Bandai Namco Dream Hall
Date: Monday, 4pm
Address: 179 Yichang Lu | Address & Details
Price: 280-480rmb/person
Sound of the Youth - a new indoor festival spearheaded by Maybe Mars - looks to capture some of the hottest indie sounds - both here and abroad - over three days in Bandai Namco. It’s a pretty crazy lineup - the perfect deep dive into some of the pioneering indie sounds in China, the freshest new acts catching like wildfire across the country. Day two has two showcases unfolding simultaneously in Bandai Namco’s two venues - a downstairs/upstairs situation if you will. Set times are staggered, so for those games, you can hit up both venues and catch every act. And what a lineup - with the highlights for me being Xinxiang noise rock maniacs Colombia Cola joining acts like psychedelic outfit Cold Dew out of Taiwan, Xi’an post-punk acts Lur: and Jumping Goat, and Shanghai’s own Mumumu. Meanwhile, the big room brings out legacy acts like noise rock stalwarts Carsick Cars, electronic groove starters white +, post-punk torch bearers Lonely Leary, Kenya Time, and the mysterious Ocean And Midnight. Gonna be a long one.
trigger
Date: Monday ,3pm
Address: 350 Wuning Lu | Details
Price: 65rmb
trigger hosts its local crew of noise makers, experimental music explorers, and mischievous sound terrorizers this afternoon. On the docket, Ultracocker Shocking - the seemingly DJ-noise-mashup from Junky (aka Torturing Nurse) which has me perplexed and intrigued as ever - the multi-talented musical savant - Aming Liang - gleefully riding the edge between genius and insanity with his array of multi-ethnic instruments; the side project of Huang Lei aka GanzfeldLab that’s called YAMAHAHA and regular noise junkie Shu Ride. Expect to be shocked.
Bandai Namco Dream Hall
Date: Tuesday, 5:30pm
Address: 179 Yichang Lu | Details
Price: 280-360rmb/person
Sound of the Youth - a new indoor festival spearheaded by Maybe Mars - looks to capture some of the hottest indie sounds - both here and abroad - over three days in Bandai Namco. It’s a pretty crazy lineup - the perfect deep dive into some of the pioneering indie sounds in China, the freshest new acts catching like wildfire across the country. Day three closes out strong with two special guests - Swiss post-punk outfit Penkowski, and Singapore psych sound explorers The Observatory. Plus, Beijing indie rockers Birdstriking, evacuate Chengdu post-punk anthem builders Hiperson, and Xi’an electronica duo Catswimming (made up of members of Fazi). A heck of a closer.
VAS Livehouse
Date: Tuesday, 8:30pm
Address: 3/F, 19 Wanhangdu Lu | Details
Price: 198rmb
‘Gooey groovy fusion magic’ from Melbourne - MILDLIFE craft sun-baked psychedelic jazz that’s tailor-made to lift your spirits to the astral plane and get these feet moving. Recalling acts like Pink Floyd to Kool & the Gang - with a much more delicate touch - the band is equal parts virtuoso musicianship and atmospheric transcendence, capturing one euphoric high after another. The band is in town courtesy of New Noise - whose track record is spotless - so trust they have found another gem for you to indulge in.
SYSTEM
Date: Saturday, 10pm-late
Address: 3/F, 1329 Huaihai Zhong Lu | Details
Price: Presale: 108rmb, Group: 298rmb for 4
Raised in Australia and now splitting time between LA and London, AK SPORTS creates DJ sets and productions that mix rave and techno influences, drawing from both old and new styles. Featured on Beatportal's 'One to Watch' list and recognized by Dummy Mag as a standout emerging producer, AK’s music blends hard techno, trance, electro, breakbeat, psytrance, and 160+ BPM sounds. Known for spinning tracks that push boundaries and shift narratives, AK keeps it hard, fast, and energetic.
Abyss Club
Date: Sunday, 10:30pm-late
Address: B1/F, 151 Julu Lu | Details
Price: Presale: 110rmb/person, Door: 130rmb/person
Elen Payne, a Colombian-born, Berlin-based artist, co-owns Kindcrime Recordings and has been a key figure in shaping its underground aesthetic. For nearly a decade, she’s infused the label with her signature goth cyberpunk style, blending dark, futuristic elements with her eye for 3D and chromatic art. Her work often combines technology and emotion, drawing on themes of dystopia to create a sound that bridges the mechanical and organic worlds.
Celia by Pulse
Date: Monday, 11pm-late
Address: 154 Nanyang Lu | Details
Price: This event is by invitation only. For details, please add WeChat ID: lina-bobina or ID: oytunergun.
Although James Zabiela hasn’t released new material in recent years, he remains recognized in the electronic music scene for his technical expertise. His performances combine loops, effects, and live programming, creating a unique approach that he has taken on tours across the US, South America, Asia, and Europe. After spending a year refining his skills, Zabiela is back with his first remix compilation in five years. This project is part of a music series that has featured contributions from artists like James Holden, Joris Voorn, and Will Saul.
ALL Club
Date: Saturday
Address: 2/F, 17 Xiangyang Bei Lu | Details
Price: Presale: 120rmb/person
Pulse, founded in Chengdu in 2017 and now based in Shanghai, focuses on shaping contemporary popular culture. Over the years, it has organized and presented over a hundred events across cities such as Shanghai, Chengdu, Seoul, London, and Hong Kong. The organization has featured a wide range of international artists, including Thaiboy Digital, Skin On Skin, Coucou Chloe, Bulma, tzusing, Airmax 97, TSVI & Wallwork, Murlo, Mokyo, APACHI, Yurufuwa Gang, Mars89, JUN INAGAWA, ECEC, JUMADIBA, Nasthug, Co.kr, and DJ Ryota. For its seventh anniversary, Pulse will host TOHJI, a prominent figure in East Asian music. The Japanese artist, born in London, has gained recognition for his innovative approach, blending underground electronic music with Trap influences and thoughtful lyrics. Since his debut in 2017, TOHJI has gained significant attention for his contributions to Japanese and global music. The September 14th event in Shanghai will also feature BILLIONHAPPY, a notable name in Chinese Hyperpop and the avant-garde underground music scene. Additional performances will come from Pulse’s Cika Koo, 1ster, SilkBoi, and DJs Kilo-Vee and Jaya from the Genome label.
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