Chui Wan Brings Death + Taxes

Chinese Psych Band 

North American Tour Begins in May

Drawing from mystical philosophies from Daoist Zhuangzi’s Qi Wu Lun (齐物论), Beijing’s experimental psych-rockers Chui Wan (吹万), just previewed their epic self-titled sophomore release on Death + Taxes. 

On Chui Wan, the focus is less on the unbridled, reverb-drenched inflections of White Night, drawing more from the band’s wide palette of influences, including Sufi music, Southeast Asian folk tunes, and 20th-century avant grade composition. With confident, driving rhythm, they aim to embody a pop-influenced idiom of rock music, creating their own musical language in the process. Beyond the infectious melodic hooks on Chui Wan lies a near-constant fluctuation of beat and tempo, a deliberate maneuver calculated to create a simultaneous sense of fluidity and disjuncture.

Chui Wan‘s guest musicians also contribute significantly to the album’s distinct temperament. You can hear the trademark noise guitar wails of psychedelic free improv master Li Jianhong on the album’s closing track, “Beijing Is Sinking”. The album also contains a hidden gift: a remix of the second track, “Estivation”, by Dead J, one of Beijing’s most established and progressive electronic music producers. Dead J’s “Estivation” remix is a minimal, ambient, rhythmically more angular take on the original.

Inspired by the concept of seeking the infinite from the mundane, the core of Chui Wan’s sound is formed by the improvisational compositions of multi-instrumentalist Yan Yulong and guitarist Liu Xinyu. Their lush arrangements for guitar, keyboard, viola, other assorted instruments, and random sound samples often eschew reliable melodies and vocal harmonies in favor of occasional passages of minimal drone or maximal sonic layerings. Bassist Wu Qiong and drummer Li Zichao provide a stable ground floor from which the band can continually float away, like a sound half-heard and soon gone on a gust of wind.

Ahead of the Maybe Mars album release date of May 1, Chui Wan is gearing up for Spring tours across North America and Asia, and a third Europe in the Fall.  Dates below.

Tour Dates:

5/1: Berkeley, CA @ Starry Plough

5/2: Los Angeles, CA @ HM157

5/3: Long Beach, CA @ Alex’s Bar

5/4: Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom

5/5: Salt Lake City, UT @ Diabolical Records

5/6: Denver, CO @ Hi-Dive

5/7: Madrid, NM @ Mine Shaft Tavern 

5/9: Austin, TX @ Elevation Amphitheater (River Stage)

5/10: Tulsa, OK @ The Fur Shop

5/11: St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway

5/12: Columbus, OH @ Double Happiness

5/13: Philadelphia, PA @ Ortlieb’s

5/14: Boston, MA @ Club Bohemia

5/15: New York, NY @ Baby’s Alright

5/16: Cleveland, OH @ Mahall’s

5/17: Chicago, IL @ Burlington Bar

5/18: Minneapolis, MN @ Turf Club

5/19: Winnipeg @ West End Cultural Center

5/22: Saskatoon @ Vangelis

5/23: Calgary @ National Music Center

5/24: Edmonton @ Wunderbar

5/26: Vancouver, BC @ Biltmore Cabaret (Tame Impala After Party)

5/27: Seattle, WA @ Lo-Fi

5/28: Portland, OR @ Foggy Notion

5/29: Nevada City, CA @ Cooper’s

5/30: Los Angeles, CA @ Cafe Nela

5/31: Los Angeles, CA @ The Grand Star Jazz Club

6/1: San Francisco, CA @ Brick & Mortar