Kou Zhengyu and his band Suffocated perform at the 330 Metal Music Festival in Beijing in 2014. (Photo provided to China Daily)
Kou Zhengyu was invited by his bar-owner friend Zhong Sheng to perform with his band, Suffocated, one spring more than a decade ago.
The Beijing-based trash metal band performed their gig on March 30, Kou's birthday, and impressed Zhong's customers at Lucky Bar. Some of Kou's other musician friends also played there that night. What started as entertainment for a few people in 2002 has developed into an annual music event since.
The following year, Kou treated his fans at the same bar to not just music but barbecue and beer as well. That was how 330 Metal Music Festival was launched. Since then it has been held at different locations in Beijing.
In its 14th year, the festival is now among China's main metal events, known for featuring exciting bands and providing free hotdogs to audiences.
This year's festival will witness 13 Chinese bands playing from afternoon through midnight on March 26. Besides veteran Chinese bands, including black metal group Spirit Trace and hard rock group Velvet Road, the festival will also serve as a platform for the country's young musicians from universities in Beijing to present their music.
"I feel proud about turning a personal party into a full-fledged event, which is enjoyed by metal fans in the country," says Kou, 37.
In 2014, held at Tango Club, another live-house venue in the city, the festival attracted more than 1,400 people, doubling the number from previous years. This year, it will be held at the same venue.
"Metal is not mainstream culture and was considered 'unhealthy', because of some perceptions associated with it－long-haired players, anger-filled lyrics and noisy sounds," Kou says. "But with more and more people being exposed to it, metal is now growing in China."
In 1997, he co-founded Suffocated with his brother, Liu Zheng, who is also the band's lead vocalist and bassist. The current lineup that includes guitarist Wu Peng and drummer Wu Gang was formed in 2005.
"At the beginning it was hard to make money from live performances but we didn't give up," he says, adding that even if they sold just six tickets for a show, they enjoyed playing for the few people gathered to listen to them.
"The most important part is to entertain yourself, whether playing onstage or while writing songs alone."
Kou and other band members always knew they could make a living with their music. But the real turnaround for them came only in 2010, when outdoor music festivals started to boom in China.
In 2012, the band also performed at the Wacken Open Air, one of the biggest heavy metal events in the world held annually in northern Germany. It was the first time for a Chinese metal band to perform at the festival. The same year, Suffocated also played on major TV channels, including CCTV, which raised their profile further.
One of the most prominent changes in China's metal scene in the past few years has been the use of traditional cultural elements in the music of many homegrown bands, rather than copying performances by Western bands.
At this year's festival, Chinese metal band Black Kirin will give their debut performance. Formed in 2012 in Changchun in Northeast China's Jilin province, the band, started by Fang Seng, a composing major from Shaanxi Normal University, released their songs online and won lots of fans for combining Peking Opera, Chinese folk music with heavy metal sounds.
Dream Spirit, another festival participant, shares a fervent love of ancient Chinese culture and integrates it into their lyrics and rhythms. Band members usually wear traditional clothes onstage, such as long robes and boots, which remind the audience of martial arts practitioners, a practice started by Tang Dynasty, among the country's oldest metal bands.
"I have been living with metal music for nearly 20 years. It brings me energy and hope. I don't know if I can still rock at age 60 but I'm sure more young people will join me in future," says Kou.
If you go
3:30 pm-11:30 pm, March 26. Tango Club, 79 Hepingli (West Street), Dongcheng district, Beijing. 400-610-3721.
