The band, QianChuan Drugstore (pronounced chi-an-ch-wan), is comprised of six members, where most of the members of attended the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Last year in 2019, the band released their first album, “Blurry Century” focusing on the theme of “Time, Era”. Upon its release, many of the songs from the album were also selected by a variety of music bloggers as one of their best new songs of the month.
Before the album was released, QianChuan Drugstore took their thoughts to Weibo explaining their album production process. They said, "We hope our work can have at least a little impact on this society or even a small group of people."
Behind the Music is a Q & A series that follows mainly new bands in efforts to show the lives behind the music-making. This issue of Behind the Music features QianChuan Drugstore to talk about some fan-favorite questions.
我们都是旧世与当下世代的一份子
We are all a part of the old and current generations.
Meet The Band
A Zhi《阿指》 Bass
Ni Qi《倪奇》 Drummer
Xu Tong《旭瞳》 Guitar
Hai Yang《海洋》 Lead Vocal
An An《安安》 Lead Vocal
Zhi Da《志达》 Trumpet
Q&A
If you had to choose a song to introduce your own band to a first-time listener, which one would you choose and why?
A Zhi: "Serving the Residents”《住民的侍奉》, because it is the song with the best instrumentals.
Hai Yang: "Serving the Residents”《住民的侍奉》. This song probably has the most potential to be well-received by an audience. The arrangement shows a lot and the melody is easy to listen to.
Ni Qi: "The New Generation’s Myth"《新世代的神话》is a song that points out society’s issues and wishes for a change for the better. If you like this song, you should like our band as well.
Xu Tong: "The New Generation’s Myth"《新世代的神话》is the song I feel most comfortable with.
An An: "Underground Principles" 《地下法则》is a song that is super fun to sing along to, and I like it because I enjoy music that conveys strong emotions.
Zhi Da: "Get Together of the Pyscho Era"《精神病患的时代聚会》because it is one of my favorite songs.
What do you like to wear for performances?
A Zhi: Dress shirts
Ni Qi: T-shirts
Xu Tong: I have never worn it for a show, but I would like to wear a designer costume for every show!
Hai Yang: Black clothing
An An: I don't have a fixed preference
Zhi Da: Whatever I feel like
What do you do backstage while waiting for a show to start?
A Zhi: I drink some wine, chat, familiarize myself with the environment, warm my hands, and try to stay calm. I take preparation and sound checks seriously and try not to think too much about being nervous.
Ni Qi: I try to find good food or listen to the songs we are about to perform. I get nervous about going blank during the performance.
Xu Tong: I like to listen to others chat and also drink a little alcohol before the performance. I also like being an audience member to listen and learn from the other bands that are performing.
Hai Yang: I play on my phone or chat with others to keep calm. Occasionally, we discuss band logistics or talk about other topics such as creative inspiration. Overall, our band is like any other group of friends hanging together. Most of our band members are not too fond of drinking alcohol or bars and nightclubs. For the most part, we like to stay clean. I hope that by saying this we won’t accidentally lose any fans!
An An: I play on my phone while listening to our demo on repeat so that I won’t make any mistakes in the show.
Zhi Da: Nothing really. If I am waiting for a rehearsal or recording, I usually have to warm-up because I am a brass musician. Otherwise, I would chat or check my phone.
What animal best describes the band?
A Zhi: Pigeon
Ni Qi: Polar bear
Xu Tong: Gorilla
Hai Yang: Tapir
An An: Badger
Zhi Da: None
How has your living environment affected your music?
A Zhi: Beijing is a cultural city and a place that can bring my music ideas to life. I also think I was fortunate to learn to understand music.
Ni Qi: I am a university student and live in a medium-sized city. Because of this, I think the growth in my music is very "rustic" and gives me the power to feel original.
Xu Tong: I haven't lived in another city [outside of Beijing] yet. This city has influenced me my whole life. As for college, it has given me the opportunity to explore things like music.
Hai Yang: The experience of studying at Central Academy of Fine Arts has greatly influenced my creativity and made me think more about the meaning of art itself. Furthermore, Beijing is undoubtedly one of the most culturally inclusive and diverse cities in China, so I can discover many new things every day. I feel lucky to have lived in Beijing all this time.
An An: I have been playing for bands when I was at the Central Academy of Fine Arts as well as in high school. Later, I felt more and more that a band was like a faith that has nothing to do with music styles or what not, but rather, is a way to support the mind and heal oneself.
Zhi Da: I don’t think my living environment has too much influence. What I like to do will only be affected by my own preferences. The environment does not have an effect on me, because I only care about the music I listen to.
What do you like to do other than music?
A Zhi: Playing basketball, riding my motorcycle
Ni Qi: Cooking
Xu Tong: I appreciate other art forms such as animation
Hai Yang: I create art
An An: I also create art
Zhi Da: Watching TV or Tik Tok, playing Mobile Legends
What are three things you can't live without?
A Zhi: My phone, headphones, food
Ni Qi: Cats, oyster sauce, shoes
Xu Tong: My table, my chair, my brain
Hai Yang: My phone, headphones, books
An An: Money, WiFi, Cats
Zhi Da: Money, my phone, the trumpet
Do the band members like similar or different music styles? How has this affected the band's creative process and your results?
A Zhi: Similar but slightly different, so when we make music our inputs are merged and agreed upon.
Ni Qi: Different, but I don't really want us to become the same. I personally think that what I like does not have to be used in the band.
Xu Tong: There are differences which sometimes influence our process. There are some examples in our song "Underground Principles" that you can listen for!
Hai Yang: It's quite different, but there are still some similarities. I think it's a good thing that everyone's preferences are different. Having our own opinions can help us avoid being too routine or formulaic.
An An: It's a little different, but generally speaking, there are still many similarities that allow us to have fun together.
Zhi Da: It is definitely different. Generally speaking, our differences don’t directly affect our process but will still help us create new ideas.
If you can choose any other band to perform with you, which one would you choose?
A Zhi: Red Hot Chili Peppers
Ni Qi: Pink Floyd
Xu Tong: Burzum
Hai Yang:
Re-TROS (重塑雕像的权利)
An An: Paramore
Zhi Da: No Party for Cao Dong (草东没有派对)
What is your least favorite thing or struggles with the band?
A Zhi: Sometimes our opinions will clash while means we usually have to compromise with each other.
Ni Qi: Communication, because it is quite difficult to be able to speak and express your own ideas clearly to someone else.
Xu Tong: Time is limited, space is limited. We have to use most of the time to get in repetitions, meaning that there is no time for nonsense. Because of this, I feel that there is no fun in the beginning.
Hai Yang: The most troublesome thing is that everyone in the band has lives outside of music where they are busy with work and other things. It is difficult to gather everyone even for a short period of time, so the creative process is actually quite bumpy. We rarely finish a song quickly and smoothly. I always have to take the time to polish our work slowly too. This situation may affect our creativity, but I hope it will become smoother in the future.
An An: Although I’m the lead singer, my guitar playing is not great, so sometimes I am not as
quick as other members when creating a new song.
Zhi Da: I am a peaceful person, so I'm not particularly troubled by a lot.
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