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Band To Watch #120: The Good China @ There Goes The Fear (UK)
"Recently I stumbled across a band from the far stretches of Australia. This Aussie 8 piece goes by the name of ‘The Good China’.
Being compared to early ‘Architecture in Helsinki’ TGC are upbeat, uplifting and irresistibly charming, they also offer moments as cooled and chilled as cult pioneers ‘The Postal Service’.
Yes there may be eight people in the band but lead single ‘All nothing’ is a breath of fresh air to the music scene at the moment. Lyrics about being a three year old are not just witty but add a certain depth to the song that you can’t help but like. With the introduction of the violin and various other instruments ‘All Nothing’ soon becomes infectious summer pop you can’t shake from your head.
After forming during the close of summer 2008, the Melbourne based band have received extensive radio play, self-produced and released their debut demo. (including selling over 300 copies) and have performed at various festivals. With such a promising start to their career after a short space of time it looks like TGC may well be in for an eventful few years.
The Good China are ‘toe tapping-handing clapping’ their way into our lives. Watch out for them in the future, as they have certainly just become my new favourite band and if you like quirky violins, subtle guitar, witty lyrics and a sheer passion for something that sits so effortlessly into the music scene ‘The Good China’ will be a sure fire hit with you also."
source: http://www.theregoesthefear.com/2009/04/bands-to-watch-108-the-good-china.phpThe Good China: Happy with the China Interview w/ SleepWalking Magazine (Italy)
I don’t know what’s up with Australia. The fact iiiiis, that that crazy country keeps on baking for us such mavellous and cleaver and cute indie bands. Wanna a proof? Go and check “The Good China”, Melbourne. The band is so crowded and full of good and various musicians, that was really easy to compare their songs to early Arkitecture in Helsinki. Are they suitable with this paragon? Let’s ask to the band.
Mark Zonda: How did you decided to form a band, and why “The Good China”?
Nicko: All credit here goes to Cara Lanyon, keyboardist, singer and founder of The Good China. In early 2008 she put a message out on an online Melbourne band forum searching for like-minded musos to form a new indie group. Having never met each other, we arranged a blind date where we all got along surprisingly well.
I think Cara ambitiously chose so many of us because she initially expected members to lose interest and drop off, but we’ve all gelled and aren’t going anywhere! With regards to the name “The Good China”, the meaning often gets confused. It has no political connotations whatsoever, but rather refers to good crockery like what your nan has locked away in her glass cabinet in the living room. And your nan will always bring out the good china for her best guests. Further to that, in Australia, rhyming slang for “mate” is “china plate”. Which makes “good china” a slang term for “good mate”. So we figured it was suitable, plus on top of that we can prefix everything with the word “China”, for example; China-party, China-house, China-merch, and my favourite, Chine-o-mite!
Mark Zonda: The Indie Scene is growing very quickly in Australia, blessing us with very brand new cool bands. Who are your favourite artists?
Nicko: It’s great to be a part of the Melbourne indie scene; there are so many bands that we’ve had the opportunity to play with and many more to come I hope! Some of our favourite artists are those which we’ve had the chance to play with, including “Sierra Fin”, “Plastic Palace Alice”, “Hoshi in the Clouds”, “Spun Rivals”, “Hercules in NY” and “Institut Polaire”.
Mark Zonda: Tracks like “All nothing” are pure joy. Arrangements are very wide and rich of instruments and ideas. Which artists inspire you? Does songs like that still born from just a guitar in a room?
Nicko: I find the most inspirational stuff comes from artists that are creating something refreshing and unique. A few that come to mind are “Sufjan Stevens”, “Beirut”, “Danananananaykroyd” and “The Postal Service”. One time when feeling particularly creative, Adam (our main drummer) and I attempted to write music spontaneously, simply by bringing a range of different ideas together and playing them over and over. I often use a Loop Station pedal when writing to get ideas down by layering parts on top of each other. Vocal melodies were developed by shouting at each other randomly whilst playing (before any lyrics were written). Essentially this was how “All Nothing” initially came to being! We brought the chord chart into rehearsal for the rest of the band and they just made it sound incredible. It’s a fun process.
Mark Zonda: Do you feel comfortable with those people comparing you to “Architecture in Helsinki”? What do you have in common with them?
Nicko: We’re both from Melbourne; we both have lots of members and lots of instruments. So it’s an easy connection for people to make. I don’t see a problem with the comparison; I absolutely loved “In Case We Die” and they’re an incredibly talented and entertaining band to see live.
Mark Zonda: Does “A million little pieces” born from real life or is it pure fiction?
Ryan: It started with a friend of mine saying I was always intent on making myself a martyr in arguments and the words came from there. Like any songs about arguments it’s not what happened that counts, it’s the interpretation; which is, in part, where the title comes from.
source: http://www.sleepwalkingmag.com/2009/04/22/the-good-china/
The Good China, Institut Polaire & Travis Marke @ The Empress 01/05/09
"By the time that Institut Polaire were finished, the punters were definitely hungry for more musicianship from the headlining act, and the tiny Empress venue was completely jam packed.
The background of The Good China’s MySpace is very fitting. It’s one of those old-school paper doll sets (for those kids whose parents wouldn’t buy Transformers or Littlest Pet Shop toys for them), with a male and female doll. There are face cutouts for each of the eight (yes, another eight-piece) members, and there are instrument cutouts. It’s so fitting, not because they sort of look like they’re heads don’t quite sit right on their bodies or that they resemble paper, but because they were swapping instruments during their entire set. Violinist Quyen showed off her awesome violin pizzicato skills whilst flirting with a tamborine between choruses on All Nothing, then skipped over to keys for the next song and sang a pitch perfect intro for another track. The keyboardist sang, and even jumped on the skins, whilst the drummer was down the front singing and strumming his heart out. One punter called it, ‘Musical incest, but in a good way’. The Good China also played 39 Black, Turn The Page and their encore, Maple Leaves. If FasterLouder had a star-rating system, this reviewer would definitely give The Good China a ten upon ten.
Travis Marke opened the night with his unpretentious and often comical set (he actually burped into the mircophone accidentally), Institut Polaire wowed the crowd with their musicianship and The Good China really rocked everyone’s socks."
source: http://www.fasterlouder.com.au/reviews/events/18245/The-Good-China-Institut-Polaire-Travis-Marke--The-Empress-Hotel-Melbourne-010509.htmSierra Fin, Plastic Palace Alice, The Good China & The Mischief @ The Evelyn 17/04/09
"Next off the chopping block were Melbourne’s The Good China with their indie pop sound. They won the AIR New Music Prize at the 2009 St Kilda Festival which will see them play the stage at St Kilda Festival in 2010. The eight piece band amaze many punters tonight with a plethora of instruments including, violin, banjo and melodica (gotta love this instrument), the band fill every orifice with floaty, groovy, happy, folk rock tunes. We are kept on our toes by band members moving around to play each other’s instruments. The show is very enjoyable and includes songs 39 Black, Window Seat and Turn the Page. The set ends on a collective noise and we’re left wondering how much better can the next band be."
source: http://www.fasterlouder.com.au/reviews/events/18073/Sierra-Fin--The-Evelyn-Hotel-Melbourne-170409.htm
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