SS20 Interview

By Josh, 2011年 10月 28日

Fans of heavy music take note: Germany’s SS20 are coming back for their third tour of China. These guys have a strong connection to China’s fledgling punk and DIY scenes: their previous band, The 4 Sivits, toured the mainland back in 2007, and SS20’s drummer and singer helped local hardcore group Fanzui Xiangfa book a DIY European tour this past summer. SS20 also just released a split 10″ record with local favorites Demerit on Beijing’s Genjing Records. Having played with mostly punk bands before, SS20 is excited to expand to different scenes as they bring their unique blend of hardcore, grind, and metal to China this time around. Read on for more from Maik, SS20’s guitarist.

pangbianr: This is SS20’s third time to come to China. How did you 
initially become interested in playing here? How did your previous China
 tours come about?

SS20: Indeed that’s right, it’s our third time touring China. It’s always exciting for us to play on another continent and especially in China because it’s really far away from home and our familiar locations. Touring China gives us the possibility to reach another audience which would not be working only by the help of the internet – I think as a band you can only show your ability and inspire the audience by playing live. With our former band The 4 Sivits we played nearly all over Europe and in 2006 there was an inquiry via myspace if we want to make a tour in China!? By friends and connections of other bands we ended up in Wuhan and came upon Wa Ne – she organized our first tour in 2007. In the end, we just wanted to go further away to see unknown countries and get to know more about the scene over there. It’s always a great adventure, especially the food 😉

pbr: How do the shows/scene in China compare with Europe and other places 
you’ve performed?

SS20: We noticed that in China many people come to our gigs just because of curiosity, to see what’s happening – even people that obviously have no relation to punk… Maybe you can compare it with the years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. In East Germany there was only a small, clear punk scene compared to West Germany. And from one moment to the other, there was an enormous number of influences from the west. Everything was new, exciting and wanted to be discovered… Meanwhile this has changed, the audience in Europe is a little blunted. You’re just one of many bands, playing in your typical scene club for your typical scene audience – sometimes it seems they had all heard that before and look bored. Because of the wide range and the high offer it’s difficult for new bands to find their entry. The experienced concert-goers are often very critical and they also clearly show this. So there is really a noticeable difference between playing in China and Europe. For us it is really fascinating, refreshingly different.

pbr: You recently put together a European tour for the Beijing hardcore 
band Fanzui Xiangfa. What is your relationship with the band? How did that tour go?

SS20: We met Nevin and Adam [of Fanzui Xiangfa] on the 4 Sivits tour in 2007. They gave us a warm welcome, were a great support for us and we didn’t want it to remain at this one meeting. Especially [SS20 drummer] Rico kept in contact with Fanzui Xiangfa, this he does the best, besides playing drums Together with Rohnny (vocals) he organized the 2011 tour of FX by activating their contacts within Europe. It should be like in a good friendship – give and take, in the spirit of D.I.Y. The tour went well, they played shows in squats, clubs and hc/punk-festivals in central Europe. I think they enjoyed it and we were happy to play a part of the tour with them.

SS20 singer Rohnny with Nevin of Fanzui Xiangfa

pbr: The Beijing label Genjing Records (run by Nevin Domer of Fanzui
 Xiangfa) recently released a split 10″ vinyl record featuring SS20 and 
Beijing punks Demerit. How did that release come about?

SS20: A few new songs were finished and we wanted to release them on a split LP. For me it’s useful to release a split. Both bands can benefit – presenting themselves and the other band independently. After some thought we came to Demerit. We were in contact and it was important for us have an active band on board. In addition we have seen them live and liked it! For us, the music they make fits very well with ours.

 

Fanzui Xiangfa / SS20 split 7″ & Demerit / SS20 split 10″ available from Genjing Records

pbr: SS20 is a hardcore band but you seem to draw elements from many
 different forms of “extreme” music, including metal and grindcore, and 
your vocalist sounds like he could be in a death metal band. What are
 the band’s influences? Do different members bring different things to 
the sound?

SS20: Hahaha, I’m always surprised how our music is categorized. And very especially for me – most of the basic concepts for new songs are mine and I have almost no idea of metal or grindcore! So I think you are right: different members bring different things to the sound. Rico (drums), Madelaine (bass) and me (guitar), we have more a punk or hardcore background. Rohnny (vocals) and Marven (guitar) are more dedicated to metal and grind. This creates a balance which prevents that we are, or will be, a pure hardcore, metal, punk or grindcore band. By the way, we are pleased about being part of the “harder group” cause this was our goal from the beginning. Personally, I like to be inspired by the bands we are playing with. Listen to records recommended by friends, older ones I haven’t heard for a while or my all time favorites. And for the other members of the band it’s the same… We make sure that we don’t sound like a copy, which is hard enough because we do not invent the music – you will always find similar bands. The diversity of SS20 and the open musical direction makes the band interesting for me. How we develop remains open, our songs are not caused by any concept. Limits are only made by our ability (or talent) to play and of course our creativity…

pbr: The last two shows you’ve played in Beijing have been with
 predominately punk bands, such as Soju Legion. This time it seems you 
are playing with mostly metal/metalcore bands. What is the reason for
 this switch? It seems to me Beijing’s punk/metal/screamo scenes are
 pretty cliquey and segregated and there isn’t an obvious place where
 SS20 would fit in… is this also your feeling? What are your 
expectations for the upcoming tour?

SS20: One feedback we received after the last tour was that we had “played by.” We had been announced as “Punk and D-Beat”, which is surely a part or view of our life but, musically it’s a lot more mixed. We look forward to playing with Chinese metal bands, as well as with punk, hardcore or indie bands. In this way we can learn more about the different scenes existing and growing in China. So we are very open to it and welcome every, hopefully good, experience

SS20 is playing in Beijing on Sunday, November 20th at Mao Livehouse, but their extensive China-wide tour starts on October 29th in Nanjing. Find full dates in the flyer below and on the Genjing Records website.

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