Free Sound Records (Fu Sheng Chang Pian)
Got back from Beijing late Monday and when the wheels touched ground I heard Chuck Berry in my head right on cue (“oh well, oh well, I feel so good today…”). In truth, though, I would have gladly spent another few months.
So here’s the deal with record shopping in that enormous city – it ain’t easy because you can count the only worthwhile shops on one hand. If you’re looking for good, homegrown Chinese yaogun (rock), then, I’d recommend blowing all your RMB at Free Sound Records. It’s on the southeast corner of the Ping’anli intersection right there by the “guitar street” (where, if you’re like me, you’ll salivate over all the pipas, guzhengs, and erhus). Anyway, it’s a little nook but it’s got everything worth a Mandarin hoot. I went looking mostly for Xiao He, Wild Children, and other folk rock stuff, but came back not only with all that but also a whole sackful of other goodies from Cui Jian to Carsick Cars. The staff (two people) is beyond helpful, and I’ll always be grateful to them for not letting me leave without the full discography of Zhou Yunpeng, who I’m ready to start a fan club for.
(Fu Sheng Chang Pian, XiCheng District, Di An Men Xi Da Jie, No. 40 SE corner of Ping’anli intersection, 6613-6182. Again, that’s where Xinjiekou – “guitar street” – intersects with the intersection called Ping’anli. Ah, this feels so travel writer-ish.)