Tian Qiyi is truly genre-defying and one of the most unique sounds I’ve heard in recent years. Formed of brothers John Tian Qi Wardle and Charlie Tian Yi Wardle with their father JAH WOBBLE guest performing on bass, Tian Qiyi merge traditional Chinese music with post-punk, dub, and experimental jazz. That only covers half of it! Never before has the phrase “cultural melting pot” been used more accurately. The London-based brothers released their debut album ‘Red Mist’ last year. With their new album ‘Songs for Workers’ just released, Tian Qiyi has entered a new era and a new blend of cultures.
‘Watch The Sunrise’ is the lead single. It blends Chinese yangqin with a meld of Chinese and Mongolian strings and instrumentation. The wooden percussion has a dub swing, and the vocals have an ethereal yet alternative tone to them. Tian Qiyi have said this is their most accessible and easiest to navigate track from the album, with defined verses and choruses. Speaking about the song’s lyrics, Charlie said:
“Lyrically, I wanted to explore spiritual, mainly Buddhist ideas. In ‘Watching The Sunrise’, with night turning to day and dark to light, we understand there is an interdependence necessary in order for either word to hold any conceptual meaning. Similarly, I wanted to explore the interdependence between life and death, rationality and faith, and the role of the ego, perception and the idea of a self/non self within this.”
The folk fusion is superb, and since discovering this track, I’ve had it on repeat. Enjoy the single, and if this grabs your attention like it grabbed mine, head over to Bandcamp to get the album. I’m just about to do the same, so expect a review to arrive in the coming weeks,
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