Interview with No Name (Smallswords Magazine)

From Rock in China Wiki

No Name in February 2008, photo by Azchael

Interview with No Name (Smallswords Magazine)

Xi'an born, Beijing-based The No Name are a street punk band playing a Shanghai show at 4 Live, headlining the venue's "Young Beijing" party. Loud and fast, The No Name infuse Old School Punk with traditional Hardcore in the vein of American band The Casualties. As their MySpace page declares, they "enjoy wasting our life on fucking Punk ROCK, on DRUGS and BEER, it's fucking awesome." Their debut album on German label Razorblade Music (mixed and mastered in Germany) will be available on July 12.

Check out their MySpace page to hear some songs and watch video. After playing Shanghai, they are heading back to Beijing to play shows basically every week in July. For their Shanghai show, they are joined by The Life Journey and The Hedgehog.

This interview was conducted by our friends from the Small Swords Magazine in Shanghai.

Who is The No Name? Who is in the band and who plays what?

We're the No Name. Haha. An old school punk band from China. I'm Ray, the singer. The other members are R (bass/vox), Plute (guitar/vox) and Frank (drums).

What is the punk scene in Xi'an like?

It's very hard to play punk in Xi'an because it's a metal city. There's just one punk band. The No Name. haha. But we live in Beijing now.

What is your favorite place to play in Xi'an?

I think 8 1/2 Bar was a good place! But it's closed now.

What is your favorite city to play in China? Why?

I think Beijing is the best. In Beijing there are a lot of bands, venues and record labels.

What show on your tour are you looking forward to?

You know we recorded our record on a German label. So I hope we can go tour Europe this year or the start of next year.

How many beers can No Name finish in a single night?

Haha. Each of our band members can finish five. But if I'm feeling good I can drink you under the table. I'm the best drinker of our band. Haha.

Has there been a show that you've played that you remember as a good one? Why?

Last week at Star Live in Beijing was a good show because I think the venue is the best in China. Its really big and they have good equipment.

What is your favorite band in China? What are your favorite non-Chinese bands?

In China I think Brainfailure and Joyside are good. I like hardcore and street punk so I like any band playing this from wherever.

Your album gets released on July 12. What can fans expect? How can people buy the album?

I think our album is the first true old school punk album from China, I hope people will like it. It can be ordered over the internet at our label, Razorblade Music, or Punkcore in the U.S. and Badhead (a division of Beijing-based Modern Sky records) in China.

What do you think about punk in China?

It's so hard to make punk music here in the red land, but the bands will be stronger and better in the future. Already we've got lots of punk bands. It's good too!

What can people expect from The No Name in the future?

I hope more people will know our music and like us more. Maybe in September we'll have another China tour and then in October or November we will tour Europe.

About Small Swords Shanghai

Small Swords Shanghai is a webmagazine focussing on Shanghai and the local Shanghai rock scene introducing artists, checking out new cool places and posting monthly concert listings.

Founded in April 2007, Small Swords Magazine is an idea that emerged from a combination of individual urges, motivations and impulses on the part of its founders.

The name "Small Swords" references the Small Swords Society, a political organization that occupied Shanghai toward the end of the Qing Dynasty and launched a systematic takeover of the city's Chinese districts, at the same time strategically preserving the foreign concessions.

Although Small Swords Magazine does not share the militarism or political beliefs of its namesake, we do admire the society's bravery, kindness to Westerners, and most of all, its name.

Original post at Small Swords

---