Techno made in China
Yes - there are great DJ's in the biggest country of the world. I decided to continue to introduce electronic sounds from the world also here on Hive - I used to have series for Dance Weekend and Techno Friday covering a lot scenes across Europe and Asia - China is new now.
Mei Yuxin aka Temple Rat
So please meet Mei Yuxin aka Temple Rat.
Mei is different and making waves in China's underground club scene. She's played raves on the Great Wall of China, in temples in Japan, and to a global audience on Boiler Room. Her music is a unique blend of techno and a traditional Chinese instrument called the erhu.
I watched a video where she explained to be different trying to combined traditional chinese culture with modern sounds she likes - I personally will make sure to see her play live. Thanks to Boiler Room to make her known amongst us European folks.
Getting to know her please read the "official" biog from RA aka Resident Advisor - for the non Techno folks the best source for Electronic Music DJ's:
Mei grew up near the vibrant megacity Chengdu in the lush Western China Sichuan Basin. At the age of 9, she began to learn the traditional Chinese Erhu, a genuinely mysterious folk instrument, two-stringed, played with a bow and made from carved wood and snakeskin, sometimes known in the Western world as the Chinese violin or the Chinese two-stringed fiddle.
Inspired by her passion for the electronic music scene of Chengdu’s hyped underground, Mei started to fuse traditional Chinese folk music with minimalistic techno tunes:“I usually start my sets by playing the Erhu alone, to create a sense of space, mystery and surprise among my audience. Then, gradually, I add electronic and industrial sounds to fill the space, slowly bringing my audience on an emotional journey, producing a unique kind of atmosphere.”
Mei steadily improved her skills to express a unique blend of live Erhu performances with 4x4 electronic beats. She eventually started to perform as Temple Rat from 2015 on culminating in her much-praised performance in Shanghai’s 2019 Boiler Room.
Her music is influenced by sparks of the natural and religious environment she grew up in, ancient oriental rhythms as well as by her favorite 90’s ACID elements. In 2017 she released her first EP on ADE China Pavilion Records and from 2019 on Mei collaborates with Tokyo producer Ryogo Yamamori with whom she released her latest EP on Kagerou Records which is available on Beatport and Itunes etc.
“I believe that music is alive, like a tree, rooted in the soil of your heritage.”
So far her musical career has brought her to cities all over China and major European festivals like the Château Perché Festival (France), the Summer Story Festival (Spain) and the ADE (Netherlands). Mei has recently performed live sets for Carnival Bizarre at KitKat Club Berlin, the Boiler Room Shanghai edition, Block FM Tokyo and the RedLightRadio Amsterdam.
