Carsick Cars

Carsick Cars, described as A nervy, consonant euphoria, by Jon Pareles from New York Times, originally consisted of Shou Wang on vocals, guitar, and loops, Li Qing on percussion, and Li Weisi on bass guitar. The band was formed in March, 2005, when Shou Wang, a student at the Beijing Institute of Technology, met Li Weisi and Li Qing at the rehearsal space of mutual friends. By May, they had performed their first concert at a party for a small group of friends, and Carsick Cars was performing in Beijing clubs by the end of that year.

Their first CD was recorded in the spring of 2007 and was produced by legendary P.K.14 frontman Yang Haisong. Their sound, influenced by the drone of Velvet Underground, Suicide, and Sonic Youth and the formal structures of Steve Reich and Glenn Branca, is a combination of brilliantly-textured roar and hard open chords that are used to explore and tear apart their beautifully crafted songs. Their expert songwriting has gained the group a large fanbase among Beijing musicians and the position as one of the most frequently covered artists in China.
As befits what is one of the most admired Chinese bands in the world, Carsick Cars has performed widely in China and abroad. In addition to packing clubs in every major city in China, Carsick Cars also toured Europe with Sonic Youth, who described Carsick Cars as their favorite band in China. Following their London show, the band was invited to perform at the Steirischer Herbst Festival in Austria in October 2007, and at London ”All Tomorrow’s Parties” in May 2008.