Since its inception in 2007, we have already expanded Acupuncture’s operations from events production & promotion into the booking agency, festival planning, and record label spheres, but now we are taking the next step to venture running our own club - Lantern.

Having always wanted a homebase of our own and to differ from the mainstream mega-nightclub scene that dominates the capital city’s nightlife, we have been working on this project for almost a year. When naming the club, I thought of the luminous power of a dream that shines through all the dark hardship we went through, and in keeping with Acupuncture’s Chinese tradition, I suggested calling the club Lantern.

All of us are committed to pushing and stretching the boundaries of electronic sound culture development, re-defining all past propaganda and rhetoric, and reviving life into Beijing’s electronic dance scene. Lantern lights up our dream, and we hope it does the same for everyone who shares this same passion.

As always, we intend to continue building on our popularity by consistently bringing over high caliber talent, while acting as an international exchange broker and platform for electronic music artists in China. It’s difficult to do so without a solid venue, but now we have Lantern….so look out!

We also want Lantern to become a hub for local and international artists/, where DJ-producers share decks and inspirations. We will select these many of these exchange sessions and put them into compilations and remix projects, releasing them worldwide on Acupuncture Records. The “label behind the club” concept has worked out well for European legendary clubs such as Tresor and Cocoon, and we hope Lantern will have a similar positive effect on furthering the development of a unique Beijing electronic sound that’s sent out into the world for all to enjoy.

We are also trying to establish a core multi-media arts and culture center based in this Sanlitun basement, offering DJ and VJ workshops, open decks sessions for newbies; transforming the club into a laboratory of sound study and experimentation by day.

Lantern will ring in a grand launch party this weekend, January 8th-9th, 2010, and already has a January/February calendar filled up with both international and local gigs.