In 2019, Montreal/Beijing duo Gong Gong Gong 工工工 delivered globetrotting no wave on their debut full-length album, Phantom Rhythm 幽靈節奏. They're homing in on their Chinese roots with a new remix album, Phantom Rhythm Remixed, which is due for release on June 25 via Wharf Cat Records/bié Records.
Each of the 10 remixes finds a different electronic artist with ties to China giving beat-heavy interpretations of the original album's rickety, percussion-less rock tracks, transforming Tom Ng's guitars and vocals and Joshua Frank's bass into myriad new forms.
Paying tribute to their Chinese-Canadian origins, the first remix revealed from the album is courtesy of Kaifeng-born, Vancouver-based producer and bié Records founder Yu Su. "Some Kind of Demon 某一種惡魔 (Yu Su Midnight Express Dub)" finds Yu Su chopping up Ng's vocals before dousing them in reverb and placing them atop lightly vaporwaved synths and bass.
Said Frank in a press release, "Yu Su was the first person to send us a Phantom Rhythm remix. She worked on it after finishing a tour that went all across China — which was also when we met. The pandemic had just started to get severe outside of China, and Yu Su was stuck at home in Kaifeng, while I was stuck in my apartment in New York."
The track's accompanying video features footage of Gong Gong Gong's 2018 tour of China.
"I decided to go into Gong Gong Gong's archives, taking DV camera footage shot by our friend Liu Che Chun on one of Gong Gong Gong's China tours in 2018," Frank said. "I liked the sense of optimism and nostalgia in the footage, and how Gong Gong Gong's raw energy in the performances still fit together with Yu Su's subtle and melodic reworking of our track. At a time when travel is impossible for most people, Tom and I want to give people a glimpse of what touring in China is like, and a preview of what's to come for Gong Gong Gong!"
Watch the "Some Kind of Demon 某一種惡魔 (Yu Su Midnight Express Dub)" video below, and keep scrolling for more info on Phantom Rhythm Remixed.
Phantom Rhythm Remixed:
1. Ride Your Horse 騎你的馬 (P.E. Remix)
2. Inner Reaches III 慾望的暗角三 (Zaliva-D Remix)
3. Notes Underground 地下日記 (Mong Tong Remix)
4. Moonshadows 月後殘影 (Simon Frank Remix)
5. The Last Note 最後的音符 (Angel Wei Remix)
6. Sound of Love 愛歌 (Knopha Remix)
7. Gong Gong Gong Blues 工工工布魯斯 (Howie Lee Remix)
8. Some Kind of Demon 某一種惡魔 (Yu Su Remix)
9. Hotpot (Chongqing) 火鍋（重慶) (Scattered Purgatory Remix)
10. Wei Wei Wei 喂喂喂 (Wu Zhuoling Remix)
Pre-order Phantom Rhythm Remixed.
Each of the 10 remixes finds a different electronic artist with ties to China giving beat-heavy interpretations of the original album's rickety, percussion-less rock tracks, transforming Tom Ng's guitars and vocals and Joshua Frank's bass into myriad new forms.
Paying tribute to their Chinese-Canadian origins, the first remix revealed from the album is courtesy of Kaifeng-born, Vancouver-based producer and bié Records founder Yu Su. "Some Kind of Demon 某一種惡魔 (Yu Su Midnight Express Dub)" finds Yu Su chopping up Ng's vocals before dousing them in reverb and placing them atop lightly vaporwaved synths and bass.
Said Frank in a press release, "Yu Su was the first person to send us a Phantom Rhythm remix. She worked on it after finishing a tour that went all across China — which was also when we met. The pandemic had just started to get severe outside of China, and Yu Su was stuck at home in Kaifeng, while I was stuck in my apartment in New York."
The track's accompanying video features footage of Gong Gong Gong's 2018 tour of China.
"I decided to go into Gong Gong Gong's archives, taking DV camera footage shot by our friend Liu Che Chun on one of Gong Gong Gong's China tours in 2018," Frank said. "I liked the sense of optimism and nostalgia in the footage, and how Gong Gong Gong's raw energy in the performances still fit together with Yu Su's subtle and melodic reworking of our track. At a time when travel is impossible for most people, Tom and I want to give people a glimpse of what touring in China is like, and a preview of what's to come for Gong Gong Gong!"
Watch the "Some Kind of Demon 某一種惡魔 (Yu Su Midnight Express Dub)" video below, and keep scrolling for more info on Phantom Rhythm Remixed.
Phantom Rhythm Remixed:
1. Ride Your Horse 騎你的馬 (P.E. Remix)
2. Inner Reaches III 慾望的暗角三 (Zaliva-D Remix)
3. Notes Underground 地下日記 (Mong Tong Remix)
4. Moonshadows 月後殘影 (Simon Frank Remix)
5. The Last Note 最後的音符 (Angel Wei Remix)
6. Sound of Love 愛歌 (Knopha Remix)
7. Gong Gong Gong Blues 工工工布魯斯 (Howie Lee Remix)
8. Some Kind of Demon 某一種惡魔 (Yu Su Remix)
9. Hotpot (Chongqing) 火鍋（重慶) (Scattered Purgatory Remix)
10. Wei Wei Wei 喂喂喂 (Wu Zhuoling Remix)
Pre-order Phantom Rhythm Remixed.