Who's who at Spectacles of Sound's micro-festival Festivus

Spectacles of Sound – the promoters behind appearances in Shanghai from Iceage, Heems, Lydmor and (just last month) Cafe Lanai among many others – are putting on what they describe as ‘a micro-festival for the rest of us’ this Friday at On Stage in Red Town.

Not familiar with the names on the bill? Here’s the lowdown on who'll be providing the beats of strength while you dance around the Festivus pole:

With releases on the renowned Ghostly International label, American producer Shigeto ploughs a similar sonic furrow to the likes of stablemates Tycho and Com Truise, serving up ambient electronica laced with live drums. It’s the sort of music that could almost be labelled ‘chillwave’, if it wasn’t for that being such a maligned tag and for the fact that there’s a more diverse range of influences at work in Shigeto’s soundscapes.

Braids make a welcome return to China after packing out Yuyintang back in 2015. The Canadian trio released two atmospheric, slow-burning albums before their sound took on more of a pop sheen with the release of 2015’s Deep in the Iris. The LP’s piano-driven tunes, founded on skittering, almost drum ‘n’ bass-like beats, made up the entirety of their set the last time they visited, but don’t be surprised if they try out some new material in Shanghai on this occasion.

While Shigeto and Braids qualify as the main headliners for Festivus, whatever you do, don’t turn up late or you’ll risk missing out on some supremely talented opening acts. One of these is Nonku Phiri, a South African artist specialising in brilliant, darkly soulful RnB-infused electronic music. While she only has a handful of singles under her own name, Phiri has been contributing to tracks from some of her homeland’s most prominent producers and rappers for a while now and her burgeoning solo career is one to get excited about.

One of Shanghai-based singer, producer and DJ ChaCha’s alter-egos, Faded Ghost is the name under which the Guizhou-born artist conjures up trip hop-laced experimental beats, as well as helming Red Bull Music Academy Radio’s Scenery:Shanghai series. As ChaCha says of the project, there are ‘no set rules or styles, often resulting in unpredictable and surprising results’.

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